The Automatic Rooting Range Is Too Wide - Chapter 87
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Auto Looting Range Too Wide Episode 87
Episode 87: You’re Dead (2)
* * *
The next day.
After eating a late breakfast, Mincheol prepared to challenge the 16th Floor.
Unlike other floors, there wasn’t much to prepare this time.
“My armor is sufficient as it is, I’ve gathered antidotes by type, and I’ve packed other things too…”
The leather armor Mincheol was wearing was made from an ogre’s back hide.
Even among rare-grade defensive equipment, items this sturdy weren’t common.
However, the enemies Mincheol had fought were so strong that it hadn’t been of much help.
“Well then, shall we depart?”
“Kkwak!”
Kkwaekkwi said as it perched on top of Mincheol’s head.
Mincheol looked up at Kkwaekkwi and said,
“You’re coming along too? This time it’s quite dangerous.”
Since it was a labyrinth, there wasn’t really a proper place for Kkwaekkwi to hide on the 16th Floor.
Moreover, with traps pouring out, Kkwaekkwi might be in danger too.
“Kkwak. Kkwak.”
Kkwaekkwi shook its head vigorously, as if insisting it would definitely come along.
“Having you around does make me feel more reassured.”
Every time he fought strong enemies, he had received help from Kkwaekkwi’s buffs.
“I will challenge the 16th Floor.”
【Please select the difficulty level.】
【There are a total of 1 to 5 stages.】
“I’ll go with Stage 1.”
Mincheol chose the lowest stage.
Since it was his first attempt, gaining experience was more important than setting records.
【Entering Difficulty Stage 1.】
Mincheol’s figure disappeared with a flash of light.
* * *
Seol-aeng Headquarters.
On the top floor of the dizzyingly tall building, Lee Ji-hun was humming a tune.
“Is there some good news?”
Lee Ji-hun’s secretary Yeonhui asked as she brought out coffee.
“Yeah, if things go well, I might not have to see that troublesome guy anymore.”
Lee Ji-hun answered as if he had been waiting for the question.
“Troublesome guy?”
Yeonhui asked with a puzzled expression.
Seol-aeng was South Korea’s number one guild, and Lee Ji-hun was its master.
Was there someone who could trouble such a Lee Ji-hun?
“Are you perhaps referring to Go Seon-ho?”
“Seon-ho is my friend. Though Seol-aeng and Goseong Guild don’t get along very well.”
“Then who are you referring to?”
At Yeonhui’s question, Lee Ji-hun gazed into space for a moment.
Then he let out another chuckle.
Wondering why he was really acting like this, Yeonhui made an even more puzzled expression.
“By the way, Yeonhui, do you know about the trap floors?”
“You mean the 16th to 20th Floors? Those are dangerous places you always worry about when new Awakened challenge them.”
“Right. They’re dangerous. Very dangerous.”
Heh.
Saying that, Lee Ji-hun let out another chuckle.
Yeonhui’s brow furrowed even more.
“On the trap floors, you have to pass through rooms with traps to obtain the magic stones that serve as power sources. The problem is that the traps are varied, and none of them are non-lethal.”
Lee Ji-hun began talking about the trap floors in an excited voice.
Though she already knew all this content, Yeonhui remained quiet.
It was to avoid ruining Lee Ji-hun’s mood.
“Once you enter, spike traps await you. Spears suddenly shoot out from the floor and walls to pierce through Awakened.”
“Then couldn’t you just break through the floor and ceiling to enter?”
“But they’re not ordinarily sturdy, you see. Most people can’t break them.”
Of course, she knew all this and was asking anyway.
She was just playing along appropriately since Lee Ji-hun seemed to be enjoying himself.
She was quite quick-witted in this regard.
“Even if you could break them, it would take a long time. You need to shorten clear time to get high grades. That would be putting the cart before the horse, wouldn’t it?”
So Awakened had no choice but to reluctantly throw their bodies into the spike rooms.
“He won’t die, but he’ll be incredibly stressed. Oh yes, he will.”
Lee Ji-hun muttered quietly.
