Jake then informed them, "Careful, this one is a D-rank Abyssal beast."

    "D-? No wonder, it can dodge and block our attacks, but it might also have offensive moves. Be careful," Mark said.

    Jake and the others went to different positions, preparing their moves. Although Jake could have easily defeated the slime, he decided to use teamwork.

    "Let''s just bait him and defeat him," Jake said. Mark and Jimmy created basic elemental attacks and hurled them at the slime from two different directions. Emily jumped up in the air, aiming a Mana arrow at the slime from high ground. Jake moved to a different position and released a white lightning strike.

    Together, they created a Trigonal Pyramid attack. The big slime jumped upwards, trying to dodge, but from above, Emily''s mana arrow sent it back to the ground, and the three attacks hit it simultaneously. The slime exploded and died.

    [Host assisted in killing an Elite Slime and received 5 exp]

    Jimmy, Mark and Jake jumped some distance away from it, as Slime body is usually acidic, not to mention this one is Abyssal core, the core known for all types of Dark and Destruction properties.

    Jake and others then came near it and Jake picked up a cracked round bead, size of new born fist, he tossed it to Mark and said " It''s Abyssal, among us only you can absorb it".

    Mark didn''t say anything and pocketed it.

    "Hmm, it''s no longer acidic," Jimmy muttered, touching the grey liquid spilled all over.

    "After one minute of their death, their bodies lose all their acidic properties," Mark explained.

    Jimmy nodded, and then they all came near the pile of rocks.

    Jake used his Akashic eyes on it:

    [Name: Tantalium

    Rank: Uncommon

    Description: A blue-grey metal with corrosion-resistant and has a high melting point.

    -Can be used to create weapons up to Uncommon rank.]

    Jake looked at its description and muttered, ''Maybe I can use smelting to purify it and then mix it with other suitable metals to create a rare rank equipment.''

    "Oh, it''s Tantalium metal. It can be used to create equipment, Jake," Mark exclaimed after examining it.

    "Hmm, I will use it to create some equipment for us," Jake nodded.

    Then they all started to collect the herbs and metals.

    After half an hour of work, they collected everything and came out of the portal. The swirling portal shook, and then cracks started appearing on it, finally breaking.

    Mark picked up the Gate Key and frowned. "Shouldn''t the Gate key be broken after we killed the boss? So why is it still intact?"

    Jimmy, Emily, and Jake came near him and looked at the Key. "Let''s ask Master Tom; he might know about it. If he doesn''t, we can always ask Jake''s Mom," Emily suggested, and the others nodded in agreement.

    Together, they made their way to Tom''s house. While on the way, Jake mentally communicated with Nexus, ''How much time will it take to complete the key upgrade?''

    [Roughly 6 hours], Nexus replied.

    Jake knew why the key wasn''t breaking, but he couldn''t share that information with his friends. The fewer people who knew about the Cube and System, the more secure Jake would feel.

    Reaching Tom''s house, they knocked on his door and waited. Soon, the door opened, and Tom looked at them, asking, "What brings you all here?"

    Jake showed him the gate key and explained what had happened.

    Tom took the gate key and examined it carefully. "I don''t know what''s happening, but one thing is sure: some new Runic markings are appearing on it, and the previous markings are replaced."

    "Ask Sera; she is an expert in Runecraft, after all," Tom suggested as he returned the key. He then added, "Wait for me; I would also like to know what''s happening with it."

    Entering it, they found themselves inside darkness. The pitch-black darkness greeted them.

    Jake created an orb of light, illuminating the surroundings, and they saw themselves inside an underground cave. There are also some hideous green creatures shivering not far from them.

    "So it''s a goblin cave this time. It''s good I entered first or those sneaky b@stards must have attacked one of you," Tom said, pointing at the shivering goblins.

    "They are E-rank goblins, Emily scout the area," Jake said and then instructed Emily.

    Emily closed her eyes, then felt the air currents around them, and communicated with them with the help of her wind spirit and opened her eyes.

    "There are close to 500 creatures inside, some on two feet, while some on four, and there are 4 powerful presences," Emily said.

    "Two and four feet huh, there must be more than goblins in this cave," Jake said.

    "Correct, Despite being E-ranks, Goblins have the wisdom of normal humans, unlike other beasts," Tom nodded and added.

    Jake and others nodded, and then Jake used Akashic Eye on one of the shivering goblins.

    [Name: Goblin

    Rank: E

    Core: Mana

    Attribute: nil

    HP: 100

    MP: 10

    Strength: 21

    Agility: 17

    Intelligence: 13

    Vitality: 2

    -Skills: Jump (Common), Bite (Common), Club smash (Common), Screech (Common)

    Description: A certified canon fodder]

    Jake then pointed his fingers at them and fried them to death.

    [Host killed 11 E-rank goblins, Host gained 33 exp]

    ''So each goblin provides 3 exp,'' Jake thought, looking at the notification.

    "Now all of you tell me what will be your course of action," Tom asked.

    "I will create a fire and burn all the oxygen and suffocate them to death," Jake replied.

    "I will do the same," Mark said.

    "I will produce a lullaby and then kill them one by one silently," Jimmy said.

    "I will freeze the cave and then suck out all the air using my wind spirit," Emily replied.

    Tom shook his head and remarked, "Only Jimmy passes; the rest of you, what if there are captives? Will your method not kill them too?"

    Jake, Mark, and Emily bowed their heads while Jimmy flashed a smug smile.