Chapter Fifteen: First Blood

Name: [Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider] (Elite)
Health: 100/100
Attack Level: Weak (10)
Defense Level: Average (15)
Attack Speed: Fast
Alert Range: Long
Skills: Spider Bite, Venom, Web Restraint
Description: A spider-shaped Shadow-Eater adept at trapping prey with webs, injecting potent toxins with its sharp fangs, and patiently waiting for its victims to die before feasting.

…

With only ten points of attack, even when the Spider-Eater triggered its Spider Bite for a fifty percent damage boost, it still couldn’t break through Ashes’ twenty-two defense. Although Ashes’ insufficient agility left him slowed, reducing his attack speed, as long as his armor remained intact, handling two at once was no problem. Moreover, his bioactive soft tissue arm could inflict both slow and paralysis, turning the battle into something like a slow-motion replay.

[Notification: You activated the active skill “Staff Technique: Skull Cracker,” reducing the target’s head defense by one.] (15/2.5=6)
[Notification: You dealt thirty-six damage to “Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider.”]
[Notification: “Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider” lacks the required six agility to resist a normal “Slow” state. For the next five seconds, its attack and movement speed are reduced by twenty-five percent.]
[Notification: “Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider” lacks the required five agility to resist a normal “Paralysis” state. For the next three seconds, its actions may be interrupted.]

With a fourth piece added to the bioactive soft tissue set, the token [Gluttony of the Bioactive Soft Tissue] further increased its slow effect. Only with six points in agility could one resist the slow state, but the usage requirement now rose to five in vitality and four in willpower. Ashes guessed that once he completed the set, the conditions would be six vitality and five sanity.

And this was merely a basic set. Already, the requirements surpassed the level ten cap. Once the closed beta ended and newbie benefits were lost, anyone wanting to equip a full set of anomalous gear before advancing would have to find a way to obtain evolution serums.

“It seems that in this game, attributes matter far more than level!” Ashes mused, then unleashed Skull Cracker three more times, dispatching one Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider. The other, left alone, succumbed repeatedly to paralysis and was ultimately clubbed down before it could recover.

[Notification: You have slain the elite “Enhanced Juvenile Shadow-Eater Spider” and received a large amount of contribution points.]

With two consecutive kill notifications, Ashes edged closer to level ten. He wasn’t disappointed by the lack of loot—after all, anyone who could throw out two elite bosses as cannon fodder had to be at least a sub-boss. He considered the effort an investment in luck, though he doubted it would pay off; the game was notoriously stingy, and getting any quality crafting material was cause for celebration.

As Ashes pressed deeper into the nest, the livestream had already revealed the next opponent: a massive creature whose swollen spider abdomen nearly filled half the surgery room—Juvenile Shadow-Eater Broodmother.

“Ugh, that mother spider looks disgusting.” Miao Miao’s eyes flashed with revulsion, though she munched her snacks with gusto. She even studied the patterns on the Broodmother’s carapace—after half a year under the same roof as Ashes, she’d unconsciously picked up some of his habits, always curious about odd details.

Most viewers, comparing the size of the Broodmother and Ashes, assumed he stood little chance. Even though six of her eight legs were crippled by her own bulk, the two front limbs, necessary for feeding, remained agile.

“Can he win?”
“I doubt it!”
“The Broodmother’s head alone is bigger than the player—how can you possibly beat that?”

As the chat buzzed with debate, the closed beta testers’ discussion group was equally lively. Many who hadn’t made the cut watched the stream and filled the thread with hundreds of posts. When Ashes finally revealed his true form, the discussion peaked; everyone wanted to see what the mysterious player, hailed as the Foundation’s number one, was truly capable of.