Not knowing who he was talking about, Yeonhui just tilted her head.
* * *
Arriving on the 16th Floor, Mincheol first looked around his surroundings.
“They said it was a labyrinth, and it really is.”
The 6th to 10th Floors where golems appeared were caves.
But here, everything was made of bricks.
【You have entered the 16th Floor.】
【Avoid the traps and reach the opposite side to open the first door.】
Mincheol looked toward the opposite side.
At the end of a straight corridor was a stone door.
“Do I just go straight?”
Just as Mincheol was about to step forward saying that,
Click.
Feeling the floor sink slightly, Mincheol reflexively stepped back.
At that moment, four spears shot out from the wall.
“Oh…”
Mincheol looked at the wickedly sharp spear points with admiration.
“I’d really die if I got hit by those.”
Not only was the shooting speed incredibly fast, but the power of the spear points looked formidable too.
“Kkwaekkwi, you get in here.”
Mincheol said as he pulled open the front flap of his leather armor.
Kkwaekkwi slipped into the empty space that had formed and poked out only its head.
It looked like Kkwaekkwi’s head was positioned right under Mincheol’s chin.
“Then let’s give it a try.”
Mincheol used ‘Carve Out’ toward the wall.
【Acquiring all objects within hexagonal range.】
Holes began to pop open sequentially in the ground.
The holes connected in a straight line from where Mincheol stood to the door.
【Inventory is full. Auto Looting skill can no longer be used.】
When his inventory filled up, Mincheol pulled out all the stones.
【Acquiring all objects within cubic range.】
Then this time he activated it toward the wall.
He repeated the same process several times.
“Let me see…”
Mincheol examined the holes as he moved forward.
If there were no spear blades, he simply passed through; if there were, he jumped over them.
Thanks to this, he was able to reach the other side while avoiding the traps.
“Easy.”
Mincheol hummed a tune as he moved on to the next room.
* * *
“After passing through the spike trap, a poison trap awaits next.”
“The place where poison sprays out, right? I heard gas masks are essential.”
Lee Ji-hun shook his head at Yeonhui’s words.
“Gas masks are essential, but that alone isn’t enough to survive. The poisonous fog that sprays from the poison trap is absorbed through the skin too.”
As the poison accumulated, various symptoms would occur.
Vomiting, dizziness, coughing up blood, even hallucinations.
“The problem is that the room with the poison trap is a maze. You have to find your way out before dying from poisoning.”
Having to navigate a maze while poisoning symptoms manifest in real time?
It was inevitable to face both physical and mental pressure simultaneously.
“Can he properly pass through the poison trap with a body that’s tense and exhausted from the spike trap?”
Lee Ji-hun muttered as if looking forward to it.
* * *
【Find the true path within the poisonous fog.】
Along with the message, green smoke began to rise.
“Kkwaekkwi, wear this.”
Mincheol took out a gas mask from his inventory and put it on Kkwaekkwi’s face.
“Kkwak.”
But Kkwaekkwi rejected the gas mask and climbed up onto Mincheol’s head.
“Hey, I’m telling you it’s dangerous.”
When Kkwaekkwi flapped its wings, wind began to swirl.
The poisonous fog was pushed away, unable to reach Mincheol’s vicinity.
“Ooh?”
This way, he didn’t need to wear a gas mask.
Not only that, but he could also secure his vision.
“You had this kind of skill too?”
“Kkwak!”
“You really are a devoted child.”
Mincheol reached up and scratched Kkwaekkwi’s neck.
Kkwaekkwi made a pleased sound.
Mincheol stepped forward as if going for a stroll.
* * *
“The third trap! That’s where it gets especially interesting. Mimics appear there.”
Lee Ji-hun spoke with even more excitement.
Mimic.
A monster that disguised itself as a chest to ambush Awakened.
It wasn’t a frequently appearing monster, but it was famous for showing up just when you’d forgotten about it.
Its combat power wasn’t particularly strong, but its ambush speed was quite fast.
So even experienced Awakened would sometimes die if they let their guard down.
