Starting Unlimited Evolution from Grinding

Chapter 260: Level 6 Shadow Clone, a Powerful Crystal Cluster Guardian

【Shadow Split】 proficiency +50

【Shadow Split】 proficiency +60

.......

"Skill 【Shadow Split】 Lv4 (200/200) has leveled up!"

"Current skill 【Shadow Split】 Lv5 (81/360)"

It reached level 5.

However, the higher the skill level, the more proficiency points it truly requires.

Based on previous experience, the level cap for blue Exceptional-Grade skills is level 7. Therefore, Epic Level skills are at least level 8, possibly even level 9!

Fully leveling up an Epic Level skill is undoubtedly an extremely difficult task.

Level 5 to 6 requires 360 proficiency points. Level 6 to 7, following the previous pattern, should be double that of an Exceptional-Grade skill, meaning 600 proficiency points. Looking further ahead, from level 7 to 8, the required amount is already unknown.Lin Mo estimated it might need 1000 points, and from level 8 to 9 would be even more...

But this is normal, after all, above Epic Level skills are Legendary Level skills!

That is the highest tier of skills.

At least in Lin Mo's current understanding, there are no skills more powerful than Legendary Level.

Skills of this level are certainly not that easy to obtain.

Forget about Transcendent Level, even those Heroic Realm powerhouses standing at the pinnacle of the Empire, or even the entire continent, might not necessarily master Legendary Level skills.

Probably only legendary-level powerhouses like Lorenth Valania, who disappeared many years ago, could be confirmed to possess more than one Legendary Level skill.

Right now, being able to master so many Epic Level skills, Lin Mo is already quite satisfied.

At this moment, about half a day had passed since they arrived at the lower level of the Boulder Mine, and a long time had passed since they repelled the Deep Rock Colossus.

During this roughly half-day period, only two or three magical creatures wandered here, all of which had turned into Lin Mo's proficiency points.

One of the magical creatures was a white, plump worm, about three to four meters long and roughly one meter in diameter.

Then....

Then Dirk started to get creative.

"Actually, this thing is really quite tasty."

He said with a serious expression, holding a skewer of roasted golden-brown worm meat, offering it to Lin Mo.

Lin Mo's eye twitched, his entire body instinctively resisting.

"Don't not believe me..."

Dirk scratched his head, "I wouldn't lie to you. This thing has high nutritional value, the energy inside is also very rich, it's..."

"Eight times that of a Magic Horned Bull."

Luke immediately chimed in, his mouth already greasy from eating.

The Magic Horned Bull is considered a relatively common precious ingredient for powerful adventurers.

This elite magical creature, due to its delicious meat, strong survival and adaptability, low aggression, and decent reproductive ability, can be considered a nearly perfect edible magical creature. So in some places, they are already being raised in captivity.

Of course, this thing is still very expensive;

ordinary adventurers can't afford it.

Even Silver Level adventurers only splurge occasionally to enjoy a feast of Magic Horned Bull meat.

Watching everyone eating happily, even the students were looking at it with shining eyes. Lin Mo couldn't help but feel curious, so he tried picking up a skewer of prepared meat and placed it over the fire.

He didn't season it, just simply grilled it. The sizzling sound reached his ears, and the aroma of roasting fat wafted over.

It seems... it really is quite good?

Lin Mo looked at the grilled meat and leaned closer to smell it.

Very fragrant, the meat was still snow-white, looking like it wouldn't be tough at all, very tender.

Lin Mo tried taking a bite and immediately raised an eyebrow.

Crunchy, chicken... uh, not chicken flavor.

It was more like lobster, with a very good texture. Even without seasoning, it was quite tasty.

Lin Mo sprinkled some sea salt on it and took another bite.

Rich juices exploded in his mouth. If he didn't think about it being a worm, it was absolutely top-quality deliciousness, indeed better than Magic Horned Bull.

"How is it? Didn't lie to you, right?"

Dirk put an arm around his shoulder and smiled, rarely showing a more relaxed expression during a mission.

But soon, he turned to look towards the cave entrance, checking the situation outside.

After overcoming the mental barrier, Lin Mo grilled several skewers in a row. Even Finnie ate two or three skewers. Judging by her expression, she still had some psychological resistance, but the excellent taste made her unable to stop.

As for Ellie... she didn't care about these things at all;

she had already gone crazy eating.

However, a few people in the student team had little appetite. On one hand, they naturally couldn't bring themselves to eat a creature like a worm;

on the other hand, it was also because they were still in a dangerous situation.

The cave was narrow to begin with, which amplified the oppressive feeling in their hearts.

Staying in such an environment for a long time made these students very uncomfortable.

Although they were second-year students of the Royal National Academy and often went out for training expeditions, there was still a difference between training and real adventure.

There were slight differences in difficulty selection between the two, and the mindset was worlds apart. To put it bluntly, most students simply didn't have the resolve to fight magical creatures to the death.

"Probably in about another day, support from the academy should arrive."

"Faster maybe, perhaps they'll come in half a day!"

