The scout who had narrowly escaped with his life reported the details of the seventh floor of the Tanazk Great Mine to Marcus in full.
Marcus’s expression was grim. He pressed his throbbing temples while scanning the intelligence report provided by the scout. The paper was covered in dense handwriting, and he could feel the sense of crisis bleeding through the lines.
The subordinates around him didn’t dare to even breathe loudly. They could only watch his furrowed brow. At this moment, the temporary rebel tent was filled with a suffocating tension.
Should they temporarily seal the great mine and evacuate the surrounding citizens? Should they leave that dangerous mass of biological matter alone and see if it would eventually wither away? Or should they take immediate action and confront it head-on?
At this moment, Marcus desperately needed someone who could offer a reasonable suggestion.
“Uncle Marcus, we should still adopt a teamwork-based approach. I will be responsible for rear-line healing and support, while I’ll have to trouble you to act as our vanguard. Sophia will take the skirmisher support role, and Nino will handle long-range magical support. We must do our best to preserve our forces and minimize casualties among the soldiers,” Elliris spoke first, breaking the silence.
“Lady Elliris, your distribution of roles is very appropriate, but we cannot rush into a conquest blindly. I must be responsible for the lives of my subordinates.” Marcus responded, but even after long consideration, he did not believe Elliris held the key to breaking this deadlock.
“Sophie, show Uncle Marcus your legendary weapon,” Elliris said with a smile as she gave Sophia a nod.
Sophia pulled out **[Grij of the Radiant Valkyrie]** and presented it to Marcus.
A brilliant luster, like molten gold, flowed across the scimitar’s body. The runes engraved on the spine of the blade flickered in sync with the wielder’s breathing. As Marcus took the scimitar, a sudden surge of majestic energy swept over him.
Marcus’s eyes instantly lit up. This weapon truly could be considered a sudden burst of light in a desperate situation.
“This really is an incredible weapon…” Within the moment he held the weapon, Marcus already knew the answer. “I understand. This weapon might truly be able to turn decay into something miraculous. Please, lend me your strength, Lady Sophia. The Paricio family has believed for generations that the Omnia God Race can create miracles.”
“Uncle Marcus, thank you for understanding. I will do my utmost to protect your subordinates and the people around me,” Sophia said with a look of determined confidence.
Elliris added with a smile from the side, “Uncle Marcus, at the critical moment, I also have some powerful custom magic that can provide you with support.”
“Mm! I also believe in Sister Elliris and Sister Sophia! Nino will do her best too!” Nino said, pumping her fists with anticipation.
“Everyone, prepare for battle! Failure is not an option in this fight! Behind us are tens of thousands of commoners living beneath the Peak of Phantoms. There is no retreat in this battle! Those who have prepared properly, assemble in front of the camp in one hour. We are about to face the final battle of Tanazk!” Marcus delivered a series of pre-battle mobilizations with an inspiring speech.
This battle was certainly not a simple gamble; they possessed extraordinary strength.
Elliris prepared a sufficient supply of alchemical potions. Sophia carefully checked the condition of her weapons, bringing all three of her previous weapons just in case.
Nino also prepared teleportation scrolls and alchemical potions. She even thoughtfully prepared a dessert, intending to save it for Elliris.
Rachel and Angelica continued to oversee the main base. For this battle, Elliris and the others had a complete party configuration of tank, damage, and healer. Everyone was now like an arrow notched on a bowstring.
**[Ding! Complete the current subjugation battle of the Necrotic Amalgam to unlock a new talent.]**
?!
‘This damn system, it’s alive again today?’
‘Unlocking a new talent? Such a good thing exists? Could it be that pile of question marks from before? I thought that was just a bug on the character panel.’
Suddenly hearing the system voice that she hadn’t heard in a long time, Elliris felt a bit of anticipation. Her passion for playing MMORPGs was reignited.
—
On the seventh floor of Tanazk, a Cthulhu-style stitched monster came into everyone’s view, causing a strong sense of discomfort.
Rotten flesh and crushed bones were twisted and entangled within a ghostly green mist. Countless severed limbs and skeletal remains clung together to form its bloated, deformed torso.
Its two pairs of large beast claws were still clutching many human bones. What looked like eye sockets were burning with flickering ghost fire, and a dark, thick, viscous liquid dripped onto the ground.
