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n

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nBang!

nAs both sides collided, an explosion of Shadow Energy spread out to cover the two, obscuring the vision of those from the outside as to what outcome had resulted. Fortunately, it did not take long for the Shadow Energy in the surroundings to disappear, revealing Valyr lying on the ground, briefly writhing in pain.

n“Urgh…” Letting out a low groan, Valyr took a look at the origin of the pain he was currently experiencing, which came from his hand that held the spear at the front. Though it seemed like both sides had dealt equal damage to one another, he had ended up on the losing end, the vambraces on both of his arms now showing considerable levels of damage.

n‘At least I dealt a decent amount of damage to the serpent…’ thought Valyr to himself, slowly sitting up to look at the Juvenile Shadow Serpent, only for his face to contort into a bitter smile.

nCompared to him, the Juvenile Shadow Serpent still looked to be more or less in peak condition, with the only thing out of the norm about it was the blood oozing out of tail. Judging from how a considerable portion of it was cut off, Valyr was indeed able to land a counterattack, though at the cost of his own health.

n“Over 6,000 damage…” muttered Valyr to himself as he gazed at the faint white text hovering above the serpent, grabbing a health potion he had been storing in his spatial bracelet before proceeding to drink its contents.

n“I’ll have to change my approach.” Feeling his body gradually returning to its peak condition as he stood up, Valyr briefly pondered over how he was going to fight against the serpent.

n‘For one, it wouldn’t be wise for me to fight against it with the spear,’ thought Valyr to himself, certain that the serpent was able to emulate all of his spear techniques, as well as showcase some techniques that the young man himself could not unleash. ‘Aside from the fact that I would be on the losing end once the spear begins to siphon my strength away, the fact that I’m fighting against it in semi-close range is also a downside, especially with its stats empowered by the mark.’

n‘Of course, it would still be viable for me to use it as a hidden move, considering how much damage it’s able to deal,’ the young man continued to thinking, gazing at the serpent to see if it was going to make a move anytime soon. Seeing that the serpent was also staring at him, it did not take long for him to understand that the serpent was pondering over its next move as well.

n“And to think the old man said that it relies more on its instincts to fight,” Valyr scoffed before distancing himself from the serpent to give himself time to react.

n“In any case, since fighting against it with the spear is detrimental, there’s only one other way to effectively fight against it.” Taking in a deep breath, Valyr began to circulate mana throughout his body, a part of it eventually seeping out of his pores and forming a protective layer.

n“Get the ** away from it as far as possible and bombard it with magic.”

n…

n“I’m surprised the brat is having problems fighting against the serpent.” As he watched Valyr fight against the Juvenile Shadow Serpent, Noel found it somewhat odd that the young man looked to be receiving all of the serpent’s attacks, as if it were on purpose.

n“Surely he’s capable of fighting a serpent that’s not only at the peak of Rank 3, but a serpent that’s also at the Mythic Elite tier, no?” Scratching the back of his head in slight confusion as he witnessed Valyr distance himself from the serpent, Noel went ahead and used his identification skill on the serpent to see if he had misjudged Valyr’s capabilities.

nDing!

n“Wait a second…” Reading through the information he had obtained regarding the serpent, it did not take long for a frown to appear on Noel’s face, only for him to soon realize what was going on.

n“The brat’s curse…” Finally understanding why Valyr was having a hard time against the Shadow Serpent, Noel felt an urge to slap himself in the face, only to stop himself from doing so as he looked at the young man with a hint of concern.𝗈𝓥𝐿xt.𝗰𝓞𝓜

n“Would it even be possible…?” Wondering whether or not to stop Valyr from fighting the Shadow Serpent even further, the old man recalled their earlier foray into the Shadow Plane, with the young man having no problem fighting against enemies that were not only of a higher level than him, but were also at the Mythic Elite tier thanks to his curse.

n“But this is an Ancient Elite we’re talking about…” Murmuring these words to himself, Noel decided to take a look at the serpent’s status screen to make his decision, only to notice something he hadn’t noticed while looking at it earlier.

n————

nJuvenile Shadow Serpent (Ancient Elite) (Level 55 | Boss)

nClass: Juvenile Shadow Serpent (Rare)

nHP: 46,676

/52,800

nMP: 107,712

/107,712

nStats: 275 VIT, 443 STR, 487 AGI, 762 DEX, 748 INT, 316 WIS, 275 PER, 151 LUK

nSkills: Shadow Energy Affinity, Shadow Energy Mark, Shadow Serpent Combat Style, Shadow Serpent Movement Style, Shadow Serpent Magic Style, 14 other skills

nRemarks: Truly a dangerous foe even to prodigies of the same level.

n————

n“Its HP is reduced…” Noel muttered, only to recall the clash between the serpent’s tail and Valyr’s spear earlier. With this in mind, the old man’s eyes widened as he closed the screen before him, deciding to stay put as he continued to watch the fight with a solemn expression.

n“Though it may be harsh for someone like me to put a prodigy through even more difficulties… as long as he succeeds, his future would be undoubtedly bright,” said the old man to himself, only to catch what he was saying before letting out a bit of laughter.

n“Then again, he might just be able to pull it off.”

n…

n“Intermediate Mana Magic Style: Arcane Influx!”

nWhoosh!

nDeciding to lean more towards a magic-based combat style, Valyr began to enhance his magic capabilities, activating a couple of skills that he hadn’t even activated before.

n“Crimson Blade Torrent!” Then, after feeling like he had empowered his magic capabilities to the fullest, he then activated what he considered a staple amongst his magic spells, sending a barrage of blades made out of crimson flames in the Shadow Serpent’s direction.

nUnfortunately…

nWhoosh!

n“Oh, come on!”

n“You even have magic?!”

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