As and the Void Raptor King stood facing the Dark Termite Queen, who was three times the size of the warriors. He gripped his swords fighters before he exploded forward but was stopped by his monster.


    ''Master.Let me distract this creature while you strike at the in-between the exoskeleton, which is its weak point,'' the Raptor King spoke in his mind.''I will never die, but you can.''''


    He turned on the monster and pointed at him before warning, ''''I''m not scared of death. The closer I am to it, the more alive I feel.''''


    ''''You''re certainly not like my old master,'''' the monster said with a chuckle. ''''He was more cautious, but you''re a wild child.''''


    As startedughing, and he agreed with a nod before scanning their enemy.


    [Dark Termite Queen]


    [Rank: C - 500 Exp]


    [This monster is even moodier and forever on her period, but she is fast, so be quick!]


    ''What the hell is it with this advice!'' As thought before shrugging.


    He turned to the Void Raptor King and nodded, causing therge monster to burst forward faster than he or the queen expected. The monster leaped onto the termite''s back before biting down on one of its legs.


    The queen started thrashing around, trying to get the dinosaur off. As sted it with several Void Bullets that exploded on contact, but it did minor damage, causing him to charge in and stab between one of the leg joints.


    With a swift slice, As cut through the soft flesh, causing the queen to spin on him as her leg fell to the ground with a thud. The termite went to attack him, but he was already out of the way, which annoyed the monster.


    As chuckled at its angry expression but decided to end it before dismissing the king, who spoke as he vanished, ''You can do it Master! I know you''re strong enough.''


    He smiled before casting two Void Bombs at the Dark Termite Queen while casting Void Guard. When the monster saw his spell, it tried to dodge it, but the spells were too quick for anyone to dodge.


    They mmed into the monster''s giant body and exploded like mini-nukes. As only sustained some bruises and cuts thanks to his leveled-up Void Guard, but that didn''t bother him too much.


    As the dust settled, As observed the battered monster struggling to rise. He stepped closer, his voice steady and measured. "Look, I''m the Dungeon Conqueror, and we need toe to terms. I might have to end you now, but once Iplete this dungeon, I''ll have the power to summon you and offer my apologies. No hard feelings, alright?"


    The Dark Termite Queen''s remaining eye locked onto his as it let out a struggling chittering noise, which As assumed it understood him before he stabbed the monster through the head, putting it out of its misery.


    As felt the experience pouring into him, and that''s when something in his mind clicked, but this only confused him, ''What was that?'' he wondered.


    He shrugged before noticing dozens of termite mandibles and glowing red cores, which As started sucking into his storage, and soon realized he had just got sixty altogether, ''That is a lot of red cores. Were there that many termites in here?'' he pondered. ''Well it was their queens home.''


    As soon discovered the exit: a narrow tunnel wide enough to squeeze through. He crawled cautiously along the passage, the walls brushing against him on either side. As he emerged into the open space of the eighteenth floor, he stopped to check his status.


    [Level Up: 121→133]


    [Experience: 2330/5000]


    [Experience Gained: 61050]


    [Health: 1010→1132(200)]


    [Mana: 4426→4958]


    [Strength: 1052→1264(100)]


    [Stamina: 1310→1562(250)]


    [Charisma: 536→572]


    [Intelligence: 820→1020]


    [Core Rank: Low Apprentice→Mid Apprentice]


    [Core Points: 27340→24790]


    [Core Points Gained: 37450]


    ''Oh nice, my core ranked up; it also gave me a bonus,'' he mused before crawling out of the tunnel.


    As appeared in another significant pathway leading further down. While standing there, he used Dungeon Conquerer to see what floor he was on, and a notification popped up, which made him smile.


    [Level Two - Shattered Chasm Dungeon - Floor twenty]


    While looking at that, As felt the ground shake, causing him to ready his weapons before checking it out. Something told him to get out of the way as something erupted from the ground he was standing on.


