Chapter 28: The Call of the Depths and a Familiar Shadow

The warmth of their deepened bond was a potent fuel, but the relentless drive for power still burned within Adam. He uncoiled, his massive wings stretching and casting a dark shadow over the glowing grove.

“Alice,” he projected, his mental voice filled with renewed purpose. “Let’s hunt. There’s a fragment I need to complete—the one that lets me feel the earth itself. After that, there’s nothing left for us in this forest.”

Alice was on her feet in an instant, a spark of excitement in her amber eyes. “Yes! Hunting with you is the best! And my new skill will help!” The idea of using her Void Bind in a real hunt clearly thrilled her.

They took to the air, Adam’s powerful wingbeats carrying them above the canopy. His Seismic Sense was like a sonar net cast over the land below, and it wasn’t long before he pinpointed his target: a Granite-Hide Lizard, a creature whose very existence was tied to the stone around it. It was perfect for the final piece of his Earthshaker fragment.

The hunt was a masterclass in their new synergy. Adam dove from the sky, drawing the lizard’s attention. As the creature turned to face him, roaring a challenge, a flicker of violet light announced Alice’s arrival. She didn’t attack, she simply appeared nearby and activated Void Bind.

Invisible tethers of spatial energy snapped into existence, latching onto the lizard’s limbs and anchoring it to the ground. It roared in confusion, its powerful struggles suddenly sluggish and constrained, as if it were trying to move through thick mud.

“Perfect!” Adam thought, surging forward. He didn’t need Phantom Onslaught or a fancy aerial maneuver. With the target utterly immobilized, he landed before it and delivered a single, point-blank Mantis Slash to its skull. The fight was over before it began.

Consuming the lizard yielded the final fragment.

[ Earthshaker Fragment: 1.0/1.0! ]

[ New Skill Acquired: Earthshaker (Active) – Cost: High Mana/Stamina ]

Effect:Channel power into the ground, unleashing a damaging shockwave in a targeted area that stuns and damages enemies.

He felt the power settle within him, a dormant earthquake waiting for his command. He looked around at the beautiful, deadly forest. They had conquered it. They had farmed its creatures, completed its fragments, and even culled a party of arrogant adventurers.

A cold realization dawned on him. “Alice, those humans we fought… they were strong, but they were not the pinnacle. If a party of their level could operate here, then this entire zone… it’s still a beginner area. A middle tier, at best.”

Alice’s thought came back, sharp and understanding. “You are right. This place is a nursery. The true deep dark… it is below.”

It was time to leave. They flew, not across the forest, but downward, seeking the tunnels that led to the true depths. The air grew colder, the light from the glowing fungi faded, replaced by an oppressive, ancient darkness that even their enhanced senses struggled to pierce.

After a long descent through a winding, colossal shaft, they emerged into a vast, familiar cavern. It was the place where his world had shattered. The scarred floor, the shattered stalactites—it was the very chamber where the Cave Roc had crashed down, leading to his near-fatal fall.

And there, perched high on a rocky outcrop as if it owned the place, was the Roc itself. It was preening its feathers, looking larger and more menacing than he remembered. This was no mere lesser kin; this was the very creature whose ambush had sent him tumbling into the abyss, broken and bleeding.

A wave of pure rage washed over Adam. The memory of the impact, the sound of his own bones breaking, the helplessness—it all came rushing back. This beast was the architect of his greatest suffering.

The Roc hadn’t noticed them yet, its head tucked under a wing.

Adam landed silently at the cavern’s entrance, his eyes fixed on the giant bird. A slow, predatory grin spread across his face, devoid of humor, filled only with the promise of long-awaited retribution.

“Alice,” he thought, his mental voice as cold as the stone beneath them. “Stay back and watch. This one is mine.”

It was time to settle the score.

“Yes, beat him, Adam,” Alice said happily and believed that Adam would win.

The air grew still, charged with Adam’s cold fury. He didn’t charge in blindly. His Human Ingenuity combined with a predator’s instinct to form a perfect, lethal strategy.

He didn’t target the Roc directly. Instead, he focused on the stalactite-laden ceiling above its perch. With a sharp beat of his wings, he unleashed Gale Slash. A blade of compressed wind shot upward, not at the rock, but at the base of the largest, most precarious stalactite.

The precision strike cracked it cleanly. With a groan of shifting stone, the massive spike of rock plummeted down.

“Haha, finally we meet again.”

The Cave Roc, alerted by the sound, looked up and shrieked, launching itself from its perch just in time. The stalactite shattered where it had been sitting, but the Roc was now airborne and disoriented—exactly what Adam wanted.

As the Roc flapped upwards, furious, Adam used Phantom Onslaught. He vanished from his position and reappeared directly above the bird. He didn’t attack. Instead, he opened his jaws and expelled a cloud of Venom Mist. The thick, toxic fog enveloped the Roc’s head, causing it to choke and screech in panic, its vision and breathing compromised.

Blinded and disoriented, the Roc swiped wildly with its talons. Adam had already teleported away, using the second dash of Phantom Onslaught to appear below it. This time, he struck. A Mantis Slash carved a deep gash along its underbelly. The Roc shrieked in pain, but Adam was gone again, using the final dash to put distance between them.

“How is it? Do you like it?”

The Roc, now bleeding and enraged, located him and dove, its beak aimed like a spear. Adam stood his ground. He beat his wings, sending a second Gale Slash to meet its charge. The wind blade slammed into its chest, shredding feathers and staggering it mid-dive. In that moment of imbalance, Adam fired a volley of Crystal Shard Shots, the projectiles peppering its wings and face.

The Roc was wounded, grounded, and furious. It lunged forward for a final, desperate peck. Adam didn’t dodge. He coiled and unleashed his newest power. He slammed the base of his body against the ground, channeling mana and force.

Earthshaker.

A visible shockwave erupted from the point of impact, rippling through the stone floor. The wave hit the charging Roc, and the cavern echoed with the sound of the concussive blast. The monster was thrown off its feet, tumbling head over heels in a cloud of dust and shattered rock, completely stunned.

Adam didn’t give it a moment to recover. He used Phantom Onslaught to close the distance in an instant. As the dazed Roc tried to rise, Adam’s coils wrapped around its long neck. He squeezed with all his enhanced Strength, activating Constrict. There was a sickening crunch. The Roc’s struggles ceased.

He had done it. He had outsmarted the creature that had once been his doom.

[ Defeated: Cave Roc (Lvl 24) ]

[ +130 EXP | +190 EP ]

A cascade of energy washed over him as the long-awaited level-up finally arrived.

[ Ding! Level Up! ]

[ You are now Level 28! ]

[ Next Level: 15/145 ]

[ Skill Point: +1 ]

[ Evolution Points: 1212 -> 1402/2500 ]

He consumed the Roc, the act feeling like a ritual of closure. The last ghost of his greatest failure was laid to rest.

He looked over at Alice, who had watched the entire battle with rapt attention. “See?” he thought to her, the cold rage replaced by a warm thrum of victory. “We won.”

“You were magnificent,” she replied, her mental voice full of pride.

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