Chapter 85: The Treasure Chapter 85: The Treasure Niri swept the solar beam across the field; its effective range was roughly two hundred meters before the intensity dipped, and by the time it reached about four hundred meters, the beam thinned into nothingness. Taking the ground as her guide, she angled the beam nearly thirty degrees, the scorching light carving a shallow arc across the battlefield until the last drop of the stored energy in the sun-bright blob finally sputtered out. Ding! Venomstripe Panther (Mid 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 2000 XP Tunnelcrusher Mole (Low 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 1000 XP Spikehorn Drakeling (Mid 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 2000 XP Boulderback Hog (Peak 1-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 200 XP Splitfang Boar (Low 2-star) [Mortal Bloodline] Killed → 1000 XP Ironjaw Crawler (Peak 1-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 200 XP Darkmane Hyenling (Low 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 1000 XP Slateback Bearkin (Mid 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 2000 XP Thornhide Raccoon (Peak 1-star) [Mortal Bloodline] Killed → 200 XP Embercoat Puma (Peak 1-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Killed → 200 XP Ding! Level 21: 4024 / 14658 → 14658 / 14658 Level Up! Level 22: 167 / 19055 Ding! Stats Updated! [50% increase to base stats] Vitality: 36.4 → 54.6 [136.4 → 154.6] Strength: 39.4 → 59.1 [139.3 → 159.0] Agility: 38.5 → 57.8 [138.5 → 157.8] Stamina: 38.7 → 58.1 [138.7 → 158.1] Intelligence: 72.8 → 109.1 [172.8 → 209.1] Mana: 6552 → 9819 [15552 → 18819] {12027 / 18819} "Oh... ah... alright," Leo muttered, blinking as the string of notifications and the sudden leap in stats overloaded his senses for a moment. Then the reason clicked into place. Up until now, he’d been focused entirely on the golem’s condition—specifically the gaping hole bored clean through its chest. The beam had eaten into its torso before Niri angled it sideways, leaving a cavity that honestly resembled a half-devoured apple. Leo couldn’t help admiring the absurd similarity, and the comparison instantly reminded him of that one anime character from Earth—the heavenly restricted father who refused to pay child support. Only when the chorus of kill notifications finally ended did Leo register the trail of destruction Niri had left behind the golem. Since the beam hadn’t carved into the ground itself, the earth remained intact—but everything on it hadn’t been so lucky. The vegetation—grass, shrubs, splintered bits of wood—had been reduced to blackened husks, the smell of burnt plant matter still clinging to the air like a bitter fog. Any beast weaker than a High 2-star had been outright incinerated in the sweeping arc of roughly two hundred meters across, leaving only their lower body, or both lower and upper, but not the middle. Some only survived because of their higher strength, but they hadn’t escaped unscathed. Their hides were seared and blistered, patches of angry red flesh visible where the radiant heat had raked across them. He even spotted a lucky beast who happened to be right behind an enemy; the enemy took all the burnt, and it was safe. After which it didn’t even cared to finish it and ran away like a frightened mouse, thankful to his god that he survived. "Damn... that was powerful..." Leo breathed, the astonishment rough in his voice. Only now did the charge time make sense. Attacks of this scale—if usable without cooldown—were the kind that ended battles outright. In truth, even a minute felt too short for something this destructive. But in a real fight, a single minute could determine life or death. Then his gaze drifted to the mana requirement. "Two thousand just to initiate the skill..." he said under his breath, frowning. "If it gets interrupted midway, that’s it—mana gone, and probably a self-detonation roasting the caster. Two thousand mana units... who the hell uses that casually?" Leo let out a long exhale and shook his head. It was the definition of a high-risk, high-reward ability. And most people couldn’t afford to spend such a massive amount of mana mid-battle. But Leo wasn’t ’most people.’ With a single thought, he added the ability to his own roster—he had more than enough mana to spare. Skill Copied! [Solar Beam] – 6% (Low) — By drawing in the sun’s essence, the user channels a pure ray of solar power, compressing it into a continuous line of scorching radiance. The beam travels in a straight path with high penetration, deadly against beasts weak to heat or light, even those of higher rank. Most effective during daylight, weaker at night, and almost negligible under the new moon. "Heh. I wonder how massive the beam becomes once it reaches peak... or even grandmaster level." Leo exhaled a quiet laugh, the thought lingering for a moment like a spark of curiosity before he brushed it aside. He turned toward the direction he had originally come from. He had travelled tens of kilometres for this—He was about to swipe away the lingering notifications when one particular detail caught his eye. Venomstripe Panther (Mid 2-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Embercoat Puma (Peak 1-star) [Ordinary Bloodline] Both were perfect for advancing Shyra’s bloodline. But that wasn’t the part that made his brows rise—the key thing was that she would gain one random skill from the beast’s essence. And knowing Shyra, she would be delighted to add venoms to her assassination toolkit. She didn’t need him to speak the thought aloud. The instant she sensed his intention, Shyra darted off in a blur, retrieving the corpses with swift, efficient movements. On her way back, she even gathered several others scattered across the scorched area so Leo could secure more trial points. Her massive frame is able to accommodate all on her back. But meat from such low-ranked beasts no longer did much for anyone’s advancement. To maintain their current ranks—or break through further—they now needed Pseudo 3-star flesh or higher. Anything less would eventually risk their star rank diminishing as their bodies fell short of energy requirements. Leo had already sensed Dale and his team lingering at a distance, but he didn’t care anymore. He had only thought of relying on them if the situation turned dangerous, but that need had evaporated. Besides, the number of golems had noticeably decreased. The Thunderhide Elk had already taken down the three-cored golem it was locked with, and the lynx had died—its corresponding golem once again finished off by the Elk. Shyra quietly retrieved the lynx’s corpse, and Leo stored it without a word. No new golems were emerging from the mound now. Instead, the remaining ones were slowly tightening their encirclement, forming a crude but deliberate formation. And then— Rumble! The ground trembled violently. The entire mound, which had simply appeared like an elevated patch of land until now, ruptured in several places. Clods of dirt shot upward, revealing a tangled network of roots writhing beneath the soil. Several of those roots surged upward, stabbing through the openings and latching onto the corpses scattered around the mound like hungry serpents. The mound— It wasn’t a mound at all. It was a colossal root system concealed under the layer of earth.