SSS Awakening: I Can Class Change at will - Chapter 359 First Hunt In The Second Sanctuary [1]
Chapter 359 First Hunt In The Second Sanctuary [1]
Moon braced his footing and pressed forward.
The castle stood on the distant peak, rising above the clouds that drifted past the island’s edge. Even from this far away, it stood as an authority in the skyline. Its dark towers clawed upward like fingers reaching for stars beyond the sky, and the walls surrounding it were massive.
The howling wind only added to its presence. It swept across the open ground between Moon and the castle, creating a mournful sound that whistled through the cracks and crevices of the island’s rocky surface. At times it almost sounded like distant, distorted voices, warning him to turn back.
The closer Moon looked at the castle, the heavier he felt. After putting enough distance between himself and the hideout, Moon summoned Mirage. The white steed appeared beside him in a flash of light and immediately nudged his head against Moon’s chest.
“Hello, partner. Ready to hunt some beasts?” Moon ruffled Mirage’s mane softly.
Mirage neighed in response. <Hunt… beasts.>
Hearing Mirage’s telepathic voice, Moon chuckled. “Yeah! Let’s hunt those beasts!”
He jumped onto Mirage’s back and guided him forward. With no clear destination in mind, Moon wanted to explore the island and search for beasts along the way. The best way to learn a new environment was to move through it.
As expected, it didn’t take long to encounter the first beast within the vicinity.
“Oh?” Moon’s eyes locked onto a shape ahead of them. “That’s a big wolf.”
The creature stood between two rock boulders, its head already turned in their direction. It had sensed them before they saw it.
It was massive, far larger than any wolf Moon had encountered in the First Sanctuary. It had mottled grey-black fur that blended with the island’s terrain, and its body was thick with muscle that bunched visibly beneath the hide. The skull was broad and heavy, its pale, intelligent eyes followed Moon’s every movement with an unsettling glint that would have struck fear in an average Evolver’s heart.
It was watching Moon the same way he was watching it.
Yellowed fangs protruded from its upper jaw, too large to be fully contained by its mouth. Saliva hung from the tips in long, viscous threads that dripped to the ground beneath it.
Moon’s eyes narrowed.
“That saliva is not normal.”
The moment a drop hit the earth, a sharp hissing sound filled the air. The grass beneath it shriveled instantly, turning brown and brittle before crumbling to dust. A small patch of bare, dead soil spread outward from the point of contact.
The wolf’s saliva was corrosive. The things it touched died on contact.
“As expected of a Second Order beast.” Moon muttered, his grip tightening on Mirage’s mane. Moon’s fingers itched to unleash Thunderclap Raiju. The wolf was right there, and the urge to test his new skill against his first ever Second Order target was almost unbearable.
But he held himself.
He wasn’t here to play around. He was here to get stronger. Testing flashy skills could wait. Filling his acupoints with spiritual energy, and setting up his foundation could not.
Moon took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He turned his focus inwardly, finding the first open acupoint and locking onto it. The spiritual energy inside it stirred faintly in response, that same wisp of blue smoke waiting for a foundation.
Then he began to channel Advanced Elemental Body.
Fire bloomed at his fingertips. Water condensed from the air around his shoulders. The ground beneath Mirage’s hooves trembled as earth energy gathered. Wind coiled around his torso in tight spirals. And finally, lightning crackled across his forearms, arcing between his knuckles in sharp, bright flashes.
Five elements. All swirling around his body in orbits.
This time, there were no walls to worry about and no house to collapse. Moon let the skill breathe, pushing the output higher than he had dared to back on Earth.
The wolf watched him, its pale eyes narrowing.
Moon instantly felt the connection becoming much stronger. The little spiritual energy inside his acupoint responded to the elements swirling around him with far more intensity than it had back on Earth. The pull was firmer, the threads between skill and foundation intertwining.
Coming to the Second Sanctuary had been the right call. Here, he could kill two birds with one stone. Hunt beasts to accumulate spiritual energy while simultaneously forging the link between his skill and his acupoint.
The wolf didn’t appreciate the display of power. Its pale eyes locked onto the swirling elements, and its hackles rose. A low growl rumbled from its throat before it broke into a full sprint toward Moon.
Mirage tensed, the horse’s muscles coiled, ready to launch himself forward to meet the charge.
Moon placed a hand on Mirage’s neck. “Hey…easy.”
Mirage settled.
The fire orbiting Moon’s body suddenly condensed. It compressed into a tight fireball and shot toward the wolf in a blazing arc. The creature’s eyes widened and it threw itself to the right, dodging the fireball by inches. The wolf’s paws had barely touched the ground when the earth beneath it began to churn. A spear of solid rock erupted from the soil and drove straight through its chest.
The wolf staggered for brief moments, blood poured from the wound in thick, dark streams, pooling around its front legs. It stayed standing for a few seconds, its pale eyes still fixed on Moon in hatred. Then the light behind them dimmed, flickered, and went out forever.
The wolf collapsed.
Moon grinned as the familiar notifications arrived.
[You have killed the Level 26 0-Star Large Wolf]
[You have gained 50 Lives]
Moon felt his spiritual energy rise, although by nothing significant at all. It was very small increase that was difficult to notice.
“Oh? Not bad.” Moon tilted his head, studying the notification. “A beast that’s lower level than me is giving me 50 lives. That’s five times the amount a First Order beast would provide.”
Moon stored the body of the beast to sell at another time.
