Free Web NovelChapter 25: Killing the two golden griffins one
The griffins were no longer their golden color. The poison had already corroded it completely, yet they still looked stronger and more deadly than ever.
It was as though the poison had weakened them just enough, and they were simply waiting for Levon to make another move.
Levon thought for a moment.
He could wait for the poison to finish them off, but it wasn’t as simple as that. He had no idea how long it would take the griffins to die from it, and they were down to only five more minutes. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time than he already had.
He wasn’t even sure if Aria had found the Vampire King yet.
Almost immediately an idea crossed his mind. He wasn’t fully confident it would work, and even if it did, it was still a risky gamble. But he was ready to take it. He understood the debuffing first strike the griffins possessed, but that debuff didn’t really apply to his weapon.
Poison was poison. Whether it entered through a small poke or a wide open wound, the effect was always the same.
For the first time, Levon finally opened his system space.
He had to be fast and he knew it. There was simply no time to spare.
[SYSTEM INTERFACE OPENED]
[PLAYER STATUS]
Name: Shadow Monarch
Level: 10
EXP: 650 / 12,000
Strength: 106
Agility: 95
Vitality: 60
Spirit: 55
Luck: 30
Constitution: 120
Combat Power: 6,409
[HP: 1,847 / 2,200]
Levon stared at the screen in disbelief. All his stats had truly skyrocketed since the last time he checked.
His HP had improved enormously, and his combat power sitting at 6,409 was another thing entirely.
Normally a player’s combat power wasn’t derived purely from stats alone. Stats played a vital role, but they weren’t the only deciding factor. Weapons, artifacts, experience, levels, even reputation all contributed.
In essence, combat power was the full summary of how well a player could fight using every single resource available to them, whether that was their stats or even their mind.
Combat power could still be improved through more fights and practice, so a player’s stats didn’t even need to increase for their combat power to rise. Learning how to land a more precise and devastating blow, for example, would increase it, even without any stat changes.
That was exactly why Levon had known from the very beginning that a combat power of zero was almost certainly a death sentence. But seeing his already sitting above 6,000 sent a warm sensation through his body.
That was far beyond what any player at his level could claim.
Without wasting time, Levon immediately clicked on his storage space.
[STORAGE SPACE — ACCUMULATED DROPS]
Processing all unretrieved loot...
[Materials]
Skeletal Bone Shard ×18
Crafting material, used in armor reinforcement.
Forest Ape Hide ×12
Basic crafting material, high durability rating.
Forest Ape Fang ×9
Can be forged into weapon coating.
Vampire Bear Fang ×34
Blood-infused material, used in weapon forging.
Vampire Bear Hide ×22
Dense hide, high physical resistance.
Flame Skeleton Core ×8 (locked)
Fire-element crafting material.
Requires a flame element to use
[Weapons and Equipment]
Bone Shortsword ×2
Common grade, skeleton drop.
Flame Skeleton Bow ×1 (Locked)
Uncommon grade, fire-element infused.
Requires a fire element awakening to use.
[Consumables]
Power-Up Potion ×3
Full HP refill when HP hits critical.
Minor Healing Potion ×5
Restores 200 HP instantly.
Poison Herb ×6
Can be consumed to temporarily boost poison-based attacks.
[Stones and Currency]
Mechanical Stones ×78
Copper Coins +700 (added to existing balance)
System Stones ×180
Levon glanced briefly at the storage space. He wasn’t really surprised by the sheer volume of loot. He had expected at least this much, but he was waiting for something specific.
He eagerly checked the dungeon timer.
Five minutes and twenty seconds remaining. The griffins were still watching him with fierce intensity, though it was becoming quite clear the poison had taken some effect. They looked slightly weaker.
But the killing intent was still there. Levon couldn’t take any chances. He needed to find something in his storage space that could give him an edge.
Finally the notification came.
[MUTATION TRIGGERED]
Processing accumulated drops...
Skeletal Bone Shard x18
Cursed Bone Shard (Uncommon Mutation)
Effect: Weapons forged with this material inflict a minor fear debuff on hit.
Forest Ape Hide ×12
Mutation Failed (remains unchanged).
Forest Ape Fang ×9
Predator Fang (Common Mutation)
Effect: Minor attack boost when forged into a weapon coating.
Vampire Bear Fang ×34
Bloodthorn Fang (Rare Mutation)
Effect: Weapons forged with this material drain a small amount of HP per hit.
Vampire Bear Hide ×22
Mutation Failed (remains unchanged).
Flame Skeleton Core ×8
Smoldering Core (Uncommon Mutation)
Effect: Adds minor fire damage burst on weapon forging.
Bone Shortsword ×2
Mutation Failed (remains unchanged).
Flame Skeleton Bow
Ashen Flame Bow (Rare Mutation)
Effect: Arrows carry a burn-on-impact effect. Fire damage stacks on repeated hits.
Power-Up Potion ×3
Mutation Failed (remains unchanged).
Minor Healing Potion ×5
Rejuvenation Vial (Common Mutation)
Effect: Restores 200 HP and adds 50 HP regeneration over 10 seconds.
Poison Herb ×6
Toxic Bloom Herb (Uncommon Mutation)
Effect: Temporarily boosts all poison-based damage by 25% for 8 minutes when consumed.
Mutation Cycle Complete.
Inventory Updated.
Levon looked at the materials in his storage space and a bold plan took shape in his mind.
Without hesitation he took out the goblin armor and began feeding mechanical stones into it. Being a common grade weapon it hit its cap at level ten, leaving about 28 mechanical stones at Levon’s disposal.
After that he immediately equipped the armor with the grave ward pendant still active, giving himself at least one extra layer of protection. But he wasn’t done yet.
He fused 5 cursed bone shards into his venomous sword, using an additional 6 mechanical stones to reinforce the blade and increase the success rate of the fusion. freewёbnoνel.com
Normally fusions carried a 50/50 chance of either succeeding or failing, but Levon had discovered a clever way to reduce the probability of failure by about twenty percent.
All he needed to do was feed the sword mechanical stones alongside whatever he intended to fuse with it, and that would buffer the process.
The higher the number of materials used and the lower the grade of the weapon or artifact, the more the chances of failure increased. That was exactly why Levon chose only five of the 18 cursed bone shards rather than using all of them.
After fusing those in, he also fused 3 more into his armor using 2 mechanical stones. Now with the fear element embedded in both weapons, all he needed was to land an attack.
Hopefully the next strike wouldn’t kill him, since he was now far better equipped than before.
Immediately he charged toward the griffins.
The griffins tracked his every movement with sharp focus, the ferocity in their eyes burning even hotter than before.
In one swift and decisive motion Levon leaped into the air and sliced straight through both griffins in a single strike.
But Levon failed to hit any vital area as they raised their wings in defense.
After the clash Levon was sent crashing into another shelf, his back arching sharply on impact. But there was no time to dwell on the pain.
Just as he expected, the griffins had been hit with the fear debuff.
Levon didn’t know how long it would last. Basic debuffs typically ran anywhere from ten to thirty seconds.
But at this point he honestly didn’t need to know. All he could see was the fear in their eyes and the confusion that had overtaken them.
And that was all he needed. Striking them in that vulnerable, disoriented state could genuinely be what saved him.
Without wasting another second, Levon immediately rushed straight at the griffins, his hands raised high.
[Time remaining to complete dungeon quest: 4:46]
