Thorn stepped onto the air, and said: "I'll travel around the fields, perhaps I'll find some clues to guess where the plant monster's next attack will be." After saying this, he began to explore the fields by flying.

He explored for around fifteen minutes before coming back. While descending, he informed to Lobup White and Rose: "I've found its approximate location, and I think its cultivation is at the Fourth Level Intermediate Awaken stage."

Lobup White was impressed by Thorn's efficiency, he couldn't help but compliment him: "You're amazing! In this short span of time you've discovered all the information we need to ambush it! Hohoho…" He looked very excited. Finally, he would be able to get rid of that troublesome plant monster.

Rose, however, seemed to be worried. (Fourth Level Intermediate Awaken… if Thorn gets less than a kilometer from that plant monster, it will feel his Aura. Also, from a kilometer of distance, Thorn's wind blades won't be able to hurt it. After traversing such distance those blades will lose their 'sharpness' after all…)

Thorn glanced at such a concerned Rose. He could understand what was going through her mind, so he smiled. (Someday, you'll comprehend the extent of my true strength, at that moment, all of your worries will disappear. But today, I can use this situation to comprehend the extent of your strength.)

After thinking up to this point, Thorn said confidently: "Mr. Lobup White, we'll need your help to prepare the ambush. Once the ambush is ready, Rose will kill that plant monster by herself!"

"Eeehh?!" Lobup White yelped.

"What?!" Rose exclaimed.

Their exaggerated reactions were actually completely predictable. After all, it was almost impossible for a cat to kill a lion in a fight, even if the lion was blind.

"Could it be… could it be that Miss Rose can't hide the sounds, smell or heat of other individuals?" Lobup White asked cautiously.

In reality, Rose was very capable of doing that, but Lobup White's misunderstanding was a nice heaven-sent excuse, so Thorn used it without blinking: "It is as you say, Mr. Lobup White." He then looked at Rose and asked: "What do you think?"

Rose realized that Thorn's expression was way too calm and that he was not kidding. She then wondered: (Are you trying to kill me? No, it is silly to do that at this point. Are you testing me? Probably. Are you training me? This may be the case…) Rose let out a resigned sigh.

(In general, every plant monster has a core. I just need to destroy its core to kill it. I have confidence in my knowledge about plant monsters. I'm sure that once I see what kind of plant monster it is, I'll immediately know where its core would be. Just one stab, just one, is all I need to kill it. So, my dear skill, do you want me to believe that you are the best skill in the world? Here is your chance!) With resolve glittering within her eyes, Rose looked at Thorn and responded: "I'll kill it!"

Thorn's heartbeats quickened by such a sight. He then smiled and said strongly: "Good! Let's begin the preparations!"

They were led by Thorn to where the plant monster's approximate position was at. After arriving at that location, they gathered the domesticated plant monsters and put them in a single spot, forming in this way a small mountain. Afterward, Thorn and Lobup White left Rose standing alone near that place.

Thorn and Lobup White were carefully observing her and her surroundings two kilometers away from her.

After some silence, Lobup White couldn't hold himself back anymore and nervously asked: "I-Isn't this too risky?"

Without moving away his vigilant gaze from Rose, Thorn nonchalantly answered: "She'll be alright." (If she gets into a dangerous situation, I'll instantly rescue her after all. But, Rose, you must have the strength to do at least this much, otherwise, you won't be able to help me to destroy this world!) Thorn thought, a solemn expression on his face.

Calmly, Rose sat down on the soil and waited for the plant monster to appear. Obviously, she was hiding her smell, her body heat, and the sounds around her.

She waited, patiently.

And soon, an hour passed by… then, two hours… three hours…

Until the earth under the great pile of domesticated plant monsters suddenly began to shake. Feeling this vibration, she slowly stood up while tightly grasping her dagger.

Shortly after, a red flower came out from the ground, and then, tick thorny branches followed. In the blink of an eye, these tick thorny branches surrounded the domesticated plant monsters, and in a flash, their thorns expanded like a spike trap and perforated the domesticated plant monsters. At that moment, these thorns began to mercilessly suck the life out of those defenseless domesticated plant monsters.

"Auu… auuu…"

"Ouaa… ouaaa…"

"Yiiii… yiiiiiiii…"

The painful cries of the domesticated plant monsters reached Rose's ears. These unpleasant sounds abruptly waked her up from her stupor. It happened that she had been frozen still since the instant she saw the appearance of this plant monster. It was a rose plant monster! Of course, she wasn't left completely dazed by just its name, but was by the fact that rose plant monsters were one of the very few and rare plant monsters that had two cores! And it happened that she had just a single dagger!

One of its cores was within its flower, and the other one was within the branch that held its flower. Rose must destroy its two cores at the same time, otherwise, the rose plant monster would have the opportunity to counterattack with a fatal strike.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Thorn also knew that rose plant monsters had two cores, so when he saw it, he too was surprised by it. Thorn wondered expectantly: (What will you do, Rose?)

Suddenly, Rose dropped her dagger.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Lobup White said: "It seems like she has come to her senses and decided to give in."

Thorn grinned and asked: "Is that the face of someone giving in?"

"Mmm?!" Lobup White looked over at Rose in a hurry. What he saw after doing so was how Rose sauntered toward the main body of the rose plant monster with a fierce look that declared 'you are my prey!'

Normally, one's movements would be awkward and hesitant if one has to pass through many obstacles without being allowed to touch said obstacles; but that did not seem to apply to Rose at all. She advanced through the rose plant monster's branches and thorns as though strolling around her own garden, leisurely and unhindered. It was evident that Rose had the ability to calculate the most convenient path by just briefly glancing at the messy twenty-seven-meter-long array of obstacles.

