In the narrow pipe, the foul, stinking blood had practically congealed into a paste, plastering the entire wall.
By the faint moonlight filtering down from the sky,
Lin Ye could see that where the panther's blood stained the pipe wall, eerie blue crystals were gradually beginning to form.
Every breath Lin Ye took was thick with the stench of blood.
His chest ached with excruciating pain, and he didn't know how many ribs were broken. His arms were long since numb, leaving only mechanical instinct to thrust the longstaff out again and again.
Thrust!
Retract!
Thrust again!
The black panther's struggles grew weaker and weaker. The vicious gleam in its one eye was gradually replaced by the ashen pallor of death.
But Lin Ye didn't stop.
His eyes were ice-cold, without a shred of pity or slack.
He only stopped when he felt his longstaff could no longer pierce anything, as if it were lodged in some hard part of the skull.
The black panther fell still.
Utterly silent.
Lin Ye was still not at ease.
He gripped the end of the staff with both hands, using his last ounce of strength to pull it free. Then, he found the panther's eye socket, thrust the staff in viciously, and gave it a savage twist!
CRACK!
It felt as if the staff had pierced not flesh and blood, but a sheet of glass. A chill ran down Lin Ye's spine.
'Something's wrong with this mutated panther's brain tissue.'
Only when he was certain the black panther would not move again
did Lin Ye's hands fall away as if drained of all strength, leaving the longstaff stuck in the panther's skull.
He scooted backward, climbing up inch by inch.
The cool, clean air from outside flooded his lungs, dispelling the nauseating stench of the pipe.
Lin Ye kicked the black panther's corpse away from the manhole opening, then collapsed onto the cold concrete ground, his body splayed out like a starfish.
He gasped for air, his chest heaving violently. Every breath pulled at his wounds, bringing a tearing pain.
But more than the pain was the relief of having survived.
He had won.
He was the final victor of this life-or-death struggle.
The night wind swept by, kicking up dust and carrying the roars of other mutated beasts from afar.
The thick scent of blood was the best beacon in the dark.
Soon enough, a burly, hyena-like mutated beast followed the scent and appeared in the shadows of a street corner.
Its phosphorescent green eyes stared greedily at the black panther's still-warm corpse and the human beside it who looked completely spent.
It crouched low, a threatening growl rumbling in its throat as it crept closer step by step.
Lin Ye noticed it.
He didn't move. He just slowly turned his head and stared coldly at it with bloodshot and weary eyes.
There was no fear in that gaze, no panic.
Only the lingering madness and menace from a battle to the death.
The moment the LV6 mutated hyena met Lin Ye's gaze, its advance came to a sudden halt.
The greed in its eyes rapidly faded, replaced by a fear born from pure animal instinct!
It was as if it wasn't looking at a dying human, but a predator more terrifying and superior than itself!
WHIMPER...
It tucked its tail between its legs, let out a low whine, and, without the slightest hesitation, turned and fled into the darkness, disappearing from sight.
Lin Ye's lips twitched into a grim smile.
And at that very moment, a rapid series of system notifications exploded in his mind!
[You have successfully slain the LV8 Elite Level monster: Mutated Black Panther!]
[Killed a higher-level enemy. Experience +100%!]
[You have gained 1200 experience points!]
[You have completed the first link of the Advancement Quest!]
[Quest Completion: 1/2.]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, you have unlocked the hidden achievement: Defeating the Strong!]
[First solo kill of an Elite Level target with a higher level than your own. This proves you are no longer cannon fodder waiting to be slaughtered, but a hunter who has grown their fangs!]
[Defeating the strong, meticulous planning, trading life for life... Very good. You're starting to look a little like a BOSS.]
[Achievement Reward: +1000 Experience Points. You have obtained a new BOSS mechanic: Overwhelm!]
[Ding! Your level has increased to LV8!]
[You have gained 1 free attribute point!]
[You have gained 2 skill points!]
Lin Ye felt his eyelids fighting to stay open.
The Healing out of combat mechanic had kicked in long ago, and his injuries had already fully recovered.
His spirit and stamina bars had also been refilled.
But he felt a weariness that seeped into his very soul.
This was the first time since he'd begun his sleepless, perpetual-motion-like training that he craved a deep sleep so desperately.
Lin Ye forced himself to stay alert, knowing this was definitely not a place to rest.
He got to his feet, concealed his presence once again, and vanished into the darkness.
When he was almost home, Lin Ye tossed his blood-soaked outer clothes directly into a dumpster.
He rushed home, took a quick shower, and had his first real sleep in over twenty days.
...
「The next day.」
The combat training hall after school.
The dull thuds of spear against staff rang out continuously.
The alloy longspear in Chen Meng's hands was like a venomous dragon striking from its lair, its tip whistling through the air as it thrust straight for Lin Ye's heart.
But Lin Ye neither dodged nor retreated. With his longstaff, he flicked upward at an incredibly tricky angle, striking the shaft of the spear with pinpoint accuracy at its critical point.
A clever burst of force erupted.
Chen Meng only felt a jolting force travel up the spear shaft, causing his previously unstoppable advance to falter for a barely perceptible moment.
It was in that single moment of hesitation!
Lin Ye's staff technique suddenly changed.
No longer purely blocking and defending, the longstaff became like a whip. Carrying a cold, vicious aura, it slid along the spear shaft, striking straight for the wrist of Chen Meng's spear-wielding hand!
The strike was fast and vicious!
There was not a single wasted motion; it aimed directly for the opponent's weakest point.
Chen Meng raised an eyebrow.
With a flick of his wrist, he instantly retracted the longspear. The butt of the spear swept out like a sledgehammer, forcing Lin Ye's follow-up attack back.
"Stop!"
Chen Meng suddenly roared, pulling back his spear and standing straight.
Lin Ye also stopped, calming his slightly ragged breathing and looking at Chen Meng with a questioning gaze.
Chen Meng didn't speak.
He simply stared at Lin Ye with an unprecedented look, his gaze sharp and scrutinizing.
"Your Staff Skill... it seems to have improved again."
"Your moves now carry a hint of true killing intent. You've touched the threshold of the third realm."
"What on earth... have you been through recently?"
The first two of the four martial realms are Form and Intention.
Lin Ye was already in the Unity Realm.
The third realm is called Slaughter.
It means a person's martial technique has reached the point where every strike is meant to draw blood.
It is the beginning of a qualitative transformation in one's martial skill.
Chen Meng was someone who had walked out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
Naturally, he was extremely sensitive to this kind of aura.
Lin Ye remained silent, offering no explanation.
Of course, he couldn't tell his teacher that he went to the ruined city every night to kill monsters, and that he had almost lost his life last night.
Looking at Lin Ye's eyes, which were as calm as a still well—even deeper and more serene than before—
Chen Meng didn't press the issue.
This world was no greenhouse, after all.
If a young eagle wants to soar, it must endure the storms and witness bloodshed.
"Time's about up. Let's call it a day."
Chen Meng waved a hand and turned to walk to a corner, an irrepressible smile tugging at his lips.
Sparring with Lin Ye every day,
he was more aware than anyone of the speed at which the kid's strength was growing.
First in the entire school in one month...
'It might not be impossible after all!'