Chapter 200: Dungeon Run VIII

The Myriad Poison Serpent King continued its assault, forcing the five students to move constantly.

Its poisonous armor made direct attacks difficult, but Kaiser had begun to notice something important. The serpent’s movements became slightly slower whenever it released large amounts of poisonous energy. It was gathering power from the surrounding environment, but doing so seemed to require some control.

’If we keep forcing it to defend against attacks from different directions, we might be able to create an opening.’

Kaiser glanced at John, Henrick, and Pascot.

"John, Henrick! Don’t just use your shadows to restrain it. Try changing their shapes while attacking. Your Rule of Shadow should be capable of more than binding its movements."

The two students exchanged a glance.

John was the first to react. Instead of extending several thick shadowy tendrils toward the serpent’s tail, he spread his shadow across the ground and shaped it into dozens of thin, sharp spikes.

The spikes suddenly shot upward.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

They struck the serpent’s scales from below. Most failed to penetrate its poisonous armor, but the repeated attacks forced it to shift its body and redirect some of its energy toward defense.

John’s eyes widened slightly.

"So I can shape my shadows into weapons instead of just using them to bind enemies!"

"Don’t stop there!" Kaiser called. "Keep changing their shapes and attacking from different angles!"

John immediately focused on his Rule again. The shadow spikes dissolved and reformed into long, curved blades that swept toward the serpent’s exposed neck.

At the same time, Henrick changed his approach.

Until now, he had mainly used his shadows to block attacks and deflect incoming projectiles. However, after hearing Kaiser’s suggestion, he spread a thick layer of shadow across the ground in front of the serpent.

The shadow rose into several angled walls.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King released a stream of poisonous liquid toward them, but the walls tilted and redirected part of the attack away from the students.

The remaining poison struck the ground harmlessly, spreading into a bubbling green pool.

Henrick looked surprised by his own result.

"I can change the direction of my shadows to redirect attacks more precisely!"

"Good. Keep experimenting, but don’t forget to watch its movements!" Kaiser replied.

Meanwhile, Pascot had also found a new way to use his Rule.

Rather than simply concealing his movements, he began spreading thin shadows around the serpent’s body. Whenever the monster moved, the shadows followed its blind spots, allowing Pascot to approach without immediately drawing its attention.

He soon reached the damaged scales along its flank.

A dark blade formed in his hand.

Pascot struck the exposed flesh before immediately retreating into the shadows.

The attack was small, but it made the serpent twist its body in irritation.

"That worked!" Pascot shouted.

Kaiser nodded.

Their Rules were not limited to the applications they had initially learned. The more they experimented, the more ways they discovered to use the same power.

However, the Myriad Poison Serpent King was not going to let them continue experimenting without resistance.

Its body suddenly expanded with poisonous energy.

The green armor covering its scales became denser, and the surrounding mist began moving toward it once more.

"Careful!" Kaiser warned.

The serpent swung its tail toward John and Henrick.

John immediately changed his shadow spikes into a thick barrier, while Henrick reinforced it with several layers of shadow.

BOOM!

The enormous tail smashed into their defenses.

The shadow barrier cracked apart, and both students were thrown backward. They managed to land on their feet, but the impact left their arms trembling.

Before the serpent could attack them again, Alex rushed forward.

"Blood Sap!"

Greenish-red energy spread through the jade vines covering the ground. Instead of attempting to restrain the serpent’s entire body, Alex concentrated his Rule on a single thick vine and shaped it into a long, sharpened spear.

He swung his jade-green greatsword.

The vine spear shot forward, aiming directly at the damaged scales on the serpent’s neck.

The serpent turned its head to intercept the attack.

That was exactly what Alex wanted.

The spear changed direction at the last moment, striking the exposed flesh beneath its jaw instead.

The attack pierced the wound and forced the serpent to raise its head with a furious hiss.

"Now, Kaiser!"

Kaiser immediately rushed forward.

He had been waiting for the serpent to expose the damaged area again. Raising the Radiant Sword of Light, he concentrated the Shatter aspect of Shattered Soul along its edge.

This time, he did not simply try to break through the poisonous armor.

Instead, he focused his Rule on the point where the armor met the exposed flesh.

His understanding of Shattered Soul had improved throughout the battle. He was beginning to realize that the Shatter aspect did not necessarily require him to overpower an entire defense. If he could identify a weak point and concentrate his power there, he could gradually break apart something far stronger than himself.

Black energy gathered around the golden blade.

"Shattered Soul!"

Kaiser struck the damaged scales.

CRACK!

A fracture spread through the serpent’s poisonous armor.

He immediately followed with another strike.

CRACK!

The crack widened, and several scales broke apart.

However, the serpent reacted faster than he expected. Its head swung toward him, and poisonous energy surged from its open mouth.

Kaiser retreated at once.

A stream of green liquid swept past him, striking the ground where he had been standing.

The serpent’s armor began repairing itself as poisonous energy flowed into the damaged area.

Kaiser frowned.

’It can reinforce and repair its armor by absorbing the surrounding poison. We can’t win by simply damaging it repeatedly.’

He retreated toward Alex while watching the green energy covering the serpent’s body.

The answer was not to attack harder. They needed to prevent the serpent from maintaining its poisonous armor.

