Adam made his way into the forest till he could barely see the hill and then instead of following the same route he used when he had gone in search for food, he decided to go in the opposite direction. Need to scout and recce as much of this side of the forest as I possibly can. Once I get stronger, I’ll check out the swathe of forest behind the hill but for now I need to stick to the edges of the forest. Maybe I’ll find better prey or something different to kill this time. Adam thought as he made his way through the trees. He kept moving forward using the trees as cover and made sure his Psychic Obfuscation was kept active. It was much easier to keep it active and didn’t require as much focus now that he had gained some proficiency levels with the skill.

Adam had been stalking through the forest for almost 15 minutes before he spotted his first target. To his disappointment it was just a Forest Beetle (10). It was a bit higher level than usual but he sensed no threat from the creature and he managed to walk up within touching distance of the insect, it was hugging a pine tree just a meter above the forest floor. Adam faced no resistance as he used Penetrate and quickly killed it. He was a bit disappointed with the essence gain even after he having devoured the corpse, he had gained very little essence from it and he gained neither skill nor attributes.

Just need to kill 2-3 more beetles and that will definitely push me over the edge and into the next level. Adam thought as he felt the pressure of the essence in his body, never really thought about just how weird this really is. Collecting essence inside my physical and metaphysical self and building up the pressure till I undergo a qualitative change. It’s fucking weird if I really think about. But it doesn’t feel weird at all, there’s no discomfort at all or sense of wrongness, rather I feel good every time I gain essence. I feel euphoric every time I level. Definitely weird shit. Most likely system shit. Adam decided as he once more stalked through the forest in search of prey.

Minutes later he found another beetle and this one was Lvl12. Once more Adam felt no threat whatsoever from the creature he saw and, in a few seconds, was proven correct as he quickly finished it off using the same method as before. But just as he finished devouring the corpse, he felt that the presence of another creature. Something in his surroundings was giving off warning signals to Adam. He could not pin point exactly what was causing his instincts to give off warning bells but he quickly crouched low to the ground and stayed still.

He kept scanning his vicinity, focused on finding whatever had triggered his instincts. Yet Adam remained as still as a rock, crouched low, ready to run if needed. As he kept looking further and further away from his position, his eyes stopped on a stone about 50 meters to his right and ahead of the tree the beetle he had been munching on. It looked like large grey stone and was more than a meter long and half the length in height. He had found what had set off his instincts.

There were no other stones in that part of the forest, at least Adam hadn’t seen any as he had stalked through. The stone itself was partially hidden by a bush. He could not put into words how he knew, but Adam was sure that the stone was a monster in concealment. A stone lizard, Adam deduced. The first thing I ever killed. I hadn’t seen any after that first encounter so I figured it might have been a rarity. Looks like they weren’t as rare as I thought. Adam thought as he cast Analyze.

Stone Lizard (14): A lizard monster which commonly spawns in forest. Like its name sake, when still the Stone lizard appears to look like a stone. Due to its coloring and the fact that it contracts it whole body and tucks its tail and limbs beneath it while it burrows its head into the ground till it is partially covered, makes it difficult to differentiate between it and an ordinary stone. Their inherent abilities eliminate their scent and camouflage its mana signature with its surroundings. When suitable prey walks nearby the lizard launches forward like a stone bullet and the impact heavily injures and disorients the prey if it doesn’t outright kill it. Due to their Earth mana attunement, their bones and scales are extremely dense and they use an instinctive form of earth mana enhancement to support their weight. Although stone lizards are typically a meter in length, they can kill creatures bigger and stronger than themselves. They have high levels of strength for their level but low agility, stamina and health. The scales on their back are harder than rock but dense and heavy while the scales on their abdomen and throat are soft and flexible. They rely on a passive/active ability that works passively using the earth mana present in the ground to strengthen their bones and muscles allowing them to bear their own weight. Stone lizards like most ambush predators are solitary monsters. Resistant to earth, wind, fire and nature attuned attacks.

Yeah, I was right. Adam confirmed that it was indeed a Stone Lizard and the creature hadn’t noticed him. Counting on his Obfuscation skill to mask his presence, Adam stealthily made his way towards the lizard. The monster was about 50 meters away from him and deeper inside the forest, so Adam made his way towards it making sure to keep an eye out for any other creatures in the vicinity. After all, the Lizard is an ambush hunter. It wouldn’t just stay still in a place that isn’t frequented by other creatures.

Cautiously Adam closed the distance and once he was a little less than 10 meters from the monster, his pace slowed to a crawl as he took extra care not give away his presence with any sudden movements and took light small steps, in order to lessen the chances of making any noticeable noise.

Its level is higher than mine but it must not have higher MIND attributes, Adam reasoned as he made to within 5 meters of the monster. The monster gave no sign that it noticed him and even up close the monster still looked like a rock to Adam. That or it’s waiting till I get close enough to hammer me like a cannonball. The thought did not reassure Adam at all, I still can’t make out where its head is. Am I approaching it from behind or am I closing in on its head?? Fuck! How does it even see at all? I Can’t even spot its eyes, or ears or anything. Fuck… Maybe I should have thought this through, Adam thought with a little panic edging into his heart.

