Chapter 622: Reaching The Peak! Level 100!

’It’s starting to get out of hand.’

Having pushed through so many levels in so little time, Leo finally met an opponent that left him perplexed.

Goblins, Orcs, Ogres, Minotaurs, Werewolves, Trolls, Vampires, Hellhounds, Dragonoids... Advancing through the first half of the Arena was like accidentally walking into a fantasy beast museum.

However...

"Plupluplu!"

Once Leo hit Level 91, things started getting a little too bizarre.

"Pluplu!"

It was still one monster per the rules of the Arena, and it was still a humanoid, but aside from having those basic outlines, it looked like a mixture of an alien and a sea creature.

’Does it draw inspiration from the Cthulhu lore?’

Just the head on its own looked like a whole octopus, but under it was a human-like torso writhing with tentacles; even the legs were actually thin tentacles that came together to form five large ones, propping the alien monster in place.

Furthermore, on the bizarre octopus head, there was an even more bizarre collection of eyes. Some of them looked human, some seemed to have belonged to felines, others to reptiles...

Just looking at this had Leo nodding his head in approval. This Arena was really Multiversal!

"Are you talking to me?"

"Plupluplu!"

The most shocking difference that this strange creature presented was that, unlike the other monsters, which aimed for Leo’s life from the very beginning, it appeared to be attempting to communicate with him instead.

"It’s too bad."

It would be a lie if Leo said that he wasn’t curious about the meaning of the tentacle monster’s speech, but he wasn’t willing to waste time trying to understand it.

Especially since there was no optimal way of doing so.

"They should figure out a better method of communication in your universe."

Ignoring the fish sounds, Leo’s katana blade flared with dark flames. He had been switching the type of sword he held with every challenge in an attempt to gain some insight.

Unfortunately, however, his Swordsmanship had yet to have any breakthrough.

Swish!

That being said, it didn’t mean that he had actually struggled on any of the Levels he had been on so far. If anything, it was simply too easy.

"Plu!"

’Interesting.’

Parading the higher intelligence that it, or maybe he, possessed, the tentacle monster had actually managed to evade Leo’s precise strike.

Once he sensed the killing intent in Leo’s eyes, a tentacle shot out of his leg-like masses, flinging him to the edge of the arena and out of harm’s way, achieving what all the other monsters had failed to achieve.

Survive Leo’s first attack!

Not only had the others failed to do so, but they were all also one-shot by Leo!

’This is more like it.’

This was precisely why Leo didn’t bother considering the benefits he could gain by fighting through the entire Arena without skipping Levels.

After all, it would have only been a way longer loop of heads sliding down into the arena.

Even if Leo had intentionally chosen not to oneshot them so he could use them as practice monsters, unchallenging monsters like the ones he faced wouldn’t have been able to provide him with much.

At most, he would learn every specific species’ fighting pattern, but as long as he could take them down with one sword strike, his Swordsmanship wouldn’t get better by trying to find a different answer.

The same could be said about restricting the level of strengthening Leo applied to his blade.

Unless that limit was actually imposed on him by a second or a third party, the efficiency of such training would be absolutely horrible, perhaps not even capable of providing minimal stimulus.

’Some sufficient level of challenge is needed.’

There was no single viable way that everyone had to use to evolve their Swordsmanship.

However, when it came to evolution by combat, a proper opponent was absolutely necessary, and while the tentacle monster wasn’t a prime example for that, he showed a certain level of promise.

"PluPlu!"

Understanding that his unsuccessful attempt at communication wouldn’t do the trick, the alien monster also went on the offensive as hundreds of tentacles shot out toward Leo.

"I’m not sure if you are attacking or trying to hold me in place, but I really am not a big fan of seafood."

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Under just a few calculated swings, the outpour of tentacles turned into a rain of large octopus sashimi. Leo’s sword was finally getting some of the workout it needed.

’It’s not a joke either.’

Although this wasn’t Leo’s max output, in order to cut through the tentacles this easily, the Enigma he had to feed his sword was actually at the level of the 4th refinement. This really was level 91!

’I can’t help but look forward to Level 100.’

Unlike the true experience that he was having for himself, the last half of the Multiversal Arena of Ascension was promptly skipped in the novel, only describing the tattered state that Aurora was left in just by passing the preliminary challenge.

Up until now, Leo thought that he didn’t actually miss much with how uninspiring his one-on-one matches had been, but the last ten levels seemed to really pack a punch.

"Sorry..."

Swish!

Once again, Leo shot forward with one single step, only for the alien monster to repeat the same evasion tactic. Unfortunately...

"...But I will still have to finish this quickly."

Utilizing Shadow Movement, Leo’s sword was reflected into the octopus head’s numerous eyes as it came slashing down from above.

"Plu!"

The Cthulhu imposter still attempted one last desperate attempt as he spread his tentacles in all directions, hoping to confuse Leo about the direction he would escape in.

"It wouldn’t have worked anyway, but nope."

In the end, the attempt could only fail as Leo bound the tentacle body’s main mass using Shadow Domination, making it so the alien monster could only accept his fate of being split into two.

Of course, had it really flung itself away someplace else, Leo would still have appeared in front of it regardless of the distraction, but since this opponent didn’t seem to have any more tricks up its sleeve, finishing it quickly proved more optimal for Leo.

"I guess this also makes sense."

Not hearing the clear notification, Leo stared at the split masses as his eyes shone.

Conventional killing methods didn’t seem like they would work on this alien, but in any case...

{ Level 91, cleared. }

{ Proceed to... }

{ Combat Skills... }

"Use the privilege."

Things could only move forward.