Stark raised his staff, ready to unleash destruction on the [Spider Queen].

But right as he was about to attack...

Ding!

A panel appeared in front of him.

[Silk Bind: 4%]

'Knew it.' Stark's eyes narrowed. 'So it's time [Eternal Soul] introduced the [Status Meters].'

Status effects had always been a part of the game.

The usual ones were simple enough: fear, confusion, paralysis, sleep.

Annoying, but manageable.

But these were the "basic" forms, or the more "common" ones.

The bar in front of him wasn't one of those.

The [Status Meters] were in a completely different category.

Stronger. Rarer. More dangerous.

Instead of hitting instantly like normal effects, they appeared as a bar that filled up slowly based on the actions and environment.

And once it hit 100%, you were done.

The effect took hold, and in most cases, you were helpless.

Players could mostly encounter them when fighting bosses.

'If this was just a normal [Bind], I'd break out of the silk.' Stark glanced down.

Strands were creeping around his boots, spreading out from the sticky floor.

Slowly, methodically, they wound tighter and tighter.

But this wasn't normal. The bar ticked upward, slowly but steadily.

At 100%, he wouldn't be able to move at all.

He'd be completely immobilized.

The different types of [Status Meters] were infamous.

[Whisper], [Deep Sleep], [Terror], [Death], each one nastier than the last.1

The actions of the boss also influence how high the meter climbs.

It could go slowly or... all of a sudden shoot to 100.

A full bar meant doom, and depending on the type, doom came in different forms.

Sometimes you'd be locked in place.

Sometimes you'd lose control of your own body.

Sometimes you'd simply die.

And then there was the worst of them all: [Instant Death].

Reach 100%, and you were gone permanently, your lives wouldn't save you.

Stark exhaled slowly, gaze locked on the queen.

Thankfully, very few monsters had access to that one.

He had never encountered it. Not in his past life at least.

The only reason players knew about it was because some NPCs spoke about it.

But he knew… somewhere out there, it existed.

Nine years of playing [Eternal Soul], and even then, players seemed to have only scratched the surface.

There were mechanics, bosses, and systems no one had seen yet.

But that was fine.

For now, the only bar that mattered was the one crawling upward under his feet.

It was a timed battle, if you didn't defeat the [Spider Queen] fast enough, you would die.

Blazing Meteor! Piercing Skeletal Spikes!

The spells roared to life.

Boom! Swash!

-389,280!

The meteor slammed into the Spider Queen's thorax, flames exploding across her armored body.

The hit alone shredded nearly a third of her health.

Before the fire cleared, skeletal spikes erupted from the floor, jagged white bones bursting upward.

Most of them clattered harmlessly against her thick exoskeleton, leaving only scratches.

But five struck her head directly.

-72,000! -72,000! -72,000! -72,000! -72,000!

Purple ichor sprayed across the chamber as the queen shrieked.

Her eight eyes flickered with rage.

"Useless food…" she hissed, her voice dripping with venom.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The cocoons scattered across the floor burst open all at once.

Dozens of spiders spilled out, legs scraping the ground, hissing as they swarmed toward Stark.

Slam! Slam! Slam!

They crashed against his [Unbreakable Magic Barrier], dozens of sharp legs stabbing and scraping.

The dome trembled under the assault, but it held strong.

100,000 HP. Their pitiful strikes wouldn't be enough.

Stark grinned, "Too bad."

Blazing Meteor!

BOOM!

The explosion shook the chamber.

Fire engulfed every spider around him.

Silk burned away, corpses scattered across the ground.

The force of the blast shattered his barrier too, leaving him exposed, but the spiders were gone.

The Spider Queen roared.

"My children!" Her screech was loud enough to rattle the walls. "You will… PAY!"

["Spider Queen" has entered a "Berserk" state.]

'Oh well.' Stark shrugged.

She didn't have a second phase at least!

But he noticed that the silk at his feet tightened, moving faster than before.

[Silk Bind: 26%]

The queen's berserk state was ramping up the rate.

The bar climbed faster, pressing him into a tighter corner.

He didn't care. He still had time.

Fwish!

