David sheathed his sword and put his hands in his pockets, walking ahead leisurely with a calm, composed expression.
Lewis followed behind with knitted brows, vigilantly scanning their surroundings for potential dangers.
"Kid, aren't you scared? Venturing alone so deep into the forest!" Lewis asked puzzledly seeing David's attitude, anxiety seeping into his voice.
Even as an adult, he was treading carefully here, fearing mishaps. But David was acting too relaxed - he doubted if the boy was too young and ignorant.
"Shh!" But suddenly, David held up a finger to gesture for quiet. His body also crouched slightly as his steps became silent.
"Huh?" Lewis' eyes widened. He had been highly alert earlier, but now he was like a startled bird, his gaze darting around in fright trying to discern why David shushed him.
"It's fine now, whatever was hidden has left," David soon relaxed again, speaking dismissively.
"What??" Lewis was utterly confused, suspecting for a moment David was messing with him.
"Hey, this is the Lost Forest. It's dangerous, don't make lame jokes!" He frowned seriously.
"I'm not joking. There really were some anomalous sounds up ahead earlier, but they lingered only briefly before leaving," David explained earnestly, his expression serious.
Lewis didn't retort, just rolled his eyes. He clearly didn't believe it since he hadn't sensed anything himself.
They explored for a while longer. David seemed to be strolling casually, but his eyes swept their surroundings, constantly noticing subtle changes.
Faint scents, sounds in the wind, messy footprints...
Ever since getting this new body, such talents had been innate. His capabilities in all aspects far surpassed ordinary people, not to mention he was now an Initiation level cultivator. His body inherently contained spirit power, further enhancing his physique.
"Where exactly are we going? Do you really have a lead?" Lewis was getting bored and the wilderness made him uneasy. He wanted to turn back.
But this time David didn't respond immediately. Instead he suddenly halted, intense focus and wariness in his amber eyes.
"What is it now?" Seeing this, Lewis whipped around in fright, scared something was about to ambush them.
"You naughty kid, why do you keep startling me?" He couldn't help complaining.
David still didn't speak. A breeze blew past, stirring his moonlight-like silver hair.
His body was tense, as if sensing the approach of danger.
Whoosh—
Just then, a grey beast pounced swiftly from a tree up ahead. Its lithe form was a blur, appearing in an instant!
Hiss hiss!
It let out astonishing hisses as its sharp claws slashed towards David with vicious momentum, sending chills down one's spine.
David reacted quickly as well. With an upward glance, his entire focus honed in an instant. His opponent seemed to slow under his gaze.
Shing!
Drawing his sword!
Snap!
Slash!
Their forms crossed swiftly in midair. By the time Lewis reacted, he saw the grey beast already fleeing to the side.
"Tch, half a beat slow," David held his stance after slashing out once, but a thin cut had appeared out of nowhere on his left cheek.
"Ahhh, a spectral lynx!" Lewis yelled loudly upon seeing the beast, his face a mix of shock and horror.
"No, something's wrong. Why is this lynx so big? Its eyes don't seem normal either..."
But the excitement of finding his target soon turned into a dreadful realization.
"It evolved. Based on that speed and power, no doubt...this is a D-rank magic beast!" David explained calmly and surely.
"It likely holds some status among spectral lynxes to dare attack us directly like that!" he analyzed.
"D-D-rank magic beast?" Lewis stammered, unable to speak clearly. Cold sweat streamed down his face as his legs weakened.
"This is my first adventure, I can't be so unlucky, right? Are we going to die?" He spoke nervously and tremblingly.
"Possibly, if I can't beat it, I'll run and you'll definitely die," David gave a faint smile, but his response was cold and matter-of-fact.
"Don't abandon me, kid!" Lewis shrieked in terror, his voice turning shrill.
"Seeing as you tried to look out for me, I'll do my best to defeat it. But no guarantees I'll win for sure. You'd better stay calm and think of escaping while I fight," David said solemnly and thoughtfully, also unsure if he could reliably beat the lynx.
After all, he had almost no combat experience and lacked understanding of Initiation's power system. It would be hard to demonstrate his true capabilities.
Hiss hiss!
Soon the spectral lynx attacked again. Its graceful form and fierce movements spoke of its power and confidence.
Having lost initially, David focused even more intently, listening and sensing instinctively while wielding his longsword to counterattack.
Hum hum!
After several more clashes, the lynx's movements were illusory in their speed, evading the sword each time while seeking chances to strike.
David was also extremely vigilant, constantly turning to prevent being pounced on and getting his neck bitten.
Boom!
As the lynx's assaults intensified, its claws were finally forced into the first collision with the sword amidst a fierce blow.
Sparks flew as the lynx was batted away in an instant, trying to lessen the impact by staggering back. But one front paw was still injured, trembling in midair.
"Just so-so!" David grew more confident landing a hit, even taking the initiative to close in.
The lynx roared angrily, wrinkling its nose furiously!
"Be careful!" Lewis yelled tensely.
He really couldn't comprehend their battle. It was too fast for ordinary people to react at all. The slightest gap meant certain death.
The beast preferred pursuing targets with their backs turned, so Lewis didn't dare flee easily. He could only retreat while gripping his sword, hoping David would prevail.
David actively chased it down, swinging his sword repeatedly. His strikes gradually became more rhythmic and orderly compared to the initial chaos, pushing his opponent towards despair with the relentless barrage.
Each attack forced the lynx to respond, and under this steady pressure, it would eventually be driven into a corner!
The more David fought, the more adept he felt. His blood boiled and his emotions surged.
