Wu Xiuying's aura flared like fire, burning with the Existential Records she absorbed from each fallen monster. Her golden eyes glowed with wild power, and her hair swirled around her like dancing golden liquid, giving her a beautiful, unearthly appearance.
The balls of golden fireballs burst through the sky and smashed into the creatures. There was no escape for any of them.
Dai Zen blinked at such a display of power; a smile crossed his lips at the sight of her so brutally magnificent, revealing a pair of sharp fangs.
He quickly assessed the rest of the Evolved; Fang Mo struggled to close the distance to the demonic bats. The mark of a claw went deep into his face. Blood trickled down his chin as he quickly escaped with his Skill.
Instead, Lian hit the ground hard, and yellow energy enveloped him before transforming into concrete spears that flailed against the dark skies, piercing a monster's head. However, his Skill seemed to devour massive amounts of Mana, for his face turned pale as death.
Hua Mei rushed to Fang Mo's side and healed him with her Healing Skill. Her smooth cheeks lost color as her power reversed the wound, like a healing fountain in a fantasy anime.
Each Skill deployed proved more savage than the last, rapidly consuming their mana reserves.
Contrary to the state of the humans, the harrowing display of the abominable Blood-Sucking Bats proved to be more terrifying than anything previously witnessed by Dai Zen.
Their Mana reserves constantly flowed while their sound waves crashed and stunned the humans. It was an inherent magical ability of the Blood-Sucking Bats.
Running desperately for his fragile life, a student was about to be struck by the monster's sharp, deadly claws and perish under its assault.
He stumbled on his trembling feet, and unable to keep his balance, he fell to the ground, covered with tears that glistened with the terror that paralyzed his soul before the dark silhouette of the monster that loomed over him.
Every second seemed like an eternity as the monster lunged toward him with its claws full of sharp hooks. He could see the bestial hunger in its blood-red eyes; in them, he saw his death approaching.
However, in that very instant, dark chains encircled the monster, which hovered in the air with its wings spread open as it shrieked in disbelief. The next moment, an arc of light cut the bat in half, tearing its figure in two halves.
The monster's dark blood sprayed over the terrified student, covering his face with a crimson, ghastly spray. Although his heart was pounding wildly, he breathed a deep sigh of relief at seeing the monster's corpse at his feet.
He had been saved from the jaws of death by a hero's sword. Looking up, he saw Dai Zen looking at him with neutral eyes and a cold face.
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 9]
<+2 Agility>
<+2 Vitality>
<+2 Resistance>
<+2 Magic Power>
<+2 Mana>
...
"Stay hidden in the trees where these creatures cannot reach you."
Dai Zen paid no more attention to the young man whose racing heartbeat he had saved from hell.
His determined gaze turned to where the glowing claws were attacking two students. He tightened his grip around the sword as he realized that even if he used his magic, he could not save them both.
A bat pinned the first one to the ground with brutal force as fangs as long as bony fingers sank into her neck. After horrible sucking sounds, the face of the wretched girl became utterly empty, almost as if she had lost all the blood and flesh from her body.
But the monster didn't even have time to celebrate its macabre feast. The bullet from the night's darkness pierced its head as ordered by Dai Zen.
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 9]
<+1 Agility>
<+1 Vitality>
<+1 Magic Power>
<+1 Mana>
...
Dai Zen dashed and appeared before the other monster, his Light Sword slicing it in two before it could even raise a wing in a warning.
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 9]
Dai Zen looked up, and a group of demonic monsters stared at him with bloodlust and a desire to evolve.
He felt his head split in half by the sudden stunned roar that hit his senses, disorienting him. The monsters, who swooped down with their fangs bared to suck his vitality, did not waste that instant.
He dodged the ripping sound of the wind near his head; however, a sharp pain shot through his cheeks that was transmitted straight to his brain while hot liquid rolled down his cheeks.
At that precise moment, Dai Zen circulated his Mana throughout his body to activate his Skill.
While Wu Xiuying was in charge of roasting those winged bastards, he would have the pleasure of tearing them apart.
With a quick gesture, Dai Zen reached out his hand, and from his fingers emerged threads of shadow, as black as night and splendorous in their darkness.
In the blink of an eye, they held five winged monsters! The bats shrieked in rage as they writhed in vain, trapped by Dai Zen's magic.
As long as he still had Mana left, the darkness of this night was all his to manipulate!
Dai Zen stepped forward; his black sword shone with an ominous glow.
First, he slashed the neck of one. The head rolled in the air, and the body collapsed after breaking free from the thread of shadow. Then it severed the miserable existence of the other four, one by one.
By the time the last of them died, Dai Zen sighed in satisfaction. His shadow threads retracted and melted back into the night.
But the battle was not yet over.
Three furious bats flew toward Dai Zen, guided by those pure Existential Records flowing through his body. In the eyes of the bats, it was top-notch food!
Dai Zen loosely dodged the attacks, dancing around those black wings.
"It's my turn."
The first bat fell as Dai Zen slashed its left wing with a slash, throwing it against the ground. Before its body stopped, Dai Zen drove the sword into its skull.
The second died at the sight of its companion's fate, howling with rage. Its neck gave way quickly to the edge of the black blade.
The last one tried to bite him by surprise. Its fangs closed overhead while Dai Zen cut off its head with a single blow.
However, he didn't have time to give himself a break because a cunning bat took advantage of his carelessness to swoop down on his back and sink its claws into him at a blind angle.
"Agh, damn!"
Dai Zen felt the pain in his back blur under the adrenaline. He couldn't afford to falter at such a crucial moment.
With an irritated snort, Dai Zen disengaged the bat's body from his back and turned with a snap. His black sword slashed into the monster, slicing it in two.
As the body collapsed, Dai Zen looked at the floating notification. While there were many overlapping, one on top of the other, he focused on only one.
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 10]
...
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 9]
...
[You have obtained the Existential Record of Blood-Sucking Bat Level 13]
<+2 Agility>
<+2 Vitality>
<+2 Resistance>
<+2 Magic Power>
<+2 Mana>
[You have leveled up to Level 9!]
[You gain +3 Stats Points to distribute]
...
The unexpected but welcome level-up has caused his stamina to recover.
***
[Dai Zen - Hybrid - Badly Evolved]
Level: 9
Trait: Nullity [Unique]
Evolution: First Rank
Class: No Class
Title: Untitled
[Stats]
Strength: 29 (+30)
Vitality: 23
Resistance: 36
Agility: 26 (+25)
Magic Power: 23
Mana: 77
[Available Stats Points: 27]
[Skills]
—Darkness Manipulation | First Rank Skill | Level 7