Chapter 63: A Trap? Cleanse the Virus! The Devil Emerges

"All skills are disabled?"

Zach's heart sank as the system's notification echoed in his mind. It wasn't just the shopping mall and world trading center being disabled for "difficulty purposes"—those restrictions he could accept. But disabling skills? That felt like the system wanted him dead.

As if to emphasize its seriousness, the fighter jet suddenly became sluggish and unresponsive. Zach wrestled with the controls and realized, with grim clarity, that the system wasn't joking. His skills were truly gone.

Great, he thought bitterly, forcing the jet into autopilot. "First, you lock me in this dungeon, and now this? Feels like someone's deliberately stacking the deck against me."

He glanced back at the empty sky. The red vortex was gone, erased as if it had never existed. There was no turning back now.

Zach's mind raced. It was too coincidental—the way he had just unlocked powerful new abilities, and then immediately stumbled into this hidden dungeon. It was almost as if the system—or whoever controlled it—had identified him as a rogue element, a virus that needed to be eradicated.

"Kill me silently, huh? Nice try." Zach smirked, unbothered by the looming danger.

Even without his skills, Zach had a crucial advantage: the system backpack still worked. From it, he retrieved a resurrection crystal necklace and placed it around his neck. Seven lives—added to his own—gave him some breathing room.

"Alright," he muttered, loosening his grip on the controls. "Time to land this thing before my luck runs out."

Relying on memory and sheer muscle, Zach managed a rough but effective forced landing in an open area. The cockpit hissed as he opened it, and he stepped onto the ground, feeling a wave of relief.

"Finally, solid ground."

He wasted no time stripping the fighter of its valuable payload: four cluster bombs, weapons with unparalleled destructive power. These he stored in the backpack, a resource too precious to leave behind.

Donning his gear, Zach armed himself for the unknown. He equipped grenades, flashbangs, high explosives, and a range of weaponry he had amassed during past adventures. From ice and fire blades strapped to his back to the sharp mantis blades mounted on his shoulders, Zach became a walking arsenal.

The final touch was a pair of translucent, cicada-like insect wings sprouting from his back, ready to assist if mobility became a concern. He slid his hands into mechanical gloves—split claws hidden within—and attached a laser cannon to his arm. Despite its weight, he felt prepared.

"Alright," he said, glancing at his formidable arsenal. "This should be enough. I hope."

Zach didn't have to wait long to test his gear.

A strange, grating noise interrupted his thoughts—a hard object scraping against the ground. He turned sharply, eyes narrowing.

"Finally," Zach muttered, his anticipation rising.

But his confidence wavered as the source of the sound stepped into view. It wasn't a swarm of enemies as he had expected—it was one.

Yet this one creature carried the menace of an entire army.

It towered three times his height, a grotesque patchwork of mismatched parts. Thick, muscular arms that seemed crudely stitched together hung at its sides. Its abdomen glowed faintly red through translucent skin, pulsating ominously like a living furnace.

The creature's legs were grotesquely disproportionate: massive, cotton-like thighs gave way to spindly, backward-bent calves ending in razor-sharp, iron cone feet. Each step it took seemed designed to impale prey with ruthless efficiency.

Its face was equally monstrous. Red eyes glared from a head too small for its thick neck. A pig-like snout, jagged teeth, and curling horns added to its demonic visage.

The creature held a death scythe in one massive hand. The weapon was as nightmarish as its wielder—four curved blades of varying sizes extended from its shaft, each razor-sharp and stained with blood. Red-eyed skull reliefs decorated the hilt, glowing faintly in the dim light.

Zach tightened his grip on his weapons. "Alright, big guy," he muttered, his voice steady despite the fear clawing at his chest. "Let's see if you live up to the hype."

The creature took a step forward, its scythe glinting ominously in the dim light. Zach braced himself.

The dungeon had just begun.