The duo of Arthur and Noah stayed silent in the cave, sitting at different corners while absorbing their respective Soul Cores.
Since he was in a relatively safe space, Arthur closed his eyes and proceeded to crush the Soul Cores to absorb them. He had a total of 15 Low-Stage Tier 1 Soul Cores, which would take some time.
Fortunately, he had plenty of it after fighting with the Giant Monkey. In fact, the absorption of Soul Cores would replenish his Essence faster.
So, without any delay, he got to work. A little distance away, Noah was also doing the same. His Soul Core was larger and much more dangerous than the ones Arthur was absorbing.
After all, the Giant Monkey had been very troublesome. The only saving grace for him was that the Giant Monkey was weaker than its original version, so he had a high chance of winning.
Just like that, time passed as the two young men were busy getting stronger. While it was easier for Arthur to absorb the Soul Cores, he had more of them to use. Meanwhile, Noah was focused on absorbing a single core.
After some time, Arthur sighed and opened his eyes, feeling refreshed and a little stronger than before. He still wasn't at his peak, but he was more than ready to fight.
As a smile formed on his lips and he clenched his fist, he muttered, "Status!"
The familiar hologram filled with Runes appeared before him, projecting his information.
[Name - Arthur Stark]
[Age - 18]
[Rank - Novice]
[Level - 1]
[Soul Fragments - 36/100]
[Path - ]
[Skills - ]
[Artifacts - Abyss Destroyer.]
His smile turned stiff as he sighed once again. He had wasted so much time and wasn't even halfway through Level 1. He really needed to increase his hunting speed and the quality of his hunts.
'Lower-Stages won't do much. At this rate, I can forget about being the chosen one,' Arthur thought. 'Since I'm still Level 1, Mid-Stage Tier 1 Abyssal Creatures would give around 5 Soul Fragments in total.'
He began to calculate the needed Soul Fragments and felt a headache. He never liked calculations, but he needed to do it to grow stronger.
Fortunately, he clearly remembered how much one could get from Abyssal Creatures.
Coming to a decision, Arthur stood up, thinking, 'Yup! I need to hunt down the Mid-Stage Tier 1 Abyssal Creatures; that's the best route for now. After leveling up, I can try the High-Stage Tier 1 Abyssal Creatures.'
He then turned around and looked at Noah, who was still sitting in a meditative pose with his eyes closed. He had a frown on his face as blood seeped out from the corner of his lips.
Even if it was a Soul Battle, it could still affect him physically. This was what Noah was experiencing. The Giant Monkey was a True High-Stage Tier 1 Abyssal Creature, so he was having trouble.
However, Arthur had confidence in him and knew he would succeed. Noah was like a cockroach—nothing could kill him, not even the worst things. He was only killed when one of the Voidborn Emperor's Generals took part in battle.
As he expected, Noah's eyes suddenly snapped open as his presence grew deeper, and the aura around him seemed more palpable. It was very weak, as he was still in Novice Rank, but Arthur could sense it.
He smiled and said, "Congratulations on getting to Level 7."
Wiping the blood from the corner of his lips, Noah smiled. "Thanks. But I guess I still underestimated the big guy. It was a pain in the ass!"
Arthur laughed at that. "Haha! Just because I could fight it, you thought it would be easy?"
Noah became a little flustered and looked away. He had indeed underestimated the Giant Monkey after seeing the battle. After all, if a Level 1 like Arthur could do it, then surely he could too, right?
Oh, how wrong he was...
Noah groaned lightly, remembering how the Giant Monkey had beaten him again and again. He shuddered thinking about it and hurriedly pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
As he raised his head to look at Arthur, he saw him in a new light. He smiled wryly and thought, 'He could have easily run away but still chose to stay. I don't understand what kind of person you are.'
Noah seriously couldn't understand him. At first, Arthur seemed so annoying and naive. But his eyes seemed to hold pure ruthlessness, and his skills...
He sighed and asked, "Why did you give me the chance to kill it?"
"Took you long enough to realize," Arthur chuckled and said, staring right into his eyes, "I want to get stronger quickly, so I need help."
Remembering that he was still with Noah, Arthur had devised another plan. Since Noah was now at Level 7, he would be pretty helpful.
Noah raised an eyebrow and asked, "And why do you think I would help you? We didn't have any agreement like that. Also, even if we did, why would I bother helping you get stronger when I also need to get stronger?"
Looking at him with a serious face, Arthur lingered for a while before saying, his tone losing the hint of playfulness it usually had, "Let me tell you something...what was your name again?"
Noah noticed the change in his tone and frowned. Still, he answered, "Noah!"
"Arthur here. You can call me Art," Arthur said, putting his chin on his palm. "Let me tell you something very important, something that will keep you alive in this hell we live in. But first, you need to abandon your past habits."
Gripping his daggers behind his back, Noah asked in a low voice, "Elaborate!"
Arthur shook his head. "It's good that you're cautious, but at least try to hide it. Anyway, what I meant was that you should forget about all this solo leveling. It doesn't work, and you can't survive in this hell like that."
Noah scoffed at those words. "The only reason I survived is because of this, and you want me to abandon it? What kind of joke is that? What do you want me to do? Trust my back with some strangers?"
A disdainful laugh escaped his lips as he looked at Arthur, his tone dripping with coldness. "It doesn't work like that. I've seen mothers killing their own children to survive, fathers selling their daughters for a few credits, and even people throwing away decades of relationships just to survive. I think you should be the one learning a lesson and stop being so naive."