After more than ten minutes of back and forth, Michael successfully avoided dying to the Butcher; however, no matter how much they attacked, its Life Points were stuck at 10%, with no indication of lowering further.
The red barrier around the demon grew thicker, and be it physical, magical, curse, or whatever else the enemies threw at him, nothing got past it.
Annoyed, Michael used Evade to avoid getting split in half by the cleaver, only to immediately use Blood Mist right after when the bastard wanted to headbut him again.
After using Evade so many times in a short period, his legs felt like they were falling apart, while the Butcher wasn't showing any signs of fatigue.
Fortunately, the barrier was finally dispelled after another ten minutes of barely hanging on to his life.
Unfortunately, his left boot had a large hole in it after the fucking demon managed to hook his leg and pull him through the air.
The Necromancer avoided dying by blocking with his scythe the incoming cleaver, aiming to separate his head from his neck, which resulted in his own weapon smashing violently in his face while his body was sent flying again.
The pain of his foot being ripped from the hook was horrendous, to the point where he couldn't faint because of how bad it was.
Michael almost dispaired when he saw the same thick red barrier engulf the Butcher, especially since its Life Points were around 2% remaining.
Fortunately, this time the damage threshold was much lower, and with a final defiant roar and a hurl of its hook, the damned bastard finally croaked.
Barely sidestepping the incoming weapon and avoiding his head being caved in by the throw, the Wanderer collapsed on the floor of the Dungeon, gasping for air.
His Life Points haven't dropped under 50% at any point during the fight - mostly due to him using Healing Potions - but the fatigue threatened to collapse his mind.
Ordering his minions to set a perimeter and guard him while he recovered, Michael used his last bits of recovering Essense to call Mina and let her know he won.
After confirming he had no significant injuries more than five times, he hung up and lay on the floor for more than half an hour until he was able to get up again.
Seeing the cowardly Carver demons restarting their assault on him after they confirmed the Butcher was gone, Michael rolled his eyes and cast a couple of Corpse Explosions to deal with the morons.
Watching all of them rush through the miasma and die before they could reach ten meters away from him made him wonder if they were sharing a single brain cell or something.
"Also, this fucking cow of a bastard! That's all the drops after dealing with you!?"
One Legendary dagger, 1 Scattered Prism, two Rare item boxes, and some gold coins.
Before he started cursing again, he checked the Scattered Prism, curious to see what the hell it was.
[ SCATTERED PRISM
Legendary Crafting Material
----------------
A mysterious prism most often found in very, very large bodies.
Used by Jewelers to add sockets to equipment.
Rare and hoarded by their previous owners, these prisms are often guarded jealously. ]
Realizing it was probably his first time seeing such a drop, instead of spending tons of money to pay Kratia and Idania for the materials, the Necromancer felt slightly better.
Not by a lot, just slightly.
After all, he had a new ring without a slot, so he would be able to use it to further increase his damage and Armor in the near future.
Happy, he also checked the dagger to see if it was anything worthwhile.
[ Twin-Blade of Hungry Blood
Legendary Dagger
585 Item Power
-----------------
504 Damage per Second
* [336 - 504] Damage per Hit
* 1.20 Attacks per Second
* +11.5% Damage to Close Enemies
------------------
* +110 Maximum Life
* +48 Intelligence
* +12 Life on Hit
Legendary Aspect: Each cast of Blood Lance will launch an additional Blood Lance at a nearby enemy when it first hits an enemy that is already lanced, dealing 35% of normal damage. (Necromancer Only).
Empty Socket ]
Throwing the dagger in his inventory, Michael wondered if more items with the Life on Hit Affix would pop up in the future.
After all, it was a pretty good option to have on an item, especially when dealing with troublesome enemies.
After restarting his expedition, the Necromancer cleared another area infested by demons and even managed to find himself dealing with a Dungeon Event.
He protected the 'adventurers' lost within the cave and gained some experience points and another Greater Radiant Chest.
