At around six in the morning.Gary met his team members in the midst of thousands of humans who were asking them how to get strong and how to help them.Sesi told them how to unlock the systems so they could also level up. When they all had system windows pop up before them, it got them very excited.Some were literally in shock.Rowan was swinging his club and creating constant wind that made the kids float in the air, and they giggled and enjoyed it. When he turned to the ladies, they didn’t want it for obvious reasons.Goya and Wendevorr were fighting in the distance, refining each other’s skills by fighting seriously.Leah was talking to a group of people. “We cannot be here and look over your progress. Besides, we’ve killed all the monsters on these lands so that you people can live here peacefully for the time being. But if you do wish to level up, then I’m afraid you’ll have to travel to other regions by sea.”People gave different answers to what she had said.Leah saw Gary in
The blue flames spat out by the cockatrice burned not just the trees but even the ground, and the heat spread through the ground as well as the air, making it much difficult to be in its vicinity.The cultivators that were running away from it were by no means weak. The cockatrice was just too strong.“We are already at the edge of the forest, and it’s still chasing us.”“If it follows us into the town, the entire town will be destroyed.”“Should we then separate and let it chase us back into the woods?”“But who would sacrifice themselves?”As they were looking at each other, the cockatrice closed in even more, making them scream in horror. Just then, a figure flew over their heads and punched the cockatrice jaw, making it scream painfully as its teeth cracked and broke. The cockatrice was sent flying into a tree that was bigger than this monster.“EHH?” the cultivators’ had their eyes spring out of their sockets. “Who’s that person?”“How did he beat the ‘kinglet’ from the Central W
“Gya ree?” They looked at each other. “That’s a very great name!” They began to laugh together.“It’s Gary, not Gyaree,” he tried to correct them.“Gaahree, Gyaree,” they still butchered his name in more ways anyway.“Forget it,” Gary gave up quickly.To Gary, they seemed like a young, polite, and friendly bunch. He smiled and said, “Since we have this cockatrice monster ready and roasted, shall we eat it?”“Cock-what? You mean the kinglet?”“Yeah,” Gary said.“Yes. Let us cook it for you,” the four of them quickly got down to the business. “The best edible part of the kinglet is its neck. There’s a legend that if we eat even a single piece of its neck meat, our necks will get much stronger and durable, and that we’ll never suffer a throat pain.”“Oh, that’s pretty nice,” Gary said.Soon, his teammates arrived at the scene. Gary introduced them to these four cultivators who also introduced themselves as members of two different sects. The two women were members of the Fallen Flower Se
“Sixth sense?” Rowan asked. “What exactly is that?”“Put your hand behind your back and close some fingers,” Ryu Ren said. He had green hair and was tall and well-defined like a tree.Rowan did what he was told to do.Ryu Ren kept looking into Rowan’s eyes, and the air around them began to shift ever so slightly, causing the leaves to rustle gently. “You have four fingers closed, and one finger open. The fourth finger.”Rowan’s eyes widened. “H-How did you know that?” He had kept his ring finger open, but no one was sitting behind him, so there was no way for Ryu Ren to know. Yet he somehow got it correct.“My hair helped me with finding the answer,” Ryu Ren said.“So, it’s not even a guess?”“No,” Ryu Ren said. “You can do it if you stimulate your mind and learn to sense the world through your hair. It’s very helpful. You’ll be able to feel many more things your five senses can’t. For instance,” he looked at Gary. “I feel a very strong energy from him that I don’t feel from others.
“So you entered this forest because you were looking for the elixir?” Sesi asked Bee Ree and Yee Lee.“Yes. Both of our sect leaders fought against a powerful enemy,” Bee Ree said. She had a long braid that was very thick and full of life. Her smile was also full, giving her a very attractive appearance. “They were poisoned. And we were told that a powerful cultivator named Chun Fu stored a life-saving elixir in the center of this forest.”“We thought we could get there if we sneak our way through these woods,” Yee Lee pitifully said. She was slim but had a muscular body. It was obvious that she physically exerted herself a lot to get such a body which wouldn’t be possible to achieve without greatly disciplining oneself. “Things went smoothly until we reached halfway in, and then the kinglet found us. It wasn’t supposed to be there. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have gotten caught off guard. Now, we don’t have the energy or the motivation to give another try.”“Give us the location of your s
Leah was looking at the map. “This is pretty detailed. It shows what monsters live in which regions, along with the drawings of the monsters. But, the problem is that it’s pretty big. It’s over 400 square miles in area. That means we need to cover nearly 200 miles to get to the center. There are beasts in the sky, too, that we need to watch over.”“Which beasts are the closest to us?” Rowan asked her.“Let me check,” Leah took another look at the map. “Preying Mantis. No level is given, so I’m not sure how strong they are. Also, it’s written Preying Mantis, as in P-R-E-Y, not Praying Mantis as in P-R-A-Y.”“Does it matter?” Rowan snorted. “They’re probably both the same.”“Gary was able to take care of a level 500 monster with ease, and that’s supposed to be living deep in these woods,” Sesi said. “So I don’t think there’s a need for us to be afraid of facing the monster living at the edge of the forest.’“She’s right,” Wendevorr agreed with her. “However, we cannot overlook the fact
Gary and his team reached the region where the Preying Mantis lived. The trees were huge and their stems and branches were shooting off in every direction. It was like a man’s imagination was at work. They all felt like they were inside a painting.“These trees must have been nourished well for them to not just grow tall but also branch out in so many directions,” Sesi said. She had a little bit of experience in growing trees, so she knew how ridiculous it would be to try and grow these types of trees by man.“Who cares about the trees?” Rowan did not care about the trees but only the triangle-faced preying mantises that were on these trees. They had round marble-like eyes that were staring down at Gary and his team.They all could vaguely guess the levels of these monsters which was just a little above a hundred.“These will be perfect for warm-up,” Leah unsheathed her sword. “Seeing their numbers, I think I’m going to experience the feeling of cutting down so many bodies again. I di
Gary walked closer to the preying mantises and looked up at them, but their eyes weren’t set on him at all.It took him a few seconds to realize that they were not just staring at his team but especially at Goya.When she moved, these monsters moved their heads as well.“Goya, did you realize it?” Gary asked.“Yeah,” Goya innocently said. “My ear has a lot of dirt in it. I need to get it out.”“That’s not what I’m talking about,” Gary pointed his finger up. “Look at them. They are being very cautious toward you. It seems they see you as a greater threat than any of us.”“Why would they do that?” Goya wondered. “I did eat mantises, but not ones this big.”“Maybe they just think he’s a predator,” Sesi opined.No, not just that…” Leah quickly opened her map. “Look here. There are diagrams of humanoid beasts living at the center of this forest. They are called demonoids. These mantises probably think you’re a demonoid, Goya.”“I’m not a demon!” Goya hissed. “Why are they comparing me wit