Moving forward toward the mine, the journey was lengthy. The area was too vast. Only after five hours of walking did they arrive. Along the way, Valt eliminated some common beasts and had a meal. Before leaving home, he had brought salt and a lighter in his pocket.
In front of the mine, there was a cave shrouded in a veil that resembled a volcano, but instead of lava, it was composed of ore.
Leaving Felix outside, he entered the mine alone. His chicken would be of no use in the fight and would only distract him.
The mine was composed of four levels descending to its depths. Valt was on the fourth level, where only common or one-star monsters resided. Ignoring these creatures, he preferred not to waste time and went straight to the third level.
Upon arrival, he found a labyrinth. The walls were made of iron ore. The place also exuded an intense stench, and the air was filled with a strong smell of blood. Even with a bandana, the odor was unbearable.
Looking up, Valt was met with a savage scene where the strong devoured the weak: snakes attacked rats, giant spiders devoured snakes, and so on, with a stronger predator always overcoming a weaker one.
Feeling this so directly, Valt's stomach churned for a moment, but thinking of what lay ahead, where it would be even worse, he controlled his emotions. The path of a strong person inevitably passes through grotesque situations.
Jumping onto the walls, he followed the trajectory he had memorized to complete the mission: advancing, turning left, then right, right again, and going straight ahead. His memory wasn't bad, so he could easily retain the path.
Upon reaching the objective, he leaped from the wall and landed on the ground. In front of him was a vast field of ores scattered throughout the area.
This was home to the most powerful monsters on the third level. The most common types were: Iron-Horned Bull, Grey Eagle, and Metal-Swallowing Serpent.
Not wanting to engage in a solitary fight against thousands of monsters, he hid behind a large rock, crouching, searching for an isolated Iron-Horned Bull.
Valt ignored the other monsters because he didn't know if they were edible. For this reason, he had thus far followed missions without capturing other creatures. He didn't want to risk being poisoned due to a mistake.
Observing carefully, without losing a second, he soon saw a bull straying from the group and heading toward gray water, corroded by the ores.
Seizing the opportunity, he crawled like a snake across the rocks until he got close to the black bull with silvery-gray horns, like aluminum, drinking the water carelessly, its guard down.
Seeing his chance, Valt stood up and launched himself at the bull with impressive speed. He leaped onto its horns, landed on its back, pressed his foot against its belly, and, using the horns as leverage, spun it like a Beyblade, performing a 360-degree maneuver.
As the bull spun in the air, Valt positioned himself beneath the creature. With both hands, he applied pressure to the bull's neck, snapping it with a dry crack. The animal had no time to react or make any sound that could alert the others.
When the bull fell, its weight unbalanced Valt, who was thrown into the gray water.
"Pff." The impact produced a muffled sound.
The corrosive water tried to engulf him, but a thin layer of Qi glowed around him, protecting him.
Soon, the surface rippled slightly as he emerged, unharmed. Climbing back to the surface, he dragged the bull out, leaving a wet trail on the rocks as he returned to solid ground.
After pulling the animal to a safe location, he let out a sigh of relief. "I still remember what I learned in my childhood."
For a moment, he was lost in the memories of his training, smiling to himself. But soon, the next challenge occupied his thoughts: how to get out of there with the bull? The path he had taken would be impossible. The size of the animal would attract the attention of other monsters.
"Looks like I'll have to wait until nightfall," he thought. "If this meat isn't enough, I can find other options. With my enhanced cultivation, this place won't be a problem."
Formulating his plans, he returned to the mine entrance to fetch Felix. After ensuring the path was safe, he returned to the ore field. Sitting beside the dead bull, he waited for night to fall.
After an unknown amount of time, night finally arrived. The mine grew dark, and nothing could be seen with the naked eye. Valt, seated, didn't panic but took advantage of the moment to absorb the moon's energy, even without being able to see. The technique worked.
Above him, small spheres of energy descended and entered his body, increasing his strength. However, as Valt's talent wasn't very high in cultivation and he relied on his unique ability, the amount of Qi absorbed wasn't significant.
On the Blue Star, besides abilities, there is something essential for a strong person: talent, which determines the speed of Qi absorption. There are people with exceptional talents capable of absorbing up to a thousand units of Qi per hour, such as the Martial Lord, one of the most powerful figures on the Human Continent, the Emperor of the Dragon Empire, Tian We.
Despite this, Valt didn't worry about talent. Who cares about talent when you can receive a hundredfold return? And it even accumulates! Imagine a year of cultivation being converted into a hundred years of progress. In this world, who could be crazier than him? That's why he acted cautiously. Revealing this unique ability would create more problems than benefits.
Continuing the absorption process, Valt endured longer than the previous night but eventually reached his limit.
[You endured for three hours – 150 lunar Qi were collected.]
"Three times more than before... As expected, the warrior level is about breaking limits. Three stars, three times better than an ordinary human."
"Felix, come here." He spoke into the darkness, with no idea where the chicken was. However, it quickly appeared in front of him, jumping into his arms. "Does this chicken know about my ability? What does it think of me? Too bad only monsters at the warrior level and above can speak. And at higher levels, they can even transform into humans... That's interesting."
Touching the chicken, Valt transferred the cultivation he had obtained.
[You gave four hours of cultivation to your chicken. +100 hours accumulated (not returned). You received 400 hours of cultivation (16 days and 16 hours).]
[Congratulations! You have reached the Five-Star Warrior Realm.]
Feeling the immense power flowing through his body, Valt smiled. However, the moment soon came when he lost control and was overtaken by irrational hunger.
"Hahaha! Hunger! I want to eat! This place will be my hunting ground for the next sixteen days!"
The third area screwed! A glutton emerged.
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N/A: 1000 - 2000 - 4000 - 8000 - 16,000. The amount of Qi required for warriors always doubles compared to the previous level.