Chapter Fourteen: Solo Speedrun Through the Gorge!

Icefield Staff
Equipment Requirement Level: 10
Quality: E
Attributes: Intelligence +20, Endurance +13
Special Effect: Increases all spell and magic effects’ damage and healing by up to 30 points
...
In truth, when the two green orbs of light appeared, Yi Shen already had a sense of foreboding. Previously, despite having slain numerous monsters, he’d only encountered green orbs three or four times, and those had yielded only ordinary items—his luck had been far from impressive. Upon entering this dungeon, however, Yi Shen felt certain he was due for something worthwhile.
A streak of misfortune could not last forever.
Surely, in this vast expanse of pure white, his luck was about to turn.
But what he hadn’t expected was that the very first two minor monsters by the entrance would deliver such a surprise!
Not only did they drop a weapon, but it turned out to be a staff perfectly suited for magic users, reaching E-grade quality!!
The Icefield Staff’s attributes seemed simple, yet every effect aligned exquisitely with a mage’s needs!
Especially the second effect—increasing spell damage and healing—meant Yi Shen’s power would rise to a whole new level!
With a swift movement, under Yi Shen’s summon, a staff over a meter long, crafted from ice crystal, appeared before him. The workmanship was exquisite, engraved with patterns reminiscent of ice-thorned grass, and holding it sent a chill straight to the bone.
Yi Shen was genuinely fond of this staff—in his hand, it looked not only impressive but also enhanced his magic damage. If a monster drew close, he could even use the staff for melee combat!
The only slight regret was that his current level was insufficient; holding the staff granted him no special attribute bonuses yet. Only when he met the requirements would the system panel display the extra spell enhancements.
Still, this staff was an unexpected delight for the moment.
What truly satisfied Yi Shen was his monster-clearing efficiency and the experience he gained from soloing this dungeon!
Earlier, when fighting Sand Dune Worms and Snow Serpents outside, each monster yielded only a single experience point—progress was agonizingly slow.
But here, in this secret realm, each monster granted him 34 experience points—a veritable paradise for leveling up!
He gave the staff a swing.
Yi Shen resolved to press forward.
He’d dispatched the two monsters in about half a minute; as long as he remained mindful of the monsters’ aggro, he could safely grind alone in this dungeon.
Perhaps, once he leveled up enough to wield the staff, he’d no longer fear level-based damage reduction and could speed up his ascent yet again!
...
There were roughly a dozen types of monsters in the Frozen Gorge.
At the entrance, the primary foes were Ice Thorn Grass Fiends and Ice Spike Grass Fiends; further in, snow serpents and snow bears began to appear.
Yi Shen advanced cautiously, dispatching lone monsters or small groups, but giving larger packs a wide berth.
In just half an hour, he’d dispatched nearly thirty monsters, gaining over nine hundred experience points—enough to push his level straight to 8!
According to forum posts, a newcomer without guidance would typically need between half a month to a full month to gain a level in the early stages.

