Kae
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Dungeon Diver CH828
🕑 Added 2025-04-04 23:00:07 +0000 UTCWe fly through the air in jagged patterns, passing over other biomes and destroying them with shockwaves just the same as we did the forest we started on.
The sharp-toothed grin on this monster grows with every clash, and I have to continuously add more and more borrowed stats to the point where I’ve already doubled the output I used in my finishing move against the mammoth.
The Berserker Giant is either getting stronger with every blow, or still warming up and testing its limits on me. Either way, it seems to really be enjoying itself.
The announcer playing back visuals and the crowd watching, on the other hand, have mixed reactions.
Their silent shock did turn to excitement at first after I blocked the first few blows.
However, as dozens of exchanges pass, and multiple biomes surrounding us get obliterated by crescents of white ether from the Berserker’s sword and waves of fire that explode off my spiked mace, it turns to confusion and fear.
“How is this possible… can a lower race really be this strong?”
“No, it shouldn't be! Maybe it’s that Soul Weapon, it’s not like he’s been hit yet.”
“It says it right here on his avatar profile, it’s the Premium Basic Class Soul Weapon, the highest grade given out in the Arena Events. It’s nothing a hard-working 2nd or 1st Class Lord couldn’t manage to acquire in their lifetime… The Berserker is using a Relic Class Blade from the Elite Star System. That human’s advantage isn’t his weapon.”
“Maybe it's a unique skill, humans are usually weak, but they sometimes pop up with strange abilities.”
“That’s on his avatar profile too, only fire and light summoning.”
“How is he doing it…?”
“This has to be some kind of trick! They’re putting on some kind of show.”
“Who cares, let’s place more bets on him before he makes it to the main event while the odds are still good!”
The opinions of tens of millions of Lords differ—some angry, others still excited, confused, and fearful if the appearance of such a strong fighter means the start of another War either here in the green zone, or a new energy-rich area in the Lower Realm.
Despite the differences, every eye is glued to the holographic projections on the dome, and almost everyone in the Grand Citadel is aware of the fight going on.
Full minutes pass, and I continuously raise the amount of borrowed stats I’m using in order to keep up with the monster’s speed and raw force. I can’t just jump up in power to finish this duel instantly, because I can feel the fluctuations of Noble Vibrations beneath my seal pushing against the insides of my body like a growing balloon.
If I were to release too much pressure too quickly, it would pop in an instant.
However, this slow release of more stats allows the Berserker to grow with me… I feel the heat of its ether increasing, and it feels like every time we clash the pool it pulls from grows deeper and more refined.
Screeching rings out through the dome as it lets out battle cries, and we destroy over 30 full biomes in the center of the arena after 10 full minutes pass.
Throughout it all, many notifications sound out in my mind, as our stray attacks kill many Lords in the crossfire.
There are even a few members from the Top 10 with their own red pillars tracking them that get caught up and one-shot killed in the blasts.
The spectate feed shows many Lords dying, but also many Lords exiting the arena with enough points to move on.
As the minutes pass, and the strength of each of our blows is over four times the limit I used to kill the mammoth, we’re both sitting at slot 1 and 2 on the leaderboards with [22,308 points] and [17,935 points].
This monster’s rate of improvement is quite scary. I can see a mirrored image of part of myself in this monster, as I observe it use every single attack I throw at it as a lesson.
Its sharp green eyes are growing more aware of my movement style, and it also is beginning to sense when I borrow more stats and attacks with even more vigor when it knows the hit I’m throwing will be stronger.
Its white greater form even begins to shift in color, turning slightly grey for reasons unknown to me as its pool of ether grows more refined.
Now, every exchange we make sends us both flying back hundreds of kilometers in the air each time, and destroys entire biomes below us even when we’re high up in the sky.
I’m certain that Berserker has forgotten we’re even in a tournament event, the focus it’s showing now is like a wild beast enjoying their hunt. Everything else is black in its world, and I’m the main focus.
For myself, my perception of reality is far beyond this battle’s needs. In between each attack, I have plenty of time to contemplate my next moves, or even scan my surroundings to process background tasks.
The only problem is my body’s speed, and access to more mana and ether is supressed, as the majority is trapped behind seals.
In addition to this limitation, my only advantage is being chipped away at too. Despite taking things slow, using this much power makes my vision foggy, my hearing blocked by buzzing sounds, and my overall energy senses clouded.
