When they arrived at the entrance of the base, the knight in charge expressed his worry. He was aware that Yan had broken records in every other base, he said, but he wanted him to know that the Netherflame Boar King was far more dangerous than charging rabbits or whirlwind wolves.
Yan confidently told him that he did not mind, because the greater the risk, the greater the reward. If a person never took the gamble, he said, they were never going to reach a higher standpoint.
Deep down, Yan was not worried, since he had Kexin with him, an S-rank support class.
Since Yan was not ready to back down, the knight had no choice but to let them in, and he wished them luck on the adventure. Yan gladly accepted the wish, because they needed all the luck they could get.
After walking for a while inside the dungeon, Kexin expressed her surprise that there were no monsters yet. Yan let her know that there were no little fries in this dungeon, because there was only one boss monster.
Kexin freaked out when she heard that. Before she knew it, the boss monster appeared in the distance, and she almost passed out in fear at the sight of the gigantic thing.
Yan, on the other hand, was hyped. He whipped out his two swords to take on the monster, which he considered a worthy opponent.
The gigantic beast was a level 15 spectral wild boar king with the Netherflame Charge skill. It was a terrifying magical beast from the magic caves, with a violent attitude, and the flowing magical ghost flames on its body could generate temperatures of up to two hundred degrees.
As Yan prepared to face the beast, he ordered Kexin to cast Holy Light to help him keep his HP up. Kexin agreed and activated her Holy Angel skill, while Yan charged forward to attack. He believed that making the first move was the best strategy against such a powerful monster.
While midair, Yan planned to use gravity and a swift spin to slice through the monster's neck.
His brilliant plan did not go according to his expectations. As Yan struck, the beast leapt into the sky and used its tusks to block the strike.
Disappointed, Yan gave up on that strategy, sensing that it would be more difficult to fool the monster a second time. He also noted that the boar king was smarter than the previous monster bosses he had taken down.
He decided to make the best of the current situation and modify his Azure Steel Sword. He wanted to do it midair, to keep Kexin from discovering his powers. With that, Yan modified the steel sword into the Qinggang Sword.
On its own, the Azure Steel Sword was trash. Blocking a strike from the Qinggang Sword, though, was next to impossible for the boar king.
After the modification, Yan was only able to turn the sword into a level 10 replica of the legendary Qinggang Sword. Although inferior to the real thing, the replica still possessed immense power. It could cut through iron like dirt, and it could cut through an opponent's armor. Despite the low quality, Yan was not disappointed with the result, because he knew his modification powers could not create god-tier artifacts out of air.
It was enough for him to take down a level 15 monster boar king. With such a weapon, his stats were greatly improved, giving him the advantage.
Yan immediately attacked the beast, and with a single strike he slashed off one of its tusks, enraging it. While Kexin was distracted, Yan quickly changed his blade back to the Azure Steel Sword before she noticed anything.
Kexin was shocked by what she had just witnessed. She found it hard to believe that a common E-rank weapon could do that much damage. She was certain it could not be the weapon, because a single slash had chopped off the hardest part of the boar, its tusk.
After considering it for a while, Kexin concluded that it was Yan's strength, and that it had nothing to do with the weapon. She reasoned that someone with a dual F-rank class who could break that many records must be more powerful than most A-rank classes.
While Kexin was deep in thought, Yan noticed the look on her face and figured she must be imagining all sorts of weird scenarios in her head. Since they still had a monster to defeat, Yan called out to her, bringing her back to reality.
He then ordered her to cover him in Holy Light, or she might not be able to level up when he defeated the monster. Kexin thanked him for the reminder as she activated her Holy Light skill.
While Kexin bestowed the light on him, Yan prepared to end the boar king. Before attacking, though, he tried to come up with a strategy.
He wondered whether he should use the modification skill for the next attack. He considered changing the name of his demon sword for the strike, but he struggled to pick a suitable name to change it into. After throwing around some big names, Yan paused, because changing it to something unreasonable might either fail or backfire. He decided not to risk it and shoot himself in the foot.
Just then, the boar king activated the skill Netherflame Charge, pulling Yan back to reality.
As he prepared to wrap things up, Yan decided to modify the Netherflame Charge into something else. After considering what to change it into, he told Kexin to close her eyes.
Confused, Kexin asked why. Yan simply told her to trust him. She might not be able to stomach what happened next, he explained.
Without hesitation, Kexin obeyed, thinking the scene was about to turn gory.
As the boar king charged toward him wrapped in blue-hot flame, Yan activated the modification skill. With the snap of a finger, he changed the boar's Netherflame Charge into Netherflame Drift.
Once the modification took effect, the monster slowed down, drifting slowly through the air. Even the boar king looked confused.
Satisfied with his masterpiece, Yan immediately charged forward to attack, and midway he modified the Azure Steel Sword into the Qinggang Sword. With a single powerful swing, he struck the monster's neck and killed it.
The system immediately notified him that the boar king had been slain, and added the experience for defeating the monster to his stats. With those points, he moved up to level 15. Yan was surprised that he had risen two levels in a row, thanks to defeating the strongest rookie monster boss.
Meanwhile, Kexin's eyes were still closed, but she heard the system notification giving her rewards. She was stunned that her level moved up three times, putting her at level 12. It made her wonder whether Yan had actually defeated the monster.
After changing the sword back to its original state, Yan walked up to Kexin.
Though he had made her close her eyes so she would not discover his secret, Yan was surprised that she had obeyed. He was pleased with it, and he noted that Kexin was the perfect teammate, because she was not just obedient, but rich, and in possession of a healing skill. He planned to bring her along for dungeon raids that required forming a party.
A few minutes later, he told Kexin to open her eyes, and let her know that her request to level up was complete.
The moment she opened them, Kexin was stunned to see the dead monster. She could not believe Yan had actually defeated such a terrifying thing alone.
As Yan prepared to head out, Kexin quietly watched him in awe. She concluded that he was a rare talent, gentle and also trustworthy.
Before he could leave, Kexin called out to him and handed him his payment. She also gave him a little bonus as a thank-you gift.
Yan's eyes widened when he saw that the bonus gift was a storage ring. Storage rings were a big deal, because they were made from crystals with permanent spatial magic. They ignored every physical limitation and could store anything. Even storage rings with a small space sold for hundreds of thousands, so they were quite valuable.
Knowing how expensive they were, Yan refused to accept it.
Kexin insisted. With Yan's talent, she knew, he needed it more than she did. She told him to accept it, since he had helped her get two more levels than they had initially agreed on.
Yan knew Kexin was right, because he planned to head into the wilds for his solo leveling mission, and a storage ring would definitely come in handy for all his loot. After considering it for a while, he decided to accept her gift. In exchange, he offered to help her with any request, as long as it did not go against his principles.
After agreeing on the terms of their exchange, Kexin and Yan headed out.