Chapter 175:
Chapter 175:
The Theory Of Quasi-divine Spirits And Aura Omnipotence
Zugogogogogogo
(What a surprise. I thought because it's a mollusk, it would move slowly, but I've been completely fooled)
Perhaps it's because I've dealt with giant sluggish slugs, which are also soft-bodied creatures, too much that I ended up with such a prejudice.
I probably thought it would be a leisurely moving mollusk, but it moves as fast as a mantis shrimp delivering a [Mach Punch]. Seriously surprising. I was taken aback when they all came rushing at me at once.
Now that I understand, there's no need to hold back. Let's get serious and face them head-on.
"Rise, storm of strong acid! Strong Acid Storm, High Acid Hurricane!!"
Crafting magic and activating Strong Acid storm. It showers the area with strong acid rain, targeting the giant mussel mollusks in the vicinity. There's no holding back here; it's time to unleash a major move.
However, as soon as the strong acid rain starts falling, the giant mussel mollusks tightly close their shells and guard themselves securely. Steam rises from the bouncing rain and the melting shells, billowing thickly.
But it seems that the giant mussel mollusks haven't suffered much damage.
(Hmm, flashy appearance but almost no effect.)
The [Strong Acid] skill is powerful. But it also consumes a lot of magical power. It's probably because the energy level of the acid itself is high. So continuously activating such a skill until the mollusk shells completely dissolve is terribly inefficient in magical energy.
[[[ (Shuooooo) ]]]
Even after the strong acid storm subsides, the steam continues to rise. However, it seems that very few monsters inside have taken any damage.
Yeah, with my skill setup, it feels like a tough match against opponents like this.
[Strong Acid] is like this, and [Salt] doesn't seem effective against monsters living in the sea. Even if I try to suffocate them with [Mucus], I'm pretty sure mollusks can easily survive for two or three days with their shells closed.
But trying to defeat monsters with such high defensive capabilities by beating them to a pulp. As I was thinking about it, I suddenly remembered the Fire Wand I had set in my chest.
(Oh. I have this! I've been too focused on its use as a cooking tool and forgot about it!)
"Then how about this? Wand deployment Chest Fire!"
Pouring magical power into the wand causes the red gem at the tip to shine brightly, and a torrent of hot flames bursts forth. Hehehe, the power is like that of a flamethrower. How about this?
[Sizzle Psssssh! (Boom!)]
"Oh! Got 'em!"
A savory aroma, like that from a grill, wafts from the giant mussel mollusks exposed to the flamethrower. And within about 30 seconds, they perish, one after another, turning into smoke.
(Hehehe, it seems like even the heavily armored giant mussel mollusks were weak to heat.)
Well, it's a natural outcome. But this time, I struggled quite a bit due to preconceptions and assumptions. It turned out to be quite a battle with many points to reflect on.
"You're pretty good with all those skills. How much magical power do you have?"
As I continue to burn down the nearby giant mussel mollusks, Nina-san approaches from inside the dome, seemingly considering it safe now.
"Well, as you get used to it, you become more efficient."
In addition to that, in my case, I also shared my soul with Shiotaro and the Pixie Queen. That lowered my level, but it feels like my magical power efficiency has increased by 50%.
The drops obtained from defeating the giant mussel mollusks are small magic stones and yellowed pearls.
"Are these pearls? They're quite yellow"
Yeah, they're yellow pearls, not pearl white.
And they seem to be as big as a 100 yen coin. So they don't seem suitable as jewelry to adorn oneself with like earrings or necklaces. Nina-san seems disappointed as well.
Well, if it's not a delicious ingredient and doesn't have much value as treasure, I can understand that feeling. For a moment, I got excited and thought, "Oh, is that a skill orb?" but it was just wishful thinking.
"I wonder if they'll look cleaner if we polish or wash them with acid"
"I wonder, well, let's just collect them all. And let's try taking the giant mussel mollusks out of the dungeon too, see if we can."
We've cleared some near the entrance, but there are still less than 20 left. I don't think the dungeon is saturated yet at this rate.