Throughout the entire seventh floor, the miasma of decay and the undead intermingled. This monster exuded an inhuman aura of eeriness and violence at every moment.
Having just arrived, Elliris and Sophia both activated **[Appraisal Eye]**.
**[Necrotic Amalgam, Level 80, HP: ???, MP: ???]**
**[Core Strengths: Super regeneration, no conventional fatal weak points, utilizes surroundings to generate ossified minions at any time, probability of a frenzy mechanic]**
**[Weakness: Necrotic Core Crystal exists deep within, extremely poor mobility]**
…
The fact that they couldn’t see the boss’s HP or MP bars bothered Elliris and Sophia greatly. However, knowing that this boss had poor mobility meant it essentially had “meat mountain” attributes. Furthermore, now that they knew they could defeat it by finding and destroying its core, their plan of action was determined.
“Soldiers, advance in formation! For the people beneath the Peak of Phantoms, destroy the monster before us!” Marcus shouted loudly and led the charge. The knights under his command responded as one and followed him forward.
This Great Knight Commander, who was deeply loved by the people, practiced his knightly spirit at all times, inspiring the generals around him.
The amalgamated monster sensed the danger. It recombined the massive amount of miner remains on the seventh floor, generating many skeleton soldiers to attack the knight square.
Marcus planted his feet firmly, leaving deep pits in the ground beneath him. He swung his greatsword, a heavy horizontal sweep infused with holy damage that instantly shattered all the skeleton soldiers back into piles of junk.
**[Paricio Family Heritage: Holy Crusade Strike]**!
The handsome middle-aged man in silver-white armor displayed his family’s secret technique, giving Elliris and Nino behind him a massive sense of security.
‘Uncle Marcus, let’s stay in a four-person party to clear dungeons for the rest of our lives! Together… Please!’
“O holy angel, descend with your grace! **[Holy Prayer: Fortitude]**, **[Holy Prayer: Shield]**!” Elliris clasped her hands together. She wanted to challenge herself today by trying to apply two buffs to all 100 people present.
In an instant, she lost 5,000 MP. Elliris felt as if her body had been hollowed out.
“Sister Elliris, are you okay? Drink my mana potion first! **[Mana Recovery]** x3!”
Nino, the little mana-restoring expert by her side, began her operations. Three casts of **[Mana Recovery]** restored 3,000 MP for Elliris, and with the addition of a large mana potion, Elliris was fully charged again!
“Thanks, Nino! I love you the most!”
Elliris didn’t realize how forward her words were; she only noticed Nino suddenly turning her back to her. Nino’s body was shaking slightly, and a large cloud of steam was rising from her head.
Shifting the perspective, Sophia held **[Twilight Frost]** in her left hand and **[Grij of the Radiant Valkyrie]** in her right. She was flanking the monster, constantly looking for gaps in its attacks.
Through observation, she discovered that the monster’s regeneration and endurance were off the charts; it was essentially self-healing without a cooldown.
‘Where is the core? Where?’
Sophia constantly shifted and dodged, using continuous dual-wielding sword skills. Due to the effect of the ring her mother had given her previously, the enchanted lightning magic formed by her twin swords lashed out like whips, striking the amalgamated monster from a distance.
The sound of surging electricity rose and fell, frequently making sizzling noises on the monster’s body. The air was a mix of the ozone smell of lightning and the scorched scent of the monster’s flesh.
‘Right here!!’
Finally, under a continuous, storm-like offensive, the rotten chest bones were all shattered. Sophia discovered the necrotic core hidden deep within the mass of organized rot.
**[Blink Slash]**, **[Pentastrike]**!
Accompanied by a crisp sound—distinct from the sound of cutting through rotten meat and decayed bone—the white necrotic core crystal shattered on impact, turning into a pile of shards.
“ROAR!!”
The Necrotic Amalgam let out a violent roar that had never been heard before. An even more nauseating necrotic aura condensed throughout the seventh floor of Tanazk.
‘Could it be?!’
The so-called variable is merely another piece that the player failed to account for. In chess, capturing the queen does not mean victory if the king still stands.
Elliris’s pupils contracted, as if her **[Appraisal Eye]** had seen something else.
“Everyone be careful! This monster is about to enter a frenzy!!!”