Floor ??? - Labyrinth Of The Deathly Embrace
The air crackled with tension as Adonis faced the monstrous humanoid bat, the beast lunged forward, its massive fist slicing through the air. Adonis, lithe and unyielding, wove through the barrage of punches with preternatural grace, his body a blur of calculated motion. The bat's next strike, a haymaker meant to crush, met only empty air as Adonis sidestepped, the beast's momentum exposing its face.
Seizing the moment, Adonis retaliated. His right hook cracked against the bat's cheek, the impact echoing through the trees. Before the creature could recover, he followed with a vicious upward kick to its chin, snapping its head skyward. The bat's spiked armor gleamed menacingly, but Adonis pressed his assault, landing a straight punch to the armor itself. Pain flared in his knuckles as the spikes tore into his flesh, but his regeneration skill kicked in, knitting the wound closed in seconds. The blow shoved the bat backward, its massive form stumbling.
Undeterred, the bat roared, its fury shaking the ground. It swung again, another reckless punch. Adonis anticipated it, his body flickering like a mirage. The bat's fist passed through an afterimage as Adonis vaulted into the air, his fists hammering a relentless flurry of hooks into the creature's face. The bat staggered, its rage boiling over. With a guttural snarl, it summoned a swarm of twenty glowing red energy orbs, each pulsing with malevolent power. They shot toward Adonis like a hail of comets.
Adonis charged forward, weaving through the barrage with impossible agility. His fists ignited, flames wrapping around them like gloves. He drove a blazing punch into the bat's gut, the impact forcing a spray of blood from the creature's maw. It collapsed to its knees, clutching its abdomen. Adonis's knuckles, raw from the spiked crest, healed swiftly, the pain a fleeting memory compared to the humiliation he'd endured in their last encounter.
The bat, enraged and humiliated, took to the air with a beat of its tattered wings. It conjured a massive red energy ball, launching it as a searing beam. Adonis sprinted, dodging the beam's path, then channeled fire through his palms and feet. Like a rocket, he spiraled upward, evading the beam with a dizzying rotation. Closing the distance, he charged another flame-wreathed punch as the bat mirrored him, its own fist glowing with crimson energy.
Their fists hurtled toward each other, the air thickening as if time itself hesitated. "Hey, bat," Adonis said, his voice calm but edged with steel. "Do you know why you've already lost?"
The bat's eyes narrowed, confused, but it committed to the strike. At the last second, Adonis vanished, teleporting above the creature. "Because you lack experience," he said, his flame-charged fist crashing into the bat's face. The punch unleashed a shockwave, uprooting trees and shaking the earth. The bat plummeted, carving a massive crater into the ground.
Adonis landed lightly, watching as the bat, battered but defiant, shrank to match his size—a tactical shift to counter its sluggish bulk. Its movements were faster now, more precise. "See? Now you're learning," Adonis said, as he grins.
They stood motionless, eyes locked, the tension palpable. Then the bat charged, faster now, its claws slashing in a frenzy. Adonis dodged effortlessly, landing a precise punch to the bat's face. The creature recovered, throwing a counterpunch, but Adonis blocked it with one hand, his other fist going for the bat's face but the bat blocked it with his other hand. Both combatants leaped back, then collided again. The bat feinted a punch, aiming for Adonis's legs, but Adonis anticipated the move. With a devilish grin, he drove his knee into the bat's face, sending it reeling.
"You're too predictable," Adonis taunted.
The bat's rage consumed it. Roaring, it summoned over fifty massive red energy balls, poised to obliterate the area. But Adonis was faster. He teleported in front of the bat, landing a one-inch punch that sent it hurtling backward. Seizing the energy balls with his flames, he fused them into a single, blazing projectile and hurled it at the bat. The explosion lit up the sky, the bat crashing to the ground in a smoldering heap.
Rain began to fall, the sky darkening as Adonis approached the bat's motionless form. He crouched to check for signs of life, wary of a trap. As expected, the bat sprang up, its mouth glowing with a final, desperate beam. Adonis, however, was ready. His system hadn't signaled the bat's death, and he'd anticipated the feint. He left an afterimage in his place, teleporting behind the bat in an instant. Before the creature could react, Adonis's hand chopped down, severing its head with a single, brutal strike. The head rolled across the rain-soaked ground, and the bat's body collapsed, lifeless at last.
A notification chimed in Adonis's mind:
You have defeated the humanoid bat.
You have leveled up.
You have leveled up.
You have leveled up.
You have leveled up.
You have leveled up.
Elation surged through him. Five levels gained. He opened his stat window, the holographic display shimmering before him:
Name: Adonis @#!@#
Level: 30
Physique: (Locked)
Stats:
Strength: 65
Agility: 52
Endurance: 55
Intelligence: 95
Luck: 0
Durability: 44
Stamina: 55
Skills: Fire Manipulation (C), Teleport (B), Appraiser Eye (B), Regeneration (D), Poison Immunity (C), Steal (E)
Stat Points: 50
Tower Points: 0
With a thought, he allocated his points, optimizing his build:
Name: Adonis @#!@#
Level: 30
Physique: (Locked)
Stats:
Strength: 75
Agility: 57
Endurance: 60
Intelligence: 95
Luck: 10
Durability: 54
Stamina: 65
Skills: Fire Manipulation (C), Teleport (B), Appraiser Eye (B), Regeneration (D), Poison Immunity (C), Steal (E)
Stat Points: 0
Tower Points: 0
Satisfied, Adonis's thoughts turned to Dennis, his companion. He retraced his steps through the forest, the rain soaking his clothes. But when he reached their rendezvous point, his heart sank. Dennis knelt in a pool of his own blood, his sword impaled through his chest. Standing over him was the Knight, his grin dripping with malice.
"Oh, you survived?" the knight mocked, his voice dripping with contempt. "Then the beast is dead. Useless creature couldn't even do its job."
Adonis's gaze fell to Dennis's lifeless form. The knight, still grinning, sliced off Dennis's head with a casual flick of his hand, kicking it toward Adonis. It rolled to a stop at his feet. "He's already dead," the knight sneered.
Adonis stared at the severed head, his mind a storm of conflicting emotions. He barely knew Dennis, yet the sight of his brutalized body ignited something primal within him. Anger—raw, searing, and unrelenting—surged through his veins. Not just for Dennis, but for every soul trampled by those who wielded power without mercy. He didn't know if Dennis had a family waiting for him outside this cursed labyrinth, but he knew one thing: if he let this knight walk away, regret would haunt him forever.
Dark purple energy, alien and volatile, began to leak from Adonis's body, swirling around him like a storm. His eyes locked onto the knight's, his voice low and lethal. "I'm going to wipe that grin off your fucking face."
Floor ??? - The Abyssal Nexus
The lich stood before a massive portal forged from alien metal. Runes pulsed with the same dark purple energy radiating from Adonis. Its voice echoing with triumph. "Finally," it whispered, "I have found it."