    He quickly jumped to the side as a giant snake-like monster''s head smashed against the spot he was just in. As spotted the neer, who looked like a stone snake that could move fast.


    ''These monsters are getting challenging to fight,'' he mused with a smile. ''I bet the boss with be hard.''


    When As saw this, he cast Void Bomb at his before darting to the left as an explosion erupted. He readied his de and stabbed the creature in its nk before dragging both weapons until dodging a tail swipe, but he still used Void Sight on it.


    [Rock Wyrm]


    [Rank: C - 500 Exp]


    [Stone tes protect its exterior]


    When As saw this, his smile grew even wider as he started peppering the serpent with dozens of Void st, which didn''t affect it. He began to panic, but that''s when the Rock Wyrm quickly turned around and lunged at him.


    The monster opened its giant maw, but As cast a Void Bomb, causing the wyrm to stop moving. He watched this and saw a blue glow emanating from inside just before its body exploded into chunks.


    ''Oh damn! That''s disgusting,'' he thought while gagging.


    As was covered in foul green blood, but soon, the Rock Wyrm vanished, leaving behind two gold and a red core he stored away. Following that battle, he continued to look for the staircase to the twenty-first floor.


    He searched for an hour while battling ten Rock Wyrms targeting him. Once he found the stairs, he rushed toward the entrance but skidded to a stop before casting Void Step to dodge as a troll swung its stone club at him from the shadows.


    ''That was close, Where did theye from!''


    Seeing the new creature trying to attack him, he unleashed a volley of Void Bullets at the Cave Troll, catching it off guard. But before the monster could react, As closed the distance in a blur, driving his de into the troll''s ankles.


    The creature copsed with a resounding crash, hitting the ground heavily just before As plunged his de through its skull. While doing that, more rumbling appeared, causing him to spin around as three more enraged Cave Trolls appeared.


    ''Exciting. These will be fun to fight,'' As thought as his excitement exploded.


    He shot forward like a bullet before striking the closest troll''s ankle while casting Void Bullet at the knee. As''s attack brought the giant to its knees as the other two rushed in and swung their weapons.


    As ducked under one while jumping over another. When hitting the ground, he cast Void Step and vanished, only to reappear on the injured monster''s back and plunge his swords into the creature''s skull, ending its dungeon existence.


    While lost in his excitement, a sudden blow from a wooden club sent him hurtling into a nearby wall. The impact shattered several of his bones, and for the first time in a long while, his health counter shed to life, a rare and rming sight.


    [232/1132(0)]


    ''Ahhh fuck, that hurt,'' As thought as his head spun.


    That''s when he felt the rumbling getting closer, causing him to quickly cast Void Guard, which blocked another attack before he cast Void Bomb at the two powerful trolls. When the azure projectile hit its target, an explosion erupted.


    As poured more mana into Void Guard so it would break, but the strain was too much for him, forcing him to stop just as the explosion force died out. He shook his head and dropped to his knees while the experience poured in.


    ''''They''re dead,'''' he mumbled before pulling out a health potion and downing it.


    While lying there, As felt his body repair itself as the bones snapped back into ce and his destroyed skin stitched itself together. He justy sprawled in the deep crater inside the wall, the debris from the recent battle scattered around him.


    The hole was roughly circr, about ten feet wide and five feet deep, formed by the massive impact of his sh with the cave trolls.The jagged edges of the hole were rimmed with broken rock and splintered wood from the troll''s club.


    Just then, he felt the potion''s effects were almost immediate. His bones began to knit back together, and the worst pain receded. As closed his eyes and took deep breaths, allowing the potion to do its work.


    The searing pain slowly dulled to a manageable ache as his injuries healed. He could feel his strength returning, the throbbing in his head fading as the health potion''s magic spread through his body.


    As shook off the disorientation, mbered out of the hole, and gathered the four red cores and four vials of troll blood. He scanned the blood for further information on the stuff to see if it was useful to him.


    [Cave Troll Blood: Can be used in alchemy or sold]


    ***


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