“Can someone explain that arm?”
“Seconded!”
“Anomalous weapon! Has to be! Only someone ranked first could pull that off.”
“Wait, is that a sun badge on his chest? I heard it’s only awarded for clearing the Life Exclusion Zone on Hard.”
“It’s got to be! In fact, I’m sure he’s cleared more than just Hard. I saw his replies in the Old Vines thread—he might be the only tester to clear above Hard.”
“No way! Even Old Vines and a bunch of old-timers failed—how did he solo the Life Exclusion Zone?”
“He didn’t do it alone. To enter above Hard, you need at least two with Bloodvine accessories, and both must be partners who cleared the Darkwood. Want to know who queued with him?”
“Who?”
“Spill it!”
“A reliable source says it was Gentle Cup of Wine.”
“No way! You’re kidding me—he teamed up with Gentle Cup of Wine?”
“Absolutely true. Haven’t you seen the game’s CG from Singularity Studios? The final male and female protagonists are based on them! As far as I know, no one else has cleared above Hard, which means their third trial’s credit payout hit an astonishing 9600 points!”
“...”
“That’s insane… one run earned more than I got in three. I must really suck.”
“9600 credits plus half-price at the shop—his combat power could easily rival two or three normal testers after their exams. So don’t be fooled by the Broodmother’s size—it’s all for show!”

The data hounds, dedicated to gathering intel, estimated that Ashes was among the top-tier testers. If even he couldn’t beat the Broodmother, the audience might witness the first instance of players failing a trial on stream.

Did the developers expect all players to cooperate instead of fighting each other? Unless player damage was disabled, internal competition was inevitable—especially since this exam included an elimination rule.

Ashes navigated the dense webs and steadily reached the corridor’s end, where he found the Broodmother “nesting” in the surgery room. Calm and methodical, he activated the Eye of Appraisal and immediately saw her stat panel.

…

Name: [Juvenile Shadow-Eater Broodmother] (Boss)

Health: 200/200
Attack Level: Average (15)
Defense Level: Average (25)
Attack Speed: Normal
Alert Range: Normal
Skills: Spider Spear Thrust, Potent Venom
Description: The Broodmother is a unique Shadow-Eater, producing more of her kind by drawing upon the Darkwood’s power and creating entire Shadow-Eater nests. Only by killing the Broodmother can the nest be destroyed.

…

“The Broodmother’s stats outclass her two elite minions by a mile. No wonder she’s the Hard-difficulty boss—her attack and defense aren’t outrageous, but her health has doubled! She could even go toe-to-toe with the Octopus Chieftain!”

Ashes stood at the doorway, not rushing in. Judging by the Broodmother’s abilities, he boosted his vitality to six before entering the surgery room.

The Broodmother, already aware of his presence, raised her forelegs in a threatening display, her mandibles vibrating to generate a chilling sound, hoping to scare Ashes off. But he advanced without hesitation. Realizing the fight was inevitable, the Broodmother lashed out, her razor-sharp forelegs thrusting to impale him. In a flash, Ashes moved as well, twisting his waist to dodge one of the deadly limbs.

His bioactive soft tissue arm’s reach nearly matched the Broodmother’s, so he didn’t have to get dangerously close and could evade with ease. As one spider spear struck him, his bioactive arm landed squarely on the Broodmother’s head, dealing thirty-two damage and shaving off more than fifteen percent of her health. [42 - (25/2.5)]

But the Spider Spear Thrust was no joke either—a 150% damage multiplier cost Ashes sixteen health. If not for his six vitality, which granted immunity to the venom, he would have been at a clear disadvantage.

Now, however, Ashes held a distinct upper hand. With an eighty-point health cap, he could endure five spear thrusts. The Broodmother’s skill required a two-second cooldown, giving him ample time to attack. He unleashed five consecutive Skull Crackers, leaving the Broodmother with only forty health. Ashes dodged half the spear thrusts in three volleys.

When his stamina finally ran dry, he retreated from the surgery room, used a healing item, and recovered his lost health—sealing the Broodmother’s fate.

[Notification: You dealt thirty-two damage and killed the Boss “Juvenile Shadow-Eater Broodmother,” earning a large amount of contribution points.]
[Notification: You destroyed a small nest and gained one Slaughter Point.]
[Notification: Achieve ten Slaughter Points to keep all your closed beta gains. The higher your points, the better the extra rewards.]
[Global Announcement: Foundation trainee D1106 has destroyed the first small nest!]

“One small nest equals one Slaughter Point—so I’ll need to destroy ten? And it even triggers a global announcement?”

Glancing at the broadcast, Ashes prepared to collect the Broodmother’s loot and search for the hidden Flame Badge. But just then, flames suddenly erupted through the gloom of the surgery room…