The poison reacted with the reflected energy, detonating in a flash of sickly green fire.
The explosion rocked the column, a shockwave of corrupted mana surging outward.
The manticore shrieked, half its lower body engulfed in burning venom.
Fragnts of bone flew across the platform, clattering over the edge and vanishing into the abyss below.
Wade staggered to his feet, clutching his sword.
Through the chaos, he saw it. The ribs on its right flank had been shattered open, exposing the glowing core pulsing faintly within.
"There you are."
He vanished again.
He reappeared directly under the exposed ribs, his free hand already blazing with fiery mana. He slamd it against the creature’s side.
"Fireburst!"
The explosion was instantaneous.
A torrent of orange fla erupted upward, confined by the bone cage of the manticore’s ribs.
The confined blast tore through the creature’s chest cavity, bursting out through its spine and skull.
The manticore scread, or tried to.
The sound cut short as its skull split clean down the middle, green light spilling out like fire.
It staggered backward, wings twitching violently.
Then, with one final rattling roar, the manticore collapsed. The green glow flickered once, then went out completely.
Silence fell.
Wade stood in the middle of the ruined platform, chest heaving, sweat and soot clinging to his face.
The edges of his sleeves were burned, and his mana reserves were dangerously low.
He exhaled shakily, lowering his sword. "Well... that’s three down."
The manticore’s bones began to crumble, dissolving into shimring dust.
And when the light faded, the loot shimred into existence where the beast had fallen.
He collapsed to one knee, breathing hard. "Please... let the next one be yellow."
He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his arm and stepped towards his neat pile of loot waiting for him.
He crouched. There was a small black box, which as always, contained gold coins. He opened it.
1,000 coins, just like he’d expected. But this ti, he got just one.
Sitting innocently on the floor was another box. Its surface was darker, reflecting the light of the giant torches.
He opened it.
Inside was a dagger. It was thin, slightly curved, and faintly glistening as if coated in oil.
The blade itself seed to glow with a dim green hue, an intricate design flowing along its spine.
[Venom Fang Dagger]
[ 25 Poison Damage, 30% Critical Chance, Inflicts Minor Toxin on Wound]
"Poison, huh?" Wade muttered, picking it up.
The dagger felt light in his grip, perfectly balanced, its hilt cool against his skin. "Guess that’s poetic justice."
Next to the dagger lay a small pouch.
He picked it up and opened it, revealing ten smooth stones glowing faintly with blue light.
[Stat Stone (x10)]
[Each grants 1 to any stat when absorbed.]
Wade smiled. "Now we’re talking."
He tucked all the loot into his inventory, standing straight.
After that, the adrenaline ebbed away, leaving behind a dull ache in his limbs.
He wandered to the edge of the cracked platform, where chunks of stone had fallen away into the endless dark below.
The abyss stretched forever, dark, depthless, and silent.
He sat down on the ledge, his legs dangling over the edge.
His reflection flickered faintly in the faint green glow that still lingered on the floor. He exhaled long and slow.
The silence was heavy. Even the jeering skeletons had grown quiet.
He looked at his hands, covered in soot.
The Dragon Plate he wore was cracked in several places, though still intact.
He could feel every bruise, every burn, every ache.
"I really need a healer," he muttered under his breath. "Or a vacation."
He sat there for several long minutes, letting his Mana Siphon gradually pull energy back into him from the ambient mana that saturated the dungeon.
Slowly, the fog in his head cleared, replaced by a simring determination.
He couldn’t stop now. Not when he’d co this far.
Pushing himself to his feet, Wade rolled his shoulders, stretched his neck, and retrieved his sword.
He took one last look at the empty sky above him, then at the columns ahead.
Two more paths opened in the distance, their tops glowing faintly under the light.
Unfortunately, no yellow this ti. Just two red tiles.
He groaned aloud. "You’ve got to be kidding ."
And so he picked one, teleporting to it.
He vanished, reappearing in a flash of white light on the next column.
Another golem appeared.
But he didn’t hesitate. His sword ca up, and the next battle began.
Hours passed in the sa brutal fashion.
And soon, each fight blurred into the next one.
He faced dragons, manticores, and though he didn’t like it, golems.
Sotis he guessed right, sotis he didn’t.
Sotis the platform itself shook so violently he thought he’d fall into the abyss.
Other tis, the monsters nearly tore him apart.
He lost count of how many tis he was thrown to the ground.
How many tis he had to teleport away just before being crushed.
How many tis he drank water with shaking hands, refusing to rest more than an hour before forcing himself onward.
But every kill made him more confident. Every piece of loot added to his growing arsenal. Every step forward ant one less to go.
When the final dragon fell, a hulking beast with wings like jagged bone blades, it hit the ground with an echoing crash.
Wade staggered back, blood dripping from a gash on his arm. His breathing ca ragged and shallow.
The dragon’s corpse shimred and dissolved, leaving behind a single chest glowing faintly white.
He cracked it open, finding another box of coins and a faintly glowing stone that shone with energy.
He didn’t even check what it was. Not yet.
Instead, Wade straightened, leaning on his sword, his entire body trembling from exhaustion.
His armor was splattered with soot and dust, but his eyes burned with the fire of soone who had refused to die.
He turned slowly, looking up.
And ahead of him stood one last tile.
A single platform glowing pure white.
The end of the journey.
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