The shriek was painful to the ears. Joe was certain someone ran into a Mana Beast. Not only that, they were probably being devoured. If there was one human, chances were that another one was close by. With his only lead being that horrid scream, Joe immediately tried to track it down.
His form brisked through the forest. The trees blurred, as the breeze blew past his hair. He was definitely faster than before, much faster. When Joe was about to accelerate, a low growl to his right forced him to turn his head.
It was a Wolfin.
It pounced, revealing its intent to sever Joe with its claws.[Skill Activation: Mana Beast Claws]
Joe immediately shifted his body to face the threat. But with the Wolfin being so close, all he could do was defend himself with The Black Blade. Claws met iron and a metallic clang was produced.
The force behind the Wolfin's attack was ferocious. Even with a block, Joe's body was hurtled across the forest. He collided spine first with a tree trunk.
The sound of splintering wood jolted his ears. Joe was certain, his spine was broken. Through his hazy vision, he could see the Wolfin charging towards him.
He winced as he reaffirmed the grip on his blade. He had to move—fast.
[Skill Activation: Outsider’s Enhancement (lvl 2)]
[-35 Mana Pool Points]
[Total Speed: 16>24]
[Total Strength: 14>22]
[Total Skilll:17>29]
Mana coursed through Joe's veins. This injected new life into his body. With the Wolfin seconds away from devouring him, Joe launched himself to the right
The Wolfin's teeth dug deep into the tree trunk. Joe's body drifted, as he created further distance between him and the beast.
The Wolfin retrieved its teeth from the wood by yanking its head back forcefully. It was successful, and the trunk was left with punctured holes and wiggling slightly. The beast's attention now returned to Joe, but when it looked at where Joe once stood. It found nothing but a whistling breeze.
From above, Joe's form descended. His blade rained down like a hammer. It sliced into the Woflin's skull before proceeding to cut its entire body in half. No sound were heard, it died instantly.
Joe exhaled, relief washing over his face. Before he could do anything else, 4 Wolfins were already approaching him. Joe could see them coming due to their glowing Mana Beast Cores.
Joe had seen many glowing lights littered across the forest, he just never put it together that they were Mana Beast Cores. His assumption was that he couldn't see Cores hidden behind trees. That was obviously false.
[Lvl 6]
[Lvl6]
[Lvlv 5]
[Lvl 5]
They were very close together and cautious in their approach. Joe didn't wait for them to come to him. He took the initiative. He swung The Black Blade horizontally, producing a sharp arc that zipped through the air. Its size was several times bigger than before. [Mana Tool Skill: Mana Slash]
[-30 Mana Pool Points]
[Total Skill: 29>43]
Blood sprayed as two Wolfins were decapitated before they saw what was coming. Their close proximity was what allowed Joe to kill them both at once.
The two remaining Wolfins thought about retreating but a [Mana Slash] tore through their forms killing them before they even moved from their spots. [Mana Tool Skill: Mana Slash]
[Total Skill: 29>43]
[-30 Mana Pool Points]
[Current Mana: 210]
In just two attacks, Joe put an end to the battle.
[Outsider’s Enhancement Has Reached (Lvl3)
Joe smiled widely at his achievement, before sheathing back the bloody Black Blade. He barely took a step before another flood of notifications came to his attention.
[You Have Leveled Up]
[You Have Leveled Up]
[Current Level: 8]
[Sub- Quest Complete!]
▪︎ Reward: +5000 Gold Pieces.
Joe was surprised to find he had been rewarded with gold pieces. Was that Grisha’s currency? He couldn't be sure. Since he had no immediate use for the gold, he allowed it to chill In his inventory without thinking too much about it.
[Attribute Points]
▪︎ Skill: 15>19 (+2 Class Boost Attribute Points)
• Strength: 14>18
• Speed: 16>20
• Defense: 10>12
• Mental Strength: 17>19
• Additional Rank Points: 2
“Syr, you should allocate my free points to my defense attribute” Joe was certain he wouldn't be that hurt by the Wolfin's attack If his defense was higher. He was lucky to still have his spine intact after that assault.
[Updated Attributes]
▪︎Defense: 12>14
He nodded as he waltzed to his victims. He activated [Predator] and absorbed the Wolfins and their Mana Beast Cores.
[Your Mana Pool Has Been Replenished]
[Current Mana Pool: 680/680]
[+2 (Lvl 6) Mana Beast Cores Have Been Added To Your Inventory]
[+3 (Lvl 5) Mana Beast Cores Have Been Added To Your Inventory)
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Joe turned around after after devouring the final one, “you can give the cores to the Black Blade” Joe had noticed first hand that even though The Black Blade didn't change much physically, but skill wise it had grown leaps and and bounds.
