Chapter 52 That’s a lot of Kobolds

Evelyn stormed back to my small camp as the echoes of battle gradually died away. Even without relying on Panoptic Sense, the sharp, deliberate stomp of her boots and the rigid tension in her clenched fists signaled her frustration. Her furrowed brows and pursed lips only reinforced what was already clear, she was seething.

“Why do I get so little experience now?” she demanded as soon as she was close enough that she didn't need to shout. “I was only getting 10 or so experience for each creature that was around my level and that is with you not even doing anything.”

“Well, you don’t expect to get the same amount of experience from defeating something at your level as you would from taking down a much stronger opponent, do you?” I asked, a hint of sarcasm in my tone. “The way I’ve figured it so far, if you defeat an enemy that’s at least five levels higher, you gain 10% of the experience they require to level up. If the enemy is between one and five levels above you, you earn 5%. When fighting something at your level, you only get 1%, and for anything weaker, it drops to just 0.1%. At some point, you stop gaining experience altogether, but I haven’t pinpointed that threshold yet.”

I was fairly certain I had already explained all of this to her, and judging by the pout she was giving me, I figured she had simply forgotten. Despite my reassurance, she kept pouting for the rest of the night, clearly unsatisfied with the explanation.

The next morning, we were up early, moving with purpose. Evelyn was practically buzzing with excitement at the prospect of entering a Dungeon again, though a flicker of nervousness lingered in her eyes, this would be her first time venturing in without bodyguards or seasoned adventurers to back her up. As for me, I was eager to see how her experience would differ now that she had access to The System, curious to observe the changes in her approach and abilities firsthand.

The rocky alcove extended only a few feet before giving way to the yawning entrance of the Dungeon, its darkness looming ahead like an unspoken challenge.

You have entered Scalebinder Depths. This Dungeon is in a state of over saturation. You will not be able to leave the Dungeon until it has been cleared. Recommended level for the Dungeon is 15+ for a party of 5. Good luck!

I immediately sighed seeing the familiar sight. I had guessed that this Dungeon would also be over saturated, as it was in the middle of nowhere as far as I could tell. It did make me curious what the difference between imminent over saturation and just over saturation was though.

A few seconds later, Evelyn stepped into the Dungeon, her expression a mix of determination and uncertainty. "I know you said not to worry, and I trust that we can handle this. But are you absolutely sure we'll be okay?" she asked, pausing to scan the notification that had just appeared before her.

I paused, weighing my words carefully to avoid causing unnecessary concern. Opting for discretion, I activated the party chat instead of speaking aloud. First, remember to use party chat, this is a cave, and your voice will echo, potentially attracting underground creatures. Second, don’t worry. I cleared the Dungeon near Magnon when I was at a lower level than I am now, and that one had an even higher recommended party level. Just stay behind me and stay alert.

A deafening roar interrupted me mid-sentence, drowning out whatever I had been about to say. This wasn’t the growl of a small beast or the yipping cries of kobolds, it was a deep, reverberating bellow, something far more powerful. The sound carried the same overwhelming presence as the cries Nixy would make, a noise that promised danger lurking just ahead.

Without hesitating I cast Arcane Armor and Arcane Surge and prepared for what was coming. That’s a lot of kobolds. The creatures wasted no time at all barreling around the corner and straight at us. The only thing I could say, was that at least the cavern walls were narrow enough that I was able to fill the path completely with my shields.

The sheer number of creatures made it impossible to distinguish their individual forms. They swarmed over each other in a chaotic frenzy, resembling a writhing mass of rats rather than intelligent beings. A quick use of Identify revealed that the strongest among them was around level 30, with the majority falling within the mid-to-high twenties. This must be the distinction between imminent over saturation and full over saturation, the creatures here were nearly double the recommended level, whereas the Dungeon of the Wild had only been slightly above the intended difficulty, with only a few outliers pushing past that range.

