Fate's Reversal: The Divines Return

Standing at the gate was a small crowd of members. Meeting up, Kaiden stood before the group and nodded. These past long hours, rather than level, everyone honed their techniques and they were pleasantly surprised by the outcome.

As Kaiden instructed, when their minds were on the brink of unconsciousness, they logged out and ingested a Grade 2 VitaShake. The insufficient state of the brain promoted the maximum absorption rate.

Kaiden chalked this up to being one of the "hidden benefits" that developers labeled as to be discovered. Taking the "experience is better than being told" route, the developers left a lot of information to be discovered through first-hand experience.

With that being said, everyone's level became normalized. The highest person here, MagicsSlave was only Lv.40. However, the reason he was the highest was simply that he was an Elementalist—a glass cannon.

Although, he wasn't the typical glass cannon. He added slight amounts of Agility and Dexterity and used his equipment as a bolster to his Intelligence. Therefore, he wasn't as useless as his peers when it came to fleeing.

Don't get it twisted, he was no track star—but he could hold his own.

To clarify, the top person on the leaderboards was only Lv.42. Well, at least the one who went public with their level was. The pace at which a regular person leveled was tanking. In fact, even experts were experiencing increases in the effort needed to level simply because of the exponential need for experience.

"I see everyone put in much effort to increase their skill. With that being said, it is time for us to increase our levels once more. Our ill.u.s.trious name can't be overshadowed by others haha!", chuckled Kaiden.

"Right!!" A harmonious shout of many different voices sounded. But, of course, it wouldn't be MagicsSlave or Hollow Stance if they didn't cause an upset.

"Hahaha! These shits won't know what hit em! Like in that novel where the truck straight up obliterated that dude." cackled MagicsSlave.

"CORRECT! We're gonna f.u.c.k em up! What our levels blast off like that certain trio that never gets what they want!" added Hollow Stance.

Sighing, Kaiden facepalmed. However, he too let out a chuckle.

"Alright, alright. We have things to do. We now move out."

Dashing off, Kaiden ran with stampeding steps that propelled him forward at an o.b.s.c.e.n.e pace. In fact, he has already pulled ahead a notable distance in mere seconds. The only one able to keep up was DespoticShadow, albeit barely. He was already running at his top speed as Kaiden had yet to approach his.

"Dammit you horse! Wait the hell up...HOW CAN YOU LEAVE US?!" screamed MagicsSlave as he struggled to keep up with the physical classes.

"Haha! Don't be a wuss, if you behave like that you'll get rekt." taunted Hollow.

Decelerating, Kaiden and Despotic Shadow eventually let the others catch up. Additionally, Kaiden assigned every party member a position. In the end, they formed a spearhead formation.

The full support and crowd control members remained on the interior of the formation. The magic attackers whether damage per second or burster formed the rear rounded line that resembled a smile. The tanking classes formed the middle line and the immediate guard for the supports. The front lines were the physical damage per second and burst classes spearheaded by Kaiden.

The premise behind this formation was that the tanks and attackers could be interchanged at any time. Additionally, at all moments the essential supports would be protected. With their wide range, the mage classes remained at the back.

'Hm, it seems we lack a decent Archer. I see none here.'

Running in this formation, the team resembled professionals as Kaiden monitored their positioning. Even while traveling to a dungeon, Kaiden was instilling discipline in his members.

Of course, Kaiden would have to occasionally draw Angurvadal and send a Sword Force enhanced Sword Wave - Dispersion at countless monsters that impeded their advance. Now that he had his Gate of Physical Exaltation opened, his attacks sent Elite and below monsters flying effortlessly.

Within 30 minutes, the party reached the opposite end of the Lunar Spectre Grotto. This was the dungeon entrance space to the Eerie Lunar Crypt. An Lv.35-40 20-man Team Dungeon.

Additionally, information to be known is that now that the users had graduated from the starting villages the dungeons changed slightly or rather—they became stronger. In addition to the previous "Normal" and "Hard" difficulties, there now existed a 3rd difficulty—Elite.