[The Black Blade Has Leveled Up!]
[The Black Blade Has Leveled Up!]
[The Black Blade Has Leveled Up!]
[The Black Blade Has Reached (Lvl 9)
With that sorted Joe was back on the move. This time however he seeked to take a different route. He propelled his body to the sky. The wind embraced him as he scored. For a moment in time, he was a bird—a free bird that could spread its wings. The fluttering of his jacket made this feeling even more pronounced. But alas all good things must come to an end. He landed gently on top of a tree branch ending his flight.
The branch did creak slightly but it endured his weight in the end. Joe decided to take the aerial route to avoid being slowed down by more Wolfins. He leaped from one tree to the next, his balance was almost flawless not showing any signs of imbalance which Jos found curious. It was as if he'd been an acrobatic with years of experience. Jumping from such an altitude didn't didn't frighten him in the slightest. From a young age he'd been used to jumping from high places, so he was in his natural element. The balance however was something be lacked while growing up.
He pressed foward with no signs of stopping. One tree led to the next, but as he progressed—something came into view. Bundles of fire lay lit somewhere in the distance. They flickered like far-away candles and radiated a light that Joe saw clearly even from a distance. That wasn't all—Joe was able to make out several Mama Beast Cores around the same vicinity. They were probably Wolfins.
“Those glowing lights. What are they Syr?” Joe asked, his curiously evident in his tone.
[They Are Mana Signatures. They Are Similar To A Mans Beast Core But They Belong To Humans. To Put It Simply They Are Displays Of A Person's Mana. Normally They Can Only Be Sensed And Can't Be Seen With The Naked Eye.]
“Really? I can see them just fine.”
[That's Due To Your Passive Skill Outsider's Perspective)]
“So what does it do exactly?”
[Unique And Passive Skill: Outsider’s Perspective]
Description: A Truly Powerful Outsider Can Even See The Unseen.
Level: 1
Effect; Improves Your Sight Allowing You To See Mana And Its Flow On Other Living Things. The Closer You Are To The Target, The More Vivid Your Eyes Become. You Can See Anything Within A 30m Radius With A 360-degree Angle. Can Peer Through Almost Any Obstacles, Is Limited Only By Distance.
Range: 30m
Boost: None.
After reading the skill now everything clicked for Joe. That explained how he could see Mana Beast Cores behind trees. Joe cursed himself again, if he had known that he could see through obstacles like this. He wouldn't have allowed the Wolfin from earlier to get the jump on him like it did. Lesson learned. It wasn't going to happen again.
[I Said That Mana Beast Cores And Mana Signatures Were Very Similar, While That Is True. They Have Very Different Characteristics. Mana Beast Cores Are Round And Red. Mana Signatures Are Flickering Flames, They Hava A Uniqje Shape And Come In Many Different Colors.]
“I see..”
[But That's Not The Biggest Distinguisher Between The Two..]
“Oh yeah? What Is it?”
[Unlike Mana Beast Cores Which Exist Even After Their Owner Is Dead. Mana Signatures Are Different, To A Human Mana Is Life. If They Die, Their Mana Signatures Dies With Them.]
Syr's final words carried the weight of a death sentence. Almost as if he willed it into existence—a flurry of screams succeeded his words. Mana Signatures vanished one after the other like a child's birthday candles.
People were dying.
Mana Surged from Joe's form. He burst foward almost instantly—his form blurring from one tree to the next.
[Skill Activation: Outsider’s Enhancement (Lvl3]]
[-45 Mana Pool Points]
[Current Mana Pool:635]
[Total Speed:20>32]
It took seconds before Joe arrived to the scene. [Skill: Deactivated]
Almost immediately, a foul stench assaulted his senses. Joe’s hand darted to cover his nose. The shear toxicity nearly caused him to fall over. He knelt on a single knee, one hand touched a branch while the other protected his nose.
His eyes fell to what was happening below him. A number of corpses were littered all over the ground like thrown away rags. Joe had found, the source of stench.
Their insides were exposed, many were missing limbs and some even heads. The blood on the corpses had dried and their flesh was beginning to decay. The sight was identical to what Joe saw that day. The day earth was eradicated.
His heart pounded like an angry drumroll. His mind felt exposed as countless images flooded his head. The memories from that day came rushing in like a bullet train. Joe had tried so hard to suppress them but now—They were like a ferocious beast that refused to be tamed.
Joe nearly let out a scream as he relived every agonizing detail of that incident. The blood, screams, corpses and fire. All of it was clear as day. But the one that stood out was the image of his sister Chloe. It confirmed to Joe what he already knew. Chloe really did die that day
Joe couldn't breathe, his vision became hazy. He couldn't scream and he couldn't cry. The weight of it all just pressed on him and twisted around every fiber of his being. It was overwhelming.
