Chapter 144: The Fourth Floor
Kael stared down the staircase that had appeared beneath him.
After everything he had just gone through, he honestly wanted to sit down and rest.
His entire body was aching.
His chest wound had stopped bleeding, but the pain hadn’t disappeared. His arms were covered in cuts, his legs felt heavy, and even his breathing remained uneven.
Yet the dungeon didn’t seem interested in giving him a break.
Kael sighed.
"Of course."
He stepped toward the staircase.
The darkness below seemed endless.
There were no torches.
No glowing crystals.
Nothing.
Just a staircase descending into complete darkness.
Kael hesitated for a moment.
Three floors down and I still haven’t found the end.
Xavier had told him the dungeon was difficult.
But this was becoming ridiculous.
Still, Kael wasn’t going to turn back.
He had already come this far.
He slowly descended.
The deeper he went, the colder the air became.
Kael could feel his demonic mana reacting to the environment.
It was almost as though something below was resisting it.
He frowned.
"That’s strange."
Another step.
Then another.
Suddenly—
BOOM!
The moment Kael’s foot touched the final step, a powerful force swept through his body.
His eyes widened.
His mana disappeared.
Not weakened.
Not suppressed.
Gone.
Kael immediately tried to circulate mana through his body.
Nothing happened.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
His expression changed.
"What?"
He attempted to activate Mana Emphasis.
Nothing.
Vanishing Step.
Nothing.
Darkness Mana.
Nothing.
Even the mana blade he had been using disappeared instantly.
Kael stared at his empty hand.
"You’ve got to be kidding me."
A familiar system notification appeared.
[Fourth Floor Trial Initiated.]
[Mana Restriction Activated.]
[All forms of mana manipulation have been sealed.]
[Physical abilities derived from mana are unavailable.]
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
Then another notification appeared.
[Demonic physical attributes remain unaffected.]
Kael blinked.
He clenched his fist.
His strength was still there.
His speed was still there.
His demonic body hadn’t been sealed.
"Interesting."
He looked around.
The fourth floor was enormous.
Unlike the previous floors, there were no marble corridors or strange rooms.
It was a massive underground wilderness.
Trees grew from the stone floor.
Rocks covered the ground.
There were cliffs, narrow paths, and huge open spaces.
It looked almost like an entire forest had been buried underground.
Kael took a deep breath.
Then he heard something.
Crunch.
He turned.
A pair of glowing eyes appeared between the trees.
Then another.
Then another.
Kael’s expression became serious.
"Already?"
A pack of beasts emerged from the darkness.
They looked similar to wolves, but they were much larger.
Their bodies were covered in dark scales, and their claws were long enough to tear through steel.
Kael recognized them immediately.
"Hounds."
The creatures growled.
Kael lowered his stance.
He couldn’t use mana.
That meant no reinforcement.
No ranged attacks.
No techniques that relied on mana.
Just his body.
The first Hound charged.
Kael stepped aside.
Its claws passed inches from his face.
He grabbed its neck and used its momentum to throw it over his shoulder.
BOOM!
The beast crashed into the ground.
Another attacked from behind.
Kael turned and punched it directly in the jaw.
BANG!
The Hound was sent flying.
Two more rushed him simultaneously.
Kael jumped.
One passed beneath him.
He kicked the second in the head before landing.
The remaining creatures surrounded him.
Kael smiled.
"Come on, then."
They attacked.
Kael moved.
He ducked beneath claws.
Blocked bites.
Countered with punches.
He used the environment to his advantage, forcing the beasts into each other’s paths.
One creature lunged.
Kael grabbed its head and slammed it into a tree.
Another attacked.
He stepped onto its back and used it as a platform to launch himself toward another.
His movements were fast.
Precise.
But without mana, every mistake hurt.
A claw caught his side.
Kael grunted.
Blood appeared.
He punched the creature repeatedly until it stopped moving.
Another Hound bit into his arm.
Kael’s eyes widened.
He grabbed its jaw with both hands.
"Get off."
His muscles tensed.
He forced the beast’s mouth open and slammed his knee into its stomach.
It released him.
Kael immediately kicked it away.
He looked at his arm.
Blood was dripping.
He frowned.
Without mana, even these wounds are becoming troublesome.
Before he could think further—
The ground shook.
Kael turned.
A massive creature emerged from the trees.
It was at least twice the size of theHounds.
Its body was covered in thick armor-like scales.
Kael recognized it.
"Why is a Boulderback here?" Kael complained
The monster roared not bothered by his complaint.
Kael immediately moved.
The Boulderback charged.
BOOM!
The ground cracked beneath its feet.
Kael jumped aside.
The creature smashed through several trees.
Kael landed.
He rushed toward its exposed side.
His fist slammed into its ribs.
BANG!
The Boulderback barely moved.
Kael stared.
"...That’s hard."
The monster swung its tail.
Kael jumped over it.
He landed on its back.
The creature violently shook itself.
Kael grabbed one of its horns.
"Calm down!"
The monster threw itself against a tree.
Kael jumped off just before impact.
He rolled across the ground.
The Boulderback charged again.
Kael waited.
At the last moment, he stepped aside and grabbed its horn.
Using the creature’s momentum, he pulled.