NO! I can do this! The monster is dangerous yes! But it hasn’t detected me and my instincts aren’t telling me to run, only that its dangerous. Adam reasoned. So, it should be doable. I just need to trust my psychic obfuscation skill to prevent it from detecting me.

IF I was an ambush predator and I detected another predator approaching me, my first instinct would be surprise and then to strike before it gets a chance to attack. The thing is still as a rock and not even a hint of motion. I’m sure of it. The lizard hasn’t detected me. Adam’s will clamed down the edges of panic and logic helped calm his nerves as he closed in on the monster. I’m already within its striking distance so if it was going to attack, it would have done so by now. Which means that it really hasn’t noticed me. and that I’m not moving towards its head. I think. Otherwise, it would have definitely sensed me or something, He reasoned.

Adam had closed in enough to reach out and almost touch the lizard. He stopped at that distance and activated Bolster, Giant killing and Penetrate. Within a fraction of a second of activating Bolster at full power, Adam pushed off the ground with his left leg, and dashed forward. His right arm that had been fully coated in Penetrate and pulled back for the strike, thrust forward in the very instant he pushed off. He cut through the air like a javelin.

His attack reach the lizard, bolstered as he was by the 3 skills, Adam did not even register the sensation of piercing through scales, scaled that were as hard as stone and bones as strong as iron, as his hand push cut through and into the monster’s body. In an instant his arm had disappeared inside the lizard and only when the force of his attack carried him forward and his shoulders struck the monsters body did his attack cease.

Adam had been mentally prepared to cut through the lizard but he had never expected that pierce all the way through.

The Stone Lizard had only managed to sense the danger when it was too late and it had already been struck. Its reaction was to propel itself forward and away from the creature that had managed to penetrate its defenses and threaten its existence. But it was too late, its motions were too slow to start and Adam’s hand had pierced through its body and unluckily for the lizard had managed to sever its spine. His attack had left a massive gaping hole in the creature’s back that was continuously bleeding out black gunk as Adam retracted his hand and leapt away from the dying monster.

Adam had only been surprised by the power of his attack for less than a second before he regained the presence of mind to jump back and away from the creature’s retaliatory strike. A strike that never came as the seconds ticked by and the monster continued to stay in place and discharge liters of black gunk from the wound.

The creature had not moved after its initial reactionary motion, it could not move at all due to the lethality and severity of its internal injuries. And soon Adam received the notification confirming the monster’s death followed by a rush of essence that filled him to the brim and pushed him to level 04.

Adam was still a bit stupefied at how easily he had killed a monster that had in the not-so-distant past very nearly killed him. And that too while he dragged it and restricted all its advantages and skills. And still he had almost died to the monster.

He was half expecting the monster to launch an attack towards him even after he had received the notification from the system and the essence from the kill.

He had gone into his hunt fully expecting his strike to hurt the creature and hopefully injure it badly but never had he thought that his attack would just cut through the creature’s defense like it didnt exist. And not only did his attack go all the way through, the attack was crippling and fatal to the monster.

Giant Killing and Penetrate are just over kill. Fuck. Is this the same monster that had nearly killed me not so long ago? The surprise and shock he felt due to how easily the monster died, was hard to quash.

Adam spent a few long seconds just staring at the monster in disbelief before he inwardly celebrated his easy kill and his level up. He caught himself as he almost started doing fist pumps and remembered that he was still in the forest. Caution took over and he strained all his senses, listening and looking for anything out place or any sign that the short struggle had attracted any curious predators. Satisfied that he couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary, he closed in on the dead monster carcass which was by now slowly turning into black goop. The process of rapid decay had started and it sped up to point where there was more black goop than monster left.

Adam who had been too slow to absorb the carcass before decay started felt revulsion at the smell and sight and now did not want to stick his hand into the foul smelling stuff. Fuck! MY essence…. fuck! Hell no... NO way am I putting my hand into that shit!! Adam felt nauseous just thinking about it. Ill just have to be happy with the level I earned and next time keep in mind to devour the corpse as quick as I can. Can’t do anything about this mess now. Nope. Just have to be faster next time. I’m sure there’ll be more of these lizards in the forest. Adam thought to himself optimistically.

He tried not to think about how much essence and the potential abilities he was letting go of by not devouring the goop. Fuck you Adam.

Adam stayed to watch as the carcass fully putrefied into black sludge which quickly evaporated into thick smoke that dissipated as soon as it formed. He stayed in part to watch the whole process since he hadn’t been fully coherent the last time he had witnessed such a scene. The other monster that he had encountered, he quickly devoured its corpse before it had even started to decay.

Mostly he stayed to watch and mourn the loss of abilities and essence. FUCK! Adam was feeling bitter about the whole thing and just as the smoke fully dissipated taking along with it the last of the black sludge, he noticed the shiny crystal that was left behind.

Sweet. Thank you Oh great system! Though this does not make up for the loss, I still want to thank you for your generosity and the LOOT! Adam was feeling stupid with the joy at the sight of the crystal left behind by the monster. He quickly snatched it up and saw that it was purple in coloration and had a bright glow coming from inside it. As if there was a source of light inside its core.

Adam Analyzed it.