Chapter 49 - Dragon’s Yeouiju (4)
Two types of monsters lived in the Mantis’ Graveyard. There were bug-type monsters that were lower than C class, which weren’t very threatening to Kang Shin-hyuk. The ones that he had to be concerned about, however, were the Venom Blade Mantis and their predator, the Spiders. Both were B+ class monsters, and there were quite a few of each of them.
‘But the spiders are more interested in the mantises.’ Using his spiritual power, Shin-hyuk once again examined what he heard from the mantis’s blade he collected. He didn’t think he would be able to communicate with the monster’s body, but once he knew it was possible, it wasn’t difficult to do. The blade contained all of the information about the ecology, combat method, and weaknesses of the creature it was just attached to.
‘To think such a possibility was hiding inside my spiritual power.’ Of course, he remembered the time he had used his spiritual power to figure out the momentum of the senior who was trying to take a picture of him. But at that time, he was only able to get a rough sense of some of his opponent’s power. Perhaps it was because this was a piece taken directly from a living thing, or that his spiritual power had grown more than before. Maybe it was even a combination of the two.
-Member, are you okay?
The administrator sends him a worried message as he stood still there in an emergency situation. He didn’t speak openly, but the administrator appeared to be seriously concerned.
“Yes, I’m okay.”
-…?
Shin-hyuk’s answer was calm. He was still envisioning how to use the new information he had gathered. Soon, he arrived at a conclusion, albeit one with gaps in it.
“Administrator, how much HP do I have?”
-753,090 points.
The administrator responded without delay.
“Wow.” He knew it wouldn’t be a lot after he had purchased inventory space per 1.5 million HP, but it was enough for now.
“Is there a potion that can refill my spiritual power at once?”
-The cheapest of that type are sold for 50,000 HP apiece.
“Then just one…no, two.”
-VIP fee waiver, VIP special discount price both have been purchased for 80,000 HP. This potion has a ten-minute cooldown.
“Thank you for the easy to understand explanation.” I now had 670,000 points left. I bought a few more items, including five additional trauma treatment drugs, at 4,000 apiece.
-This product cannot be purchased anywhere else. In the Hero Universe, there are magicians that have been cultivated to create potions.
Shin-hyuk wondered how they compared to the potions Claire made.
“Is there anything I can afford with my remaining money that would help me sneak?”
-Searching transaction board.
It took a little time this time. However, according to Claire, it seemed that the search function of the Hero Universe board wasn’t so friendly. It was one more thing he had to thank the administrator for.
-It will take a little time. Can you wait?
“No problem, I also have a little work to do.” Shin-hyuk took a seat on the floor, keeping his ears alert for any monsters. The moment he put the blade on the ground and pulled out the sword he had stored in his inventory…
“…What?”
-Myu!
Onyx popped out with a cute cry, hanging off of Shin-hyuk’s face. He put a hand over him quickly.
“If you’re not quiet here, we could die. Understand?” He whispered quietly, and Onyx let out a small cry to affirm that he understood the situation. Onyx settled in on his shoulder, but he was still confused.
“How the hell did you enter my inventory…was it always possible for living things to enter?”
-Inventory provides an optimal environment for everything stored inside. Keep in mind that items that aren’t yours cannot be stored.
Indeed, according to that, Onyx was able to enter it because he was Shin-hyuk’s pet. He hadn’t even imagined that he would try to crawl in. He really was a fearless little guy.
“I guess he was trying to eat the Brenite in there.
-But I’m glad he’s here. I couldn’t find a product that would meet your conditions within the price offered, but thanks to Onyx, there are products that could be used. This is the Mimicry Scroll.
“Will it let me imitate his stealth skill?” Onyx had a stealth skill with a whopping A class rarity. He gained it by eating the C class trap Shin-Hyuk created. The administrator confirmed his speculation without hesitation.
-Correct. However, you must remain attached to the target. You can borrow the target’s skills until the seventh time the scroll expires. The skills that are borrowed are limited to one at a time.
“That’s perfect for this moment…” Onyx let out a proud cry as he realized that he was helpful. Shin-hyuk gently patted him.
“How much is it?”
-It is 560,000 HP.
“I knew it.”
***
Fortunately, since his encounter with the mantis, he hadn’t run into any other monsters. Shin-hyuk began to mobilize once more after finishing his preparations. The mantises would move quickly once they realized one of theirs had been killed.
-Mimicry has imitated the entity Onyx’s Stealth (A) ability. The skill proficiency of the borrow skill is D.
