Chapter 58: No.58: Stage Four {9}; Slaughter / Running Out Of Time
A chill breeze swept across the surface above, as the Mana Radiations traveled through the night.
Nighttime had long reached a few hours already, leaving the perimeters near the cave silent and desolate. Other than the occasional screech from an unknown Mutant in the distance, everywhere else remained soothingly quiet despite the World’s current state. Making it seem as though the Apocalypse had never descended in the first place.
Contrary to the serenity above, the sound of a blade tearing through flesh, followed by hundreds of guttural snarls, pierced sharply deep within the Whispering Caves.
At the centre of the noise stood a suited young man surrounded by an insane amount of grotesque-looking Mutants.
The Suit the young man wore had been ripped and bitten in multiple parts by the Mutants surrounding him, yet no blood spilled from those areas.
Instead, it only showed his smooth white skin underneath, while a thin layer of shield still protected his body from Mana Radiation, to an extent.
Having been fighting for over three to four hours already, Bruce had long lost count of the number of Mutants he’d killed. With him only knowing that he’d long slaughtered beyond a hundred Mutants.
The only way he was able to even know that much was none other than the System, which constantly sent a series of notifications whenever he killed a Mutant.
[Host has successfully Slain a Greater Mutant (lvl.8)]
[Host has successfully Slain a Greater Mutant (lvl.7)]
[Host has successfully Slain a Greater Mutant (lvl.9)]...
[+20SP has been received from Slain Mutant]
[+10SP has been received from Slain Mutant]
[+40SP has been received from Slain Mutant]....
[... You have received Bonus Agility +2]
[... You have received Bonus Stamina +4]...
[Host has successfully Levelled Up!]
[Host has successfully Levelled Up!]
[Host has successfully Levelled Up!]...
....
The notifications had eventually reached a point where Bruce had to subconsciously swipe them away, as they kept obstructing his view.
Despite having killed over a hundred Mutants at this point, their numbers didn’t diminish even in the slightest.
Instead, it seemed to have tripled, as they kept increasing over time. Their numbers easily reached hundreds more than before at this point, as they spilled in like a never-ending torrent of Mutants.
Worst yet, the longer he stayed, the stronger Mutants began to appear as well. Their levels, now bordering close to the double digits, as they all attacked him in a maddened frenzy.
...
Mutants were classified into seven known Ranks, namely;
Lesser Mutant » Greater Mutant » Reaper Mutant » Evolved Mutant » Elite Mutant » Apex Mutant » Calamity Mutant.
Each Mutant Ranking having been gauged under a certain Hunter Threat Level Assessment.
Whereby Lesser Mutants were estimated to be a Novice/Junior Rank Level Threat, and Greater Mutants were deemed Senior Rank Level Threat, and so on...
Despite this, though, it didn’t mean that a single Hunter of the same Rank/Threat level as the Mutant could necessarily win in a direct confrontation.
No!
More often than not, a group of similarly ranked Hunters are required to face against a single Mutant of the same Threat level to win. This was especially true for Higher Ranked Mutants, as their innate strength and power tended to surpass that of Humans by far.
So, the threat assessment was rather more of a minimum requirement suitable to survive an encounter with, and face off against, a Mutant of said Threat-level.
However, there were certain exceptions to this rule.
Extremely rare individuals capable of not just facing creatures of a similar Threat-level, but even higher ones as well.
One such anomaly was now Bruce, as he was not just able to survive an encounter against multiple similar Threat-level Mutants, but also defeat those of a higher Rank as well.
’Maybe it’s a bit too early to say ’survived’, when I’m still surrounded by a never-ending sea of them.’
Cursing in his mind, Bruce continued slaughtering multiple Mutants, as he fought against their absurd numbers.
A bead of sweat trickled down his face as his breathing began getting a bit laboured.
Oddly enough, Bruce wasn’t worried about the absurd numbers of Mutants he was currently facing.
In fact, he was confident that given time, he could easily kill all the Mutants attacking him at the moment.
Though it may sound arrogant given the numbers of Mutants currently surrounding him, but one had to understand that Bruce was by no means ordinary at this point anymore.
After all, most Hunters received about a +2 Stat increase to all their base Stats upon each level upgrade.
Meaning, the average Lvl.1 Hunter had a base Stat of about 5-7, whilst a lvl.2, lvl.3 and lvl.4 Hunter’s base Stats were often around 9-11, 13-15 and 17-19 respectively. The rest followed a similar pattern.
Whereas, Bruce had received a +4 increase to his Base Stats whenever he levelled up, while also gaining additional Bonus Stats and Soul Purity (SP) whenever he killed a Mutant stronger than his current level. Bringing most of his Base Stats to be akin to that of an average level 20 Hunter, despite his current level still being in the single digits.
All these, coupled with the Stats he received from the flashy equipment, as well as his ability to harness Mana should he desire to, exponentially doubling all his physical Stats to an insane level, made him confident in his chances against the overwhelming number of Mutants.
