Chapter 389 Under Pressure



Ding! Ding! Ding!

By the time Valyr had finished upgrading all of his Common grade skills to the next grade, an hour or so had passed, only leaving the young man an hour or so of sunlight before the skies turned dim. Nevertheless, that did not stop the young man from having sparkles in his eyes, a wide smile plastered on his face.

'Eventually, most, if not all of the skills I have right now will be Rare grade. After that, they'll reach Epic, then Legendary, then Mythic, and at some point, the highest grade possible.' As this thought lingered in his mind, Valyr let out a faint chuckle as he brought up his notification screen, taking a look at the changes the skills he evolved had undergone in terms of their naming.

For the skills that began with the word 'Basic' like the skill [Basic Crimson Flame Manipulation], the only change to their name was the word 'Basic' being replaced with the word 'Intermediate'. 

However, even though the name of the skill made it seem like Valyr had an intermediate level of understanding how to manipulate a certain element or such, the evolution the skills had undergone made him feel like he gained far more than that.

Then, there were those skills that began with the word 'Inferior', such as the skill [Inferior Heal]. In the cases of those skills, their names also underwent a change similar to what happened with the 'Basic' skills. 

But instead of having the word be changed to 'Intermediate', the word 'Inferior' was instead replaced with the word 'Lesser', which gave Valyr the feeling that he could replenish more of his health with the improved skill, as well as even gain a chance at surviving situations that he considered precarious.

Of course, there were also skills that did not follow the first two archetypes, their names undergoing a unique change that allowed Valyr to gain a better idea of the skill's eventual scope. With that being said, his attention was currently focused on a certain skill that he found incredibly crucial not only in fights, but in day-to-day activities as well.

Ding!

[You have successfully evolved 'Analysis' to Uncommon grade.]

[The skill 'Analysis' has evolved to 'Greater Analysis' due to the change in grade.]

'Let's see what kind of information I'll be able to get with this evolved.' Feeling satisfied after having to evolve multiple skills to the next grade, Valyr closed up the notification screen in front of his field of vision before proceeding to make his way towards the three entrances, keeping an eye at the sun's position from time to time.

"Halt." Just as he had arrived a fair distance away from the entrance that led him to the Rare Abyss, a certain person appeared before him, a slight frown adorning the person's face. "The dungeons are about to close in an hour."

"Really?" Looking at the person in front of him, Valyr raised his eyebrow in slight incredulity as he looked at the man from head to toe. Unexpectedly, the man that stopped him from reaching the Rare Abyss was the same man who warned him and the others regarding the dangers of entering the dungeons at a low level. "I thought there was no time limit to accessing the dungeon?"

"There is none." The man nodded in agreement. "However, I would advise you to head to the outpost for now and prepare for the dungeon you wish to enter tomorrow. Not only will you be fighting at your peak condition, the chances of you clearing the dungeon of your choosing successfully increases as well."

At the man's words, Valyr went silent for a bit as the man's words made sense to him. After all, any person that had traversed the dungeons for an entire day like him would have been incredibly exhausted by now, needing to replenish their energy in preparation for the next day.

However, he was not like any person.

"I appreciate the warning, but I still wish to proceed to the dungeon behind you." As Valyr said these words to the man, he took on a slight apologetic tone, which did not go unnoticed under the man's senses.

"Are you certain?" The man looked back at him, a faint frown creeping up onto the man's lips. "I may not know your true strength, but with how you've cleared the Common Caves and Uncommon Depths without problem, I really think you'd fare better against the Rare Abyss with a good night's rest."

"That may indeed be the case…" At this point, a bitter smile appeared on Valyr's face, only for him to let out a faint sigh soon after. "But I still wish to enter."

"Know that you are the one responsible for your own decision." Seeing as Valyr was still adamant on entering the dungeon even with his multiple attempts of dissuasion, the man finally relented, letting out a low sigh as he moved to the side, finally allowing Valyr to head to the Rare Abyss. "I do hope that you know when to admit defeat."

"I appreciate the concern." Hearing the man's words, Valyr nodded with a soft smile. "However, never once have I bitten off more than I could chew."

"Is that so?" In response, the man let out a brief chuckle before nodding, finding the young man's words somewhat amusing. "Let me see if you have the strength to back up your words, then."

Letting out a bit of laughter in response, Valyr finally moved away from the man and headed towards the entrance to the Rare Abyss, disappearing from the man's vision before appearing in the dungeon's room of respite a few seconds later.

Feeling that he did not have much time to waste, as well as the fact that he more or less knew what he was up against, the young man swiftly headed through the door-shaped energy barrier, only to be greeted by a light gray skeleton wearing what seemed to be a robe made out of tattered rags.

"[Greater Analysis]."

Ding!

————

[Skeleton Mage (Rare Elite)] (Level 45)

Class: Skeleton Arcanist

HP: 4,248/4,248

MP: 5,088/5,088

Stats: 177 VIT, 212 STR, 177 AGI, 88 DEX, 212 INT, 135 WIS, 121 PER, 79 LUK

Skills: [Intermediate Spellcasting], [Basic Incantation], [Basic Mana Affinity]…

Remarks: A strong foe when it comes to the art of magic… but surprisingly still ultimately a pile of bones.

————

"I guess this is the first Rank 3 being I'll truly be fighting up against." Muttering these words to himself, Valyr psyched himself up as he extended both of his palms towards the skeleton, only to send out a barrage of blades made out of crimson flames soon after.

Whoosh!

"[Crimson Blade Torrent]!"