They chatted in fragments, saying a sentence and then falling silent for a long time, clearly already thinking about quickly returning to the academy, lying on a comfortable soft bed, enjoying the delicious food sent by the academy, mostly with attendants to take care of them.

"I hope we can just wait smoothly for rescue down here. I don't want to fight anymore..."

"Me too. The days of studying inside the academy are really better. I'll never say classes are boring again!"

......

Eve listened to these words and frowned almost imperceptibly.

She wouldn't blame them. For people who had been called geniuses by those around them since childhood and had smooth sailing all the way, having such thoughts was normal.

Moreover, although she enjoyed growing through battle and welcomed challenges, now was indeed not the right time.

For the sake of growth and becoming stronger, she could be less concerned about her own safety, but she couldn't joke with other people's lives.

Involving the weak, involving innocent people, was the behavior she despised and hated the most.

Time passed bit by bit.

Unknowingly, they had stayed in this narrow cave for nearly a day.

During this time, they all rested intermittently, taking short naps.

Lin Mo performed some meditation. For him, when the time wasn't too long, meditation was actually a more relaxing and restful way than sleeping.

Somewhat to his surprise, Milun did the same.

Although compared to him, Milun's level of immersion and proficiency in meditation was clearly much lower, at least she entered a meditative state, which already surpassed the vast majority of mages.

The talents of these academy students were indeed very high.

The longer the waiting time, the closer the dawn seemed, yet the more likely it was to make people lose patience.

Even the members of the adventurer team on Dirk's side were clearly less composed than at the beginning.

"How much longer do we have to wait?"

"Should... be soon..."

"This mission has taken too long. After going back, I want to rest properly for a month or two."

"Me too. Meet at the usual place then?"

"Haha, definitely!"

Such seemingly relaxed conversations were actually masking and alleviating the anxiety in their hearts.

Lin Mo used the 【Shadow Split】 skill again, sending out a clone to scout outside.

During this period, without affecting his own condition, he would occasionally send clones to "harvest the autumn wind" nearby, seeing if they could encounter magical creatures.

Because of this, later on, no magical creatures had approached this area at all.

This place was already relatively remote. Even if a magical creature happened to wander over, it would quickly be killed by Lin Mo's clone.

Thanks to this, Lin Mo's 【Shadow Split】 skill proficiency had reached Lv5 (291/360), only a few dozen points away from leveling up.

Killing two more magical creatures, and this skill would level up.

Lin Mo calculated these things in his mind while controlling the clone to continuously search the surroundings.

No magical creatures were found nearby. Lin Mo controlled the clone to continue forward. After searching for quite a while with little gain, he was already prepared to return empty-handed again. However, just as the clone's duration had less than half a minute left, a commotion suddenly came from ahead.

"Lin Mo" looked up and gazed forward. From the dark and deep depths of the mine, faint and fragmented sounds were gradually approaching.

It was just a clone, fearless. "Lin Mo" simply rushed towards the direction of the sound at the fastest speed.

Soon, the scene presented before him made his heart skip a beat.

"This is..."

The magical creature appearing before him looked somewhat humanoid, its entire body covered in colorful crystals. It looked somewhat similar to the shells of the Crystallized Spiders encountered earlier, but not the same.

Clearly, the crystal protection on these magical creatures was much sturdier.

In other words, these guys were most likely more powerful magical creatures than the Crystallized Spiders.

Because this type of magical creature was relatively less common, Lin Mo couldn't recall their name immediately. Moreover, the clone's remaining time was already short, leaving no time for slow thinking.

Anyway, testing directly would reveal their depth.

"Lin Mo" immediately took action, actively charging towards the magical creature at the very front.

Although he couldn't use skills, his swift movements combined with the replicated "Frost Dragon Scale Sword" in his hand still made for formidable combat power.

Lin Mo slashed at the magical creature. The colorful crystals instantly shattered, but Lin Mo's expression suddenly changed.

He actually hadn't completely severed the magical creature with one sword!

Although in terms of result, it wasn't much different from a clean cut, only the last bit remained, and the magical creature before him was indeed killed in one move, this was already very telling.

You have to know, Lin Mo's clones all had 158 points of Strength!

This meant these guys' Constitution attribute was at least over 100 points!

Level 9 or even level 10 magical creatures?

The ensuing proficiency prompt confirmed Lin Mo's thoughts.

【Shadow Split】 proficiency +70

70 proficiency points, it really was a level 9 magical creature!

Lin Mo frowned. There were quite a few of these guys in front of him, about a dozen in number.

And among them was an exceptionally powerful individual.

After seeing one of its companions nearly cut in half by Lin Mo, that "crystal person" that looked distinctly special immediately attacked.

It even had a weapon in its hand, swinging a greatsword also covered in colorful crystals, hacking towards Lin Mo.

The speed wasn't very fast, but the movements were steady.

"Lin Mo" didn't dodge, choosing instead to clash head-on with the opponent.

"Ding—!"

A crisp sound rang out. "Lin Mo's" body trembled. The heavy pressure transmitted through his hand made his expression change, and then he was sent flying backward. Upon landing, his arm was already fractured, and his internal organs suffered significant damage.

