Arena

Brennus room.

Brennus opened the Mystic Dimension and wondered how to store the credit card. The card in his hands suddenly vanished and appeared as an item in the Mystic Dimension.

"Neat."

He gulped down the two XP Potions he got from Escort Quest, rising to level 6. Five percent more, and he will be level 7. He added 5 stats points to dexterity and 5 to vitality.

Next, he opened the Mystery Box. The box spat out three items — a sword and two red potions.

[1 X Bloodbane Sword, 2 X Health Potions added to the Mystic Dimension.]

It wouldn't be wise to keep his Lightsword up every time as its glow attracted a lot of attention. Health Potions will save his life in tough times.

He described this as,

"Perfect timing."

He summoned the new sword—a pure black blade reflecting a metallic glint with a red orb embedded in its hilt.

[Bloodbane Sword]

[Item Rank: D (Upgradable)]

[An one-handed sword enchanted with a witch's power. Its blade never gets dull as long as it feeds on fresh blood. It will automatically upgrade after accumulating enough Blood Essence.]

[When equipped: Strength +10]

[Health Potion (Consumable)]

[Item Rank: E]

[Recovers 40 HP every second for a total of ten seconds.]

"Decent, I guess."

He stored back the stuff and prepared for a short nap to recover from the 'tiny' hangover. Since his roommate didn't return, he got the whole room to swing his legs around.

After a short nap, he opened the dungeon menu and chose the 'Barbaric Arena' under the Barbaric Age.

[Barbaric Arena: You will be sent to fight in an arena to fight brute barbarians. Only the victor will live to tell their tale.]

[Rules: Only accessible until level 30. You will have a minute before the match starts.]

[Rewards: Winning a round will award 5x XP of the barbarian killed. Winning three rounds in a row will be rewarded with a Mystery Box and 1000 XP. Winning five rounds in a row will be rewarded with two Mystery Boxes and 5000 XP. Winning all ten rounds will be rewarded with a B-Rank artifact.]

The rewards tempted him to win ten battles straight. He suppressed the greed boiling in his blood and double-checked his stuff. Sword, potions, and his equipment were in order.

"Time to kill some savages."

He pressed the 'Create Dungeon now' option.

The air swirled before him like a mini typhoon. The strong current didn't do shit to the things in the room.

The spiritual storm came to an end, and a vortex sprouted from its core.

[Dungeon created.]

"Interesting."

As he reached out, the vortex sucked him in. He spun to the ebbs of the vortex as though it was a giant washing machine, and he was the tiny piece of cloth spinning round and round.

The endless spins ended, and the sunlight pouring down on him blinded him. Brennus covered the light with his hand and observed the giant man, or rather his first opponent. A reptilian skull covered his face, showing a pair of black savage eyes. Regular 9mm bullets will find it hard to penetrate his figure carved out of a slab of solid muscle.

[Skullfang (Level 7 Barbarian)]

[Main Skill: Hard skin.]

"Level 7, eh." Brennus grinned. "I'll be a disgrace if I lose with a Cosmic Entity patting my back."

"That's the confidence, my boy. I'm ending the countdown."

Brennus peered at his surroundings to find himself in a pit being looked down at by a crowd of barbarians frozen above him. His eyes turned cold. Being below some savages ignited his blood with fury. He clenched the Bloodbane sword in his left hand and the primary weapon in his dominant hand.

'Do it.'

"Skullfang!"

"Take his head."

"Chop him in half!"

"I betted my entire purse on you, Mainlander. Crush this man with your bare hands."

Hundreds of violent cheers rained down.

The barbarian revealed his rotten yellow teeth. "Yo little man, pray to the god you worship. It's the last time you'll do it."

Skullfang closed the distance with speed unfitting his giant stature and slammed his fists down on Brennus. Brennus's head buzzed in a warning. He leaned forward and rolled through the gaps between the barbarian's legs.

This time fully ready for the barbarian's assault, Brennus evaded the barrage of punches with ease. The giant, tired of his agile moves, spun his leg. Brennus blocked the kick with his light sword and slashed Skullfang's calves with the Bloodbane. The blood trickled toward the gem on the Bloodbane sword and evoked mysterious runes on the blade.

Skullfang became horrified at the blood ritual. The sudden slip gave Brennus time to thrust his Lightsword, piercing the barbarian's ribs.

"Oooooo."

