After a while, Ren finished eating the entire chameleon's body, swallowing all the broken mask fragments along with it.
This battle against the giant virtual chameleon had been dangerous, but the reward was more than worth it. Although Ren's body size hadn't increased, his spiritual pressure had nearly doubled, and his strength had taken a significant leap.
At this moment, Ren was brimming with confidence. Even if the chameleon were to resurrect and fight him again, he was certain of victory. This time, he wouldn't even need to rely on a false flash to sever its tongue in advance—he would still come out on top.
Beside him, the little yellow dog had astonishingly finished devouring a portion of meat larger than its entire body. The small creature now appeared significantly stronger, its frame much sturdier than before.
"Woof!"
The little yellow dog barked at Ren with a hint of joy.
"You're saying you can help heal my injuries?"
Despite the dog's barking resembling that of an ordinary puppy, Ren found himself understanding its meaning. Curious, he gently picked up the pup and placed it on his shoulder.
The little yellow dog leaped from his shoulder to his back, where it began licking the two bloodied wounds that were on the verge of scabbing over. A miraculous scene unfolded—wounds that should have taken much longer to heal instantly mended, the scars falling away as Ren's back was restored to its original state.
"I didn't expect you to have this ability. In that case, follow me!"
"Woof!"
The little yellow dog barked twice in response, as if acknowledging Ren's words, before settling obediently on his left shoulder.
Ren used his tail to coil around the two bone spurs that had gravely wounded him and swiftly departed with the little yellow dog.
In an underground cave, naturally formed by the hardening of wind and sand, the little yellow dog lay curled up in a corner, sleeping soundly—still digesting the flesh and blood it had consumed earlier.
Ren sat staring at the two massive bone spurs in his hands. In the previous battle, these very spurs had inflicted serious injuries on him. He had initially intended to devour them as well, but upon attempting to bite into one, he found that his current teeth were unable to break it down. A single bite had nearly cracked his fangs. So, he had decided to keep them instead.
The more he examined them, the more they reminded him of the spikes on Gilian's neck. How had the chameleon even obtained them? Recalling how he had been poisoned when he killed the chameleon bare-handed, Ren made up his mind—these bone spurs would serve as his weapons.
Every Blue Star man had dreamed of mastering martial arts, and Ren was no exception. In his past life, he had even gone out of his way to study swordsmanship under a renowned swordsman, spending a hefty sum on lessons.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that the sword techniques he once practiced for leisure would now prove invaluable.
Ren focused, recalling the fundamentals of swordsmanship in his mind:
'The eight basic movements—thrust, slash, lift, hang, cloud, point, collapse, and cut.'
It was clear that these bone spurs were best suited for thrusting techniques. However, mastery lay in precision, not quantity. Ren needed only to perfect his thrust to effectively counter opponents with vague and weak intelligence.
He grasped a bone spur in both hands, arms extended straight, aligning the weapon with his body. With a sudden thrust forward, the wind howled from the sheer force of his movement—it was starting to take form.
Again and again, Ren practiced his thrusting technique, stabbing through the air within the underground cave.
"Hah, being a hollow really is more convenient than being human!"
Back in his previous life, long hours of overtime had left him with little time for physical exercise, tiring him out after just a few swings of a practice sword. Now, as a hollow, he had executed thousands of thrusts in a row without even breaking a sweat.
Meanwhile, the little yellow dog, now awake, gazed at him with a puzzled expression. Its small head tilted as it watched the large figure repeatedly attacking thin air, unable to comprehend what he was doing.
In the vast desert of the virtual circle, a new location.
"Qua!"
A frog hollow , standing at nearly five meters tall with a grotesquely bloated red body, was chasing a much smaller hollow in the form of a yellow dog. The little yellow dog-sized hollow darted across the dunes with astonishing agility, easily evading its pursuer. Just when the frog was about to give up, the smaller hollow unexpectedly slowed down.
Seeing this, the frog resumed its chase with renewed determination. The little yellow dog hollow suddenly veered toward a sand dune—and then, without warning, came to an abrupt stop.
Seeing this, Frog hollow let out a frantic scream and lunged at its prey. However, the moment it landed, a sharp bone spur hidden beneath the sand pierced through its body.
At the same time, a violent surge of thunderous energy crackled through the bone spur, sending electric arcs coursing through Frog hollow's form. Its body convulsed helplessly as it struggled in vain.
Frog hollow let out a pained shriek, its eyes locking onto the dog-shaped hollow before it. Rage burned in its gaze, desperate to tear its opponent apart. But before it could act, the little yellow dog nimbly darted in the opposite direction, slipping through an opening beneath the frog's massive belly.
Ren seized the opportunity and burst out of the sand, bone spur in hand. With a powerful slash, he cleaved through the Frog hollow's body, slicing it in half.
"Good job, Rhubarb!" Ren praised as he began to divide the spoils near the sand dune. Tearing off one of the frog's hind legs, he tossed it to the little yellow dog before taking a bite himself.
During their time in this newfound land, Ren and the little yellow dog had developed a successful hunting strategy—Rhubarb would lure their targets while Ren struck the killing blow. Using this method, they had already taken down more than a dozen giant hollows , five of which were particularly strong. This level of efficiency was several times greater than when Ren had hunted alone.
With each battle, Ren's mastery of the stinging sword improved significantly. He had learned to channel his flashing thunder into the bone spurs, increasing their lethality. It was this very technique that had allowed him to kill Frog in a single strike, despite it being of equal strength to him.
The only drawback was the bone spur itself. Originally suited for the giant chameleon hollow' s size, it was slightly too long for Ren's current form, making it somewhat awkward to wield as a sword.
But this was only a temporary issue. Ren could feel the spiritual pressure within him accumulating. It seemed that he was on the verge of evolution—one more fresh life to devour, and he would ascend to the rank of a giant hollow.
Once his body grew, these bone spurs would fit him perfectly.
Determined not to waste time, Ren resolved to strike while the iron was hot. Today would be the day he advanced to the giant hollow!
"Roar!"
Just as he took a few steps forward, a crocodile-shaped hollow appeared, charging toward him recklessly, as if it had a death wish.
"What a coincidence!" Ren mused with amusement.
Rhubarb, perched on his shoulder, blinked its large eyes in confusion. It tilted its head as if wondering why the crocodile was so eager to meet its end.
Ren wasted no time. The bone spur in his hand shot forward like a lightning bolt, skewering the ignorant creature in an instant.
One clean strike. One decisive kill.
But Ren did not devour it immediately. Instead, he hoisted the lifeless body onto his back and carried it to the underground cave. He knew that his impending evolution required a safe space—one where he wouldn't be vulnerable to attacks from hollows of the same level.
The time for his transformation had come.