Xavier tensed a little and entered combat mode to evade all kinds of incoming attacks.
However, nothing happened. The tingly feeling intensified and Xavier could tell that he was in danger, but he didn’t see any opponents rushing towards him. For a confused second, he looked around wildly before he noticed a movement from the corner of his eye.
He barely stepped aside as a large wolf charged through the thicket, claws bared and its wide maw open. It pounced at Xavier, who pulled back while using Dash and Judgment. The wolf was huge and quite strong with brownish-gray fur covering its huge body.
Omega Wolf – 256 – Strength
Xavier evaded the Omega Wolf and quickly took a look at its stats. The monster didn’t slow down and used its momentum to close the gap between them. Xavier activated Elemental Aegis to conjure a shield made from blazing flames in front of him. The Omega Wolf yelped at the unexpected encounter with the searing hot flames and jumped back. Its fur caught on fire and the smell of burnt hair reached Xavier’s nostrils. However, the Omega Wolf had quick reflexes so it didn’t get any serious burns.
Meanwhile, Xavier activated Thunder Step. A tingling sensation spread through his lower body, his thighs and calves tensed up, and electric currents manifested around him. The electric currents that looked like small bolts of thunder, crackled noisily. They revolved around his calves and thighs and seeped into his skin, creating small thunderous noises that grew louder by the moment.
The cacophony of thunder reverberated through the vicinity as Xavier charged ahead. His muscles bulged and the ground underneath his feet cracked as he charged forward.
His feet left small craters in the ground as cobweb-like cracks spread through the surface. Loose soil and small pebbles were sprayed around but the Omega Wolf was too tall for the dirt to distract it. It let out a deep, rumbling growl and pawed at the ground as its yellow teeth gleamed malevolently.
Just like the information about the Card stated, there was no point in trying to stay silent. His enemy had already spotted him and wanted to rip him to shreds so he might as well make use of the speed burst. The small bolts of currents continued to revolve around Xavier’s legs, swirling around like wisps and infusing him with strength and speed.
Both Dash and Thunder Step were activated, increasing his Agility drastically. He appeared next to the Omega Wolf, unsheathed the Ruby Katana in a swift motion, and used Energy Blade, Shadow Blade, and Coat of Fire together.
No sooner had he done that than the blade began to hum as if it was alive. It started to glow in an ethereal light as the combined effects charged it. Small flames sprouted all over Ruby Katana’s blade, except the hilt that Xavier was holding.
One second fire erupted out of the blade and the next, shadows and darkness replaced the bright glow of the flames as if a strong breeze had extinguished the flames in an instant. However that was hardly the case. Darkness and fire should have fought each other but the effects made the blade thrum in a synchronized harmony of shadows and fire. It was a mesmerizing sight but Xavier couldn’t afford to keep staring at it.
Xavier released a quick Air Bullet. It smashed heavily into the Omega Wolf’s head right before Xavier arrived next to it. The ruby katana sliced through the air with a quick motion, beheading the monster with a single strike.
Omega Wolf has been slain.
Blood splattered through the surroundings, forcing Xavier to retreat. He didn’t want to be covered in blood as it would attract too much-unwanted attention.
He didn’t use much energy in the fight, but Xavier used Meditation nonetheless. Thanks to surpassing Level 10, Meditation could be used to replenish his Energy faster even as he walked around. It didn’t consume too much of his concentration either.
When Xavier started meditating for the first time, the energy in the surroundings had been scarce and of low quality. The same couldn’t be said ten weeks later. The environment was overflowing with energy.
The air and the surroundings were filled with rich, ambient energy. Xavier could not see it but he could sense it all around him. Not just him but the trees and the soil were infused with this energy as well, nourishing them.
Drawing the surrounding energy into his body wasn’t hard anymore. It was as easy as standing in the sun to let his skin soak in the warmth. Xavier was pretty sure that he didn’t even need the Meditation Card to aid him anymore. Nonetheless, using the Common Card allowed him to keep his attention on the surroundings as he walked around.
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The Omega Wolf’s corpse was valuable and its bones and hide could be crafted into weapons and durable armor. Unfortunately, Xavier was not fortunate enough to procure a Pocket Dimension Card, a spatial-type Card that generated an isolated dimension to store stuff. It was one of the Cards Xavier wanted to procure soon. The problem was just that he didn’t know how to procure such a Card. Leyla was lucky enough to obtain such a Card with her ascension to Stage-1. It was a Rare Pocket Dimension Card that was often used to harvest the hunting gains.
