Chapter 402: Butcher

【Passing through the deep darkness, you arrive at a dilapidated old path. Amidst the unsettling, cold, and cruel aura lingering all around, you pass through the corrupted grass, go there, follow the bloodstains along the way, and push open that nauseating Gate.】

【You have entered the hidden area: Rotten Meat Cellar!】

Pushing open the portal blocking the way ahead, a pungent stench of blood rushed toward them.

Bloodstains from being dragged were everywhere on the ground, and rusted iron hooks hung from the ceiling. At the end of the corridor, a cart piled high with rotting meat was parked in the corner, with a swarm of flies buzzing around it.

The smell here was simply dozens of times more disgusting than the sewers of Frostfall City; Yun Mu and the others frowned and held their breath almost subconsciously.

They had followed the monster that snatched the Dwarf recruit, encountering many traps along the way.

Those traps had also been strengthened by the Dungeon, so even a Master-level Transcendental would not have an easy time if they were hit.

Therefore, to avoid those traps, the three of them wasted quite a bit of time.

Hoping that the Dwarf recruit was alright, "Let's go." After confirming there were no traps at the intersection, Yun Mu stepped forward, heading toward the depths of the corridor.

And after passing through that uncomfortable corridor, accompanied by a burst of "hee-hee" snickering, the two imps seen earlier blocked their path.

At the same time, a notification popped up on the Game Panel indicating they had entered combat.

【You have encountered enemies: 【Laughing Imp lv62 (Master)】 【Laughing Imp lv62 (Master)】】 【Laughing Imp lv62 (Master) Max HP: 220 Race: Demon

Attack: 40, Spell Strength: 70, Defense: 40, Resilience: 12, Dodge: 66, Speed: 31, Precision Correction: 65, Critical Hit: 28% Traits: Demon Body (Fire Resistance +40%), Imp (Pressure effect increased by 25% when attacking enemies), Demonization

Skills: Laughing, Scratch, Whip, Wailing】 "Hee-hee-hee!"

Once combat began, the two demon imps immediately started snickering.

At the same time, two new monsters appeared in the battle.

【You have encountered enemies — 【Pigman Servant lv60 (Master)】 【Pigman Gladiator lv64 (Master)】】 【Pigman Servant lv60 (Master) Max HP: 250 Race: Pig-headed Human/Demon Attack: 66, Spell Strength: 4, Defense: 68, Resilience: 12, Dodge: 55, Speed: 24, Precision Correction: 50, Critical Hit: 32% Traits: Skin Hardening, Berserk (Damage +25%, Critical Hit +10% when HP falls below half), Demonization

Skills: Furious Flail, Vicious Pounce, Roar.】 【Pigman Gladiator lv64 (Master) Max HP: 268 Race: Pig-headed Human/Demon Attack: 68, Spell Strength: 6, Defense: 75, Resilience: 14, Dodge: 50, Speed: 26, Precision Correction: 60, Critical Hit: 42% Traits: Skin Hardening, Berserk, Demonization Skills: Continuous Slash, Bone Picking, Flying Chain Heavy Strike.】 "Ya-ge-ge-ge!"

The two imps brandished long whips, lashing fiercely at the backs of the Pigman Servant and the Pigman Gladiator.

"Roar!"

【Judgment】

【Judgment】

The two Pigmen roared, their massive bodies instantly blocking the front of the imps.

【Battle Start!】

【Current Turn: 1】

【Due to the effect of the 【Quick Eyes and Fast Hands】 skill from the equipment 【Red Oil Candle】, Brenna acts first!】

The Game Panel broadcast stopped there. Yun Mu looked at the Judgment icons above the two Pigmen's heads, which increased their defense by 65%, and felt a toothache.

No, why can they cast a Judgment skill before the battle even starts?

They're cheating, right?

This is truly ridiculous.

"Brenna, summon the Princess mech, just like before," Yun Mu commanded.

Actually, she would have preferred Brenna to use the Airdrop Troops skill, since it could summon a mechanical construct that attacks automatically,

which is equivalent to dealing extra damage every turn, making it very desirable.

But the problem is, using that skill would mean losing the effect of the equipment 【Red Oil Candle】.

A 15% damage increase and 8% critical hit rate compared to an extra mechanical summon... it really is a dilemma.

"I understand."

Brenna nodded, used the Deploy skill to summon the Princess to the battlefield, and then poured out the shells from the magazine!

【Judgment Time has arrived!】

【-148!】

【-236!】 (Critical Hit!) 【-237!】

【-237!】

"Ya-ah-ah-ah-ah!"

The health bars of the two imps were instantly emptied, and accompanied by a piercing scream, many Scarlet thorns broke through their skin, forming flame patterns that looked like breathing.

