I spent around 20 minutes for each run yesterday, and it took me less than two hours to clear it multiple times and bring in more than half a million. I'll only need $400 k to get the skill that I have in mind though
This time around I was even more efficient. I entered the dungeon and immolated the huge bear another 3 times, giving me a multitude of [Core]s, and two skill books that were only worth selling
In less than an hour, I had finished with [Frozen Wasteland] and went down to the central Awakened Center to fully start my next phase of plans. The [Core]s and [Skill Book]s sold for $447,000, and I went towards the Skill Shop to buy the skill that will allow me to let loose with no reservations
The skill was still behind the thick glass, which I quickly called the person at the front desk and bought. Rank C skill, [Camouflage]. The skill allowed you to blend into your surroundings and had to be kept active to keep you from being seen. Besides extremely rich perverts, not many people used this skill
I would be relying on it to keep my movements hidden while I do things that go against the norm for many people even now.
I wasted no time learning the skill and went out of the Awakened Center. I still had my F rank license, and it would allow me to get past any gates no matter the rank. The gates and guards placed around the dungeon monoliths were to make sure normal people do not pass through and get themselves killed while trying their luck in the dungeon. Hunters could pass through the gate no matter the rank they held as long as they had a license, as many of the hunters congregating around dungeons wasn't just for the purpose of diving
I called a ride and gave directions to head towards [Goblin King's Abode].
Dungeons get progressively harder as the ranks increase, as can be seen how a rank C dungeon was barely being handled by a B rank hunter surrounded by rank C hunters. The difficulty from E to D was also a huge gulf to cross for many, with D rank hunters opting to dive in groups of 10, or C rank hunters forming smaller groups to receive more profit.
Rank D dungeons are very profitable, but when you have to split the loot between 10 people, the returns are minimal when looking at the dangers you face.
I had the driver stop while we were at the center of downtown, where you could take many paths to get to a lot of dungeons. I found the nearest alley and activated [Camouflage] along with [Arcanist's Sphere of Protection] and [Arctic Armor]. [Danger Sense] was still kept active all this time.
The rank C [Camouflage] could hide a hunter from anyone of that same rank, with powerful rank B hunters being able to notice you fairly easily. If someone were to be keeping tabs on me right now, I am 100% sure it would not be a B rank hunter, so my movements from now on would be hidden
I stepped out into the middle of the street with cars blazing down and people rushing about, not a single person was able to see anything, with a few bumping into me and tilting their heads to see exactly what hit them
As soon I confirmed the usefulness of the skill I rushed towards the direction of [Goblin King's Abode] and arrived there in 20 minutes.
This time around, I didn't bother showing my license and just passed through the man-made gates, the rank D guards on the side being none the wiser. None of the hunters cl.u.s.tered inside even looked my way either, increasing my confidence for the new plans from now on.
I then looked up at the huge monolith that shone with a blue hue. This dungeon was regularly cleared by rank C and D hunters, being one of the more profitable dungeons because of the special drop that occasionally comes out, [King's Valor]. This item was a full body armor that increased your defense by a wide margin while not hindering your speed. As rank C [Item]s were extremely rare, and mostly hoarded by those diving into the only rank C dungeon, this item was one of the hottest pieces of equipment for hunters
I stopped reminiscing and went towards one of the square doors of the monolith, placing my hand and instantly being transported to [Goblin King's Abode].
[Noah][Occupation: Hunter]
[Vitality: 70]
[Focus: - ]
[Strength: 70]
[Skill(s): (F-Fireball-98)(F-Heal-21)(E-Arctic Armor- 95)(D-Flames of Torment-49)(D-Safeguard-15)(D-Danger Sense-33)(C-Arcanist's Sphere of Protection-25)(C-Camouflage-3)]
[Equipment: (E-Swift Boots)]
Chapter 10 - [Goblin King’s Abode]
The layouts of high ranking dungeons gradually became more extravagant. In [Goblin King's Abode], the first floor you were transported into had overgrowths and trees all around. Goblins traveled in groups of 5 and paroled the entire floor. The moment you attacked one, they would alert others with a loud signal and have them all rush to where you were
Parties created to dive into this dungeon had to make sure they had enough damage dealers to take care of at least one of the groups before the other two groups rushed in. If your party ever found themselves surrounded by 3 groups of goblins, you had to say your prayers
I looked to the group of goblins that was just alerted in front of me. The goblins had a layer of green scales on them, with their heights reaching up to 3 meters. Four of them held clubs and maces with one holding a wooden staff
I began by testing the effectiveness of the rank F [Fireball] that had its proficiency almost reach a hundred, making it on par with E rank skills. The swirling fireball that was even further condensed rushed towards one of the goblins and exploded
The goblin was pushed back a few feet but quickly got back up like nothing was wrong. Its green scales were only slightly dented. Damn, here I was thinking [Fireball] might still have some uses in the future. Its fast casting and moving speed would actually be good if I was ever going against things that didn't have such high defenses like monsters, but that wasn't something I was looking forward to
The dashing goblins were almost here though, so I initiated my most offensive skill on hand, [Flames of Torment]. A line of fire quickly appeared in front of me, moving forward to hit the foremost goblin. There was a second of pause after the impact before a scream rang out as the line of fire pierced from the front to its back
I made a grasping motion to the pillar of flames and moved my hand to the right. The skill followed my command, acting like a thick rope that moved horizontally and bisected the heads of the two goblins on the right
The remaining two goblins were immediately frightened to see such quick deaths of their friends and they began dashing back. I wouldn't give them a chance though, so I moved forward and kept the distance, quickly commanding the skill to coil around the two goblins, burning them to a crisp
Haha! This was a method I had begun using after becoming familiar with this skill. I didn't have to just allow the skill to shoot flames in front of me, as my proficiency rose I could more easily control the pillar of flames to not just move forward, diagonally, or horizontally. With enough concentration, I could command the skill to act as agile as a rope to suffocate my enemies in flames
As soon as I finished them off, rustling sounds could be heard as another 5 goblins dashed in. I didn't sit still this time around, giving them a cold grin and running towards them, a pillar of flames eerily squirming in front of me.
