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Chapter 71: The Mausoleum

Ye Yan walked down the stairs, going deeper inside the mausoleum.  After a few minutes, he reached the end of the stairs but the path continues into a long and narrow passage. 

Ye Yan keeps walking with difficulty in the dark corridor because the ground has many bumps and even with the light provided by the firefly in the bottle, he can't see everything around him.

The firefly in the bottle isn't the best option as a light provider but it is one of the cheapest and safest ways to illuminate his path.

If he used a torch, it would illuminate a bigger area but he would need a lighter, and a mausoleum is not the best place to use fire because it could have flammable gases inside. 

Ye Yan can't use magic, so cast light isn't an option, and lanterns are sold in few shops in limited quantities, so when he discovered about them, it was already too late because every lantern in the shop was sold out and he didn't have the time to wait for it to restoke.

The firefly provides just dim lighting and creates a light show that could almost blind the eyes with its flashing lights. 

The mausoleum's environment, plus the flashing lights created a ghostly scenery, giving the impression that a ghost will pop up at any time.

On his way out of the narrow corridor, Ye Yan killed a lot of rats that rushed at him from some opening in the passage's walls.

Every one of the rats was about the size of a cat or a dog. They looked very ugly and their furs were full of dust and mud. And the smell... it looks like the rats started to rotten while they still are alive.

Ye Yan was holding the bottle with his left hand and slashing the rats with his right. Sometimes he kicked the rats when they attack him in groups. Ye Yan's kicks didn't deal much damage but they could fend off some rats while he deals with the ones in front of him using his upgraded folding fan.

Ye Yan had to keep his awareness in the max at all times in the mausoleum because many times he had to perceive the attack when the light was out. 

If the rats were normal animals, it wouldn't be a problem but these monsters were level 10, two levels higher than Ye Yan and they not only have high defense but their attack power is high as well.

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[Mausoleum Rat] (Normal)

Description: This long-tailed rodent often is found in mausoleums all around the world. Sometimes you can see them eating the remains of corpses.

Level 10

HP: 800

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Ye Yan is feeling very lucky inside because if he had gone to this mausoleum before upgrading his weapon, he would have a difficult time killing these rats. And if the first monsters he meets in the place are this strong, the ones he will meet later will be even harder to kill.

After slashing his way through the rats, Ye Yan finally got out of the passage. He arrived in a wide area but he can't see much of it because of the dim light.

After observing the area for some time, Ye Yan noticed something moving not far from him. It looks like a beetle with a long neck and a green-blue metallic color.

The giant beetle went in Ye Yan's direction, attracted by the light from the firefly.

When the beetle got near him, it stopped and start to sparkle like a teen vampire. 

When it happened, Ye Yan knew something bad was about to happen. That's why he started to move around, looking for places that could help him hide if needed. He didn't move far because if he meets another beetle, it would only make things worse.

Five seconds after the beetle started to sparkle, he opened his wings in a way that stood parallel to Ye Yan. The sparkles coming from its wings condensed in a ball of blue light in the middle of them and a ray of dazzling blue light went in Ye Yan's direction.

Before the ray of light reached Ye Yan, he jumped to the right, dodging the magic attack. 

Luckily, the beetle takes a long time to cast magic or it would be too hard for him to dodge in the darkness without leaving the area where he is.

Using the scroll that could identify monsters until level 20, Ye Yan discovered what kind of monster he was fighting.

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[Agra Cadabra] (Elite) [1]

Description: This ground beetle, also known as the elegant canopy beetle, can use magic to kill its prey.

Level: 10

HP: 1,200

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Ye Yan has to evade the Agra Cadabra's magic attacks in a small area. Thus, he stopped observing the beetle and decided to attack it in close combat. From what he noted so far, the magic rays of light can't reach the area close to the beetle. If the beetle tries to do it, he would get hurt by his own attacks.

After analyzing the situation, Ye Yan rushed to the Agra Cadabra and stood under its neck and head. He used his fan to slash against the monster's neck because it looks to be its weak spot.

As the beetle couldn't use his magic, he tried to hit Ye Yan with his front legs or his long neck.

Every time the monster tried to attack him, Ye Yan dodged it but keeping close to the monster.

Every time Ye Yan dodges, he uses his fan to slash the boss while doing so. He never stopped attacking the monster, even when it is complete darkness.

Ye Yan didn't use any skill to fight the boss because he decided to use this fight to train himself in this kind of combat.

His father always taught him that he needs to use all his six senses in a fight. He needs to use his eyes to see his opponent, his ears to listen to his enemies' breath and the environment, his nose to smell, his skin to feel the variations in pressure of the touches, and try to concentrate to feel the danger around him.

And his mother taught him to use his mouth to talk dirty to confuse his opponents if necessary. She always said that the tongue is one of the most powerful weapons that exist. Sadly, she suffers a lot from it because her mother-in-law love to speaks badly of her because she thought Ye Yan's mother stole her son.

Ye Yan concentrated on the fight, trying to predict Agra Cadradra's next moves. 

This exercise is very good for him. It will not only help him in the game but in real life as well because he lacks this kind of fighting experience.

Every time they fought in the past was in light places. Most of the time, he fought in open areas, but sometimes, he fought people in bars or other such places. When it happened was because his friends dragged him to some brawl.

Ye Yan continues to fight the Agra Cadabra until the monsters fell to the ground. 

When the monster died, Ye Yan didn't loot his body but went looking at the area to see if there is another monster nearby. And it showed to be a good decision because there was another Agra Cadabra going in his direction.

The monster didn't fight Ye Yan before because the beetles never work together in fights. They always fight alone. That's why the other Agra Cadabra was waiting for the other beetle to die for him to start attacking.

Ye Yan became really happy with the appearance of a new fighting partner because now he can continue to train and gain fighting experience in dark places.

This fight kept the same pattern as the previous one, with Ye Yan dodging and attacking with his fan.

He didn't use his fan to defend because he needs his left hand as support when using the fan as a shield. Without it, the fan could bend and it would not only make the defense ineffective but it would damage his folding fan as well.

After fighting three more Agra Cadabra in the dangeon, Ye Yan finally cleared the entire area and could loot their corpses.

They dropped some of his body parts that could be used to upgrade weapons and equipment later, and some magic sources that are small crystals with magic power inside. These magic sources can be used to enchant weapons, giving them additional magic damage.

When Ye Yan saw the magic sources, he started to hope to find more such beetles inside the mausoleum.

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[1] Agra Cadabra is one of the over five hundred species of Agra beetles. This ground beetle has narrow heads and long, constricted necks. The tarsomeres, or the "feet" of the beetle, are wide and equipped with pads, allowing the beetle to grip leaves as it moves about and rests on plants.  Adult beetles are nocturnal and attracted to lights, and have anti-predator secretions that are offensive to predators; they have been noted to repel bats.