Looking at the other side, however, it remained motionless, seemingly completely unaffected.

Such strong power!

It had at least a crushing advantage over Lin Mo's clone. Such a casually delivered strike was enough to severely injure his clone.

The opponent's level was at least level 13, possibly even reaching level 14!

Interesting...

Lin Mo smiled. Honestly, after being promoted to Elite and his strength receiving a massive boost, he really wanted to find a capable opponent and have a good fight.

This magical creature before him probably wouldn't disappoint him...

The clone's duration had only ten seconds left. "Lin Mo" slowly let out a breath.

Well then, let's give it a little greeting gift first.

The next moment, he charged towards the magical creature again. Just at the instant before they were about to collide, an orange-red light suddenly flared.

"Boom—!"

The roaring explosion could be heard even from the cave area.

"What's going on? What's going on?"

Luke was startled, hurriedly standing up with his sword.

"Looks like magical creatures are coming again?"

Dirk looked at Lin Mo beside him with an inquiring gaze.

Lin Mo nodded, "Looks like slightly troublesome guys. Everyone, get ready..."

"Alright, it's about time to move around a bit."

Luke said while walking towards the cave entrance.

However, the next moment, Lin Mo pressed a hand on his shoulder.

"What I meant wasn't for you to prepare for battle."

Lin Mo shook his head, "The opponent's strength has already exceeded what you can handle."

A level 5 warrior like Luke could still fight against level 6 enemies and play some role, but it was already quite strenuous.

Facing magical creatures above level 7 carried significant risk. Once there was any negligence, serious injury or even life-threatening danger was possible.

And the magical creatures currently heading this way had a minimum level of 9!

Moreover, while possessing great strength, their Constitution and Strength attributes were also similar, giving them quite formidable defense. Even if they stood still and let him hit, he probably couldn't break their defense.

Even a level 7 ranger like Hahn couldn't be of much help, at most providing a little bit of distraction.

Among everyone present, only three and a half could truly fight those magical creatures.

Lin Mo, Eve, Dirk, and Milun...

Milun was the half. Although she was only level 7, she was not far from level 8. And as a mage, her situation was slightly better than the others, though not by much.

Time was short. Lin Mo hastily described the situation of those magical creatures to them.

Upon hearing the information about levels 9 and 10, Luke immediately stopped arguing and obediently sat back down.

Dirk looked serious, clearly under great pressure.

Milun was even more nervous, tightly gripping her staff, sweat beading on her forehead.

Eve was clearly calmer than the two of them, silently picking up her sword and walking outside the cave.

Finnie also took out her staff, ready to buff them at any time.

"Relax, don't be nervous."

Lin Mo patted Milun's slightly trembling shoulder, "Stay further back, do your best, don't feel pressured. Leave it to us."

"O... okay..."

Although he comforted her like this, Milun clearly still found it difficult to relax immediately.

Lin Mo's gaze then swept over Dirk and Eve, meeting theirs in turn.

No need for words;

everything was understood without speaking.

Lin Mo also drew his sword, standing in front of the two, and then took a moment to check the information before him.

After killing a level 9 magical creature earlier and receiving the proficiency points, the 【Shadow Split】 skill finally reached level 6.

"Skill 【Shadow Split】 Lv5 (360/360) has leveled up!"

"Current skill 【Shadow Split】 Lv6 (1/600)"

"Gained basic attribute points: Agility+4, Strength+1!"

The 1 point of Strength was a small bonus, insignificant, but these 4 points of Agility were added just right.

Lin Mo's original base Agility attribute was 76 points. Adding these 4 points brought it exactly to 80.

"Promotion conditions met. Profession Assassin (lv7) promoted — Current profession Assassin (lv8)"

"Gained profession attribute enhancement: Strength+2, Agility+4, Constitution+2!"

Later profession promotions often emphasize balance. The main attribute is certainly the most important, but secondary attributes are also given to some extent.

Besides the Assassin profession, there was also the Ranger profession.

"Promotion conditions met. Profession Ranger (lv7) promoted — Current profession Ranger (lv8)"

"Gained profession attribute enhancement: Strength+2, Agility+4, Constitution+1, Spirit+1!"

Compared to the Assassin profession, the Ranger profession had 1 less point of Constitution, allocated to Spirit.

After all, the Ranger profession requires aiming, and the Spirit attribute is quite helpful in that regard.

Two profession levels were upgraded at once. However, after just experiencing the massive bonuses from the special profession, these improvements, for the current Lin Mo, could only be considered better than nothing.

"They're coming!"

Just as Lin Mo finished reading the information and was about to choose an evolution route, from the darkness in the distance, beyond their sight, fragmented sounds came over.

Those figures covered in colorful crystals gradually appeared within their line of sight.

As the distance between both sides gradually closed, they finally saw the appearance of these magical creatures clearly.

"Crystal Cluster Guards?"

Dirk's voice sounded.

Indeed, the experience of such an old adventurer was very rich;

he recognized this type of magical creature at a glance.

"It seems, just as the rumors say, the mineral deposits in the deep layer of the Boulder Mine are even more abundant than the upper two layers..."