The recent posts on PsiLink made Nathan's achievements feel less impressive than before. Both Xander and Zahra had already progressed into their Tier 2 breakthrough phase of Spirit Cultivation. Some sources indicated that Xander had completed the process under Elder Nalani's direct supervision, who departed a few days later. Xander remained in seclusion to consolidate his cultivation base. Meanwhile, Zahra, being Elder Galen's favored student, had yet to reveal her results.
Breakthrough failures were common, but only reckless attempts like Keira's led to severe consequences. As long as one knew when to stop, side effects could be avoided, leaving the path open for future attempts without impediments.
Nathan grew restless. Over the past few days, his attempts to hunt Tier 2 monsters had met with harsh reality. Moirath Forest seemed unable to satisfy his hunger for growth. Besides Great Spine Wolves, which were the most common Tier 2 creatures, finding other Tier 2 monsters proved difficult unless he traversed through Storm Peaks and Life Spring to reach new forest domains. Before he could solve this problem, another arose. His requirements were becoming excessive.
Two Great Spine Wolves only managed to push his cultivation from Tier 2 Phase 1.1 to Phase 1.3. By rough calculation, he would need dozens of Tier 2 monsters to reach Phase 2. Such hunting would devastate Moirath Forest. His hunting grounds, including Storm Peaks and Life Spring, contained fewer than twenty Tier 2 monsters total. The fact that he had eliminated three in just the past few days meant that encountering another would require extensive exploration.
His Titan physique granted him superior strength but also came with an insatiable appetite. As for movement, he wouldn't travel when winter approached. The cold caused most monsters to hide and hibernate, making them harder to find. Additionally, there were concerns about mobility and staying warm. With his superior body, he could endure freezing temperatures for extended periods, but warnings from PsiLink indicated this wouldn't be enough. Cold-loving monsters would dominate Moirath Forest, making temperatures drop further while winds became more bitter and violent. He wouldn't risk getting caught in such conditions. Failing training because of freezing to death was the most ridiculous reason he could think of.
Browsing PsiLink, Nathan suddenly remembered he hadn't added Jessica as a friend. Making a mental note to address this later, he closed the matrix of windows before his eyes, leaving only the system interface.
Since discovering how to exploit the system, he had abused it daily until receiving warnings. He had seven skills that he executed every morning, including [Amplifying Strike], [Flowing Strikes], [Internal Trauma], [Rebound], [Quick Feet], [Butthurt], [Efficient Sleep] and [Self-Emotional Support]. These provided 40 credits daily without requiring combat. However, [Self-Emotional Support] was becoming increasingly difficult to trigger smoothly. Self-torture through dark thoughts and self-destructive behavior had its limits, eventually numbing emotions. While his existential crisis persisted, self-encouragement had helped him adapt better. Though still uncertain about life's purpose, he strived to exist until finding it. Now, his motivations to return to Earth, save his mother, help Jessica, support Zeryn, and assist those who had helped him seemed enough to push him forward.
Credits: 1131.
His battle with the Vermilion Ape Leader had clearly demonstrated how many points he could accumulate. Every strike utilized system skills, relentless and unceasing. Looking back, he truly felt proud of himself.
Regaining his spirit, he exchanged three rolls, hoping for a Rare skill to appear.
Reality slapped him hard across the face.
Starting normal rolls...
You received [Bleeding].
You received [Poison Processing].
You received [Internal Trauma].
Duplicated Skills are held in reserved inventory for future use of [#Need Unlock before Revealing#]
Damn, duplicate again, he cursed inwardly.
But the other two skills were truly the stars of the show.
[Bleeding]
Description: attacks have a 12% chance to cause bleeding.
*Effect strength varies based on target's resistance.
--
[Poison Processing]
Description: Toxin removal speed up 15%.
As expected, Nathan looked at the level-up options. Both skills could be upgraded. [Bleeding] presented a particularly challenging puzzle.
Growth Path 1: Uncontrollable Bleed.
Next Level: increase the chance to 20%.
Growth Path 2: Precise Bleed.
Next Level: change the way the skill operates. Now the effect will apply to the fifth attack.
What he had feared came to pass—the new skill would trigger on the fifth strike, disrupting the fourth-attack pattern he had yearned for.
