A Relentless Conquest
"Chirp chirp chirp!"
"Chirp chirp!"
"Chirp chirp chirp!"
In the underground passage formed by the pale green walls, countless red Killer Ant, like army ants, rubbed their mouthparts and screamed as they rushed in one direction, like a red wave, bringing a terrifying momentum.
Such a sight of a large number of Killer Ant gathered together is extremely rare, even if you search the entire 7th floor of the Dungeon. But now, they have indeed gathered together and are attacking a figure.
Faced with such a terrifying army of Killer Ant, generally speaking, unless one is a level 2 advanced adventurer, if alone, one would probably only be able to run for one's life. Very few people would dare to face such an army of Killer Ant alone.
But today, there happens to be a newcomer who has only been an adventurer for about ten days. Instead of retreating in front of this large army, he bravely stepped forward.
"Pfft!"
A cold, sharp sword flashed, and a small, straight sword severed the body of a Killer Ant, completely disregarding its notoriously strong and defensive shell, cutting it in two.
Leo then completely abandoned his previously favored small shield, wielding his sword in one hand, and charged into the army of Killer Ant, creating a slaughterous feast.
He moved like the wind, wielding his sword like rain. With agile steps, he dodged the attacking Killer Ant while unleashing sharp sword lights that wove together a rain of swords, slaying the Killer Ant one by one.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"----
As the sword light flashed, Leo mercilessly reaped the lives of the Killer Ant, some being cleaved in two, others having their arms or limbs severed, and some even having their heads chopped off. They died on the spot, their bodies turning to ashes and dissipating, leaving only pieces of Magic Stone piled up on the ground.
"Chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp!"
As time passed, the army of Killer Ant continued its advance, but they were unable to subdue the rampaging new adventurer, causing them to grow restless.
Those Killer Ant that were severely injured but hadn't died were already calling for their companions, summoning even more Killer Ant from all directions to surround Leo.
As the saying goes, "Many ants can kill an elephant." A lone human adventurer surrounded by so many Killer Ant in such a situation will eventually collapse from exhaustion and be swallowed up by countless Killer Ant, dying a gruesome death.
If it were Leo yesterday, facing such a desperate situation, he probably would have already given up and waited to report to the Heaven to see if he could be reborn into a better family in his next life.
However, for Leo today, such a challenge can only be said to have just met his needs.
"There are too many, let's reduce the quantity."
Surrounded by countless Killer Ant, Leo murmured and chanted these words.
"[Light of Heaven, Sword of Stars.]"
Starlight erupted from Leo's body.
It was a dazzling Starlight unlike anything seen before.
In this stat update, Leo's greatest potential growth lies not in "Strength" and "Durability," nor in "Dexterity" and "Agility," but in "Magic Demonic Power," which is closely related to the power of magic.
His "Demonic Power" had reached B, only two stages away from the highest S. Now that Leo had used magic, the magic, strengthened by his "Demonic Power" which had grown by seven stages, naturally unleashed far greater power than before.
Then, streaks of meteors rose from Leo's body, first shooting into the sky, then suddenly falling, turning into a small Meteor Shower that crashed down on the earth.
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"
In an instant, the roar of the meteor striking the earth resounded continuously. Each streak of Starlight was like a real meteorite falling from the sky, exploding the moment it hit the ground, tearing through the soil, shattering the rocks, and creating craters in the passage.
Countless Killer Ant were swept up in this indiscriminate Meteor Shower. Some were hit directly and exploded on the spot, while others were blown away by the shock of the explosions, crashing into the walls and leaving bloody marks on them.
With the enhancement of "Demonic Power" reaching seven stages, a glimpse of the future [Meteor Dance] that Leo had once imagined has begun to materialize.
"Very good."
Leo, having cleared out a large swarm of Killer Ant with magic, looked at the remaining, incomplete monster horde and a smile appeared on his face.
"Whoosh!"
The next second, Leo stomped on the ground and charged towards the remaining Killer Ant with a whistling sound, once again unleashing a killing spree.
Sword flashes appeared one after another, and the small straight sword slashed countless times, bringing with it a series of shrill screams.
"Pfft!"
Three minutes later, with the last Killer Ant being slain by Leo and its body falling to the ground in pieces, this one-sided massacre finally came to an end.
