Chapter 238 235: Spinner's Lair
Val was teleported to what looked like a monstrous cave, but calling it just a 'cave' wouldn't do justice to it.
After all, it had a very unique ecosystem.
Trees were sprouting out of the rocky floor and walls of the cave as if they'd been there for ages.
Thus, it seemed that a forest got dropped inside a cave, making it a unique world of its own.
Val looked around. This place would have been quite picturesque if not for the minefield of eggs present inside.
Eggs of different size, color and shape were everywhere, like ornaments decorating a Christmas tree, but much creepier.
And the eggs were of two types.
The first ones were big and yellow. They were scattered here and there on the ground. They looked like oversized, rotten mangoes and were just as unsettling.
The second type of eggs were small and white. They were attached to the trees of the cave with webbing so thick and strong it could probably stop a bullet.
Taking in his surroundings, Val realized he had entered a nesting ground. Just as he was taking in the scene, a system notification popped up in his vision.
[Notification: You have entered the The Spinner's Den!]
[Tasks to be completed has been updated!]
Task 1: Kill 100 White Spiders.
Task 2: Kill 30 Yellow Spiders.
Task 3: Kill the Spider Princess, Valerigia.
Task 4: Destroy or separate the dungeon core from the dungeon.]
After scrolling through the tasks listed in the system notification, Val realized he was up against spiders. He looked at the eggs in his surroundings and thought, "Then these must be spider eggs. I better take care of them before they hatch into spiders."
However, as if he had jinxed himself, he heard the unmistakable sound of eggs cracking in the very next moment.
"You've got to be kidding me," he said after he saw that cracks have formed on the surfaces of the small white eggs, and the cracks grew larger and larger until the eggs fell apart, unleashing hundreds of tiny white spiders into the cave.
Val knew what newborn white spiders were like. They were basically tiny little murder machines, known for their extreme aggression right out of the gate. Basically, these spiders were born with an unnatural thirst for blood and an unimaginable craving for flesh and they would usually start eating each other if no prey was around right after they were born. It was a savage free-for-all, with each spider trying to ensure its own survival at the cost of its siblings.
However, today, they had Val in their sights, and he could almost see the little light bulbs go off in their tiny heads. They looked like kids who just got their favorite fast food.
They all wanted a bite of him.
Thus, they launched themselves towards him as if their lives depended on it.
To Val, it felt like he was suddenly facing a swarm of flying daggers.
Each spider was smaller than his fist but packed a punch. Their legs were not just spiky, they were sharp as needles, built for puncturing and stabbing.
And that wasn't all.
Even the hairs on the spiders' legs were like tiny weapons. Laced with some kind of corrosive poison, they could not only pierce but also melt flesh upon contact.
He couldn't afford to get hit even once by these white spiders or he will be doomed.
Although they were just mobs of a level 2 dungeon, they were unnaturally strong and dangerous. They were so strong because this dungeon was close to upgrading to level 3.
"Daring to smash a boulder with an egg, these spiders are courting death." Val's eyes narrowed, a cold light flashing across them.
With a focused thought, he unleashed a pulse of his soul power.
It rippled out from him like a shockwave, spreading through the air with a palpable force.
The whole cave seemed to tremble, as if acknowledging the might of his power.
The wave hit the swarm of airborne white spiders closing in on Val head-on. It looked like a freight train had smashed through a wall of cardboard boxes as the newborn spiders were blasted away and sent spiraling through the air, their tiny bodies flung in all directions as if caught in a hurricane.
As they crashed to the ground, it was clear they were down for the count. Their tiny eyes rolled to the back of their eyes, their legs curled and stiffened up, and their bodies went limp. It was like someone had pulled the plug on a bunch of tiny, mechanical toys, rendering them completely lifeless.
They were dead!
The thing is, being freshly hatched, their souls were still fragile, nowhere near strong enough to resist the devastating effect a wizard's soul power have on one's soul. They simply couldn't withstand the force of Val's soul power and were annihilated on the spot.
[Eliminated 100 White Spiders.]
[Completed task 1 of the Spinner's Den.]
"Well, that takes care of Task 1," Val smirked. "Now, there are two more to go."
Just then, the yellow eggs in the surrounding began to quiver. Although it happened too suddenly and was quite subtle, Val noticed it. His gaze turned towards them only to see that cracks have formed on their shells. He didn't even get the chance to shatter even one egg when, all of a sudden, all 30 of them burst open.
From each one emerged a towering yellow spider. They were similar in shape and height, standing 1 and a half meters tall, each one equipped with eight sturdy legs that seemed to be made of some kind of natural steel.
They had three pairs of deep black eyes, and all of them reflected Val's lonesome figure. With their gaze fixed on him, their eyes bubbled up with a mix of hunger and negative intent, making it clear that they viewed Val as nothing more than a potential meal.
As Val stood there, eying the beasts and casting detect to determine their strength and weaknesses, two of these yellow spiders they lunged at him in a coordinated attack, trying to catch him off guard, not knowing that Val was far from an easy target and that their pitiful speed wasn't enough to catch him by surprise.
Thinking they were too slow, Val, with a quick, almost effortless sidestep, dodged their straightforward attacks.
The two spiders landed on the ground and turned towards him menacingly. They were preparing to attack again. However, Val had no intention of giving them the chance.
Val's eyes narrowed as he tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword.
Whoosh!
He swung the spirit sword in a wide arc in front of him with such force that the sound of air being torn apart echoed.
His attack that relied on raw physical strength was no ordinary one.
It unleashed a force like a hurricane, a gust of wind so powerful it could have uprooted trees if they had been in its path!
The wind roared towards the two spiders, filling the space with a sound that resembled an angry beast's growl.
The two yellow spiders found themselves in a bad spot. They were too sluggish to dodge Val's counter-move, and before they knew what was happening, they were caught in this deadly windstorm created by Val's sword swing. The force of the wind was merciless, tearing through their tough, steel-like legs and shredding their massive bodies into pieces. n-/o..V//E-(l./B--I..n
In just a few moments, the yellow spiders were reduced to fragments, scattered around the cave floor. They never even had the chance to understand what had just hit them. Their dark eyes, once filled with malevolence, were now lifeless, and their once-menacing figures were now nothing but wreckage on the cave floor.
"Incoming," Voidslayer warned.
Val looked back and saw that the remaining 28 big yellow spiders were preparing a huge coordinated attack to finish him off.
"These monsters are giving off the strength of level 40 beasts, and there are like 28 of them. This is like a small army that can wipe out a group of intermediate-level bloodline users with ease. I think now's a good time to bring out the undead."
Voidslayer's voice, which was tinged with a note of concern, echoed in Val's mind.
"I have my own plans," Val responded, brimming with confidence.
Through the telepathic connection they shared, he issued a command to Voidslayer. Almost instantaneously, Voidslayer absorbed the blood from the spider corpses littering the ground until its rage meter was full.
As a result, the Crimson Slash skill became useable.
Just then, the spiders opened their mouths and spewed out webs. The air was filled with spider webs, which quickly spread out in all directions before rapidly closing in on Val from all side.
With his current skill set, he could take only one way out of this if he wanted to make his plan work.
'Let's do it,' he thought.
Without missing a beat, Val activated the Crimson Slash skill. A radiant arc of a crimson color exploded from his blade, instantly tearing apart the webs in front.
A path to safety opened up, and without a moment's hesitation, Val took it. His muscles tensed and his veins popped up on his skin as he exerted his full strength to bolt through it and reach safety,
successfully dodging the onslaught of web in the process.
But it was only then that he realized he had fallen straight into their trap. He was right where they wanted him to be!