Instead, what truly bothered him were a few things in particular.
Keeping his Diamond Skill still Active as he fought the Mutants, as it didn’t seem to take much of a toll from him, Bruce steeled his nerves as he made up his mind on something.
’This is going to hurt.’
Able to control how hard his body became while using the Skill, he subconsciously willed the hardness to reduce. Enabling a Mutant that had just lunged at his arm once more to finally draw the first drop of blood from him.
The sight caused a shift in the Mutants’ bearing as they smelled the sweet scent of the human before them.
This was especially true for a certain group of Mutants that had remained some distance away since their arrival, simply watching as the rest attacked Bruce, not bothering to intervene.
The others, not daring to even get remotely close to them, left a clear space around the few as the rest rushed towards him with renewed vigor.
Briefly glancing at them, Bruce couldn’t help but mutter at the sight.
"Reapers!"
Though he couldn’t be sure exactly if they were truly Reaper Ranked Mutants or not, as he had no way of telling from a distance. But based on the way the others avoided them, and the Mana that appeared slightly denser and intimidating around them, he deduced that they were at least stronger than the other Lesser and Greater Ranked Mutants surrounding him.
This was particularly so for one amidst the suspected Reaper Mutants, which appeared much bigger. The Mana around it radiated much denser than with the others, as it appeared a bit more unstable and chaotic.
Contrary to the others’ blind state, as their eyes remained sealed shut while they relied on their other senses for direction instead, this one’s eyes appeared opened.
Its foggy crimson eyes, glowing subtly in the dimly lit Caves, glared menacingly at Bruce as it seemed able to make out his position clearly, contrary to the others that relied heavily on their hearing and sense of smell.
Already aware of its presence, Bruce calmly smiled at it while forcefully shoving the Mutant that had bitten his arm hard against the wall, killing it on the spot.
Facing directly at the intimidating Mutant with a smirk still evident on his face, as though taunting it, while making sure to kill the remaining weaker Mutants around, Bruce’s smirk widened as he tightened his grip against the sword before...
Running away!
Not the graceful retreat, or the elegant tactical kind.
No!
Just the raw, run-like-your-life-depends-on-it cause it actually does, kinda running.
Turning tail and dashing at full speed, Bruce easily weaved through the number of Mutants while running at full force and clearing a path for himself as he did. And with his insanely high Stats for his level, it didn’t take long before he was able to run from the pack of frenzied Mutants.
Not giving him a chance to breathe, the Mutants quickly gave chase.
The suspected Reapers followed closely behind as well, as they chased after their prey.
Having to face against more Mutants wasn’t necessarily a problem for Bruce, since he knew he could eventually kill them given his Stats.
Instead, it was the fact that facing them all at once would require a lot of time and Stamina that mildly concerned him.
The latter could easily be resolved thanks to his Endurance Stats, which made it extremely difficult for him to get tired, much less exhausted, making him near immune to fatigue while enabling him to quickly recover after a bit of rest.
What truly bothered him, rather, was time.
Or more precisely, the time left before his Oxygen supply ran out.
Gently tapping against his OmniBand as he ran, Bruce scrolled to the Tier-2 Suit Section.
Double tapping against the Suit icon, a holographic miniaturized version of the suit hovered atop the OmniBand screen as he ran.
The previously fully green parts now displayed multiple sections tinted red, especially around the arm regions. Indicating the parts that had been damaged by the Mutants, and was currently reliant on the thin layer of invisible protection that shielded him from excessive exposure to the Mana Radiations, while the suit attached the edges of the damaged sections to his body, preventing exposure to an extent.
Looking at the functionality and time left, Bruce’s expression shifted subtly.
{Hunter Suit (Tier-2)}
{Current State - 70% Operational (Fairly Damaged)}
{Oxygen Supply Limit Duration- 12hr (X2)}
{Time Left before depletion}
{9hrs: 25mins: 56secs...}
{9hrs: 25mins: 55secs...}
{9hrs: 25mins: 54secs...}
.....
Noticing the time left, he was already aware that he still needed about 4-5 hours for the trip back from here to the City.
Meaning, he had about four hours, give or take, before his Oxygen Supply ran out.
So, unless he planned on dying from lack of oxygen, or exposure to excessive Mana Radiations before reaching the City, he needed to wrap things up, fast.
Tapping the OmniBand once more, the mini-suit hologram shrunk back into the OmniBand.
Now tapping on his Spatial Bracelet instead, it glowed a soft teal tint before a glowing Sphere appeared on his hand.
Recognizing the object as the item he’d bought from the conman, Bruce pressed the circle on the sphere’s surface, causing it to pulse at an alarming rate as the energy around it became highly unstable.
Skidding across the ground as he came to a halt some distance from the rapidly approaching pack of crazed Mutants, he whispered as he hurled the sphere at them.
"Eat this!"