"SPLACH!"
He barely had time to swallow dryly when the lake's water in front of him EXPLODED in a furious whirlpool.
"Holy shit, what is that?!" He quickly suppressed his shock, covering his own mouth.
A beast emerged from the depths, and it bore no resemblance to any fish he had ever seen.
Its body was long and dark, covered in thick, gleaming scales like plates of armor, undulating with terrifying force and agility.
A crocodile-like head with dagger-shaped teeth protruded from a serpentine body, and its eyes shone with a cold, savage light, radiating an icy aura that seemed to freeze the very air.
ROOOOAR
The Demonic Boar let out a deafening roar as it sensed the threat, unleashing a shockwave of pure fury and power that echoed through the environment, shaking the trees. A heavy brown aura of energy burst from its body, but before it could even think to attack, the Crocodile-Serpent struck faster—within milliseconds it was upon it.
SPLASH!
The aquatic creature launched itself like a black arrow, its jaws clamping down on the boar's neck with a horrifying CRUNCH! of bones and cartilage breaking. The boar's eyes widened as it roared in pain, thrashing its powerful legs to strike the water and the serpent's body, sending droplets flying everywhere. But it was useless—its blows struck steel-like scales. The once crystal-clear lake boiled, clouding with foam from the fight and bright red blood.
Long Chen watched everything, his heart hammering against his ribs, paralyzed not only by fear but by morbid fascination.
"Seems the saying is true!" he thought. No matter how big you are, there's always a bigger fish... or a serpent, in this case.
The boar was indeed incredibly strong, with brutal offensive and defensive power, a classic tank monster. But this thing... speed, piercing armor, surprise attack. A perfect predator.
As expected, the fight ended as quickly as it began.
With one final bubbling gurgle, the Demonic Boar went limp. Its aura of power extinguished, leaving its body as a feast for the serpent.
The Crocodile-Serpent wasted no time and dragged it with its mouth into deeper waters, starting to devour its prey.
Long Chen snapped back to reality.
"Okay. The dungeon boss is busy with the boss's loot. That's my chance to act." His logic of survival finally broke the spell of fear. His throat felt dry as sandpaper. "I need water anyway. I can't die of thirst after surviving this."
It might be dangerous, but this was actually the perfect moment. The Crocodile-Serpent was eating, and the lake was calm. If he came another day, he could end up like the boar—so he needed to act now, and fast.
He stepped away from the shore, his eyes fixed on the now calm but deadly waters. That's when he spotted a hollow log, a perfect container for holding water.
"Come on, calm down! There shouldn't be any danger for now."
Moving with the stealth of someone who knows that a single snapped twig could mean death, he crawled toward the log. Every rustle of leaves made him freeze. Upon reaching the waterline, away from the carnage, he dipped the log and used it like a large bucket, gathering plenty of water. He also drank deep gulps of it.
The sensation was indescribable. The water washed away not just the dust but much of the terror that had been haunting his mind.
As he backed away, now with water to drink for a good while, a new determination solidified within him.
Lesson number one in this world: never, ever be the first to enter the water.
Lesson number two: stay alert. There's always a bigger, worse monster nearby.
He clenched his fists. This just proves how much I need to get stronger, and fast. The goddesses aren't going to save themselves, after all.
With that lesson burned into his soul like fire, he retreated to the safety of the trees, leaving the new queen of the lake with her feast, his mind already calculating how to use the Demon Cores he had obtained to advance to the Bronze level.
"Better get out of here. Before I end up as someone like her's dessert." He sighed.
With the image of the monstrous battle etched into his mind, Long Chen withdrew to the relative safety of his cave by the tree roots. Using large folded leaves as a makeshift lid for his log-bucket, he carefully stored the water he risked his life to collect.
The next task was familiar: using the sharp horns he had acquired, he cleaned and prepared two of the rabbits he had hunted, skewered the meat on branches, and slowly roasted it over the embers of his fire.
With the food cooking, he sat in the lotus position, as he had learned at the institute. The day had been brutal but productive. He spread his loot on the cave floor: fifteen small Demon Cores, each pulsing with a soft red light. He picked up two in his hands, closed his eyes, and began to circulate using the [Soul Nurturing Technique].
Woosh!
Instantly, the two cores in his hands heated up and dissolved, turning into streams of pure energy that were drawn into his palms, flooding his meridians.
As the energy circulated, his thoughts drifted to the lake. "If I'm right, that Demonic Boar was probably a Gold-Rank beast. And the scaled serpent, which was even more powerful, could easily be Gold-Black Rank—or higher." he estimated.
A chill ran through his body. He hadn't even reached one-star Bronze level yet and had already encountered two giants that could annihilate him with a thought. He needed to be more cautious. The accelerated time flow gave him a month of training down here, but if he remained reckless, he wouldn't last a week.
The smell of roasting meat pulled him out of his meditation. Once the meat was done, he devoured it. Just like the first time, he felt vital energy warming his body, and his scratches and pains healed at a visible rate. With a full stomach and revitalized body, he resumed cultivating, taking two more cores.
However, he noticed something. While the energy was still potent, the effect on increasing his Soul Force seemed a bit smaller than the first time. The Demon Rabbit cores were becoming less efficient.
It's the law of diminishing returns, he concluded with a sigh. My body is getting used to this energy. If I want to keep progressing at this rate, I'll need better cores... which means hunting stronger beasts.