I practiced controlling and moving [Flames of Torment] as I liked, resulting in dying screams from the goblins. Soon enough, there were another 5 burnt monsters on their ground, their bodies still bubbling from the extreme heat
I had already taken two groups, there should be one more remaining. I didn't wait for them to come and went towards the screams and sounds to the side, taking the last 5 down just as easy as their previous friends.
From then on, it was just me rushing down the floors, increasing the proficiency of my now favorite skill. On a few of the floors, I tested the effectiveness of [Camouflage] against monsters and the results were spectacular. I could sneak in a few meters around them without them noticing a single thing, but If I stayed at that location for just a few seconds or went in any closer to them then eyes would shift to where I was at.
I wasn't sur
e if it was just sharper senses or a stronger nose that alerted them as you neared, but it was fun running around without being seen
From the 10th floor onward, more goblin archers and mages began appearing, shooting arrows, fireballs, lightning, and frost bolts towards me. I had [Arctic Armor] and [Arcanist's Sphere of Protection] always active though, causing the arrows to be bounced away from my body and the spells to simply disappear the moment they came in contact with the transparent sphere around me
All they could see was a small being deflecting and absorbing their attacks while he lashed out with a thick pillar of fire that either tightened their bodies to death or blasted their heads apart. Surprising the goblin mages and archers with [Camouflage] was even deadlier, as they can't even cast a single spell before they become lifeless
Adrenaline was coursing through me as I watched these D rank 3-meter tall monsters easily fall, but I reminded myself this wasn't what I was aiming for. They were D rank, they were weak, just like me. I cannot think too highly of myself. Any random millionaire could buy skills just as strong and enough [Core]s to easily make someone just as powerful.
The change I wanted to make inside of me was to not feel that feeling of cowardice, that feeling of helplessness that I wallowed in for so long. Whatever stood in my way, whether it be human or monster, whether it be the largest Titans I will eventually be facing, I wanted to face it head-on without fear
I reigned in my emotions and rushed down the floors even faster.
Within an hour and a half, I had rushed down all 29 floors of the dungeon and stood near the last steps of stairs that would take me to the BOSS room.
I realized the pain of normal hunters and why most of them only dived into dungeons once or twice at most a day. Me rushing down while mowing enemies left and right still required me to spend a few minutes on each floor. There being so many floors and monsters, the hunters in a party had to put their lives on the line to kill monsters on each floor while resting to recover their energy and heal up right after
Just going through one dungeon could take them 5 hours or more. Me being able to endlessly cast my skills was such a huge thing that even now I found myself questioning if it was still real.
I went down the steps while making sure all defensive skills and even [Camouflage] was active, and I was soon in a huge clearing with a small mountain in the middle. Scratch that, not a mountain, just a very savage looking goblin that was about 6 meters in size. Its skin was shining a dark black that made it very prominent in this clearing. Holy shit. It held no weapons on its hands, and yet its hands alone seemed enough to smash anything coming near it
This BOSS was the killer of many Hunters, its large size and strength quickly weeding out inexperienced hunters from knowledgeable ones. At Least 2 rank D Knights or 1 rank C with the heaviest of armors were required in order to withstand even one of its strikes. You also better hope your team's Mages and Berserkers were saving up their energy to unleash multiple spells and attacks on this beast to take it down in as little time as possible, or deaths would follow
I was a distance away from it, so I thought I wouldn't be found out with [Camouflage] active, but it's huge eyes honed in on me the instant I arrived in the clearing. So blending into your surroundings is not enough to evade the senses of this type of monster? And I wasn't sure if this rank D boss could be classified as a Titan yet, but its size made me feel like an ant as I had to raise my head just to meet its gaze
I felt my blood pumping as I found myself in this staredown against something more than 3 times my size. I was not scared. I looked at this huge beast and I saw my goals. I saw my future!
