Yulia was certain the giant worm hadn’t died from that last explosion—her points hadn’t increased.
Plus, in the chaos, she hadn’t even gotten a chance to check its stats.
Without much information, she wouldn’t make reckless moves.
Deep down, Yulia was a cautious person.
Her teleport skill was still on cooldown. What if she charged in now and was ambushed again? Especially with her Golden Eye so heavily restricted. There was no room for arrogance.
So she decided to wait.
Meanwhile, the worm seemed to be doing… nothing. There was no movement.
With both sides waiting for the other to move, it was a stalemate.
Well, if it’s not doing anything…
Might as well proceed with the bombing.
Yulia continued clearing the mist.
The worm had burst from underground—damaging the magic circle in the process. Even if it was still active, its efficiency had to be compromised.
Sure enough, the black mist regenerated slower now, making her demolition work much smoother.
Might as well clear more before going in.
The less fog there is, the safer it is.
Sophia floated back at some point, watching her before finally asking, “Is stalling really okay?”
“Hm? Why?”
“This place is important to them. Dragging it out might… invite surprises.”
“…”
So that’s why the damn worm won’t come out!
It’s waiting for reinforcements!
Yulia had assumed these monsters were brainless charge-and-die mobs.
Sure, most were. But what if a few had working brain cells?
The ghost girl right beside her is one.
“CHARGE!”
No hesitation. Yulia crafted another oversized bomb and sprinted forward.
Her teleport wasn’t ready, but after seeing the worm’s attack pattern once, she was confident she could handle it.
Her goal wasn’t to kill the giant worm—she only needed to destroy the magic circle.
She breached the mist again, advancing swiftly.
Soon, she reached the location where she was ambushed.
This time, she lobbed the bomb from a distance.
No worm. Maybe it had learned its lesson.
Even better.
Yulia turned and ran immediately after the bomb left her hands.
20 meters to safety.
She gathered strength on her legs, ready to leap out—
Then—disaster struck.
The ground lit up crimson, a bloody glow seeping from below.
Yulia jumped, darting for the exit.
She didn’t know what was happening, but it was probably nothing good. She decided to run away first.
THUD.
Her forehead slammed into an invisible barrier at the mist’s edge.
Oh. Oh no.
Gritting her teeth, Yulia detonated the bomb early.
BOOOOOOM—!!!
A blast far louder than before shattered something, the shockwave catapulting her out of the mist.
She tumbled mid-air, twisting before crash-landing in a half-crouch.
“Guh—! That hurt! Just the shockwave and it’s this painful?!”
Her HP bar had dropped by nearly 1,000—excluding corrosion damage.
“I have to be careful next time. True damage doesn’t discriminate at all.”
After confirming that she was mostly fine, Yulia turned her gaze back.
From outside, she could now clearly see a pillar of faint red light encasing the black mist.
But the barrier was half-destroyed from the explosion, its glow fading fast.
Soon, it fizzled out entirely, and the black mist dissipated wildly.
Yulia dove behind a cover, waiting for the chaos to settle.
When she looked again—
The once-dense miasma had mostly vanished, moonlight reclaiming the land.
Looks like the magic circle was completely destroyed.
Mission accomplished. Maybe we should… retreat now?
But then—four black-robed figures flickered at the edge of her vision.
Their faces and forms were hidden in shadow, only wisps of dark energy leaking from their robes.
Yulia’s nose twitched.
A familiar scent.
“Demonic energy?!”
She had only encountered it a handful of times, yet each left an unshakable impression.
First: a world boss.
Second: the wilderness.
Third: Uncle Edward.
Fourth: the Demon Hunter in the Tower of Heroic Trials.
Now, she studied the four newcomers.
They resembled the Demon Hunter from the tower—but far more corrupted.
Her pupils contracted, golden light flaring as Golden Eye activated fully.
[Name: Chaos Defiler
Level: 34 (Low Gold-rank)
HP: 50,000/50,000]
‘Chaos Defiler’? Different from the ‘Chaos Corruption’ she had fought before. They’re more tainted.
But the real kicker—
WHAT THE HELL?! LEVEL 34 AND 50,000 HP?! Are you kidding me?!
You say this is elite monster stats?! I’d believe it if you say they’re bosses!
From trash mobs to elites, bosses, major bosses, and world bosses, each tier came with stat bonuses.
Attack, defense, speed, and other attributes are given modest bumps of 20-30%.
But HP increased dramatically. Usually 3-5 times the previous tier.
An elite with 50,000 HP? If this thing became a boss, it’d start at 200,000!
A quick scan of their other stats was reassuring—still elite-tier, just slightly stronger than before.
Yulia ran the calculations in her head.
Conclusion?
Not leaving. Thick HP bars just meant more fun.
And four at once? Perfect.
While Yulia analyzed them, the four Chaos Defilers scanned the area—locking onto her position.
One charged towards her, emitting red light from the area that might be its eyes.
Yulia stood up, stretching lazily.
“Perfect. I’ve got some questions for you guys anyway.”
Her corrosion stacks had reached 12.
She had ten minutes to wrap this up, then make a trip to the church. Time management is key.
So—
“Why don’t you all come at me together? I’m in a hurry.”
She ignored the charging Defiler, instead hooking a finger at the other three.
Language barriers are irrelevant. Universal taunts work everywhere.