83: Chapter 83: Infinite Refreshes? This is clearly a buffet!

The setting sun was like blood, staining the snowfield a tragic dark red.

Qin Ji stepped on the head of the massive Ice and Snow Demon Snake. The behemoth beneath his feet was still twitching neurotically, but its crimson vertical pupils had completely lost their luster. He casually wiped the thick black blood from his greatsword, yet his gaze did not linger on the trophy beneath him for long; instead, he stared fixedly at the looming black altar in the distance.

Just as that Demon Snake breathed its last, the air around the altar suddenly underwent a bizarre distortion.

"Buzz—"

A low humming sound seemed to come from deep within the earth, and immediately following it, the snow that had been stained red with blood began to tremble violently once more.

[Warning: Guardian has died, triggering the "Infinite Guard" mechanism!]

[The next wave of Guardians will descend in 3 seconds!]

Accompanied by the System's cold notification, the snow around the altar churned like boiling water.

One, two, three...

A total of four Ice and Snow Demon Snakes, their sizes not at all inferior to the three BOSSes from before, burst out of the ground simultaneously! The ice armor on their bodies was even thicker, and the red light in their eyes was even more violent. The moment they appeared, four terrifying blasts of freezing breath intertwined into a giant net of death, descending toward Qin Ji's head!

"Four of them?"

Qin Ji didn't retreat; instead, he raised an eyebrow. The playful curve at the corner of his mouth instantly widened into an unmasked ecstasy. "The designer of this dungeon is a good person!"

The three Demon Snakes from earlier had contributed nearly fifteen hundred attribute points to him. This rocket-like rate of improvement was more addictive than any drug. He had originally worried that there would be no more monsters after killing those three, but who would have thought this dungeon actually came with a "refill" service?

"Since you're being so polite, I'll accept this without hesitation!"

Qin Ji stomped his foot, and the massive snake head instantly exploded into fragments. Using the counterforce, his body shot forward like a black cannonball, not retreating but instead charging directly into the net woven by the freezing breath!

Boom!!!

The black greatsword, carrying the terrifying power he had just plundered, carved a fan-shaped black storm through the air.

There was no hard-fought battle between equals as one might imagine.

If Qin Ji had needed to use a bit of positioning and kiting when facing the three Demon Snakes earlier, then now, after his attributes had surged again, this so-called "escalated crisis" was nothing more than the "serving speed being increased" in his eyes.

Puchi—!

The first Demon Snake didn't even see the enemy's movements before a mist of blood erupted from its vital spot. Its massive body was like a kite with a broken string, smashing heavily into the ground.

Then came the second, the third...

Qin Ji's figure was so fast in the wind and snow that it was reduced to a mere afterimage. Every swing of his sword was accompanied by scales and black blood flying through the air; every step he took inevitably resulted in the earth cracking and groaning.

[Killed Ice and Snow Demon Snake (Bronze BOSS), Experience +30,000,000!]

[Triggered "Greedy Grasp": Plundered Attribute — Strength +530!]

[Triggered "Greedy Grasp": Plundered Attribute — Agility +510!]

The pleasant System notifications were like the most beautiful symphony, frantically scrolling past Qin Ji's ears.

However, this was only the beginning.

When Qin Ji had finished slaughtering the four Demon Snakes, the ground shook once more.

This time, what emerged were no longer snakes.

"Awoo—!!!"

Accompanied by piercing wolf howls, twelve giant werewolves, over five meters tall and covered in long ice-crystal fur, came sprinting from the depths of the wind and snow.

[Ice Snow Werewolf (Level 50 Bronze BOSS)]

[Traits: Tundra Battle Array, Infinite Regeneration]

"Changed the flavor?"

Qin Ji glanced at these werewolves.

According to the logic of a normal player, when facing an endless army of BOSSes that only increased in number, the only solution would be to use the terrain or special items to survive, or to find a mechanism to shut down the respawn point.

After all, human endurance is limited, and skills have cooldowns.

Even the top-ranked tank in the entire server would be worn to death by this kind of relentless battle of attrition.

But Qin Ji was different.

Though his endurance would also be consumed, his Strength, Agility, and Defense were stacking at a rate that defied all logic!

This feeling was like a snowball rolling downhill.

At first, the snowball was small and required effort to push. But as it grew larger and larger, the momentum generated by its own weight was enough to crush every obstacle in its path!

"Come on, let me see how many you can spawn!"

