"Hmph, eager to throw your lives away for my EXP, I see." Kalis let out a low scoff, his eyes glinting with unbridled disdain.
The dozen or so Abyssal monsters charging at the front came in all sorts of grotesque shapes, slimy, writhing Dark Slimes, tentacled Abyssal Octopi flailing their suckered limbs, and hunchbacked Flame Goblins with crimson skin, all of them snarling and leering with hideous faces.
Having these ugly creatures get up close and personal was nothing short of torture. Kalis had no patience to wait any longer. He raised his hand and began chanting an incantation.
"Fireball!"
A colossal fireball—several times bigger than the one he'd used earlier—came screaming down into the mob of monsters, its searing flames swallowing the entire area in an instant.
BOOM——!
Flames erupted in all directions, and screams of agony rang out one after another. The monsters at the front didn't even get a chance to struggle before they were reduced to charred cinders by the blistering heat.
"How is this possible! How can a Level 59 human be this strong!"
The Abyssal creatures on the street erupted into pandemonium, staring at the gruesome sight of their fallen comrades with faces twisted in disbelief.
But worse was yet to come.
"Perfect number." Kalis glanced at the hundred-plus monsters converging on him, a cold, sharp smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Star Wind!"
A violent gale suddenly whipped up out of nowhere. Howling gusts of wind coalesced in the blink of an eye into a massive tornado with a diameter of over 240 meters, a raging blue tempest of starlight that tore through every living thing in its path.
-2,106,348
-2,067,664
-2,098,464
A relentless stream of terrifying damage numbers, each hitting well over two million, popped up like crazy. The hundred-plus Abyssal monsters didn't even last a full second before they all dropped dead on the spot.
The raging wind was so powerful that it even toppled the black stone buildings lining the street, leaving nothing but rubble and debris in its wake. It looked like the apocalypse had descended upon them, a truly horrifying sight.
"Help! Run for your lives!"
"This human is a monster! Lord Night Archon, save us!"
The few monsters lucky enough to avoid being sucked into the tornado's eye were scared out of their wits. They screamed and fled in all directions, leaving nothing but glowing EXP orbs scattered across the ground.
Lia had already seen the destructive power of Star Wind before, but watching this mind-blowing efficiency in clearing a crowd still made her suck in a sharp breath, her heart pounding with shock.
Five short seconds later, the gale finally died down.
Not a single Abyssal creature remained standing on the street within a hundred-meter radius.
Just then, a furious roar suddenly boomed out, shaking the entire small Abyssal city to its very foundations.
"Bold humans! How dare you run amok on the sacred soil of the Abyss!"
Whoosh——!
The wind howled as dozens of massive tentacles, each over twenty meters long, shot through the air, slamming down onto the ground with a sickening squelch, reeking of brine and rot.
Then, a colossal figure slowly emerged at the end of the street, its towering body blotting out the sky and covering nearly half the road.
[High Abyssal Lord - Zerakel (Legendary Boss)]
Level: 150
HP: 4,700,000/4,700,000
(Target level is too high to obtain additional attribute data)
The strongest being in this small Abyssal city had finally revealed himself!
"Hmph? It's you?" Zerakel's massive vertical pupil locked onto Kalis instantly, a flicker of surprise flashing in its depths. "Last time, I spared your life out of respect for Princess Lilith. How dare you set foot in the Abyss ever again!"
His thick, muscular tentacles flailed wildly, whipping up fierce gusts of wind as he loomed menacingly.
Kalis shrugged indifferently, looking completely unbothered. "I never begged you to spare me. In fact, I was hoping you'd just kill me right then and there."
"Hmph! Deceitful, conniving human!" Zerakel snarled angrily, his voice dripping with contempt. "When you were weak, you used Her Highness's innocence and kindness to escape with your life. Now that your power has grown, you've come back to flaunt your strength? How utterly ridiculous!"
"Uh…" Kalis scratched his head awkwardly, feeling a tiny twinge of guilt at Zerakel's accusation. He cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject. "Actually, I'm here to find something."
"Something?" Zerakel let out a cold snort, his tone oozing with disdain. "The treasures of the Abyss are not for the likes of you lowly humans to covet!"
"I'm looking for the Divine Dew Spring that grants life-giving vitality." Kalis cut straight to the chase.
"Divine Dew Spring..."
Zerakel's giant pupil constricted slightly, as if searching his memory for the name.
After a moment, realization dawned on him. His single eye widened abruptly, and he roared with rage as he launched an attack. "You're asking for death!"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh——!
As his deafening roar echoed across the sky, the heavens suddenly darkened, and a downpour of pitch-black raindrops came crashing down. The moment the raindrops hit the ground, they transformed into sharp, obsidian blades that shot straight at Kalis.
-15,819
-17,193
-16,818
White damage numbers popped up over Kalis's head one after another. The Crystal Barricade surrounding him was depleting at a visible rate.
