43: Chapter 43 Hellhound!

[Ding! You have entered [Lava Valley] (Nightmare Difficulty) in Solo Mode. Dungeon Environment: Extreme Lava Zone. Survival Rating: High Risk!]

[Warning! There is continuous high-temperature erosion in the dungeon, dealing 10 fire damage per second. It is recommended to use a Fire Resistance Potion immediately!]

[Warning! Vision is obstructed by red fog, and perception range is significantly reduced. Please be aware of hidden threats around you!]

[Warning! Nightmare-level dungeon difficulty is extremely high. Solo challenge survival rate is less than 1%. Please proceed with caution!]

The system notifications rang out one after another. Su Chen stood at the dungeon entrance as the red fog instantly enveloped him. A wave of heat hit his face, his vision was restricted to within three meters, and the 10 points of fire damage per second constantly flickered on his panel.

He glanced at his attributes. After his second class advancement, his Constitution had reached 380 points, granting him an automatic HP regeneration of 25 points per second. The HP loss that had just appeared was instantly restored.

"Fire Resistance Potion? No need." Su Chen said indifferently. Without any superfluous movements, he walked straight into the depths of the dungeon, his footsteps completely unaffected by the high temperature and red fog.

Before he had walked fifty meters, a sharp screeching sound suddenly rang out. Dense swarms of Magma Imps surged from the red fog, their bodies crimson red and dripping with scalding magma.

They were level 45 common monsters, 188 in total, instantly surrounding Su Chen tightly.

[Magma Imp: Level 45, Attack 180, Defense 80, Skills: Magma Jet, Magma Throw, inflicts Burn BUFF (deals 5 fire damage per second, can stack infinitely).]

"Heh heh—"

The Magma Imps let out ear-piercing shrieks and launched their attacks simultaneously, hurling hundreds of magma balls toward Su Chen.

Immediately after, streams of magma erupted from their mouths, forming a full-screen barrage that completely blocked all of Su Chen's retreat paths.

The Burn BUFF instantly stacked to twenty layers. The 100 points of fire damage per second landed on Su Chen but were still easily offset by his automatic HP regeneration.

Su Chen frowned, his tone carrying a hint of impatience: "Noisy."

As soon as he finished speaking, he clenched his right hand. Pitch-black demonic energy rapidly condensed in his palm, and a giant black blade forty meters long appeared out of thin air, its edge shimmering with an eerie, corrosive luster.

This was the skill [Blade of Depravity] he had obtained from killing the BOSS Agale earlier.

"Clear out."

Su Chen lightly swung his arm, and a forty-meter-long pitch-black sword energy swept out. Imbued with powerful corrosive and depraved energy, it instantly covered an 800-yard radius in front of him.

Wherever the sword energy passed, the magma was instantly severed. All the Magma Imps, not even having time to let out a scream, were ground into dust, turning into streams of experience points that poured into Su Chen's body.

[Ding! Killed Magma Imp x1, gained 120 experience points!]

[Ding! Killed Magma Imp x1, gained 118 experience points!]

[Ding! Killed Magma Imp x188, gained a total of 22,560 experience points!]

[Ding! Experience points maxed out, level increased to 39!]

[Ding! Level up, all attributes +5!]

The system notifications rang out like a screen scroll. Su Chen glanced at his experience bar and said indifferently: "The single-target experience is low, but the sheer quantity makes up for it; it's almost catching up to a Gold-tier BOSS."

After dealing with the Magma Imp swarm, the red fog dissipated slightly. Ahead appeared an area filled with stone pillars, with a winding and complex route like a maze; this was the first stage of the Lava Valley.

Su Chen put away the Blade of Depravity, quickened his pace, and walked toward the depths of the maze.

For the next hour, Su Chen constantly encountered swarms of Magma Imps. Each wave had dozens to hundreds of them, yet they couldn't even touch the corner of his clothes.

He would either swing the [Blade of Depravity] for large-area clearing or casually release a few strands of demonic energy, easily reaping all the monsters. His clearing and map-traversing efficiency was extremely high.

"This first stage is too boring, it's all Magma Imps, not even a decent BOSS." Su Chen walked while casually joking, "And they call this Nightmare difficulty? With this level of intensity, it's not even enough for a warm-up."

After clearing another wave of imps, Su Chen finally walked out of the maze, and the scene before him suddenly opened up.

A vast lava plain appeared before him. The ground was covered in cracks, from which scalding magma surged out. The temperature in the air was higher than before, and the red fog was even denser.

[Ding! Arrived at the second stage, triggered Elite Monster swarm—Hellhound!]

As the system notification fell, deep barking sounds came from the red fog.

A dozen or so massive Hellhounds slowly walked out. Their bodies were three times larger than ordinary wolfhounds, covered in fur that dripped with magma. Drool containing fire poison dripped from their sharp fangs, and their eyes burned with crimson flames.

[Hellhound (Elite Monster): Level 48, Attack 250, Defense 150, Skills: Vicious Bite (inflicts fire poison, deals 30 damage per second, lasts 10 seconds), Lava Armor (increases own defense by 50%, reflects 10% fire damage when attacked).]

The dozen or so Hellhounds formed a circle, growling as they stared at Su Chen. Magma dripped from their fur, leaving small pits on the ground.

If an ordinary 20-person team had come here, they would likely have been wiped out instantly.

But Su Chen only glanced at them and curled his lip, his tone full of disdain: "That's it? An Elite Monster swarm? Compared to the monster density in the Ancient Kingdom Secret Realm, this isn't even a fraction of it."