“Snap out of it, Shelly!”
A voive boomed—snapping Joe out of his misery. His watery gaze landed on a group of people just below him. 3 humans were still alive.
Leading the group was a boy with fiery red hair. His height was average for a boy who looked to be 18 or 19 years of age. His broad shoulders made him feel larger than he was in reality. In his grasp was a thin and silver sword. He held it with both heads, his eyes burning with a scorching intensity.
Joe's focus however was on the boy's midsection. From his stomach to across his ribs, 3 deep clawmarks made their presence felt. From the depths of this scars, blood leaked out of the boy In large volumes. His tattered vest had turned crimson—complementing the pool of liquid beneath his boots. He was sweating bullets and breathing loudly. How he continued to live under those conditions was a mystery even to Joe.
Behind him stood a much taller individual. With black dreadlocks that dangled down his back, the boy stood with a concerned expression. His arms had been burned evident by the burnmarks infesting his skin. He shared one thing in common with the scarred boy infront of him—both of them had really low mana Signatures.
Standing further behind Mr dreadlocks and kneeling against a tree was a green haired girl. She had her palms over her eyes and was shivering excessively. Her sobs were audible even from Joe's high altitude. Unlike the boys ahead of her, the girl was completely unharmed.
Her black dress was caked in dirt but ignoring that fact she looked healthy. Even her Mana Signature was vibrant. It didn't take long for Joe to realize that must've been the Shelly Mr Dreadlocks was shouting at.
“I don't think Shelly can keep going anymore… Take her and go Ray.” The red haired boy sounded gentle, as he glanced at his two companions behind him.
“No Kite! Are you crazy? You'll Die! Don't throw away your life like this.” Ray pleaded, his tears bordering his eyes.
Kite just smiled, “I'm not throwing it away, I'm just looking to make things right. It's my fault all our party members died after all. As leader, I must take responsibility.”
The corpses now made sense, they were party members of Kite's party.
Low growls drew Joe's attention to his left, where 4 Wolfins stood. Their fur was ravaged with scars and blood mixed with their grey fur turning it crimson. Their tongues hung out as they panted loudly. The situation between the two sides seemed perfectly balanced. Both were on their last legs.
[Lvl 10]
[Lvl 10
[Lvl 11]
[Lvl 12]
These Wolfins were of a higher level than the ones Joe slaughred. This was also reflected in their slightly larger builds.
A sudden burst of Mana erupted from Kite's figure without warning. The thin yellow veil settled around every section of his body and even going as far as cloaking his sword. It was eerily similar to Joe's [Outsider’s Enhancement] Skill.
After one last smile at Ray and Shelly—Kite charged forward. [Skill Activation: Mana Enhancement]
“Kite don't do it!” Ray cried out in desperation.
His words fell to deaf ears. There was no stopping Kite.
He moved at speeds that even Joe had difficulty tracking. He closed in on the four wolfins instantly.
One of the Wolfins [lvl 10] lunged forward. It raised its paws ready to strike. But before it could proceed, Kite's blade ran through its leg effortlessly. Blood spilled out in large volumes—forcing a painful howl from the furry creature.
It staggered back its balance compromised.
Kite made use of the opening—his sword weaved though the Wolfin's neck like a thread to a needle. [Skill Activation: Needle Thread] Its head hit the earth, followed by its collosal body.
Kite was ready to jump to the next Wolflin—when catastrophe struck. Blood spewed from his mouth in the worst moment possible. His body halted—the effects of his injuries finally baring their fangs.
The Wolfins took full advantage of this moment of weakness. With a single swipe of a paw. Kite's head was removed with no difficulty. Blood poured out from his neck and the Wolfins pounced on his body licking the blood off him like the savaged beasts they were.
They chose not to devour Kite's body, they instead opted to use their tongues—drenching his corpse in their drool. Joe couldn't understand it? Weren't they hungry?
One of the Woflins [lvl 9] turned its attention to Shelly and Ray—without thinking twice it rocketed towards them. Now that Kite was out of the way—nothing could stop it.
They were going to die.
The beast opened its mouth as it closed in—but like a missile. Something descended from the sky.
A sickening crunch bounced off the forest trees, as Joe's fist connected with the Wolfin's skull. The skull caved in on impact—driving the beast deep into the earth.
A massive crater formed as Joe stood above the carnage.
[Skill Activation: Outsider’s Enhancement (Lvl 3)]
[-45 Mana Pool Points]
[Current Mana Pool:590]
With wide eyes and disbelief all over his face, Ray could only manage a single question.
“Who in the world are you?”