Right off the bat, things started with explosive ferocity, and multiple [Fireball] spells were flung and detonated against the giant vine snake. It was a classic at this point and needed to be done before I went with any other thods.
Thanks to modifying my fire spells long ago, the monster was set afla with continuous [Combust] spells laced into the modified [Fireballs]. Naturally, debuffs were going off at the sa ti, stacking [Flammable] with [Hexed].
The boss monster was not having any of this and instantly focused its ire on , striking out with its tail with extre speed and power behind it. The whip-crack of its tail against my flesh sounded like a bomb going off, and the ground beneath buckled, but my robust defenses managed to hold firm.
My cores rattled inside , creating clinking noises if they impacted one another and a low grinding noise when they scraped against each other. After the first strike, I made sure to reinforce my innards, too, to prevent an unfortunate demise from my cores smashing into each other.
Ever since I got the [Fireflies] spell, I'd hardly used it, but at this mont, all my attack cores and I separately cast the spell. The room lit up with blinding light as hundreds, if not thousands, of burning bugs magically materialized and ominously flew toward the serpent.
"Holy shit, I'd say that was beautiful if not for the dangerous undertones!" Vee exclaid. "Also, I might need so cooling; you're making this room dangerously hot!"
I still had my low-level cores, which I didn't really want to bring into combat to avoid leveling them up beyond Vee's wrestling capabilities. Instead, I ordered them to cast and maintain an [Ice Do] spell in the corner so that Vee could retreat and hide behind if she needed it.
At the sa ti, the [Fireflies] were swarming over the boss, each crashing into it and burning. It started to slither away and retreat, but the fiery bugs relentlessly continued their pursuit. Seeing how handy this was reminded that I'd neglected to transfer over the homing property of the spell to another elent, another one of my often-forgotten projects.
I'm sure I'll get around to it eventually! Besides, [Dinsion Magic] is far more vital right now.
The snake realized that retreat was not an option and redoubled its effort to take out. Its tail whip ca crashing down upon multiple tis, although thanks to the extre heat of my obsidianite scales combined with [Blaze Sli], each attack was causing itself more harm than good.
It let out a defiant roar and then attempted to bite . Obviously, I welcod the attack since I had focused so hard on defense. Its thorn-like fangs tried their best to penetrate but ultimately failed, and even the venom they attempted to inject was ultimately harmless against .
Basilisk Venom? Shouldn't it be dusa?
But I didn't have ti to contemplate the inconsistent system nas. Instead, I had the perfect opportunity to fire a barrage of spells directly down its open gullet.
"One extra large serving of [Fireballs] coming right up!"
"Okay, I have to admit. That one was hilarious!" Vee chirped.
The monster reeled back in pain, abandoning its futile attempts to crush my defenses with its piercing fangs. The sll of burning plants was overwhelming, and a blackish-purple smog haze began to perate the room.
Visually, the creature looked like it was on its last legs, but [Soul Sight] told a different story—it still had quite a good amount of lifeforce left in it.
It roared again and, at the sa ti, began shedding layers upon layers of dead or burnt vines, slimming down to a significantly reduced size. The shed vines were actually living creatures themselves, but they burned to a crisp as soon as they were separated from the source.
While shedding, it also shot off its thorns, albeit without much direction. They scattered around the room, and only a few struck despite my presently immobile status.
"I can't help but feel these are a poor imitation of my explosive needles," I comnted.
"I really don't think the vine snake is stealing your ideas," Vee responded.
But it was too late. I had already fired my own needles in response to the snake. Clusters of needles penetrated all along its body while my [Sub-Cores] continued sending an endless swarm of [Fireflies] at it.
Boom!
All my needles detonated in a chain reaction, a much better display of power, in my opinion.
"Um…" Vee spoke up.
"I'm not going to apologize for using explosions," I quickly interrupted.
"No, not that. Apparently, I've failed to resist its poison…"
"What? When did it bite you?"
"I think it's all the toxic fus from you burning it alive."
"Didn't I cast [Zephyr Shroud] on you?" I asked, now giving Vee my attention while letting my [Sub-Cores] continue to deal with the monster.
"It expired, but I didn't bother to ntion it since I figured it was useless at the ti," Vee admitted. "Although it doesn't appear to be doing anything. So I think I'm fine?"
I ignored her nonchalant attitude and pulled up the information myself. My [Poison Sli] had thankfully sampled it. I began reading my findings out to Vee directly.
"Basilisk Venom… Extrely dangerous, it causes a slow buildup of petrification with each overco resistance. Petrified targets do not die imdiately but can easily lose limbs or life in their fragile state."
"Oh shit," Vee replied. "I guess that explains why I can't feel the tips of my legs."
"Vee!" I yelled out in concern.
My [Sub-Cores] must have been reacting to my mood as suddenly the room got a lot hotter. Blue flas were starting to take on a tint of white, and the endless swarm of blue [Fireflies] was now accompanied by a consistent barrage of [Fireballs].
"No need to panic. The test said to beat the boss before succumbing to the venom. Think about it logically; no way the elves would want their future leaders crippled after passing a test; there must be a way to cure it. Maybe even beating the boss reverses it entirely."
"See? No need to get into a panic. Just go beat the boss before I turn into a statue."
"Don't you want to use your [Rift Thread]?" I suggested. "Kill it in one go."
Vee chuckled, although I could sense a hint of nervousness, "Well, of course I'd love to. But, well, I might have failed another few resistance checks, and three of my legs are now entirely petrified while we were yapping."
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I felt horror in the pit of my stomach and jumped into action. I needed to kill the boss imdiately.
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