Chapter 1954: Hunting Nightmare Creatures
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"Well, this is certainly not something I should be talking about with a fragment of a nightmare creature like you, haha," Elayne laughed. "Now, I suppose I could try to get a little stronger here, hm?"
"Uh, yes..." The Fragment grew far more serious after hearing his master’s words, beginning to understand who she truly was.
Elayne decided it was finally time to hunt. She was overwhelmingly strong, so the monsters in this area posed little real threat. According to the Fragment, the strongest were "Tier 4 at best," which likely translated to around Level 400—perhaps the same in BNLO.
"I was only Level 300, yet my power already surpassed Level 500," she thought. "Well, it should be fun to see how strong they truly are compared to me. Obsidian, come with me."
"Pyuuuu!" Obsidian bounded forward with big leaps, eagerly chasing after his master.
Now that he could absorb her Mana, he felt healthier and far more energetic. Together they advanced toward the nearest monster-infested zone: a forest of crystal trees and nightmare grass.
The moment they entered, a swarm of goblin-like creatures with purple skin and black horns burst from the bushes, roaring as they charged with blunt weapons. From the trees, others fired arrows.
"Huh, getting attacked right from the start? I really can’t relax around here..." Elayne sighed, standing still as every hit landed at once.
Explosions of Nightmare Flames and Dream Essence erupted across her body, but by simply hardening herself with Mana, she remained completely untouched.
Elayne reached out and grabbed one of the creatures by the nape of its neck.
"Graaak! Grawakakak!"
It thrashed wildly, swinging its arms and smashing a large club made of Dream Stone against her head.
A blow from such a weapon would have brought most people—even seasoned Hunters—immense pain, especially within their very souls.
Yet Elayne, a Heroic Spirit who housed two powerful divine spirits in her Spirit Core, remained almost entirely unaffected.
It only tickled a little.
"What are these called, Erebus?"
"Those are Little Nightmares—sometimes known as Dream Imps. They are small humanoid corrupt fairies born from people’s fears. They rank among the weakest monsters, merely Tier 1, though some can evolve and grow far stronger."
"Tier 1, huh?"
Elayne tilted her head, watching the creatures swarm her tall frame and loose volleys of arrows that simply bounced off harmlessly.
"I feel a little bad for them. They’re kind of cute in their own gremlin way."
"Uh, they tend to devour souls, Master. I wouldn’t call them innocent. Like any Nightmare Creature, they are usually quite malicious."
"Huh. Well then, Obsidian, can you handle them instead? I dislike bullying the weak."
"Pyguuuu!"
Obsidian sprang into action, rapidly firing bullets of highly pressurized slime straight into the heads of several Dream Imps and dropping them instantly.
Despite being only Tier 1, his stats were impressively high—he possessed roughly one-third the strength of Elayne’s daughter. It seemed that becoming her tamed familiar had granted him a substantial boost in power and magical ability.
And that wasn’t all he could do.
As the Dream Imps attacked him, he deftly dodged most strikes, endured several others, then suddenly fired their own arrows back at them.
"Gryaaaack!"
The Dream Imps screamed as the arrows tore through their bodies, killing many where they stood.
The few survivors shrieked and fled in terror.
"Let them go, Obsidian. You did well!"
Elayne walked over and gave the little slime a proud pat on the head.
Obsidian extended two wobbly arms, placed them on his "hips," and closed his eyes in a very satisfied, prideful expression.
"Pygu!"
He clearly thought he was the greatest.
Ding!
[Your Familiar has slain over thirty [Dream Imps (Tier 1)]!]
[You have earned EXP.]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Your Level has increased from Level 3 to Level 7.]
"Oh, I gained EXP anyway... Well, that’s fine too," Elayne nodded, approaching the corpses. "I suppose these can be valuable materials, right? Are they good for upgrading Dream Weapons or crafting new ones?"
"They should be," Erebus replied. "They can help you create Dream Relics and Equipment. Unlike your Natal Dream Weapon—the Paintbrush, which cannot be changed—these are artificial dream items that can be stored inside the Dream Heart. With your Dual Dream and Nightmare Heart, the storage capacity is even greater."
"Interesting." Elayne nodded and decided to collect them.
She had the System Inventory, of course, but she also possessed her own "inventory": a black, endless shadow realm within her body—the Tartarus Abyss itself.
"I’ll store them there for now. I still don’t fully trust the Inventory System... Last time I used it, I lost everything after I returned."
Elayne quickly stored all the Dream Imps and continued deeper into the forest.
Not long after, she spotted the three fleeing Dream Imps still screaming—and felt the ground begin to tremble.
RUMBLE!
Something enormous was approaching. The surviving Dream Imps had lured it straight toward her.
"Gyruaaak!"
They shrieked, frantically pointing at Elayne as the giant advanced, its heavy footsteps cracking the earth.
"Wait, is that...?!"
Elayne’s eyes widened as a ten-meter-tall giant emerged. It had purple skin, a massively muscular frame, even longer black horns, a demon-like tail, a long beak-like nose, hateful red eyes, and an evil-looking white beard—like a supercharged version of the Dream Imps.
"GRUKAAAH?!"
The Tier 2 monster roared and swung a gigantic axe down at her with all its strength.
CRAAASH!
"Pyguuu?!"
Little Obsidian panicked and hid behind Elayne as she casually caught the massive axe mid-swing. The ground beneath her shattered into a crater from the sheer force.
Her hand had turned dark gray, Vampiric Power surging through her body.
"Looks like this might actually be worth a little effort..."
BOOOM!
With a single punch, Elayne knocked the axe aside, nearly toppling the giant.
"GRRRRR! G R A A H H H H!"
Furious, the colossal creature charged, its aura flaring with raging Nightmare Specters hungry to consume and curse her soul.
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