When Ruminas woke up, the atmosphere in the dungeon remained unchanged.
She opened her eyes and looked up at the cold stone ceiling. There was no natural light in this place, only a small campfire still flickering, giving off a bit of warmth.
Ruminas sat up, stretching slowly. Her whole body was still sore from the recent battle, but at least the pain had lessened considerably.
The little spirit flew around her, as if to confirm whether her current condition was okay.
"Yeah, it's fine," Ruminas gave a small smile. "It's probably time to get down to business."
She gathered her things, put out the fire, and stood up.
Although she was still a little wobbly, she could at least walk without too much difficulty.
"I guess I'll have to work on my endurance next time…"
Ruminas started to leave the large, ruined room and walked back down the hallway to search for her target. She believed that there were other monsters here and they would all be of a higher level or much more difficult.
After walking for a while, Ruminas found a staircase leading up, she didn't hesitate and went straight up. When she got up, she saw that this place was the original labyrinth she entered but not on the same floor.
"I should have gone down slowly from here instead of falling straight down…"
After moving for a while, Ruminas heard the sound of monsters ahead . She immediately chose a place to hide and slowly walked forward, the sound of monsters was coming from inside a nearby room.
Ruminas approached the door and poked his head out to take a look.
"They are skeletons… but they don't seem as fragile as we've seen them before. Examine them!"
[General Bones]
[Description: When he was alive, he was a majestic general who led soldiers in battle and had a lot of experience. After he died, he lost all his memories but his combat experience is still there so he absolutely cannot be underestimated.]
[Features: Weapon is a giant sword, can summon skeleton subordinates]
"Hmm, a skeleton general and ten small skeletons…? Considering that these guys are definitely weaker than those two golden golems, there's nothing to be afraid of."
Ruminas no longer hid but appeared directly in front of them. The skeleton general, upon seeing her, raised his sword and pointed it at Ruminas as a challenge.
Ruminas also raised her axe, lowering her center of gravity. She took a breath and began to charge.
The skeleton general did not take action immediately but instead directed the small skeletons to charge forward, at the same time it also summoned more of its subordinates, bringing the total number of small skeletons to more than 20.
"Oh, here comes the experience"
Ruminas gathered all her strength and swung the axe horizontally, sweeping away all the small bones. With a weapon that had such anti-undead properties, they couldn't withstand a single blow.
She continued to advance, finishing off the remaining small bones one by one. After just a few basic axe swings, all of them fell, and now only Ruminas and the skeleton general remained.
[Received: 210 EXP, 21 strength]
"Now it's your turn."
Ruminas charged forward, her axe swinging down. The Bone General raised her sword to block, the blade and axe clashing, sparks flying. Without waiting for her opponent to counterattack, she immediately turned around and struck a blow across her waist. But he quickly retreated, narrowly avoiding it.
He countered with a vertical slash. Ruminas leaned out of the way and kicked his opponent in the ribs. Despite having no flesh or organs to bear the force, the kick still sent him reeling.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Ruminas swung her axe. However, the Bone General reacted extremely quickly, immediately jumping back and slashing down with a powerful blow. She quickly raised her axe to block, but the force of the blow caused her to stumble back a few steps.
The two continued to exchange blows. Axes and blades clashed continuously, the metallic sound echoing throughout the room. Ruminas attacked with quick and powerful slashes, but the Bone General was undaunted, dodging flexibly and counterattacking powerfully. She had to constantly move, using her speed to avoid being overwhelmed.
After a while of struggling, Ruminas started to breathe heavily.
"It can't last much longer…"
She changed her tactics. Taking advantage of the moment he swung his sword down, she immediately dodged to the side, at the same time swinging her axe at the arm holding the weapon.
Crack!
The axe blade hit him, his arm was severed, and the sword fell to the ground. Not giving him a chance to react, Ruminas kicked him hard in the chest, sending him falling backwards.
Without hesitation, she rushed forward, the axe brought down heavily on his head.
Crack!
General Xuong trembled, cracks spreading across his skull before shattering completely.
He collapsed, the red light in his eye sockets extinguished.
Victory belongs to Ruminas.
[Receive: 100 EXP, 10 hard bones]
"Phew, I thought it would be easy but it took so much effort. It's true that the monsters on the last floors like this aren't easy to deal with."
Ruminas sat down to rest on the spot, she tried looking around the room but found nothing of value.
"And there's no reward included," Ruminas sighed.
The little spirit just gently patted her shoulder as if to comfort her.
After she had rested enough, she continued on her journey. Not long after, she found another group of monsters.
"This dungeon really has no shortage of monsters."
"Let's see what it is."
[Advanced Soul Wolf]
[Description: A wolf that died and was resurrected as an undead but after going through many hardships, it evolved into a new form. With a large and sturdy body, its defense ability has improved]
[Characteristics: fast speed, very good coordination and can also use wind attribute magic]
[Intermediate Soul Wolf]
[Description: Not much different from the lower-class ones, but a little bigger and a little faster]
"Oh, it's the same species I met before but a higher level one. It can use magic too…? If so, then the experience reward should be quite a lot, but this amount is a bit much…"
"One high-level wolf spirit, three intermediate ones, eight low-level ones…" Ruminas calculated in his mind.