"Everyone, listen!" Kaiser shouted. "Its armor becomes stronger when it gathers poisonous energy from the surroundings. We need to keep it from concentrating that energy in one place!"

John immediately understood.

"You want us to disrupt its control over the poison?"

"Exactly. Don’t focus on damaging its body for now. Force it to divide its attention!"

The three students nodded.

John spread his shadows across the clearing, shaping them into dozens of narrow blades that attacked from different directions. Henrick formed angled barriers around the serpent, obstructing its movements and forcing it to change the direction of its attacks.

Pascot disappeared from sight.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King responded by releasing a wave of poisonous energy from its body. The green mist surged outward, destroying several shadow blades and forcing John and Henrick to retreat.

But the attack had also forced the serpent to release a considerable amount of energy.

Kaiser noticed the poisonous armor flickering for a brief moment.

’There!’

"Alex, target its neck again!"

Alex immediately thrust his greatsword forward.

"Blood Sap!"

The jade vines covering the clearing surged toward the serpent’s head. This time, Alex did not attempt to restrain it for long. He simply pulled its head to one side, disrupting its aim as it prepared another poisonous attack.

John’s shadows wrapped around the tail, while Henrick formed several barriers to prevent the serpent from turning its body freely.

Pascot emerged from a shadow behind the monster and struck the damaged scales on its flank before disappearing again.

Every attack forced the serpent to adjust its movements or redirect its poisonous energy.

The green armor covering its body began to fluctuate.

It was only a small change, but Kaiser immediately recognized the opportunity.

"Keep going! Don’t let it settle!"

The students continued their coordinated assault.

John’s shadows repeatedly changed shape, switching between blades, spikes, and restraints. Henrick used his Rule to redirect the serpent’s attacks and obstruct its movements. Pascot struck whenever the monster exposed a weak point, while Alex used Blood Sap to strengthen his vines and control the direction of its head.

Their attacks were not powerful enough to defeat the boss individually.

Together, however, they were beginning to disrupt its defenses.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King released a furious roar.

Its poisonous armor flickered again, and several scales along its neck lost their green glow.

Kaiser immediately rushed forward.

He could feel the strain of maintaining Shattered Soul, but he did not waste time worrying about it.

He concentrated all the control he could manage on the damaged area beneath the serpent’s jaw.

"Shatter!"

His golden blade struck.

CRACK!

The poisonous armor broke apart, exposing the flesh beneath.

Kaiser followed with another strike, widening the opening before retreating to avoid the serpent’s snapping jaws.

The boss slammed its head into the ground, causing the entire clearing to shake.

However, this time, it failed to repair the damaged armor immediately.

Its poisonous energy had become unstable after being forced to divide its attention among so many attacks.

Kaiser landed beside his teammates and quickly understood what had happened.

’We found a way to weaken it. As long as we keep disrupting its control over the poison, its armor won’t remain stable.’

Alex wiped the sweat from his forehead and raised his greatsword again.

"That was close. How many more times do we need to do that?"

"Until it can no longer maintain that armor," Kaiser replied.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King slowly raised its head.

Its multiple yellow eyes fixed on the five students, and the poisonous energy around its body began gathering once more.

Although they had finally found a way to challenge its strongest defense, the battle was far from over.

The serpent suddenly opened its mouth, revealing a dense green glow deep within its throat.

Kaiser immediately recognized the danger.

"Scatter! It’s preparing another major attack!"

The five students separated just as a massive wave of poisonous energy erupted from the serpent’s mouth.

The blast swept across the clearing, swallowing the shattered pillars and destroying the remaining vegetation.

Kaiser rolled behind a large boulder as the poisonous wave passed overhead. The stone’s surface quickly began dissolving under the corrosive energy, forcing him to move again before it collapsed.

When the attack finally ended, the clearing had changed completely.

Most of the trees had withered, the stone pillars lay in ruins, and poisonous liquid covered large sections of the ground.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King remained in the center of the destruction.

Its poisonous armor was still present, but it no longer covered every part of its body evenly. Several sections around its neck and flank had become noticeably weaker.

Kaiser looked at his teammates.

They were tired, and maintaining their Rules had consumed a considerable amount of energy. However, none of them had been seriously injured.

More importantly, they had learned how to use their Rules more effectively during the fight.

John had discovered how to turn his shadows into offensive weapons. Henrick had improved his ability to redirect attacks and control the battlefield. Pascot had found ways to approach enemies through their blind spots, while Alex had learned to shape his Blood Sap-enhanced vines into more precise weapons.

Kaiser himself had gained a better understanding of the Shatter aspect.

He could now concentrate its power more effectively on specific weak points instead of spreading it across an entire target.

It was a small improvement, but it would prove useful against stronger opponents.

"One more coordinated attack," Kaiser said. "We focus on the weakened areas and break through its armor before it can gather more poison."

Alex nodded.

"Let’s finish this."

John and Henrick spread their shadows across the ground once more. Pascot disappeared between the broken pillars, preparing to attack from an unexpected direction.

Alex raised his greatsword as greenish-red energy flowed through his vines.

Kaiser tightened his grip on the Radiant Sword of Light.

The Myriad Poison Serpent King lowered its head and charged toward them.

This time, the five students did not retreat blindly.

They moved according to the plan they had developed throughout the battle, ready to use their Rules together and bring down the Rank 4 boss.