Dungeon Diver CH327 (Patreon)

“As you know, there's a large difference between raw Demonic Energy and refined Demonic Energy. Raw Demonic Energy is similar to the ambient mana around us in the air. It has the potential to be used as an attack but won’t react or be easily manipulated unless compacted and filtered by the caster.”

I nod slowly as Ember continues to talk.

“There are two ways of doing this. Two that you’re already capable of, but only one that you use. The first is filtering energy through a Demon’s core, and the second is naturally refining energy in your body. Demonic monsters refine energy since the day they’re spawned. This is why you most likely sense their raw energy from a distance. Unless this energy is refined, it's as harmless as being struck by a gust of wind filled with thick mana. The air may feel heavy, but no harm is done.”

I finally reply.

“Understood, now how exactly is this related to the training?”

Ember starts to glow red again, raising one talon-covered claw in the air, shifting it to jet black in an instant.

“I’m telling you this because for some beasts it may be instinctual, but you will have to learn the process of splitting your energy focus manually. Considering the events where you switched your control back and forth to defeat a sector leader, you’re on the right track.”

I raise an eyebrow.

“It can’t just be as simple as swapping back and forth faster than the eye can see… that would be pointless, and dangerous to try with my main body.”

Ember chuckles, releasing another plume of flames from his mouth and throwing the ball of darkness with it to display another explosion of sparks. Following this, he sends out another plume of flames and ball of darkness seconds later. Then, once the second barrage hits, he sends another. Then, another.

He sends balls of darkness and pillars of flames back and forth at the same charred tree until it's completely gone, and he’s made his point.

“No, of course, it's not that simple, but it's a good start. The act of switching back and forth needs to be second nature, closer to instinctual muscle memory before we can begin to concentrate on wielding it on a concentrated specific body part.”

I scrunch my eyebrows, beginning to grasp the odd training method. Ember's words make sense; every time I swap back and forth I do have to adjust my body and mind each time. It’s far from being ingrained as muscle memory.

“Got it. Let’s begin.”

Ember points to a fresh tree nearby.

“To start off we’ll just be using energy, no swords or special moves. Demonic Energy from your left hand and pure mana from your right. I want to see 30 attacks from each hand in under a minute, similar to the attack i just performed. You have 3 hours to complete this portion of training. There’s no secret tricks, or specific techniques to use. You just have to practice and get used to it before we get to the hard part.”

I nod and begin taking in the Demonic Energy from the source to build up enough for this first trial.

---

Meanwhile…

[Use Absorption]

MCP: 7,014

[YES][NO]

[Use Absorption]

MCP: 7,756

[YES][NO]

[Use Absorption]

MCP: 11,685

[YES][NO]

It only took me just over 15 minutes to find a mutant that drops a horn.

“One down, a few dozen to go…”

In total, the available quests for Minotaur horns are asking for about 25 horns. Outside, the sun is setting, and there aren't any other hunters in this dungeon with me. If I hand everything in tomorrow morning, all of the quests are as good as mine.

While I’m at it, 25 Minotaur horns mean I’ll be farming thousands of mobs. I’m absorbing minimal MP from the crystals I gather from drops, and the more I teleport around and air-step to new monsters, the more vast my dungeon walker range becomes.

I collect these crystals in my item storage too. The time lag between the mobs dissolving and the actual kill is a bit of a time suck, but I go around and collect all of the drops after defeating every few dozen mobs to make it as optimized as possible. There are quite a few quests for raw mana crystals. Although the price varies per quest and is far below the usual market price, I’ll be able to get a similar amount of gold from the mana as I do the horns.

On top of all of this, every few defeated opponents give me a minuscule boost in mana control. Each individual monster may not give me much, but they will make a fairly noticeable difference over time.

---

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

Every 10 to 20 minutes, I absorb enough Demonic Energy to attempt Ember's test, but switching 60 times in just 60 seconds is much harder than it seems.

I push through the pain, and allow the sparks that build up in my wrists, shoulders, and chest to grow across my body to engulf me every attempt, continuing to switch back and forth through the certain demise.

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

Each time, new memories of my attempts flood back to my main body, and my understanding of the training becomes clearer. Each time, I spawn a new body double and they teleport back to where Ember is waiting to continue.

As well as the swaps between Demonic Energy and Mana Control becoming a bit more natural, the fact that my body doubles are being destroyed in front of my eyes is not much of a big deal either. At first, it was jarring to die and trust that it's not really the end. Something in the back of my mind questioned it the first few times.

However, as I carry on, the ease of destroying a body double of the sake of progression gets easier and easier.

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

[You Have Died]

By the 10th attempt, I’ve learned to use less Demonic Energy per attack, limiting the output to fractions of a unit, for the sake of the exercise. It allows me to retry every few minutes.

At first, the constant swap back and forth felt more tiring and disorienting than anything else, but now after a few hundred swaps, and almost a dozen body double deaths, the transition is feeling much smoother.

Unfortunately, every time I use a mana-based attack, my whole body flares up with energy, so no matter where I push the Demonic Energy, it still reacts every time while I’m switching back and forth at such fast speeds.

However, not starting the reaction is not part of this training exercise. Just speed and usability is what I’m aiming for. So, this is what I focus on.

---

Just under 3 hours pass and I’ve conquered the entire Minotaur dungeon. About halfway through my farming, I collect more than enough crystals to fulfill the mana quests, so I focused on mutants only for the remaining hour.

Every 10 or so drop a Minotaur horn, so I only have to farm 150 more to complete all the Minotaur quests as well.

Along with all of these drops, a few hundred swords and axes drop too. They’re all 200-400+ additional strength buffs. Worthless to me, but it won’t hurt to ask if anyone wants to buy them while handing in my other quests.

After placing all these items in my storage, I take a look at a handful of other quests. There’s only two other dungeons of comparable rewards, the Steel Tortoise dungeon, and the Giant Rats.

There’s half a dozen quests for Tortoise shells in asks of 2-10, 36 are needed in total and payout similarly to the Minotaur Horns. Apparently, they’re high defensive buffs used for crafting. The drop rate is about 1 in every 50, and it's a very stable dungeon. There aren’t usually any mutants, so this ask is just for the normal mobs.

This is a new type of dungeon, with a monster I’ve never fought before. I’m looking forward to seeing if they have any interesting skills for me to absorb while farming.

The Giant Rat quests ask for their claws. The drop rate is 1 in 20 mobs, and there are 3 quests asking for 200-450 claws each. Each pays out just under a dozen gold per 200 claws. Rats are low-level mobs, usually below lv150, and they travel in packs. This should be a breeze.

I Dunegon Walk back to Ember to let him know the plan. Once inside these other dungeons, I’ll be able to move freely between all 3.

Simultaneously, my body double dies on a nearby hill in a flash of white and golden light. I form another, to replace it and Ember replies.

“Perfect timing. Your 3 hours are up. Let’s see how well the practice is going so far.”