Just like Hard Mode, Elite further increased the stats of the monsters inside as well as the loot—only that it was a lot more pronounced than before.

"Since you guys have run the Normal and Hard Mode of this dungeon before, give me a brief summary of the contents of this dungeon."

Stepping forth, SymbolicSoul began providing Kaiden a quick breakdown of the events that transpired inside the dungeon as well as the monster types. For the most part, the monster's inside matched the ones outside.

"Alright, that is good then. Everyone, prepare yourself we will be entering the Elite Mode shortly." advised Kaiden.

Clapping his hands, MagicsSlave became giddy. "Oh boy! Hehe! We are going to complete another first clear. There has yet to be a guild or team to clear an Elite Mode dungeon. SUCK IT!"

Ignoring MagicsSlave, the team was confronted by a message before entering.

[System: You have chosen Elite Mode. Enter at your own risk! Monster's attributes have increased by at least 50% compared to the Normal version. The death penalty is a 25% loss in Experience. The Entry count is 1/1. If failed experience gained in the dungeon may be kept, however, loot disappears.]

'Oh? It seems the dungeons outside of the starting ones have slightly different penalties. We're able to keep the experience we acquire in the dungeon even if we die. That's a relief.'

As the party entered, a few frowned as the environment was murkier than they remembered. The whole map was covered in a thick grey fog. However, Kaiden could make out crypt type wall bearings in the distance. Moreover, this crypt had an eerie feeling to it.

Within the dense fog, the team felt as if countless prying eyes were focused on them. Additionally, those prying eyes felt vengeful.

"Stick to the planned formation. With this, we can react to any changes in situation in a timely manner." instructed Kaiden as his hands rested upon Angurvadal and Nightfall. At a moment's notice, he was ready to hack something.

Advancing at a gradual pace, the party inspected all surroundings as visibility was limited. Kaiden's eyes occasionally shifted—due to this Firmament Piercing Eyes and unlocked sensitivity he could slightly see through the dense fog.

'This fog is annoying, is there no way to dispel it? Or at least temporarily deal with it?'

At that moment, an eerie low pitch wailing noise resounded as the team readied for battle.

From the fog appear Wraiths of different varieties.

Lv.42 [Wailing Wraith] (Elite)

Health: 890,000/890,000 (100%)

Lv.42 [Vengeful Wraith] (Elite)

Health: 930,000/930,000 (100%)

Lv.43 [Devouring Wraith] (Rare Elite)

Health: 1,120,000/1,120,000 (100%)

"Oh, that health is thicc! So this is why it's called Elite Mode. There's not a Normal monster in sight and I bet these are the weakest monsters in this place! Who's willing to bet? Wanna bet?"

As MagicsSlave talked, he got excited and saliva began escaping from his mouth causing the party to scoff in reply.

Brandishing Angurvadal and Nightfall, Kaiden poured Sword Force into both his swords as he executed 6th Tempest Style - Twin Tornado Drill.

As a result, the Twin Tornado drilled empowered by Sword Force pierced through the dense fog, and for a brief moment, those 2 spots became visible. Additionally, each drill dealt with over 10,000 damage.

Far from done, Kaiden activated Sword Steps which was the skill that replaced Fleeting Surge.

[Sword Steps] (Special) - Lv.1/10. Imbues your body with the aura of the sword. Increases movement and attack speed by 35%. Additionally, your afterimages or wind from your path of advance deals damage equal to 2% of (Strength x Agility).

Duration: 40 seconds. Cooldown: 4 minutes. Skill Proficiency: (815/1,000)

Dashing, the afterimages Kaiden created caused approximately 8,000 damage to any monster who came in contact.

Throwing Nightfall, Kaiden closely followed behind the sword's flight path. Before it reached its target—a Vengeful Wraith. Kaiden used Second Drive and performed an abrupt acceleration. Jumping, Kaiden rotated and executed Sonic Thrust on the back hilt of Nightfall.

As a result, the Nightfall Blade exploded forth with an even stronger momentum and tore through Wraith after Wraith.

