Not long after sunset, the entire island was covered in deep darkness. With the exception of a few watchtowers where the knights of the Order of the Fledgling Dragon were stationed, the land, devoid of human presence, revealed its wild and menacing nature.
Monsters that couldn't be found during the day crawled out of their dens, and the seemingly harmless environment turned dangerous.
While Leonard was watching the changes take place, something caught his attention, and he turned his head.
A large group is moving. Are the apprentice knights and the Order of the Fledgling Dragon on their way to their night training session?
Although he was kilometers away from them, his senses had sharpened significantly since he broke through to the External Force Tier. While he could only precisely detect individual movements within a 300-meter range, he could easily sense hundreds moving in the same direction.
It was time for Leonard to head out as well.
"I shouldn't use the Face Changing Art today."
With Hayden, Ian, and Gale all at night training, he would arouse huge suspicion if anyone saw him disguised as one of them. Even if the surveillance was relatively weakened, he didn't let his guard down.
Leonard pulled out the wolf pelt, now shaped into makeshift clothing, from his subspace pouch. Up close, it would be easy to recognize him, but from a distance, it would be hard to tell if he was a person or a lycanthrope.
Moreover, the pelt wasn't just useful for camouflage. Since it was the leather of a True Demon Tier monster, it was considerably sturdy, so most attacks wouldn't be able to leave a scratch.
Well, I won't have to rely solely on this leather now that I can use protective qi.
Thinking that, Leonard put on the dark blue wolf pelt. He performed a stealth art, and his figure gradually faded until it became hard to see even from up close.
He had acquired this martial art when he killed the assassins from the Yellow Spring Pavilion and destroyed their base. With it, he could deceive not only a person's eyes but also their nose and ears to some extent.
The downside is the severe consumption of internal energy.
Leonard couldn't use this technique when he was in the Body Refining Tier, but he could now maintain it while simultaneously using a lightness art.
With a powerful leap, Leonard propelled himself off the ground and landed on a branch. Using the elastic force of the bent branch, he launched himself even further.
Vaulting Shadow was the technique where a person would bend back then curl forward like a bow to gain momentum in the air, but Leonard was using the branch instead of his body. Leonard pounced forward like a pebble flung from a slingshot. When his speed seemed to drop a little, he repeated the technique, increasing his acceleration. As such, he consumed almost no internal energy even though he covered a distance that usually needed all his might.
He gained about ninety years of internal energy after breaking through the External Force Tier, but the island still held many unknown threats. He had to use his energy sparingly in case an unexpected situation were to arise.
Owl Plains, huh? I wonder if it will be swarming with a lot of nocturnal monsters.
The Owl Plains were as Leonard had thought.
It was classified as having a 2-skull risk level during the day, but it fluctuated to a 3.5-skull risk level at night, becoming more dangerous than the depths of the Forest of Bones. This was because most of the predators in this area were nocturnal.
Duergar, dwarf-like monsters that lived under the ground like moles; Batling, bat demi-humans that hung upside down in a dark cave; Shadow Hound, a wild dog that couldn't maintain its form in the sun.
However, there was one species of monster that was regarded as the strongest in the Owl Plains.
Owlbears, huh? I wonder what they look like.
Was it a bear with an owl's head? Like a troll, it was registered as Rank B, and it was a monster with a mix of beast- and bird-like features. The Cardenas family ranked it higher than trolls and lower than ogres. It was basically a Rank B monster very close to being classified as Rank A. Like the red trolls, True Demon Tier Owlbears were formidable opponents that should not be underestimated.
"Oh."
After some time, Leonard finally laid eyes on the Owl Plains and couldn't help but let out a gasp of admiration. Unlike forests and swamps, the open plain glowed softly under the moonlight, creating a breathtaking view. But there was a problem.
They sensed me. I'm still using the Waning Moon Fleeting Art, but they're looking exactly toward where I'm standing.
They either had the ability or hypersenses that let them see through stealth martial arts. Upon sensing their gazes, Leonard scattered the fog that had wrapped around him. Instantly, the monsters all over the Owl Plains turned their heads toward him, examining him as if to dissect him. Their actions were proof that most of the monsters inhabiting the area had exceptional eyesight.
If you want to come at me, come anytime.
Leonard's hands twitched a little, ready to draw his sword at any moment. However, a situation that went far beyond his expectations occurred.
"They're not coming?"
Looking dispirited, Leonard looked around. They stared at him as if they were going to pounce on him from all over the place, but they suddenly averted their gazes and hid. It was a clear indication that they had no intention to fight him.
That was one of the tricky parts of the Owl Plains. Unlike monsters that lived under the sun, monsters that roamed in the dark were smart, and they could calculate their chances in fights. If they felt the slightest danger, they would pull out and hide until the right time to attack came. If the right time didn't come, they wouldn't engage in the fight.
Is their temperament closer to the Lower Five Sect than the heretic sects?
Leonard frowned as he recalled the memories of his murim days. Martial artists belonging to the Heretic Path were characterized by their tendencies to bully the weak and fear the strong. They would offer bribes to anyone superior to them and plunder from those inferior to them. They vented the grudges that they had against the strong on the weak.
However, unlike those on the Corrupt Path who adhered strictly to the principle of the strong ruling over the weak, those on the Heretic Path preferred to move in the shadows. They would poison their superior's teacups, install traps in their bedroom, and stab people from behind. They would bow down to the strong in front of them but reveal malice the moment the strong turned their backs.
