[Day 10: You feel weaker due to the evil power consuming your vitality…]

Lem was passively observing when his simulated self suddenly found itself in danger.

Snap! Snap! Snap!

A flutter of leaves fell down above him!

A juvenile tyrant sloth was rapidly descending from a nearby tree.

From his detached position, Lem was capable of keeping calm, but his simulated self was consumed by sheer panic.

The sloth grew closer by the second, breaking off branches as it went. It looked like it was about to directly body-slam him.

A beast that large could easily crush him through sheer weight alone. The claws were superfluous.

[While walking, you encounter a juvenile tyrant sloth. It descends from nearby branches, rapidly approaching you.]

As the beast entered within reach of the spear, he stabbed out with the spear, trying to deter it from ramming into him.

The sloth’s eyes fixed tightly on the spear point, a cautious intelligence gleaming within.

Snap! Snap!

The branches around him broke as he attacked.

He hoped that it would continue forward and impale itself, but the sloth leapt out of the way with unusual grace.

Not only big, but also wary and agile?

[In a panic, you lunge with your spear, but the sloth jumps out of the way.]

Once!

Twice!

Lem could not help but admire the movement pattern of the sloth. It was almost two meters tall and bulky, but it still managed to dodge the spear attacks with minimal effort. Afterward, it began barrelling towards him again.

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Again! Again! And again!

Lem’s simulated self was growing more and more desperate. His wild thrusts were nowhere near connecting, they were all that was keeping the tyrant sloth at bay.

At the same time, the sloth had changed its tactics. It stood up on its hind legs, and was trying to rake him with its claws.

It couldn’t reach him as long as it was forced to dodge the spear, so he continuously poked at it.

At the same time, the tyrant sloth was giving low grunts while it moved backwards, using a tree as partial cover while it waited for an opportunity.

Please trip on a root!

The long claws on its hind legs scraped against the ground menacingly.

Lem’s simulated self thrust out with the spear again, but the sloth ducked behind the tree.

The spear snagged in the bark, leaving his side exposed for a moment.

Mistake!

He struggled to pull the spear out, before swinging it towards the beast.

Unfortunately, instead of jumping backwards, it leapt forwards, avoiding the spear and lunging at his exposed torso with open claws.

In a panic, Lem’s simulated self dropped his spear and punched forward.

The [Nine Bull Fist] met the shoulder of the sloth!

Crack!

At the same time, the sloth’s claws glanced along his arm.

[In desperation, you attack the sloth with the [Nine Bull Fist]. You land an unexpected blow that shatters the shoulder of the sloth, but you also receive a serious cut on your arm from the sloth’s claws.]

Ugnh! The tyrant sloth let out a loud grunt, as it scrambled away rapidly, falling from its hind legs back onto all fours, limping in agony.

He leapt forward.

His spear was left on the ground, as he let out one punch after another.

Whoosh! Woosh! Crack!

Another punch landed, this time striking the face of the sloth. A fount of blood squirted from its nose. It let out a low bellow as it moved to cover its face with its claws.

Woosh!

Crack!

With another punch, the sloth’s shattered shoulder was deformed even further. A bit of bone protruded from a ghastly cut.

Crack!

The face was hammered again.

[Following up on your success, you land several punches on the sloth, severely injuring it.]

Lem could feel that the tide of the battle had shifted dramatically. Even though he had sustained an injury, his simulated self had done far more damage to the tyrant sloth in return.

It demonstrated the value of martial arts!

Even one that was as watered down as the [Nine Bull Fist] allowed him to produce power far beyond his physical capabilities, allowing him to inflict serious damage on a beast.

It was even more impressive when Lem considered how poor his comprehension of [Nine Bull Fist] was.

If he had already mastered the technique, it was unlikely that ten tyrant sloths could stand a chance against him!