Ying Ping put the last collected magic stone into the system warehouse and clapped his hands: "Let's go, it's time for the eighth floor."
"Alright, Master."
Coco nodded, gripping her staff-gun and following.
Passing through the deep passage, the scenery of the eighth floor gradually unfolded before their eyes—
The environment here was even more bizarre than the seventh floor, with a faint purple mist pervading the air.
The rock walls were covered with glowing vines, emitting an ethereal blue luminescence.
Giant mushrooms were scattered on the ground, some even taller than a person, their caps shimmering with bioluminescence.
[Eighth Floor Quest Triggered]
[Kill 100 Killer Ants (0 / 100)]
[Kill 50 Purple Algae Butterflies (0 / 50)]
[Kill 10 Blue Butterflies (0 / 10)]
[Reward: Consecutive Level Up by 2 Levels]
"Consecutive level up by 2 levels?"
Ying Ping's eyes lit up, "This reward is generous enough!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the mist in front of them suddenly churned.
"Buzz buzz buzz—"
Several palm-sized purple butterflies flew out from the mushroom patches.
Their wings were covered with fine scales, and as they flew, purple poisonous mist continuously rained down.
[Encountered Purple Algae Butterfly, Level LV1 - LV2]
[Traits: Poison Mist, Group Action]
"Master, be careful!" Coco immediately raised her staff-gun, "Their scales are poisonous!"
Ying Ping, however, was not flustered at all, a cold smirk playing on his lips: "It's alright, this level of poison is nothing."
He suddenly activated Shadow Step, his figure instantly vanishing from its original spot!
"Whoosh!"
The 'Sword of Hestia' traced an ethereal blue arc, and three Purple Algae Butterflies were cut in half by a single sword strike before they even had a chance to react!
[Killed Purple Algae Butterfly (3 / 50)]
[Obtained: Purple Algae Wing x1]
[Obtained 60 Experience Points]
However, more Purple Algae Butterflies were startled, flying out from the mushroom patches in swarms, instantly forming a purple cloud of poisonous mist!
"Song of Courage!"
Coco immediately cast a spell, and a verdant light enveloped Ying Ping, enhancing his poison resistance.
Ying Ping took a deep breath, a hint of wild battle intent flashing in his eyes—
"Blade Storm!"
"Boom!"
The dark blade stirred up a violent hurricane, sweeping away both the poisonous mist and the Purple Algae Butterflies!
Purple scales glittered in the storm, like dazzling fireworks.
[Killed Purple Algae Butterfly (17/50)]
Just as Ying Ping was slaughtering everything, a blue light suddenly flashed in the shadow of the rock wall—
A blue butterfly, as large as a washbasin, quietly appeared.
Its four cyan wings scattered sparkling dust, looking exceptionally beautiful in the dim dungeon.
[Encountered Blue Butterfly, Rare Species, Level LV2]
[Characteristics: Hallucinogenic Dust, High-Speed Flight]
"A rare species, it's finally here!"
Ying Ping's eyes lit up, and he immediately changed his target, rushing towards the Blue Butterfly.
However, the Blue Butterfly reacted incredibly fast, flapping its wings in advance, and the scattered dust formed a hallucinatory barrier in the air.
Ying Ping's vision blurred, the surrounding scenery suddenly twisted, the rock wall seemed to writhe, and the ground began to tilt.
"Hallucinogenic effect?"
He snorted coldly, biting the tip of his tongue hard, the sharp pain instantly sobered him!
"Shadow Step! Crippling Strike!"
"Swish!"
His figure appeared behind the Blue Butterfly like a ghost, his longsword precisely piercing its wing!
[Killed Blue Butterfly (1/10)]
[Obtained: Blue Butterfly Wing x1]
[Obtained 200 experience points]
...Next, Ying Ping frantically slaughtered various monsters, the battle lasting for a full two hours.
He was like a tireless killing machine, frantically harvesting the lives of monsters on the eighth floor.
Killer Ants, Purple Algae Butterflies, Blue Butterflies... no monster could withstand more than three moves from his sword.
[Experience full, level increased to LV6]
Along the way, Ying Ping had already leveled up once.
From LV5, he finally reached LV6!
[Killed Killer Ants (100/100)]
[Killed Purple Algae Butterflies (50/50)]
[Killed Blue Butterflies (10/10)]
[Quest Completed]
[Reward: 2 consecutive level ups]
At the same time, the Shadow Monarch System on Ying Ping's body frantically gave him notifications!
[Reward activated, level increased to LV7]
[Reward activated, level increased to LV8]
"Phew…"
Ying Ping let out a long breath, sheathed his longsword, and felt the surging power within him.
He opened the system panel, checked his updated attributes, and then began to allocate strength and agility—
[Shadow Monarch Upgrade System]
[Level]: LV8
[Strength]: 106 → 116
[Agility]: 87 → 97
[Endurance]: 45 → 55
[Intelligence]: 30 → 40
[Magic Power]: 26 → 36
[Health]: 150 / 150
[Magic Points]: 31 / 36
[Magic]: Lightning Enchantment
[Skills]: Shadow Step, Crippling Strike, Charged Strike, Eagle Eye, Blade Storm
[Titles]: Goblin Slayer, Goddess Guardian
[Free Attribute Points]: 0
"Master, have you leveled up?"
