The first movement from the treeline was subtle—a rustle, a vibration in the air.

And then, chaos erupted.

Around twenty monsters charged out from the treeline, a mixture of wolves, bears, and boars.

However, these weren't the animals anyone remembered from nature documentaries or childhood hikes. These were monstrous, grotesque versions of their earth-based counterparts.

Their massive forms were cloaked in matted fur and streaked with scars. Their eyes glowed with an unnatural light, a feral intensity that sent shivers down spines. They tore through the underbrush, and their snarls and growls resonated like a harbinger of doom.

They charged into the clearing, and their sheer speed reduced the distance to the camp to a matter of moments. These beasts chased down a group of panicked survivors who scrambled, tripping over roots and fallen branches in their desperate flight. Screams of terror filled the air as they raced for the fragile safety of the camp.

The crowd that had gathered in the centre of the clearing froze, gripped by the primal fear that came with facing a predator far beyond their understanding.

At that moment time seemed to slow down.

Then, a booming voice cut through the accumulating fear.

"Everyone forward! Protect the camp!" Smith's voice boomed, his commanding presence snapping the crowd into action as he unhesitatingly charged toward the oncoming beasts.

His presence seemed to galvanise the crowd. The militia he'd been drilling earlier—a ragtag group of initiates with mismatched weapons—rushed forward as they followed closely behind Smith and formed an imperfect but determined defensive line. Shields were raised, spears bristled, and swords gleamed under the midday light.

The defensive line was far from perfect, but as the other initiates in the camp hurriedly moved to gather their own weapons, they hoped it would hold out just long enough for everyone to gather and counter-strike.

Similarly, other able-bodied men and women from other groups besides Smiths moved forward to intercept the new enemy.

There were over 400 people in this newly formed camp. However, not everyone was a combatant, only around 250.

There were many women, children, and elderly who, although they could get stronger due to stat points, were left behind as if some previous consensus had been reached, as mostly the men moved forward to bolster the quickly formed defensive line.

Jason also moved forward, but he purposely remained a few steps behind the hastily formed defensive line. His expression was calm, almost detached, as his sharp eyes assessed the situation. The beasts were closing in fast, and the people who had alerted the camp barely made it past the defensive line before the first clash happened between the defence line of 50 or so men and the feral beasts.

The collision was violent and immediate, and despite the hope and prayers of the many onlookers, the defensive lines quickly broke.

The boars led the charge, their tusks gleaming as they barrelled through the hastily formed wall of shields. The defensive line crumpled in places as the boars easily ploughed through the defenders, sending bodies sprawling. Then the wolves darted around the edges of the line, their speed and agility making them deadly predators. Meanwhile, the bears lumbered in behind, their sheer size and strength overwhelming anyone who tried to face them head-on.

Chaos quickly ensued.

However, the humans did try to put up a fight.

Despite the ferociousness of the beast wave, some parts of the line held firm, bolstered by reinforcements arriving with every passing second. Skills ignited the battlefield in bursts of colour as fireballs streaked through the air, arcs of lightning cracked, and blades shimmered with magical auras.

But, for all the dazzling display of skills, the effectiveness of the counterattack was another story.

The beasts weren't ordinary animals. Their stats rivalled those of the humans, and they fought with a relentless ferocity that was difficult to match. To make matters worse, this was the first real combat for most of the initiates. Many had barely used their skills outside of basic experimentation.

Due to their limited mana pools, they did not have much of an opportunity to test their abilities in preparation for a conflict, and their inexperience showed.

Fireballs sailed past their targets, and lightning bolts struck the ground, missing entirely. Some fighters overcommitted to their attacks, leaving themselves open to being clawed, bit, and hit by the monsters. The beasts, unburdened by hesitation or fear, tore into the defenders, leaving trails of carnage in their wake.

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This change made the combatants quickly realise that despite their new superhuman skills, they were not nearly as powerful as they had initially thought.

Sure, Jason had managed to kill a stronger creature, the Giant, alone and using a rare skill with seeming ease, but that was due to his lifetime experience with using skills in general. Even though he had never used that particular skill before, Jason easily grasped the skill's mechanisms of action.

However, unlike Jason, the other tutorial initiates had no idea how to properly use their skills. Without proper tracking or auto-lock functions, the beasts were able to dodge the skill effortlessly. As a result, most of the skills missed their targets, while the beasts, relying solely on their high stats, charged forward and mauled the human defenders who offered little resistance.

Most of the humans could cast their skills perhaps two or three times, depending on their stat allocation. When Jason fought the Giant, he could have used his 'Binding Root' skill three times, with one use per point in his Mind stat.

