The air in the dungeon pressed down heavier with each step Ming took. The faint light of the upper caverns was long behind him now, swallowed by a darkness that seemed alive, breathing in time with his own ragged breath.
His boots scraped against the stone, dragging a thin echo that vanished into the yawning tunnels. His hands shook from exhaustion. The bandages wrapped around his ribs were soaked through, each movement reopening wounds he had no time to tend. The weight of the faint soul ore in his pouch reminded him he was making progress—but it wasn't enough.
> [Quest Progress: 60%]
[Time Remaining: 48 hours]
"Not enough," he muttered under his breath. His voice sounded small in the hollow chamber, like a dying ember in an ocean of night.
The tunnels began to slope downward, winding deeper and deeper. He followed them for hours, guided only by instinct and the faint pull of the system's quest marker. The deeper he went, the heavier the air became. His lungs burned as if the dungeon itself was squeezing the life out of him. The stone walls dripped with moisture, and strange moss clung to the cracks, glowing faintly green like watchful eyes.
At last, the slope flattened into a cavern vast enough to swallow a fortress. A faint, eerie shimmer pulsed in the distance. Ming knew instantly what it was: the Pure Soul Ore. The resource he had been forced to bleed for. The resource that brought him this deep.
But as he stood there, his body begged for rest. His legs quivered like cracked pillars, his arms trembled from the weight of even the dull blade in his hand. He knew well enough—charging forward now meant death.
He crouched in the shadow of a jagged rock and forced himself to sit. His breath came in harsh bursts, his chest rising and falling with painful slowness.
"If I go like this," he whispered, eyes narrowing at the faint glow ahead, "the dungeon will claim me before I get there."
He set the blade down beside him and leaned against the stone. For a moment, silence ruled—broken only by the distant drip of water and the occasional groan of stone settling. His eyelids threatened to close, but he couldn't afford sleep. Instead, he shut his eyes for focus, centering his soul.
Time passed. He could not tell how much, only that when he opened his eyes again, his body felt steadier. The pain hadn't left, but it dulled.
Ming stood, picked up his blade, and advanced.
The deepest chamber opened before him, a maw of black stone glittering with crystals of pale blue light. In the center, nestled within the rock like a heart in a ribcage, was the Pure Soul Ore. Its glow pulsed faintly, as though alive.
But before he could take a step closer, the system's chime cut through him.
> [Warning: Presence Detected.]
[Dungeon Guardian.]
The cavern floor trembled beneath his boots. Dust rained down in choking clouds. Ming staggered back, his hand snapping to his weapon. His eyes darted across the shadows, hunting for the source.
Then he heard it.
A dragging sound, claws scraping against stone. Slow. Heavy. Each scrape echoed like a scream through the chamber. The darkness shifted, and something enormous pulled itself into view.
It was a beast of nightmares—hunched, its body a hulking mass of sinew and bone. Its flesh was cracked, glowing faintly from within as if molten veins coursed through it. Where a face should have been was only a cavernous maw lined with jagged, dripping teeth. Its claws gouged trenches into the floor with every movement, and each breath rattled the air like thunder.
The system flared again.
> [Dungeon Guardian: Abyssal Devourer]
[Recommended Strength: Beyond Current Capacity]
Ming's pulse hammered in his ears. Every instinct screamed at him to flee. But if he ran, if he failed here, the quest would end—and so would he.
The beast roared. The sound was a physical force, rattling Ming's ribs, shaking stone from the cavern ceiling. Then it moved.
Despite its size, it was fast. Terrifyingly fast.
Ming barely twisted aside, Soul Step carrying him to safety as the creature's claw slammed into the stone where he had stood. The impact tore a crater into the floor, shards of rock exploding outward. A single fragment slashed across his cheek, warm blood trailing down his skin.
He forced himself upright, lungs burning. His grip tightened on the dull blade, its edge chipped and weak, but it was all he had.
The Devourer lunged again, maw splitting wider than seemed possible. Rows of teeth gleamed wet, reaching to swallow him whole. Ming stepped back—too slow. The creature's breath, hot and rancid, washed over him as its jaws snapped shut inches from his torso.
The shockwave hurled him back. His spine slammed into a jagged pillar, white-hot pain streaking through his body. Blood filled his mouth, and he spat crimson onto the stone.
He almost lost his life, but his will kept him going. His mind replayed faces—his family's corpses, his betrayal, the system that destroyed his life. He dragged himself up on shaking legs.
"No more running," he hissed, voice low but steady.
The Devourer turned, maw gaping, claws digging furrows into the rock. Its guttural growl reverberated through the chamber like a death knell.
And the monster hadn't used its ability yet.
Ming charged.
The fight was madness.
