(TWO MONTHS LATER)
Ethan was sitting on the branch of a massive tree. He was in rapt attention and the centre of his attention was a beast below the tree. It was a big beast, almost 7 feet in length white in colour. It belonged to the species of the wild wolf. The cultivation of the beast was at peak 0f 4th Order Spiritual Realm, just a little bit short of breaking into the 5th Order.
This was the same beast which had injure Ethan previously and after 2 months, Ethan had luckily encountered this beast again.
Ethan, sitting on the tree, in his hands was holding a massive bone almost 7 feet in length. This was the spine of one of the beasts Ethan killed in the past 2 month- a beast of 5th order.
Ethan's cultivation and strength had increased considerable in these past 2 months and now he had broken from 3rd Order Spiritual Realm to 4th Order.
Ethan might have cultivated even faster but first he had solidified his foundation. Ethan, when he had only been Marcus, had remained cautious to not rush through his cultivation and build a good foundation but the panic of increasing his cultivation had affected him. So, though, the foundation was good it was not the best or extraordinary.
Additionally, with now ability of Ethan's physique and spiritual veins to adjust, adapt and evolve, Ethan had further solidified his foundation giving him a massive power boost. Killing the beast of 5th order had not been a difficult task for him.
The beast below Ethan stirred but it failed to notice Ethan's presence. Ethan in the past two months had practiced hiding his presence and cultivation and had made considerable progress in it.
Ethan narrowed his eyes and with a push from his legs jumped from the tree. The commotion attracted the wolf's attention but before it could react, the bone had pierced it neck. A fountain of blood gurgled from the injury as it howled in pain. The bone had gone across the neck and had pinned it to the ground. It let out a loud scream as it thrashed in pain but failed to move as Ethan kept the bone struck in the ground.
Ethan made a somersault jump and landed in front of the wolf facing directly in its eyes. The bone now free from Ethan's grip was easily uprooted by the wolf's push.
In a final act of defiance, the wolf rushed madly towards to Ethan. Even if he was dying, it would be good to take his killer along with him.
The wolf closed the distance and using the last bit of his strength made a leap towards Ethan.
Ethan smirked as he tightened his fist and at the last moment delivered a punch on the wolf's jaw.
The wolf's jaw was shattered from the impact. It was sent flying for some distance before it was sent tumbling backwards. The wolf was dead.
With a sigh of relief on having his revenge, Ethan arrived near the wolf's corpse and pulled out the spine bone. In absence of any weapon, it had been quite a useful tool for Ethan.
He then gushed his hand into the injury and pulled out a red ball like structure, the size of two combined fists from wolf's insides. It was the monster core of the wolf.
He gave last look at the wolf as he walked back towards his cave in which he had been living for the past two months.
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The first thing which Ethan did, after arriving in the cave, was to sit cross legged and start refining the monster core. It took him around an hour to refine the core as he opened his face with a dissatisfied expression.
"My absorption speed in getting faster and faster," Ethan muttered with a frow. "I have been here for 2 months… and though it seems a lot of time, I have not hunted more than 25 beasts."
This was because Ethan was on the extreme periphery of the forest and not too many beasts stayed here. In the periphery, one would only find those beasts who would occasionally wander towards the edge of the forest. He sat there contemplating if he should move a little bit further inside the forest.
"Forget it," he sighed. "Other than swinging my fists, I do not have a proper battle technique."
"And if I encounter something in True Spiritual Realm, I am dead," he muttered.
"I should return first and then plan my future," he contemplated.
Having decided to make a return, Ethan walked towards the end of the cave. At the corner, a skull bone of the beast had been placed upside down. Inside the skull was blood- blood of a beast with affinity towards poisons.
"Though I am not lucky as many protagonists to find some ancient artecrafts or inheritances or some old geezer as mentor, finding a poison attributed beast at the extreme periphery of the forest can also be called a luck," Ethan smiled brightly.
With this he pulled out another bone, the size of a dagger, tied at his waist and made a deep slash at this palm.
Without any hesitation, he placed his palm in the blood and started circulating his basic cultivation manual.
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[Thank you for reading. Give a review and leave your opinion. Comment your views. And send the Power Stones.]