Qin Ji let out a great laugh. The greatsword in his hand suddenly vanished, replaced by a spear wreathed in dark purple lightning.

The spear swept out, and thunder exploded!

Puff, puff, puff!

The three Ice Snow Werewolves at the very front didn't even have time to scream before they were snapped in half at the waist by this single strike!

A terrifying Strength check!

In the face of absolute numerical suppression, the so-called "Tundra Battle Array" was like a toy made of paper.

Slaughter.

Pure, efficient slaughter.

Qin Ji was like a tireless harvester, frantically reaping these walking attribute points on the snowfield.

One wave, two waves, three waves...

Time passed, but the light in Qin Ji's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

How was this a high-difficulty hidden dungeon? This was clearly a buffet restaurant custom-made for him!

Every monster here was a meticulously prepared feast.

An unknown amount of time passed.

When Qin Ji's spear pierced the throat of an unknown hundredth Ice Snow Werewolf, a unique pillar of golden light suddenly shot up from the corpse.

"Hmm? A drop?"

Qin Ji paused his movements and reached out to grab it.

A black skill book emitting an ancient aura floated quietly in his palm. An eye was drawn on the cover, and that eye seemed alive; just a single look at it caused a tremor in the depths of one's Soul.

[Skill Book: Death Gaze (SSS-Rank)]

[Description: A gaze originating from the abyss, looking directly at the essence of death.]

[Effect 1: Deals 500% Spell power as True Damage per second, lasting for 10 seconds.]

[Effect 2: The gazed-upon creature will be continuously affected by a Fear effect, and all attributes will be forcibly reduced by 20% (ignores resistance).]

[Effect 3: If the target's life level is lower than the user's, there is a certain probability of instant death!]

[Learning Requirement: Spirit attribute > 3000.]

"An SSS-Rank skill?"

Qin Ji's pupils constricted slightly.

A skill book of this level would be a priceless rarity outside, enough to make the major guilds fight until their brains spilled out. He hadn't expected it to drop from a common mob in a place like this.

"No."

Qin Ji quickly realized, "This should be the effect of 'Greedy Grasp', or perhaps killing too many BOSSes triggered some kind of hidden pity mechanism."

He didn't hesitate and clapped his hands together.

[Ding! Congratulations, you have learned the skill: Death Gaze!]

A cold energy instantly flooded his eyes, and Qin Ji felt as if his vision had undergone some sort of qualitative change. Looking at the surrounding wind and snow now, he seemed to be able to see the flow of energy contained within every single snowflake.

"Refreshing!"

Qin Ji let out a long breath.

By now, the wave of monsters that had been pouring out frantically finally stopped.

The surrounding snow was covered with mountain-like piles of corpses. Black blood gathered into rivers, freezing into eerie black ice under the extreme cold.

"Is that it?"

Qin Ji smacked his lips, feeling somewhat unsatisfied. He glanced at his attribute panel.

In just over an hour, his Strength attribute had surged by a full forty thousand points! His Agility had even broken through the fifty thousand mark!

Now, even if he endured the 50% weakening of the "Divine Might suppression," his raw attributes alone would be enough to punch the Village Chief of the Newbie Village into oblivion!

"It seems this is the correct way to open this dungeon."

Qin Ji put away his weapon and looked ahead.

After the monster tide receded, the vision previously obscured by wind and snow became clear. Behind the altar, a dilapidated small village faintly appeared.

The village looked very ancient, with low thatched huts arranged in an orderly fashion. Dim yellow lights swayed in the wind and snow, giving off an extremely surreal feeling.

"A safe zone?"

Qin Ji narrowed his eyes and walked over.

Just as he approached the village entrance, a middle-aged woman wrapped in a thick padded coat and carrying a basket walked out from the wind and snow. Seeing Qin Ji, she didn't show much surprise; instead, she wore a kind smile that seemed expected.

"Young man, you have quite the skills."

The woman spoke, her voice exceptionally clear in the wind and snow. "The recovery speed of those monsters in the snow is very fast. Ordinary people might wound them, but if they aren't careful for just a few seconds, those things can return to full health. I didn't expect you to be able to kill them so cleanly."

Fast recovery speed?

Qin Ji was stunned for a moment.

To be honest, he hadn't noticed that at all. Because in his hands, those monsters were basically killed instantly; there was no opportunity for any "low-health recovery" to occur.

However, as a veteran opportunist, Qin Ji keenly caught the subtext in the NPC's words.

This was a plot hook.