The monster stumbled.
Kael drove his knee into the back of its leg.
The Boulderback collapsed onto one knee.
Kael climbed onto its back.
Then he repeatedly punched the same spot on its neck.
Once.
Twice.
Ten times.
Twenty.
His knuckles began bleeding.
But eventually—
CRACK!
The creature collapsed.
Kael stood over it, breathing heavily.
He stared at his bloody fists.
Then smiled.
This is different.
He couldn’t use mana.
He couldn’t rely on techniques.
He couldn’t simply overpower everything with an ability.
Every monster here demanded something different from him.
And perhaps that was the point.
Kael continued forward.
He barely had time to think before another monster attacked.
This one was smaller.
Fast.
Almost invisible.
Kael sensed movement and ducked.
A blade-like appendage passed over his head.
He spun around.
Nothing.
Then—
Slash!
A cut appeared across his back.
Kael gritted his teeth.
Fast.
The creature attacked again.
Kael moved.
It disappeared.
Another attack.
He dodged.
Another.
He barely avoided it.
I can’t see it.
Kael closed his eyes.
He stopped relying on his vision.
Instead, he listened.
The wind.
The movement of leaves.
The creature’s footsteps.
Its breathing.
Nothing.
Then—
A faint disturbance behind him.
Kael turned and punched.
BANG!
His fist connected.
The creature became visible for a moment.
Kael grabbed it.
He slammed it into the ground.
The monster tried to escape.
Kael followed.
It disappeared again.
Kael smiled.
"I see."
His eyes sharpened.
It doesn’t become invisible.
It simply moves faster than my eyes can follow.
That meant he didn’t need to see it.
He needed to predict where it would be.
Kael stood still.
The creature attacked.
Kael moved before it arrived.
His fist struck empty air—
Then connected.
BANG!
The creature crashed into a tree.
Kael rushed after it.
The monster attacked again.
Kael dodged.
Countered.
Dodged.
Countered.
Each exchange became easier.
His body was learning.
His brain was learning.
His instincts were learning.
His [Infinite Adaptation ] skill seemed to be in overdrive.
Kael smiled.
This kind of situation were normally the ones that pushed his skill to the limit.
But usually, he had mana.
He could reinforce his body.
He could copy abilities.
He could rely on supernatural senses.
Now?
He had none of that.
Only himself.
The monster attacked again.
Kael dodged effortlessly.
Then he punched it into the ground.
The creature stopped moving.
Kael continued walking.
And the monsters kept coming.
One after another.
A pack of horned wolves.
A giant spider.
A creature with four arms and a stone-like body.
A swarm of flying beasts.
Each monster fought differently.
Each demanded a different response.
Kael was forced to adapt.
Against the wolves, he learned to control his breathing and movement.
Against the spider, he learned to read the tension in its legs before it attacked.
Against the four-armed beast, he learned to fight while surrounded.
Against the flying creatures, he learned to use rocks and trees as weapons.
Every battle pushed him further.
Every injury taught him something.
His body slowly became covered in wounds.
His clothes were torn.
Blood covered his arms and legs.
His breathing became increasingly heavy.
But he kept walking.
Hours seemed to pass.
Then Kael stumbled.
He caught himself against a tree.
His body trembled.
His muscles were exhausted.
He had never felt this physically drained before.
Kael looked at his hands.
They were shaking.
I’m reaching my limit guess this was the fourth floor for a reason how did Xavier even expect me to survive here.
Another roar echoed through the forest.
Kael looked ahead.
A group of monsters emerged.
At least twenty.
His expression went blank.
"...Seriously?"
The monsters charged.
Kael lowered his stance.
His legs screamed at him to stop.
His body begged for rest.
But Kael smiled.
"Fine."
The first monster attacked.
Kael dodged.
The second came from the side.
He blocked.
The third attacked from behind.
He turned.
A fourth came from above.
Kael rolled.
He grabbed one monster and threw it into another.
Then another.
His movements were becoming less refined.
More instinctive.
More efficient.
Infinite Adaptation was working constantly.
Every second.
Every movement.
Every injury.
His body was changing.
Not physically.
But mentally.
His reactions were becoming faster.
His understanding of movement deeper.
His ability to respond to unfamiliar situations sharper.
He wasn’t becoming stronger through mana.
He was becoming better through experience.
One monster slammed him into the ground.
Kael coughed.
Another attacked.
He rolled away.
A claw cut his shoulder.
Kael gritted his teeth.
He grabbed the creature’s arm.
Twisted.
CRACK!
Then threw it aside.
Another monster rushed him.
Kael met it head-on.
Their fists collided.
BOOM!
Kael staggered.
The monster staggered.
Kael smiled.
"Again."
They attacked simultaneously.
Kael’s fist struck first.
The monster fell.
Silence returned.
Kael stood in the middle of the battlefield.
His chest rose and fell rapidly.
He looked around.
Dozens of monsters lay unconscious or dead.
Kael slowly raised his head.
Then he laughed quietly.
"Wow that was hard glad it’s done" Kael said with a smile, But immediately a deep growl echoed from the depths of the forest.
Kael had a weary sigh on his face "Don’t tell me that I jinxed this for myself" he muttered quietly.