Synchronizing [Bleeding] with the Precise Bleed path proved difficult, as the least common multiple became 60. It would take sixty attacks for all skills to stack. At other intervals, only two skills could activate simultaneously. This could result in weaker overall effects. After extensive analysis, Nathan knew [Internal Trauma] relied on total damage output. Greater power benefited this skill. While it didn't increase proportionally like doubling, it gained roughly twenty to thirty percent more effectiveness.
Thus, he wagered [Bleeding] would function similarly. It had a crucial caveat—the effect might not be strong enough or sufficient to cause bleeding due to constitution and resistance levels. When attacking someone fully armored from head to toe, both inside and out with mana shields, [Bleeding] would be little more than an irritant. At least [Internal Trauma] struck directly at the target's core and emotions.
He tried removing [Amplifying Strike] from the equation, as this skill deserved its Rare ranking, being powerful with few weaknesses. Its characteristic allowed him to preload the skill rather than relying entirely on attack rhythm. The result improved slightly, reducing the required attack count to 30. However, it wasn't much better since damage output remained unchanged. This analysis proved one crucial point—[Amplifying Strike] had become central to his combat style.
For the first time, Nathan seriously considered choosing the chance-based path.
First, he wouldn't have to struggle with counting and maintaining awareness to track his already complex skill set. The biggest advantage of Uncontrollable Bleeding was its potential to sync with his existing 12-attack cycle. If he had to remove any skill from the equation, it would be [Internal Trauma]. He had already managed to land two consecutive strikes with both [Amplifying Strike] and [Flowing Strikes]. Thus, in the attack rhythm, he might not need to wait 30 or 60 cycles to stack [Bleeding]. This skill could statistically appear twice within ten attacks. The result would be significantly more substantial damage output.
Once chosen, there was no turning back, so he decided to leave it for later upgrading.
[Poison Processing] brought him a bold idea.
Infiltrate Life Spring. Not to challenge Sovereign Wisp, but to prepare for Lunar Shadow.
If he couldn't hunt the remaining monsters efficiently and quickly, his only remaining path was to take down Lunar Shadow as soon as possible. He was fairly certain he couldn't breakthrough as rapidly as before, which took three weeks to a month. Therefore, the optimal solution was to prevent his opponent from growing stronger. With Lunar Shadow's nocturnal movement abilities and primal hunting instincts, Nathan suspected it would hunt more efficiently than him. He needed to stop it before it was too late.
Thought became action. After spending several days preparing materials at his new shelter, he led three High Vermilion Apes back to Life Spring.
"Stay!" he commanded his entourage at the forest's border.
The monsters obeyed dutifully, sitting down to wait, each carrying items Nathan had crafted. From baskets to bottles to small pouches, they carried everything.
Once everything was set, he ran straight into Life Spring. A pack of Gale Foxes welcomed him with their playful intentions. This time, he could move swiftly and cleanly through their rushing attacks without taking damage. While Gale Fox tails made excellent materials, Nathan thought better of it. Their pack mentality was even stronger than the Vermilion Apes'. Touch one, and their alpha would emerge to attack—at which point Nathan would have no choice but to flee. He dared not engage monsters that didn't specialize in physical attacks.
Stuffing his mouth with anti-poison candy he'd made yesterday, Nathan passed through his small friends after exhausting play. His skin's reaction to Life Spring's toxic air had become much gentler. Last time, he needed to coat himself with a thick layer of solution, but now only a thin layer sufficed to prevent the tingling sensation. [Poison Processing] hadn't even truly activated yet.
Along the way, he gathered more Blue Cap Mushrooms to brew healing potions. He had exhausted all his consumables in the battle with the Vermilion Apes, necessitating replenishment and storage for the future. He also collected phosphorescent fungi. Needing quantity, he gathered first and would sort quality later.
Finally, he relocated the monsters that always lurked to ambush prey—the Winged Vipers.
The pond he found was larger than before, so the number of monsters that flew from the water's surface to attack was triple the previous encounter.