Skullfang clutched the blade and released a monstrous roar before trying to pull the sword. The barbarian almost laughed in glee seeing the sword barely an inch inside. But one look at Brennus's grin stretching ear to ear, froze his blood.

Brennus slid the sword back and twisted as he did, rupturing his internals into pulp.

The arena fell silent.

Brennus knocked back the barbarian with a kick and pulled the sword.

"Fucking savages are born for combat."

He lost much of his edge after rotting in hell. Still, his Lightsword pierced the barbarian's body with extreme ease. The barbarian's body dissipated into purple specks.

[Round finished.]

[+1750 XP]

[Level up!]

[5 Stat Points received!]

Time halted again. Brennus quickly checked his status.

'93.5% into level 8.'

Brennus dumped all the points into dexterity. Even a level 7 barbarian's strength was on par with him, much less the higher-level ones. So dodging and counterattacking was the best option.

[Proceed to next round?]

"Yes."

Time resumed, and a savage landed in the pit. He donned a pauldron on his right shoulder and a rag covered his lower body.

[Snake Lord (Level 10 Barbarian)]

[Main Skill: Poisoned daggers.]

A countdown appeared above his head.

"Poison, huh. Abnormal Resistance can slow down its effects. I've to dodge his attacks… continue."

Snake Lord swung his head, flicking off his long black hair. He licked his daggers with a wicked grin and launched himself at Brennus.

"You're mine."

Brennus slashed, forcing a retreat out of his opponent. He had no wish to test the limits of his Abnormal Resistance skill now. Snake Lord tried the same attack again, and Brennus responded with the same thrust. Snake Lord leaned his entire weight on the right to dodge and spun like a top.

The agility couldn't catch Brennus off guard. Brennus ducked to dodge the dangerous blades and swept his legs in a sweeping kick. The savage jumped, doing a backflip, and landed safely.

"I still haven't adapted to fighting in this body and senses."

The thought of fighting with one sword entered his head, but he shook it away. With two overpowered swords, it'd be a waste not to learn the technique.

He beckoned the Snake Lord. "Come here, bitch."

The barbarian slithered closer, attacking in a weird yet fluid movement that might as well be how drunken masters fought, pushing Brennus on edge. Brennus was trying to discern the Snake Lord's rhythm and adapt to his flow.

'Got it.'

The Snake Lord stomped his right foot into the sandy pit and thrust his dagger in Brennus's stomach. Brennus saw it coming from miles away and grabbed the snake's wrist, shoving his sword simultaneously.

Snake Lord's eyes flew open as the Light sword impaled his guts. Brennus didn't waste another moment and wrenched down his guts.

The Snake Lord collapsed, and time froze once again.

[Skill acquired: Battle Instinct.]

[Round finished.]

[+3500XP]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

[10 stat points received!]

His efforts weren't in vain.

***

Name: Brennus

Level: 9 (66.79% to next level)

HP: 450/450

SP: 370/370

Current Race: Newborn Angel

Class: None

Title: Limb Butcher

Traits: Barbarian, Scholar, Cosmic Dweller, Aphrodite's Child, Super Sense, Master Swordsman, Master Smith.

Strength: 45 (+5 from Unholy Vengeance, +10 from Bloodbane Sword)

Vitality: 45

Dexterity: 55 (+10 From Reaper's Shroud)

Intelligence: 37 (+5 From Unholy Vengeance)

Wisdom: 37 (+5 From Reaper's Shroud)

Luck: 25

Stat Points: 10

Skills:

[Death's Blessing Lvl. Max (Passive)]

[Beyond Death Lvl. Max (Passive)]

[Mystic Wings (Active) Lvl. 1]

[Divine Essence Manipulation Lvl. 3 (Active)]

[Ignore Lvl. 2 (Passive)]

[Telepathy Lvl. 2 (Active)]

[Sword Mastery Lvl. 3 (Passive)]

[Levitation Lvl. 1 (Active)]

[Create Dungeon Lvl. 1 (Active)]

[Poker Face Lvl. 1 (Passive)]

[Battle Instinct Lvl. 2 (Passive)]

Current Quests:

[An Eye for an Eye, a Soul for another Soul]

[The Real Angel of Death]

[The Forgotten Past]

Current Equipment:

[Unholy Vengeance (E)]

[Reaper's Shroud (D)]

[1 X Mystery Box]