Kokoro trotted over, her red eyes full of adoring stars.
Ying Ping smiled and ruffled her hair: "Yes, I leveled up twice consecutively, my stats have improved significantly, and I'm not far from LV10."
"I might already be the strongest adventurer in Orario now."
He looked at the entrance to the ninth floor, his eyes sparkling with excitement: "Kokoro, are you ready to keep going?"
Kokoro nodded vigorously: "As long as I'm with Master, I can go anywhere!"
"Good, that's the spirit!"
Ying Ping laughed, took Kokoro's hand, and walked deeper.
"Kokoro, when I reach level 10, I'll use the Book of Experience to level you up to the same level as me."
"Alright, thank you very much, Master!"
...Passing through the end of the eighth floor, Ying Ping and Kokoro stepped into the ninth floor of the dungeon.
The environment here was similar to the eighth floor, looking almost identical.
[Ninth Floor Quest Triggered]
[Kill 80 Killer Ants (0/80)]
[Kill 40 Purple Algae Butterflies (0/40)]
[Kill 5 Blue Butterflies (0/5)]
[Reward: Chain Mail (Durability +10)]
"The quest got easier?"
Ying Ping raised an eyebrow, but the reward was decent, it even included equipment that increased stats.
Kokoro gripped her staff-spear, vigilantly looking around: "Master, the mist here is thicker than on the eighth floor, we need to be careful."
Ying Ping nodded, his Eagle Eye skill allowed him to easily see through the concealment of the poisonous mist, but he was still somewhat affected.
"Let's go, finish this quickly."
He flashed, directly rushing into the mist.
The slaughter began!
The monsters on the ninth floor were stronger than those on the eighth, the Killer Ants' exoskeletons were harder, and the Purple Algae Butterflies' poisonous mist was even more lethal.
But for Ying Ping, who had already reached LV8, these still posed no threat.
"Swish!"
'Hestia's Sword' cut through the poisonous mist, and three Killer Ants were instantly cut in half.
[Killed Killer Ant (3/80)]
Ying Ping's footsteps didn't stop, Shadow Step activated, his figure moving like a ghost through the monster horde.
"Blade Storm!"
"Rumble!"
Invisible blades stirred up a violent hurricane, shredding the surrounding Purple Algae Butterflies and Killer Ants together!
[Killed Purple Algae Butterfly (8/40)]
[Killed Killer Ant (15/80)]
The battle lasted for over an hour, and Ying Ping completed the quest with an almost overwhelming dominance.
[Killed Killer Ants (80/80)]
[Killed Purple Algae Butterflies (40/40)]
[Killed Blue Butterflies (5/5)]
[Quest Completed]
[Reward: Chain Mail (Durability +10)]
A silver-blue chain mail appeared out of thin air in Ying Ping's hand, feeling cool and tough to the touch.
[Chain Mail]
[Wearing it increases Durability by +10]
[Can be synthesized with Negative Cloak]
"Equipment synthesis?"
Ying Ping's eyes lit up, and he immediately took off the Negative Cloak he had obtained from the Shadow Lord.
[Detectable synthesizable equipment]
[Chain Mail + Negative Cloak = Gargoyle Plate Armor]
[Synthesize?]
"Synthesize!"
Ying Ping chose to confirm without hesitation.
The next second, the Chain Mail and Negative Cloak simultaneously emitted a faint glow.
"Buzz!"
The two pieces of equipment merged like liquid, eventually transforming into a silver-white light armor.
The surface of the armor was covered with ancient runes, faintly glowing with a dark purple shimmer.
Ying Ping eagerly put it on, finding that it was the right size and fit perfectly.
[Gargoyle Plate Armor]
[Wearing it increases Durability by +50]
[Effect: When facing multiple enemies, gain additional durability based on the number of enemies (maximum 200)]
[Special Equipment Effect: Appearance can be hidden]
"Hidden appearance?"
Ying Ping tried to select 'Hide,' and instantly, the Gargoyle Plate Armor disappeared from his body.
Even when touching his skin, he still couldn't feel anything.
"Doesn't this mean…"
Ying Ping's eyes flashed with excitement, "I can wear another set of ordinary adventurer armor, creating a double layer of protection with the Gargoyle Plate Armor?"
He immediately took out an ordinary adventurer light armor from his system warehouse and put it on.
Indeed!
My stats haven't changed! The Gargoyle Plate Armor's protective effect is still there!
"It's so worth it!"
Ying Ping couldn't help but grin.
Kokoloo curiously touched his chest: "Master, this equipment is so amazing, it can be invisible! You can't see it at all!"
Ying Ping nodded: "Yes, with this, my defense is almost doubled. I can completely act as a tank and go all out on the front lines!"
He looked up at the passage leading to the tenth floor, his eyes burning with even greater fighting spirit: "Let's keep going. Before dark today, we'll clear the tenth floor!"