In DanMachi, I Was Targeted by Freya from the Start!

Although he was still very inexperienced, his growth rate was truly terrifying. In just three hours of fighting against him, he had improved at an astonishing pace.

And he was only Level 1 right now, yet in battle, his strength was already no weaker than that of a Level 2.

Finn had no idea how quickly Cao Ye's Blessing improved. On top of that, Cao Ye had not even used Mana Burst to strengthen his body. Otherwise, he would have been even stronger.

"Then I'll be taking my leave for today~"

Cao Ye glanced at the sky. If he went to the Dungeon now, he should be able to return by the afternoon.

[Daily Mission: Kill 12 Unicorn Rabbits!]

[Completion Progress: 0/12]

[Mission Reward: Diamonds*10]

Unicorn Rabbits were monsters from the middle floors, and they appeared fairly often. Today's mission would not be difficult.

After leaving the Loki Familia's residence, Cao Ye headed straight for the Dungeon.

"Adventurer sir~"

Just as he arrived at the central plaza and was preparing to head toward Babel Tower, a voice called out from behind him.

Cao Ye instinctively looked back, and a small figure entered his sight.

"Is there something you need?"

He found her somewhat familiar, but he could not remember where he had seen her before.

Hidden beneath her cloak, Lili looked at the "benefactor" who no longer remembered her, and her feelings became complicated.

On one hand, she could be certain that he had not saved her because he wanted to plot against her. On the other hand, being forgotten so completely was still rather discouraging.

"Adventurer sir, thank you for saving me yesterday."

After saying that, she bowed deeply to Cao Ye, her attitude extremely sincere.

"Uh, you're the supporter from yesterday?"

"Yes. If it hadn't been for you, sir, I probably would have died yesterday."

"It was nothing, just something I did along the way~"

"To you, it may have been nothing, but to me, it was a life-saving kindness."

"Alright, then I'll accept your thanks."

Looking at Lili, Cao Ye felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu. Tsubaki had saved his life before, and he had probably thanked her in much the same way. He had not expected the roles to be reversed now.

Subjugating the Floor Boss: Goliath!

Bang—

With the sound of something collapsing, a monster turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished completely.

Roar—

An orange-red figure stood inside the cavern. The blazing flame on its tail proved its identity: the cursed corpse Charmander, Cao Ye's first cursed corpse creation.

After being refined day after day in Cao Ye's hands, it now possessed basic autonomous combat capabilities.

As he became increasingly proficient with Puppet Manipulation, he could now make cursed corpses fight independently. This was Cao Ye's greatest achievement over the past few days.

"Wow, this is your 'creation'? That's incredible!"

Not far away, Tsubaki stared at Charmander with a face full of amazement. In Orario, puppet-like constructs were practically uncharted territory, let alone cursed corpses.

"My first creation. I've modified it many times from start to finish, but it's decent now."

"That's amazing. There aren't any mechanisms at all, yet it can move like a real living creature. It can even fight. How did you do that?"

"Charmander itself is a puppet, controlled through my technique."

"A technique? Your skill?"

"Something like that. I can inject mana into cursed corpses, then control and command them."

"That's incredible~"

As a blacksmith, she was naturally amazed by such a wondrous creation.

However, this miraculous creation relied on his skill and could not be replicated, which left her somewhat disappointed.

After all, if such a technique truly emerged, it would definitely cause a huge stir in Orario.

Rumble—

Suddenly, the surroundings began shaking violently.

The crystalline wall in the distance suddenly shattered, and then a gigantic figure emerged from the crystal.

"That's the floor boss? It actually respawned today?"

Tsubaki was immediately shocked as she looked at the massive figure.

Meanwhile, Cao Ye smiled. He had been camping on the seventeenth floor every day these past few days, waiting for the floor boss to respawn.

Now, his efforts had finally paid off. He had waited for it.

"Miss Tsubaki, I'll have to ask you to watch my back."

"Hm? What are you planning to do?"

"Of course, I'm going to subjugate the Solitary King of the Labyrinth!"

Tsubaki was stunned by those words.

This was a floor boss. Even if it was the boss of the upper floors, its potential was still Level 4. Where did a Level 1 get the confidence to challenge such a monster?

"Are you insane? This is a floor boss, and you're only Level 1!"

"Level doesn't represent everything, Miss Tsubaki."

Looking at Cao Ye's confident expression, Tsubaki was speechless. She truly did not know whether to call him confident or arrogant.

Still, adventurers had to take risks. Otherwise, what would make them adventurers?

"I must be crazy too. But if you're in danger, I will step in."

In the end, Tsubaki sighed and looked at Cao Ye with an amused expression.

"Thanks for that~"

After thanking Tsubaki, Cao Ye walked toward Goliath in the distance.