The Lower Five Sect and those of the Disordered Path are different from them.
Those who spent a long time in the Lower Five Sect valued their lives first and were willing to sell off their colleagues and allies to save themselves. These trashy opportunists changed their sides as if they were flipping a paper, and they were garbage with bug-like natures. They only sought to survive without any beliefs or pride.
Leonard, recalling these unpleasant memories, drew his sword.
"If you guys won't come, I will go to you."
The monsters weren't the only ones with the ability to see through stealth skills. Leonard's mana senses had grown many times sharper and more detailed than when he was in the Body Refining Tier.
If the monsters of the Owl Plains wanted to avoid him, he would just have to hunt them down one by one.
"Whew," Leonard whistled with unease.
He was on edge from recalling the bad blood between him and the Lower Five Sect, and his eyes were filled with killing intent. When he heard a sound, he quickly calmed down and regained composure. Something was fast approaching—something big and strong.
With each leap, it crossed dozens of meters, maybe even more than a hundred meters. The monster was drawing closer to Leonard. Even without extending his mana senses, Leonard could feel the vibrations coming through the ground from a distance.
It's here!
What appeared in his sight was a bear-like beast gliding across the plain. It was an Owlbear, the dominant species in the Owl Plains.
Its luxurious fur was pristine white from head to toe, its head was shaped like an owl's, and its eyes were gleaming like a falcon's. The length of its body was a little less than three meters, but it looked heavier than a troll.
Despite that, its movements are faster and more fluid. Is it because of its bird-type characteristics?
Bears and owls were animals that reigned at the top of the food chain, despite their cute appearances. If the Owlbears were monsters that had inherited only the advantages of those two species, they would be enemies that should not be underestimated.
As if responding to Leonard's thoughts, the quickly approaching Owlbear roared loudly, "Screeech!"
It was an unexpected sound. A mix of a bear's growl and an owl's hoot, the surprisingly cute cry echoed across the plain. It even took Leonard a moment to process what he had just heard. The Owlbear's front paw swung down on the ground, leaving a massive crater in its place.
"Huh, you sure roar so cutely for a predator."
Leonard had witnessed the power of the Owlbear, so he retreated using a movement art, leaving behind a few afterimages. When he secured a distance of five meters, he raised his sword.
Although the Owlbear was at the Mature Demon Tier, it was stronger than a troll of the same rank. It was strong enough to be considered one of the stronger monsters in Rank B2, and it could even win one-on-one against a Fledgling Demon Tier ogre. However, to Leonard, the Owlbear was not a significant threat.
"Well, it's not easy to encounter a True Demon Tier monster right off the bat."
Even if it was in the middle of the night, the Owl Plains would warrant a four-skull risk level if he could encounter a True Demon Tier monster so easily. Against a Rank B3 monster, it was recommended even for apprentice knights in groups to flee for their lives.
In the case of the mana implosion caused by the red troll Leonard had faced, even Bradley would have struggled to escape unscathed. Despite only two True Demon Tier monsters dying—the lycanthrope and the red troll—a large-scale territorial dispute had occurred. That was what the monsters that had reached the True Demon Tier symbolized.
Perhaps realizing that Leonard was looking down on it, the Owlbear puffed up its snowy chest in anger and controlled the wind to fiercely swirl around its body. The wind trimmed the grass growing under the Owlbear's feet, scattering tiny bits of grass everywhere.
As expected, it possesses the metal attribute. The defensive quality of its fur and body must also be considerably high, Leonard immediately guessed when he saw the Owlbear's white fur. Thinking it over again, he became even more convinced of his realization and lowered his sword. The opposing element of the metal element was the fire element.
Five Elements Sword Qi
Flame Blade
A heat haze shimmered around the reddened sword, as if the blade had been dipped in a blast furnace. The cool night air began to warm up.
"Creech!?"
It was a well-known fact that both wild and winged animals were afraid of fire. The Owlbear retreated in bewilderment in the face of the heat. However, Leonard had no intention of letting it back away any further. He moved just slightly past where the Owlbear had retreated.
Five Elements and Six Divinities Arts
Crimson Crow Sun
Burning Heat Stride
Bang!
A loud explosion came from Leonard's heel. If the Water Current Step embodied the profound principle of traveling across a downpour dry, then the Burning Heat Step embodied the profound principle of outrunning a powerful explosion.
A shock wave instantly formed behind him and exceeded the speed of sound. Though protective qi protected him, Leonard's body still ached due to the recoil. Nevertheless, his hand gripping his sword did not shake in the slightest.
A ray of red sword energy flashed. One of the Owlbear's arms was severed without any resistance, and it spun through the air, spraying blood. It was evident just by looking at the arm's burnt cross-section that a huge amount of heat was contained in the blade. It was a power capable of blocking off regenerative power. If the fire energy penetrated the Owlbear, it would be able to burn and destroy the Owlbear's internal organs in a few minutes.
"Cree!? Cawk!? Craaawk!"
The Owlbear screamed from the pain of its arm being cut off and the pain from the fire burning inside its body. When the cutting pain and the burning pain simultaneously washed over it, the Owlbear writhed on the ground.
It was a desperate attempt to extinguish the fire that had invaded it, but the attempt was meaningless. Leonard's Five Elements Qi was many times stronger and faster than the Owlbear's mana. Still, the Owlbear's suffering didn't last long.
With a swift motion, Leonard swung his sword towards its neck, decapitating the Owlbear. Just like that, a Rank B2 monster met a meaningless death.