If we can take them outside, we'll also get the giant mussel mollusks themselves.
..
And so, successfully restraining the giant mussel mollusks with Mucus Bind, I managed to bring them out of the dungeon alive.
Even though creatures like them have strong biting or closing power, they don't seem to have much opening power. It was quite easy to capture the giant mussel mollusks with their shells closed tight with acid.
As I was trying to carry them away because of their size, a Red Slime inside my prosthetic leg seemed to want to help, crawling out and carrying a shell just like me.
"Oh, are you helping? Thanks!"
[ (Bubbling) ]
This one has also been carded somehow and is in a constantly summoned state. Literally acting as my hands and feet.
Blessing:
[Salt Spirit] Quasi-Divine Spirit, [Fairy Queen] Fortune Spirit, [Red Viscous Creature] Semi-Quasi-Divine Spirit
Skills:
[Strong Acid 2], [Agility 2], [Disease Resistance 7], [Usurpation], [Mucus 9], [Space 6], [Good Luck 1.4], [Footwork], [Meditation], [Salt 5], [Art], [Maggot], [Female], [Combat 6], [Paralysis 4], [Jumping 9], [Sturdy 8], [Charm]
Titles:
[Bug King], [Salt Mate], [Salty Guy], [Bug Queen], [Woman Killer]
Moreover, in the protection column, there was an addition of [Red Viscous Creature] Semi-Quasi-Divine Spirit.
The [Red Viscous Creature] is undoubtedly referring to the Red Slime. But Semi-Quasi-Divine Spirit? That's new. I didn't know there was such a backup system for divine spirits.
This one was originally just a slime on the first basement level.
But after eating my leg with a big level difference, it evolved into a Red Slime and became attached to me. That's probably due to the existential strength. I think the slime somehow acquired memories of my leg.
Still, I've only given it a part of my body; we haven't reached the point of sharing souls yet.
Nevertheless, it seems to be participating in the distribution of life energy for some reason, which has always puzzled me. But it seems it has acquired the position of Semi-Quasi-Divine Spirit without me realizing it.
I don't really understand it, but it's always helping me out, so let's congratulate it.
"Well then, I'll go up and take a shower."
"Yeah, I'll do some research before heading up."
Nina-san and I part ways as we exit the crab dungeon.
In the end, even though Nina-san was well-prepared, she didn't engage in any battles. But she had mentioned from the beginning that this time was for investigation purposes, and she walked towards the exit without any apparent concern. Hmm, she's quite cool about it.
If it were Serai-san, she would have been whining, "Ehh! I changed my clothes all for nothing, so I want to fight something!" and such.
"Well then Red Slime. You can eat that if you want."
[ (Bubbling) ]
I offered the Red Slime that had carried the giant mussel mollusks for me a meal, and it seemed to start digesting them with bubbles forming inside its body.
As for these giant mussel mollusks, Ina-san said they looked delicious, but it's still unclear if they're edible.
First, I need to verify whether they're edible or not. The easiest way is to have other monsters eat them and see how they react. So as payment for the transportation, I gave the mussels carried by the Red Slime to the other monsters.
There are still two more left, so I'll cook them and feed them to the roaches and plague rats.
..
Two hours later, I'm frying thinly sliced tentacles of the giant mussel mollusks into tempura in the cramped kitchen of my room.
I should be conducting more tests, considering the possibility of a delayed-action poison. But I also performed psychometry on the target due to aura influence and confirmed that there was no toxicity, so I proceeded with cooking like this.
Yeah, I want to advocate for this theory of aura omnipotence.
With aura, you can see things that are normally invisible, read information from targets, and even manipulate objects with telekinesis and create barriers.
So as you can see, aura is very useful when mastered. Well, you can call me a Psionics Warrior.
"All done. Sorry for the wait."
"Wow, it looks delicious."
On the plate lined with oil-absorbent paper, there are not only hot slices of tentacles tempura but also mixed tempura. I also added some high-spirit carrots I had kept aside for delivery, finely chopped.
Yeah, it looks like it turned out to be quite a spirited dish. I think it's done pretty well.