Chapter 8: The Great Escape.
Adam’s POV
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"Hey Nove."
"Yes, Alper."
"How long have I been walking?"
"Precisely about 6 hours and 17 minutes."
WELL, IT CERTAINLY FELT LIKE IT!
I had been walking in this section of the cave for what felt like an eternity. It started with an ascent, then a descent, a detour to the side, a loop around, another ascent and descent. And whatnot. It felt like I was on a roller coaster ride, except I was walking through it.
I came across some bats that I killed, but they weren't considered monsters, so I couldn't get any nexus blood or cores. However, I could keep them as emergency food. Although I had regenerated a significant amount of NEP by now, the Terra mend passive was truly effective—well, if you consider the fact that I had to wear shoes made out of dirt and stone for it to activate.
Regardless, I now had a whopping 470 NEP points, a bit more than half my total NEP pool. So, of course, I extracted some more weird-looking ores, but I couldn't do anything with them at the moment, so I left them in my inventory. Now, it was time to test out my active abilities since I had NEP to spare.
After trying out the abilities once, the info window got suddenly got upgraded. I checked with Nove, and she said it changed because she now had all the details for the update. Since all information is being shown by Nove, if Alper was clueless about these abilities so was Nove. So Nove had to learn on the fly, and here's what we got.
Earthen Grasp (Lvl: 1)
Description: Allows the user to temporarily enhance their hand grip or standing stability, useful for resisting pushes, pulls, or maintaining balance on uneven terrain
Duration: 60 seconds
NEP Cost: 3
Cooldown time: 20 seconds (After buff ends)
Petrifying Strike (Lvl: 1)
Description: Allows the user to deliver a strike that temporarily petrifies a small area of an opponent upon impact, slowing their movements.
Power: 10 damage
Slow rate: 30% damaged part of body, 10% on full body
Duration: 5 seconds
NEP Cost: 8
Cooldown: 10 seconds
Stone Shield (Lvl: 1)
Description: Creates a temporary protective stone shield on any part of the user, absorbing a portion of incoming physical damage when activated.
Shield Health: 40 HP
Number of shields at one time: 1
Duration: 20 seconds
NEP Cost: 10
Cooldown: 12 Seconds (After skill ends or all shields break)
Sticky Web (Lvl: 1)
Description: Allows the user in creating and utilizing sticky webs for various purposes and can be used on enemies to slow them down.
Slow: 15%
Duration: 2 seconds
NEP Cost: 2
Cooldown: n/a
Alright, so here's the lowdown on these skills. Earthen Grasp turns me into a real-life Spider-Man minus the spandex suit – stronger grip and stability, but sadly, no web-swinging shenanigans.
Petrifying Strike, on the other hand, is the black sheep. It's like, "Hey, punch someone to petrify them!" But, oops, can't use it with my trusty spear. Imagine trying to stone someone but having to rely on a fist bump – not my cup of tea.
Now, Stone Shield is the MVP – it slaps a mini stone shield on me, like a medieval superhero with questionable fashion choices. Meanwhile, Sticky Web is my go-to trapper, with no cooldown. It's like setting up my own little sticky surprise party for unwelcome guests.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
And here's the fun part: Nove says these skills have levels. To level up, I need Nexus blood of the same star tier as the Core node that's doing the magic. So, to level up the Stone Shield, I gotta find a monster with the 2 star tier rank, just like the Stone core node.
As I strutted through the cave, spear in hand, I stumbled upon a fork in the road – left or right, the eternal question. Feeling a bit cheeky, I made a smirk.
"Alright, Nove, watch and learn. You're about to witness some Grade-A adventurer moves," I boasted.
With a dramatic flourish, I dashed down the left path, my imaginary car zooming through the underground tunnels. Surprisingly, the route was eerily quiet, devoid of any monsters. I took the 90-degree turn at the end with a theatrical screech, fully embracing my newfound role as the cave's speed demon.
As I swaggered around the bend, feeling all confident like the king of the cave, I stumbled upon a bone-chilling sight – literally. There it was, a colossal horse-like creature made out of bones, its skeletal frame looming ominously under the light of my spear. Red tendrils snaked around its bony form like some twisted anatomy lesson gone wrong.