【Demonization!】

Their HP instantly recovered to half, but unlike before, the mocking grins on the two imps' faces had disappeared, replaced by brutality and madness.

Could it be that Demonization affects personality?

Yun Mu analyzed as it became her turn to act.

【Player Yun Mu begins her turn!】

"Let's use this." Regaining her focus, Yun Mu held the Heavy Magic Ice Staff Modified and raised her hand to release six extremely fast ice crystals.

Six Meridian Divine Sword—no, wait, Ice Pulse Burst!

【Ice Pulse Burst!】

【-525!】 (Critical Hit!) 【-462!】 (Critical Hit!) 【-597!】 (Critical Hit!) 【-597!】 (Critical Hit!) 【Slow!】

【Speed -25%, Dodge -50.】

Wow, all four attacks were critical hits!

Although with this amount of HP, there wasn't much difference between a critical hit and a normal one.

But seeing the enlarged damage numbers, Yun Mu couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction.

The two 【Laughing Imps】 were completely wiped out before they could even use any skills.

Only the two demonized Pigmen remained.

"Ugh-ah-ah-ah-ah..."

The Pigman Gladiator and the Pigman Servant knelt on the ground in pain, twisted flesh proliferating from their bodies, quickly covering their tattered armor, and even the chains on their limbs were filled by that ominous substance.

Although it's not very nice to say, it's a bit disgusting.

Let's end this battle as soon as possible! Yun Mu thought to herself.

【Plague Mad Crocodile begins its action!】

【Wait!】

【Tail Whip!】

The Plague Mad Crocodile leaped out from the soil, its fat tail lashing fiercely against the bodies of the two Pigmen.

This time, Yun Mu did not let it use Bite; after all, even if it did, it wouldn't kill anyone.

It was better to gamble on the skill effect of 【Tail Whip】.

【Tail Whip: Damage Correction +45%, Precision Correction +35, two-unit damage, range 3, Stun 135%.】

【-83!】

【-77!】

【Stun!】

Very good, one is stunned! Yun Mu nodded with satisfaction, and then it was Liliya and Lucy's turn to act.

【Star Fall!】

【Constellation Magic: Blade Constellation!】

Starlight fell from the sky, and the health bars of the two Pigmen were suddenly reduced to less than a quarter.

But that was as far as it went; Yun Mu and her team's turn ended, and it was time for the monsters to act.

【Pigman Gladiator begins its action!】

【Continuous Slash!】

The Pigman Gladiator took heavy steps to the front of the Plague Mad Crocodile, raised the blood-stained machete in its hand, and slashed wildly! 【-40!】

【-89!】 (Critical Hit!) 【Immune!】

【-40!】 【Bleeding!】

"Roar!"

The Plague Mad Crocodile's health points vanished like snowflakes, but in the blink of an eye, only a sliver remained.

【13/182】

What kind of damage is that?

Yun Mu raised an eyebrow; wasn't the situation looking great just a moment ago? How could her teammate be about to die in the blink of an eye?

If the Plague Mad Crocodile's trait 【Slippery Scales】 hadn't triggered once, it would have already entered the Near Death state by now! Near Death + Bleeding—those who know, know; I won't go into detail here.

Fortunately, Yun Mu looked at the Pigman Servant.

The opponent was still in a stunned state at this moment.

Otherwise, if it were allowed to strike again, the Plague Mad Crocodile would have no choice but to roll back to the fountain and wait to respawn.

【Pigman Servant begins its action!】

【Stun!】

【Skip Turn!】

【Current Turn Number: 2】

【Player Yun Mu acts first!】

"It's over."

With a light flick of her wrist, before long, dark green vines rose from the ground, binding the two Pigmen tightly together.

【Construct into Reality!】

【-289!】

【-266!】

【Battle End!】

【Congratulations on winning a battle—

Your 【Gold Coin】 increased by 13080! (Pickpocketing +9%)

Your skill 【Construct into Reality lv4】 has been upgraded to 【Construct into Reality lv5】! 【Inspiration +3】

A surge of inspiration for painting flooded her mind; besides that, the increase in the 【Construct into Reality】 skill level would make the things she painted even more lifelike.

Its effects would naturally be enhanced to a certain degree as well.

【You obtained the equipment 【Blood Shackles (Blue)】】 【Blood Shackles (Blue)】

【Stun probability +35%】

【Displacement resistance +20%】

【The shackles of a Pigman Gladiator, stained with the blood of many Pigmen, as if silently accusing the master of this place.】

"I'll just keep this to feed to Chester."

Picking up the equipment that had fallen to the ground with a complicated expression, Yun Mu thought to herself.

