Leon did not encounter the Black Dragon just yet, but on the 72nd floor, he finally met the opponent he had been craved.
"I never expected that the 72nd floor would be a Monster Rex room. What a surprise."
Standing by the edge of the lake, Finn looked out at the battlefield in the center of the water, his voice filled with emotion.
Gareth interjected, his voice heavy with the weight of the revelation, "And it's a Level 9. According to the records of the Zeus Familia and the Hera Familia, the Level 7 Monster Rex, Balor, was considered the absolute limit for Monster Rex."
Hedin pushed up his glasses and spoke calmly, "Between floors 50 and 71, apart from the appearance of Level 7 monsters, no new Monster Rex appeared at all. The Empress of the Hera Familia only gained enough feats in the battle to destroy Leviathan to finally rank up to Level 9."
Allen agreed, his expression uncharacteristically serious, "Indeed, I didn't expect the dungeon to skip over the Level 8 rank entirely and directly produce a Level 9 Monster Rex on this floor."
Ottar did not respond to the conversation between Finn and the others. He simply watched the battlefield quietly, muttering to himself in a low tone, "I never imagined his strength had already reached this level."
To be honest, Ottar had mixed feelings about Leon. After all, Leon had taken the title of Orario's strongest adventurer from his hands. However, at that time, Leon's strength was only Level 8. He never expected that in just one or two months, his strength would have grown to such an incredible extent.
"Speaking of which, do you think Leon's stats will reach their limit and allow him to rank up after defeating this Monster Rex?" Tiona asked with a bright smile.
"I don't know. After all, Leon took down two Level 8s and even chased away the Black Dragon before raising his stats to the level he wanted. We'll just have to see." Finn shook his head, not feeling particularly optimistic.
"Alright, that's enough talk. A new wave of monsters has appeared behind us. Let's make our move." Riveria interrupted, noticing the commotion in the rear and warning the group to stay sharp.
Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up with anticipation. In the next second, they rushed out to engage.
Starting from the 70th floor, the dungeon is no longer a lava hell, but a vast wilderness filled with grass, dense forests, and rocky cliffs—a massive, flat expanse. Leon and the others were currently in the very center of this floor, dominated by an incredibly large lake.
A monster with the strength of Level 9 was sleeping within those depths.
As soon as Leon and the others had arrived on this floor, Leon habitually activated the Veins of Light and Shadows to investigate the surroundings. He immediately discovered the monster sleeping in the lake and led the group to fight their way there.
It was the Hydra, a creature of myth.
Leon hadn't expected to see it manifest within the dungeon. However, considering that Behemoth and Leviathan were also mythical creatures, it didn't seem so strange in hindsight.
As it happened, Leon needed a Level 9 monster to test his limits, so he naturally chose to confront the Hydra alone.
The Hydra was exceptionally strong. Even with Leon's current power, killing it proved to be a troublesome task. It served as the perfect stepping stone.
Time passed slowly, and half a day went by in the blink of an eye. After squeezing every last bit of value and experience from the Hydra, Leon killed it cleanly and decisively.
The Hydra was powerful—the strongest opponent Leon had ever encountered to date. It took half a day to exhaust every drop of potential from the beast. None of the other monsters he had encountered before had taken this long to process.
Of course, Leon did not shatter the Hydra's magic stone. As usual, he put it away for safekeeping.
He then used dark magic to envelop himself in a protective shroud and began to update his status.
Leon Morningstar
Level 7
Strength: I 89 → SSS 1999
Durability: I 96 → SSS 1999
Dexterity: I 96 → SSS 1999
Agility: I 99 → SSS 1999
Magic: SSS 1999
[Level up]
Optional Development Ability: Healing
Current Development Abilities: Mage (A), Luck (D), Spirit Healing (F), Berserker (E), Divine Healing (E)
"I just crushed the limit again, just like before."
Looking at the staggering change in his stats, Leon was somewhat surprised, and then a smile unconsciously crept onto his lips.
Then, he looked at his development abilities. Magic had risen from C to A, Luck had also jumped two levels, and Berserker had moved up as well. As for Divine Healing, it had jumped four times in a row after he had healed Hephaestus's face, but there had been no further movement until now.
"There's only one development option: Healing. There are no other choices." Leon murmured to himself as he observed the potential for transformation, and then immediately began the process of ranking up.
A familiar, surging feeling rose in his heart once again, and Leon began to sense the profound changes in his strength.
Previously, Leon's combat power was only at the limit of Level 9, but now, he could be said to have reached Level 10. With such strength, he felt more than capable of dealing with the One-Eyed Black Dragon.
The only remaining problem was that leveling up further would become quite troublesome. After all, now that his strength had reached Level 10, it would be extremely difficult to find a monster that could serve as a comparable opponent.
According to Leon's estimation, even the Corrupted Spirit might only be around Level 9.
"It seems the only way is to increase the quantity—using a large number of high-level monsters to fight and slowly grind down the increase in attributes." Leon mused.
"As for the feats, there's no need to worry about that. After all, my current level is only Level 8. Either the Corrupted Spirit or the Black Dragon would be more than enough to give me the feat required to rank up again."
After thinking silently for a moment, Leon dispelled the dark magic.
He looked out towards the distant lake. At this moment, Riveria and the others were looking in his direction with deep concern etched on their faces.
With a slight smile, Leon flashed through the air and flew toward them.
—
After Leon finally vanquished Hydra, the expeditionary force prepared to move once more.
The 72nd floor had been picked clean. While Leon used the Hydra as a whetstone to sharpen his own power, Finn and his crew had systematically wiped out every other monster in the vicinity.
For hours, no new life had stirred within the dungeon's walls. The lakeside, which had been a theater of war for half a day, was now eerily silent.
With the Monster Rex dead, there was no reason to linger. Leon quickly located the key, and the group descended toward the 73rd floor.
They were met with a "warm welcome." Within five seconds of stepping onto the new level, the ground groaned as thousands of Level 7 monsters clawed their way to the surface.
"Can I try it first?" Leon asked, his voice cutting through the sound of unsheathing blades.
The request took everyone by surprise.
Tsubaki looked at him with a curious smile. "Leon, are you actually planning to take action against these common mobs?"
Previously, Leon had been content to let the others handle the mobs. His strength was so overwhelming that fighting ordinary monsters provided him with zero growth. To him, they were usually just obstacles but to the others, they were vital training.
"Yes. I need to increase my attributes as well." Leon nodded, his expression serious.
"A single monster isn't enough anymore, but a thousand of them attacking at once? That might provide the pressure I need for a breakthrough."
He recalled his early days, back when he had first received World's Grace and used massive herds of Minotaurs to grind his stats.
Finn saw the logic and had no objections. After days of Leon providing support through the Gate of Heaven, none of them were about to deny him a turn at the front.
Leon flashed into the center of the floor.
To ensure the swarm didn't split off to attack Finn's group, he activated a monster-luring item crafted by Lyra.
While Lili could make similar tools, Lyra's experience was incomparable. Her lures were potent enough to drive even Level 6 monsters into a frenzy.
The test was a resounding success. The sea of Level 7 monsters ignored the rest of the expedition entirely, surging toward Leon in a singular, tidal wave of violence.