Mythshaper
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Chapter 20: Dumb Luck
🕑 Added 2024-02-28 20:07:50 +0000 UTCConsidering Shai had been skulking around since day one, it was no surprise that she managed to learn Stealth (E). The problem was that all her skill slots were currently in use.
[No Skill slots available.]
I'm aware, Grandpa, Shai complained. Give me a solution... pretty please!
[Would you like to swap a skill for Stealth (E)]
[Accept | Decline]
So there is a way! Shai was delighted and thanked System Grandpa, only to find herself in another debacle.
Skills[8/8]:
Advanced Meditation (E) - 14% | Predatory Instinct (D) - 28% | Arcane Shot (D) - 19% | Essence Weaving (E) - 18% | Pain Resistance (E) - 73% | Force Shield (E) - 17% | Empower (E) - 31% | Mental Corrosion Resistance (D) - 69%
Shai summoned her Status page to check on her eight skills and as she feared, all eight of her skills were quite useful. But Stealth was similarly a great skill to have, considering her circumstances.
She considered which skills outweigh Stealth in usage. Shai overlooked all the D-ranked skills and went through the rest of them one by one. Her eyes lingered more on Pain Resistance and Force Shield. Needless to say, both of the skills played a certain role in keeping her safe. Although Shai didn't use [Force Shield] all that much, it was her only defensive skill. While [Pain Resistance] let her endure terrible agony...
Grandpa, is there a way to increase skill slots?
Letting out an exasperated hiss, Shai considered swapping [Pain Resistance] with [Stealth]. She held her decision, however. Completing [Basic Meditation] got her a total of 6 points of attributes, and it was only an F-ranked skill. Pain Resistance was already at 73%. It was better to hold on to it until mastery before swapping. Besides, Shai knew the perfect way to master the skill. It wouldn't take long at all.
With her mind made, she emerged from the crevice to collect her loot. Shai ejected all the low-levelled corpses she had in her Inventory and stowed away the HIgher-ranked creatures one after another, hardly sparing a glance at her accumulating wealth. By the end of her looting spree, Shai had to leave more than half of the corpses. It pained her, but there was no other option. It wasn't like she could just stay there and eat...
Well, her ravenous stomach had no problem with the plan, but Shai already made up her mind to get the fuck out of this place. She couldn't compete with creatures leagues above her level.
The food would last her for over a month... But then her stomach rumbled, the boundless hunger gnawing at her gut. Shai was no longer sure about the time frame the sustenance would last.
How tragic it was, that she couldn't keep the wealth she gained through the twisted whims of fate.
Shooting a second glance at the meals she left behind, Shai slithered away from the area, avoiding the trails of purple blood flowing on the ground. She chose a path opposite to the road the rogue beastmen had taken.
As she progressed, the aura of corruption in the air dwindled, and her way became clearer and safer. The food in her inventory put her at ease. Perhaps she could lower her guard slightly and relax.
Now, all she needed to do was find her way out of this dungeon and level up with creatures of her size. Shai sensed that as her level grew, the harder it became to level up.
Crossing a few more tunnels and turns, Shai eventually arrived at a vast crater, or rather, a chasm. It loomed before her, shrouded in pitch darkness, with intermittent clusters of thick spider cobwebs intricately woven orderly. It seemed as though some mathematicians had dedicated years of effort to construct such a complex web formation.
However, Shai knew that it was not the work of mathematicians but that of Empathetic Spiders like Serenity. Hmm, do the spiders know geometry?
Gazing at the complex structure of webs that spanned into the depths of the dark chasm beyond her eyes could reach, it was evident that those who created this place knew what they were doing. Unfortunately, Shai didn't comprehend their purpose. Was it just for fun, or was there some use for these geometric formations?
But ignoring all that, there was an appetising smell in the air. She extended her forked tongue from her mouth to savour the scent, gradually inching closer to the objects emitting the delectable fragrance.
To her surprise, she discovered a vast field of mushrooms growing all over the chasm walls, interwoven with the intricate webbing of the cobwebs.
A mushroom farm? Shai thought, her head swirling with bewilderment. These spiders know how to farm their own food. This world is truly bizarre.
The mushrooms she encountered here were of a different variety than the ones she had come across before. They appeared fuller... Fleshy? Meaty? Delicious. Undoubtedly more appetising. Shai inched closer, mindful that even plants could possess intelligence and pose a threat.
She triggered [Golden Eyes] on one of the smaller mushrooms from a safe distance.
[Bloodcudding Mushroom - Lesser.]
The name alone was ominous, yet the mushrooms looked and smelled far too appetising for Shai to resist, despite having plenty of rations in her inventory. Unceremoniously, she shot an [Arcane Shot] and sliced through the mushroom. Before it could fall, a suction force came out of her mouth as she devoured the Bloodcudding Mushroom directly.
Shai couldn't be certain how much her snake form could truly taste, and appreciate the different flavours. Meat had been okay, though not of insectoids or spiders. However, these mushrooms proved to be an absolute delicacy. Shai couldn't help herself and swallowed another mushroom before the taste of the first one completely dissolved. Then another. And another...
Before Shai realised, she had consumed a dozen of these mushrooms. Her eyes gleamed with fervour, yearning to devour them all.
Clearly, her instincts were screwed when it came to food, particularly delicacies of this nature. Shai had to meditate for a few minutes to regain control over herself. But she stopped herself from meditating
These were cultivated lands, or chasms, and the spiders that tended to them might be lurking nearby. Sigh, these mushrooms are simply too delicious to be left behind...
For once, Shai allowed her stomach to decide over her better judgment. She opened the Inventory to drop a few more corpses from it to store nearly her entire inventory with the delicious mushrooms. She made sure to cause some chaos in the area she had looted, leaving the corpses behind, and making it appear as though it had been ravaged by corrupted creatures, perhaps even spiders.
Shai felt a pang of guilt for destroying the field. There was a certain beauty in the arrangement of the cobwebs. Even in her snake form, she could appreciate it, despite not being much into art.
The cobweb formation... felt intrinsic and concealed, something too profound for a humble serpent like her to fully comprehend with her limited worldview.
Now, it was time to get out of this place... Shai thought as she slithered back along the path she had come from. Although she had stumbled upon some fortuitous encounters while wandering, she had a nagging feeling that she was moving deeper into the dungeon, which was the last thing she desired.
Shai hadn't even moved for a couple of minutes in a sloped tunnel that went under when something changed in her surroundings. A tremor crept up out of her being as the ground began to shake along.
An earthquake? Within a dungeon? Shai knew too little to judge.
It felt as if a storm was brewing within the path, rapidly approaching her. Although the earthquake was not powerful enough to collapse the dungeon, it posed a genuine threat to Shai.
Taking a deep, chilly breath, Shai swiftly turned around and crawled at her maximum speed. After a few more tense seconds, she discovered the cause of the earthquake. It was not a natural occurrence, nor was it caused by one or two creatures.
But swarms of several thousand spiders, ranging in size from half a metre to a full metre in length. They stormed through the tunnels as if participating in a marathon.
Shai couldn't help but curse inwardly at the spectacle. Of course, it is the fucking spiders again.