“Good…I don’t know when you increased your skill level, but good job.” He activated the imitation scroll he purchased right away, confirming that Onyx’s stealth was applied to him. It would release if he engaged in combat, but as long as he had the scroll, he could reapply it at any time.
-Member, are you prepared?
“Yeah.” He nodded seriously at the administrator’s obvious concern. There were many types of superhumans in this world, but Kang Shin-hyuk was the type who attacked monsters even if it was dangerous for him.
“Let’s go.” He had a javelin in one hand and the mantis blade in the other. After removing the flesh from the blade, which was two meters long, he sharpened it with a whetstone and used the leather he had in his inventory to make a handle. He had just done that, but a nice makeshift sword had been born. His previous experience in Kieron making armor from shell really helped him in making it.
-Do you have any reason to make it?
“To deal with the big guys, I needed a larger blade. Moreover…” The blade was highly toxic and would be able to block the webs that the spiders emitted.
-When I look back, it seems you’ve grown quite a bit. Infiltrating the enemy’s base, tearing off a bit of their body, and processing it into a weapon on the fly…300HP Bonus!
“Thank you.” Maybe the day he would receive more than 1,000 HP as a bonus was approaching. He shook the thought quickly, sensing a monster.
‘Spider.’ A giant spider was peeking out from a hole in the ceiling. It had eight purple legs and was making a creepy clicking sound. Kang Shin-hyuk held his breath as it blinked its compound eyes, then returned into the hole. His stealth had proven effective.
“Thanks to that, I’m alive.” He tried to be bolder with the next monster he met. The mantis never recognized he was there. It was only a D rank stealth ability, but it was incredibly effective.
-The skill proficiency of Onyx’s stealth skill became D+ rank, and the level of imitation has increased with it.
It was even growing in real-time. He didn’t want to imagine what would’ve happened if Onyx didn’t eat that trap he made.
‘Nest.’ He soon reached the entrance of a cave where there were a lot of mantises. Until now, they had been walking alone, but now he estimated at least thirty of them were at the front of the cave. He knew what was in there.
‘That female mantis is holding an egg. These must be the soldiers who protect the young then.’ This was a harsh breeding environment. However, they found ways to live and deal with the spiders which they coexisted with, overcoming them with numbers so that they could protect their offsprings.
‘But that’ll give me a way to catch them.’ Shin-hyuk found a wide passage within sight of them and placed a bottle in the center of it. It was the monster attractor (C+) he obtained as a login bonus before. It was a hunting aid that could attract monsters up to the B- class. By itself, it couldn’t attract B+ mantises. So, Shin-hyuk used the spiritual power potion he bought, using his spiritual power to strengthen the lure. Before, this idea would have been impossible for him. But now, he was in an environment where he had to squeeze his brain for all the ideas he could. That was helping him learn how to use his spiritual power.
-Now, you’ve mastered the training of spiritual power. At this level, you can attract as many as you like.
“Thank you, then…” He quietly left the bottle and took out another in his hands. It was the spiritual glue that he obtained. When applied with spiritual power, it became a transcendent adhesive that would bind all things inconsistent with his own spiritual power.
“Is this not sold at the store?”
-Upon the third liberation, we can purchase them for 2 million HP each. When that time comes, the discount will be even better, so you could buy it for 800,000 HP!
“I asked for nothing.” He grunted and spread the adhesive around the monster attractant. As expected of a product worth 2 million HP, the amount of adhesive was quite large. The entire passage could be covered without a problem.
‘That should be enough. I’m now ready.’ Kang Shin-hyuk carefully distanced himself from the passage while still hiding. Only then did the mantises find the lure placed in the center of the passage, making a noise to alert the others. A steel javelin, fired off by Shin-hyuk, shattered the bottle to spread the lure.
-Kiiiii!
-Kiaaaaa!
There was a terrible commotion. The mantises screamed and ran into the passage together. Even though his hiding was dismissed as soon as he threw the javelin, they ran forward without paying him any mind as they flew toward the attractant. Soon after, they all stopped in place where he had spread the adhesive, their feet bound to the floor.
-Kiiiii!
-Kiaaah!
-You’ll need to hurry. Once activated, Spirit Glue only works for a few minutes.
“That’s enough!” Kang Shin-hyuk ran right into the cave holding the egg clusters. A blade of wind flew out to meet him, but he rolled straight down the floor to avoid it.
-Kiiii!
A giant female mantis revealed her anger at this invader. The cave behind her was filled with mantis eggs.