"You flatter me, Auntie." Qin Ji retracted his Evil Qi and revealed a harmless smile. "Those monsters were indeed troublesome; I was just lucky. May I ask how to address you, Auntie?"

"Just call me Auntie Chen."

The woman smiled and nodded. Her gaze swept over the battlefield littered with corpses behind Qin Ji, and a flicker of hard-to-detect admiration flashed in her eyes. "Being able to fight your way here shows you are capable. However, the road ahead is not easy to walk. The source of those monsters... cannot be solved by brute force alone."

Qin Ji's heart stirred.

As expected, there was a hidden plot!

He immediately followed up by asking, "Since Auntie Chen says so, I presume you have some guidance? To tell you the truth, I came here this time specifically to completely resolve the trouble here."

"I wouldn't call it guidance."

Auntie Chen sighed and pointed toward the depths of the village. "Our village has a traveling doctor surnamed Liu. He's an eccentric who spends all day studying the corpses of those monsters. He says he's researched a method that can restrain those monsters' health regeneration and even counter that 'Divine Might'."

Counter Divine Might!

Hearing those words, Qin Ji's eyes instantly lit up.

His greatest restriction in this dungeon was that damn -50% all-attribute debuff. If he could remove this restriction, wouldn't he truly be able to soar to the heavens here?

"Dr. Liu?" Qin Ji immediately put on an urgent expression. "Auntie Chen, could I trouble you to introduce me? I am our village's... uh, hero. I'm sure Dr. Liu would be willing to help me with this."

Auntie Chen was amused by Qin Ji's thick-skinned self-proclamation and nodded. "Of course. You are the first person in a hundred years to fight your way to the village entrance. Dr. Liu will certainly be interested in you. Follow me."

With that, Auntie Chen turned to lead the way.

Qin Ji followed behind, his mind racing with calculations.

According to the standard tropes of online games, this kind of hidden NPC usually issued a high-difficulty quest or demanded some kind of rare Materials.

But no matter what it was, he was determined to obtain this item or method to "counter Divine Might"!

"As long as I remove the Divine Might suppression and restore my full strength..."

Qin Ji glanced at his palm, where dark purple lightning was faintly flickering.

"At that time, never mind some Bronze BOSS; even if that so-called 'God' comes in person, I'll tear a layer of skin off its body!"

The two of them, one after the other, walked into the village shrouded in wind and snow.

As Qin Ji stepped into the village's range, the previously raging blizzard seemed to be blocked out by some invisible force. The howling in his ears instantly vanished, replaced by a deathly silence.

Qin Ji instinctively tensed his muscles.

His intuition told him that this seemingly peaceful village was likely more dangerous than the monster tide outside.

Auntie Chen stopped in front of a wooden hut hanging a dilapidated plaque that read "Benevolence and Healing."

"Dr. Liu is inside. You can go in yourself."

After speaking, Auntie Chen carried her basket and turned to leave, disappearing into the shadows of the village.

Qin Ji stood before the wooden hut and took a deep breath.

He didn't push the door open directly but first activated his newly acquired [Death Gaze].

Under the gaze of those pupils emitting a ghostly cold light, the originally dilapidated wooden hut actually appeared in an eerie semi-transparent state. And inside the house, a golden energy body as dazzling as the blazing sun sat quietly at a desk.

That was not an energy reaction a normal NPC should have.

That was... Divinity!

A mad curve slowly hooked at the corner of Qin Ji's mouth. He pressed his right hand against the door panel and gave it a gentle push.

"Creak—"

The decaying wooden door made a piercing grating sound, and the candlelight inside swayed with the breeze.

A skinny old man wearing a tattered white lab coat and thick-bottomed Glasses sat before a desk piled with various strange limbs. Hearing the sound of the door opening, he slowly raised his head and pushed the Glasses up the bridge of his nose. A terrifyingly fanatical light flickered in his cloudy eyes.

"A rare guest..."

The old man's voice was as raspy as two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together. "It has been a long time... since I smelled such a thick aura of slaughter."

Qin Ji stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, his smile as brilliant as a man-eating flower in full bloom.

"You're Dr. Liu, right? I heard you have some good stuff. Why don't you... bring it out so I can have a look?"

Under the dim yellow candlelight, Qin Ji's shadow was stretched very long, perfectly covering the area where the old man was. He lowered his head slightly, his purple-gold pupils reflecting the old man's withered face, like a demon that had just finished a feast yet still stared greedily at the next dessert, elegantly waiting for the prey to offer up its own sacrifice.