Nightmare Paradise : Starting as a Doctor

"This place is likely a breeding ground for monsters," Lynn supposed, his eyes narrowing as he observed the unsettling scene. The concentrated spiritual energy he was perceiving seemed to pulse from within.

Stepping closer, he cautiously approached the mining tunnel, his senses on high alert. The air felt thick and heavy, carrying a distinct stench that made his nose wrinkle in distaste. It was a disgusting, decaying odor that set nerves on edge.

Activating [Spiritual Vision], he peered into the darkness, his gaze cutting through the gloom. The passage was not a mere straight corridor but a vast underground labyrinth stretching far beyond the reach of his sight.

The walls were coated in a web-like substance, glistening with an unnatural sheen. Massive silk strands as thick as cables were stretched from ceiling to floor, wall to wall, crossing the entire space in an enormous lattice.

Farther, he could make out numerous shapes moving, their forms obscured by the shadows. “When I hoped for a lot of similar creatures, I did not quite imagine this,” he thought, torn between feeling blessed or cursed.

Calmly stepping back from the opening, he decided to retreat before the things inside could notice his presence, but unfortunately, that was already too late as a faint rustling noise rang from the depths.

Sudden, piercing screeches shattered the silence, their forceful reverberations causing the walls to vibrate and startling him into instinctive tension. The roars were followed quickly by the skittering sounds of creatures crawling closer.

Realizing he had been detected, his mind raced through possibilities. Fleeing was not an option; if he ran, the spiders would certainly hunt him down, wreaking havoc and jeopardizing his plan to remain undisturbed in the area.

The only other option was to face them head-on. Oddly enough, Lynn did not feel the usual apprehension, but a thrill of excitement gushed through him, provoked by the adrenaline running through his veins.

Gripping Flame Edge firmly, he advanced toward the gloomy maze. Immediately, the rancid stench intensified, accompanied by a cacophony of screeches and clicking mandibles, creating a chaotic symphony.

Suspended among the thick silks were dozens, no, hundreds of figures. They were countless arachnids, their bodies varying in size, but the multiple eyes gleamed in unison with a predatory light.

Feeling their collective gaze settle upon him, he squared his shoulders, his senses sharp and focused despite the nightmarish scene before him, directly plucked from a horror movie.

A strong, deliberate inhale filled his lungs, expanding his chest with force and anticipation. "Time to put my new strength to the test," he declared loudly, announcing the beginning of the fight.

Simultaneously, his muscles violently proliferated, each fiber swelling with raw power. Without activating his unique talent, he could now easily use and control this enhancement technique with surgical precision.

But he was not done yet. "Let’s thin the herd and even the odds," he muttered, his eyes glinting ruthlessly. The odds were not in his favor, surrounded and outnumbered in their natural habitat, but he intended to change that.

To the surprise of the surrounding enemies, the hand holding the blade started to distort. The skin rapidly peeled away, and the flesh burst and overflowed, separating into multiple slithering tentacles.

They curved and coiled around the hilt tightly, warping into an elongated spear-like form. The once-familiar sword was now an extension of the arm, and with a subtle injection of energy, Lynn ignited it.

Raising the flaming lance, shining in an intense red color, he pointed it directly at the heart of the web-like structure. The fleshy tendrils pulsed in synchronicity with a rhythmic, unsettling beat.

"Burn," he controlled, his voice low and barely audible. The fiery energy surged forth, roaring through the air like a living, ravenous beast. It sliced through the thick strands, torching them instantly.

The combination of [Cell Distortion] and [Spirit Threading] allowed his limb to grotesquely elongate and stretch outward without limits, the bony structure extending as tendons and muscles closely followed.

Scorching flames erupted, rapidly spreading as the fibrous material provided ample fuel. Shrill screeches echoed through the tunnels as they attempted to retreat, their coordinated movements disrupted by the abrupt inferno.