Floor bosses were monsters that had been called such since ancient times. Only one existed, and it moved alone only on the floor where it was born, hence the name [Floor Boss].

[Floor Bosses] generally possessed strength around two levels higher than other monsters on the same floor, and their respawn cycles were irregular.

Although the standards used to judge their strength were the same as those for adventurers, floor bosses often possessed enormous bodies, powerful special abilities, and armaments. They were more dangerous than adventurers of the same level and often required multiple people to defeat.

Goliath, the floor boss of the Dungeon's seventeenth floor, had the potential of Level 4. It was also the Dungeon's most well-known floor boss.

"Hah~"

Looking at Goliath in the distance, Cao Ye took a deep breath and entered combat mode.

Mana Burst activated, directly strengthening Cao Ye's body.

At the same time, Imaginary Space opened, and the Inverted Spear of Heaven slowly extended out of thin air before falling into Cao Ye's hand. Since he was facing a floor boss, he naturally needed to use his strongest weapon.

"Hm? What kind of weapon is that?"

The moment she saw the Inverted Spear of Heaven, Tsubaki became curious.

That was a blacksmith's instinct. This weapon was no ordinary armament.

A gigantic body, an enormous head, dark skin, and crimson eyes—this was Goliath, the floor boss of the seventeenth floor, a monster boss nearly twenty meters tall.

Roar—

With a deafening roar, Goliath's massive body wreaked havoc on the surroundings.

The ground was trampled, the walls were smashed apart. Its enormous body alone was a disaster simply in motion. This was the so-called Solitary King of the Labyrinth.

As the closest target to Goliath, Cao Ye naturally became the target of its attack.

Goliath opened its mouth, and berserk mana rapidly gathered within. The next second, an attack like a shockwave crashed down.

Boom—

Roar, Goliath's long-range attack ability. The enormous shockwave shattered the ground, making the entire seventeenth floor tremble.

Whoosh—

The instant Goliath finished attacking, a figure shot forward at high speed.

"Ratio Technique—"

Pfft—

Before even Goliath could react, the attack had already landed. Blood sprayed from its enormous arm, and one of its massive hands exploded apart.

It was as though Goliath's wrist had been blasted by a cannonball. With only a single exchange, Goliath had already been injured.

"How is that possible? Goliath's hide can even resist low-level magic, yet its defense was broken in one strike. Does a mere Level 1 Cao Ye really have that kind of strength, or is it because of that strangely shaped 'sword'?"

Cao Ye's strike had greatly shocked Tsubaki and made her even more curious about the Inverted Spear of Heaven.

"Ratio Technique, my technique. It divides the target's length into ten equal parts and forcibly creates a weak point at the seven-to-three point. As long as I hit that point, I can trigger critical damage."

At that moment, Cao Ye's voice rang out, making Tsubaki freeze slightly.

Was he explaining it to her? But was it really wise to reveal his skill so openly?

Whoosh—

On Cao Ye's side, as he revealed his technique, mana began surging around his body.

Revealing One's Hand meant disclosing information about one's technique during battle, thereby increasing the technique's effectiveness.

In Jujutsu Kaisen, there was a strong relationship of cause and effect. After Cao Ye had fused with cursed energy, his mana had also gained this aspect.

Defeating Goliath!

Roar—

However, compared to Sorcerers and cursed spirits, Goliath was merely a monster.

After Cao Ye revealed his technique, it made no difference to Goliath compared to before. It could not understand, after all. It was only a monster.

This could be considered Cao Ye taking advantage of a loophole. I've revealed my technique, after all. Whether you understand it or not is your problem.

Relying on his speed advantage, Cao Ye continuously maneuvered around Goliath. The Inverted Spear of Heaven in his hand was an incomparably sharp weapon, inflicting heavy damage all over Goliath's body.

"Ratio Technique: Collapse—"

Seizing an opening, Cao Ye poured a huge amount of mana into this attack.

[7:3]

At that point, Cao Ye slashed down without hesitation.

Bang—

As the technique's effect erupted, one of Goliath's legs exploded directly down the middle.

Such an impact naturally left Goliath's leg unable to continue supporting its enormous body, causing it to collapse.

Whoosh—

Black mist emerged from the severed leg, and the exploded limb began recovering bit by bit.

Rapid Regeneration. As long as Goliath's magic stone was not damaged and it did not suffer a directly fatal wound, Goliath could continuously recover from its injuries.

That was what made Goliath so troublesome. It was not hard to fight, but hard to kill.

"How could I let you keep regenerating?"

Cao Ye leaped into the air, the Inverted Spear of Heaven in his hand shooting straight toward Goliath's abdomen.

Goliath's magic stone was located in its abdomen. With the power of the Inverted Spear of Heaven, it would be enough to destroy it. Once the magic stone was gone, Goliath would be finished.

Pfft—