On this day. In the heart of the First-Order Abyss. 'Swish!' A giant claw slashed through the air with a cold light several meters long, and a burly figure was instantly split in two. 'Ah!!' A scream pierced the sky. She watched with her own eyes as the huge, pitch-black lion-shaped Abyssal Beast lowered its head, bit into her companion's upper body, and chewed loudly, a horrifying scene of blood, bone, and internal organs shattering between its sharp white teeth.
Liu Shi collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath, too terrified to move. 'Ah, ahh...'
She was the archer in a four-person team. This was her third time entering the Abyss, and she never expected to encounter a Second-Order Abyssal Beast.
In the First-Order Abyss, this was an incredibly rare occurrence.
But once encountered, it was a devastating disaster for a newly formed Hunter team, leaving no room for struggle!
'Roar...' Watching the Second-Order Abyssal Beast finish eating the corpse, its mouth and nose exhaling hot breath, and hearing its low roar as it came towards her, Liu Shi's face was instantly covered in despair and fear.
After her three companions were killed, it was her turn.
'Help... Who will save me...?'
'Save me... Dad, Mom... I don't want to die... I don't want to die...'
Seeing the Abyssal Beast less than ten meters away, completely overwhelmed by fear, her survival instinct erupted, and she screamed as she grabbed her bow and shot wildly.
Swish swish swish swish swish... Arrows of wind formed by the effect of her B-grade talent, Wind Manipulator, shot towards the Abyssal Beast ahead, but they were all bounced off its tough hide, unable to penetrate its defense!
The lion-shaped Abyssal Beast approached step by step, the thick scent of blood and death emanating from its mouth and nose like a tide, threatening to completely engulf Liu Shi!
'Don't come closer...' She dropped the bow in her hands, stared blankly up at the Abyssal Beast in front of her, and tears of despair streamed down her cheeks.
The lion-shaped Abyssal Beast, its eyes filled with slaughter and ferocity, looked down at the human ant before it, raised a giant claw, and then... brought it down fiercely!
'Whoosh—!' Just then, a sharp whistling sound of air being cut through rang out. A damaged alloy spear turned into a streak of light and flew over, directly piercing the lion-shaped Abyssal Beast's giant claw, causing it to let out a roar of both pain and anger.
'Roar—!!' 'Finally, I've found a Second-Order Abyssal Beast.' The young man's voice rang out.
The lion-shaped Abyssal Beast let out a low and dangerous roar from its mouth and looked over in anger.
Liu Shi also shifted her gaze in that direction.
A tall figure walked out from the dim shadows. It was a handsome young man with black hair and golden eyes. The faint light from the sky shone on his face, half-bright and half-dark, making him appear very mysterious.
'Appraise.' Jiang Yuan murmured as he looked at the Abyssal Beast.
[Abyssal Beast]: Mutated Blood Lion. [Grade]: Rare. [Level]: LV14. [Skills]: Charge, Claw Slash, Intimidation, Mental Control. [Evaluation]: A mutated Abyssal creature, possessing greater strength and health. It is the overlord of an area. If you are unfortunate enough to encounter it, please escape as quickly as possible.
Jiang Yuan looked at the black giant lion in front of him, which was eight meters long and three meters tall, and a hint of excitement flashed in his eyes.
'A Second-Order Abyssal Beast, and a rare grade at that, it's too uncommon! I wonder how much experience it will give me.'
'You, you must leave quickly, don't throw your life away.' The woman's weak voice rang out.
Jiang Yuan turned his head to look and was surprised to discover Liu Shi's presence.
'Are you alright?'
'Roar!!' The lion-shaped Abyssal Beast slammed a paw onto the ground, completely crushing the broken spear that had pierced its palm. With a roar, it pushed off with all four limbs and leaped high into the air, its massive shadow covering the ground, like a heavy truck crashing down towards Jiang Yuan.
Seeing this scene, despair flashed across Liu Shi's tear-stained face: 'It's over... None of us will escape...'
The next second. She saw the young man before her bend his legs, stomp down hard, and shoot up from the ground, crashing into the lion-shaped Abyssal Beast's abdomen like a beam of light!
'Bang!' Two immense forces, carrying intense wind pressure, collided together and exploded violently, sending a fierce wind howling!
The massive, truck-sized Mutated Blood Lion was directly sent flying, soaring high before crashing down heavily, shattering a pile of rocks and causing the ground to shake violently!
'!!!' Under Liu Shi's shocked, stunned, and disbelieving gaze.
Jiang Yuan landed on the ground and let out a slight exclamation of surprise: 'It's not dead? As expected of a Second-Order Abyssal Beast, its health bar is indeed much thicker.'
'Then let's try out some new moves.'
Jiang Yuan was eager to try. He reached forward and took out a two-meter-long white Bone Spear from his System inventory.
This was the bone of a creature in the Abyss called a Bone Beast.
Even a First-Order version of this Abyssal Beast had bones comparable in hardness to D-grade alloy, fetching a high price on the market. Thus, Jiang Yuan spent some effort extracting the Bone Beast's tailbone and grinding it into the shape of a simple spear to use as a temporary weapon in the Abyss. He would consider reforging it using this material after leaving the Abyss.
As the white Bone Spear entered his hand.
Jiang Yuan's Aura changed. His light golden eyes were indifferent as water, yet they held a sharp edge capable of piercing through everything.
'Roar—!!' The three-meter-tall lion-shaped Abyssal Beast climbed out of the rock pile, its steel-like fur standing on end, and roared furiously towards Jiang Yuan, the sound waves rolling and appearing utterly terrifying.
Its fierce eyes flickered with blood-red light, and the surrounding rubble floated up under a mysterious force.
Jiang Yuan nodded: 'So that's it. After mutating, it also gained mental-type skills. No wonder it could grow to Second-Order.'
In the First-Order Abyss, this Mutated Blood Lion was undoubtedly an overlord-level existence.
'Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!' Huge rocks whistled as they rapidly flew towards Jiang Yuan!
Jiang Yuan walked forward, holding the Bone Spear in one hand. He swung the Bone Spear, effortlessly slicing the huge rocks into smooth pieces. Rubble as large as millstones fell beside and behind him, making dull thudding sounds as they hit the ground.
Taking a step forward. [Godspeed]
Jiang Yuan's figure instantly crossed a hundred meters, appearing before the lion-shaped Abyssal Beast in an instant.
The lion-shaped Abyssal Beast hadn't even reacted yet.
'Sky Cleave.' Jiang Yuan murmured. Holding the tail of the Bone Spear in one hand, he suddenly slashed forward. The sharp spear tip, gleaming with cold light, drew a perfect arc in the air and then instantly vanished.
'Swish—' A straight, phantom line appeared in the air, sweeping directly through the lion-shaped Abyssal Beast and the small mountain behind it.
Time seemed to freeze for a moment.
The next moment.
Under Liu Shi's stunned gaze, the lion-shaped Abyssal Beast and the small mountain behind it were simultaneously split in two!
[Ding, you have killed Blood Lion (LV14), gaining 584 experience points] [Ding, your level has increased, current level LV9]