Utopian System

Chapter 439 System's God Games - 2

A small, green creature materialized from nowhere, about the size of a child but utterly alien in its features. Its skin was a verdant shade that seemed to shift in the light, its pointed ears twitching as it noticed them, its large luminous eyes filled with an intelligence that made Elio pause.

"What is that?" Elio found himself moving forward, fascination overriding caution. Poison Stinger tugged at his spiritual form, trying to hold him back, but the pull of this new discovery was too strong.

The goblin (though Elio had no name for such a creature) raised its head to look at them. For a moment, it seemed as curious about them as they were about it. Its head tilted, ears twitching, eyes widening slightly...

Then everything happened in an instant.

The creature moved with impossible speed, its seemingly innocent form transforming into something deadly. Before Elio could even register the movement, before he could even think to defend himself, he felt a sharp pain and then...

Darkness.

His eyes snapped open back in the familiar chamber, his physical body intact. Emberg and Poison Stinger materialized instantly at his side, their forms solidifying with an urgency that spoke volumes.

Emberg was not happy.

The salamander's flames sparked and crackled with indignation as it launched into a silent but extremely expressive tirade. It pointed repeatedly at Elio's body, then acted out an exaggerated death scene, complete with dramatic flame effects.

Rising from its theatrical demise, it waved its arms in what could only be described as the universal gesture for "What were you thinking?!"

Poison Stinger, on the other hand, seemed to be trying desperately not to laugh. Its pincers made soft clicking sounds that somehow perfectly conveyed suppressed amusement as it recreated the scene in miniature, exaggerating Elio's curious approach and the sudden attack with comedic timing.

Elio checked his book: only 2 points of mana lost.

"I'm fine, really," he tried to reassure Emberg.

Poison Stinger scuttled over to the floating book and pointed at the single lost mana point for each of them with its pincer, then made a gesture that clearly said "All this drama over this?" Its crystalline form shimmered with what could only be described as scorpion laughter.

"Well, at least we know we can try again," Elio smiled, earning another round of exasperated gestures from Emberg. The salamander flopped onto its back, one tiny flame arm draped across its forehead in the universal gesture of "Why do I even bother?"

Poison Stinger poked Emberg with a pincer, earning a small flame burst in retaliation. The scorpion quickly hid behind Elio, its form vibrating with silent laughter as Emberg chased it around, creating tiny flame explosions that the scorpion dramatically dodged.

"Alright, alright," Elio laughed, watching his companions' antics. "Let's think about this. That world... it was incredible. And now we know what to expect. Well, at least we know not to underestimate strange green creatures, right?"

Emberg stopped chasing Poison Stinger long enough to give Elio a look that clearly said "That should have been obvious from the start," before returning to its pursuit of the mischievous scorpion.

Looking at his book again, Elio's mind was already racing with possibilities. A whole new world to explore, and death was just a minor inconvenience.

????

With an abundance of mana at his disposal, Elio approached the statue with new determination. The shopping spree that followed would have made any merchant's day: spiritual armor for both invocations, resistance potion, magical damage enhancement potion, temporary mana increase potion, and the transformation potion all made their way into his inventory.

Elio Von Elian's Emberg Form lvl 20

Mana: 2000/2000

Resistance: 2000(4000)

Attack: 0

Magic Damage: 200 (400)

Strength: 0

Defense: 200

Magic Defense: 200

Speed: 200

Perception / Agility: 2 AA

Spiritual Armor 100 / ((Defense 100) (Magic Defense 100)(Resistance(2,000/2,000))

Emberg, still sulking about their previous death but unable to resist the allure of new equipment, preened as the spiritual armor materialized around its form. The flames danced through the ethereal protection, creating mesmerizing patterns.

Poison Stinger clicked its pincers appreciatively as its own armor formed, the crystalline protection complementing its natural form.

Before preparing for their next attempt, Elio turned to Emberg. "Could you check the statue for anything else useful while we're gone?" The salamander saluted with exaggerated seriousness, then immediately began scrolling through options with theatrical concentration.

This time, when they emerged into the alien world, they had a plan. Instead of standing around like a tourist, Elio immediately took to the air, Poison Stinger following close behind. The familiar goblin materialized in the distance, but this time they were ready.

Or so they thought.

The seemingly harmless creature proved to have a few tricks of its own. Rocks began flying through the air with frightening accuracy, forcing Elio and Poison Stinger into a series of increasingly desperate aerial maneuvers. They retaliated with their own attacks, balls of fire raining down from above while boron spikes sought their target.

The goblin dodged most of their initial assault with irritating ease, but they were learning. Elio decided to up the ante, activating the transformation potion. His spiritual form grew, flames intensifying as power coursed through him. The next fireball he launched was significantly larger, and this time it found its mark.

Magic Damage: 800

The goblin staggered, actually showing damage for the first time. Encouraged, they pressed their advantage. Two more hits followed in quick succession, each one landing with satisfying impact.

Victory seemed within reach.

Then came the moment of carelessness. Perhaps it was overconfidence from their successful hits, or maybe just a split second of distraction. Either way, neither of them saw the flying dagger until it was too late.

The last thing Elio registered was Poison Stinger's frantic clicking before darkness claimed them once again.

They materialized back in the chamber, Emberg looking up with an expression that somehow managed to convey both "I told you so" and "at least you lasted longer this time". Experience more on empire

Poison Stinger shook itself, armor still intact but pride somewhat dented. The scorpion recreated their death scene with its pincers, somehow making the flying dagger look simultaneously tragic and ridiculous.

Elio checked his book, another single point of mana gone for each but earlier used mana already recovered, but this time they'd actually managed to deal some damage. Progress was progress, even if it ended with a dagger to the face.

Emberg showed them its findings from the statue's inventory.

"Nothing of use yet… Well," Elio said, already planning their next approach, "at least we know the attacks work, the armor is not enough..."

They'd learned more about their opponent's capabilities. Each attempt brought them closer to victory, even if the path there was paved with somewhat embarrassing deaths.

"One more time?" Elio asked, though he was already moving toward the portal.

Poison Stinger clicked its pincers in agreement while Emberg made a show of writing its last will and testament. But they were getting better, and sooner or later, that goblin was going down.