Leo stood in the center of a large pile of Magic Stone and the still-burning monster corpses, breathing lightly with a look of exhilaration on his face.
"This is what I imagined an adventurer should be like."
Leo was undoubtedly in a very good mood at this moment.
Before this, with all his abilities at I0, he wasn't much stronger than an ordinary person. He had to be careful no matter what kind of monster he faced. Even if his opponent was the weakest Goblin, he would have to wear a shield before daring to confront it head-on.
If he encounters too many enemies, or if he feels that he must use some means to defeat them at this stage, he will not hesitate to turn around and run away, engaging in a tense and exciting chase with the monsters.
That situation was less of an adventure and more of a desperate struggle against a monster.
Unlike now, Leo can single-handedly slaughter a group of Killer Ant that terrify novice adventurers. He even felt that the shield he was wearing was cumbersome and affected his performance before the battle, so he simply threw it away.
Even if faced with a massive army or a horde of monsters, he would still charge in without hesitation, single-handedly slaying countless enemies. This is the kind of adventurer that Leo and many others dream of.
With swordsmanship in one hand and magic in the other, he unleashes his sword's light in the heat of battle, chanting spells while maneuvering against enemies, annihilating a large number of monsters in the blink of an eye. This is the image of a magic swordsman that Leo and many others imagine.
Now, Leo finally looks like a powerful adventurer, and his previously envisioned magical swordsman fighting style is beginning to show results.
"The physical integration is almost complete, the feeling of mental and physical disconnect has been greatly reduced, and it's no longer difficult to perfectly unleash my full potential at my current ability level."
Leo opened and closed his empty palms, then turned his gaze to the back.
There, there was a passageway leading to the next floor.
"Level 8—should I be able to go there now?"
Leo began to get restless.
For him now, the difficulty of the 7th floor is not high. Even if he doesn't kill the Killer Ant and lets them call for their companions, gathering a large number of their comrades to form a terrifying army, it will still be impossible for him to be stumped.
In that case, he should head down to the next floor.
"Following the strategy guide's recommendations, with my current abilities, I can already go to the 8th floor, and even deeper floors are possible."
Leo picked up Magic Stone from the ground while digging out dropped items from the remaining monster corpses, putting them into his backpack, and pondering silently.
According to the guides provided by the guild and clans, floors 1-4 are suitable for adventurers with one or more basic abilities between I and H, floors 5-7 are suitable for those between G and F, floors 8-10 are suitable for those between E and C, and floors 11-12 are suitable for those between B and S.
Under these circumstances, Leo's stats already far exceed the difficulty of level 7. After all, his weakest stat, "Durability," is already E, meaning he could reach level 8 even with this weakest ability.
Even without considering the extra-standard "Demonic Power" items, Leo already has two abilities at the D level, and "Agility 1" is already at the C level, making it possible for him to explore even the 10th Floor.
"Let's go down and take a look; there's not much point in staying on this floor anyway."
As the saying goes, skill breeds boldness. With his greatly improved strength, Leo's confidence has increased significantly. While he doesn't underestimate the dangers of the Dungeon, he no longer needs to be as cautious and hesitant as before.
At least, he felt he didn't need to be afraid to go to the 8th floor, or even the 9th Floor.
That is indeed the case.
While the difficulty of conquering the 8th and 9th Floor of the Dungeon has increased somewhat, it hasn't brought about a qualitative change.
With Leo's ability to unleash his full power without restraint in the 7th floor, he can also navigate the 8th and 9th Floor with ease, without any fear of encountering danger.
Unless a monster from a lower floor runs up and is unlucky enough to be encountered by Leo, or something unusual happens that shouldn't be happening, Leo can use his magic to clear a path on the 8th and 9th Floor, even if he is surrounded by hundreds of monsters.
Therefore, when Leo entered the 8th and 9th Floor, he still did not feel any pressure. He could still unleash his full power when needed, easily killing a large number of monsters and reaping a lot of loot.
"Gah!"
The lizard-like monster didn't even last a single round in Leo's hands. It only had time to let out a scream before Leo's small straight sword cleaved it in two.
"The difficulty of 9th Floor is about that."
Picking up the Magic Stone that had fallen to the ground, Leo stood unharmed in front of a cave entrance, gazing into the pitch-black interior.
"10th Floor ----"
Leo's eyes flickered a few times, then he took a step forward.
"Go and see for yourself."