[Sonic Thrust] (Rare) - Lv.1/10. An upgraded version of a normal Thrust. Instead of focusing on the arm, this thrust focuses on the body as a whole. Using the body's force pierce through your enemies. Deals 1220 damage + 110% piercing damage.

Cooldown: 25 seconds. Skill Proficiency: (110/500.) Requirement: Sword Weapon.

Experiencing their Guild Leader's playstyle firsthand a lot of the present physical classes eyes gleamed with fervor. Especially FlashLight, through Kaiden's movement he found the inadequacies in his spearmanship and tightened his grip on his long lance.

'That's what I'm lacking! Fluidity and unrestricted movements. I need to pierce in any and every direction possible. Also, I need to be more abrupt with my piercing. Unlike a sword, a long lance relies heavily on piercing and thrusting motions—then supplemental slicing movements.'

With his eyes opened, FlashLight dashed into battle in the previously discussed formation. Brandishing his spear he used the Lancer version of Thrust which had many times more reach than a sword.

Furthermore, because of the length of the spear and the distribution of weight usually being concentrated in the tip—a strong wrist and shoulder were needed to act as a fulcrum for the spear. It would be suicide to try and expertly wield a spear without an adequate arm.

However, this didn't apply to FlashLight as this was his forte. In light of his moment of enlightenment, FlashLight's previous mechanical like spearmanship began adopting a unique rhythm and fluidity.

The 9th Rank Saintly General, FlashLight the Sky Piercer was shattering his chrysalis and starting the metamorphosis to a true monster.

Now it was Hollow's turn. Running forward with heavy steps, Hollow gripped his shield and slammed into a Wraith. Following his bash, he executed Punishing Strike slamming his sword down on the head of a Wraith.

Now it was Kaiden's turn to be surprised at Hollow's growth. The technique he was using in his bashes was known as Second Drive.

'Oh? Hollow watched me this closely. At least I know his talent is high enough to learn through observation.'

Shifting his body, Hollow executed two of his new skills in sequence which were Armor Crush and Chain Bash respectively. Jumping, Hollow descended from above pressing his shield on a Wraith. As a result, a muffled noise resounded.

'BANG!'

Kaiden smiled. Although his team wasn't best—they were learning, they exerted substantial effort.

'I know I can put my faith in my guild for sure.'

15 minutes later, the team finished slaying the last Wraith. Each member experienced a notable rise in experience, gaining at least 7%. Advancing, Kaiden's ears twitched as he picked up on the sound of something falling in the distance.

"Halt."

Closing his eyes, eliminating the sense of sight he enhanced the state of his hearing and discerned that the falling sound was coming from within the walls. Additionally, it wasn't the sound of falling but rather a mechanism ticking.

'If not for my improved physique we would've been turned in swiss cheese and sponsored by Vlad the Impaler.'

"Up ahead there are a ridiculous amount of trigger mechanisms. Additionally, they are located on all 4 sides of the wall because of this I'm not sure if it's a one-time activation trap or one that resets." informed Kaiden.

"Woah! Not only are you a horse...you're a bat too. I can't wait to be like you." chuckled MagicsSlave.

"Oi, Hollow, test the ahead mechanism and see if it is a one-time activation mechanism. If so that would save us the trouble."

However, why would it be so easy? This wasn't the Normal version where traps only came from one direction. Or the Hard Mode where traps activated simultaneously but only once. This was Elite Mode, and it would take elites to pass this hurdle or at least overpowered people.

Chanting, SymbolicSoul used Holy Shield on Hollow which encased him in a dull yellow transparent orb.

Running forward, Hollow soon realized the treachery of Elite Mode. Not only did the objects shoot out of the wall at insane speeds—they shot out simultaneously in 3 tiers. The rows behind and in front of Hollow expelled spear projectiles as well as the axis he stood on.

'Damn…' thought Hollow.

Within seconds the Holy Shield broke and Hollow ran back looking like an oversized porcupine.

Gentle Whisper used Healing Wind on Hollow which caused the protruding short spears to fall out.