Using his newfound speed, he wielded the knife from Blood Thirster to dispatch them. Dancing between the monsters, he skillfully swung his blade in decisive strikes, decapitating them. Wet thuds echoed as heads hit the damp ground. Recognizing Nathan as a formidable opponent, the monsters circled together, and instead of spewing long streams of toxic liquid, they hissed to create a poisonous mist.
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Prepared for this, Nathan pulled out a simple mask he'd crafted from Earth Tongue, which functioned as a toxin filter. Of course, this mask wouldn't be enough. The second layer of defense was his anti-poison candy. The third layer was [Poison Processing].
He closed his eyes, held his breath, and leaped high to avoid the mist. When he felt himself beginning to fall, he opened his eyes, observing every monster before him and taking in the terrain. After sealing off places where poison could infiltrate, he accelerated downward by throwing a palm strike behind him. Several monsters fell from his action. Then he shot to the side to escape the mist.
Despite his precautions, the candy in his mouth had turned bitter. His chest burned hot. The mask, needless to say, had become useless and was tossed aside. Though he had anticipated this, Nathan was still surprised by Life Spring's level of danger. It truly deserved its reputation as one of Moirath Forest's most hazardous areas.
Nathan felt [Poison Processing] at work. The burning in his chest gradually subsided. His Titan bloodline had already granted him basic resistances. Combined with Physical Cultivation and this new skill, poison wasn't too serious an issue.
If anything truly made him cautious, it was the Winged Vipers' venom. He had to move continuously to avoid direct bites. To resist them, he'd need a skill like [Venom Processing]. In the current situation, he had to maintain contact either through skin or through nose and mouth for [Poison Processing] to work.
Though not freely mobile, it was enough.
Maintaining this approach and attack pattern, he successfully defeated the gluttonous monster swarm. They showed no intention of retreating even as their companions' heads rolled around with eyes frozen wide open.
He picked up a Winged Viper's head, placed his knife at an angle near the mouth, and cut decisively. He extracted the venom gland after carefully scraping away surrounding muscle and teeth. The venom yield was modest, only about ten milliliters. The monster's ability to spray and shoot poison so extensively mainly came from its body producing toxins as it depleted them. Now, dead, this amount could be considered sufficient.
As for capturing them for future milking, that was impossible. Life Spring was the only suitable environment for Winged Vipers. If not for their pack mentality and aggressive nature, he wouldn't want to kill them for harvesting. Because doing so would lead to what happened next.
After he finished collecting venom into bottles, Life Spring's guardians arrived. Natural toxins in the air increased, pressure became more violent, and an invisible pull emerged. Clearly, Sovereign Wisp was much angrier than last time.
Without hesitation, Nathan abandoned his position, moving swiftly toward the border. His skin activated the Qi Armor technique Darkan had mentioned. Previously, he never used it because he'd spent all his essence on leveling up. Currently, the essence from the Winged Vipers was rather modest compared to his present needs, so using it wouldn't be wasteful.
Essence shot out from his pores, moving rhythmically like invisible points, forming an armor layer around Nathan. He increased the intensity most around his head. This was how he could defend against mental attacks. It wasn't as effective as mana since it formed an external rather than internal layer, but it seemed sufficient for the current situation.
Nathan felt something attacking his mind, making him drowsy and lethargic—conditions that rarely affected a Tier 2 Physical Cultivation practitioner like himself. He could stay alert for three days and nights without sleep. So this was certainly Sovereign Wisp's technique being cast on him.
Zeryn had once said that activating mental skills required a bridge—one of the body's senses. Nathan wasn't sure where he'd been exposed, or perhaps all five senses were affected, because before activating Qi Armor, he had no protection at all. He shuddered at a possibility: merely contacting Life Spring's air meant he was already in Sovereign Wisp's palm.
Without dwelling on it further, he ran faster. Unlike last time, he wasn't cornered. His speed helped him escape Life Spring while still in relatively good condition.
Landing near his red-furred entourage, he tossed all his collected items into a basket made from Strangler Vine tendrils and branches.
After resting briefly, he moved to a different location, far from the initial entry point, and infiltrated again. The needed materials weren't yet sufficient. Particularly, he needed more Winged Viper venom.
This time, his main target led him to the Heat Basilisk's lair.