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After seeing the items offered in the same configuration as before, he realized it must be the new 'normal' reward bundle he would get every time he opened one.
"Two Rare item boxes, 6 Angelbreaths, 7 Iron Chunks, Rawhides, and Bundled Herbs each, as well as 5 Gem Fragments each. Hmm... not a bad way to amass more materials. I should hunt for more Dungeon Events if I am not pressed by time."
Continuing to murder the angry little shits swarming him as if possessed - which, in hindsight, they kind of were - the Dungeon Quest finally changed after he killed an Elite and grabbed a key from it.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Palid Delve
Objective: Use the Salt Encrusted key to open the Cursed Ruins Gate. ]
His hopes of finishing the Dungeon fast were dashed when the next Quest asked him to destroy three Skeletal Constructs, which then turned into asking him to head toward the Boss Room.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Palid Delve
Objective: Travel to the Bane of the Ancients. ]
Realizing this Dungeon might be related to the Barbarians, he kept an eye out for collectibles and was lucky enough to find an old letter.
[ Dearest daughter,
My ancestor's call rang clear. If I give my life to free him from his slat prison, he can protect our people. Protect you. In the end, it is no choice at all.
Weep not for my death, as it is something I give freely and joyfully. I watched my grandchildren grow. I end my life with a smile, knowing they will be free from the horrors we survived.
-Your loving father, Davan ]
Reading the letter in combination with the name of the Boss Room, Michael realized that this must've been another one of those twisted pranks the demons pulled on the people of the Steppes.
He contacted Beatrice again to ask and inform her about it, but it seems that the people around Qara-Yisu were already aware of it.
According to her, the last time a casualty like this occurred was more than twenty years ago.
Also, this Palid Delve appeared to be an old Dungeon repurposed by the same 'master.'
It survived the 'reshuffling' when all the new ones appeared, which stands to prove just how influential and powerful the devil behind it is.
Hanging up, Michael ordered his minions to attack the Tomb Lord and finish dealing with this damned Dungeon.
Fortunately, the Boss was ten times easier to deal with than the Butcher, allowing the Necromancer to wrap up the fight in less than seven minutes.
"Gold coins, two Rare items, and a Legendary helm. Let's see how good it is compared to what I currently have equipped."
[ Adventurer's Helm of Exploding Mist
Legendary Helm
432 Item Power
Legacy Item
-----------------
540 Armor
* +16 Willpower
* +15 Life regeneration per second if not Damaged Recently
* +14% Cold Resistance
Legendary Aspect: Blood Mist triggers Corpse Explosion on surrounding Corpses. When Blood Mist detonates a Corpse, its cooldown is reduced by 0.2 seconds (Necromancer Only).
+2.0% Maximum Life (Ruby Slotted) ]
[ Exceptional Helm of the Protector
Legendary Helm
587 Item Power
-----------------
734 Armor (+194 when compared to the currently equipped item)
* +50 Intelligence
* +84 Maximum Life
* +16 Life per Second
Legendary Aspect: Damaging an Elite enemy grants you a Barrier absorbing up to 1,514 damage for 10 seconds. This effect can only happen once every 20 seconds. ]
His old helm was getting... well... old, but the Affixes on it were much better than what was on the new one.
While the extra Armor was nice, the Aspect was pretty lackluster. As for its other Affixes... well, they weren't bad, but not good either.
Exiting the Dungeon, he saw some City Guards surrounding and escorting back to the city a crying old man.
[My neighbors... I begged them, don't trust the voice in the mine. I couldn't make them listen...](?)
Without much time to complain about how shitty life in Sanctuary is for the common folk, Michael headed straight to the Shifting City and entered without much thought.
He was already pretty tired, and his boots required repairs, possibly replacement. But he would try to clear a couple more Dungeons first and only then return home to rest.
After all, he still had Mother's Blessing active, and the extra experience was very important for him to reach Level 55.
[ Dungeon Quest issued - Shifting City
Objective: Return the Ancients' Statue to the Pedestal (0/2). ]
Interestingly enough, the first statue was less than ten meters away from the entrance, allowing the Wanderers barging in to wrap up the first Quest pretty easily.
