Chapter 20 Part3 (1/2)
<chapter 20.=”” forest=”” of=”” the=”” dryads=”” -=”” 3=””>
Ten days had already pa.s.sed since he'd entered the forest protected by the Corrupted Dryads. Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had managed to increase his Acid Resistance and Acid element by one more level, and became more adept at incorporating lightning into his weapon; it felt as though Bursting Thunder would level up soon.
However, he thought about something else whilst felling trees and diligently training his skills. He was thinking about what the Dryads were protecting!
”Isn't a world tree most likely?”
”Then shouldn't undead elves have come out rather than Corrupted Dryads?”
”It would be nice if it were a world tree...”
A rotten world tree; what a cool name! It felt like he would be subject to all the world's misfortunes if he broke off a branch and held onto it. Plus, he could make a great weapon out of it!
”Enough with your delusions. Swing your axe already.”
”I am swinging it.”
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo's swung axe carried lightning's powerful cutting power. Before the trees succeeded in perforating him with their outstretched branches, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo cut right through them! They roared as he axed through them all at once. Following an inspection, he sighed in satisfaction.
[You have acquired 21,050 Perium.]
[You have acquired 2 Melting Bone Roots.]
The deeper they went into the forest, the stronger the Acid Great Trees were. There was a huge difference between a level 5 close to 1,600 in stats, and a level 5 close to 3,200 in stats. The fact that they left behind more Perium was proof that they were stronger than the ones from before.
However, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo continued to kill the Acid Great Trees in a single blow, regardless of the fact that they were gradually getting stronger. His attacks were gradually becoming stronger as well!
”Hoo... Heup! Hap!”
[Ggiaaaaaaaaaaaahk!]
Though he'd made great strides in Bursting Thunder and the defense zone since coming here, he'd learned how to 'strike at one's weak spot' the most; in other words, critical hits.
'Critical Hit was a skill at first and was absorbed by Bursting Thunder. However, just thoughtlessly swinging my weapon around won't improve the skill. I have look into it and develop it myself.'
Bursting Thunder is a skill that combines all close combat skills and is a top ranked combat technique, but it's also incredibly difficult to level up precisely because it's a top ranked skill. Furthermore, leveling up the skill didn't mean that he would become proficient in every skill contained within it.
The world wouldn't give him anything cheap. In order to master this supreme skill, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo would have to put in the effort in various fields. Among those various fields, he felt like his current critical hit training was a key factor in mastering Bursting Thunder, which allowed him to attack quickly and explode forcefully.
[You have acquired 22,510 Perium.]
[You have acquired a Melting Bone Root.]
”Hoo, heup.”
He didn't have the chance to regain his breath, even if he toppled a tree. Suddenly, other tree branches came at him from all directions.
The deeper Lee s.h.i.+n Woo got by following the Dryads, the more desperately the trees tried to stop him, and at some point, roots began bursting from the once unscathed ground. Of course, it was Jin's job to deal with those.
”They're cutting through my armor!”
”Calm down, and cut the ones closest to you first.”
”Easy for you to say!”
”Hoo... more and more of them keep coming.”
There were hundreds of them attacking from above, below, and the sides; fighting off the tree branches and the roots made Lee s.h.i.+n Woo think of some comics and films he'd seen on Earth.
It would've been a nice scene if the branches were attempting to tie up an elf, rather than a skeleton horse and a skeleton, but... reality is cruel.
”d.a.m.n it, their movements are disgusting...!”
”That's why I told you to cut them before they tie you up. You have to protect your body too.”
”I'll break my back trying to match you...!”
It took only about two days for Jin to get adjusted to the protruding tree roots, and consequently Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had to endure atop Jin's back, as if he were in a rodeo.
However, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo shared Jin's dynamic visual acuity and reflexes that came from his high agility, while Jin shared Lee s.h.i.+n Woo's calm and keen movements, as well as his situational awareness.
He didn't do so often, but when he was in a desperate situation, Jin would use all of Lee s.h.i.+n Woo's ability to his advantage to survive. And the result of that was clear.
[Critical Hit!]
”Hoo, we got out.”
”Heup!”
Jin was able to cut through the roots and Lee s.h.i.+n Woo cut down the weakened trees one by one, toppling three trees in succession. Then, he finally managed to take a breath. Because they had cut down all of the trees nearby, they had temporary created a safe zone where they wouldn't be attacked.
[Ggyaaaaaaaaahk!]
He'd heard that scream so often that it sounded sweet to him now; he followed the Dryad's scream and turned his attention to the source, and was close enough now that he could see the Dryad flying away. When he confirmed that he was indeed close, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo's goblin fire rotated round and round.
”It looks like the Dryads are gathered in one place... We might be able to see something interesting if we play our cards right.”
”Like a level 6 elite?”
”Ha!” [1]
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo began thinking about whether he had revealed to much of his intentions to Jin, but it was too late to start thinking about that. He smiled awkwardly and marked their corresponding location on his minimap. Then he turned his body around. It was in the opposite direction that he'd seen the Dryads go in.
”What?”
”I'd love to go over there right now, but we're not done training.”
”...”