The dragon-like monster, shaped like a Komodo dragon, patrolled its nest. The heat it radiated was stronger than before. Even before stepping onto the barren land, sweat already poured from afar. The monster's scales rose and fell, each time releasing white smoke, steadily increasing the temperature.
Looking at the monster nearly his height, Nathan gulped. Its width and length were truly impressive. It would take five people lying down to cover its back. The long tail, covered in harder scales than its body, could open like a spike to attack enemies.
Nathan came here to test himself against the monster and hopefully harvest more Lesser Dragon Breath. Crimson Lotus petals were excellent ingredients for brewing Blood Essence Wine, suitable for cultivation while waiting for the Crimson Lotus seed's poison to neutralize. Additionally, like Thunder Embrace, it provided excellent combat support.
The monster sniffed once, turning its head toward the human who suddenly appeared behind a row of trees. It flicked out its broad tongue, and flames suddenly blazed up around it.
Nathan ignored the warning and cautiously approached. The surrounding heat made him sweat more, causing his shirt to stick to his back.
Heat Basilisk stomped its front foot hard, showing irritation. It didn't want trouble but wouldn't hesitate against any intruder. It hissed, its tail swinging up in an arc, smashing straight toward the trespasser.
With the attack's moderate speed, Nathan jumped aside, letting the tail with its protruding scales smash the rock behind him. He heard the rock shatter into small pieces. Looking back, he saw tiny holes littering the ground where he'd stood. He jumped high, trying to close in by landing on its back. Before he could stand for more than a few seconds, the monster's skin heated up like fire beneath his feet, forcing Nathan to jump in another direction. Upon landing, he didn't give the monster time to react, lunging forward to punch its mouth.
The force made the monster roar, its head tilting down, scales covering its mouth falling sporadically. It snorted angrily, its scales opening up to create a scorching mist all around.
Nathan retreated quickly as visibility dropped.
Triggered [Tingling Sense]. One credit given.
Triggered [Adrenaline Boost]. One credit given.
He raised both hands to block as the monster's tail struck like heaven's judgment. The armguards he'd crafted from Armor Scarab shattered on impact. The remaining force shot him backward. His arms went numb. Clearly, Heat Basilisk possessed not just an impressive skill set but also a formidable body.
Nathan regained balance after sliding across the ground. What had just happened was within his predictions. Most monsters displayed behaviors as described on PsiLink, unlike the Vermilion Ape Leader he'd encountered last week.
As he prepared to advance, the Heat Basilisk opened its mouth wide. Its throat moved as if about to vomit something. When its neck returned to normal size from being swollen, it spewed flames. These flames were yellow-green, both hot and horrifying.
Nathan decided to retreat, saving Lesser Dragon Breath for another collection attempt. The Heat Basilisk's flames were dangerous not just for their temperature, but also for the burning toxic gas that scorched anyone's lungs upon inhalation, burning from within. That wasn't even mentioning why this monster could dominate Moirath Forest yet chose Life Spring's isolation—it was the natural poison. When fire and gas interacted, they released an extremely potent poison that made lung burning seem childish. This was considered Sovereign Wisp's privilege for Heat Basilisk. In return, Heat Basilisk wouldn't cause chaos and would provide assistance when needed.
Not confident enough in [Poison Processing], even with Qi Armor, he returned to collecting venom glands from Winged Vipers.
This raid's spoils also included Thornweave Ancient's bark. This tree-like monster had shot thorns when he fled that night. Thornweave Ancient's bark wasn't hard but possessed regenerative properties and could grow thorns for attacks. Using it to create a new shield would be quite suitable and synergize well with the Winged Vipers' poison.
To collect it, Nathan had to endure an extremely unpleasant time. With his new skin, he didn't fear Thornweave Ancient's thorns. But the monster's tough and slimy nature truly required effort to handle.
After dodging the sharp thorn projectiles, he approached and plunged the Blood Thirster knife deep into the monster's bark. It showed no signs of pain but began growing thorns chaotically. At this point, he had to grit his teeth and endure the thorns' piercing, sometimes even explosive small poisonous needle attacks on his body while slowly cutting. This process took very long due to the monster's regenerative nature. Just as he cut a bit, the front would heal. He could only use force to pull hard and hold tight to succeed. Thanks to Qi Armor, Nathan didn't suffer too much damage from Thornweave Ancient's numbing poison.