With a sinking feeling, I quickly stashed my glowing spear away – not exactly the stealthiest accessory in a monster encounter. Turning on my heels, I tried to play it cool, like I was just out for a leisurely stroll.
"Hey Nove, maybe cave adventuring isn't my calling after all," I quipped, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.
But before I could fully commit to my new career path, Nove's urgently screamed in my head. "RUN!" she yelled, and in a split second, I was sprinting for dear life, the sound of the monster's war cry echoing behind me.
Time to make like a tree and leave – fast!
… Okay, I always wanted to say that once in my life.
In a desperate attempt to outwit the skeletal nightmare chasing me, I threw my hand backward, fingers doing their best Spider-Man impression as I cast the sticky web. Maybe, just maybe, I could trip up this bizarre bone creature. My hopeful glance over my shoulder dashed when the monster plowed through the webs like they were mere cobwebs. Those red gemstone eyes locked onto me, and let's just say it wasn't a look of admiration.
"HEY NOVE, I'M OPEN TO THE IDEA OF A RESCUE TEAM RIGHT ABOUT NOW!" I yelled, a slight tremor in my voice.
"GO RIGHT!" Nove's frantic advice rang in my head. But nope, not me – I had other plans.
"NOPE!" I declared, pulling off a masterful feint to the right before executing a sharp left turn at the fork. It seemed my little acting gig worked wonders. The bony horse crashed into the wall, creating a bone-rattling quake that echoed through the cavern. Sometimes, fainting is a valid strategy, especially when facing the wrath of a furious skeletal steed.
I hurriedly utilized some base arts to set up a makeshift obstacle course for the skeletal horse before dashing forward. The path inclined steeply, not exactly my ideal track field, especially when I could hear the thundering hoofbeats of the bony nightmare closing in. I didn't know if it was after a meal or had a bone to pick with me (pun intended), but I wasn't planning on sticking around to find out.
I kept my pace until I reached a massive chamber, its vastness making my situation clear – I was in for a marathon. The cavern was dimly lit, with small pools of water and some muck worm-sized bugs scuttling around. On the bright side, literally, there was another entrance on the far side emitting light.
"I'M NOT RELIGIOUS, BUT I HOPE TO GOD THAT'S THE EXIT!" I hollered, unintentionally drawing the attention of the creepy crawlers toward me. Ignoring them, I sprinted like my life depended on it (which it did) straight for the exit, conjuring a stone shield on my left hand, just in case one of those buggy critters decided to get cheeky and jump me.
As the skeletal horse arrived at the expansive opening, scanning the area for me, my instincts were torn between hiding and relying on sheer luck. Feeling a surge of audacity, I opted for a daring sprint towards the exit. The horse, catching sight of me, emitted a bone-chilling war cry and charged forward, leaving a trail of crushed bugs in its wake.
The exit loomed just ahead, but it seemed like the horse was hell-bent on crushing me before I could reach safety. With no other options left, I hurled my spear at it in a last-ditch effort, only for the weapon to bounce off it like a tennis ball striking a robust steel wall.
"I KNEW I SHOULD'VE INVESTED IN A BAKERY INSTEAD OF WHATEVER THIS IS!" I hollered as I practically leaped through the exit, narrowly escaping the impending horse-shaped calamity.
Time seemed to stretch as my eyes quickly adjusted to the light, revealing that I was on a narrow ledge of a colossal mountain. Below, a group of people huddled around a campfire, their faces initially serene until one of them spotted me, his expression morphing into shock. Glancing upwards, I saw the sun had just begun to rise, confirming that I was indeed outside. The exit was too small for the skeletal horse, and it emerged forcefully, sending rocks and debris flying in all directions.
In the blink of an eye, I assessed the situation. The drop wasn't significant, but I executed a quick roll to mitigate the impact. Debris scattered, with some pieces unintentionally hitting one of the bystanders near the campfire. Meanwhile, the colossal boney horse tripped and tumbled down the mountain. Seizing the opportunity, I targeted the joints of its leg with my Petrifying Strike skill, causing the white bones near my strike to turn grey. With the immediate threat neutralized, I turned my attention to the group of six people.
"Apologies for interrupting your fine morning, but can I borrow a weapon?"