Unlike the tenth floor, which was an open, mist-shrouded forest, the thirteenth floor marked a drastic change.
From here onward, a labyrinth of twisting tunnels connected one vast cavern chamber after another.
In this respect, it resembled the early first through ninth floors.
The difference was stark: instead of the relatively even, mineshaft-like terrain of the tutorial zone, the 13th floor's ground was jagged and uneven, making footing treacherous.
Sometimes the slopes were so steep that fighting on them was like battling on the face of a cliff.
Thankfully, unlike in video games, there was no slip mechanic here in reality. Otherwise, Renjiro's sanity bar would've long since shattered.
Thwip, thwip, thwip!
An arrow of ice, another of lightning, and a crackling blast from Oz halted the fiery assault of three Hellhounds.
Two of the beasts, jaws aglow with flames, were struck before they could release their breath.
The result: the flames detonated inside their mouths.
Elemental Reaction: Overloaded.
The self-inflicted explosions were brutal.
The last Hellhound staggered under the damage from a Melt reaction, before,
Shuah!
A white-tasseled spear pierced clean through its chest, Xiao's dragon-like lunge ending the threat.
"Nicely done!"
Currently, Renjiro commanded two ranged attackers.
Diona, the lower-level one, couldn't deal much damage even with Melt.
Her main role was tactical: casting Icy Paws to throw up a shield, then either retreating so the shield transferred to an ally, or staying to fire off rapid, uncharged shots to interrupt Hellhounds mid-cast.
"Aim for the eyes. Interrupt their spellcasting."
It was clear: Renjiro had begun using Genshin Descent in real combat.
And after repeated use, he had already drawn several conclusions.
The Genshin Avatars he summoned with Genshin Descent differed greatly from the Traveler Twins manifested via his Starfire's Flowing Light split-body magic.
Unlike normal adventurers, these avatars did not require, and indeed could not receive, Falna from a god.
According to the Genshin System: each Avatar had its own independent character sheet.
They leveled up, upgraded weapons, artifacts, talents, and unlocked Constellations through pulls.
In effect, Renjiro himself was their Familia god, their stats updated directly within the system.
And the updates were instant, real-time, anywhere.
Tactically, this allowed tricks such as:
Diona, even at C0, she could pass her shield to others by tagging out.
Fischl, after summoning Oz, she could exit the field, saving Renjiro's MP, since off-field Oz cost nothing yet still shared EXP.
This tag-out system functioned almost identically to the character swap mechanics of Genshin Impact.
Of course, as in the game, there was a one-second cooldown between exit and return.
Over the last two days, frequent use of Genshin Descent to break through ambushes also let Renjiro study the mana regen mechanics of his Starry Abyss skill.
He confirmed that: the closer he was to Abyss-like zones, the greater his regen multiplier.
Every 10 floors deeper: regen doubled.
For example:
On the surface beneath the stars, ×2.
On the 13th floor, ×2.6.
At night in Orario, even underground, ×2 again.
Crucially, this last multiplier applied even if he couldn't see the night sky. The condition was simply beneath the night sky.
This world is forcing me into cultivation training… Renjiro groaned inwardly.
After their skirmish, he had Paimon, acting as support, clean up the battlefield.
Thanks to her indestructible smartphone, she also kept time for him.
This season, from about 5:30 p.m. until 5:30 a.m., his regen multiplier stayed at ×10.4.
He had tested it: at ×10 and above, the cost of summoning a single Genshin Avatar was effectively sustainable indefinitely.
At ×20, he could maintain two avatars permanently.
"For now, at night, I can maintain a four-person team: the Twins, Paimon, and one Avatar."
"Aether, Lumine, and Xiao are all Lv.20 now. Fischl just hit Lv.19, and Diona's up to Lv.18."
"In two more days, we'll meet our early benchmark."
Renjiro's eyes sharpened as he thought: Then it'll be time… to visit Big Sis Freya for another status update.
================
Footnotes:
Elemental Reaction: Overloaded – Pyro + Electro in Genshin Impact, causing an explosive AoE.
Melt reaction – Cryo + Pyro combination, amplifying damage.
Genshin Descent – Renjiro's ability to summon fully capable Genshin Impact characters into reality.
Starfire's Flowing Light – Renjiro's magic that creates split-body copies of himself.
Falna – A divine blessing in DanMachi granting adventurers power and the ability to level up.
Genshin System – The in-universe system managing Avatar growth, stats, and upgrades.
Starry Abyss – A unique skill increasing mana regen based on depth and night conditions.
Paimon – Support character acting as both a helper in battle and timekeeper using a smartphone.
==========
You can find much more on my Patreon: Patreon.com/Veltoria
There are currently 5 active fanfictions on Patreon, with over 582+ advanced chapters available across them!
From Naruto Onwards, I Control Time — Up to Chapter 337
Haikyuu!!: Rise of Sengoku — Up to Chapter 279
Danmachi: Is It Wrong To Aspire to Be An Adventurer? — Up to Chapter 97
Legend of Hogwarts (Harry Potter x League of Legends) — Up to Chapter 188
I Am Luffy: Partner System Online (One Piece) — Up to Chapter 170
Playing Genshin Impact in Danmachi (Danmachi x Genshin Impact) — Up to Chapter 100
Kuroko no Basket: The Phantom Ace — Up to Chapter 23