All seven had their blood splattered. Red, green, blue, and black flooded the desert and sandy floor. Most of the realm’s landscape, excluding the river, turned into a nasty swamp. It was hard to tell the time in this realm.

  Lian flew in the sky in a twirl. She crashed headfirst to the ground, tearing through the sands. Her black blood followed her as a trail formed from the impact.

  King Valtoris and Hu resisted a variety of moves inflicted by the nine-tailed black panther. Julius, who wished to be part of that group, didn’t stand long enough before getting hit by a laser beam inflicted by one of the beast’s nine tails.

  Julius crashed to the ground, missing Lian by a few feet. He lunged from the hollow desert floor with his hair covered in sand. His body counteracted the beam well, but he wasn’t strong enough to stand on two feet against it. An inevitable punching bag that couldn’t hang on the stand for at least a few intervals.

  He helped Lian up as his right bicep grew sore.

  Lian swept off the sand. “This panther…How can we even kill it?”

  “I don’t know, but that damn tail. What kind of power is this? The beast fired it the fourth time.” Julius looked at the surroundings, and it was a mess. The ground was torn beyond the topsoil horizon. A few spots blew past the subsoil, close to bedrock. “If it can go that deep and we can handle it, then what does that imply out there?”

  “Are you trying to tell me it would go outside?” Lian asked, frowning.

  She definitely read his mind because that was exactly what he was thinking. “Yeah. If the possibility of getting out does happen, then that much power could destroy everything. Terrance's experience in downtown can’t come close to this.”

  Lian’s dark qi rose and exerted. “No more talk. We move now.”

  She cast an unknown symbol, summoning a sword made of dark gas, and she jumped into the air, rejoining with King Valtoris and Hu.

  Simon had the worst of everyone. He was inside the barrier with Ling Wu and Amara. He passed out cold. No sign of continuing. A little bit tragic.

  Solomon wasn’t going on the frontend. He was at the back after being knocked back a few times. And his body refused to initiate. Julius wasn’t sure what he was doing now, but with no time to waste, he rejoined with Lian and the other two.

  There were a few things Julius wanted to try out against the beast but was prevented from doing so. And he was close to losing his patience.

  He went for an overhead by flying directly above the panther. As he was about to make a move, the beast’s fourth tail struck him right to the chest, sending Julius to a dry mountain.

  The mountain sent its farewells. What was left was a gaping hole shaped as a crescent facing up. No peak or summit, and because the realm turned into a desert, there wasn’t any snow. It was only rock and rough backshots.

  It was nasty work, as Julius felt something liquid soaking the back of his robe. He grimaced as he got up. “Damn it.”

  The rice swords weren’t an option. He tried it a while ago, and it didn’t work. It was an insult because the beast took it like a scratch. There wasn’t a sense of progress. With a little reflection, he barely got anything on this creature. Julius remained at the damaged, open mountain. He watched King Valtoris, Lian, and Empress Cai making significant contributions in inflicting damage to the nine-tailed giant black panther.

  “Shit, this won’t work at all,” he muttered.

  The skills he gained from his duel with King Valtoris at the airfield weren’t helpful for this battle against the beast. The timing and focus were not compatible. Julius paced around, figuring out what to do next. His mind was stressed, and the weight on his shoulders grew because of the leaking impatience and self-criticism.

  Julius’ total skill count didn’t go up, and that was a disappointment. As his internal rage grew, golden qi leaked out of his feet. His sword, Valence, began to glow gold.

  It wasn’t just gold. His arms unleashed Lian’s color. The weight was heavy and abrupt that it sent him down to his knees. Imagine a dumbbell dropped onto the arms. That was the huge gap it presented to him.

  After a few seconds of desperate grunts, Julius’ body released more qi than usual. It was way more than the five weeks of training in the void. His breath exhaled smoke like a dragon, but unlike once before, it was under his control. He couldn’t move much other than crawl.

