Chapter 8: Annihilation
Just as Alex was about to act, he saw the Gale Wolf preparing to flee.
Seeing this, how could he let it escape?
That was worth 30 Slaughter Points!
In his eyes, there were only Slaughter Points! Just like a dog only had eyes for... well, you know.
Alex circulated his dark elements. Deep, abyssal darkness swirled rapidly in his pupils like a vortex.
"Abyssal Swamp!"
Instantly, a swamp condensed from dark elements materialized beneath the Gale Wolf's feet, as deep and terrifying as an abyss of hell.
Startled by this sudden change, the Gale Wolf trembled all over. It tried to scramble away, only to find its limbs deeply mired and unable to move!
Just as it was seized by panic, a Shadow Claw formed of dark elements whistled down from the sky.
Boom!
With a loud crash, the Shadow Claw slammed heavily onto the Gale Wolf.
This chain of attacks left the wolf with no ability to fight back.
Its body was covered in wounds, blood gushing out and staining the surrounding earth a dark red.
The wolf suddenly whipped its head around, glaring viciously at Alex.
It let out a roar of unwilling rage. Its limbs exerted a sudden burst of force, and it actually managed to tear itself free from the swamp, lunging toward Alex.
"Still have the strength to stand? Not bad!"
Alex's gaze sharpened. He closed his eyes slightly, the black dark elements in his hand surging wildly, dancing and flickering like black flames.
In an instant, the Death Scythe, made primarily of matte black metal, was summoned amidst black mist!
Dark streams of light lingered on the edge of the blade, like solidified blood-fire. Each flicker seemed to whisper of death.
The long, black metal handle was crisscrossed with dark silver patterns, and ancient runes were faintly visible carved into the grip.
Embedded in the center of the scythe's head was a dark red crystal, emitting a ghostly glow like the eye of the Grim Reaper.
Alex opened his eyes, his gaze falling on the nearly two-meter-long Death Scythe before him. The corner of his mouth hooked into a satisfied smile.
"Is this an S-Rank Companion Spirit Weapon? Just holding it, I can feel its surging power!"
He waved it gently. Black dark elements scattered around like brilliant stars, leaving trails of black light and shadow in the air, dreamlike and illusory.
Watching the pouncing Gale Wolf, Alex's eyes were cold. He raised the scythe and swung.
Splurt!
One head, two bodies.
[Host killed Tier 1, Rank 5 Gale Wolf. Slaughter Points +30.]
Alex grinned, shouting excitedly, "Awesome!"
Using this demonic scythe felt incredibly exhilarating!
Cool and powerful—who wouldn't love it?!
The Death Scythe, paired with his Dark Affinity, was simply invincible!
Of course, great power came with great consumption.
In the battle just now, he had only released two combat skills, yet the Origin Energy in his body was almost depleted!
Suddenly, he remembered the Spirit Origin Fruits Elara had given him.
He quickly took the fruits out of his Storage Ring and examined them carefully.
[Spirit Origin Fruit: Consuming permanently increases the user's Origin Energy by a small amount.]
Looking at the tangerine-sized fruits emitting a faint golden glow, Alex exclaimed, "Holy crap? Permanent increase? This is good stuff!"
Without hesitation, Alex picked up a fruit and took a bite.
The Spirit Origin Fruit was sweet and fragrant. The aroma instantly filled his body, bringing a surge of warmth.
Next, he ate all the remaining fruits in one go!
Feeling the surging Origin Energy in his body, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Right now, his Origin Energy capacity was likely double what it was before!
With this, he could release several more combat skills!
He stored the Gale Wolf's corpse in his ring and then walked toward the small hill where the wolf had howled earlier.
Climbing the hill and looking into the distance, he saw over a dozen Tier 1 Rank 3 and Rank 4 Gale Wolves frenziedly attacking a golden protective barrier.
Inside that barrier was a short figure, bundled up tightly.
"No wonder that wolf howled earlier; it was calling for backup to besiege this person down there..."
After all, wolves were pack animals, adept at surrounding and hunting their prey.
So, should he save that person?
