The trio needed a break to regain their strength. Due to Helios having trained in the Soul Grinder before, they were prepared.

Even in this hellhole where god knows what monster lurked around the corner, they could have a little break behind a protective barrier.

The battle was a bit unexpected though. The tigers attacked them almost as soon as they had entered the Soul Grinder. They came out of nowhere, even though James could’ve sworn the room was empty.

“Anything that attacks us will be blocked by the formation’s barrier. It won't hold for long, but it should be enough so we're not caught off-guard.” Lunaris told James.

After all the chaos and turmoil, James finally had time to check how many levels he had gained.

[You have reached level 58]

“What?! That tiger nearly damned killed me, and I only got 1 level for defeating it? How come?”

This was a tough fight, James was expecting to have made a lot of progress. Instead, seeing he was only level 58 now felt like a slap in the face.

Helios took a look at the tiger and immediately understood the situation.

“Ah, there’s the problem. Take a look at its level.” Helios told James.

The tiger had ambushed them, and the fight was so frenetic that James didn’t even spare a second to look at the tiger’s level.

The tiger was only level 50. Even lower than him!

“How can this be? This is the closest I’ve ever come to death in this world! I fought monsters tens of levels above me! That damn dungeon core was like 100 levels higher than me! How can this incredibly stealthy tiger, with absurd speed and fangs like a god damn tree be only level 50?”

James was genuinely confused, half of what pushed him forward during the fight was knowing that he’d be rewarded if he persevered. This felt like a scam.

Lunaris approached the corpse of the tiger and inspected it.

“James, you should know that a level doesn’t really tell you exactly how strong a monster is. It can vary wildly, just like when it comes to people. Some monsters are unusually strong for their level. Although there is something weird with this tiger, something must have transformed or enhanced it somehow.” Lunaris said while carefully inspecting the tiger.

“But doesn’t a greater struggle equal more xp?” James just couldn’t let go of this feeling of being cheated, such a hard fight for just 1 level! Preposterous!

“When it comes to killing monsters, the xp you get is linked to the level of the monster, but it's true that it's not the only factor. In many activities, like when Helios works out with extreme weights to train his skills, the actual struggle and effort dictates how much xp you receive. But when it comes to monsters, the level is the main factor.”

Lunaris informed James. As much as she loved sharing knowledge, it was a bit weird to explain such basic concepts to someone who just minutes ago fiercely fought against formidable foes. James seemed like a living contradiction.

Helios then laughed boomingly. He tried to look at the bright side of things.

“Don't worry brother, the actual experience of being in combat is the real reward. But of course, even in this case, it’s not just the level of the monsters that influences the xp you gained! There were three of us that fought the tigers. That already decreases the amount of xp you receive. And you only directly fought 1 tiger, so most of the xp came from just one tiger, with 2 other people assisting you! All things considered, that’s not too bad. The unusual strength of these tigers did vastly increase the amount of xp you got, considering their level is even lower than yours!”

After their explanations, James felt a little more satisfied. He had fought a single monster that was even lower than him in level. He should be thankful for what he did receive. And the experience of a really tough battle was a much more valuable after all. This fight showed him many flaws in his strategy.

“But why were these tigers so unusually strong for their level?” James asked.

“I’ve read about something similar.” Having inspected the tiger for a while, the scholar in Lunaris was eager to share some theories and answer questions. “In extreme environments such as these, the weaker monsters would naturally perish. So they had to adapt. Apparently, in this prison for monsters, these ones adapted by being exceptionally stealthy and quick. Although, something doesn't feel right. It could have something to do with the Darkness, I'm not entirely sure.”

Hearing there could be influences of the Darkness in the Soul Grinder was bad news. The monsters in here were strong enough without any Darkness. But it was just a theory for now. Even if it were true, they couldn't turn tail and run after just one fight.

The more pressing matter was James's battle plan. One single tiger was able to stop him from casting his Razorice Saw. The flaws in his battle strategy were severe. He thought his Magmafrost Bullet was powerful, but it wasn’t a real finisher.

From this point on, the monsters would only get stronger. In a way, he was lucky to have been tested by these tigers first.

He had to adjust his strategy. And Helios and Lunaris knew it too.

“So what do we do now? Are you sure you can go on? We might have to face dozens of monsters at once, things will get much harder.” Helios asked. They won the fight, but it was a pitiful display. If they wanted to continue, something had to change.

