The notorious Death Canyon. A vast landscape in the heart of the Kegali forest. A barren region of the Red Island with red soil, surrounded by massive stone walls that serve as one of the main lines of defense for the inhabitants. This canyon was home to the most populous monster in Kegali, which had ruled the island for hundreds of years. It was such a notorious location that entering it was strictly forbidden for two very important reasons.
First, there was the Red Knights of Kegali, a swarm of Peasants lurking in every corner of the island, relentlessly killing everything they came across. Second, the one in charge of their entire species... The Red Queen.
The Peasant evolution line thrived safely throughout the years due to their large number and the protection of their powerful queen.
However... It had come to an end.
Eon waved his wings as he circled the massive canyon beneath him. Eon's gaze was drawn to the massive procession of Peasants moving through the canyon. Despite the fact that they had lost many of their kind in the recent battle against the Bakunawa, hundreds of them were still marching in and out of their lair.
However, the disappearance of Bakunawa without reopening the Hell's Gates would cause havoc in their colony soon enough. There were no monsters on the island, and the colony would soon starve and attempt to cross the rivers to meet their needs. If this continued for several days, even the Red Queen would step out to ensure their species' survival... Because of the absence of the other powerful monsters, nothing could stop the queen, and the Soverant would cause great chaos throughout the forest.
Fortunately... Eon had arrived with a solution... The annihilation of the Peasant evolutionary line.
[Snowfield has been activated.]
[Ice Armor has been activated.]
[Ice Armor has 2550 HP.]
[Vanguard has been activated.]
[Vanguard has granted you 425 damage reduction.]
Snow began to fall from the sky, settling on the ground and the army below. The sudden appearance of the cold particles from the sky brought the massive crowd to a halt. However, before they could even comprehend what was going on, Eon dashed into the massive parade of Peasants.
[Deceitful Shapeshifter has been activated.]
Eon's body transformed into a long and massive entity, a one-of-a-kind monster with a white Bakunawa body and head, Varraco Grande tusks, and Thundursa arms. His massive image slammed into the swarm of Peasants, crushing them. The thunderous landing sound echoed throughout the area, then Eon raised his head and unleashed an ear-piercing roar that caused great chaos in a wide area around him.
Then he went on a rampage, attacking everything in his path with his various body parts. He slammed his Bakunawa tail across a large area, destroying those beside him with his powerful arms and munching those in front with his powerful fangs.
[Basic Attack has dealt 102 damage.]
Because basic attack was a strength-based attack, it was affected by the Snowfield effect.
Eon was like a broom, effortlessly sweeping everything around him, crushing everything he could reach while his victims fled in every direction to avoid death. He was punching and smashing his opponents like they were nothing.
Every move Eon made as he slowly approached the entrance of the anthill left piles upon piles of Peasant corpses. Some of the peasants tried to fight back, climbing on Eon's body and biting him with all their might. The Peasants dangling on Eon's white body turned him red.
[Icy Touch has been activated.]
[Icy Touch has dealt 1122 damage.]
As they became frozen solid, Eon's red coat turned white. The frozen corpses of Peasants fell to the ground and shattered into pieces as Eon moved.
The reinforcements of the Peasants arrived and joined the battle against Eon, just as Eon had predicted. Five of each level 20 Valiants, Assailants, and Enchants emerged from the lair's entrance. The five Valiants and Assailants charged at Eon. They jumped in his face and used their powerful mandibles to attack him. Eon, on the other hand, just stood there staring at them. The towering Valiants were at least 125 centimeters long, but they appeared so small while riding on Eon's head.
Then came the charging Fire Blasts toward Eon. Five destructive flames collided with Eon and exploded. The attacks came from the five Enchants, which should be more than enough to destroy powerful foes. But they didn't even tickle Eon. The 418 damage of their Fire Blasts couldn't even penetrate Eon's Vanguard.
[Icy Touch has been activated.]
[Icy Touch has dealt 1022 damage.]
Eon shook his head, removing the frozen corpses of the Assailants and Valiants from his head. Despite the fact that Valiants and Assailants were superior species, Eon had more than 20 level gaps on them, so he gained no experience points.
Then an unearthly roar echoed from the anthill's entrance. As a certain entity rushed out from the deepest part of the lair, a loud cry rang out throughout the area. When Eon heard it, he stopped moving and stared at the entrance... He ignored the monsters that were constantly attacking him.
[Deceitful Shapeshifter has been activated.]
Then his image shrank dramatically, to the point where the Peasants and Enchants had to look down to see him. Eon growled, his gooey eyes darting around; he had the body of a Slug but the wings of a majestic Huntowl Night Wraith. Eon stood there watching as a massive image flew out into the sky, casting a shadow on everything beneath it.
The Red Queen...
RACE: Soverant [Level: 60/70].
HP: 780/780
MP: 779/780
Top Speed: 156 km/h
Defense: 6
[STATS.]
Strength: 78
Agility: 78
Intelligence: 78
[DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Savage Bite [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Fire Blast [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Blazing Charge [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Formicary's Guardian's Outburst [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
[NON-DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Sensory Antennae [MP Cost: 1]
Skin Hardening [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Fireproof [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Sovereign's Healing [MP Cost: 7] [Level: 7/20].
[PASSIVE SKILLS.]
[Greater] MP Regeneration.
[Lesser] HP Regeneration.
[Lesser] Mana Absorb.
[Lesser] Life Absorb.
[Lesser] Desperation.
The Soverant's almost transparent circular wings waved, creating a powerful wind current. As it flew out into the open sky, its glorious image was fully revealed. A ten-meter-long giant with thick skin as beautiful as a blazing fire in the middle of the night. Its massive mandibles closed and opened as it drifted through the air, its eyes darting around... Then its attention was drawn to a seemingly harmless winged Slug covered in ice armor standing in the middle of the canyon next to a pile of its children's corpses.