Each drop of black rain dealt over ten thousand damage. Under this relentless, dense barrage, the shield's durability was plummeting fast.
"A Level 150 Legendary Boss. Impressive, I'll give you that."
Kalis thought to himself, but his voice remained defiant. "Zerakel, for Lilith's sake, I'll give you one chance to live. Call off your attack and retreat now, and I'll let this slide."
"Arrogant fool!"
Zerakel had never been so insulted in his life. He flew into a towering rage. Four massive tentacles shot through the air, crackling with the power to crush anything in their path, and coiled toward Kalis.
At the same time, a searing red laser beam shot out from his giant pupil—faster than lightning!
Zap——!
The laser hit Kalis's shield dead center. A shrill humming sound filled the air as the Crystal Barricade's durability dropped like a stone.
-100,000
-100,000
-100,000
Three hits per second, each dealing a hundred thousand damage. It was absolutely terrifying!
"Lunar Aura Shield! Dark Moon Enhancement!" Watching from the cave entrance, Lia's face paled with panic. She raised her hand in a flash, casting two powerful buffs on Kalis.
A soft popping sound rang out. The one-time holy shield effect attached to Lunar Aura Shield shattered instantly, taking a hundred-thousand-damage lethal hit for Kalis.
But the very next second, Zerakel's tentacle slammed into Kalis's body.
Boom!
A dull thud echoed through the air. A damage number of over a hundred thousand popped up, and Kalis was sent flying backward, slamming hard into the mountain wall behind him. Chunks of rock crumbled and fell around him.
"Damn... that hurt like hell."
Kalis rubbed his aching back and climbed to his feet. That impact had cost him another few thousand HP, and combined with the earlier damage, his Crystal Barricade had already lost a full 15% of its durability.
At this rate, Zerakel would break through his shield in less than thirty seconds!
"Alright, warm-up's over. My turn."
Kalis brushed the dust off his clothes, slowly raised his staff, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes.
"Lightning Bolt!"
A dazzling bolt of lightning, thick as a bucket, tore through the air, crackling with the power of thunder, and shot straight at Zerakel.
Zerakel's giant pupil narrowed with disdain, and he sneered mockingly. "Pathetic magic like this? You think it can hurt me?"
Before the words even left his mouth, a faint black barrier flickered to life around his body—the Abyssal Shield, a passive ability unique to Legendary Bosses.
Pop!
The Lightning Bolt hit dead center, shattering the shield in an instant—but it didn't deal any actual damage to Zerakel himself.
"Again!"
Kalis had already known from Lia's skill notifications that these boss-tier shields had a limited number of layers. He felt no fear whatsoever. He raised his hand again and cast another Magic Missile.
Several glowing magic orbs shot out with a sharp whistle, slamming hard into Zerakel's body.
Pop!
The second layer of the shield shattered immediately. Almost at the same time, Zerakel's tentacle lashed out again, dealing another hundred thousand damage to Kalis's shield.
"Fireball!"
Kalis's assault showed no signs of slowing down. A colossal fireball—even more powerful than before—came screaming through the air, crackling with the power to burn the sky and boil the sea, and slammed straight into Zerakel's head.
Zerakel still wore that sneering look of contempt. He was too busy spamming his own attacks to pay any attention to this measly fireball.
The next moment——
BOOM!!!
The colossal fireball exploded with a deafening roar. Its searing flames lit up the entire small Abyssal city like day. A single, astronomical damage number popped up above Zerakel's head in bright red.
-24,883,911!
Zerakel's giant pupil widened to the size of a saucer, his eyes filled with unadulterated terror and disbelief.
"I-impossible... no..."
His colossal body swayed unsteadily for a moment, then crashed to the ground like a collapsing mountain, sending up a massive cloud of dust and debris.
Two pleasant system notification chimes echoed in Kalis and Lia's ears at the same time.
"Ding! Your party has defeated the Level 150 Legendary Boss High Abyssal Lord Zerakel. You have gained 20450 Reputation!"
"Your party has defeated High Abyssal Lord Zerakel. You have gained 4636000 split EXP!"
Both of their levels skyrocketed instantly. Kalis jumped up three levels in a row, hitting Level 62 directly.
As for Lia? She soared all the way from Level 40 to Level 46. Thanks to this massive EXP haul, she rocketed into third place on the level rankings—only behind Kalis and the second-ranked player, Thorne!
"Aaaaah! Lord Zerakel is dead!"
"The Lord has been killed by humans! Everyone run for your lives!"
"Hurry and report this to General Klim! Hurry!"
The Abyssal creatures watching from afar were scared out of their wits. They screamed and fled in all directions.
Kalis did not chase after them.
It wasn't out of mercy, nor was it because he thought their EXP was too little. It was because his eyes were already locked onto several glowing items scattered beside Zerakel's corpse.