“I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about various attacks and skills I could use. But without having to really push myself in combat, I wasn't sure what skills I should actually create. But a life and death struggle was just what I needed. I could’ve won so easily if I had only pulled off the Razorice Saw. But in its current form, the Saw is a useless spell when you’re fighting with a monster right in your face. But I think I know what I have to do. No, I’m actually certain this will work.”

His incompetence could cost his friends’ lives. There was no room for uncertainty. But he now had more than just the ideas in his head.

With the Arcane Simulation skill, things would be different, he could actually visualize skills in his head and adjust them as if he was living it. An actual simulation in his mind. It would make the process of crafting skills much more accurate and efficient.

“Good.” Helios nodded approvingly.

When James told them about the Arcane Simulation, his friends were happy and excited, but they weren't exactly sure what the simulation actually was. Lunaris's scholarly curiosity made her ask James to describe the simulation several times. But since the simulation was something in James's head, he couldn't actually show her.

Seeing that nothing attacked the barrier, the trio took advantage of the moments of safety to buff themselves up and recover as much as possible. After Lunaris’s excessive healing and all the enchanted foods they ate, James was as good as new. He was completely healed, which was a quite mind-blowing and surreal experience, seeing as he had huge holes in his hands not long ago.

James took the time to charge his Mana Devouring Crystal. The necklace would be very useful for the strategy he had in mind.

Having recovered, Lunaris picked up the crystal and the formation collapsed.

James unlocked the Stealth skill long ago, so before moving on to the next room, he activated it.

“Mate, that’s not going to do anything, unfortunately.” Helios told him.

“Why is that?”

Lunaris took it upon herself to tell him. She was actually getting used to teaching James simple things. She realized that teaching someone was quite fun for her.

“Don’t misunderstand, Stealth is incredibly useful. But you have to really specialize in it for it to have any effect. Otherwise, the monster’s keen senses would just detect you. You can’t underestimate monsters this powerful. You’re either totally hidden or you might as well not bother.”

“But it can’t hurt, right?” James asked.

“It can, actually. Stealth can give you a false sense of security. Before you know it, while you still think you’re being stealthy, a monster has already bitten a chunk out of you.” Helios told him.

The vivid image of being chewed on by a tiger was enough for James to drop the subject.

“It’s best for us to just be careful and mindful of our surroundings.” Lunaris added with a warm smile.

“But you’re right, Stealth can be very useful. Maybe the three of us can train Stealth some day.” Helios loved adding skills to his arsenal just as much as James did, so the thought of being a master of Stealth was quite tempting.

The three then carefully entered the next room. The heavy atmosphere was oppressive, it was much worse than before. James’s skin slightly hurt by merely being in the room, he could feel a constant pressure on his body. Apparently, the deeper they got into this prison, the worse it got. Something that resided in these conditions definitely lived up to the definition of the word monster.

Just what kind of monsters caused this kind of heavy atmosphere?

James didn’t have to wonder about it for much longer.

Suddenly, what felt like dozens of deafening shrieks could be heard.

A moment later they noticed that not one, not two, but ten shadowy figures were descending upon them.

James had never fought a flying opponent, but Helios and Lunaris had. They quickly took James and moved so their backs were against a wall. They then pumped a good amount of mana into conjuring thick, tall walls of fire to their sides and above them. There was only one direction the monsters could attack from. Now they could have a fairer fight.

The fires lit up the room really well, so James could clearly see the monsters now. Although for a second he didn't trust his eyes, he thought he lost his mind.

Descending upon them were ... grotesque chimeras with bodies made of stone. The things had three heads, they looked like some sick experiment gone wrong.

Not that James hadn't seen such things in movies before, it was hard to surprise a recluse addicted to the internet.

But seeing these things with his own to eyes was a horrifying experience.

The head of a lion and one of a goat, with their tails being snakes. The cacophony of sounds was ear-piercing. Their lion heads were roaring, the goat heads bleating loudly, and the snakes were hissing.

The mere sight of ten such things descending upon them stunned James for a quick second.

He quickly regained his composure. He came here knowing it wouldn’t be easy, that he’d face crazier monsters than he had ever seen.

Fighting ten of them at once was not an easy order, the mere thought of battling ten creatures that were probably much stronger than the tigers was making his scalp numb.

This fight would be a true test of his new strategy. Hopefully the arcane simulation was as useful as the name made it sound.

But even while doubting himself, he knew that was just his anxiety talking. It wasn't easy to shake off the anxieties, habits and thought patterns that came from years of being a recluse. But he was confident, James wasn't a recluse anymore. He was a powerful mage. He wouldn't make his friends expose themselves to danger if he wasn't confident in his own abilities.

These chimeras were just the thing he needed to test his new skills.