“You have to find keys among the chests. And Mimics are hiding among them.”
“Couldn’t you just smash all the chests?”
“The keys are fragile, so they’d break if you did that. No matter how strong an Awakened is, they have no choice but to open them one by one.”
In other words, they had no choice but to open the chests while accepting Mimic attacks.
It truly was a trap full of malice.
“I wonder how many times he’ll encounter Mimics? I hope he gets thoroughly beaten.”
* * *
【Acquiring all objects within cubic range.】
Mincheol used Carve Out toward the chests.
Thanks to the information that the keys were extremely fragile, he only used it on the upper portions.
【Acquiring all objects within cubic range.】
【Activation is canceled.】
When a chest appeared that Carve Out didn’t work on, he pulled out his halberd and struck down with full force.
Crack-
“Shrieeeek!”
The Mimic was split along with the chest.
The monster with large teeth died while spilling green bodily fluid.
Mincheol shook off the blood on his halberd and moved to the next chest.
“Oh, found it.”
The key was in the twentieth chest.
The key was so fragile in durability that it would crumble just from scratching it with a fingernail.
“Let’s move on to the next room.”
“Kkwak.”
* * *
“All the traps are vicious, but the last one is especially a masterpiece.”
At some point, Yeonhui had stopped saying anything at all.
Still, Lee Ji-hun continued chattering without a care.
“You have to cross a bridge suspended over a cliff. Blades hanging from the ceiling constantly swing back and forth like pendulums.”
Looking at just that much, it didn’t seem too difficult.
With an Awakened’s physical abilities, avoiding such traps should be easy enough.
But the real challenge wasn’t that.
“While crossing the bridge, arrows and poison darts are constantly being fired. Having to get past the blades while dealing with those is nothing short of hell.”
Lee Ji-hun took a sip of coffee and continued speaking.
“The poison darts are especially problematic. You know what? The poison darts from the trap floor contain small amounts of rare metal.”
Wind pressure stone.
It was a rare metal with the peculiar property of generating propulsion when infused with mana.
“Because of that rare metal, the poison darts exhibit tremendous penetrating power. They can easily pierce through most armor.”
Get hit by an arrow and you die instantly.
Get hit by a poison dart and you die slowly.
And since it’s a single-lane bridge, there’s nowhere to dodge.
“You have no idea how much I suffered there.
Lee Ji-hun added with a laugh.
“Even that guy won’t be able to do anything there.”
* * *
【Cross the bridge and shut down the labyrinth’s power source!】
At the end of the bridge, a hexagonal crystal was emitting light.
“That must be the power source.”
Now that he could see the power source with his eyes, he could activate Auto Looting right away.
But there was something he had to do first.
“I need to check the arrows and poison darts.”
To register them with Auto Looting, he needed to know their appearance.
In other words, to register those two items, he’d have to take a risk at least once.
“Ugh, I really don’t want to do this.”
Mincheol stepped onto the bridge. Massive blades whooshed past right in front of his eyes.
Mincheol timed it and passed through the blades.
Whoosh-
At that moment, an arrow came flying.
The perfectly aimed arrow targeted Mincheol’s back.
But Mincheol had already heard the sound and reacted.
He drew his one-handed sword and blocked the arrow.
“Whoa, that startled me.”
Perhaps it was thanks to fighting the Count. He could easily react to something like this.
Mincheol picked up the arrow that had fallen to the ground.
For an arrow, it was extremely short. It looked like only an arrowhead had been fired.
“So this is what it looks like.”
Mincheol examined the arrow from various angles, then designated it for Auto Looting.
【All ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrows’ within a 900m radius will be acquired.】
After designating the target, Mincheol crossed the bridge again.
【You have acquired 1 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrow’.】
【You have acquired 2 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrows’.】
As soon as arrows were fired, they went straight into his inventory.
Thanks to this, Mincheol could cross the bridge comfortably.
When he had crossed about halfway across the bridge.
Pshh.
With a strange sound, something glinted in the corner of his vision.
Mincheol reflexively covered his face with his forearm.
