abcnovels
Chapter 57: Out of the First Area
Chapter 57: Out of the First Area
The Sneaky Mole dug underground, aiming to surprise Stark from behind, but he anticipated its move. As the mole popped up right behind him, Stark spun around and delivered a swift kick that sent the creature flying back into the dirt.
"-17837!"
Then he sent a crimson fist from 'Aura Smash' inside that hole, killing the mole.
"-21263!"
Next, the Sound Bat swooped down from above, screeching loudly in an attempt to disorient Stark. However, he remained focused and timed his jump perfectly, meeting the bat mid-air with two powerful uppercuts that silenced it for good.
"-18263! -17702!"
The Rock Golem lumbered towards Stark, its massive stone fists raised to crush him. Stark knew he wouldn't be able to take this monster down with just brute force. Instead, he dodged its first strike and aimed for the gem embedded in its chest - the source of its power.
With a calculated move, Stark dashed around the golem, avoiding its heavy attacks and striking precisely at the gem. As his fist connected with the crystal, a blinding light burst forth, causing the golem to shudder and crumble into a pile of rubble.
"-37162!"
This was the most amount of damage he had dealt to an opponent, but it seems like aiming for an enemy's weak point caused more damage, just like in video games.
[You have slain one "Sneaky Mole lv32", gained 21627EXP!]
[You have slain one "Sound Bat lv31", gained 19880EXP!]
[You have slain one "Rock Golem lv34", gained 23726EXP!]
'Fair,' he cracked his bones and kept going, after all this was only the starting area, and he didn't want to stay there too long although it was a perfect opportunity to farm levels.
He continued his journey deeper into the heart of the mountain, each step echoing in the dimly lit cavern.
The path ahead twisted and turned, leading him further away from the entrance and into the unknown depths.
Along the way, he encountered more formidable foes - giant spiders with dripping fangs, elemental spirits crackling with power, and even a towering golem made of pure iron.
But in the end…
[You have slain one "Silky Spider lv33", gained 23182EXP!]
Not a single one of those monsters…
[You have slain one "Mountain Spirit lv31", gained 22619EXP!]
Put a dent on him.
[You have slain one "Iron Golem lv32", gained 24271EXP!]
…
[Your level has increased to level 18, granting you one skill point and boost in stats]
…
[Your level has increased to level 19, granting you one skill point and boost in stats]
…
[Experience: 8261/310000]
By the time he reached the end of the level 35 area, which took quite a while since he had been lost and also struggled to fight some of the monsters, he was already level 19.
[You have upgraded 'Domination' to level 8!]
[You have upgraded 'Aura Smash' to level 6!]
In front of him was yet another black fog, the same as the one as the entrance, making him unable to see anything past it.
He took a deep breath and stepped forward, unsure of what lay ahead. The darkness of the fog enveloped him, and a strange sensation washed over him.
As his eyes adjusted to the lack of light, he could see faint wisps of energy surrounding him, a message appeared before him:
[You have entered Level 40 area: The Valley's Forest]
He emerged from the other side, and then found himself outside again, except it was completely different.
He was now surrounded by trees, and much like the area's name described, he was inside of a forest.
The sky was still a crimson red, and the three moons were still looking down at… him?
'Almost feels like these things are looking at only me…' Stark didn't like it, but he couldn't do anything about it.
Surrounding him were not only trees, but giant mountains in all directions, blocking anyone from leaving this place.
And his objective? Well… the rift itself showed it to him.
[You are the first person to reach the 'Valley's Forest', granting you information!]
The message turned into a sparkling light, and hurtled toward a giant mountain in front of him like a shining star, one he could hardly see because of the tree leaves.
Observing closely, Stark could see that there was some sort of structure on that mountain, and a flight of stairs were leading up to it, but it was extremely far.
'Welp, need to keep going…'
Stark took a few steps forward and then suddenly hear a weird noise.
~BEEP, BEEP, BEEP~
It didn't take him more than a few seconds to look down and see that the "Crimson Moon Communication Device" he was wearing was glowing repeatedly.
[Please click on the badge to answer the call!]
Stark hesitated for a moment, debating whether to answer the call or ignore it and continue his journey into the Valley's Forest. Curiosity got the better of him, and he tapped on the badge, activating the communication device.
And as soon as he did, Vex's voice rang in his ears, even though he wasn't wearing earphones or anything of the sort.
"Yo, Stark, everyone received a message that someone just entered the level 40 area, are you doing good on your end?"
All the 'Crimson Moon Squad' members could hear or engage in their discussion, but they preferred to listen.
"Yeah… I just entered it, I guess…" Stark answered nonchalantly.
"WAIT WHAT?" Thorns intervened, "IT'S YOU?"
"…?" Stark was confused, after all wasn't the reason they called him because they knew?
But unbeknownst to him, Secret Rifts were different from normal ones since they were never explored before.
Everytime someone entered a new area or defeated an elite/mini-boss/boss, everyone inside the rift would be notified (it was the same in the 'City Ruins' except only for mini-bosses and bosses).
Basically, everyone had received this message.
[Someone has reached the level 40 area, hurry up!]
Vex had indeed called to check on Stark, but he hadn't expected him to be the one to reach it.
"You really are stronger than you look, you know?" the leader praised him.
"I hear that often," Stark smiled.
"Well, i'll let you go, we need to make sure not to let any of the other factions take the lead!"
And just like that, the call was ended.
The shadows of the trees ahead of him and the overall atmosphere of this forest were very eerie, but Stark didn't care.
'Level 25…' he mumbled over and over, he wanted to find a good spot to farm experience, and he believed that this rift would be perfect for it.
But of course, just as he was about to head deeper inside the forest, he heard noise behind him, from the 'Mountain Challenge's' exit, and…
~FWISH~
Four people came out from the black fog.
"Haha~ this isn't hard at all, let's just beat the boss and get this over with!"
Instinctively, Stark hid behind a tree, he didn't know whether these people were aggresive or not, and he didn't want to risk it.
Even more so knowing there was the possibility of their level being way higher than his.
In such a rift, where nobody would question what happened, it is kill or be killed, and no one will know the truth even if you were murdered.
"We can also just loot the guy that already came here, he musn't be far since the message appeared three minutes ago…"
"Good idea, let's kill that fucker and take his equipment!"
'…' he had gotten his answer.