Chapter 8: Crushing Lakuri

I was ecstatic, my heart pounding with an excitement even greater than my first kiss!

The quality of a Source Power Furnace is crucial for players. It not only dictates the rate of Source Power recovery during combat but also provides significant base attribute bonuses. A Level 1 Source Power Furnace’s attributes are essentially its growth potential.

Take my furnace, for example: at Level 1, it provides its owner with 4 points of Strength and 3.5 points of Agility. When it levels up to Level 2 through experience extraction, those attributes will rise to 8 Strength and 7 Agility. If one extracts enough experience to keep pace with the owner's level, the total accumulated attributes are actually on par with a full set of top-tier gear!

Furthermore, this furnace’s Spirit growth has actually reached 2.9, which means my future mental capacity won’t be lacking. Since high mental capacity is equivalent to "Magic Resistance," I’ll have a fighting chance when encountering classes like Psionics or Star-Speakers, who rely on overwhelming opponents with mental power.

However... I frowned, lost in thought. Is my luck in this Star Abyss world a bit too good?

Aside from that first minor failure with the Pandora solution evolution, I’ve since obtained S-rank Biological Optical Stealth and an SS-rank Biological EMP. Add this SS-rank Source Power Furnace into the mix, and I’m practically a child of destiny! Could it be that other players are just as favored by the system once they enter the Star Abyss world in their physical forms?

"Bro?" Just then, Left Hand’s voice came through the star map.

I responded immediately: "I’m here. What is it?"

"Did you awaken your Source Power Furnace yet?" His voice couldn't hide his excitement. "Damn, I awakened an A-rank furnace with an 88% conversion rate! You’ve gotta admit that’s badass, right? Holy crap... its Level 1 growth is terrifying: 3 Strength, 2.4 Agility, 2 Constitution, 1.7 Spirit. It’s insane! How about yours? How is your furnace?"

"Cough, cough..." I’m a kind teammate, so I couldn’t bear to crush him. "My furnace is alright. About the same as yours."

"Whoa, then let’s celebrate! That’s great news!"

"Yeah." I nodded. "Have you leveled up yet? Are your skills ready?"

"Leveled up, and skills are ready."

"Good."

I continued to level up, exhausting my experience points in one go to reach Level 8, with 78% of the next level remaining. This is more than enough to maintain the star map connection with Left Hand for 78 minutes.

I invested all 12 potential points gained at Level 4 into Strength, then learned the Basic Swordsmanship from my reserved skills. Following that, I continuously upgraded the skill until Basic Swordsmanship reached Level 10! As a result, Basic Swordsmanship provided an additional 6 points of Strength.

At this moment, I felt a surge of power coursing through me. When I opened my attribute panel, my combat power rating was worlds apart from before!

[Shadow Chaser] (Starry Sky Super-Weapon · Sword Specialization · Tier 1)
Level: 8
Attack: 18-45
Defense: 9
Health: 1100
Crit: 0
Charisma: 0
Source Power: 100/100
Overall Combat Power Rating: 108
Potential Allocation: Strength 30 / Agility 15.5 / Spirit 2.9 / Constitution 3
Achievements: 0
...

In an instant, my combat power rating had soared from 40 to 108. It was terrifying, and the major contributor was undoubtedly that SS-rank Source Power Furnace!

"Old Six," I asked, frowning, "is the 55-minute blast ready?"

"Don't worry, it's already on a timer. Just wait for the bang."

"That’s fine!"

Left Hand sounded a bit disgruntled: "But Brother Three, can you not call me Old Six? It makes me sound like I’m not a powerhouse player. How about calling me Sixth Brother instead?"

"Protest denied. I think 'Old Six' rolls off the tongue the best."

"Fine... whatever you say, Bro." Left Hand sounded resigned, as if he had given up the struggle.

...

A few minutes later, the ground suddenly shook violently, followed by a thunderous roar from the east. I was secretly startled; Left Hand clearly had some skills, otherwise, he couldn't have remotely detonated the base's ammunition depot. With the explosion, alarms blared throughout the base, and countless guards rushed toward the scene.

I stood by the door, frowning at the chaos outside.

"033, get back in!" Outside was the guard who had brought my dinner. He raised his muzzle at me, shouting furiously: "Don't get curious, this has nothing to do with you. Go back to sleep, or don't blame me for being rude!"

I nodded and took a few steps back.

"Bro, time's almost up. Keep an eye out..." Left Hand was excited.

"Don't rush," I smiled. "I’m watching. Don't worry."

"Alright then."

Time ticked by, and in the blink of an eye, it was 3:59:58!

I immediately triggered the skill icon and silently activated Biological EMP!

"Zzzzt~~~"

In an instant, my hair stood on end. Strands of deep blue electricity surged across my skin and hair. It wasn't painful at all, but my body involuntarily hunched over as an electromagnetic storm clustered on my back. Three seconds later, it erupted!

"Boom—"

With a deafening blast, the EMP surged in all directions! Every electronic device in the vicinity immediately malfunctioned and was destroyed! The door in front of me lost pressure and swung open instantly!

"What the hell?!"

Outside, the guard roared, but before he could turn around, I was already upon him.

"033, are you crazy?"