  There wasn’t much time. The weight of the darkness qi only grew as more qi was exerted from his body. The mountain ranges were distant from the battle site. From this point in height, the realm was extraordinarily huge. Bigger than a Texas suburb. It was a moment of being able to look at a wide view like an expensive, high-quality camera. Magic was incredible, but it was so unpredictable.

  The sounds of boiling water came from his stomach. It was loud enough to be heard. Right there, Julius knew he was about to launch a mouth beam. To be certain, he looked at the ongoing battle. His eyes were like the rifle’s crosshair. He zoomed to get a better view.

  Julius’ qi continued to produce at a rapid speed, unleashing more and more. His upper robe burned and disintegrated. The tattoos on his body shone gold. He raised his head and inhaled lots of air, demonstrating an unusual black color with a swirling ionized gold glow.

  Thump!

  One loud, deep echo from Julius’ chest. He lunged his head and fired a black and gold ray of superheated energy. The beam sped to the battle site. Julius saw King Valtoris noticed at a brief second and teleported everyone away.

  The black and gold beam struck at the beast, causing a massive fireball. A mighty explosion expressed the shape of a nuclear bomb. Huge and a city-sized mushroom cloud. From that distance, Julius could vividly hear the sound. Powerful enough that the shockwave generated a vacuum. Rocks and dirt gushed up as the blast site spread.

  He saw King Valtoris flash step with everyone under his grip, crashing near the entry spot. He summoned a barrier, fusing with the one Ling Wu and Amara were protected under.

  [Skill Count: 59] + 2

  The orbital rings continued to spread. It took a few seconds for Julius to feel the power generated from the blast. His body deflected off the force. The weight slowly got lighter on his entire body, allowing him to move more easily.

  He passed the sixtieth milestone of total skills. At sixty-one, he wasn’t sure why he gained two from a mouth beam.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Roar!

  Julius was alerted by the ferocious roar. He was flabbergasted that the beast was still alive after taking all that explosive power. To his disappointment, it did survive. Its battered head came out of the mushroom cloud’s stem. A subsequent roar cleared the smoke. Julius took a one stare at the beast lifting its front paw. Most of its tails were damaged. One appeared to be unscathed.

  As he was about to stand up and fly back to the site, King Valtoris summoned a colossal-sized sword that had to be at least as tall as the Burj Khalifa. That elven god leaped into the air so fast, like he was on an amplified trampoline.

  King Valtoris raised both arms upward, and his hands gripped the hilt. The solid sword turned into an energy sword, composed of his green qi. The altitude in this realm was much different, and Julius’ spot was thousands of feet high. There were no clouds at his level. The first cloud was much higher.

  The tip of King Valtoris’ energy sword touched the dark clouds. He went for a heavy slash, and its energy gushed out of the blade. The clouds were split into two, letting the sunrays seep through.

  All the heat from the green energy burned every cloud, and the sunlight eventually took over the scenery.

  It was like opening the window after a night's sleep, and the sun flashed into the eyes.

  Julius stood and watched as the colossus energy sword pierced through the beast effortlessly.

  “That bastard did it,” Julius muttered.

  He teleported to the site and saw the beast stuck in place. The blade did cut through smoothly like cake.

  The beast’s body was decapitated into two as two sides collapsed, rumbling the ground.

  “So, that's it?”

  King Valtoris shrugged. “I think so.” He looked at the others inside the barrier. “But I don't want to disappoint myself, and then this thing comes back to life.”

  “I hope not.”

  Fortunately, the beast’s decapitated body withered as the two stared. The battle concluded.

  Slam! Rattle!

  A big shadow hovered over King Valtoris and Julius, prompting them to turn around. A gigantic armored knight, wielding a longsword.

  “Oh, great…Now, we have to deal with this too?”

  Slash!

  Julius dashed to King Valtoris, pushing him away, and an ice beam fired through the armored knight’s chest.

  Some of the frost touched the sandy ground.

  “Simon?” Julius thought.

  King Valtoris shook his head. “No. It’s mother. I don’t know how she found us in here.”

  The ice beam suddenly turned into a rectangular panel, like a cleaver.

