Boom.
The tentacle burst beneath Kael's hammer, purple liquid spraying across the cave walls like blood from a slaughterhouse.
"But yeah," he thought, watching the remnants twitch on the ground. "This must be good for eating and training up."
He didn't hesitate.
He dove—grabbed a tentacle that shot up from the floor, still writhing, still alive. Its surface was warm and slick, pulsing with residual energy.
"Stupid," he muttered, raising it to his mouth. "But biogenes matter most."
He took a bite.
Chewed.
Swallowed.
The flesh was tough—rubbery, bitter, wrong. But it went down.
[2 Speed Biogenes Gained]
[2 Strength Biogenes Gained]
His screen bloomed in the corner of his vision. Green letters. Cold. Clinical.
"Good."
He dove again—spinning through the air, his body a blur of black coat and dark hair. His hand gripped another tentacle. He bit a chunk before it could react. Swallowed.
His body hummed.
He swung—caught another tentacle mid-lash, bit another chunk. His jaw ached. His stomach burned. But the energy was building.
He dove again. Rotated. Dodged three tentacles that clashed into each other behind him—their momentum wasted, their targets gone.
Both hands grabbed two tentacles at once. He swung his body, back grazing the ground, then lifted up—rotating, spinning, a cyclone of violence.
One shot toward his face.
He summoned his bone ape hammer mid-flight.
Squash.
The tentacle exploded. Purple liquid splashed across his mouth, his chin, his throat. He licked his lips without thinking.
[5 Speed Biogenes Gained]
[4 Strength Biogenes Gained]
[2 Defense Biogenes Gained]
His veins lit up beneath his skin—faint silver light tracing paths from his stomach to his chest, from his chest to his arms, from his arms to his fingertips.
Energy surged.
His speed multiplied.
"Yay! YAY!" Crucify screamed in his skull, high-pitched, ecstatic. "FASTER!"
Kael danced around the tentacles.
They couldn't touch him. Couldn't track him. Couldn't see him.
He was a blur.
THUD.
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He landed on the ground.
His screen appeared—black background, green letters, pulsing with new data.
[14 Speed Biogenes]
[Sprint Boost: 15 Seconds]
His eyes narrowed.
His legs swelled beneath his joggers—muscles bulging, veins surfacing, power coiling like a spring.
"Oh, good."
He boosted.
Wind roared.
Dust swirled into a cyclone behind him. The tentacles lunged—but he was already gone. A blur of black coat and flowing hair. Two strands of dark hair streamed behind him on both sides, whipped by the force of his speed.
He crossed from one part of the cave to the other in a heartbeat.
Boom.
He landed.
[Sprint Boost Used]
[30 Minutes Cooldown]
He stared at the screen.
"Hmm. Seems my biogenes made the cooldown shorter."
He walked.
The other hunters were far behind now—distant shouts echoing through the cave, the sounds of battle fading. He stepped over a body on the ground. Dead. Face down. Purple blood pooling beneath.
"That's five remaining," he muttered.
He walked forward.
Deeper Into the Dungeon
"This was tougher than I thought." The hunter's voice was tired. "Three dead already."
"That's Mystical Eraland for you." Graven didn't look back.
His red wolf padded beside him, eyes glowing, teeth still wet with purple blood. The other hunters held their weapons tightly—knuckles white, jaws clenched, eyes scanning the shadows.
The cave had widened.
Massive now. Ceiling lost in darkness. Rocks everywhere—some loose, some carved into strange shapes by centuries of shifting earth. Paths led upward along natural stone ramps. A small lake glowed faintly in the center of the chamber, its surface still and black.
"I saw something."
One of the hunters stopped.
Graven turned. "Where?"
The hunter pointed toward the lake.
Another hunter walked forward—curious, stupid, tired of being afraid. He squatted at the water's edge.
"A lake?"
Ripple.
Boom.
A huge purple serpent rose from the depths.
Water exploded outward—waves crashing against the rocks, soaking the walls, drenching the hunters. The serpent was massive—its body thicker than a tree trunk, its scales gleaming like wet amethyst. Its head widened into a cobra's hood, and its tongue—long, black, forked—tasted the air.
Crunch.
It coiled around the hunter's body before he could scream.
Bones broke. Ribs shattered. Spine snapped. The serpent rose higher, lifting the corpse into the air like a trophy.
Graven's blade came up. Red light blazed across the cave.
