Chapter 34: The Rare Blue Butterfly, Crafting Skills with Bare Hands!

There was nothing unusual in the surrounding environment, yet a profound sense of crisis weighed heavily upon Liang Yue’s heart.

He felt a slight tremor in the ground.

Almost instinctively, he leaped backward, swinging his short sword downward in a casual arc.

An unexpectedly powerful sword-wave strike tore through the stone floor, leaving a trench-like scar as it swept forward with irresistible force. It might have been Liang Yue’s imagination, but it seemed as though the sword-wave he had unleashed shimmered with a faint, flowing light.

"Bang!"

Compared to the speed at which the strike swept forward, the monster that had burst through the ground to ambush the adventurer was clearly a beat slower—and it was precisely because of this that it had managed to evade the backstep strike.

He looked at the small monster that had appeared before him.

"Needle Rabbit."

"..."

The monster’s identity surfaced in Liang Yue’s mind instantly; it was exactly as he had imagined. It possessed sharp spikes atop its head and was essentially a giant rabbit covered in white fur. In the dim environment of the cave, the Needle Rabbit's crimson eyes were particularly striking.

"So it’s this kind of monster..."

"The danger level is significantly higher compared to the previous area. If one’s perception were any duller, it would be easy to get ambushed!"

Liang Yue’s expression remained unchanged. Faced with the monster, his reaction was merely a simple swing of his sword.

A diagonal slash from top to bottom with his right hand.

The strike, accompanied by a dense surge of sword intent, severed the Needle Rabbit’s body clean in two.

[Exp +89]

After its body was severed, the monster instantly dissipated into black ash, leaving behind a dark purple magic stone of considerable size on the ground.

"The experience points are decent..."

As one ventures deeper, the increase in a monster’s overall strength ultimately results in more experience points.

In a sense... could this be considered the law of conservation of energy?

What truly occupied Liang Yue’s attention was the backstep strike augmented by the "Flowing Stance" skill. As the dust on the ground began to settle, what revealed itself was a shocking sword mark that had carved a shallow trench into the floor.

The attack power had clearly increased, and even the range of his sword-wave had been extended.

"Considering the physical exertion..."

"It’s worth it!"

These were merely surface-level improvements; Liang Yue understood that the "Sword Soul Template" only provided him with a path for growth. The specific effects would require him to continuously develop them during the course of battle.

—

Having experienced an encounter with a "Needle Rabbit," Liang Yue’s attitude during the subsequent exploration became noticeably more cautious.

Monsters that could burst through the ground to attack at any moment required him to maintain a state of highly concentrated focus to sense danger in advance.

The monsters he encountered during his exploration naturally included Killer Ants, a type he had already become desensitized to. He had always been able to slice through their armor with ease, and with the augmentation of the "Flowing Stance" state, the battles were even more of a rout. There was nothing noteworthy to speak of.

As for other monsters, Liang Yue had yet to encounter any. Logically, the danger level should have increased linearly in the eighth floor, or was it possible that his stats were so high that he had entered "Easy Mode"? It all felt rather strange.

Looking at the wide tunnel ahead, with no compass or map for reference, Liang Yue’s exploration was relatively conservative. His primary goal was to familiarize himself with the environment, and he had not yet faced any high-intensity combat, allowing him to keep his physical stamina at an absolute peak.

After rounding a bend in the cave, he arrived at a spacious area. Still, he caught no trace of any monsters, all the while maintaining a high state of alertness.

Analyzing situations had become a habit. Liang Yue looked at the tunnel ahead and whispered to himself, "If it’s only at this level, pushing through to the tenth floor shouldn't be a problem!"

"As for even deeper levels..."

He would only choose to explore them once he had gathered sufficient intelligence. It was just as this thought crossed his mind that the vast, open cave, illuminated only by the faint light of fluorescent fruit clinging to the walls, could no longer be fully lit.

In those areas shrouded by darkness, butterflies with wings reflecting the blue light of the fluorescent fruit caught the vibrations in the air and fluttered toward Liang Yue.

They were slow.

Yet, with every beat of their blue wings, they scattered a faintly glowing, shimmering scale powder!

This display—even though they were clearly monsters—was so beautiful it was almost mesmerizing.

"Blue Butterfly."

With their translucent blue wings and the characteristic scattering of scale powder while flying, Liang Yue instantly recognized the monster. He had just finished tempting fate, and immediately afterward, he had encountered a rare monster in the dungeon!

In the original work, his impression of the "Blue Butterfly" was already hazy, but since they were categorized as a rare species, their strength... would definitely be more troublesome than a Needle Rabbit!

"..."

"Is this like pulling a gold card from a ten-pull in a standard banner?"

Looking at the Blue Butterfly dancing and drifting toward him, this thought suddenly sprouted in the depths of Liang Yue’s mind.

He didn't feel any danger, however. Utilizing the "Flowing Stance" skill to augment the range of his sword-wave, killing this single Blue Butterfly would be easier than he had imagined.

He tightened his grip on his mithril short sword, preparing for combat.

He held his breath, waiting for the Blue Butterfly to close the distance so he could launch a finishing blow. But as the faint light from the wall-mounted fluorescent fruit flickered, what appeared behind it... was an immeasurable number of rare monsters.

The Blue Butterfly Swarm!

The scale powder shaken from their wings as they flapped in unison, illuminated by the ghostly blue light, looked just like an incredibly splendid sea of flowers.

It even caused Liang Yue to lose his focus for a brief moment.

Of course, it wasn't the splendid scene that stunned him, but the massive quantity of the rare "Blue Butterfly" monsters!

"?"

"Are you kidding me?"

If the previous encounter was like pulling a gold card from a standard ten-pull, then this situation was like playing a dungeon game and wanting to blow up the developer’s house. Was this the feeling of failing a hundred consecutive upgrades?

He felt no joy at the appearance of the Blue Butterflies, because what was arriving on the battlefield next was a massive swarm of rare monsters!

How dangerous the situation was, Liang Yue realized clearly. He still lacked intelligence on the "rare" Blue Butterfly monsters.

He had to remain calm and analyze the situation rationally.

The Blue Butterflies' attack methods were still unknown, but the glowing scale powder drifting in mid-air most likely carried an unknown toxin!

"In that case..."

"I must finish this quickly."

There was not the slightest hint of retreat in his heart. The experience points from killing this massive swarm of rare Blue Butterflies were enough to drive Liang Yue to try!

As the distance closed, the Blue Butterflies lowered their flight altitude. Liang Yue held his breath, retreating while considering his countermeasures.

He had to use large-scale combat techniques.

"Draw Sword Strike."

It could be called the signature skill of the Sword Soul class, but learning it required the character panel to reach level 35.

Currently, even if Liang Yue wanted to use it, he had absolutely no chance. Watching the Blue Butterflies drawing closer, carrying their scale powder, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Level not high enough..."

"Then can I manually execute the skill?"

The "Flowing Stance" skill he currently possessed could enhance the damage and attack range of his sword-wave, allowing him to keep a safe distance from the Blue Butterflies.

The advantage of dual-wielding short swords...

Could he unleash double the sword-wave, and by relying on the fast attack frequency of the short swords, manage to kill this swarm of rare Blue Butterflies?

Thinking of this, Liang Yue felt no fear. Instead, he felt a surge of anticipation from the bottom of his heart. As he looked at the monsters, he couldn't help but whisper:

"This might actually work!"