The best property about the Pocket Dimension Card was that there was no limit to the weight it could carry. Leyla walked around with corpses as heavy as hundreds of kilogramms as if it were nothing.
I wonder if the Craftsmen can craft spatial rings and stuff like that as well. It would be cool if we could replace magic items and Artifacts like in games and novels.
The Craftsmen of Haven were already experimenting a lot with the materials they’d procured over the last few weeks. Their mission was similar to that of the Alchemists. They hoped to help the combatants grow stronger and increase their survivability in the wilderness.
The stronger the combatants, the better everyone’s living standard would be. As long as Xavier and the other combatants grew strong enough, it wouldn’t be impossible to reclaim Alsburg in its entirety. Consequently, that would mean more room to live and more resources to utilize. That was something worth fighting for.
Everyone had their unique challenges to complete. Combatants would have to grow stronger, learn more about various combat styles, and study their enemies to gain as many advantages as possible. Meanwhile, the non-combat Card Holders would do their things to improve everyone’s living standard. They were a cohesive society, and they could only improve their situation by working together.
Xavier understood that as well as everyone else. That was also partially why he decided to move through the forest on his way to search for survivors in the neighboring city. But before he could rescue survivors from there, Xavier had to know about the situation in Logwood. He heard a lot from the few refugees, who had managed to reach Alsburg in the past weeks. However, he had to know how dangerous the Kobold Gate and the monsters protecting the Monster Gate were and see it for himself before creating a plan to eliminate the threats.
If their existence endangered Haven and its citizens, they might have to prepare for another war and fight. As long as they gained control of the Kobold Gate, they might be able to regulate how many powerful monsters could emerge on their side. Xavier was not certain about that, but he hoped that it would be possible to control the Monster Gates. In the worst case, they could slaughter the monsters the moment they emerged from the Monster Gate.
For that, they would have to clear the surroundings set up a small base around the Monster Gate, and station a few skilled fighters as guards. Haven was not ready to do something like that. They didn’t have the manpower, let alone strength to achieve it plus they could not afford to let skilled fighters idle around, waiting for monsters to emerge from the Gate.
In all honesty, they were already struggling as it was and needed every bit of strength to hold their fort.
Locating the Monster Gate, determining the Kobold’s strength, and searching for survivors. That shouldn’t be too difficult.
Xavier hoped that there would be some powerful Card Holders among the survivors he’d find. He didn’t even doubt that he would find some survivors. The question was just whether they were in a state to fight, or if they were as good as dead.
Expanding Haven and integrating powerful Card Holders into their settlement was one way to protect everyone. That would be a lot easier than killing all Kobolds protecting the Monster Gate to take control of it.
But then again, Xavier was intrigued about the other side of the Monster Gate. He didn’t have much time to think about it before, but now he found himself wondering about what was on the other side of the Monster Gate. Was it just an isolated dimension with a particular race of monsters, or was it a whole different world filled with a mix of different breeds of monsters?
Xavier was not sure but he was curious about the answer. Unfortunately, he was way too weak to consider entering the Monster Gate. All he knew about the Monster Gate in Logwood was that Kobolds emerged from it. There was nothing else for him to go on.
Tying the laces of his shoes firmly, he decided to take a good look around. This time he activated Eye of Evolution and Judgement to search for the monsters around him. Since Glut wasn’t by his side, Xavier had to be more vigilant of his surroundings. Glut was more perceptive among the two. The Ember Sparrow would pinpoint enemies from his elevated altitude and warn Xavier under normal circumstances.
But Glut was occupied for a few days so Xavier had to walk into unexplored areas by himself.
He moved through the forest and searched for some enemies. Camouflage and Dash were utilized together, allowing him to sneak up on some Kobolds relatively fast.
He coated the Ruby Katana in Shadow Blade and readied himself for the battle once he had located all of his enemies.
Greater Kobold Archer – 285 – Dexterity
Superior Kobold Archer – 291 – Agility
Greater Kobold Warrior – 271 – Strength
Kobold Champion – 315 – Vitality
Kobold Giant – 351 – Vitality
Xavier found a small group with six Kobolds. Their Foundations were not overwhelmingly high, but they were high enough for Xavier to put up his guard.
However, his eyes widened and he tensed upon using Judgement on the sixth Kobold.
Shit.