I slowly began walking, and my walk gradually changed into a run. The beast stood still, not making a single sound. A smile broke out on my face as unrestrained laughter could be heard. A few meters long thick line of flames quickly appeared beside me as I charged towards this humongous beast
As soon as I got near it, a huge black fist covered the entirety of my sight. My laughter didn't stop as the line of flames also shot out and wrapped around that fist. Then...a huge impact was felt
BOOM!!!
The fist felt like the whole world was dropped on me. I had seen it smash into the sphere that was protecting me, and instantly felt myself fly back at a speed I've never been exposed to before
BAM!
I was smashed into the wall behind me a second later, a spherical dent created as I dropped down to my feet. Not a single hair on my body was harmed, the rank C skill, [Arcanist's Sphere of Protection], was not for show!
The beast in front of me didn't stay silent anymore as a mournful howl rang throughout the huge clearing. Its right fist had fallen to the ground, forever removed from its arms. The calmness in its eyes was completely gone as its feet smacked the ground and jumped towards me
One of its remaining good hands reached out towards me as if trying to snuff out a candle. I commanded the cable of flames to twist and form into a circular shape while watching this palm crushing down on me. The circular line of flames then began spinning at high speeds when the palm landed
ZZIING!
A horrible sound could be heard as flesh and bones were cut apart. The Goblin's King's remaining arm was grotesquely bisected in the middle, dark red blood gushing out. We were only a meter apart, and I stared at its furious face as I commanded the spinning line of flames to rush at this giant's neck
ZING!
A second passed, and then the head of the 6-meter tall monster crashed to the ground.
Chapter 11 - The right skills to buy
I let out a laugh as I relished on the feeling of taking down such a humongous beast.
I was even happier from learning how to better use your skills as your proficiency rose. [Flames of Torment] shot out a line of flames in front of me when I first casted it, but as I gradually kept on using it, new ways to manipulate it came to light.
From being able to move the line of flames in the direction I wanted to twisting the thick flames like a rope, to now connecting their ends and adding a spin to it, making them even deadlier
This made me look forward to learning and improving higher ranking skills as time passed.
I continued thinking while observing the headless giant before I gathered the things that dropped. Aside from the [Core]s, there was also a rank D skill book, [Ice Shards: Drops sharp shards of ice at a specific location]
This skill book was in fairly high demand and could be sold for a decent amount of money. It didn't fit with the current me and I wouldn't be learning it as my goal now is to focus on obtaining an offensive rank C skill. Along with that, I wanted to buy other skills like [Arcanist's Sphere of Protection], [Arctic Armor], and [Danger Sense] that could be activated, and on my case, become passive skills that only end after I command it
This was my next phase of plans, skills that I could turn on and keep on without them requiring anymore thought from me. If I can collect a multitude of support and defensive skills that provide a variety of effects and layer them on top of each other...just the thought of it kept my blood pumping. The next skill will be a killer rank C skill that will be of use when I dive into [Solael's Castle] in a few days, and the other skills I had in mind will follow after
[Flames of Torment] had a very high proficiency currently with its power most likely nearing rank C skills, but a genuine rank C offensive skill is nothing to laugh at with their large scale of damage
I sat down besides the fallen giant and began absorbing the [Vitality] and [Strength] [Core]s it dropped. I had collected tons from the smaller goblins across the 29 floors, and planned to bring my [Vitality] and [Strength] attributes higher than 100.
As soon as I finished, I reached out towards the green crystal that rose when the goblin king was defeated and was transported outside. My [Camouflage] was already activated, and not a single one of the many hunters cl.u.s.tered in groups or selling items and skills around the encampment of the monolith noticed me
The
areas around safe dungeons usually turned into small markets of their own, with hunters trading skills, cores, or items without going through official channels like Awakened Centers. The selling of these things around the dungeons gave much less profit though, so unless a hunter was willing to pay a high price for a specific skill or item they wanted, most people sell their loot to the Awakened Centers.
The government controlling these centers gobbled up everything they could, paying top prices for materials to strengthen their soldiers. The funny thing about it though was how many of these soldiers would be stationed in high end cities where the rich were cl.u.s.tered together. That's just how this world was.
I ignored the hustle and bustle of the environment and neared one of the square doors of the monolith, being transported back into [Goblin King's Abode] for another run. I was planning to dive into dungeons like a madman for the days to come and acc.u.mulate as much as I could before being fully prepared for any situations when diving in to [Solael's Castle] and dealing with that arrogant prick.
---
"Sir, we lost him a few hours ago after he got off a car downtown" Butler
"What? How do you lose someone when we have eyes all over the city?" Cohen asked the burly man that was dressed in a tuxedo over the phone.
"It was our mistake Sir, we'll be sure to find him as soon as possible. If I may, I would like to share my thoughts about this subject though" The butler hung his head low as he talked to his master. This was the man that had saved his life when monsters were about to snuff it out, and he had been indebted to him from then on
He was an official holding a high position in a major firm, but he left everything behind and followed his master willingly over the past months, managing his financials and turning a blind eye to the many tastes his master had. After all, nobody was perfect.
Infinite Mana In The Apocalypse c1-705 Page 7