But now, Yi Shen reckoned that soloing in a ten-man dungeon, he could gain a level in just half an hour to an hour!
Since this secret realm had been thoroughly explored by predecessors, the forum strategies and tips were extremely detailed.
Relying on this knowledge, Yi Shen ventured deeper.
Except for an instance where he was struck by an ice crystal and lost over eighty health points, he passed through unscathed.
Yet that one hit made him considerably more cautious.
He soon realized a serious problem:
Though his attack power allowed him to defeat monsters above his level, this was, after all, a team-based dungeon. As a mage, he could hardly withstand direct assaults from monsters.
He still possessed no survival skills; aside from the yet-unusable staff, his equipment was mostly basic F-grade, so he had to remain vigilant never to let himself fall into peril!
If he died here by mistake, it would cost him dearly.
With this in mind, Yi Shen slowed his pace to minimize risk.
Sometimes, he even refrained from casting Arcane Blast—instead, after tossing a Firebomb, he would retreat swiftly, chipping away at the monsters’ health from a distance.
Time crept by.
After roughly an hour and a half, Yi Shen leveled up from 8 to 9 and arrived at the entrance of a massive cavern.
He had already cleared out most monsters along the branching paths leading to the cavern.
According to the strategies, he had reached the second phase of the dungeon.
Within the cavern dwelled a unique elite monster, serving as the guardian boss.
Only by defeating this elite could Yi Shen proceed further. The elite was formidable, having stymied many teams and even claimed the lives of numerous members.
Now, Yi Shen hesitated—should he attempt to solo this elite?
Many guides had been written, but most focused on ten-man runs or high-level players returning to crush the monsters.
For a newcomer below level 10 to challenge a level 15 elite was no small feat.
Of course, if he could slay the monster, his power would surge yet again.
But if things went awry, he might not even escape from the dungeon.
“Still need 700 experience points to level up.”
Yi Shen checked his stats and took a deep breath.
Now at level 9, he needed nine hundred experience to reach the next level—he was nearly two-thirds of the way there.
If he didn’t defeat this monster, it would be difficult to find another such ideal leveling spot elsewhere, unless he waited for the next dungeon reset to clear the first half again, slowing his progress.
After much deliberation, Yi Shen decided first to research and dismantle the equipment and materials in his backpack.
If research and dismantling yielded new skills or attributes, he would attempt to defeat the elite for the experience.
If not, it would be wiser to exit the dungeon for now, wait until he leveled further or until his father returned and could accompany him for a full clear.
With that in mind, he set down his backpack and emptied his inventory.

He had nearly fifty assorted materials—not as many as last time, but nearly all were top F-grade or E-grade. Among the loot were two F-grade and one E-grade pieces of equipment.
Their stats were rather mediocre, so he included them as research materials.
He drew a deep breath.
A pale blue radiance appeared before him, enveloping the materials, breaking them down and absorbing them one by one.
Threads of energy were drawn out and entered Yi Shen’s body.
System prompts began to chime once more on his panel.
...
Ding! You have conducted a spell research session. The absorbed materials have yielded 55 research points.
This session granted: Intelligence +40, Endurance +20, Spirit +17, Strength +12, Agility +11, Skill: Summon Wind Elemental (D)
Ding! Your spell research points are sufficient; the Mage’s Heart talent has leveled up, with some attribute changes.
Ding! Your Spellheart has gained a new effect: Multicast. You can now channel multiple spells simultaneously to attack several targets, up to a maximum of five. The target limit is related to your Spellheart’s level.
...
As the research concluded, a cascade of system messages appeared before Yi Shen.
Upon seeing the new skill, Yi Shen could not hide his elation.
Soloing the elite was going to be difficult, and the key to breaking through lay in new attributes and skills.
Upon discovering that the new skill was a summoning spell, Yi Shen sensed he might have found a way to overcome the elite!
Moreover, the system notified him that his spell research points had upgraded his Spellheart, unlocking Multicast.
This effect made Yi Shen’s eyebrows arch in delight.
Whenever confronting multiple monsters, he always had to defeat them one by one or apply Firebombs individually. There was no cooldown, but it was still time-consuming.
With Multicast, even if limited to five targets, his area damage would increase dramatically!
Imagine, among a swarm of sandworms, Yi Shen could apply Firebombs to five targets at once—crossing the area, he’d have cast on forty or fifty targets!
The explosive effect would be staggering—five monsters clustered together could easily be blasted for five or six hundred damage!
Of course, Yi Shen’s chief interest now was the new skill—a summoning spell, the first he’d gained in this period.
According to forum reviews, summoning spells were quite popular.
Though summons often had mediocre stats and high mana costs with various flaws, they could scout ahead or assist with exploring inaccessible areas.
Thus, they were essential for pioneering parties.
Yi Shen examined the D-grade Summon Wind Elemental skill,
hoping it would synergize well with his talent, increasing his confidence in facing the elite within.
Summon Wind Elemental (D): Consumes 300 mana, summons a wind elemental to assist in battle. The elemental’s attributes are linked to your own. Duration: one minute. Cooldown: ten minutes. Each team can have up to three wind elementals present at once.