Chapter 108

Level Up IlDanSimPanGwan – Chapter 108 (108/227)

Chapter 108: The Art of Hunting

“Hmph…”

Ail let out a sigh as he faced the long line of skill books laid out before him.

As always, it was a nerve-wracking moment.

In Warode, the importance of skills needed no further explanation. With trembling anticipation, Ail reached out…

But instead of grabbing a skill book, his hand landed on a radiant red luck stone.

There was a task to do before using the skill books.

POOF!

Using the luck stone, Ail temporarily boosted his Luck stat by one level and began contemplating which skills would be most beneficial right now.

First things first – the skill’s grade had to be considered.

Ail wanted to secure as many Unique or Hero-grade skills as possible for his current level range.

Legendary-grade skills above Unique were basically impossible to obtain, while low-grade skills would be detrimental in the long run.

“Actually, Rare-grade skills are pretty decent these days…”

For most users, filling their skill bar with Rare-grade abilities would be an incredible achievement.

But Ail’s standards had been raised after his recent streak of good fortune, and he couldn’t settle for anything less than higher grades.

Especially since he was aiming for Ranker status, average wouldn’t cut it.

“I’ve gathered quite a few skill books so far – four red ones, one purple, and even a Glorious Purple Skill Book… This should be enough.”

Normally, this collection should yield at least one decent skill.

Though he kept repeating “it should work,” life doesn’t always go as planned.

Ail picked up one of the red skill books.

[Thrust (Common)]

– Job Restriction: Melee Classes

– Deals a sharp piercing attack to enemies.

“Mmm…”

Just a plain Common-grade skill.

An average user might have accepted it in a pinch, but it wasn’t nearly good enough for Ail.

He couldn’t waste a precious skill slot on something this weak, especially considering it came from a red skill book – not a great start.

He tried another red skill book.

[Firm Skull (Lowest)]

– Sometimes having a tough head can help.

– Increases head defense by 35 fixed points.

[“Light Judge Lu” licks his lips.]

The dreaded Lowest-grade skill appeared.

“Bluh… This feels like it’ll just disappear after use.”

Ail scratched his head uncomfortably, remembering how online games often gave him bad vibes during these moments.

Based on his extensive gaming experience, continuing with the red skill books would likely result in more misses.

It was time to switch strategies and go straight for the Glorious Purple Skill Book, which had better odds of delivering a good skill.

“Please…!”

The Glorious Purple Skill Book emitted a bright light.

[Fire Baptism (Hero)]

– Heretical Inquisitor Exclusive Skill

– When there aren’t enough stakes for heretics, turning them all to ash is also an effective method.

– Swinging your weapon releases powerful Sacred Flames over a wide area.

“Phew, okay!”

Relieved, Ail clenched his fist.

Fortunately, the Hero-grade skill appeared, and Ail immediately learned it.

This was his second exclusive attack skill, complementing his existing skill without overlap.

The appearance of this AoE (Area of Effect) skill would greatly improve Ail’s grinding efficiency, given his previous lack of high-damage AoE abilities.

While he hadn’t expected a Unique-grade skill, getting this from a purple skill book was more than satisfactory.

“Having three active skills already is slightly concerning… but it’s fine for now.”

His only passive skill obtained so far was a Unique-grade armor penetration effect, and various buff skills could be acquired later.

With two Hero-grade and one Unique-grade skill among his four learned skills so far, maintaining this pace would give him near-Ranker-level skill setup.

After glancing happily at his skill window, Ail shook his head to refocus.

“Still need to test this Hero-grade skill properly… I’ll try it out soon.”

Given the scarcity of information about Inquisitor-exclusive skills, testing was necessary.

Ail planned to descend into the dungeon below and test the skill against undead monsters.

“Next… The video seems to have turned out well.”

Reviewing his Basilisk taming video, Ail was satisfied with the clean and skilled execution despite the difficulty.

Without hesitation, he’d upload it along with his previous recordings.

Now that he had an editor, there was no need to hold onto recorded footage unnecessarily – he could simply send it off for processing.

However, one issue remained.

There were no clues related to his quest in this room where the Soul Stone had been placed.

“Guess I should have captured that zealot alive…”

Thinking about Sludge’s unfortunate demise left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Capturing him alive might have provided some useful leads, even if not everything.

No one survived Heretical Interrogation Office interrogations while fully conscious.

“There’s nothing else to do but find out myself.”

Though approaching Bloody Hands again for neutral information wasn’t ideal, their last exchange had already drawn significant attention.

Considering they only provided information about Sludge, who was relatively low-ranking within the Zealots, they likely wouldn’t offer any core information this time either.

Additionally, the Gold support from the Church was depleted from the previous request, pushing Bloody Hands down to second option status.

That said, Ail still had faith that World Quests would gradually progress and provide news.

Even now, more information about World Quests was becoming available compared to before.

With his extensive network, Ail could spend some time searching through various information sites for clues while leveling up.

CHUNK.

Descending to the underground dungeon via the corridor for skill testing, Ail drew his longsword in advance.

Though he’d already caused chaos fighting basilisks, the dungeon’s immense size prevented any major disturbances.

DRAG DRAG.

Intentionally dragging his sword across the floor as he walked deeper inside, undead monsters began gathering.

Around level 40 common monsters.

He’d fought these before and knew their approximate stats, perfect for gauging his new skill’s effectiveness.

“Let’s try it then!”

Gripping his sword with both hands, Ail activated the skill.

Hero-grade skill: Fire Baptism.

WHOOSH!

SKREEEE!

Swinging his sword unleashed massive flames forward.

Huge white flames engulfed everything ahead, clearing out the surrounding monsters effortlessly.

CRACKLE CRACKLE.

“Huh…”

Ail stared blankly at the scene.

All traces of the charging monsters were gone, leaving only scorched remains.

Even accounting for attribute damage bonuses and his sword’s Full Moon effect against undead, he hadn’t expected this complete annihilation.

The attack range exceeded his expectations as well.

Though limited to the path traced by his sword swing, it extended far enough to hit enemies at a considerable distance.

“This has to be one of the top-tier Hero-grade skills…”

While it didn’t deal Island-level massive damage due to its wide AoE, such a high-tier AoE skill was rare for melee classes.

“Honestly, I thought I needed more passives, but this power might actually be better.”

Though it consumed some mana, the short cooldown meant it would significantly boost efficiency when farming common monsters.

“Good thing my recent Insanity stat increase to 136 also boosted my mana pool…”

Not only did combat-related stats like mana benefit from the Insanity stat, but his Faith stat over 140 reduced the mana cost and slightly decreased the cooldown of his exclusive skill, Fire Baptism.

Meaning he could actively use both his attack skills without issue.

“Hmm?”

Noticing something unusual, Ail looked closer.

The experience gained from eliminating the undead was much higher than expected.

Initially overlooked while battling basilisks, careful consideration of the number and level of enemies defeated revealed excellent experience efficiency here.

“Pretty good actually…”

Despite being a lower-level dungeon, this efficiency was impressive enough that nearby guilds could charge passage fees.

Even without guild management, user competition would likely make normal hunting impossible due to overcrowding.

However, this was still a new dungeon hidden by the Fog Plains’ mist, not easily discovered by chance.

A smile crept across Ail’s face.

“It’s been a while since I’ve settled in for some proper hunting.”