In the midst of the crystal forest, where the trees shimmered like frozen sculptures under the cool moonlight of the two moons, Sel moved with the quiet confidence of someone who didn't fear danger most of the time. Someone who had the strength to survive this place easily.
He'd put some distance, if not less, then more between himself and the poison ivy, his mind already shifting to strategy; find a place to camp and maybe meditate to push closer to that elusive Circle of Initiation.
The air was chilly, laced with the faint, ethereal hum of the crystals vibrating in harmony, and for a fleeting moment, peace settled over him like a gentle veil. He leaped lightly onto a low but strangely sturdy branch, scanning the horizon with his pale-blue glowing eyes, his bow dematerialized for the moment, and his flute tucked securely at his side.
But anomalies like the poison ivy didn't play by the rules of warning. It was in their nature to be that contradictory.
Without a sound or a shift in the wind, the attack came from below, vines erupting from the forest floor in a sudden, symphonic surge, coiling upward like living symphonies of green and toxin.
They moved with elegance... the tendrils weaving into intricate patterns that disrupted the very air, releasing waves of poisonous essence that warped the light into hallucinatory fractals.
Sel reacted... too late. One vine grabbed his ankle mid-leap, yanking him off-balance with a force that cracked the crystal branch beneath him.
He quickly twisted, summoning a short emerald dagger in a burst of glittering energy... most likely from a storage ring or pouch, something common to find on elves. They were the richest race after the angels, after all.
Sel moved with precision and slashed at the vine, cutting it with one strike, but the poison ivy had fully emerged.
It was slender, made of interlocking vines adorned with blooming thorns that pulsed with inner light, long red hair made of red flowers and vines, its emerald eyes locked onto him with an intelligence that belied its true rank, Tier 1: Circle of Body. Its innate command over plants and poison made it a very dangerous foe to anyone, even when it was two levels below Sel.
Sel could feel how every root and leaf was responding to it... like they were allies. A poison ivy was very dangerous as it was acclaimed. It was better to face two Circle of Spirit beasts than a single poison ivy, regardless of the level.
Sel rolled on the ground, swiftly removing the cut vine from his ankle just as a cloud of spore-mist filled the area. It had corrosive and mind-bending effects, which would have affected anyone weak... but unfortunately for it, Sel was anything but weak.
His aura flared, white-emerald, erecting a barrier, deflecting the mist into harmless wisps that evaporated against the crystals.
"Clever one," he muttered, admiration mixing with adrenaline as he nocked a silver arrow, infusing it with mental precision to arc through the air like a guided star.
Circle of Body strengthened the natural body, pushing it through limits to make it stronger than average.
Circle of Spirit took care of the soul, but in a very basic way. It nurtured the spirit of a person, inclining it almost perfectly to the body, strengthening it. The only reason it came before the Circle of Mind was because the Circle of Body pushed the body far beyond the limits, leaving the other aspects behind, so the Circle of Spirit bridged that gap.
Circle of Mind, as the name implies, grants the person a strong mind. It strengthened the mental capabilities of the person. But its main essence was to act as the final point to push the person to another level in cultivation... Tier 2.
Circle of Mind beings were very close to Tier 2, with only Circle of Initiation, which was the barrier between Tier 1 and Tier 2, stopping them.
It came with a whole variety of abilities, unlike the lower two, which were mostly dealt with physical capabilities, and that was showcased at this moment.
The ivy had blocked Sel's arrow with a cascade of roots that had burst from the earth, reshaping the terrain into undulating hills and valleys of crystal and vine. The ground buckled beneath Sel, forcing him to vault skyward, his body pushed to its limits as he dodged thorns that bloomed mid-air like deadly fireworks.
One grazed his shoulder, not drawing blood, but infusing a numbing toxin that dulled his reflexes for a split second, enough to make the fight feel like wading through molasses.
This was no longer a brawl; it was a clash of elements against mind, the forest itself turned against Sel under the ivy's influence.
Vines stood upward like snakes, then split open at the tip to reveal red insides filled with spore bags that exploded and released reddish green poison mist into the air. Some even shot out poison spikes, small, deadly, and fast.
The air hummed with power, fissures opening in the ground where poison met a combination of strength, spirit, and mental force, releasing geysers of sparkling energy that lit the canopy like auroras.
For minutes that stretched into an epic eternity, they fought... Sel's perception and Circle of Mind essence, granting him a kind of foresight, allowing him to anticipate the ivy's attacks. Fatigue gnawed at him, his level strained by the relentless creativity of the assault, making him wonder just how powerful a Tier 4 Poison Ivy would be. He could die if he were careless for even a second.
"I have to use something..." Sel muttered as he dodged for the umpteenth time, a 15-inch spike for trying to get close to the beast. Then he recalled how Bahamut's aura projected around him... raw and dominating.
"I've been so stupid... Beasts can't be treated as humanoids. They are beasts... they need to be tamed," Sel somersaulted as his bow dematerialized and a sword appeared in its place. He had been fighting fellow elves and a few humans all his life, forgetting that he was in a beast forest.
This oversight had caused him to look pathetic in the fight against a Circle of Body beast when he was two levels above it.
"Time to end this!" He shot with sudden speed toward the poison ivy, stunning it for a moment. The ground caved in from where he shot from, vines and roots scattering into bits.
Even some of the hard and sturdy crystal trees cracked, the smaller ones exploding like broken glass.
The poison ivy released poison mist, red and dense this time, after sensing the change in Sel. Its senses were screaming... EXTREME DANGER!
But it was too late for it.
CRACK! SLASH! BOOM!
The poison ivy's hands still released the mist, filling the surroundings with red, but its head was flying over one of the trees.
Slowly, it withered like a flower that had been rejected by sunlight.
Sel appeared behind it, his sword's silver blade shimmering in the moonlight, as a sense of tranquility fell on the place, erasing the earlier moments of the battle.
"Not anymore..." Sel muttered as the sword dematerialized. He looked around, using his essence to extend his senses before calming down. Looking at his surroundings, he spotted a cave of earth, roots, and vines, formed earlier by the poison ivy's attacks.
"A blessing in disguise, huh?" he chuckled as he entered it to rest for the night.