A resounding crack filled the cavern as Xen planted his sword—crackling with red mana from a pre-charged Crescent Rage strike—into the face of a grinning Clay Orc that had come to intercept him. Its face caved in under Xen's blade, and the arrogant monster dropped to one knee under the force.

  Xen was honestly surprised it hadn't died in one hit, considering he was benefiting from a 50% increase in all stats due to his new [Solo Hunter] passive. As steam began to bellow out of the half-dead monster, his Phantom Strike skill activated, sending a second Crescent Rage strike right into the monster, finally finishing it off.

  You have killed an opponent 2 levels above your own. Bonus experience awarded.

  Experience split between [Necroplague Slime] and [Human] form.

  [Necroplague Slime] has leveled up: 33 -> 34.

  [Human] has leveled up: 26 -> 27.

  Wait, bonus experience? Just how strong is the other guarding Orc?

  Swiftly leaping back, he cast a gaze at the second of the Clay Orcs standing guard beside the Underworld Orc. "Appraisal," he said.

  [Clay Orc (Level 36)]

  Whoa, level 36? This thing is practically a boss on its own. If not for Crescent Rage being super effective against these clay-based monsters and Solo Hunter buffing me so much, I doubt I could two-hit it like that.

  It seemed like the Underworld Orc was equally surprised as the towering mage finally acknowledged him as a real threat. Earth mana was drawn from the ground and coiled around the monster that loomed over him, even while sitting. One keen eye locked onto him, the other hidden behind a mask of clay. Snarling, the Underworld Orc leaned forward, and Xen felt death coming.

  "Claymancy Surge," the Underworld Orc roared, stamping his foot. The ground cracked, and an immense amount of mana flooded into it. So much that the ground began to glow.

  Xen was already on the move, making use of his increased speed to rush back toward the bridges as he knew he wouldn't survive whatever was coming. Feeling the ground begin to tremble beneath him, he spared a glance over his shoulder just in time to witness hundreds of spikes erupting from the ground in a wave toward him. While not that sharp, the sheer speed at which the spikes were emerging was definitely enough to obliterate him. Xen didn't waste another second and hurled himself through the air, missing the bridge and bombing into the lake.

  Not even a second later, the cliff face of the lake behind him exploded, sending a pulse of force through the lake that sent him spinning. Not even the lake is safe?! Xen yelled in his mind. After tumbling a few more times, the lake finally calmed. Taking a moment to get his bearings, Xen swiveled and stared in awe at the ominous underwater wall of spikes shrouded in a haze of thrown-up sand and bubbles.

  So that is what a level 41 mage can do. Xen thought, but looked at the positives rather than letting fear seep into him. No doubt such a spell had cost a tremendous amount of mana, and he had managed to avoid it. Overall, this was a win for him. Swimming towards the spikes with the grace of a drowning dog, he noted that each of the spikes was around the size of a person as he used them to haul himself out of the water. As he crested the edge and made eye contact with the Underworld Orc, he could see surprise on the monster's face.

  "That's right, I'm still alive, you beast," Xen laughed as he hurled water out of his lungs and hauled himself onto the shoreline with water leaking from his helmet. The terrain before him was no doubt far more challenging to navigate now due to the spikes everywhere, but he had managed to take out one of the guarding Orcs, which made things a little easier.

  The Underworld Orc wasted no time in pointing a finger at the remaining guarding Orc and blessing it with mana, causing its skin to shimmer with a brown hue. The floor boss then roared, and the empowered Clay Orc rushed forward with a small group of Clay Goblins circling around to flank him.

  Xen just grinned behind his helmet as he saw his [Solo Hunter] buff increase as the goblins closed in. Not wanting to kill them as they were so beneficial if left alive, he got to his feet and, after gripping his sword, immediately rushed forward to meet the Clay Orc.

  "Crescent Rage, Phantom Strike," Xen said, causing red mana to crackle along his blade. Swinging his sword in a wide arc, the crescent of red mana tore through a few stone spikes that were in the way and crashed into the crossed arms of the rampaging Orc.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Xen frowned at the result. He had chosen to go for a weaker ranged attack, as he doubted that with the brown hue protecting the Orc, a melee-range strike would kill the monster, and he had been right. Other than dimming slightly, the brown hue protecting the Orc remained strong after that attack. That he had anticipated, but the brown hue protecting it didn't so much as shimmer from the subsequent weaker Phantom Strike attack. He had hoped it would at least stun or damage the monster, yet it didn't even break its defenses.

  "Not good," Xen cursed under his breath. While Crescent Rage was highly effective against these clay monsters, it wasn't a cheap skill to use at all. Even with his enhanced stats and mana pool, he couldn't spam the skill and expect to have enough mana left to face the Underworld Orc. He knew what the floor boss was trying to do here and refused to fall for it.