I charged the pack and just started swinging and kicking as fast as I could. There was no methodical fighting here, just constant movement with wave after wave of Arcane Surge spreading out from me. Here and there an arrow would fly past stabbing into some of the bigger creatures that could be seen.

It took what felt like hours, before the tide turned to a trickle of creatures, until it finally stopped altogether. I was panting heavily by the time no more creatures came around the corner. Holy shit, I don’t know that we can keep pulling groups like that. Please tell me you at least got a few levels from all that.

It turned out that she had received a few levels, just enough for her to get two whole levels to be precise. According to her, she was getting around 3% of the experience from each enemy, even though all of them were so much higher level than her. The good news was that she was getting experience even for the creatures I killed though. So, we couldn’t complain too much.

After looking at the experience she gained from fighting, she sat down crossed leg and started breathing in a very specific way. It reminded me of the cultivation novels I had read. She would breathe in for 5 seconds hold it for 2 seconds breathe out through her nose for 3 seconds hold it for 4 seconds and then do a quick short burst of breath out and repeat.

She continued for several minutes, remaining completely still as she focused on her breathing, each inhale and exhale measured with practiced precision. When she finally opened her eyes, I couldn’t contain my questions anymore. Is that what you do to gain energy? What exactly does it do?

She responded with a slightly puzzled expression. Yes, specific breathing techniques help draw in ambient essence and circulate it throughout the body, enhancing strength and resilience. At least, that’s how it’s supposed to work. But when I attempted my usual breathing exercises, I couldn’t absorb any essence at all. I didn’t even sense its presence in the air. I don’t think we could effectively work alongside someone who isn’t connected to The System.

Thinking about what she said, I could see the ups and downs compared to The System. Being in control of the process of flooding yourself with essence, you would be able to control what you improved, while with The System, you were more stuck to whatever the class gave you.

Well, that’s definitely interesting, but let’s focus on finishing this Dungeon. Any ideas on how we get past all these bodies? I asked, eyeing the mass of fallen creatures with a mix of concern and reluctance, hoping we wouldn’t have to climb over them.

Let’s use your Void Nexus, the Dungeon will eat the bodies as long as we are not nearby.

I nodded and activated Void Nexus, stepping in alongside Evelyn. She estimated it would take only a couple of minutes, so we stood in quiet anticipation, our minds occupied with the differences between The System and this world. The weight of our contrasting experiences settled over us, neither speaking but both reflecting. Just as my thoughts started to wander too far, Evelyn nudged me gently, a subtle reminder to stay present as we prepared to re-enter the Dungeon.

With the room now cleared, we cautiously navigated the narrow corridors, stepping lightly to avoid any potential traps or sudden encounters. After only a few hundred feet, we reached an intersection, where the unmistakable sounds of battle echoed from the right passage. In any labyrinth or maze, the best approach is to pick a wall and stick to it, so I decided to follow the right-hand path.

As we stepped into a vast open cavern, we were met with another overwhelming wave of kobolds. Unlike the previous group, which had been a chaotic rush, this one was more structured, half of them were towering brutes, their muscular frames making them stand out from the rest. I couldn't be certain, but I was fairly sure that the last group had lacked these formidable warriors. This battle would be a much greater challenge.

You don’t happen to know the evolutionary path of Kobolds, do you? I asked staring at all the brutes.

Uh, no, I do know that there is such a thing as a Kobold chieftain but that is the strongest kobold I know of. Evelyn responded with her mental voice tinged with slight nervousness.

Before deciding what to do, I used Identify on the creatures and found most of them to be around level 30, with even the regular kobolds nearing that mark. The highest that I could find was only level 35 though. Which meant that none of them would be able to break through Arcane Armor.

If the kobolds had not been fighting already, I would not have tried what I did next, but since the sounds of fighting did not seem to draw the attention of anything from deeper in, I charged. Laying into the creatures as they came in reach.

I didn’t even try and think about what I was doing and just used Arcane Surge and Arcane Step, moving about everywhere. Before I even made the first strike, I heard Evelyn in my head screaming.