He handed all collected materials to another High Vermilion Ape. Then completed the day's collection with a third infiltration.
Returning to the campsite, he was delighted to have successfully gathered Lesser Dragon Breath.
The Vermilion Ape pack welcomed him with screams and chest-beating. They had hunted around to bring back pork and wolf meat. These red-furred monsters, after tasting food he cooked, all drooled, hoping for more. So if they had to wait, they would wait for Nathan's return.
He didn't pay much attention to this, just cooked the meat, took his portion, and let the monsters handle themselves. He went to the Crimson Lotus pond to rest while outside, the monsters began wrestling to compete for the food he'd just cooked.
Inventorying the collected items, he planned his crafting. Winged Viper venom would be divided into two types: liquid solution for coating weapons and powder for throwing. Thornweave Ancient bark still needed Ironbark for reinforcement. He also needed to gather more materials for the wine fermentation process.
Tinkering all night, Nathan didn't sleep. Since reaching Tier 2, he found his spirit enhanced, requiring less rest. If he needed sleep, he only needed fifteen to thirty minutes thanks to [Efficient Sleep].
After just a few hours, he still couldn't produce any results. While planning to continue, [Random Talent] made him pause.
Your today's talent is Monster Whisperer. You can make monsters understand your meaning. Note, you can only speak with one species. After determining the species, you cannot communicate with other monsters anymore.
Nathan's eyes lit up at today's talent.
Looking around, he saw the Vermilion Apes stirring awake, preparing for the new day. No need to look far, he already had his target.
Walking to the nearest one, he said, "Hello, red ape!"
The monster's eyes widened upon hearing him. For days, it hadn't been able to communicate much with its leader, yet now it could understand. Not just one word, but three.
It excitedly responded, "Hoo hoo keck keck!"
This time, it was Nathan's turn to stare blankly. He didn't understand anything.
Returning to read the talent's description and notes, he finally understood. "Make monsters understand" didn't mean "converse with monsters." It wasn't both ways. It was one way.
Damn system, he cursed.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he wanted to try again.
He picked up a rock, held it before the monster, and said, "Throw this rock!"
It obeyed immediately, throwing the rock in a random direction.
"Throw this rock at that tree!" Nathan issued a new command.
This time, a problem occurred. The monster still threw the rock, but like before, not toward the tree he indicated.
Indeed, not so simple, he shook his head in resignation.
He began walking around, repeating the command "Throw this rock at that tree!" like giving the 'Sell me this pen!' speech. Each monster only threw the rock, understanding half the command but not completely. Even the three High Vermilion Apes possessed poor intelligence. Just as he was about to give up, one successfully executed his command exactly.
Blinking in disbelief, he commanded it again to throw at different trees. Each attempt succeeded.
"Tell your friend to do the same!" Nathan said, now certain this one had the highest intelligence.
The monster with bright eyes nodded. It went to its companion, hooting something. As a result, the other monster could now correctly execute the command, throwing rocks at tree branches.
"When I do this, it means throw rocks!" Nathan curled his five fingers into a fist.
The understanding monster nodded, following suit. It also called its companions to do the same.
The result made Nathan secretly rejoice—he could now train his army.
Not wasting time with further tests, he immediately spent the entire day teaching the monster various commands and signals he needed.
From then on, the Vermilion Apes could join him in the final battle.
He remembered how these monsters coordinated with remarkable intelligence. Their ability to split up and send signals to regroup demonstrated this clearly. The way they chose necessary sacrifices, such as attacking their own companions to close distances, showed the same. Yet he had failed to fully exploit this capability. After days of contemplation, he discovered the red mark on the forehead of one Vermilion Apes intelligent enough to understand him. Reviewing recordings from PsiLink, he noticed several others possessed similar markings. Another bizarre ability from the Vermilion Ape Leader. It wasn't just capable of speech but was dangerous through its various skills. Only now did he understand why these apes were far more troublesome to deal with than what was posted on PsiLink.
As the first snowflakes of winter fell, the plan neared its final step.
Before confronting Lunar Shadow, Nathan's newly formed army had to hunt down the Luminous Grazer.