Chapter 205: In the Wild [4]

Six identical clones were formed… No—

I could feel that the seventh clone could now be easily formed, with no burden on my mana core.

I willed more mana through my core, and—

The seventh clone was formed, as I felt no stress on my mana reserves whatsoever.

The turtle stopped for a moment as it moved its head in rapid succession, seeing each of my clones in detail—

“GRAAAHHH!”

The monster let out another roar, as if it was establishing its dominance in the battle.

All six of my clones were equipped with their individual swords, as each of them separated to surround the creature from all sides.

I stayed in the same place, observing the creature in silence.

The clones still shared one-tenth of my power, as the percentage didn’t seem to increase with the advancement in my core’s rank.

Maybe improving the compatibility of the ability with my body and mana core, was the only way to boost the power that my clones could possibly display.

The monster too stood at its place, as it observed my clones surrounding it from all sides.

Haa…

There was a short silence, as neither of us moved, but the silence didn’t last long—

Swoosh!

Clank!

Swoosh!

Swoosh!

Clank!

Clank!

BAM!

One of my clones which was high up in the air, aiming for the moment where the turtle’s neck was out of its shell, was intercepted by the turtle’s head as it crashed into the clone’s stomach with its jaw wide open.

The clone used its sword to intercept the attack, but—

The power behind the strike was too overwhelming for my clone.

BOOM!

As its body flew in the air, I switched myself with the clone at the last second, before crashing into one of the trees.

“Ughh.”

A pained groan escaped my lips though there was no blood to accompany it.

The reason I had switched my body was pretty simple.

Though the monster’s attack was lethal… it was lethal for the clone, not me.

If I hadn’t switched at the last moment, the clone could have suffered twice the damage—

One being rammed by the head while the other being crashed into a tree that was too sturdy even for a Gold core, as this was the great forest of Azuna.

Losing the clone for such mere damage wasn’t something that I was willing to bet on.

Though my clones shared my regenerative abilities… there was no need to risk it, as I knew that the attack wouldn’t be able to kill my real body.

The clone after being switched with me, stood at my previous place, before quickly joining its comrades to corner the beast, that had now grown agitated with the constant annoyance from all sides.

All the damage that I had sustained was healed in seconds, as I stood up, dusting my clothes in the process.

Directing my clones, I made them attack all of the monster’s limbs at the same time, so as to keep its head engaged with them.

The moment the clones followed my commands, the turtle was overwhelmed by the attacks as tiny cuts began to cover its limbs, making the creature roar in pain and… frustration.

Haa…

The fight was being extended more than necessary, though that should have been expected.

Once again I was reminded of how unpredictable this world could be.

The moment I thought I could take it easy with this monster… it turned out that the creature was far more resilient than expected, despite not being lethal enough for me.

With only its jaw as a weapon, the turtle couldn’t really kill me, but at the same time, killing it was proving to be a little tedious.

As the monster’s head was out in the open for far longer than its earlier strikes, I willed more mana through the muscles in my legs and arms, to bolster my power to its maximum extent possible.

I waited for the monster to be distracted enough to take a final shot.

Having six enemies attacking it, the creature tried its best to fend off the attacks.

Sometimes the clones would have their swords bouncing against the turtle’s hard shell, while at other times, they would simply have to dodge the massive limbs that the monster lifted from time to time in order to crush them underneath its weight.

But all of its attacks were rendered useless, as each of my clones was in perfect condition without sustaining any lethal damage.

All minor injuries were quickly healed with my regenerative abilities, though they consumed an equal amount of my mana reserves.

Haa…

I could feel that the moment was near.

Right now… I was some twenty feet away from the creature, as it engaged its entire body with my clones, without sensing my presence, and—

How could it?

I had purposefully lowered my mana presence, coupled with the fact that my enemy was a Gold core…

There—

Swoosh!

One second I was staring at the turtle and the next moment my sword came down at the base of its neck just near where its shell began.

Spurt!

In a smooth arc, the turtle’s neck was severed from it’s base.

Thud!

The surroundings turned silent as a flood of mana essence surged in my direction.

I didn’t resist it as the essence was absorbed into my core.

The dopamine release hit me, as I felt my power increasing with every passing second.

Within seconds the entirety of the mana essence was absorbed into my core, leaving behind a corpse which soon turned cold.

Blood pooled beneath the turtle’s body, seeping into the ground below.

The grass too turned a shade of red.

Hm?

Just as I was about to proceed for my next target, Chroma appeared beside the monster’s body, observing it in silence for a second, before—

CRACK!

In a single fluid motion, Red cracked open the turtle’s shell before heading deeper and taking out its… heart in the process.

I thought the hydra would eat it, but Red spat the heart from its mouth on the ground, as one of Chroma’s feet squashed it without mercy.

Sigh.

I really had to grow stronger.

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