The moment he raised his gun to aim, I lunged, brushing past him. I reached out and snatched the Vanguard Stinger combat knife from his belt! Although it was only 30cm long, it was still a type of sword!

"Oh no..." The guard was terrified. He tried to shout a warning, but the Vanguard Stinger had already sliced through his throat!

"404!"

Critical damage!

As he clutched his throat and stumbled back, I launched an relentless assault. The Stinger flashed like cold light, "slash-slash-slash," repeatedly tearing through his throat, heart, and eyes! A Level 15 common NPC only has 800 HP; he hit the ground in an instant!

[Combat Notification: You killed (Base Guard) Lv15, gained 1500 character experience, and the Source Power Furnace extracted 750 experience points!]

...

I didn't stop for a second, quickly looting his submachine gun, pistol, and grenades, and even stashing his spare magazines into my extradimensional storage space.

Just then, another guard rushed out shouting: "033, you're looking for death!"

"Swish!"

As he raised his gun to aim, I threw the Vanguard Stinger!

"Pfft!"

Blood sprayed. Level 10 throwing skill is impressive; it hit his throat directly, dealing 600+ damage. I immediately raised the submachine gun and finished him off with a burst!

"Subject 033 has rebelled, all nearby guards move to suppress!" someone shouted in the distance.

Inside the star map, I could hear the sounds of fighting from Left Hand's side. He must have started his move as well, and it seemed to be going smoothly, otherwise, the star map would have been cut off!

I quickly pulled the Stinger from the guard's throat and headed east. I hadn't gone far when a figure flashed out, holding a submachine gun and firing directly at me!

It was Lakuri!

The moment he opened fire, I dodged sideways and threw the Stinger!

"Pfft!"

Within ten paces, I never miss! The blade struck Lakuri’s arm, and he stumbled back into the room.

"033, you beast, how dare you betray me!" Instructor Lakuri roared, his voice filled with rage.

I didn't hesitate. Footsteps were already echoing in the hallway, and I had very little time. I fired a burst into the glass on the iron door. As the glass shattered, I pulled the pin on a grenade and tossed it through the gap with pinpoint accuracy!

"Boom!"

A muffled blast, followed by frantic cursing from inside.

"Clack!"

I readied another grenade, rolled it along the floor toward the end of the hallway, and simultaneously reloaded my weapon with practiced ease before kicking open the door and charging in.

"You scumbag!" Lakuri, covered in blood, lay on the ground, raising his submachine gun as if he wanted to resist.

I kicked the gun out of his hands with a powerful blow, then delivered a kick to his chin. As Lakuri opened his mouth to scream, I shoved the scorching barrel of my gun right into it!

"You..." Lakuri’s pupils contracted violently; he had never imagined he would face such a day!

"Rat-tat-tat~~~"

I pulled the trigger and didn't let go, emptying the magazine in seconds! Lakuri’s head slammed against the wall repeatedly!

Lakuri was a Level 15 Boss with a terrifying 4500 HP. However, the Roarer in my hand, while only a white-tier item, had decent firepower. Each shot dealt about 60 damage, so emptying a magazine dealt 3000+ damage. Coupled with the grenade blast, even a Boss had his health bar depleted in an instant.

"You traitor..." Lakuri’s mouth was shredded, but he remained defiant. "You..."

"Who's the traitor?" I roared. "I was never one of yours in the Dark Tide. I'm your father!"

With that, I pulled out the Stinger and swept it across, slitting Lakuri’s throat and claiming the Boss's experience! I also looted his Roarer and the Vanguard Stinger, and to my surprise, they were both green-tier items!

[Roarer MP25 Submachine Gun] (Quality: Green)
Tier: 1
Base Stats: Firepower 55-70, Rate of Fire 800 rounds/min, Magazine 50, Range 120m
Strength: +5
Weight: 3.3KG
Blessing: Continuous Fire – Attack damage +10% during continuous firing.
...

[Vanguard Stinger] (Quality: Green)
Tier: 1
Type: Steel Dagger
Base Stats: Attack 15-25, Attack Speed 0.7/sec, Durability 300/300
Strength: +5
Length: 0.3M
Weight: 2KG
Blessing: Slaughter – Critical damage +3% while using this weapon.
Requirement: Level 5
...

Not bad, equip them!

Experience is enough—level up to Level 9! In an instant, my attack power soared to 31-80, which is terrifyingly high for the early game!

Noisy footsteps echoed outside. If I stayed any longer, I’d be dead for sure! Without a moment's hesitation, I activated the Biological Optical Stealth skill!

"Ssss~~~"

My skin tightened, turning transparent. The transparent material spread over my entire body, wrapping around my clothes and hair until I vanished without a trace!

I rushed out of the room, heading straight for the east exit!

Countless guards charged into the corridor, but they could only hear footsteps; they couldn't see a soul.

"What's going on!?"

Someone fired blindly. I felt a sharp pain in my back as I was hit by several bullets. My health bar dropped rapidly from 1200 to 840+. If I took more hits and my health dropped below 50%, it would be quite troublesome.

In the lore of "Star Abyss," when a player’s health falls below 30%, they trigger the "Injured" state, and below 10%, they trigger the "Gravely Injured" state. This isn't something that can be fixed by simply drinking a health potion; you must go to a hospital or use rare items like medical nanobots to remove the status!