Blue-quality equipment wasn't quite enough to look at anymore; although the attribute of adding 35% stun probability was quite rare, in terms of practicality, 35% was a bit low for monsters in a Master-level Dungeon.

If she could encounter purple or higher quality equipment in the future that could increase the effects of control skills, then it would be worth using.

This blue-quality one, however, was better left alone.

And although it's not very nice to say, thinking that this was equipment worn by Pigmen for years... ugh, she felt a bit disgusted.

"Let's keep moving forward," she said.

The two small fry had been eliminated, but the Dwarf recruit who had been dragged here earlier had not yet been found.

I'm a bit worried... although they are just characters in a game dungeon, after so many dungeons, Yun Mu had long since stopped treating NPCs in dungeons as fictional things.

In the morning, she was still chatting with that Dwarf recruit, and she did not want to see the other party die in a godforsaken place like this in the blink of an eye.

"Let's go!"

Lucy and Brenna nodded, and the three of them quickly passed through this area, arriving in a new room.

Just as they stepped into the room, the three of them had their gazes drawn to a high platform in the depths of the room.

They saw the Dwarf recruit who had been snatched away by two Laughing Imps earlier, now tightly bound to a blood-stained iron bed that looked like a surgical table.

And a man wearing a blood-stained robe was holding iron pliers, pulling the Dwarf recruit's teeth out from his mouth.

On the table beside the two of them, four blood-stained teeth were laid out.

"Ahhh-woo-woo!" The Dwarf recruit immediately began to shout excitedly upon seeing Yun Mu arrive.

But his mouth was fitted with some kind of device, causing him to be unable to speak at all.

Just looking at his expression, twisted in pain, one knew exactly what he had suffered during this time.

A perfectly fine Dwarf man had been reduced to having tears and snot flowing everywhere from the pain.

But then again, how could there be a human here?

Yun Mu looked at the man wearing the pale purple blood-stained robe, her expression somewhat puzzled.

Why would those Laughing Imps help him capture the Dwarf recruit? And what was the deal with the Pigman Slaves and Pigman Gladiators?

Her mind was full of questions right now, but when it came down to it, these things didn't actually count as all that important.

The thing to do right now was actually very simple.

And that was to save the Dwarf recruit!

However, just as Yun Mu and the others were preparing for battle, a dense sound of footsteps suddenly rang out from all around them.

They saw that from the path they had come from, as well as from behind that human man, a large number of Pigman Slaves and Pigman Gladiators suddenly surged out, surrounding them.

Besides that, there were a smaller number of Laughing Imps hiding behind the Pigmen, cackling "Jie-jie-jie" as if mocking them.

Without a doubt, they were surrounded.

But it didn't matter, turn-based combat, activate! Crack—

The surrounding world shattered like a mirror, and at the same time, the Game Panel message notification popped up again.

【You have encountered enemies—【Pigman Servant lv60 (Master)】【Pigman Gladiator lv64 (Master)】【Laughing Imp lv62 (Master)】【Butcher lv65 (Master)】】【Butcher lv65 (Master) Max HP: 200 Race: Human·Demon

Attack 44, Spell Strength 85, Defense 52, Tenacity 10, Dodge 70, Speed 33, Precision Correction 65, Critical Hit 30% Traits: Demonization (When HP reaches zero, restore HP to half and undergo??? unknown changes.), Creator? (When a companion in the team dies, immediately summon a new one to replenish.) Skills: Whip, Carnival Potion, Poison Gas Grenade, Precision Scalpel.】【Battle Start!】

【Current Turn Number·1】

【Due to the effect of the skill 【Quick Eyes and Fast Hands】 from the equipment 【Red Oil Candle】, Brenna acts first!】

This guy's name is Butcher?

Doesn't look much like it.

Besides that, the note for Demonization in the traits is different from other monsters... undergoing unknown changes, I just feel like something is weird somewhere.

Could it be a second phase?

As for the Creator? trait... does that mean I have to prioritize attacking this guy? Attack isn't high, Spell Strength 85, Defense only 52?

HP also barely touches 200.

I feel like Brenna could trigger the Demonization state in one action.

But the problem is, I'm a bit worried about the unknown changes after this guy undergoes Demonization.

Yun Mu analyzed in her heart, and after thinking for a moment, she said: "Brenna, use the skill 【Airdrop Parts】 this time."

If the number of turns in the battle is drawn out, then without a doubt, an extra summon that can act once more per turn is definitely stronger than the damage-boosting effect of the Red Oil Candle.

Yun Mu had a premonition that once the Butcher's HP bar was emptied and he entered the Demonization state, he would definitely be hard to deal with.

Or perhaps, hard to kill? (End of chapter)