Chương 20

After taking out the first group of Sentinels, Rudra pushed deeper into the flooded hallway. The water kept getting heavier. And colder. And deeper. Loud grinding noises echoed around him, but it wasn't enemies this time. The limestone walls were actually shifting, moving massive blocks around to change the path. The water level steadily climbed from his waist up to his chest. Unpredictable currents yanked at his legs, trying to drag him under.

"My legs are burning," Rudra panted, fighting the dense water.

"If I don't get some food soon, I'm actually going to pass out." Instead of fighting the current with brute force, he started using it. When the water pulled left, he leaned in, letting the momentum slide him smoothly past a swinging pendulum trap. When a rusted iron gate tried to slam shut in his face, he pointed his left hand backward.

"[Minor Tidal Push]!" He fired the spell, using the underwater recoil to jet-propel himself through the narrow gap right before it closed. He was bruised, completely soaked, and starving, but he couldn't wipe the huge grin off his face. This was incredibly fun. He burst through a pair of heavy coral doors and rolled onto an elevated stone platform. The water here was only ankle-deep. He took a second to catch his breath, clutching his stomach as it let out a massive, embarrassing growl.

"Dinner later," Rudra groaned. Standing in the center of the vast, circular room was the final hurdle. It was an eight-foot-tall mechanical guardian made of oxidized bronze and heavy coral. It held a massive, double-ended glaive. [Asterion's Adaptive Automaton (Guardian) - Lv. 25] The Automaton didn't roar or make a sound. It just rushed him with terrifying speed. Rudra scrambled to his feet, throwing his oak staff up just in time to catch the descending blade. [Iron Guard] flared to life.

It absorbed the massive hit, but the sheer weight of the strike forced Rudra down onto one knee.

"Heavy," Rudra grunted. He immediately fought back, dropping his staff slightly and launching a fast, open-handed slap right at the Automaton's knee joint. It was a weird, chaotic move meant to break the machine's rhythm. The Automaton didn't even flinch. It completely read his movement, shifting its leg back by an inch and instantly swinging the glaive right at Rudra's head. Rudra threw himself backward, but the blade clipped his shoulder.

[-85 HP] Okay, so it memorizes patterns, Rudra realized, his heart pounding with pure excitement. He charged back in, throwing the weirdest strikes he could think of. He swung his staff like a baseball bat, then instantly shifted his grip to poke with it like a pool cue. He used [Minor Tidal Push] to violently stagger the boss, following up with a heavy overhead smash. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. But after two minutes, he was stuck.

The Automaton had completely mapped his 96 Agility and his 97 Strength. Every time Rudra swung, the machine was already there, blocking the hit and punishing him. Rudra was backed against the stone wall, panting hard. His health was dropping dangerously low. The Automaton raised its glaive for a lethal strike, knowing exactly how fast Rudra could move to dodge it. You know exactly what I am, Rudra thought, a wild smile breaking across his face. But you only know what I was a second ago.

Without breaking eye contact, Rudra pulled up his status window. He had been hoarding his 110 unallocated stat points for an emergency. He didn't hesitate. [50 Stat Points allocated to Strength.] [60 Stat Points allocated to Agility.] The Automaton brought the glaive down, expecting a guaranteed hit. It smashed into empty air. Rudra's Agility had just skyrocketed from 96 to an absurd 156. The physical drag of his heavy oak staff vanished entirely.

He didn't just dodge the strike; he practically vanished from the Automaton's sight, sliding to its blind spot with crazy speed. The machine's gears whined. It couldn't process how its target had just instantly doubled in speed.

"[Crushing Strike]!" Rudra shouted. With his Strength now at 147, his heavy oak staff hit like a freight train. He swung horizontally with everything he had. The Automaton tried to block, but it was too slow. CRUNCH! The staff smashed into the Automaton's midsection. The bronze buckled inward, and the coral armor shattered into dust. The hit was so hard it lifted the eight-foot machine clean off its feet and launched it across the room into the wall. It didn't get back up. The blue light in its eyes flickered out.

[You have defeated Asterion's Adaptive Automaton.] [You have cleared the Submerged Labyrinth.] [Your level has risen.] [Your level has risen.] Rudra dropped his staff and rested his hands on his knees, gasping for air. His muscles were trembling from the sudden stat boost. Before he could catch his breath, the center of the room split open. A smooth stone pedestal slowly rose from the floor, holding a heavy coral chest.

"Payday," Rudra grinned tiredly. He waded over and pried the heavy lid open. He reached in, and the system chimed. [Item Acquired: Miniature Statue of Asterion (Quest Item)] He pulled out the heavy stone statue. This was the proof Priest Corin needed. But sitting at the bottom of the chest were two rolled-up, weathered parchments. They pulsed with faint magic. He unrolled one. [Item Acquired: Forgotten Skill Fragment (Parchment) x2] [Description: Fragments containing lost martial knowledge. Combine fragments to restore a forgotten skill. - 2 Fragments: Rare Skill - 6 Fragments: Epic Skill - 12 Fragments: Unique Skill - 25 Fragments: Legendary Skill]"That's what I'm talking about," Rudra laughed, rolling the parchment back up. He technically had enough to make a Rare skill right now. But as a gamer who loved hoarding items for a better payoff, there was no way he was settling for a basic Rare.

He shoved the two fragments into his inventory, perfectly happy to wait for the Unique tier or even a Legendary tier skill. With his loot secured, he grabbed his staff and walked back up the spiral stairs, his wet boots squeaking the whole way. He pushed open the heavy door at the top. The warm, dry air of the temple hit him. Priest Corin was still standing near the altar. The old man stopped what he was doing as Rudra walked out, completely drenched but smiling.

Rudra walked over and gently placed the Miniature Statue of Asterion onto the altar. Corin stared at the statue in pure awe.

"You... you defeated the Automaton. You navigated the shifting tides and claimed the proof of the deep." Corin bowed deeply.

"The temple honors your strength, Adventurer."

"Thank you, Priest Corin," Rudra politely bowed back.

"It was a great challenge. Honestly, it was a lot of fun." Corin smiled warmly and opened his mouth to offer a blessing. GRRRR-RUUUMBLE. The quiet, respectful silence was completely ruined by Rudra's violently loud stomach. Rudra awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.

"Speaking of the city... Do you happen to know any decent restaurants nearby? I am absolutely starving."