It only took a few minutes for Eon to slaughter hundreds, if not thousands, of its children.
The Soverant concluded the situation simply by looking at it... Underneath what appeared to be a harmless enemy was not actually harmless.
A deception monster whose main ability was to fool everyone around it with its appearance. And now it was playing with the Soverant by putting up a powerless front—not as a strategy, but simply because it could.
The Soverant roared in rage and activated its skill, Skin Hardening, a defensive non-damaging skill with the same function as Vanguard— the only difference being that Skin Hardening, as the name suggested, would make the user's skin harder.
The Soverant then rushed toward Eon and stopped after a short distance. The Soverant roared once more, this time releasing hellish flame all around it. Formicary's Guardian's Outburst was a skill that engulfed everything in fire. Eon enraged the queen so much that it decided to launch an all-out assault, eradicating everything, ally or foe alike.
The powerful explosion of hellish flame echoed throughout the area, engulfing all units inside the canyon—which didn't matter much because Eon had already killed the majority of them. The Soverant was only able to burn a few of its children, including the five Enchants and the corpses of its already deceased children.
[Formicary's Guardian's Outburst has dealt 778 damage to your Ice Armor.]
Even though the Formicary's Guardian's Outburst dealt double damage, it was insufficient to melt Eon's Ice Armor.
As the blazing fire faded away, Eon was revealed to be standing still, his gaze fixed on the Soverant flying above him. He opened his mouth and growled, emitting cold smoke in the process.
The Soverant's most potent attack was ineffective, and it was wise enough to recognize this. Its intended victim did not even flinch.
Eon moved forward, spreading his wings... It was time for him to take the throne from the queen.
[Icy Touch has been activated.]
[Barbaric Rush has been activated.]
Eon rushed toward the Soverant at breakneck speed. Eon charged with his Slug head extended forward, then spun in the air for a devastating finishing attack.
The Soverant, proud of its own strength, activated its skill, Formicary's Guardian's Outburst, and unleashed its final retaliation against its invincible foe. The explosion happened again, and Eon flew right into it. Eon was like a small bullet aimed at his colossal foe. Eon growled as he headbutted the Soverant, making a squishy sound as they collided.
[Formicary's Guardian's Outburst has dealt 778 damage to your Ice Armor.]
The Soverant roared its last as an ice wall encased its body. Then it surged down and crashed to the ground, splintering into pieces.
The Queen of Peasants was defeated...
[Barbaric Rush has dealt 534 damage.]
[Icy Touch has dealt 432 damage.]
[You have received 22 experience points.]
[You have gained a level.]
[You have increased your Strength stat by one.]
[You have increased your Agility stat by one.]
[You have increased your Intelligence stat by one.]
[You have been awarded two skill points.]
[Your HP and MP have been replenished.]
[Deceitful Shapeshifter: a new form has been acquired. The Soverant form is now available for use.]
Eon looked around him as he finally defeated the most powerful monster in this region of Kegali forest. He cast a quick glance at the scattered peasants. All of the peasants in the area began to spin where they stood... They were just swirling around, their antennae moving uncontrollably.
Without their queen, all the peasants on this island lost their sense of purpose, and as a result, they would spin until death. Unlike the other monsters, the Peasant evolution line was part of a single network that their queen oversaw. Soverant's death meant only one thing... This marked the end of the Kegali forest's Peasant evolution line.
[Notice.]
[Because you have reached level 50, the racial exclusive skill Deceitful Shapeshifter has granted you an additional imitation skill slot. You can now imitate two skills at once. When you reach level 100, you will be given another slot.]
When Eon heard the announcement, he immediately focused all of his attention on the available skill he could copy from the Soverant. He had many options, but his attention was drawn immediately to the Soverant's strongest skill—the skill that the Soverant obtained upon reaching level 60.
[Sovereign's Healing.]
[Call forth the enchantment of superior healing to heal the user and all nearby allies. The amount of HP healed is equal to 3% (+3% per level) of the user's maximum HP. This superior healing can remove status effects like freeze and poison, as well as regrow severed limbs. This skill has a maximum range of 5 meters (+5 per level).]
[Do you want to learn Sovereign's Healing?]
[Imitating the skill, Sovereign's Healing...]
[Imitation process completed.]
[Skill, Sovereign's Healing has been acquired.]
[The healing amount and range of [Imitation] Sovereign's Healing have increased from level 1 (3% of maximum HP) (5 meters) to level 20 (60%) (100 meters).]
Eon flew away, paying no attention to the bleak fate of the remaining peasants. He simply didn't care.
Eon returned to his home to undergo another evolution for power—the final evolution he required before embarking on his grand conquest.
[The necessary level for evolution has been reached. You may now evolve into a superior species.]
[Evolution necessitates hibernation. Finding a safe place to evolve is essential.]
RACE: Arcryonide Snow Barbarian [Level: 50/50] [Exp. Points: 18.6/25].
HP: 860/860
MP: 500/500
Top Speed: 100 km/h
Defense: 4
[STATS.]
Strength: 86
Agility: 50
Intelligence: 50
[DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Lethal Augmentation [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Icy Touch [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Barbaric Rush [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
[NON-DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Deceitful Shapeshifter [MP Cost: 1].
Ice Armor [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Snowfield [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
[Imitation] Vanguard [MP Cost: 40] [Level: 20/20].
[Imitation] Sovereign's Healing [MP Cost: 40] [Level: 20/20].
[PASSIVE SKILLS.]
World Conqueror's Perception.
[Lesser] MP Regeneration.
[Lesser] HP Regeneration.
[Lesser] Mana Absorb.
[Lesser] Life Absorb.
SKILL POINTS AVAILABLE: 5