  There are about ten meters between me and the Orc. I need to halve that to start stacking my [Blight Aura] on him. After a while, the Orc's magic resistance and ability to heal should be heavily reduced, letting me finish it off with one hit.

  However, there was one slight problem. Xen had to stay within five meters of a level 36 Orc. That was easier said than done without being smashed to pieces. Gritting his teeth, he dashed over the spikes toward the Orc. Once he was almost within striking distance, he noticed a faint black aura appear around the Orc.

  Using Appraisal again, he confirmed it was indeed his Blight Aura.

  [Clay Orc (Level 36)]

  Afflictions: Blight Aura (stacking)

  Jumping to the side to avoid the Orc's charge, he swiftly made sure to maintain a close distance.

  Though perhaps unsurprisingly, the Orc also noticed the strange aura that was suddenly around it, stripping away the magic resistance the Underworld Orc had placed. It snarled at him, clearly debating what to do.

  Xen's mind raced, and he soon came up with an idea.

  The Orc is currently the main defense of the Underworld Orc while he recovers mana, so I doubt he will unleash such large, devastating spells in this direction if I stick close to the Orc. This is good for me, I just need to dance long enough, and victory should be mine—

  That thought was cut short as the level 36 Clay Orc easily snapped off one of the spikes and swung it at him—Xen barely dodged in time as the earth spike was effortlessly swung down like a club and obliterated the area he had been in half a second ago.

  How can such a large monster move so fast?! Xen cursed in his mind as he started to realize just how small a range five meters really was. He was also discovering how important reaction speed and agility were for his survival so far. Regeneration was nice, but it wouldn't do anything if his head was smashed in or he was one-shotted by an earth spike.

  "Clay Smash," the Orc snarled, pounding an earth mana-coated fist into the ground. The hit was luckily sloppy, possibly done more out of anger than expecting to kill him.

  Xen took the chance to wrap around and made use of Geomantic Perception to navigate the chaos around him while keeping a close tab on all the enemies, especially the Orc. The Goblins, while weak, still needed to be avoided or disabled. Apparently, a legless goblin bleeding out still counted as an enemy for his Solo Hunter buff. But if they weren't kept in range, he would be in trouble.

  The Blight Aura on the Orc seems to be getting stronger, Xen thought after a few minutes of dancing around for his life. That once-strong brown shimmer was gone, and he was starting to notice the Blight Aura eating into the monster's flesh. While it wouldn't deal any damage to the monster directly, the Blight Aura would make the Orc significantly easier to kill.

  Coming to a stop in a newly made clearing by the rampaging Orc, Xen faced the monster. "Now should be good enough," he said, raising his free hand, "Corruption Missile."

  Six orbs of death mana circled his wrist like a bracelet.

  The Orc seemed thrilled that Xen was finally standing still and thundered toward him. The barely five-meter gap was closed in a second, and the Orc joyfully raised its balled fists, anticipating a kill.

  "Fire," Xen commanded, pointing at the Orc's nose. The six orbs of death shot out one after the other. Once they were all unloaded, he had no reason to stay nearby, so he kicked off the stunned Orc's stomach and did a messy somersault to create distance. Landing roughly, he eagerly watched the results of his Blight Aura Corruption Missile combo.

  The result was devastating. Stripped of its magic resistance and ability to regenerate fast enough, the corrupted mana spread visibly quickly, with the Orc's veins turning black, followed by a roar of pain. Falling to its knees with a thud, the Orc clawed at its own face in desperation, tearing itself apart.

  Xen took the opportunity and launched himself forward off an earthen spike, and with the help of his [Sword Proficiency] passive, he cleanly decapitated the beast. Coming to a pause, he heard the Orc's head roll off the monster's shoulders, landing on the ground with a dull crunch, followed by the hefty Orc's body slumping forward with a thud.

  Dead.

  Xen stood and flicked the blood off his sword.

  You have killed an opponent 2 levels above your own. Bonus experience awarded.

  Experience split between [Necroplague Slime] and [Human] form.

  [Human] has leveled up: 27 -> 28.

  Xen dismissed the notification and turned toward the Underworld Orc that was now alone and sitting on his grand throne surrounded by spikes. The floor boss answered in kind by slowly standing up from the Earth Mage Throne and staring down at him.

  Instead of throwing a spell like Xen expected, the monster cleared his throat and addressed him in what he assumed was Orcish.

  "You're not a human," the Underworld Orc said, the language coming out as a series of throat-rumbling snarls. "Why are you fighting for them?"

  "Fighting for them?" Xen replied in Orcish while tilting his head. "You have it all wrong. I'm not fighting for them," he pointed his blood-stained sword at the monster. "I just want to eat you."

  to read ahead!