Chapter 50: The Hidden Strength of a Solo Beast- Soul Master

The Hidden Strength of a Solo Beast- Soul Master

Leon glanced around as he walked.

He could tell at a glance that these people had much better equipment than the students back at the temple.

The difference was obvious.

Their beast-girls were dressed in proper combat gear. Some wore specially crafted armor. Others carried weapons that looked far too expensive to be ordinary equipment.

Money made a difference.

Those with deeper pockets had their beast-girls armed to the teeth.

Even the beast-soul masters themselves wore gleaming armor.

It wasn’t surprising.

No one here could be a martial high school student.

Most of these people had already entered society.

They had jobs.

They had savings.

Some had probably been exploring dungeons and hunting monsters for years.

Naturally, they wouldn’t look too shabby.

Leon continued forward while listening to the conversations around him.

"5-Star difficulty is something else. There’s no way an ordinary Level 20 beast-girl and beast-soul master combo could clear 500 Ancient Tree Guardians within 2 hours."

Someone nearby shook his head as he spoke.

Several others immediately agreed.

The Black Mountain Range seemed to be filled with plant-type monsters.

Ancient trees.

Vines.

Strange flowers.

Monstrous roots that could burst out of the ground without warning.

Because of that, fire-ability beast-girls were especially popular here.

Their abilities were simply too useful against plant-type monsters.

And the Ancient Tree Labyrinth was still deep within the Black Mountain Range.

Leon had no intention of stopping at the outer areas.

He continued walking inward.

The further he went, the fewer people he encountered.

The noise from the entrance gradually disappeared behind him.

The groups became scattered.

Eventually, he could walk for quite a while without seeing anyone at all.

Interestingly, the monster levels didn’t increase much as he went deeper.

But their actual combat strength was completely different.

The monsters here were far more dangerous than the ones outside.

Their movements were faster.

Their defenses were tougher.

Their attacks were also much more difficult to deal with.

Most people had no interest in exploring this far.

There was little reason to take unnecessary risks.

Those who could hold their ground here were already quite powerful by any reasonable standard.

Leon wasn’t bothered by it.

For him, this was exactly where things were starting to become interesting.

Then—

BOOM!

An explosion suddenly erupted ahead.

Leon turned his head.

A beast-girl wielding a long blade had just slashed into a huge tree monster covered in thick tentacles.

The blade struck the monster’s bark.

The next instant, flames erupted from the impact point.

The force of the explosion sent pieces of bark flying through the air.

Leon slowed down.

His eyes settled on the beast-girl.

A line of information appeared before him.

[A-Rank Beast-Soul · Explosive Flame Rabbit]

[No Hidden Evolution Attributes]

Leon’s interest immediately faded.

Just an A-rank.

Nothing special.

The beast-girl herself, however, was rather striking.

She had two long rabbit ears on top of her head.

Her light armor hugged her body without restricting her movements.

She looked young and energetic.

More importantly, she fought with surprising aggression.

Every swing of her long blade carried explosive power.

Leon watched for a few seconds.

He wasn’t interested in the appearance.

He wanted to understand where the explosion was coming from.

His eyes followed her movements carefully.

After watching another attack, Leon finally understood.

[Attack Effect: ① Explosion: After launching an attack, consumes mana to create an explosion, dealing damage to enemies.]

"I see."

Leon nodded slightly.

Attack effects were difficult to obtain.

Even one was enough for most beast-soul masters to brag about.

A useful attack effect could completely change how a beast-girl fought.

The people surrounding the battlefield clearly understood that.

Behind the beast-girl stood a group of people.

They surrounded a tall, well-built beast-soul master like stars around the moon.

The man wore a long robe.

His face was practically glowing with pride.

He clearly enjoyed all the attention.

Several passersby couldn’t resist joining the conversation.

"Brother, your beast-girl is amazing! That huge tree monster went down like nothing!"

"Those damage numbers..."

Another man stared at the battlefield with disbelief.

"I’ve only seen that kind of power in beast-girl league matches. She’s definitely among the best of A-rank!"

Someone else laughed.

"Seriously, look how well-developed she is. You’ve clearly put a lot of effort into her."

"Haha, I try, I try!"

The beast-soul master laughed loudly.

He looked even more pleased with himself.

"My precious here gets Demonic Beast Cores every single day."

He patted his chest proudly.

"When I broke through, I chose 3-Star difficulty. After leveling up, her base stats were already far above other A-ranks."

The surrounding people listened carefully.

The man’s voice became even more enthusiastic.

"Level 30 offense-type Explosive Flame Rabbit beast-soul! Her damage is off the charts."

He pointed toward the beast-girl.

"Add the built-in explosion effect, and against same-level beasts..."

He grinned.

"It’s one swing, one kill!"

"Wow, that awesome?"

The surrounding beast-soul masters immediately crowded closer.

Their eyes were filled with envy.

Some stared at the Explosive Flame Rabbit.

Others stared at the beast-soul master.

"Brother, you’re aiming for the Star Rankings, right?"

One of them couldn’t hide his admiration.

"With this kind of power, getting a high rank is practically guaranteed!"

"Exactly right."

The beast-soul master raised his chin.

His pride was almost impossible to hide.

The Star Rankings were no ordinary ranking.

They were an annual authoritative national ranking.

Different level brackets had their own lists.

For beast-soul masters, appearing on the list was something worth boasting about.

It wasn’t merely a title.

Those who performed exceptionally well could receive commercial endorsements.

They could participate in exhibition matches.

Some even became famous simply because their names appeared on the rankings.

For the people at the bottom, it could completely change their lives.

Making a fortune hand over fist was no fantasy.

The crowd understood that.

That’s why their eyes became even more envious when they looked at the Explosive Flame Rabbit.

If only I had a beast-girl like that.

One of them sighed inwardly.

But no.

I’m stuck with my B-rank.

His expression became slightly bitter.

And she’s not even that pretty.

He glanced at the Explosive Flame Rabbit again.

This guy is living the dream.

Another person clenched his fist.

Level 30.

Explosive Flame.

A-rank.

How is that fair?

He had worked hard too.

He had spent countless hours training.

He had spent most of his savings on resources.

Yet the gap between them still felt enormous.

I’ve worked just as hard.

Why does he get all the luck?

Leon watched the scene from a short distance away.

He didn’t say anything.

The excitement surrounding that beast-soul master didn’t interest him much.

The man had a strong beast-girl.

That was true.

But strength alone wasn’t enough to make Leon impressed.

He had already seen too many people become arrogant because they possessed something others didn’t.

Besides, the Ancient Tree Labyrinth was still ahead.

That was what actually mattered.

Leon was about to continue when someone noticed him.

A beast-soul master stepped forward.

"Hey, friend!"

Leon stopped and looked over.

The man smiled.

"Are you heading to the Ancient Tree Labyrinth too?"

Leon didn’t immediately answer.

The man gestured toward the group behind him.

"We were thinking of going a bit deeper as well."

He gave Leon an inviting look.

"Want to party up?"

Leon turned.

He saw a group of beast-soul masters looking at him hopefully.

Their beast-girls stood behind them.

A mix of B and A ranks.

Decent equipment.

But nothing special.

*They want to party up with me,* Leon thought.

*They don’t know who I am.*

*They don’t know what I have.*

*They just see a young beast-soul master and think I’m weak.*

*How cute.*

"Sorry," Leon said politely. "I’m doing a solo run."