Alex fought an internal battle. Finally, the corners of his mouth turned up in a wicked smile.
Over a dozen Gale Wolves—that was hundreds of Slaughter Points!
If he missed this chance, it would never come again!
Saving the person was just a side quest; slaughter was his main path!
Gripping the Death Scythe with one hand behind his back, he walked slowly toward the wolf pack like the Grim Reaper descending.
Inside the protective barrier, Sia felt utterly despairing as the wolves attacked.
She regretted it deeply. She shouldn't have run out to hunt beasts on her own...
She should have listened to her father and waited until her cultivation realm was higher before adventuring...
Curiosity really did kill the cat...
Just as she was about to give up hope, she glimpsed a figure on the hill. Alex, dressed in black with a black hood, walked toward her step by step, unhurried, with the Death Scythe held behind his back.
"Boohoo... It's over. I'm really dead this time. Even the Grim Reaper has come to collect me!"
But looking closely, she felt something was off. Why is this Grim Reaper so handsome...?
She closed her eyes slightly, using a sensory skill she had learned to try and sense the newcomer's identity.
The result filled her eyes with confusion...
Good news: The newcomer was a human Awakener.
Bad news: He only had a cultivation of Tier 1, Rank 3. Facing this pack of Rank 3 and Rank 4 wolves, it was undoubtedly suicide...
"Hey! Run away! Don't come over here!!" She shouted loudly. Saving one was better than both dying.
Hearing Sia's raspy, bubbly voice, Alex felt confused.
Where exactly is that voice coming from?
With Sia's shout, the Gale Wolves turned in unison, locking their gazes on Alex.
Greedy light flashed in their eyes. They clearly saw Alex as a sumptuous buffet.
"Awoo!"
The lead wolf sounded the horn of attack. Two wolves lunged at Alex like arrows from a bow.
Alex looked calm, not panicking in the slightest.
He raised his left hand gently. A Shadow Claw descended from the sky, instantly forming and swatting one wolf away. The wolf screamed in mid-air before crashing heavily to the ground, lifeless.
With a fierce swing of his right hand, the Death Scythe flashed with a black, cold light. The other wolf was sliced in half. Blood sprayed out, spattering onto Alex's face, adding a touch of horror and mystery to his appearance.
[Tier 1, Rank 3 Gale Wolf killed. Slaughter Points +15.]
[Tier 1, Rank 4 Gale Wolf killed. Slaughter Points +20.]
"Heh heh heh... My Slaughter Points, I'm coming..."
Alex let out a sinister laugh. No longer passively defending, he charged straight into the wolf pack with his scythe.
Scythe rising and falling, every swing was accompanied by a flash of black light. Combined with his Novice-level Shadow Claw, howls of misery rose and fell within the pack.
In less than a few minutes, only two of the dozen wolves remained.
The greed in the eyes of those two wolves had long vanished, replaced by endless terror!
They wondered, Who is the prey and who is the hunter here?!
Who is surrounding whom??
They lost all courage to fight, turning tail to run.
"Trying to run?!"
Alex slammed his hand onto the ground. The earth cracked instantly, and two Abyssal Swamps formed rapidly beneath the wolves' feet, trapping them firmly.
"You barked at me and now you want to run? Where in the world is there such a good deal?"
He leaped lightly, landing in front of the two wolves. With two swings of the scythe, the wolves were silenced.
[Tier 1, Rank 4 Gale Wolf killed. Slaughter Points +20.] x2
"I'm rich! I'm rich!"
With this wave added to his previous kills, his Slaughter Points had reached [480]!
Not only that, but the valuable parts of these beast corpses could be sold for a good price!
This was all cold, hard cash!
It was all money!
Alex stored all the hunted beast corpses in his Storage Ring and prepared to leave.
Meanwhile, Sia stood to the side, her eyes filled with shock and confusion.
She couldn't help but wonder, Who is this guy?
Just a moment ago, she was telling him to run away...
But the person in front of her had wiped out the entire wolf pack single-handedly?
Could it be... he really was the Grim Reaper descended?!
(To be Continued)