Chapter 74: A Little Reward

"You know about my level?" She widened her eyes for a moment before remembering something. "Ah, I remember you said that before." She sighed.

"Yeah. I won’t ask why you held back when you fought that acolyte. I’m sure you must have your reasons. But you’re not much weaker than me. We can definitely reach another evolution here."

Lilith pulled out the demon artifact before looking towards the distant forest.

"Then I suppose there’s no reason to waste any more time."

A faint smile appeared on her face as she poured her demonic energy into the hourglass.

The artifact immediately began to vibrate, and the purple liquid inside started swirling violently. A moment later, a wave of dark energy spread from its surface, expanding in every direction and disappearing into the distance.

Chris watched the wave travel through the forest.

"That should be enough to attract them, right?"

"Unless something has changed since the last time I used it, it should be."

Lilith placed the artifact away and turned towards the forest below them.

They didn’t have to wait long.

At first, Chris noticed only a few movements between the trees. However, those movements quickly multiplied, and the sounds of countless creatures rushing through the forest soon reached their ears.

"Here they come."

Insect beasts began emerging from between the trees, their bodies crawling over the ground as they rushed towards the source of the energy. Some were small enough to move between the roots, while others were several meters long, crushing everything in their path.

The sight was enough to make Chris raise an eyebrow.

"Looks like we attracted quite a few."

"Didn’t you say you wanted to reach another evolution?" Lilith asked with a faint smile. "You should be happy."

"Of course. I just hope you don’t regret attracting so many of them."

Before she could answer, the ground began to tremble.

Chris turned his head towards the distance, where a large mountain stood beyond the forest. At first, he thought the tremors were caused by the approaching beasts, but the shaking quickly grew stronger.

The trees around the mountain began swaying, and a cloud of dust rose into the air.

"What’s happening over there?" Lilith asked.

Neither of them could take their eyes away from the mountain.

It seemed to be moving.

At first, the movement was barely noticeable, but the entire mountain soon began shifting as though something enormous was stirring beneath it. A deep rumbling sound echoed through the forest, and a moment later, the upper part of the mountain started lifting.

Chris stared in disbelief.

The mountain opened like a cap.

A gigantic spider emerged from beneath it, its enormous legs pushing against the ground as its body rose into the open air. Its dark, heavily armored body was covered in countless small hairs, while several glowing eyes stared directly at the two of them.

For a moment, Chris couldn’t help but wonder how something that large had managed to hide beneath the mountain.

Then the upper part of the mountain closed again, leaving the gigantic creature standing in the distance.

"I am at a loss for words, honestly." Lilith muttered.

Chris nodded, his expression turning serious.

The spider didn’t remain still for long. Its enormous legs moved, carrying its body forward at an astonishing speed. Despite its size, it rushed through the forest without slowing down, crushing trees and sending rocks flying as it approached them.

"Azreon!"

The dragon immediately spread his wings and flew higher.

A moment later, the spider opened its mouth and released a stream of greenish liquid towards them.

"Watch out!"

Chris leaned forward, and Azreon twisted his body in the air.

The stream of acid passed just beneath them, missing by a narrow margin before striking the forest behind them.

*BOOM!*

The impact sent a wave of corrosive liquid across the ground. Trees began melting almost instantly, their trunks dissolving as the acid spread through the surrounding vegetation.

Chris glanced at the destruction below.

’That would have been troublesome.’

"Let’s not get too close to that thing," he said, looking towards Lilith.

She nodded.

"I wasn’t planning to."

They didn’t need to defeat the spider immediately. Their goal was to use the beast tide to gain enough experience for their next evolution, and there were more than enough targets rushing towards them.

Azreon opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of crimson flames.

The fire swept across the forest, engulfing dozens of insect beasts in its path. Their bodies burned as they tried to escape, but the flames quickly consumed them.

Chris joined him, raising his hand and gathering mana around his palm.

Several fireballs appeared in front of him before shooting down towards the ground. They exploded among the approaching creatures, spreading flames across a wide area and killing everything caught in their range.

At the same time, Lilith raised her hand.

Purple energy gathered around her fingers, forming a gigantic claw that extended several meters into the air. With a casual movement, she slashed through the space in front of her.

Several waves of purple energy shot out, slicing through the forest below.

The insect beasts were cut apart before they could even approach their position. Trees were split in half, and the ground was left covered with deep marks from her attacks.

Chris glanced at her for a moment.

’She’s certainly not holding back anymore.’

"Don’t just stare at me," Lilith said without turning her head. "I know I’m pretty, but focus on the battle."

"Right."

He smiled and continued attacking.

The three of them moved through the air, constantly changing their positions to avoid the spider’s attacks while raining destruction upon the beasts below. Whenever the gigantic creature approached, Azreon increased his speed and kept his distance, making it difficult for the spider to land a direct hit.

However, the spider wasn’t willing to let them escape so easily.

It suddenly raised several of its legs and leaped forward, covering an enormous distance in a single movement.

Chris’s expression changed.

"Azreon, move!"

The dragon flapped his wings and pulled away just as another stream of acid shot towards them.

This time, the attack passed so close that a few droplets splashed against Azreon’s scales.

The dragon growled in irritation, but Chris quickly calmed him.

