Chapter 71

  Jake cleared several more floors. The difficulty signifitly increased with eae, which resulted in him taking more time to get to the floor. The sixth level proved to be the most challenging so far. Not only was it hurling one wave of walkers and leapers his way after another, but it also stantly spawougher types of enemies such as shamblers and whippers. Jake exerted all his strength and agility, fighting off one wave after aniving it his all. This level aloed nearly as much mana as his body typically ed in a day.

  The st wave of monsters was finally taken care of and the sixth floor was finally cleared. Yet instead of making his way to the ptform to advao the level, he sank into a croug position. Feelially drained, he decided to rest for a moment. As long as he had more thahousand MP stored within his body, his magically enhanced mutant body couldn’t get physically tired. However, mentally Jake felt exhausted. He’d had to do his utmost to defeat the monsters on the sixth floor, resulting in his mental fatigue afterward. After such a prolonged and intetle, he o rest for a few minutes.

  While he rested, he checked the status of the challenge.

  Tower Climb Progression

  Floors: 6/10

  Remaining Time: 2 hours, 48 minutes, 29 seds

  It had beehree hours since he had started the tower climb. Half the time of the challenge had already passed, but he still o clear four more floors, and each of them was going to be increasingly more difficult than the previous one. Jake was starting to wonder if he would be able to plete the challenge before time .

  During the battle on one of the previous floors, Jake had leveled up to eleven, but he hadn’t allocated the skill poi. He decided to do it now. After giving the matter some thought, he opted to get an upgrade for Swords. With a mental and, he summohe upgrade menu for the ability.

  Swords: Rank I (12%) (Upgrades: 0 of 3) (on)

  Upgrade Options (on):

  1 - Strengthen Swords to cut through dense muscle, bone, and other resilient anic materials with ease. Cost: 1 SP

  2 - Extend Swords by a few inches for increased reach. Cost: 1 SP

  3 - Signifitly reduce the time needed for extending swords. Cost: 1 SP

  The upgrade options were simir to those of the Cws ability. Jake decided to spend the skill point to acquire Strengthen Swords. There was no time to lose, so he chose not to review his stats for now. Instead, he forced himself to rise from the floor and make his way to the ptform, mentally preparing for arying fight with mutants.

  Wheform took him to the , seventh floor, he stepped out of the elevator shaft, body coiled, ready t into aagical rift gates started to materialize all around him on the walls, the floor, and the ceiling. The first eo emerge from the portals were walkers and leapers. From deeper parts of the seventh floor came the roar of either a shambler or a whipper. Jake had been dealing with ex-humans for so long he could now differentiate between them by the sounds they made alone.

  Suddenly, from somewhere behind him came a strange shriek he had never heard before.

  Ign several walkers approag him from the front, he gnced over his shoulder. He saw a ype of mutant that had just emerged from one of the portals farther down the corridor. The creature was tall and nky. It was dressed in tattered clothing, which revealed more flesh than it cealed. Sinewy lean muscles peeked through the tears in the ragged clothes the mutant wore. While the creature’s muscles weren’t bulging out all that much, it was clear the mutant was both strong and agile.

  The most notable feature of the mutant was its hands. Or more accurately, the absence of those. Where the hands should have been were long boensions. They were pointed, double-edged, and slightly curved, making them perfect for sshing. With a thought, Jake called up the description of the mutant.

  Ex-Human Ssher – Level 15 (Elite)

  Special ability: Flurry of Swings – The mutaers a frenzy state, swinging its bdes violently for a few seds.

  So it was ae enemy. Elite mutants were more dangerous than the regur ones, and they possessed special abilities as well. Jake had already entered ae ex-human mutant with a simir ability when he was doing a Hunt quest. However, the creature he had to track down and elimi that time was a walker armed with cws. The ssher behind him had what looked like boensions, which were basically bdes, so dealing with this kind of monster was going to pose a different kind of challeo him.

  The first two walkers reached Jake, prompting him to shift his focus back to the immihreat in front of him. One of them attacked, but he easily evaded the swipe of cws aimed at his face. He swung his sword in an arc with lightning speed, the bde cutting through the flesh and bone in the monster’s neck like a hot khrough butter, sending the severed head flying to the side. He was amazed at how easily his upgraded bde cut through the mutant’s body. Swords had definitely beuch more powerful after he acquired Strengthen Swords a few minutes ago, proving this upgrade was totally worth the skill point he’d spent on it.

  Another walker lurched at him, ending his line of thought. Jake dao the side, effortlessly dodging its attack right before thrusting his sword into the mutant’s chest. His bde sliced through its body, easily cutting through the flesh and shattering all the ribs that were in its way. The mutant’s body went limp, and the dying walker leaned against him, its arms dropping to dangle lifelessly at its sides.

  In the er of his wide vision, he spotted yet another walker approag him from the side. Having no time to yank his sword free from the mutant’s body, he shot his right hand toward the hreat, his iron-like cws digging deep into the flesh of its throat. He tore the creature’s rynx out, causing a torrent of dark blood to pour from the nasty wound. For a sed, the mutant stared at Jake in fusion, as if not quite prehending what had just occurred.

  Theant began to fall, and Jake immediately stepped aside, yanking the bde from the first walker, whose body was still leaning against him. Both ex-humans colpsed to the floor at the same time, their bodies twitg ih throes.

  Multiple enemies killed. +30 XP

  A terrifying shriek reverberated from behind, prompting Jake to wheel around and catch sight of the ssher charging down the corridor toward him. Jake only had a brief moment to brace himself for the immi enter with this ype of elite mutant.