  A divine aura flashed as the armored knight was also torn in half and collapsed.

  “I knew something was wrong, and to find out it was you guys, what are you guys doing?” Moon Mother said. Her long silvery-blond hair flowed. It was much shorter than the last time. Her ornate golden headpiece was gone. She wasn’t in armored clothing but in casual white robes with the same rich, dark cape.

  “How did you find us here?” Julius asked.

  Moon Mother descended from the air. “You and Val’s qi reached me. So, I decided to come out.”

  “Do you feel better now?” King Valtoris asked.

  Moon Mother didn’t comprehend, but she realized after a second. “Yeah…A bit better.” She turned to Julius. “Has Maldoro’s work caused you trouble?”

  He shook his head. “No. I’m good so far. Are you joining us now?”

  “After a time alone reflecting, I think I am.”

  [Hotspot #1 Cleared!]

  “Oh, Maldoro’s system told me this realm is completed. That should mean we should be able to—”

  A big gold chest summoned from the sky and crashed to the floor. Moon Mother, King Valtoris, and Julius stared at it. The three wondered who was going to open the chest. Julius then decided to do it before Moon Mother and King Valtoris had the chance to bicker.

  When he was a few feet away, the realm cleaned up. King Valtoris’ energy sword did one part with the clouds. The sandy, desert floor ceased, and all the blossomed grass and flowers returned. Simon’s ice over the river shattered. From relative observations, if he hadn’t frozen the river, it would’ve dried up.

  The air cooled, and the same spot on the mountain, where Julius crashed, was restored to its fullest. A large precipitation of snow hovered over the ranges, restoring the snowcap on its peak.

  =

  [Class: A]

  [Overall Number: 29,981]

  [Skill Count: 61]

  [Path: King Julius Level 1]

  [Magic Multipliers: 0]

  [Qi: Rank 2]

  =

  The overall number grew. To Julius, that was his progression, so he was satisfied. Now, he stood over the chest. There was no lock, so he opened the lid. And it had to be a bait because inside was empty.

  “What the heck?! It’s—”

  A thrust knocked Julius back. He slid a few feet away from the chest before stopping. A bunch of qi gushed out of the chest, almost like water spewed out of the fire hydrant.

  Gold and silver coins spew out of the chest. Yellow sparkles exited the chest, causing Julius' visuals to go rampant. The Maldoro System triggered EXP notifications and indicators.

  Julius unleashed a slash of energy through his sword, Valance. The chest broke, triggering a bulb-shaped orb. It dispersed, leaving a burn mark on the grass.

  The remaining gold and silver coins in the air were dropped to the ground. Around the former chest’s spot, there were huge clusters of EXP. All were glowing yellow like the sun.

  He strolled to a coin and picked it up. Immediately, the Maldoro System released a new notification.

  =

  [New Feature Unlocked: Money]

  [Basic Stats Updated!]

  [Class: A]

  [Overall Number: 29,981]

  [Skill Count: 61]

  [Path: King Julius Level 1]

  [Magic Multipliers: 0]

  [Qi: Rank 2]

  [Money: 1]

  One gold coin was equal to one. Julius then tried picking up the silver coin.

  [Money: 1] + 0.5

  One half. Not bad.

  Julius then walked to the clusters of EXP. He was like a magnet. The clusters of yellow bits went into him, taking everything in within seconds. Afterward, the Maldoro System had another notification.

  [Path Level UP!]

  [King Julius Level 1 → 2]

  [Path Leveling New Features Reveal After The Next Hotspot’s Completion]

  [Magic Multipliers Increased! → 0 > 0.5x]

  =

  “Oh, you’re going to be fucking kidding me,” Julius said.

  The portal then appeared on the hill where everyone arrived.

  King Valtoris looked at Julius. “What’s wrong?”

  “I just leveled up, and the system won’t tell me unless I finish the next hotspot.”

  Everyone who was inside the barrier got out.

  Simon then asked. “So, are we going to the next one?”