NOVEL NEXT Chapter 115: Full Status Meters, The Guardian of Mist is Summoned
Ding!
[Warning!]
[Mist Summon: 90%]
After around twenty minutes of avoiding most enemies as he headed deeper, Stark's [Status Meter] bar was almost full.
He didn't know exactly where he was now, but judging from how far he'd gone since the center, he guessed he was close to the edge.
The density of the fog was different here.
And soon enough, he started seeing shapes ahead that confirmed it.
---
[Mist Slime (Level 47)]
[Rank: Epic]
[HP: 900,000]
---
[Eyeless Abomination (Level 48)]
[Rank: Legendary]
[HP: 1,000,000]
---
Both monsters stood still in the mist like statues.
They were getting stronger and more imposing as their levels got higher.
The deeper he went, the stronger they became.
But Stark didn't stop. He didn't even slow down.
He resisted the temptation to test them.
He could feel how dangerous they were just from the aura they gave off, but that wasn't fear, it was excitement.
He smirked faintly before lowering his stance and moving past them.
Since these monsters were stronger, he could indeed use [Bind of Silk] on them without them dying.
Their HP was extremely high after all.
If they tried chasing him, he could restrain them and leave.
The [Mist Slime] was the easiest to avoid.
It was massive, slow, and barely reacted to anything that didn't come right up to it.
'Once I defeat the [Guardian of Mist], I'll be able to do whatever I want with these things.'
[Mist Summon: 97%]
Stark exhaled slowly.
The number kept rising, each percent taking roughly ten seconds at this depth.
Each monster that he killed reduced the bar by five to seven percent.
So, he did what he did best: he waited.
[Mist Summon: 98%]
His hand hovered above the hilt of his staff
Every few seconds, the fog shifted unnaturally, as if reacting to the meter itself.
[Mist Summon: 99%]
And right when he was about to get ready for the fight, something caught his attention.
'Huh.'
There was an opening in the ground ahead, a dark, circular hole leading downward.
It looked like a tunnel, glowing faintly with pale mist.
Without wasting time, Stark rushed toward it before the bar could reach full.
Ding!
[You are about to enter a level 42–45 zone: "Mist Cave"]
He stopped. The message floated before him, crisp and clear.
'A zone notification!'
He'd heard of this place before but had never entered it.
But the name alone told him enough: it wasn't what he was looking for.
Not only because the levels didn't match.
But also...
The real bloodline boss wouldn't be found in a zone with a name as plain as [Mist Cave].
[Eternal Soul] had a habit of giving major areas dramatic names.
And after nine years in his past life, Stark could recognize it.
Still, it was tempting.
He'd come back later for sure.
Because at that moment—
[Mist Summon: 100%]
The bar flared brightly, filling completely before flashing silver.
Fwish! Ding!
[You have been inflicted with "Mist Summon" as the "Status Meter" has reached 100%]
One needed to remember that [Status Meters] were still statuses, meaning they actually affected the player's state.
When a meter filled, it didn't trigger an event.
It inflicted something on that player.
And as said once before, the status were much stronger than the normal ones.
The stress of watching your bar climb while knowing what was coming… most players couldn't handle it.
Fwish!
The mist around Stark began to twist violently.
In the corner of his vision, a faint symbol appeared, an icon shaped like a swirling fog.
---
[Status Effect: Mist Summon]
[Description: The "Guardian of Mist" is here.]
---
That line was always the last thing players saw before it happened.
And this time was no different.
The fog thickened until visibility dropped to nothing.
Then, through the gray haze, a massive silhouette appeared.
A heavy thud echoed through the mist as the shape stepped forward, its form slowly materializing.
Ding!
[The "Guardian of Mist" has been summoned.]
The creature was enormous, around five meters tall.
Its frame built from stone and earth, but its joints and empty spaces were made of swirling mist.
Four arms. Four spears.
Two of solid stone, two of shimmering fog.
Its carved eyes glowed faintly white as it stared down at him.
This was the monster every player feared, the executioner of the [Land of Mist].
"Trapped..."
Its deep voice echoed across the fog, almost vibrating through the ground.
The guardian lifted all four spears at once.
"In my domain..."
Fwish!
A wave of pressure burst from the creature, sweeping through the mist like a gale.
The next moment, the ground beneath Stark vanished.
His vision blurred. The air twisted.
Ding!
[You have been transported to the "Mist Domain"]
The scenery changed instantly.
He stood now in a desolate arena made entirely of gray fog and shattered stone.
Visibility was low, but he could feel the guardian's presence pressing down from all sides.
This was the place where the guardian slaughtered players.
It was designed so that once summoned, it could fight you alone.
"Die..."
Spear Throw!
The guardian raised all four weapons and hurled them simultaneously.
Four streaks tore through the air, each one howling like thunder.
For most players, this first attack would be the end.
But Stark was more than ready.
Fwish!
He sidestepped two of the spears.
The other two slammed into his barrier, making it shimmer violently.
-13,200! -12,500!
The hits barely scratched him, only a quarter of his barrier's HP.
Snap!
The guardian snapped its fingers.
The ground below it rumbled as two new stone spears rose from the dirt, while the surrounding mist solidified into two more.
It had completely restored its arsenal in a second.
---
[Guardian of Mist (Level 50)]
[Rank: Mythical (Special Boss)]
[HP: 4,000,000]
---
Bind of Silk!
Stark instantly cast his spell.
If it worked, even for a few seconds, it would be massive.
But—
Slash!
The guardian swung one of its spears, cutting through the silk threads as if they were air.
"The mist shall take you..."
It lowered its body, all four spears now aimed straight at him.
Then it lunged.
Fwish!
Blazing Meteor! Crystal of Death! Piercing Skeletal Spikes!
Three spells launched in perfect succession.
A meteor burned from above, a crystal shot forward, and skeletal spikes erupted from the ground all at once.
But the guardian's movements were fast.
It threw one spear upward, smashing the meteor before it could land.
A second spear deflected the crystal mid-air.
And with an almost graceful leap, it avoided the wave of spikes entirely.
'That thing's agility is insane for its size.' Stark exhaled sharply, 'No wonder it terrified everyone.'
Even in his past life, he'd hated this thing.
Still, once a player defeated the [Guardian of Mist], the [Mist Summon] status disappeared permanently for them.1
You could never meet it again.
The guardian roared and swung down its three remaining spears in a blinding arc.
BOOM!
The impact shattered the ground.
Shards of stone and mist scattered everywhere.
But Stark was already moving.
Torrent of Lightning!
Zap! Zap! Zap!
Three lightning bolts shot, slamming into the guardian's chest before it could recover.
-1,169,640! -1,169,640! -1,169,640!
Three hits. Nearly all its HP gone in seconds.
The guardian staggered, its body crackling from the electric bursts.
"A..." Its voice trembled, "...God...?"
Stark's eyes narrowed as he heard that, his grip tightening on his staff.
Blazing Meteor!
He raised it again, but this time, the guardian reacted faster.
"No..."
A blinding silver light poured from its eyes.
"I... won't allow it..."
Mist Claws!
Two colossal hands of fog burst from the ground, slicing the meteor into pieces before it could fall.
Then it pointed all four arms at him again.
"I... will kill..."
"Hm."
Stark didn't even flinch.
His focus sharpened, calm as ever.
The mist howled between them, the air tense with the weight of two powers colliding.
Only for the player by the way, all others will still be affected