Ex-Human Morphus [A Mutant Evolution Apocalypse LitRPG]
Chapter 232

Chapter 232

Jake continued to explore the dungeon, slaying all the spiders in his path and searching for any treasures that might be hidden along the way. Over time, he leveled up several times, advancing from 92 to 95. He allocated all the skill points he earned to Magick, raising it from 103 to 118.

At one point, Jake entered a cavern that stood out from the others he had visited. This space was large and unusually free of spiders. Stalactites dangled from the ceiling, and unlike the other caverns, this area lacked the spider webs typically found throughout this floor of the dungeon. Moreover, the absence of luminescent mushrooms plunged the cavern into near-complete darkness. Not that it posed any kind of problem for his neatly perfect night vision. 

The walls were smooth and flat, and even in the darkness, Jake immediately noticed drawings etched into them. In the middle of the cavern rose a pedestal, about six feet in diameter and three feet tall. Before approaching it to see what it was, Jake decided to examine the wall drawings first.

Jake slowly walked around the room, examining the crude drawings on each wall. They all shared a common theme: a giant clad in armor from head to toe battling various creatures. The shoulder plates were adorned with spikes, and the helmet was long and pointed, reminding Jake of the helmet worn by the crystal golem he had recently defeated. The resemblance between the helmets struck him as more than just a coincidence. 

In every battle scene, the mysterious warrior emerged victorious. After examining all the drawings, Jake pondered their possible meanings and then made his way back to the pedestal in the center of the cavern. He slowly walked around it, studying it from every angle. The front surface, oriented toward the entrance, featured an intriguing indentation.

Jake kneeled down for a closer inspection. The indentation was oval-shaped, about the size of his palm. He realized that some kind of key needed to be inserted into it to activate the pedestal. Currently, he didn’t know what activating the pedestal might entail, but once he found the key to fit into the indentation, he would find out. Standing up, he took another look around the cavern. Finding nothing else of interest, he turned and left.

He pressed on through the dungeon, defeating every enemy in his path. Eventually, he stumbled across an enormous cavern. He paused at the entrance to take in the sight. Clusters of stalactites hung from the ceiling, and stalagmites rose from the floor. Luminescent mushrooms covered the walls and ceiling, casting a vibrant array of colors throughout the space. Patches of spider webs covered the interior, and silky threads ranging from an inch to nearly a foot in diameter dangled from above.

And, of course, spiders swarmed the area—there were too many to count. Some of them were cat-sized, while others were as large as dogs. They scuttled across the floor, climbed the walls, and hung from the ceiling. However, Jake’s attention was fixed on the four enormous spiders occupying the center of the cavern. Each was easily the size of a horse, and their large, sphere-shaped abdomens were transparent, revealing the magical activity taking place inside.

He gazed intently into the abdomens of the four huge spiders, captivated by the spectacle. Inside, magical energy swirled in vibrant hues. The energy inside each spider had its own distinct color: the first shimmered with fiery red, the second radiated lush green, the third glowed a deep, tranquil blue, and the fourth sparkled in cheerful yellow. The magical energy inside each of the four spiders twisted and twirled like a miniature whirlpool, casting an ethereal light that flickered and pulsed through the abdomen’s delicate, translucent walls.

Jake summoned the description of one of the four spiders.

Flame Orbed Crawler – Level 135 (Elite) 

Special abilities:

1. Elemental Connection: If there are other spiders with elemental powers in the vicinity, the Orbed Crawler can forge a connection with them to unleash a powerful elemental attack. The more there are, the more powerful the attack. 
2. Flurry of Stabs: The Orbed Crawler can enter a frenzied state, launching a rapid series of piercing attacks with its legs. 
3. Firestorm: The Orbed Crawler can conjure a powerful firestorm at a specific location.

One by one, he checked the descriptions of the other three spiders. They all share the same name, which only varied in the first word: there were a Flame Orbed Crawler, an Acid Orbed Crawler, a Shock Orbed Crawler, and a Frost Orbed Crawler. Obviously, each of these four spiders harnessed a different elemental power. Additionally, their third abilities were different. The Acid Orbed Crawler could create an acid cloud, the Frost Orbed Crawler could unleash icy projectiles, and the Shock Orbed Crawler was capable of launching lightning bolts.

None of the spiders had shown any signs of aggression toward him. He was aware that to trigger their hostile behavior, he would have to step into the cavern. However, he was in no hurry to do so just yet. He continued to stay at the entrance, watching the four motionless Orbed Crawlers.

From experience, he knew that magic-wielding enemies were among the most dangerous. While they were usually not physically tough and could be killed fairly easily, their magical abilities could be extremely powerful. Jake had come to hate dealing with magic-wielding foes. Even a single encounter could be quite challenging, and here, in this cavern, there were not one, two, or three but four magical spiders. And sure enough, he would have to deal with all of them at once. The fight was going to be tough and dangerous. This was why Jake hesitated to enter the cavern and start the battle just yet. He decided to check his current resistances first. Closing his eyes, he summoned the necessary menu with a thought.

Elemental Resistances:

     Fire: 10%

     Frost: 10%

     Shock: 10%

     Explosive: 10%

     Corrosive: 30% (+25% from the Acid Protective Amulet)

     Radiation: 10%

Other Resistances:

     Pierce: -30% (Affected by the Fragile Body curse)

     Poison: 30%

     Mana Bleeding: 31%

     Mind Control: 0%

     Stun: 0%

     Chaos: 0%

     Ethereal: 0%

His Corrosive and Poison resistances were at 30%, while all the other elemental resistances stood at 10%. However, the amulet hanging around his neck provided an additional 25% protection against acid attacks. He recalled seeing a protective amulet that offered 25% protection against Fire, but he didn’t bother replacing his current amulet with that. There were plenty of acid giant spiders around, making his current amulet much more useful. He also knew that wearing both amulets would be ineffective, as they would simply cancel each other out, leaving him with no benefits from either. He had learned this some time ago while experimenting with amulets, trying to discover how many he could wear at once and still gain their effects. As it turned out, only one.

After giving the matter some thought, Jake decided to return to the chest containing the Fire Protective amulet and swap it with his current one. This change would grant him an additional 25% protection against Fire, while his Corrosive resistance would remain at 30%. As a result, he would be adequately protected against attacks from both the Acid Orbed Crawler and the Flame Orbed Crawler. It took him a few minutes to retrace his steps to where he had found the Fire Protective amulet. Once he hung it around his neck, he stashed the Acid Protective amulet in the last slot of his Inventory. With everything sorted, he made his way back to the cavern with the four Orbed Crawlers.

He took one last look at the four huge spiders. They remained in the center of the room, maintaining a distance of about a dozen feet from one another. As for the smaller types of spiders, they continued to aimlessly hang from the webs or scuttle across the floor and ceiling. Jake had a gut feeling that the upcoming fight would be anything but easy, but he wasn’t going to back down. With his gaze fixed on the four elite spiders, he stepped into the cavern, and the battle began.

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