The other hunter desummoned his spear—then transformed. Partial beatification. His legs swelled, blackened, reformed into the powerful limbs of a wolf. His hands became claws—curved, sharp, hungry.
"Go."
Graven ran.
The red wolf dove behind him.
The serpent struck.
The Battle
The two hunters clashed with the beast.
Graven's red blade swung—landing on the serpent's scales, carving a deep gash. Purple blood sprayed.
The transformed hunter fought up close—dancing with the serpent, rotating around its strikes, landing punch after punch with his clawed fists. Each impact sent shockwaves through the beast's body.
The red wolf found the serpent's throat—iron teeth sinking into flesh, claws digging into scales.
But the serpent was mighty.
It flung them both—Boom! —sending Graven crashing into a rock formation, sending the transformed hunter skidding across the cave floor.
Crash.
Graven pushed himself up. His leg was bleeding. His ribs were cracked. He gripped his blade tighter.
They boosted again.
Graven swung upward—rising with the momentum of his jump, planting his blade into the serpent's skull.
Crack.
The blade sank deep.
Blood sprayed across his face.
The serpent rose higher—towering above the cave, its mouth widening, its fangs gleaming. It struck down.
Crunch.
Half of Graven's leg disappeared between its jaws.
He didn't scream. Just growled.
The transformed hunter boosted again—dancing with the serpent, rotating in the air, landing blow after blow. His claws tore through scales. His fists shattered bone.
Blood poured from the beast like rain.
Above the Battle
Kael watched from above.
His dragon mount flew silently through the cavern's heights—white scales blending with the mist, iron beak gleaming in the dim light. He landed on a tall hanging rock, jutting out from the cave wall like a crooked finger.
Large rocks were loose around him. Unstable. Waiting.
"Just waiting for the right time."
He looked down.
Graven and the transformed hunter were powerful. Skilled. Experienced. Their movements were sharp, practiced, deadly.
"They are indeed powerful," Kael thought. "Skilled."
Blood sprayed.
The red wolf found the serpent's throat again—iron claws digging deep, tearing through scales, opening a wound that gushed purple.
"Arrrgghh!"
Graven swung his blade—with all his anger, all his pain, all his hunger.
Slash!
The serpent's tail flew from the lake—severed, twitching, spraying blood across the water.
The serpent fell.
Directly below Kael.
THUD.
Kael swung his hammer.
Not at the serpent.
At the wall.
Boom!
The cave rumbled.
Boulders fell—massive, crushing, unstoppable. One landed on Graven. Another crushed the red wolf. More and more and more—raining down on the serpent's body, pinning it to the ground.
Crash!
Boom!
Squash!
Kael dove.
His hand raised to his back. His hammer came down.
CRASH!
The serpent's head exploded—crushed beneath the impact of the bone hammer, flattened into pulp, melted into blood.
Kael landed on the ground.
Purple blood drained around his boots.
"Whoa!" Crucify chuckled. "You are getting cool!"
[Low Sacred — Purple Octopus Beast Killed]
[No Beast Soul Gained]
[Eat Beast Meat to Gain Biogenes]
Kael stared at the screen.
"Nice to hear."
He bent down.
Then stopped.
"Wait. No beast soul?"
He looked at the serpent's crushed remains.
"All this fight for nothing?"
He paused.
"But geez... Low Sacred."
He glanced around. The cave was shaking. Rocks were still falling. The ground was beginning to boil.
"I better get out of here now."
He pulled a razor-sharp knife from his pocket.
Slit the serpent's head.
Cut it into four parts.
His screen displayed—box icons appearing one by one. He fitted each piece of meat into storage.
[Beast Meat: Low Sacred — 4 Servings]
He dusted his hands.
Summoned his dragon mount.
"Arrgghhh!"
The dragon shot upward—wings beating, wind roaring. Kael gripped the scales and rose.
A stone shifted below.
Graven's hand stretched out from beneath the boulder—broken, bleeding, but alive. His eyes found Kael in the darkness.
"You..." His voice was a groan. A curse. A promise. "You..."
Kael squatted on his dragon.
Looked back.
The cave was collapsing—rocks falling, walls cracking, the ceiling coming down.
Purple tentacles shot up from the boiling ground—grasping the cave walls, pulling them down, sinking the entire dungeon underground.
Kael didn't say anything.
He just watched.
Then his dragon turned.
And flew out of the cave.
End of Chapter Eighteen.