Right after that, something pierced his forearm. Terrible pain followed.
“Urgh.”
Mincheol gritted his teeth and examined his forearm.
A thick dart was embedded in his forearm.
Mincheol gritted his teeth and pulled out the dart. The dart was over 10cm long.
“This hurts like hell, seriously.”
The next moment, dizziness struck.
Mincheol took out an antidote from his inventory and drank it.
After staying still for a moment, the poisoning symptoms quickly disappeared.
【You have acquired 2 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrows’.】
【You have acquired 1 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrow’.】
Even at this moment, arrows continued to be fired.
Reading the messages, Mincheol felt a chill.
“If it weren’t for Auto Looting, I wouldn’t have even had time to drink the antidote.”
Having to dodge arrows and poison darts while drinking an antidote on a single-lane bridge with nowhere to hide?
Just imagining it was horrifying.
“Let me see.”
Mincheol examined the poison dart from various angles, then registered it with Auto Looting.
【All ‘Ancient Labyrinth Poison Darts’ within a 900m radius will be acquired.】
Mincheol crossed the bridge again.
【You have acquired 1 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Arrow’.】
【You have acquired 3 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Poison Darts’.】
Projectiles continued to be fired, but none of them reached Mincheol.
He simply walked leisurely, dodging the axes.
After some time had passed, Mincheol stood before the power source. The crystal was spinning while emitting light.
“I should be able to take this with Auto Looting too.”
The variable was that this contained mana.
If that was the case, the required mana amount might be high, making it impossible to take with Auto Looting.
【All ‘Ancient Labyrinth Power Cores’ within a 900m radius will be acquired.】
【Mana detected from target. Consuming mana to steal ownership.】
【1,000 mana consumed by Auto Looting.】
【1 ‘Ancient Labyrinth Power Source’ has been stored in inventory.】
Fortunately, Mincheol’s worries were unfounded.
Mincheol’s mana capacity was more than sufficient to handle it.
【You have cleared ’16th Floor Difficulty Level 1′!】
【57 minutes, outside the rankings.】
Due to taking his time, he didn’t set any records.
But Mincheol wasn’t disappointed at all.
Since he had already seen the power source, he could clear it immediately if he challenged it again.
“It wasn’t that difficult. But doing this five times is exhausting.”
Mincheol spoke as if he was tired.
Just because the difficulty increased didn’t mean the traps changed.
However, he had heard that the frequency of traps increased and their toxicity grew stronger.
Since he had registered the most problematic arrows and poison darts with Auto Looting, even the highest difficulty posed no problem for Mincheol.
The issue was that it was physically exhausting…
“Wait, are the power sources the same for all difficulty levels?”
Mincheol spoke to the system to verify his hypothesis.
“I’ll challenge the 16th Floor again. Set the difficulty to level 5.”
Mincheol’s body disappeared with a flash of light.
And shortly after, Mincheol received a familiar message.
【You have cleared ’16th Floor Difficulty Level 5′ with EX grade!】
【You gain a massive amount of experience.】
Lv.35 -> Lv.37
-All stats increase by 2 per level.
【You obtain clear rewards.】
-All stats increase by 20.
-You obtain 1 ‘Inventory Expansion Voucher’.
【You obtain the title ‘Treasure Hunter’.】
-Effect 1. Agility +20.
-Effect 2. Stamina +20.
【You obtain a hidden piece.】
-You obtain 3 ‘Bound Coin of Fortune’.
“Nice, this works.”
As his prediction proved correct, Mincheol raised a toast to himself.
“Should I just clear up to the 20th Floor today?”
* * *
It was when Lee Ji-hun was excitedly chattering away while holding onto Yeonhui.
“Master!”
Suddenly the door opened and an employee rushed in.
“He’s up! Zero-second Challenger is up again!”
At the employee’s words, Lee Ji-hun’s expression twisted with rage.
But the employee wasn’t finished speaking yet.
“It’s not just the 16th Floor! All the way to the 20th Floor! He cleared them all non-stop!”
At these following words, Lee Ji-hun’s expression became even more distorted.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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