The Spider Queen lunged, closing the gap in a blink.

One of her enormous legs swung down like a blade.

Stark ducked, rolling to the side.

Another leg slashed at him, and he barely sidestepped in time.

Her speed was incredible. Each strike carried enough force to split stone.

Clang!

He blocked one with his staff.

The staff vibrated violently in his hands.

He knew that if he tried that too often, the weapon would shatter.

But he had no choice. Strike after strike came down.

Stark weaved, deflected, ducked, dodged.

The queen's screeches filled the cavern, each hiss sharper than the last.

[Silk Bind: 74%]

His jaw tightened. 'The rate's tripled since she went berserk.'

He didn't have much time left.

One mistake, one delay, and he'd be locked in place.

No more waiting. It was time to end this.

Blazing Meteor! Piercing Skeletal Spikes!

The meteor roared from his staff, streaking toward the queen.

Fwish!

Silk Barrier!

Her legs moved in a blur, weaving thick threads into a cocoon around her body.

The meteor crashed into it and exploded, but the silk held.

The blast spread flames across the chamber, yet she stood untouched inside her shield.

Then she lunged, her shriek piercing the air.

"DIE!"

Her legs scythed toward Stark, aimed to cut him in half.

Slash! Slash! Slash!

But before she could land a killing blow, the ground erupted.

Jagged skeletal spikes speared upward, piercing straight through her head.

-72,000! -72,000! -72,000!

The queen froze. Her massive body trembled.

Her health bar plummeted to zero.

Her eight black eyes flickered once… then dimmed forever.

Boom!

Her body crashed to the ground, lifeless.

[Silk Bind: 94%]

The bar froze. Then slowly, it began to drop.

The moment the queen died, the [Status Meter] was gone.

Stark let out a sharp breath. "Nice."

He lowered his staff, surveying the battlefield.

Dozens of spider corpses littered the chamber, their charred legs twitching in the fading flames.

Ding!

---

[You have killed x11 "Ground Spider (Level 26)"]

[You have killed x4 "Miner Spider (Level 27)"]

[You have killed x2 "Guardian Spider (Level 28)"]

[You have killed x23 "Small Spider (Level 26)"]

[You have killed "Spider Queen (Level 28 Epic-Rank Boss)"]

[You have gained 173,500 Experience Points.]

[Congratulations, you have leveled up to Level 27!]

[You have gained +5 to all attributes, and +5 free points to distribute.]

[You have gained 13 Evolution Points!]

[You have gained 378 Lives!]

---

'Damn.'

The rewards were solid.

He'd leveled up again, his attributes rising steadily.

The spiders had dropped loot too, though none of it seemed immediately useful.

Hand of Avarice!

The spectral hand swept over the corpses.

Ding!

[You have gained 13 Evolution Points!]

[You have gained 489 Lives!]

But that wasn't all.

The Spider Queen's corpse glowed.

Another item appeared: golden light shining brilliantly in the dark chamber.

Stark's eyes widened.

'Triggered extra [Evolution Points] and an evolved item?'

This fight had really paid off. He bent down and picked it up.

A necklace, its pendant shaped like a spider's fang, gleaming faintly in the firelight.

[Spider Necklace (Legendary): If wearing this necklace, no spiders will attack you unless you strike first.]

"Wow."

This was huge.

With this, entire spider zones would become trivial.

The monsters wouldn't attack at all unless provoked.

Players could walk right through to the boss.

It was practically a free pass.

'Too bad both my necklace slots are taken.'

Still, he wasn't about to throw it away.

He tucked it into his inventory, along with the rest of the loot.

[Inventory: 146/152]

'Damn. Almost full.'

He exhaled, rolling his shoulders.

The chamber was quiet now, the queen and her children dead.

But as he looked deeper into the room, he noticed something odd.

At the very back, one of the larger cocoons split open, not with spiders, but with light.

Behind it, a gate shimmered into existence.

And beyond the gate… a chest.

[Epic Chest]

Stark grinned. "The real reward."

If you still don't understand, just understand it works the same as Sekiro's [Terror] bar when fighting the [Guardian Ape].

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