Considering the fact that these beasts were still in the Qi Seed Realm like the Ascenders they were facing, their appearances weren't as menacing as they could have been.
At least, when it came to size. From what he could remember, size was something akin to status in beast societies, with some being many kilometers in height or length.
The beast Atlas was currently rushing towards was a Tri-Horned Bull, one of the lowest-tier beasts in the world. It was well known for its charge which could turn an average human into meat paste, but it was lacking in the aspect of dexterity.
Atlas quickly arrived in front of the beast, which was separated enough from the others that their fight wouldn't attract too much attention, and threw a punch directly at its face.
The bull was caught off guard by his sudden appearance and didn't move at all, allowing him to land a solid hit on its forehead. But the results weren't as he expected.
"Ahh!" A numbing pain spread from the point of connection through his entire arm, making it go limp for a second. His mind went blank as he froze.
'What's happening? Even if I'm weak I should have a minimal amount of strength necessary to deal with these beasts right?'
Too absorbed in his thoughts, he forgot that he was in the midst of battle. The bull, annoyed at the fact that it had been hit, charged into him and threw him into a nearby tree.
Crack!
The sound of bones breaking could be heard as Atlas's back connected with the hard ground. Luckily enough, the bull continued its forward charge without paying attention to him any longer.
'What the hell am I doing? I've never fought before!' He thought as he tried to deal with the pain wracking his body. He could feel his wounds healing at a rapid rate, but his regeneration didn't deal with the sensation of the hit.
But this healing process was what gave him a clue into what was happening to him. Even as his ribs, which had broken on impact, were healed, he could feel them reattaching incorrectly.
'Ah, that's right! I have spiritual sense!'
He berated himself for forgetting about such a basic thing. Spiritual sense was something any cultivator could use as long as they could emit qi outside their body.
At his level, it would only cover a 5-meter radius around him, but he didn't even need that much. What he needed to do now was send his spiritual sense inside his body.
And what he saw affirmed his earlier thoughts. Even after so many years, he had never ingested a healing pill or anything that could truly fix his inner body. As for impurities, they wouldn't start being removed until the Core Formation realm.
His bone structure was honestly gruesome. His ribs were bent at odd angles and barely protected his inner organs and his bones were fragile as sticks.
Cultivating may have increased his strength, but in no way was that strength usable with a body like this one.
'Does that mean my physical abilities won't improve for a long while?'
He panicked slightly. He knew he had flames as an option for offense, but it wasn't a lasting strategy.
Without being able to fight close combat, his qi reserves would diminish much faster than the average cultivator. Not to mention, his defenses were pitiful. At this rate, he'd die from a few consecutive hits like the one he had just taken.
'I need to take a healing pill soon. An Earth Grade pill should be enough for my current body, and even a Mortal Grade could do the job, albeit less fundamentally.'
It was the first item he'd buy when he exited the tutorial. If the tower could freely give out Mortal Grade artifacts to every Ascender who took the tutorial, it shouldn't have a problem giving him a healing pill as long as he had the payment for it.
Sighing lightly, he realized his injuries had healed. He stood up once more, but instead of charging into the stampede, he climbed the tree he was leaning on and observed from one of the branches.
Whoosh
A light breeze was created by the tongues of flame that had been summoned on his palm. However, this small flame wouldn't do any damage to the beasts in the vicinity.
Without much thought, Atlas began injecting his qi into the flame. It didn't take long for it to start billowing with increased power.
Focusing his gaze back on the beasts, Atlas flicked his hand and threw the flame into their ranks. Although most scattered, another Tri-Horned Bull was caught in the flame.
Although its hide was tough, at the end of the day, it was still a Qi Seed Realm beast. It wasn't strong enough to deal with the might of elemental attacks.
Slowly but surely, the flame spread across its back and engulfed its being. The beast writhed on the floor, roaring in agony as it tried to extinguish the flames.
[Total Kill Count: 1]
One last roar was heard as a beast was reduced to cinders.
'I have around 75% of my qi reserves left after only that single attack. Although using flames will get me kills easier, it'll also increase the amount of time it takes for me to complete the trial.'
Atlas climbed down from the tree and dashed farther into the forest, following the path of the tide that had already mostly passed him as he contemplated.
Along the way, he was able to see the various skirmishes of the other Ascenders in the trial along with him. Most of them were nothing special, but the lion-man and the little girl really stood out.
One was using raw strength, fighting in a way that would make it hard to distinguish whether he was beast or man, and the other was fighting while calculating her every move.
She was holding the horn of a beast and using it as a weapon to sever the limbs of other beasts, effectively bleeding them out.
But Atlas paid it no mind. He rushed alongside the beast tide until he was able to find another vantage point within the trees.
But his movements didn't go unnoticed. 15 beasts broke off from the tide and followed his path.
There would usually be no reason for such a large number to chase a single person, but these beasts happened to be Scaled Leopards, who hunted in packs. Even for the simplest of prey, they would use utmost caution and attack in groups.
Atlas rushed to the tree in front of him, but he wasn't as fast as the leopards. After all, they were specialized in speed.
Feeling as if he would die if he didn't act quickly, he channeled his qi into his eyes.
[Intrinsic Foresight]
The movements of the leopards slowed as his perception and processing speed increased manifold. He was even able to see the vital organs that would make perfect weak spots for him to target.
But he didn't have the speed to match his perception, forcing him to abandon any thought of using that method.
Even when facing such a situation, Atlas ended up grinning. There was something he had learned to love about being pressured to improve.
'Well then, I guess I'll just have to try that one.'