Ruminas immediately used more force to crush it, but it seemed that the closer it got to death, the more the monster revealed its strength, making things more difficult than ever.
The Manducater roared, its body tensed to the point where every muscle was visible, it was still holding up under this intense pressure.
But Ruminas was not to be outdone, she didn't know when she would lose control again so she put all her determination into it this time.
"I am Ruminas, I am who I am. And now I will finish you off!"
Ruminas raised her hand, this time without the frenzy or loss of control as before. She focused all her remaining will and strength into a single strike.
A brilliant golden spear gradually formed in her hand, without any trace of the black 'qi'. This spear carried her own power—not the evil power that had corrupted her before.
At this moment, sharp spikes suddenly appeared from below the Manducater, piercing its vital spots, causing it to immediately spit out a mouthful of black blood, weakening its strength.
Ruminas seized the opportunity and charged.
The spear pierced through the Manducater's chest, sinking deep into the ground. The monster's body convulsed violently, the black qi arms slowly disintegrated, no longer having the power to sustain them.
"Go explode, you bastard!"
Ruminas said his final words and immediately backed away, not long after that an explosion broke out, blowing away everything within a 50 meter radius and forming a giant tiger.
After this moment, Ruminas could no longer sense the monster's existence.
"It's over…"
She sat down on the spot with a thud, blood starting to flow out as she removed her 'qi', her body was severely damaged but at least she had won and still kept her sanity.
She looked down at her hands, the black 'qi' streaks had completely disappeared. The golden light in her eyes was still bright, no longer covered by darkness.
"…It's dangerous."
[Summarizing received items]
[Received: 6190 EXP, 1 Manducater core, 5 intermediate chaos bones, 4 intermediate monster skins, 4 intermediate fangs, 32 inferior chaos bones, 31 monster skins]
[Enough EXP to level up]
[Level Up Reward: 5 Optional Stat Points]
[Enough EXP to level up]
[Level Up Reward: 5 Optional Stat Points]
"Oh my, fighting to the death and only gaining two levels…?"
Ruminas didn't think much and immediately increased ten points into endurance because she felt that this was something she was still quite weak at and she would have difficulty in longer battles like this.
[The Heroic Queen advises you not to be so reckless next time , not every time you can be lucky enough to survive]
"Oh, there you are. Thank you for saving me back then, are you okay?" Ruminas asked quickly.
[The Heroic Queen shook her head, telling you not to worry but also telling you to be careful because she can't always appear on time]
"I know, it's just that this time I had no choice…"
[The Heroic Queen has requested a direction conversation, do you accept?]
"Oh, yes!"
Then Ruminas' vision changed again, this time she didn't need to go through a white corridor anymore, she appeared directly in that luxurious room and sat across from the Heroic Queen.
Ruminas blinked a few times. Although she still couldn't see his face, that majestic and powerful aura already made her feel a lot of pressure.
"Relax," said the Heroic Queen.
"…Yes"
Ruminas replied, but that only made her more nervous.
"This time, I had something urgent to do so I couldn't stop you in time. The devil's heart is no joke, luckily your will is strong so I was able to intervene in time."
"Thank you very much!" Ruminas bowed.
"But… what were you thinking, using that thing? There are so many ways you can increase your power, right? If you don't know, why don't you just ask me?!"
Ruminas thought the storm had passed, but the Heroic Queen suddenly made a scene that made her not dare to say anything but bow her head because she really did wrong this time.
"Sorry for troubling you!"
The Heroic Queen sighed.
"Forget it, the power is already within your body. You can't completely get rid of it, so now you must learn to completely control it, and before that, you cannot use this power anymore!" The Heroic Queen said, her voice exuding a slight threat.
"So I can't use qi too?" Ruminas asked back.
"You can still use the original pure white qi, just make a few adjustments, you will know how to do it"
"Oh, I see…"
"That power is now deeply rooted in your body, so you must not let yourself get too angry or lose control. However, if you want to control that power, coming into contact with it is inevitable, but do it slowly."
"I can't help you directly, but I'll give you suggestions gradually based on your condition. Just remember not to use it and you'll be fine. Oh, and in the meantime, try to find a way to bring out your own unique powers."
Ruminas nodded vigorously.
"I will try my best, I will not let your efforts to save me be in vain."
"Um, go ahead"
The Heroic Queen said and waved her hand, and Ruminas returned to her reality.
She stood there for a moment, then sighed. She opened her status board to see.
Name: Ruminas
Level: 15 (2580/2900)
Class: 2 stars
Title: Apprentice Player
Occupation: Assassin
Base Stats: | Health: 100/100 | Magic: 110/110 |
Attribute index:
Strength: 44
Defense: 29 (+50)
Agility: 45
Endurance: 47
Intelligence: 36
Luck: 27
Skill:
1. Appraisal [A] (Exclusive Skill)
2. Slash [A] (0/10)
3. Flash [B] (0/8)
4. Finisher [B] (0/8)
5.
Item:
[Click to see details]
"Not much has changed yet, I have to try harder…"
"Phew, if it weren't for the Heroic Queen's help this time, I would really be dead, and so would… you. Come out!"
Ruminas said and looked in one direction.
As soon as the battle ended, she used her 'qi' to search for the owner of those stone stakes, but because she was then dragged away to talk with the Heroic Queen, she didn't have time to pay attention to this matter.
In the direction Ruminas was looking, a few meters away, there was a sudden movement from underground. A hole appeared and from it emerged a creature that she had seen before.
A creature that should have died in the previous war.
"The parasitic centipede…"
It was the parasitic centipede from before, the creature that Ruminas had witnessed being torn apart by the Manducater but was still alive now, but the difference was that its body had shrunk a lot, its current length was only equal to that of a qild, about a meter.
"How are you still alive?" Ruminas asked, reaqing out to the centipede and saying. "Do you dare come here?"
Immediately, the centipede crawled forward without hesitation.
Ruminas blinked in surprise. She thought it would be alert or attack, but instead, the centipede crawled obediently towards her hand.
"OH?"
She tried lifting it up a bit. Even though its body was much smaller than before, its weight was still considerable. She adjusted her aura back to white and used it to wrap around the centipede's body to inspect it.
Its internal condition was still the same but its strength had weakened quite a bit, and that was also because this centipede had not attacked Ruminas in the first place.
"Do you have a mind of your own?" Ruminas tried to ask.
But the centipede showed no sign of responding, it just wrapped around her arm a little tighter and rubbed its head against her arm, its pincers digging into her skin making her feel a little itchy.
"This is strange… Even though the appraisal still says it's a monster and not an NPC, why isn't it attacking me? It's even like a docile pet now."
"Anyway, thanks for your help, otherwise the battle might have dragged on a while longer."
The centipede moved slightly, the antennae on its head quivering as if in response to her words.
"I don't know if you understand or not, but you're very weak right now so… do you want to come with me?" Ruminas asked tentatively.
In no time at all, the centipede crawled up to Ruminas' neck and wrapped around it, its legs tickling her a bit but it seemed to have agreed.
Ruminas laughed. It was once a formidable creature after all, if it could become a comrade now, it wouldn't be bad.
She looked back towards the rising dawn, the bright light of the sunrise showed that today would be a beautiful day and Ruminas also believed that she would continue to move forward and become much stronger in the future.