After killing tens of poisonous Lizards, Alex collected their poisonous glands and a small amount of dark crystal from their stomachs before continuing to descend deeper into the mine.
As Alex ventured deeper, his surroundings changed drastically, with the air growing heavier, charged with a faint tinge of poison mana, while the temperature steadily rose.
The glittering veins of Sylvanite Ore were now intermingled with other types of ores, with some areas having chunks of golden-hued Aurium sticking out from the walls casting an otherworldly glow in the pitch-dark passageways.
As he explored further, he encountered various new creatures in the dark depths, the toughest of them being the Corrosion Spiders, Obsidian Beetles, and Dark Serpents.
Corrosion Spiders had weak bodies but were still deadly in the pitch darkness of the mines as those silent spiders used deadly poison-laced webs that were hard to cut through because of their incredible elasticity and durability.
The Obsidian Beetles were walking tanks, while the Dark Serpents could hide their presence, bypassing the Mana sense and ambushing their prey.
As Alex searched for a proper lair of the poisonous Newts, he encountered the apex predator of these mines, a Gemstone Drake, a creature known for its monster's defense and strength and extremely aggressive nature.
Alex would have avoided the battle if he could because the Gemstone Drake was at the peak of the fourth Rank and would be a hassle to deal with in the small area.
But Alex had no choice but to poke the sleeping giant because the creature was blocking the entrance to the passageway that led to the poison pits area of the mine infested with poisonous Newts.
'Lesser Null Energy' 'Time Weave'
Alex covered his blade in Null Energy to slice through the solid scales of the drake and used the time skill to test its effectiveness.
'Phantom Sword Flash,' Alex appeared above the drake, executing tens of sword slashes in mere moments.
'Now I know why players don't like fighting the juggernauts,' Alex said, a bit annoyed seeing the damage he dealt, but his mood got better seeing the various temporal effects caused by the Time Weave skill.
The temporal effects were destructive as the drake was affected by rapid aging, making him lose all his health and mana by 20K every second while also losing his mental energy and stamina.
The drake also experienced Spatial Instability, making his movements erratic and uncoordinated with the added effects of Temporal Flashbacks and Temporal Fatigue.
The only downside was that the same temporal effects triggered twice didn't stack, and each effect lasted only six seconds.
The Drake awoke from his slumber with a mighty roar shaking the ground beneath his massive fame, towering over twelve feet filled with bulging muscle hidden under his striking iridescent carapace that shimmers in hues of black scales with a mesmerizing touch of deep blue.
The hulking creature's eyes radiated with madness as he looked down toward Alex before using Earthquake Stomp by slamming his mighty leg on the floor, making the whole passageway shake while the ground cracked at the point of impact, sending shards of earth flying.
Alex understood that with the drake's defense, it would be meaningless to barrage him with attacks, so with a plan in mind, he started to maneuver around the creature, avoiding its powerful attacks while targetting his unprotected areas.
The drake was going on a rampage, his rage fueled by his inability to crush his target and feeling the temporal effects chipping away at his sanity.
Alex didn't plan to use any of AOE's skills, knowing he would need them to handle the hordes of poisonous Newts.
Alex found the perfect opportunity when the drake stopped moving to use the tectonic Presence skill and cover his blade in sword intent fueled by the vast amount of mana.
Alex lunged at the drake, targeting the back of its knee, a vulnerable area beneath the sturdy carapace, and swiftly plunged his sword into the joint using the fourfold death point, eliciting a deep bellow of pain from the creature.
Alex stepped back, waiting for retaliation, but saw the drake's body move in slow motion as his roar echoed through the tunnel, and he instantly realized it was thanks to the temporal freeze effect, rendering the creature immobile for the next six seconds.
Alex seized the brief window of opportunity to end the battle swiftly and decisively, and by using the phantom walk, he appeared before the drake's head, the creature's eyes open wide, filled with fury and confusion.
Alex used the Air Jump skill to create a platform mid-air and started to pump mana into his sword, concentrating it at the tip of the blade, and as seconds passed, the dark blad edge shimmered with pitch darkness, disrupting the very flow of mana in the surrounding.
"Ultimate Death Point"
Alex thrust his sword forward, aimed at the drake's giant unblinking eye, and the moment the blade made content, it released a pitch-dark, concentrated beam of energy that plunged deep into the drake's eyes, destroying everything it made contact with before ripping through the back of his skull.
The drake got released from the grip of time, but it was too late for him, and with a final anguished roar, the creature's life was extinguished.
The Gemstone Drake fell to the ground, going limp as its life force faded away, and the battle was over, and Alex stood amidst the victorious silence, his heart pounding with adrenaline and triumph.
'The Time and Soul Skill takes the concept of broken on a whole new level.' Alex thought as he placed the Drake carcass in his inventory.
Alex took a moment of rest before proceeding in the giant passageway, making his way toward the poison pits, an area infested with the poisonous Newt's lairs.
As Alex delved deeper, the poison mana grew stronger, and he could feel the sinister presence of the strong Newts lurking in the narrow passages around him.
After a few minutes of walking through winding and complex passages while dealing with a few Newt on his way, Alex reached a vast open cavern filled with murky, green-tinted pools.
Alex could spot numerous Newts swimming and crawling around the edges of the poisonous pools, their slick, toxic bodies gleaming under the faint light of glowing Aurium crystals embedded in the cavern walls.
Alex stayed in the tunnel's darkness, observing the Newts' behavior by diminishing his presence, cloaking himself in a veil of dark mana, a little skill he could do with his improved control over his mana.
'Let's get started,' Alex thought as he used the "Summon Elemental" skill to summon three elementals before vanishing from his place.
Alex appeared above an early-stage fourth Rank Newts, plunging his sword laced with Null energy and sword intent into his skull before moving on to his next target.
Alex moved like a phantom reaping life with each strike, but with each head he sliced, two more took its place, and sensing the commotion caused by their fallen, more and more Newts crawled out from the deep poison pits.
Alex stayed on the move, avoiding the Newts' projectiles and bites while striking back with deadly accuracy, and when he felt enough of them were around him, he used the Dark Vortex and moments later used the Dark Flame Meteor skill.
The area plunged into pure chaos as five meteors fell, covering the area in dark flames, while Alex moved through the area, killing any lizard in his sight.
After a short few minutes, Alex started to feel the drain from the fast pace battle as tens of bodies littered the ground, and by now, the three elementals had arrived and were engaged in their battles, so to take a moment of rest he used the Miasma Field skill.
Alex drank potions to recover his bottomed-out mana and declining stamina while he looked around at the three elementals he summoned, and seeing their performance, he felt satisfied.
The first summon was a knight wearing full body armor wielding a broad sword engaged against the poisonous lizard horde.
His movements were fluid and controlled, his strikes precise and deadly, and he used the terrain to his advantage, luring the Newts into unfavorable positions and taking their life.
The second summons was a magician of unknown origin raining down shards and sicles of ice while under the protection of the third elemental, a colossal creature standing at fourteen feet wielding a massive shield and hammer, providing protection and cruising his foes with brute strength.
The battle was intense, and Alex could see no end to Newts crawling out from poison pits and cracks, but he wasn't worried knowing he was at the entrance of the Newt's habitant and the small laire could only hold so many of these creatures.
After fifteen minutes passed, the number of Newts began to dwindle, and moments later, the last of them were killed, and now Alex stood amidst a field of corpses numbering more than two hundred, loowing toward his three summons, who looked a bit exhausted after the intense battle.
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