The walk was slow but firm, and only when she was sure she was at the perfect distance to attack did she stop.

Standing just a few centimeters before her target, Rose remembered her past and thought: (For twenty years I've been training hard, really hard, always pushing myself beyond my physical and psychological limits relentlessly. The sweat and blood I had shed, the innumerable times I had shattered my bones and torn apart my organs, muscles, and skin, the burning pain in my head I felt every single day after squeezing my brains out to find hundreds of new ways to make my entire body faster and stronger. The sole purpose of all that, the one and only objective of every action I took, was to build up the necessary strength to be able to obliterate every single thing that would dare to stand in my way to reach my dream!)

Eyes raging with willpower, she raised her hands until they were at chest height. (I won't let anything stop me, not even for a day! Not you, puny flower, nor myself, not anymore! Do I have to think that my skill is the best skill in the world? I'll prove that it is the strongest in the entire universe then! If I have to believe that I am a pig, then I'll be a pig! Whatever the cost, I am going forward!)

In this instant, her hands took a combat stance, they became like deadly spears; and finally, she began her attack. Stepping forward, she circulated in a specific way all the Complex Energy her body could bear, and a little more. She then accurately flung her hands toward the rose plant monster's two cores. She used every single muscle in her body to do so, even the impulse of her heartbeat!

The martial art she was using was of her own creation, and it didn't even have a name. She had been improving and changing it bit by bit, it was a martial art that was still in development. That being said, and although Rose was unaware of this, right now, this nameless martial art was the quickest, the strongest, and the most beautiful martial art this world had seen over the past dozen million years!

In the blink of an eye, her double spear hand strike penetrated viciously the protective Mystical Energy wrap, the wood and the flower of the off-guard rose plant monster, and the tips of her fingers then shattered both of its cores at the exact same time.

*FUuUUuuu…!*

*FUuUUuuu…!*

The sounds of two wind currents bursting out of the rose plant monster rang out deafeningly, showing clearly just how deadly Rose's double attack had been.

Before it died, the rose plant monster didn't even have the chance to make the slightest resistance. It just became motionless before collapsing.

"Haa… ah… haa…" Rose was gasping for breath, her entire body quivering in pain, all her bones were on the verge of breaking, most of her muscles had been torn apart, and her blood was oozing out of her nose, ears, mouth, and eyes. But in spite of all of this, there was an excited smile on her face: (I did it! I did it! I actually killed a Fourth Level Intermediate Awaken plant monster! Perhaps… just perhaps, my skill is really the best skill in the wor–)

*Boom!*

Abruptly, an explosion rang out within Rose's Complex Energy body, it was a sound that only she could ear. After which, she froze, shocked and unable to believe what her own senses were telling her: The door to the Second Level Basic Awaken Challenge had just shown up!

Without giving any heed to her surroundings, she closed her eyes and entered into her Complex Energy body using her soul.

Her mental body then appeared in that dark space. And, there it was, her translucent crystal door which was releasing a gentle white light. That familiar, unique and beautiful door she had missed so much for twenty years. Afraid of losing this opportunity, she hastily punched that door. Her skin just tapped the door and it instantly shattered. She was startled by the fragileness of the door, yet she didn't waste time thinking about it, and impatiently began to run wildly through the passageway which had just appeared.

In less than a second, she was already in the same room as her ten-year-old self. Her old self from twenty years ago.

Her loli self, looking like a nine-year-old girl, was surrounded by swirling white mist. And although it was a little girl of unbelievable cuteness, and was releasing a gentle white aura as though an angel, it still failed to look innocent. Its eyes, its cold and dead eyes, betrayed its heartlessness.

Seeing Rose running toward it, that loli began to prepare itself to punch.

Without warning, Rose performed a ghostly footwork and appeared behind her loli self, then, without letting it react, she stabbed her index finger into the back of the loli's neck. The finger then destroyed in an instant the loli's medulla oblongata, which was the part of the brain that contained the cardiac, respiratory, vomiting and vasomotor centers and therefore dealt with the autonomic functions of breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure.

Rose whispered softly: "Don't you worry, unhappy little girl; soon, you too will find a purpose in life."

Rose's eyes then opened! And as incredible as it was, they had been closed for just three seconds! More importantly, now her aura was in the Second Level Basic Awaken stage!

She felt her own aura, and couldn't help quiver. This time, her body not only was trembling because of pain but also because of indescribable emotions. Her eyes got wet, and her tears blended with her blood: (At last! At long last, there's a wisp of hope. The first wisp of hope of reaching my dream! I'll be able to become strong, and stronger than what I ever anticipated because I possess an Arrogant Awakened Skill! I'll have the strength to keep my word, I'll have the strength to protect what is mine, and I'll have the strength to walk through the path I chose… it finally appeared, my first tiny but real wisp of hope…)

She remained standing there, silently crying, and looking at the infinite azure sky.

Extremely dazed, Thorn and Lobup White flew toward Rose. They had just now been witnesses of her magnificent martial art, which she had used to kill, in an instant, that Fourth Level Intermediate Awaken rose plant monster even though she was just at the First Level Basic Awaken stage, and then they had felt how she had the quickest breakthrough they had ever heard of. Obviously, this play of events has broadened greatly their horizons, so much so they now had the impatient need of showering her with praises and questions.

But after reaching a distance of ten meters from Rose, they stopped moving, gasped, and just kept on looking at her solitary silhouette.

They were left stunned and mesmerized by the sight of the standing and crying Rose.

The reason for this was the unbelievable contrast between her appearance and her aura.

Her appearance was that of a badly wounded crying girl, too defenseless and too fragile, but her aura was so oppressive and so vast it gave off the feeling of being the aura of an undefeatable war goddess.