Chapter 36

"May the God of Serpents rule the world, and you heretics will have nowhere to hide!"

Although it was already a dungeon of the Abyss level, the Snake Handler Derjash's lines remained unchanged. He shouted this and, facing Li Huailin who was advancing, immediately began to chant his Lightning Arrow skill.

"Right, I'm already level 15, so I should be able to learn a skill. I wonder if a Warrior at level 15 can learn a skill to interrupt spellcasting." Li Huailin, watching the Snake Handler Derjash chanting his skill, suddenly remembered that he had been so busy leveling up by drinking blood that he hadn't visited the Warrior mentor to check on the one he had (trampled) and to learn new skills for free.

Although his mind was preoccupied with other thoughts, his attacks did not stop. Li Huailin swung his blade and struck the boss. The first hit was a critical strike, dealing -988 damage.

-351

The boss's Lightning Arrow attack also hit Li Huailin. The attack was significantly stronger compared to the original normal-level dungeon, almost as if it had a power boost. However, Li Huailin, now with a family to support, had a lot of health. Although his health dropped significantly, it quickly began to recover.

"I wonder what additional skills this Abyss dungeon boss will have." Li Huailin had experience; Abyss dungeon bosses at least had one additional skill. For example, the Great Serpent Dusla had a skill to reduce armor. He wondered what changes the Snake Handler Derjash would have, hoping for no surprises.

The early stages of the battle were simple, with players having few skills to use. Li Huailin, who rarely used skills, just kept hacking and casting Lightning Arrows. The battle lasted about a minute. During this time, Li Huailin's health remained above 80%, posing no real threat, while the Snake Handler Derjash's health steadily decreased to around 60%.

"Let you taste the poison mist!" The Snake Handler Derjash shouted, and the second skill he had used appeared. Soon, a cloud of poison mist rose from the ground, and Li Huailin immediately felt his health fully restored.

"Good job, Boss! Well done." Li Huailin couldn't help but praise. At the entrance, he had confidently stated that he could clear the Abyss dungeon, partly because he had anticipated this boss's skill. Even if he had low health, the boss's poison mist would instantly restore his health.

However, it seemed this skill had also changed compared to the normal dungeon. In the original normal dungeon, the boss could summon up to three patches of poison mist, which was already hard to avoid. In the Abyss-level dungeon, the Snake Handler Derjash kept summoning poison mist, covering almost all the areas where one could stand.

"Huailin, we're here. Do you need any help?" Suddenly, a shout came from below the altar. Li Huailin turned to see that Hongyue and the others had arrived at the bottom of the altar but did not come up because the entire platform was covered in poison mist.

"It's too dangerous up here. Just wait down there." Li Huailin shouted down, "I'm fine here."

The battle on the altar was spectacular, with all the small and large monsters in the dungeon crowded on the altar, attacking Li Huailin. Combined with the boss's poison mist effects, it looked like a big production.

The boss's health was significantly higher than in the normal dungeon, lasting over two minutes against Li Huailin's insane attacks. However, it couldn't hold on. Li Huailin had been looking forward to a new skill, but the boss only used Lightning Arrow and Poison Mist, both upgraded versions. After about two and a half minutes, the Snake Handler Derjash was about to fall again.

The change came at the last moment. Just as Li Huailin saw the boss with 2% health and delivered the final blow, all the poison mist suddenly disappeared. The Snake Handler Derjash took a step back and clutched his wound in pain.

"Great Serpent God... are you abandoning your people?" The Snake Handler Derjash said, slowly walking to the center of the altar. This was just a game plot, and the Snake Handler Derjash was already at 0 health, so further attacks wouldn't kill him.

"I offer my blood and life as a sacrifice. Great Serpent God Dikimas, please grant your divine will." The Snake Handler Derjash raised his hands and shouted loudly.

"Huailin, what's happening with the boss?" Seeing the poison mist disappear, Hongyue and the others asked as they approached.

"I don't know. I finished him off, and he did this." Li Huailin was also unsure, sensing that something was changing.

As he spoke, a storm suddenly arose on the altar. First, the entire altar began to emit a green light, and Li Huailin could see the snake carvings on the altar trembling as if they were coming to life. The monsters that had been relentlessly attacking Li Huailin suddenly stopped and began to tremble.

A "ding" sound echoed, and a purple light suddenly shone down from the top of the cave, landing exactly in the center of the altar. The green light on the ground seemed to respond, immediately moving towards the purple light.

A loud, monstrous hiss echoed, and before Li Huailin and the others could react, all the monsters that had been chasing and attacking him suddenly looked terrified and fled down the altar.

"Ah, Great Serpent God!" The Snake Handler Derjash in the center of the altar suddenly screamed, and his body rapidly withered, turning into a mummy and collapsing. The scene was made to be terrifying, and the young girls, Hongyan and Hongpiaodai, immediately turned away.

As the Snake Handler Derjash fell, the altar was bathed in purple light, and all the green light was covered by the purple light. In the center of the purple light, a massive shadow slowly emerged, resembling a black giant snake, but with a humanoid upper body.

Everyone present was startled and quickly checked the shadow using the system. Due to the significant level difference, they could only see the name "Shadow of Serpent God Dikimas," with the rest being a series of question marks.

"It seems there's still a fight. Is this a hidden boss?" Li Huailin asked, looking at the slowly emerging Shadow of Serpent God Dikimas.

"Probably a bonus for the Abyss dungeon. The Snake Handler Derjash is likely not the final boss of the Abyss dungeon; this is." Hongyue answered based on her experience.

"Hongyan, use healing spells to restore my health, not recovery skills." Li Huailin quickly said. Direct healing magic could restore his health, which he had already tested. Recovery skills, which provided buffs, would actually help the boss attack him. The minions who had been following him to heal him had been scared off by the boss, and Li Huailin was a bit nervous, unsure if he could handle it.

"Okay, I can finally help my brother-in-law." Hongyan happily replied.

"Mortals, you have angered me." The Shadow of Serpent God Dikimas suddenly roared, and his entire body flashed with purple light, fully revealing his form. He was about 5 meters tall, with a humanoid upper body and a snake-like lower body. His face was not human but a terrifying snake face, and he held a large golden staff with two entwined snakes at the top, indicating he was a spellcasting monster.

"Let's go!" Li Huailin, not knowing the boss's skills, had no choice but to charge in. Seeing the boss's health bar appear, he knew the boss fight had begun. Without hesitation, he rushed forward to draw the boss's attention.