Chapter 44 Progress
The five Shadow Lynxes were hot on Spot's pursuit. With how huge Spot's body was, the Shadow Lynxes might have thought of how delicious he would be as their lunch.
Unfortunately for them, Spot does not plan on becoming their lunch.
Leading them toward where the trap was, Spot stopped in place and finally began to counterattack.
The Shadow Lynxes were well coordinated and had good teamwork. Two went to attack Spot head on, while the others decided to blend into the shadows, planning to attack him in his blind spots.
Usually, such tactics were fairly effective, and their prey would usually succumb to their ambushes sooner or later.
Unfortunately, Spot was no normal prey.
Aside from being strong himself, Spot also has something that the Shadow Lynxes did not have.
He has a human.
One Shadow Lynx dove into the shadows, hoping to move into Spot's blind spot. However, the moment it did so, its foot was suddenly entangled by one of the traps that Lucas had set up. The Shadow Lynx tripped over pathetically. Spot did not waste the opportunity and immediately dove to attack it.
Although the Shadow Lynx did not die in an instant, it was already disoriented and was unable to respond to Spot's next attack.
Although Spot may seem dumb and innocent during his normal form, he was actually quite a menace and clever during his Hellhound Manifestation form. Like Lucas, he was also in a state of constant learning.
For example, his battle style was no longer as chaotic and as barbaric as before.
Stretching out his claws, Spot slashed them toward the neck of the disoriented Shadow Lynx.
If it was before, Spot might have just opted to smash the Shadow Lynx repeatedly with his paws until it died. However, ever since Lucas taught it how to use its claws, it learned to use them and was now using them effectively. Spot now even knew which part of the enemy was quite vulnerable to his claws.
As blood splattered like rain, Spot moved away immediately. The Shadow Lynx jumped toward him one after the other, trying to save their companion. However, it was already too late.
In the end, the scene was repeated three more times, with Spot killing a total of three Shadow Lynx with the assistance of the trip traps. After the three were killed, the other two also succumbed to their deaths not long later.
Fortunately, none of them decided to attack Lucas this time around, saving him a lot of energy as a result.
His current experience points was now at 35.91.
After retrieving his traps, Lucas decided to search for another chain of lynx immediately, as it has only been five minutes since he summoned Spot. Lucas was also not injured—not even bruised—like the previous battle, so there was no need for him to take a rest as well.
The Giant Dark Forest was the primary habitat of the Shadow Lynx in this dungeon. There were numerous of them here, and one did not need to search for every nook and cranny just to see a chain of them.
Of course, they were not the only beasts that could be seen here. It was just that they were the most numerous and active in this area compared to other beasts. Due to the trail they left behind, they were also easily spotted and hence hunted—by strong squads, of course.
Stay updated via empire
They also have a strange nature of not joining any fight that they had not started.
According to the observations, the Shadow Lynx would ignore fights if they encountered one. According to the theory, this was because they disdained trying to get the prey of others and preferred searching for another prey for their own.
Well, it just so happened that this was part of the reason why Lucas decided to hunt them.
On average, Lucas found a chain of lynx every forty minutes.
And as such, four hours later, his experience points had obtained a massive change.
[Name: Lucas Valen
Age: 17
Grimoire Grade: Unranked
Rank: Iron Star 2 (100.51/225)
Spiritual Energy: 58/58
Beasts: Gentle Dog]
Resting above the branch of a dark giant tree, Lucas smiled in delight seeing his progress.
"Almost halfway there."
Aside from that, there was also another unexpected surprise that happened during their last battle, in which Spot fought five Shadow Lynxes.
[Beast Name: Gentle Dog
Grade: Unranked
Rank: Iron Star 3
Skills: Gentle Gaze, Hellhound Manifestation, Sharp Claw
Gentle Gaze:...
Hellhound Manifestation:...
Sharp Claw: Harden and extend the claw upon use, gaining a razor-sharp edge that can slice through some tough materials with ease.]
After a bitter fight with the last five Shadow Lynxes, not only the Gentle Dog, Spot, gained another skill, but it also raised its level by one star rank.
Obtaining a skill through battle was, of course, the best way for everyone to gain a new skill. However, such instances were also quite rare and did not happen too often.
This was why most summoners would usually outrank their beasts in the long run, as beasts had trouble leveling up due to their strict conditions and requirements for them to do so. The lower the grade of the beast, the more this was the case as well. This was why higher-grade beasts were more valued, as they grew stronger and learned more skills much quicker compared to lower-grade beasts.
As for Unranked Grade beasts like Spot, having two skills was already unheard of, not to mention three.
However, Spot broke the norm once again by actually learning another skill while still being in Unranked Grade.
Given how strong Spot was, Lucas wondered if he could still be considered an Unranked Grade beast. However, in his Hellhound Manifestation form, Lucas suspected that his grade might have been elevated to a higher level. After all, it was the manifestation of a Hellhound, and a Hellhound was… well, an entirely different creature compared to a Gentle Dog.
Even Lucas himself did not expect Spot to learn a new skill at this time. He thought that the only way for his Gentle Dog to gain another skill and increase its star rank was through the help of the system, or if he miraculously evolved to a new grade.
Nevertheless, Lucas was quite happy about this achievement. So much so that he had given Spot two Moonlit Bones as a treat instead of just the usual one.
Looking at the description of the skill, Sharp Claw, Lucas' mood went high to another level. This was a skill most suited for offense after all. Such a skill was something that Spot did not have yet, so Lucas was extremely delighted the moment he saw it.
Although the name and the description were quite ordinary, an offensive skill was still an offensive skill after all. They have more might and offer more damage compared to normal attacks. Of course, this also means that using it requires some energy. If Spot continuously uses this skill, he would also easily get tired, so skills like this must be used sparingly and only in the right situation.
With excitement in his voice, Lucas took a glance at Spot in his Gentle Dog form and ordered, "Come on, Spot, show me Sharp Claw!"
Spot titled his head to the side, trying to comprehend what Lucas was talking about.
A moment later, Spot raised one of his front paws and then shook it.
Shing!
The next instant, his claws extended and elongated. It shone brightly, as if to announce how sharp it was.
Seeing it, though, Lucas' smile dropped as disappointment appeared on his face.
"Why is it so small?"
____
A/N: Thanks pachakili for the colas.
This chapter upload first at NovelBin.Com