He craved this battle to stimulate the digestion factors in his body, converting the residual spirit energy into true power!
Soon, even with the lynx's speed, its movements noticeably lagged during an evasion.
"Now!" David had awaited this moment for long. This was the culmination of his relentless pressure, the chain reaction of each strike finally erupting!
Hum hum!
He put his full might into this swing, intent on crushing it in one go!
The lynx's pupils, like black holes, suddenly contracted to the extreme at this critical instant!
Boom—
The strike landed with a thunderous impact!
Unexpectedly, the lynx's eyes were extremely calm. At the last moment, it pulled off an unbelievable evasive maneuver, barely avoiding the blow by a hairsbreadth.
"How...it dodged it..." David's heart tightened as his eyelid twitched slightly.
"Damn!"
He quickly realized what this miss meant.
Although unable to directly release spirit power, Initiation physiques strengthened by inner spirit energy could unleash tremendous force using it as fuel.
The power David wielded embedded his sword deeply into the tree behind.
Longswords weren't suited for chopping trees, moreover it wasn't sharp enough itself. Stuck this way, he was at an impasse, unable to pull it out!
Sure enough, as David struggled to draw his sword, he glimpsed the lynx rapidly approaching from the corner of his eye.
Hiss!!
Its claws came slashing over. Despite David's hasty reaction, his right arm was still struck, his shirt ripped and bloodied.
This evasion had severed his connection with the sword completely, leaving him empty-handed and desperate as the situation deteriorated sharply.
The lynx looked at David, suddenly revealing an almost human-like sneer, toying with him like a cat with a mouse.
"It did that on purpose!" David realized its intentions.
Though only an elementary D-rank, magic beasts had some intellect. This lynx's tactics were clearly not low!
"W-W-What do we do!" Lewis saw it all happen and grew frantic, babbling incoherently.
David was quite vexed. He was the main fighter, yet this guy was useless, even hampering the battle with his nonstop chatter.
"No choice, I probably can't beat it. I'm getting out of here. You figure it out yourself!" David impatiently answered.
Saying so, he made to turn and flee.
Without his weapon and at his current level, it would be hard to best this clever, agile beast. Retreat was the wise move.
"Ah, how could you? Then I'm as good as dead!" Lewis' expression was aghast. If he fled with David, he'd surely be the slower one. He wasn't even at Initiation yet - how could he outrun these monsters?
David didn't reply, just shook his head as if to leave.
Hiss!
But at that moment, as if understanding human speech, the lynx pounced at them from behind with lightning speed!
David could clearly feel the gust behind him and had already glimpsed its approach from the corner of his eye.
Suddenly, he twisted his body sharply and turned back around. His hands instinctively shot out, grabbing the phantom-like lynx with lightning reflexes.
Boom!
With just a light touch, David borrowed the force to fling it away.
Despite the brief contact, the power unleashed was maximized. Strengthened by Initiation monstrous strength, the lynx's body heavily tumbled far away.
Hiss hiss!!
With several miserable cries, it actually took a few seconds for the lynx to shakily stand again.
"Hmph, animals will be animals. No self-control at all," David couldn't help a faint smile.
Just now, it was because he was certain the lynx could understand some human speech that he deliberately feigned defeat, turning to flee and exposing a full of openings.
Little did it know this was the biggest trap.
As expected, he seized this chance to counterattack beautifully.
"Throw me your sword!" David hurriedly yelled at Lewis.
Lewis froze for a second before realizing he wanted his weapon.
He gripped the hilt tightly. His hands were already drenched in sweat - this sword was his only protection out here. He absolutely didn't dare let go lightly.
But right now...
"Here!" Lewis decisively hurled his longsword towards David. Now, David was his only hope of survival!
David caught the sword and charged up to the lynx in just two or three steps.
That heavy blow had the lynx seeing stars despite its tough physique. It struggled to stand firmly.
To David, it was full of openings!
Chop! Chop!
Slash!
David unleashed a flurry of strikes, finally pushing the lynx to the brink.
It tried escaping up a tree again, but David seized on its hasty footsteps to smash its skull with one sword blow. It crumpled to the ground, convulsing ceaselessly.
The battle with the D-rank spectral lynx ended in David's victory.
"Amazing, such power!" Even Lewis was stunned.
No matter how he imagined himself in the fight, even with those reactions, he couldn't hope to exert that level of might.
It made him yearn even more for the path of cultivation, aspiring to become a truly mighty cultivator!
"Phew, time to work. Help me carry it back, I'll give you a cut of the reward," David ordered.
After all, the other guy had risked himself earlier to lend his weapon. Some spoils were due.
"Really, kid? You're pretty decent!" Lewis was overjoyed and quickly hoisted the lifeless lynx onto his back.
He wasn't a cultivator, but had some hunting experience.
In fact, his strength surpassing normal people was why he had come adventuring, hoping to improve further.
Creak creak!
David laboriously wrenched his deeply embedded sword out. The blade was full of jagged nicks and the whole thing somewhat warped.
"This weapon's too shoddy. What was Lynn thinking giving me this rubbish!"
He couldn't help complaining. After all, he had obtained this from the ruins.
Though Lynn did emphasize there were better weapons in the ruins. But wandering around with a weapon too superior for one's level would easily attract thieves, causing unnecessary trouble.
"Looks like I'm worthy of something better now!" After this fight, David also had some grasp of his capabilities.
Even now, his insides still roiled like a raging inferno. His blood surged powerfully, heart beating strongly, all indicating the spirit energy was being digested and absorbed, constantly strengthening him!
"Let's go!" David stowed away the damaged weapon casually.