Three more Demonic Wolves slowly make their way toward me through the darkness. This time around I'm much more confident in my abilities and have a core full of Energy ready to coarse through my veins for a barrage of deadly attacks.
Once the first pair of red glowing eyes gets close enough, I let my attack fly without hesitating for a moment.
The thin blade of darkness cuts through the fog and ends in nearly the exact same fashion as its fallen foe before. The monster realizes it's being shot at and moves out of the way only to be critically injured before it's too late.
It whimpers as it's thrown backward and the two wolves behind it growl while speeding up toward me jumping past their injured ally.
I smirk, sending off another blade of energy at the next closest one to watch it swerve to my left and narrowly dodge a vital blow. It still skims its hide, but the wolf continues charging on with its remaining partner not too far behind.
Another attack flies out from my fingertips, but the monster lunges to the right to avoid most of my strike. It gets hit again, but its speed doesn't slow.
I clench my jaw and focus as the two remaining wolves start to approach the barrier between the Demonic Energy and the clear air of the outside world.
Using both hands, I let out a dual attack to make sure no matter which side it jumps to next the creature will be wounded. As predicted, the monster faces its final moments just a few meters from the slowly shifting black wall of matter.
The remaining wolf on the other hand seems to have different plans.
It jumps over its fallen ally and breaks through the wall of darkness with a growl and pulsing red eyes. I wasn't sure if it was even possible for them to come out from the Abyss, but it seems my question has been answered.
The wolf creature is no longer just an outline of fur, teeth, and glowing red eyes.
The monster looks like an alien being.
"This is no normal dungeon monster...."
Its thick fur gushes out Refined Demonic Energy with every step it takes. Not much, but enough to notice that trace amounts of the raw material in its body are being used and dissolved into the air like a life force.
It wasn't very clear when it was under a veil of black clouds, but out in the open it's clear that there is a black and dark purple aura constantly coming off of its body.
Saliva drips from its row of fangs and the beast follows a random zig-zag pattern kicking up sand as it runs closer. It watched me take down its friends and has already learned from their mistakes.
I react by releasing 2 more waves of thin energy toward the wolf, but its erratic movements and sand in the air allow it to only be grazed by one blade. Again, I release two more as it comes closer and closer only to hit its side making a deep gash but not slowing down the Demonic Wolf by any means
It jumps in the air with claws outreached and fangs ready to sink deep into my flesh. I release my final 2 waves of dark energy and they impale its body from close range. One through the heart and the other straight through the underside of its neck to pierce its skull.
I fall backward onto the hot sandy incline behind me and the Demonic Creature lands with a loud thud as well.
I let out a sigh, then chuckle to myself while standing to my feet.
If I was in my normal form not wielding Demonic Energy, these beasts would be a breeze. With their speed and reflexes taken into account, the wolves I just faced are hardly that of a level 100 mob.
I'm just not used to combat without using my mana-imbued items and skills. They caught me off guard, but I easily handled it before it was too late.
"Well... that's one problem taken care of, but my questions are not answered... In fact, now I have more."
I put my hands on my waist and stare down at the lifeless wolf creature pretending to wait for a response, then use my manipulation skill to refine the the raw energy seeping from its fallen corpse.
Not wasting any time, I absorb the energy from its two partners as well. Each of them has between 7 and 10 units floating inside them. The more strength and power they exert, it seems as though they would use up more of the energy leaving less raw matter behind.
As tested previously by the first wolf, the moment their raw energy stores run out, they die. It's their life force energy, but also their means to use strength and power.
Even now, an odd phenomenon is taking place. The corpse of the fallen monster is beginning to dissolve into the air at a rapid rate. Just like the refined energy from the Abyss, it is being consumed and evaporated by the atmosphere.
Wracking my brain for a better explanation than my loosely thrown-together theory, I deactivate my Demonic Energy manipulation skill to let the color of the world flood back in around me.
It would have been a refreshing shift, if not for the fact that the corpse of the black wolf disappears completely from my vision.
All that remains in its place is a tiny black gem. Its glossy surface reflects the sun's rays.
I gulp, walking over to it and switching my vision back and forth to see the monster reappear and disappear every time I change my skill. For every passing second the remains of the creature get smaller and smaller in my Demonic Vision, while for some reason I'm unable to see the beast at all while using my mana senses.
It takes less than half a minute before the only thing remaining in both of my visions is the black stone on the floor.
Picking it up from the golden sand and holding it in my palm, I can confirm it's exactly like the stone from the Knights in the Labyrinth. The only difference is their size. This gem is not even 1/5 as large as the Knights from the 25th Floor.
"Still.... It's a clue."
Putting the stone into my item storage, I think about whether or not I should enter the Abyss to try and scavenge the remaining stones.
For now, it's not a smart idea to step into unknown territory without more information. It's best I battle more of their kind at this lower level before doing anything rash.
I begin walking along the edge of the abyss while scanning for more enemies.
A few hours pass and I repeat more of the same.
Using Demonic Energy as well as mana crescents every 500 meters or so to attract trouble, a few low growls and glowing red eyes pop up in my vision and a similar scenario plays out.
If I release two slashes at once I can take down the lone wolves without giving them the option to call for help.
Aside from the wolves, the further from the city I get, the more I extend my manipulation sensors into the darkness. Deep within, it's harder to sense at this distance but I feel the presence of a few creatures wielding well over 30 Demonic Energy in their bodies.
This is another reason for killing my prey swiftly is to not alert these friends. I'm curious to know what these powerful monsters are, but I'm unsure if my crude attacks will be as effective on them compared to these wolves.
No more unnecessary risks. Today, I stick to what I'm good at.
I manage to defeat 6 more wolves of similar strength and stature in total, but only 1 more allows me to kill it outside of the Abyss.
While absorbing the last opponent's energy my core nears 50 Demonic Energy Units stored inside. To my surprise, I begin to feel an odd pressure in my chest. I begin to have trouble holding all of the refined energy inside.
Trace amounts of black energy leak from my core, through my energy pathways, and out all my pores very slowly in a dark mist-like form.
It's a cool sensation. Almost invigorating.
It doesn't hurt, but I don't like the fact that I'm not doing it on purpose. If I were forced to switch back to using mana right now, it wouldn't be pretty.
"Whatever is happening, it can't continue until I understand this better."
I release enough energy from my core in thin streams from my fingertips to allow it to rest at a stable level. Around 45 Units seems to be my max without it spilling out in an erratic fashion or that odd pressure in my chest getting worse.
With a sigh of relief as the oozing black energy stops coming out, I whisper under my breath again.
"That's enough for today."
At this point, I'm far from the city and observatory I was meant to keep an eye on, and over half the day has already gone by. These have been some interesting tests and a great step forward in my research.
I step away from the edge of darkness and begin walking back to the abandoned village.
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