The reason Jason had to consume multiple mana potions during the fight was because he had kept his 'Binding roots' skill active while staking subsequent skill casts on top of it, all the while enforcing more of his 'will' into his skill.

When combined, these factors resulted in a far higher mana consumption rate, which in turn required the use of mana potions.

For this reason, the system set the stat point requirements for skills higher than their actual requirements to ensure their smooth use.

The best way to think about it was to imagine a machine or engine constantly pushed to its limits, which would cause it to break down quickly. Similarly, the system enforced higher stat requirements for skill usage than the actual requirement needed to use them so that the users still had excess resources, whether mana or stamina and were not overloaded or suffered extensive fatigue or damage.

Jason purposely did not rush into the fray, knowing that his greatest strength lay in precision and efficiency. His choice of a build had not been random, and the ongoing battle highlighted why Jason had chosen a mana-focused build.

While the other initiates served as distractions, Jason could unleash killing blows from a safe distance, racking up SP and EXP in the process.

At one point, he noticed a man wielding a great sword step forward from the line. The man's muscles bulged, likely enhanced by a skill, and he swung his weapon downward in a powerful arc that would easily bisect any target.

Unfortunately, the wolf-like creature he aimed for dodged slightly sidewards, causing the man's overcommitted strike to miss and sink into the ground next to the beast.

That mistake sealed his fate.

Before he could recover, the wolf lunged forward, its jaws wide, and its maw tipped with a vicious raw of teeth clamped down onto the man's torso. The wolf bit deep into the man's ribs, causing him to release his weapon and flail in agony.

Having watched the man's final moments, Jason's expression did not change as he stepped forward, his hand already glowing faintly blue. Using this moment as the Wolf slowed down as its mouth clamped around the man's torso, Jason channelled his mana into his 'biding roots' skill.

A moment later, a root as thick as an arm erupted from the ground and coiled around the wolf's neck.

With its jaws still clamped onto the man, the wolf could not react in time to the unexpected attack. The roots quickly slipped around the create neck, and when Jason firmly clenched his open palm shut whilst moving his hand in a downward motion, more of mana poured into his skill.

The wolf thrashed, trying to free itself but the root further constricted, pulling both the wolf and the man to the ground.

A moment later, an inaudible crack echoed through the air as the wolf's body went limp.

Jason, seeing the creature's limp form, waited an extra moment before cancelling his skill and then took a cursory glance at the defensive line.

He noticed that although some parts of the defensive line had been broken, other parts had managed to hold on from the initial assault and were now even being reinforced.

Notably, Smith and the teenager Jason had observed earlier held their part of the lines, doing everything they could to keep the beasts at bay.

Instead of relying on flashy skills, the two used a combination of spear and shield, an excellent choice this early in the Ascension Trial. The spears allowed them to poke and keep the beasts at a distance, and should any of the creatures get too close, the shields provided sturdy defence.

As the two fought tooth and nail to keep the beats from entering the camp, Jason also moved on to his next target.

With six stat points invested in his Mind stat, Jason could unleash his skill five more times before his mana reserves would be drained.

However, unlike Jason's efficiency, the other initiates struggled to deliver one-shot kills. Instead, they dealt damage over time, exchanging blows and lives as they whittled down the beasts.

As a result, the tide of the battle slowly turned.

Jason quickly moved through the battlefield, exploiting opportunities that came at the exchange of lives. He mainly targeted the beasts that had committed to there attacks and were too focused on other initiates to notice Jason's roots, and as a result, he managed to kill another five beasts.

By the time Jason had felled six beasts, the battle was nearing its end. The defenders, battered and bloodied, finally managed to kill the remaining creatures.

As the battle came to an end, cries of pain and exhaustion filled the air as the survivors collapsed to the ground, their bodies trembling from the adrenaline crash.

Jason stood amidst the carnage, his breathing steady. Around him, the battlefield was littered with bodies—both human and beast. And then, something remarkable happened.

Soft white lights, like glowing droplets, began to rise from the corpses of the slain beasts. The lights floated upward, coalescing into orbs above each fallen creature. For a moment, the orbs hovered, shimmering faintly, before shooting toward the nearby human.

Jason watched as six of the white orbs drifted toward him, merging into his body with a warm, tingling sensation. These orbs of white light signified that the beasts were of the 'Common' rank.

However, despite their low rank, Jason rejoiced as he felt the energy disperse within him, accompanied by a familiar notification.

Level up.

You are now level 3.

+3 Free stat points