Claws swung like scythes, tearing through stone pillars as if they were paper. Ming ducked, rolled, dashed with Soul Step until his body screamed with the strain. He countered when he could, his blade flashing sparks against the creature's hide. But every strike was shallow, barely scratching the surface.
The beast's claw tore through space like cutting into nothing. Ming dodged by a hair's breadth, then the monster whipped its tail, catching him mid-dodge. The impact lifted him off his feet, sending him crashing into the cavern wall. Bones cracked. He collapsed, coughing blood, vision blurring into static.
That strike… if I hadn't dodged it, I would have ceased to exist.
The system flickered in his mind.
> [Critical Condition.]
[Warning: Fatal injuries sustained.]
Darkness tried to swallow him. But his will clung tighter. He forced his body to move, dragging himself upright once more.
"This dungeon… won't take me," he growled through clenched teeth.
I still have an ability that can tear through space too.
The Devourer reared back, maw glowing faintly now as energy pulsed in its throat. Ming's eyes widened,if that beam struck him, there'd be nothing left.
In that instant, instinct overrode pain. He let Soul Sense explode outward, his perception sharpening until time seemed to crawl. He saw it, the flicker of weakness, the vulnerable core glowing faintly in the beast's throat.
Every ounce of strength left in him surged into his legs. He dashed forward as the beam gathered. The world became light and heat. His blade screamed through the air.
He struck.
The weapon plunged deep into the glowing core. The Devourer convulsed, its scream splitting the cavern. Energy burst outward in a shockwave that hurled Ming backward, tumbling across stone and rubble. He crashed hard, his body unmoving.
For a moment, silence.
Then
The Devourer collapsed, its body cracking apart, molten veins bursting in streams of light. The massive form crumbled to ash, leaving only a faintly glowing object where it had fallen.
Ming used the last of his strength to grab the guardian core and place it in the system. Along with most of the guardian's claws, since they could cut the fabric of space.
The system chimed.
> [Dungeon Guardian Defeated.]
[Reward Acquired: Abyssal Fangblade.]
[New Ability Unlocked.]
Ming blinked, vision swimming as he forced himself upright. His hand reached out, trembling, grasping the weapon left behind.
It was unlike any sword he had held. Black steel, etched with glowing veins of silver that pulsed faintly. The blade was perfectly balanced.
The system continued:
> [Abyssal Fangblade: Forged from the Guardian's core. Increases attack speed, penetrates soul defenses, and can cut through anything, even time and space, once you are strong enough.]
The system chimed again:
> [New Ability: Abyssal Devourer]
Allows host to devour killed monsters for stamina and temporary strength.
Ming's chest rose and fell, his entire body trembling. Pain threatened to break him, but the weight of the blade in his hand steadied his breath.
He looked at the Pure Soul Ore, still glowing faintly in the cavern's heart. For the first time since entering this hell, a thin smile ghosted his lips.
"I'll survive this," he whispered, gripping the Fangblade tight. "No matter what it takes."
And with that, he stepped forward to grab the ore.
Ming reached out, his fingers brushing the ore's surface. It was warm not like stone, but like something alive, pulsing with power. The moment he closed his hand around it, light erupted.
It surged into him.
> [System Update: Core Evolution Initiated.]
The cavern blurred, vanishing into white. His body convulsed, bones snapping only to reform stronger. Every nerve lit with fire, every muscle stretched to the brink. He gasped, blood spraying from his lips, but the system's grip did not relent.
Shadows wrapped around him, familiar yet sharper no longer a wild hunger, but a disciplined force.
Soul Step → Evolved into Soul Blink.
No longer just slipping through space,he could now vanish and reappear a short distance away in an instant.
Soul Sense → Evolved into Soul View (Stage One).
The world unfolded. He didn't just sense life; he touched the intent and malice of things around him. The dungeon's silence became a chorus of whispers.
Soul Rend (Refined).
No longer unstable at the edges. Each strike cut clean, sharper than thought, stable enough to carve even the void—while reducing the life force drain.
Abyssal Devourer → Awakened. Abyssal Devourer → Devouring Ability.
New Functionality: Devour enemy abilities.
Slot Limit: 3.
Current Slots: 0/3.
Abilities devoured can be deleted and replaced.
The system chimed again, relentless:
> [System Evolution Complete.]
Strength, Speed, Endurance: Enhanced.
Abilities Refined.
Ming collapsed to one knee, gasping for breath. The ground cracked beneath him, not from weakness—but from the raw pressure radiating off his body. He looked down at his trembling hands. His wounds were still there, blood still dripping, but every fiber of him pulsed with renewed life.
His black eyes gleamed, darker than shadow yet blazing with new power.
He had entered the dungeon broken. Now, he had stepped into something else.
His first true evolution.