Chapter 37 – Undying Tenacity
Chapter 37 – Undying Tenacity
[Remaining Attribute Points: 12]
Tyler opened his stat window, considering his next move. After a brief moment of thought, he allocated the points deliberately: 4 points to power energy, 1 point each to speed and agility, and lastly 3 points each to accuracy and dodge.
He confirmed the allocation and looked at his updated stats.
[Player: Tyler] [Level 88]
[HP: 400/400] [PE: 40/40]
Stats:
> Attack: 25 (+20)
> Defence: 10 (+50)
> Agility: 5 (+15)
> Speed: 5
> Power Regen: 30
> Accuracy: 5
> Dodge: 5
> Health Regen: 10
Remaining Attribute Points: 0
Satisfied, Tyler grinned. “That should do it.”
His eyes moved to the newly acquired skill: [Undying Tenacity].
[Removes any negative status effects or debuffs casted on the user. PE Cost: 3]
“Any kind of debuff, huh?” he mused, then turned to Milo, who had just walked up, looking far better than before. His armour still bore the gaping hole from the cockroach’s attack, but his body had healed miraculously thanks to the expensive potions.
“Are you okay?” Milo asked.
“Yeah, of course I am. HP recovers when you level up, you know?”
“Huh. Well, I wasn’t talking about that kind of health.”
Tyler smirked and raised an eyebrow. “Hey, can you like use [Freeze Core] on me?”
“Are you really okay?”
“Yes, of course I am.”
“Then why are you asking me to attack you?”
“Just do it. I’m trying to figure something out.”
“What?”
“Just do it, dummy.”
“Ugh, fine then.”
Milo activated [Freeze Core]. Tyler immediately triggered [Undying Tenacity]. A chill crawled up his torso, but in the blink of an eye, it vanished.
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“Wait… did my ability fail?”
“No, it’s not your ability that failed. It’s my new ability that cancelled it out.”
“What?”
“Yeah, it’s called [Undying Tenacity]. Dropped by the giant cockroach.”
Milo’s jaw dropped. “A skill that cancels out other skills? That’s a cheat code. A straight-up cheat code. I didn’t even know such skills existed in the game.”
“Says the guy who can become invulnerable.”
“Yeah, for like one second! That’s not much.”
“Don’t undermine your ability. One second of invulnerability can be extremely useful in close fights.”
“Maybe. But my skill only blocks physical attacks. Remember how useless it was against the storm wizards? Yours can nullify other skills. So you’re basically fireproof, iceproof—anything-proof, as long as it’s a status effect.”
“So it won’t work against stuff like sword or any physical attacks, right?”
“Exactly. But I’d say there are more skills that your ability can block than the ones it can’t. I’m jealous, man. If I had that, I’d be the ultimate tank.”
Tyler laughed. “Haha, man. I finally feel good now.”
“Well, that’s good then.”
“What?”
“No-nothing. I think we should just go back to the town first. We can’t just d-n-d.”
“Dine-and-dash?”
“Destroy-and-dash. Duh. Tyler, didn’t you even know that?”
“What?”
“Never mind. Let’s just go.”
---
They returned to Muckwood. The town was barely standing, ravaged from the destruction caused by Tyler’s [Gigantify] clashes and the Hivebound Cockroach. Tyler braced himself for backlash. He expected insults, even expulsion. That would be ideal. He just wanted to leave.
Instead, Hamodo greeted him.
“Thank you. Thank you very much.”
Tyler blinked. “What? I mean… ah, you’re welcome.”
More NPCs gathered, all expressing heartfelt gratitude. Tyler and Milo exchanged puzzled looks.
“Dear [Player], the cockroaches you eliminated have plagued us for years. They devoured our crops, damaged our huts, and even attacked us. We built walls, but they still came. We were helpless. But you—you eliminated them all in one decisive strike. You are our hero. We wish to reward you handsomely.”
Milo smiled sheepishly. “Thank you, but… we also did a lot of property damage. You don’t need to reward us. We’re just glad to help.”
“Oh my, you heroes are so humble. But worry not. These mud huts are easy and cheap to rebuild. They are temporary shelters by nature and are remade after every monsoon. We insist on rewarding you. Also, you caught the largest catch in the fishing contest. Well, it was the only submission, but still, rules are rules.”
Milo opened his mouth again, but Tyler cut in, grinning. “Thank you, O brilliant people of Muckwood. We would be grateful to receive your reward.”
“Yes! That’s how you should be. Here is your reward.”
[Acquired Items: Purple Mushroom x20, Venom x20, Message in a Bottle]
Tyler blinked. “Purple mushrooms?”
“Ah, they’re highly poisonous. One can kill a level 50 player. Use them wisely—for potions, traps, or enhancements.”
“Yeah, I’ll pass on eating that. And venom?”
“Yes, venom from swamp snake hybrids. It’s rare, but potent. Dangerous to handle, but very valuable to skilled alchemists.”
“So… you gave your esteemed saviours literal poison?”
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
Tyler laughed nervously. “Ah no, never mind. I didn’t do it for the rewards. It was nice meeting you. Thank you. We’ll be taking our leave now.”
“Goodbye! Visit us again. We will await your return! You will always be honoured in Muckwood’s memory.”
---
Tyler and Milo wandered into the northern swamps again.
“Hey Tyler, where are we going now? Shouldn’t we head in the opposite direction? Or teleport?”
“Shut up Milo. You think I don’t know that?”
“Then why are we going north? I thought you hated the swamps.”
“I do. Those weird people gave us weird rewards. I mean, who gives venom as a thank-you gift?”
“Yeah, it was weird. Still doesn’t explain why we’re heading deeper.”
“Do you remember what they gave us?”
“Yeah, mushrooms, venom, and—”
“Yes. The message in a bottle. I thought it was a trash item. It had a blank page with just this text:”
[Sometimes the answers we seek are hidden in plain sight—revealed only to those who look deeper.]
“Yeah, so what?”
“Now look.”
Tyler poured venom onto the paper. It hissed, giving off a nasty stench. Slowly, a hidden map appeared on the reverse side.
“What?! A map?”
“Yes.”
“How’d you even think to pour venom on it?”
“Nerd, don’t you play enough games? Venom, mystery parchment—always a combo.”
“So where does it lead?”
Tyler looked up, eyes narrowing.
“To the Ebon Hollows.”