The Tier-2 beast towered over the group, its obsidian scales gleaming faintly under the forest's eerie light. It exuded an aura of menace that made the air feel heavy. For a moment, no one moved.
Zhu Yan broke the silence, his voice barely above a whisper. "We're dead if we fight this thing head-on."
Xu Mei's grip on her Mirage Blade tightened. "Do you think it'll let us just walk away?"
Li Feng didn't respond immediately. His gaze locked on the beast as his Piercing Sight activated. He scanned the creature, noting its dense energy clusters around its legs and tail—its likely sources of speed and strength. His heart pounded, but he forced himself to stay calm.
"Listen to me," he said, his voice low but firm. "It's faster than us and stronger than us, but it has a blind spot. Look at its neck—there's a crack in the scales near its throat."
Xu Mei narrowed her eyes, trying to spot the weakness. Zhu Yan frowned. "How can you even see that? Are you making this up?"
"I'm not," Li Feng snapped, his voice sharper than intended. "Trust me, or we're all dead."
Lin Yue, standing at the back, spoke up hesitantly. "If... if we distract it, I can create barriers to slow it down. Maybe you can use that opening to strike."
The beast growled, its claws digging into the earth as it prepared to charge.
"No time to argue," Li Feng said, gripping his spear tightly. "Zhu Yan, keep it distracted with your flames. Xu Mei, aim for its legs. Lin Yue, give us cover if it attacks directly. I'll go for the weak spot."
Zhu Yan muttered under his breath, "You better not get us killed, Feng."
The beast lunged, its massive body covering the distance between them in an instant. Lin Yue reacted first, her hands glowing faintly as a shimmering barrier appeared in the creature's path.
The beast slammed into the barrier, the impact sending a shockwave through the ground. Lin Yue staggered, sweat beading on her forehead, but the barrier held long enough for the others to act.
"Now!" Li Feng shouted.
Zhu Yan stepped forward, releasing a torrent of fire that engulfed the beast's head. The flames licked at its obsidian scales, but the creature barely flinched. Instead, it swung its massive tail, forcing Zhu Yan to dive out of the way.
"Xu Mei!"
She darted in, her Mirage Blade flashing as she aimed for the beast's legs. The blade struck, but instead of slicing through, it glanced off the tough scales, leaving only a faint scratch.
"Damn it!" Xu Mei hissed, retreating quickly.
Li Feng gritted his teeth. "Focus! We can't afford mistakes!"
The beast roared, its crimson eyes locking onto Li Feng. It charged, its claws ripping through the ground as it barreled toward him.
"Barrier!" he yelled.
Lin Yue raised her trembling hands, another barrier forming just in time to intercept the beast. The creature slammed into it, cracking the shimmering wall but giving Li Feng the opening he needed.
He sprinted forward, his spear aimed at the weak spot on its neck. Every muscle in his body screamed in protest, but he pushed forward, adrenaline drowning out his fear.
Time seemed to slow as Li Feng reached the beast. Its red eyes glared at him, filled with a primal fury that sent a chill down his spine.
"This is it," he thought.
He thrust the spear forward with all his strength, aiming for the crack in its scales. The weapon pierced the beast's hide, sinking deep into its neck.
The creature let out a deafening roar, thrashing violently as it tried to shake him off. Li Feng clung to the spear, his arms burning from the effort.
"Zhu Yan! Finish it!" he shouted.
Zhu Yan didn't hesitate. With a yell, he unleashed a concentrated burst of fire directly at the spear's entry point. The flames surged into the wound, igniting the beast from within.
The creature's thrashing grew weaker until it finally collapsed, its massive body hitting the ground with a thunderous crash.
For a moment, no one spoke. The group stood frozen, their breathing ragged, staring at the fallen beast.
"We... we actually did it," Zhu Yan said, his voice filled with disbelief.
Xu Mei sheathed her blade, her hands still trembling. "Barely. If that thing had been any stronger..."
Li Feng leaned against the spear, his legs threatening to give out. "But it wasn't. And now we know we can handle weakest of Tier-2 beasts."
Lin Yue approached, her face pale but determined. "Are you alright?" she asked, glancing at the shallow cuts on Li Feng's arms.
"I'll live," he said, offering a faint smile. "You did well, Lin Yue. Your barriers saved us."
She blushed slightly, looking down. "I just... didn't want to be useless."
"You weren't," Xu Mei said firmly. "We couldn't have done this without you."
Zhu Yan nodded. "Yeah, you're tougher than you look. Welcome to the team, I guess."
Lin Yue smiled faintly, a hint of relief in her eyes.
Li Feng approached the beast's body, his Piercing Sight still active. Faint energy trails emanated from its corpse, leading to a small, glowing object embedded in its chest.
"There's something inside it," he said.
Xu Mei frowned. "What kind of something?"
"Only one way to find out."
Using his spear, Li Feng carefully cut into the beast's chest, revealing a crystalline orb pulsating with a soft blue light.
"A Core," Zhu Yan said, his eyes widening. "That's a Tier-2 Beast Core!"
Xu Mei crossed her arms. "That's worth a fortune. Or... it could be used to strengthen our abilities."
Li Feng held the Core in his hand, feeling its energy pulse through his fingertips. His Abyssal Nexus activated, a new notification appearing on his CS:
Beast Core Detected. Consume to Gain Abyssal Points or Enhance Current Abilities.
He hesitated, glancing at his teammates. "We should decide together. Do we sell it, or do we use it to get stronger?"
Zhu Yan scratched the back of his head. "It's tempting to sell, but honestly, I'd rather we use it. If this was just a Tier-2 beast, imagine what's waiting deeper in the forest."
Xu Mei nodded. "Agreed. We'll need every advantage we can get."
Lin Yue looked unsure. "But... who gets to use it?"
Li Feng thought for a moment before speaking. "We'll rotate. I'll use this one as I want to figure something out during the process,and The next one goes to one of you."
The others exchanged glances before nodding.
"Fair enough," Xu Mei said.
"Just don't hog all the good stuff yourself ," Zhu Yan added with a grin.
Li Feng smiled faintly, holding the Core tightly. As he absorbed its energy, warmth spread through his body, and a new notification appeared:
Abyssal Points Gained: +120
Piercing Sight Upgraded: Greater Range and Energy Detail Added.
This was different from others as when others consumed the core using celestial screens option ,they will get celestial points instead of abyssal points ( a tier 2 core gives 60 CP to 100 CP but he got 120 Abyssal points as the beast had 60 Combact rating, Although both CP and AP have same value but if he absorbs the core using the nexus then he gains double amount of AP this was also one of the advantage of the abyssal nexus as of now)
The warmth faded, leaving Li Feng feeling sharper, more focused.
"Are you all ready to face the upcoming dangers ," he said, determination lighting his eyes.