He pressed his assault, his arm lashing out continuously like a deadly whip, carving paths of destruction. Wherever the burning blade touched, the silk disintegrated into ash, igniting a roaring blaze.

After letting the fire spread for a moment, he finally saw the first victims appear amidst the billowing clouds of black haze. With that, he retracted his overextended arm, returning it to its original form.

Tiny spiders, no bigger than a human head, began falling on the rough stone floor below, their thin limbs twitching as they succumbed to the devastating conflagration that consumed their fragile nests.

Though small in size compared to the others, their numbers were the most. Countless dropped from the ceiling and walls, lifeless and utterly charred. The few that had managed to survive clambered over the corpses of their fallen comrades in a frenzied panic.

Lynn eyed them calmly, unperturbed. He walked onward and raised Flame Edge, readying to end their suffering. But as he was about to attack, a disturbance in the acrid smoke caught his keen sight.

Hulking arachnids, the size of large dogs, crashed through the burning webs, their powerful bodies knocking aside smaller, smoldering carcasses as they surged and rushed forward.

Their glowing red eyes fixed on him, intent on eliminating this intruder who dared to disrupt their territory. As the first monster neared, its gaping maw opened to reveal the articulated fangs dripping with venom.

He held his ground, eyes narrowing in concentration. Just as the creature was about to pounce, he swiftly thrust the fiery sword in a precise motion. The sharp tip pierced the thick exoskeleton, eliciting a high-pitched screech.

But before he could complete the finishing blow, another massive spider barreled, its eight legs propelling it with surprising speed. Forced to stop and shift his attention, he effortlessly dodged the attack.

"This is not going to work," he frowned slightly. Taking on the relentless horde of enemies one by one was inefficient. Unfortunately, he could not summon Bloody Reaper, the powerful sidearm that had been so crucial in past battles. 

The mystical firearm had undergone some magical transformation during the sublimation ritual, causing it to become temporarily dormant. Lynn could feel its presence, but something prevented him from accessing it.

Without hesitation, his other hand distorted, the skin receding as the bones underneath proliferated and reshaped. Sharp, skeletal protrusions arose, converting his limb into a wickedly serrated edge.

He pushed the grotesque, clawed appendage forward to meet the incoming enemy. The bony spikes avoided the thick exoskeletons and perforated the exposed joints with sickening crunches.

They were not strong enough to directly penetrate the extraordinary defense. "Maybe I should find a creature with powerful bones to mimic," Lynn mused for a second, imagining transforming his body into a killing machine.

"Their carapace is also a good choice to add to my arsenal," he continued. But these thoughts were rapidly interrupted by the approach of a new wave, replacing the ones that had just collapsed.

The more he fought, the more he realized the remarkable advantages granted by his recent sublimation. His strength, speed, and endurance had all been enhanced significantly, crushing smoothly the spiders.

Although the size of the arachnids he encountered continued to increase, his confidence grew with each successful strike, driving him to intensify his offensive, carving a path through the horde and delving deeper into the maze.

What began with monsters no larger than a head rapidly escalated to those the size of large dogs and then to even larger ones approaching the dimensions of horses. But to him, this constant escalation made little difference.

Lynn became a whirlwind of destruction. Where he struck, the bodies crumbled, internal structures unable to withstand the searing heat and raw power behind each blow. It was as if he were cleaving through rotten wood.

This one-sided carnage continued for what felt like an eternity. The monotony was broken only by the occasional shift in the enemy tactics. Some would attempt to swarm him, while others would try to flank or ambush him from the ceiling. But none of these efforts proved successful.

Suddenly, powerful tremors shook the labyrinth in its totality, forcing him to pause and reassess his surroundings. A profound, rumbling shriek that raised the hairs on his neck accompanied the vibrations.

"Is the final boss ready to make a move?" he muttered silently, sensing something significant. His muscle fibers rippled and contracted violently, echoing the silent warning of a storm on the horizon.