Little Coal's basic stats were already incredibly strong, even with only S+ growth. What would happen if it advanced to SS rank?
All it needed was to consume spirit cores to increase its potential.
Thanks to several successful trades, Han Xing had accumulated over 20,000 spirit cores!
Even if he fed 10,000 cores to Little Coal in one go, he'd still have plenty left. Most survivors wouldn't be able to gather that many in such a short time.
With excitement, Han Xing grabbed a handful of spirit cores from his backpack and threw them all to Little Coal.
The little wolf happily devoured them with gusto.
"Eat! Keep eating! I have plenty for you!" Han Xing laughed excitedly.
However, after devouring about 30 cores, Little Coal lost interest in the remaining ones on the ground.
Han Xing noticed a change in the pet's info screen: the satiation bar had filled up.
[Satiation: 100]
"Full already?"
Han Xing sighed with a hint of disappointment. "It looks like feeding a ton of spirit cores all at once to quickly boost its potential isn't possible."
Each pet had its own limit for daily feeding. This was likely a restriction put in place by the system.
Shrugging it off, Han Xing decided not to dwell on it. After all, S+ growth was already incredible.
Little Coal, now full, happily rolled around on the grass.
With a smile, Han Xing said, "You're full now, but it's time to get to work."
Hearing that, Little Coal excitedly jumped up.
Soon after, Han Xing began steering his floating island toward a nearby cloud formation.
After about ten minutes, his island neared a cloud mass spanning at least 20 square meters.
At that moment, a system prompt appeared: "A group of aggressive horned creatures lives inside. Would you like to enter?"
"Aggressive horned creatures? They don't sound friendly..." Han Xing muttered while rubbing his chin.
But he was eager to test Little Coal's abilities, so he clicked 'Yes.'
The clouds dissipated, revealing four gray-furred creatures with curved horns.
[Horned Sheep (1-star creature)]
[Level: LV3]
[Strength: 8, Agility: 10, Spirit: 7, Constitution: 8]
[Skills: Ram Attack, Headbutt Heaven]
Four Level 3, 1-star monsters. Even Han Xing would need to use his powerful attacks to instantly take out two of them and then handle the others one by one. Otherwise, if they surrounded him, his fragile body wouldn't last long before the horned sheep trampled him to death.
But now, he was planning to let Little Coal fight on its own.
As a loyal pet, the Void Ghost Wolf known as Little Coal would obey its master's command without hesitation. Even if Han Xing ordered it to fight against a Demon Lord, it would follow through without a second thought.
Little Coal, still at Level 1, was about to face off against four Level 3 horned sheep.
Even though it was outnumbered, it showed no fear.
"Go, Little Coal!"
At Han Xing's command, the once-adorable black puppy's expression hardened, its fangs bared.
For the first time, it showed the true ferocity of a Void Ghost Wolf.
At the same moment, the four horned sheep noticed Han Xing, their eyes turning bloodshot as they lowered their heads and prepared to charge at him.
But in the next instant, a shadow faster than them darted across the field.
Little Coal's body emitted a faint black light as it sped towards one of the horned sheep like a black blur.
It slashed its sharp claws across the sheep's neck.
In Han Xing's vision, the attack seemed to produce an afterimage.
Swipe! Swipe!
The sheep felt intense pain as two claw marks appeared on its neck.
A moment later, blood gushed out.
"Baaah!!!"
The sheep let out a pained cry, causing the other three to turn their dark eyes toward Little Coal.
Their anger shifted.
In unison, they stomped their hooves and charged at the small wolf.
Even Han Xing felt a bit nervous for Little Coal. He tightened his grip on his bow, ready to assist if necessary.
But on the ground, Little Coal showed no signs of panic. It growled low and threateningly, baring its teeth with a prideful gaze, as if it were a king of the wild. It didn't seem to care about the horned sheep at all.
The three horned sheep lunged.
Little Coal didn't dodge. Instead, black light once again flickered around its body.
Han Xing could see clearly that at the moment of impact, the sharp horns of the sheep seemed to pass through Little Coal's body as though striking into nothingness. No harm was done.
"Void Body!"
Han Xing gasped in surprise.
Little Coal's first skill, Void Body, granted it a 50% chance to dodge any attack.
At this moment, all three horned sheep's attacks missed.
Truly a god-tier ability!
In the blink of an eye, Little Coal bit into one of the sheep's heads.
It then followed up with a flurry of claw strikes so fast they seemed to create afterimages.
Swipe! Swipe! Swipe! Swipe!
In that instant, Little Coal attacked four times. Counting the bite, the sheep suffered five hits.
Several deep, bone-exposing wounds appeared on the sheep's body, and faint black smoke began to rise from them.
This was the effect of Little Coal's second skill, Void Corrosion.
"Baaah..."
The sheep let out a final cry before collapsing.
Little Coal, blood still dripping from its jaws, looked so ferocious that the remaining horned sheep were too terrified to attack again.
Han Xing noticed that every time Little Coalball moved or attacked, the black light around it seemed to boost its speed, making it even faster than its stats suggested.
"Is that the effect of Void Blink?" Han Xing was astonished.
Little Coal kept surprising him with its capabilities!
Void Blink doubled its speed, while Void Body offered dodging power, and Void Corrosion added a lethal debuff.
These skills combined formed a formidable melee combat system, offering both survivability and explosive damage.
And Little Coal was only at Level 1. When it reached Level 6 or 10, it would unlock even more skills.
After advancing to 2-stars, it would learn higher-tier abilities. Then there were 3-stars, 4-stars...
Just imagining the future potential of this S+ growth Void Ghost Wolf sent Han Xing into a frenzy of excitement!
Just imagining the future potential of this S+ growth Void Ghost Wolf sent Han Xing into a frenzy of excitement!
At that moment, the remaining three horned sheep resumed their attack.
But Little Coal didn't back down, transforming into a black streak of lightning as it darted between them.
Every time it passed, it left a few new wounds on its opponents.
Blood splattered everywhere, and the scene quickly turned gruesome...