Ruminas did not rush in immediately, but continued to observe. The High-class Soul Wolf stood in the middle, its cold gaze scanning the surrounding area like a leader. Three Intermediate-class Soul Wolves stood nearby, while eight Low-class Soul Wolves moved around the area as if on patrol.
She took a breath, determining her strategy.
"Take down the weak first, then focus on the leader"
Ruminas quietly moved to the back, choosing a favorable position and using stealth to close in. A Low-class Soul Wolf was separated from the group, she did not miss the opportunity.
Whoosh!
The axe swung down. Black blood splattered, and the wolf fell instantly.
The rest reacted immediately.
"Good reflexes"
Ruminas jumped back as two more wolves lunged at her, mouths wide open to bite. She quickly swept her axe across, forcing them to jump away. But just then, the High Spirit Wolf roared.
The winds began to swirl.
"Wind magic?!"
Immediately, three Middle Wolves charged at her from three different directions, using the wind to aid their speed. Ruminas swung her axe to block the blow, but failed to completely dodge—a bite grazed her shoulder, drawing blood.
"Not only are they fast, but they also coordinate very well…"
She backed away, trying to keep her distance. But the High Soul Wolf didn't give her a chance, it roared again, a sharp wind blade shot straight at her.
Ruminas jumped aside, but the wind blade still grazed her arm, leaving a stinging cut.
"We have to be faster than them"
This time, she will take the initiative to attack.
Ruminas put strength into her legs, suddenly accelerating. She dashed sideways, swinging her axe towards a Mid-Level Wolf.
Clang!
It reacted in time, jumping back, but Ruminas immediately turned around and kicked it horizontally in the stomach. The wolf was sent flying, slamming into the wall.
The remaining two took the opportunity to rush in.
She lowered her center of gravity, dodging one of its bites, while simultaneously using the hilt of her axe to smash the other one's jaw, sending it flying back. But at that moment, the High Soul Wolf was ready. It opened its mouth, and a small tornado whirled towards her.
Ruminas stabbed his axe into the ground to steady himself, but was still pushed back a distance by the wind.
The Lower Wolves rushed in from all directions.
"Fine, let's finish off the weak first."
Ruminas swung her axe horizontally, cutting one in half instantly. She spun around, swiping at another, sending it flying into its own kind. One jumped up from behind, she quickly rolled back, dodging, then finished it off with a downward slash from above.
Thump!
Three Lower Wolves were destroyed in a flash.
But the High Soul Wolf did not stand still.
It roared, summoning a powerful gale. The swirling wind whipped up dust, obscuring visibility.
"Again…"
Ruminas squinted, straining his ears to listen.
Whoosh!
A dark shadow rushed forward.
She raised the axe to block.
CLANG!
The impact was so strong that it pushed her back. The High-Level Soul Wolf had charged straight at her at an extremely fast speed.
It doesn't stop.
It continued to spin, using its wind-covered claws to attack continuously.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ruminas was forced to defend. Its pounces were so fast that they created illusions.
"Can't let it keep pace"
Just as the wolf pounced again, Ruminas suddenly crouched down, dodging the attack.
Whoosh!
She slid behind it, swinging her axe down with all her might.
KRAK!
A deep cut appeared on its back. Blood spurted out.
The wolf roared in pain, but before it could counterattack, Ruminas kicked it straight in the side, causing it to lose balance.
She did not miss the opportunity.
Putting all her strength into her arm, she jumped up, swinging the axe down hard on the wolf's head.
CUT!
The axe blade went straight through the skull and stuck deep into the ground.
The High-Level Soul Wolf trembled for a moment, then collapsed.
The remaining Intermediate Soul Wolves saw this and panicked, losing their initial coordination.
Ruminas just smirked.
"Done one"
And the battle is not over yet.
Ruminas didn't give the Intermediate Soul Wolves time to gather their wits. She immediately charged forward, her axe trailing an afterimage, aiming straight for the nearest one.
Thump!
The wolf tried to dodge but the axe still cut deep into its shoulder. It howled in pain, but before it could counterattack, Ruminas drove his knee straight into its stomach, sending it flying aside.
The remaining two decided to join forces to attack.
One lunged in from the left, the other circled around behind her.
"Basic but quite clever strategy"
Ruminas pretended not to see the wolf behind him, luring it closer.
As soon as she felt its aura approaching, she suddenly knelt down, letting it jump over her head.
In the moment it was still suspended in mid-air, she swung her axe upwards!
SCREAM!
Its entire body was split in half in mid-air, black blood splattered everywhere.
The other one was shocked but did not falter. It increased its speed and jumped forward to bite straight into her neck. Ruminas tilted her head to avoid it by a hair's breadth, then used her left arm to tightly grip the wolf's neck, pinning it to the ground.
It struggled violently, but she just coldly raised the axe.
CUT!
The axe blade penetrated the skull.
The wolf died instantly.
Ruminas stood up and looked around.
Only one Intermediate remained, trembling as it retreated.
She curled her lips.
"Want to run?"
Before it could turn around and run away, she picked up the axe and threw it straight at it.
WHOOSH!
The axe blade spun in the air, flying straight at the wolf and piercing its skull.
Before he could scream, the wolf collapsed on the spot.
Ruminas let out a long breath, stepped forward and pulled out his axe.
"Finally done…"