I have to concentrate more and more on each swing to keep holding back that seal, so much that a pounding headache starts to creep in too.
Though, on the outside, I keep a straight face and calm demeanour while perfectly countering every single one of the Berserker’s moves.
Dozens more biomes get obliterated, and I keep leading the battle far from where I came from, leaving Ren on the top of a snowy mountain cliff far from our Titans’ clash.
Hardly any other fighters stay in the ring, and no more cuts away from this battle are shown on the big holographic screen—it’s only us…
“They’ve destroyed half the Arena, but neither have landed a hit yet! Could this match really end in a draw? Or will one of them pull out a victory before the timer runs out… Only three minutes remaining!” the Demonic Servant yells out as the seating in the stadium surpasses 50% of its capacity.
A grin starts to grow on my face, as my vision is almost completely blurred, and the pressure in my head is building up. I can’t really hear much of anything other than a loud buzzing in my ears, but I’m still able to stand my ground and use my battle instincts to picture what I’m fighting using vague shadows.
Cracks have begun to form in my Soul Weapon again, as it’s reaching its limit—about five and a half times higher than the mammoth’s final hit.
I’m able to use the automated self-healing technique, and even use the ability to disconnect the ball from the chain to gain a few extra seconds in a few exchanges, however, the results are all the same.
Every attack that passes by, the cracks grow larger than last time, and the buzzing in my ears grows louder.
This is perfect for what I planned for. Having my Soul Weapon reach its limit was not what I was expecting, though, it will add to what I’m about to pull off even more.
The announcer catches onto my Soul Weapon as it takes a beating, and the crowd begins to turn on me again as the minutes count down, leaving us with only 60 seconds left in this match.
“You were right, the human’s Soul Weapon can’t hold up against that sword!”
“Come on! Hold that Berserker off another minute! I have a thousand ether on the line here!”
“He may not have been as strong in the end… but he survived a fight for twenty minutes straight, this will go down in history…”
“You’re right, this human showed us the limits of what can be done for the Lower Races. He may not be able to take down an Elite Berserker, but he sure put up a fight.”
As these comments of doubt begin to roll in, I feel the aura around the monster I’m fighting become darker and darker, even beginning to give off a sour smell.
It almost feels cold… to the point where I question whether or not it’s using a power like Zashen’s or Ava’s, with similarities to Noble Vibrations…
I shake it off as my mind playing tricks in such a compromised state, but as a few more exchanges pass and the monster’s speed begins to increase—and it almost breaks my spiked ball in half with one of its hits—I consider if this is actually real.
I think to myself while watching the timer in my head drop below 20 seconds left in the match: ‘Maybe it’s activating another form… Berserkers in dungeon boss rooms had a skill called Final Breath that gave a massive boost to the caster’s stats but put them in a near-death state afterward… Or, it could be some kind of unique buff related to that too…’
The announcer screams through our hologram, starting to count down the time remaining in the match, but the world outside is a blur.
All I can feel is an extremely dark and powerful force building up in front of me, and after a few more exchanges, I feel it explode with power and vibrations I’m certain could clash with a Noble Demon’s natural suppression.
At the same time, I feel my intuitive counterattack get cracked in half, and even the chains of my Soul Weapon shatter from the impact.
The Berserker’s white-hot blade sliced through it with ease, and in my mind on the spectate feed, I watch the grey greater form of this Berserker erupt with a jet black aura and swing forward as the countdown above nears the end.
The aura strength from that enemy just increased tenfold, and its gut-wrenching screech echoes through every single biome in the dome, and through the ears of the tens of millions of Lords watching.
I smirk, take a deep breath, and let go of my ball and chain, letting it be completely destroyed, and place both of my hands in front of me.
The Dark Black Berserker’s form is easily five times the size of mine, and its glowing white blade comes down on me, looking as though it’s about to slice the small red human’s greater form in two just like the fiery Soul Weapon moments ago.
I listen to the buzzing in my ears hit its peak, and let go of my deep breath, opening my eyes and disintegrating the first seal that holds me back.
My eyes glow white, and reality around me instantly becomes crystal clear again.
A rush of my own unsealed energy surges through me, my headache ceases, and my senses heighten drastically. The euphoria of Noble Vibrations rippling out from my body feels incredible while I catch the Berserker’s white hot blade between my hands with a single precise clapping motion.
Comments
Erik McPherson
TYFTC Kae
Capplesactus
That goes hard
