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Two venomous snakes stood like sentries at the entrance, guarding against any intruders. Their scales shimmered with a faint, eerie light in the dim cave.
Since this was a Dungeon, these were Elite-tier mobs. Their stats were significantly higher than regular monsters—comparable to, or even stronger than, the Field Bosses outside.
Specifically, their high Defense and massive HP pools were designed to stop solo players from farming the dungeon for easy XP.
But the most annoying part was their Poison Spit. If you got hit, you were slapped with a [Poisoned] status that dealt continuous damage.
Before Level 10, there were no Medical Ninjas, and health potions were expensive and rare. A generic team with weak DPS or low survivability would wipe here instantly just from the poison tick damage.
Harper activated [Stealth]. He crept up to one of the "Kenta's Test Subjects," slowly drew his kunai, and aimed for its vital spot—the "seven inches" mark on its neck.
He leaped.
Slash!
-94 HP (Critical Hit!)
"Not bad. Not bad at all."
With the [Blessing of the Third Hokage] boosting his stats by 30%, cutting through these elites wasn't too hard.
The snake hissed, twisting its body. It bared its fangs and lunged at Harper.
POOF!
[Substitution Jutsu]!
Harper reappeared to the side, instantly whipping four shuriken at the snake he had just stabbed.
But right then, the second snake reared its head. A glob of viscous green liquid shot from its mouth.
Harper tried to dodge, but he was half a beat too slow. The green slime splashed onto his arm.
Ding!
[System]: Status Effect: [Poisoned].
Effect: Take 10 Poison Damage per second for 8 seconds. (Non-stacking).
Harper didn't hesitate. He popped a [Red Food Pill].
+HP (Regenerating...)
Seeing his health slowly tick back up, he calmed down.
"Okay, let's get serious."
He realized the snakes had a very obvious "wind-up" animation before they spat poison. As long as he watched for that telegraph, he could dodge it easily. Even if one got into melee range, he had [Substitution Jutsu] to escape.
Ultimately, two snakes weren't enough to stop him. He started weaving attacks in between their animations, chipping away at their health.
Aside from that first careless hit, the snakes didn't touch him again.
The first snake collapsed, twisting in pain before going still.
Ding!
[System]: Killed Kenta's Test Subject (Elite). Base XP: 3000. Dungeon Bonus (+30%): 3900 XP.
With one down, the second was a cakewalk.
Harper tanked the damage and went full DPS. Between his [Clone Jutsu] and [Substitution Jutsu], he ran circles around the low-AI mob.
Soon, the second snake died, granting another 3,900 XP.
Harper picked up the loot—some Silver Coins and two items.
"If I didn't have the Hokage's buff, this would have been a nightmare. But with it? It's like cutting vegetables."
He inspected the drops.
[Odd-Shaped Blade]
Requirement: Level 5
Type: Longsword
Attack: 32-64
Effect: Attack Speed -15%
[Viper's Kiss]
Requirement: Level 6
Type: Cloth Bracers
Defense: 5
The [Odd-Shaped Blade] was different from a kunai. It belonged to the Longsword category, which had the highest raw attack power in the game. The trade-off was the -15% Attack Speed, making it much clunkier in close combat than a nimble kunai.
Harper stowed the gear and moved deeper into the cave.
He didn't let his guard down. Even if the mobs were manageable, a single mistake in a dungeon could lead to a wipe. And unlike other players who just lost XP, Harper had no idea what would happen if he died here.
After dispatching two more groups of snakes, he stopped.
Ahead of him was a long, stone corridor.
Braziers lined the walls, the flames flickering and casting dancing shadows that made the tunnel look twisted and eerie.
Inside the corridor were three humanoid mobs. They wore ninja gear, with masks covering the lower half of their faces. Their eyes were sharp, scanning the area like hawks.
One of them was patrolling up and down the hallway, while the other two stood guard at the far end.
Harper checked their stats.
[Kenta's Follower]
Level: 6
Attack: 100
Defense: 20
HP: 700
Skills: [Intermediate Shuriken Mastery], [Intermediate Kunai Mastery]
Description: A rogue ninja seduced by Kenta's ideology. Possesses decent combat skills.
[Kenta's Fanatic]
Level: 7
Attack: 110
Defense: 30
HP: 500
Skills: [Intermediate Shuriken Mastery], [Intermediate Kunai Mastery]
Description: A blind worshiper of Kenta. Highly dangerous.
Harper swapped his weapon back to shuriken.
He activated [Stealth] and crept forward.
The patroller was walking back and forth. Harper calculated the distance. He planned to ambush the patroller at the turning point of his route, just outside the aggro range of the two guards at the back.