Moving through the area called Forsaken Gate, he dealt with more Fallen and Carvers, allowing his experience bar to grow continuously.
When the two statues were returned, and the gates opened, the new Quest appeared.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Shifting City
Objective: Collect Animus from Animus Carriers. ]
The hunt for Elites was fast and straightforward as he moved through the Ruins of Anguish, mercilessly killing anything and everything crossing his path.
He was fortunate enough to find another Event called Eternal Torment, which forced him to kill the phantoms tormenting a 'poor soul,' only to find the soul becoming a powerful Elite and attacking him toward the end.
Obviously, having met this Event before, Michael easily completed it and collected another Great Radiant Chest, adding even more materials to his inventory.
Two Rare item boxes, 5 Angelbreaths, 7 Iron Chunks, Rawhides, and Bundled Herbs each, as well as 5 Gem Fragments each.
It was another good haul.
With his inventory full again, he opened the Leather Cache in his possession, getting another 18 Rawhides and a Rare item, after which he directly opened a portal and traveled to Kyovashad.
Orzen was happy to see him again, gladly taking the items from him and exchanging them for gold coins. 283,441, to be precise.
Adding the extra 30,000 or something he had gathered from the monster drops, he was very close to 3 million gold coins.
Zivek was pretty generous and exchanged 1 Abstruse Sigil, 1 Baleful Fragment, 2 Veiled Crystals, 2 Iron chunks, and 2 Rawhides in exchange for the two Legendary items he wanted to salvage.
Checking his experience bar that had reached over 50% of his current level, happily sitting at 1,057,595/1,964,430, Michael felt satisfied and returned to finish the Dungeon.
After checking the state of his boots, Zivek suggested finding a replacement, which Michael also wanted.
Collecting the Animus from the remaining three Elites, Michael opened the final barrier and went to confront the Boss of the Dungeon: the Tomb Lord.
Around six minutes later, he collected four Rare item boxes, cursing and kicking the stingy creature.
Exiting the Shifting City, he jumped on his mount's back and rode toward Betrayer's Row, his final target in this area.
He found it in an area called the Foothills of Saraan, where plenty of demons roamed the ruins of a city.
Similarly to Guulrahn, the city streets themselves became a Dungeon, so the entrance wasn't a 'door' like usual, but rather... a street.
The feeling of passing through a thin film was still there, and the system immediately confirmed he was in the right place.
[ Dungeon Quest issued - Betrayer's Row
Objective: Return the Bloodstone to the Pedestal (0/2). ]
Rolling his eyes, he expected another troublesome search but was surprised to find both Bloodstones after less than twenty minutes of walking around and cleansing the streets of the fallen city.
Demons and cannibals abounded but were quickly dispatched due to their large numbers, which allowed the Necromancer to be a spendthrift with his Corpses.
"Uuuu! Another one!"
[ Blood-stained Page
Should your neighbor raise their hand against you, strike it from their wrist. For as the strong shall endure the chaos to come, the weak shall be devoured.
-Elias ]
Rolling his eyes since he was finding traces of this crafty bastard everywhere, he wondered just how many preparations Lilith had been doing while he and Lorath chased after Elias.
It was as clear as day to both the Horadrim and the Necromancer that Elias was merely a distraction, but unfortunately, it wasn't one they could ignore, as the crafty bastard proved to be a nuisance if left to his own devices.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Betrayer's Row
Objective: Collect Animus from Animus Carriers. ]
Seeing the familiar prompt, Michael continued hunting while his fourth set of Elixir of Iron Barbs II and Elixir of Antivenin of the day had about an hour and a half left.
After collecting the Animus and opening the way forward, he challenged the Scourge of the Land to a beatdown - which he obviously won by continuously stacking Corpse Explosion while the minions distracted the low-intelligence Boss - and collected his spoils.
There were no Legendary boots in the drops, but there were pants!