"Don’t get distracted. We can’t afford to let that thing hit us."

Azreon gave a low roar in response and continued flying.

The spider landed among the trees, causing the ground to shake. It immediately turned towards them, its countless eyes following their movements.

Lilith narrowed her eyes.

"That thing is faster than it looks."

"Yeah. And its acid is no joke."

"Then we should keep moving."

They continued their attacks, gradually drawing the spider farther through the forest. Although it occasionally managed to get close enough to threaten them, Azreon’s speed allowed them to escape before it could land a proper hit.

Meanwhile, the insect beasts kept rushing towards the source of the artifact’s energy.

Chris could already feel his experience increasing rapidly.

He glanced at his system panel and noticed that he was getting closer to the next evolution.

’Just a little more.’

Another wave of fire swept across the ground, killing a large group of creatures. His experience increased again, and he checked his status once more.

He was only a step away from Level 60.

Azreon roared and opened his mouth, releasing another torrent of flames.

However, Chris soon raised his hand.

"Wait. Stop for a moment."

Azreon immediately ceased his attack and pulled away from the battlefield.

Lilith turned towards him with a confused expression.

"What’s wrong? Did something happen?"

"I’m almost at Level 60."

Her eyes widened slightly before she smiled.

"Already? That’s good news. Then we should finish this quickly."

"Not yet. We need to be careful about where we evolve."

Lilith tilted her head.

"What do you mean?"

"When we reach the next evolution, Azreon won’t be able to move for a while. I don’t know how long it will take, but I don’t want to be stuck in the middle of this battlefield when it happens."

She looked down at the forest, where the gigantic spider was still chasing them.

"I see. You want to find somewhere safe first."

"Exactly. I don’t want that thing attacking us while we’re unable to defend ourselves."

Lilith nodded in understanding.

"Then I’ll keep killing them until I reach Level 60 as well. Once we’re both ready, we can leave."

"Sounds good. Just don’t take unnecessary risks."

She gave him a faint smile.

"Don’t worry. I can take care of myself."

With that, Lilith turned back towards the battlefield and resumed her attacks.

Chris watched her for a moment before looking down at Azreon.

"Let’s keep our distance and support her."

The dragon roared in agreement.

They continued flying above the forest, carefully avoiding the spider while helping Lilith clear out the approaching beasts. He made sure not to attack any more monsters at the moment. He wanted to leave the remaining experience for later, once they had found a suitable place.

It didn’t take long before Lilith finally stopped attacking.

"Chris!"

He turned towards her and noticed the happy expression on her face.

"I’ve reached Level 60!"

"Congratulations." He smiled while extending his hand to pat her head.

She didn’t refuse the gesture. In fact, she even stepped closer to make it easier for him.

’This girl is acting quite differently than before. She’s not as uptight as I thought.’ He thought to himself.

"Hey, did you just think something bad about me?" She looked at him suspiciously.

He widened his eyes. ’Is she a damn mind reader?’

Noticing his reaction, she smiled. "So you did!" She pinched his waist.

However, he was wearing his leather armor, so he didn’t feel a thing.

Realizing this, she tightened her grip.

"Ow, ow, ow! Okay, okay, sorry!" Noticing that she wouldn’t stop without getting a reaction from him, he feigned a pained expression.

"Hmph... You’re quite a good actor." She smiled as she took another step forward.

He looked at her in confusion, not knowing what she wanted to do.

But in the next moment, she quickly closed the distance and kissed him on the lips before retreating just as fast.

"That’s to thank you for helping me," she said, trying to sound indifferent, but the blush on her cheeks betrayed her.

Chris was stunned for a moment before chuckling helplessly.

"You did the killing yourself. There’s nothing to thank me for." He shook his head with an awkward smile.

Lilith smiled even brighter, clearly pleased with herself.

"Now we’re both ready."

"Not quite. Azreon and I still need to reach it, but we’re close enough. Let’s get out of here."

Chris looked towards the distant spider.

The gigantic creature was still moving through the forest, chasing them. Its body was partially obscured by the trees, but its enormous legs could still be seen crushing everything in their path.

"Azreon, grab two beasts from the ground. We’re leaving!"

Azreon immediately descended, stretching out his claws and grabbing two insect beasts before quickly ascending again.

The creatures struggled in his grasp, but his claws held them firmly.

"Let’s go!"

Azreon spread his wings and flew away from the battlefield at full speed.

Behind them, the gigantic spider continued moving through the forest, but it soon became nothing more than a distant silhouette.

Chris kept looking back until he was certain they had put enough distance between themselves and the creature.

Only then did he relax.

"That should be far enough."

Azreon returned to the mountain peak where they had been resting before the battle. After landing, he carefully released the two insect beasts onto the ground.

Chris and Lilith jumped down from his back.

The creatures immediately tried to crawl away, but Azreon stepped forward, blocking their path.

"Just kill them." Chris said.

The dragon lowered his claws as they tightened around the two beasts, crushing their bodies in an instant.

A familiar notification appeared before Chris’s eyes.

[Level increased.]

[Requirements for evolution met.]

[Contracted beast’s level increased.]

[Requirements for evolution met.]

Chris looked at the messages and smiled.