Bloodthirst

The Black Armor Giant Ape, after devouring those dark red energies, didn't increase in size, but its blood and energy became even more vigorous, full of vitality, as if its life force had greatly increased.

It felt its whole body brimming with energy.

Furthermore, deep within the Black Armor Giant Ape's body, some kind of change was faintly occurring, involving its soul.

Thinking of this, the Black Armor Giant Ape moved its mind and summoned its attribute page.

Then it saw that on the data bar belonging to its human form, the attribute representing defense was blurring, disappearing, and then the words re-condensed.

The defense attribute became soul, and it increased at a speed visible to the naked eye, rising from 13 points of soul all the way to 21.

At the same time, a new data column appeared below the giant beast attribute column.

Talent: Bloodthirst [Condensed by absorbing the power of an epic Demon Soul, the Bloodthirst Demon Mark can absorb the enemy's blood during battle, continuously restoring its own consumption]

This... Looking at the newly acquired talent's description, the Black Armor Giant Ape fell into silence.

This talent wasn't very strong, not providing much immediate boost to combat power, but it wasn't useless either. For example, it would no longer fear being besieged by a large number of Ferocious Beasts weaker than itself, eventually dying from exhaustion.

Not bad. A ferocious smile appeared on the Black Armor Giant Ape's face.

However, its purpose today was to hunt Ferocious Beast monsters, Devouring Evolution, and raise its basic attributes to allow its human form to enter the Third Order.

Therefore, the Black Armor Giant Ape crossed the altar and continued along the edge. Soon, a violent roar and the booming vibrations of battle echoed from the depths of the black mist.

This battle lasted a long time, almost half an hour before it stopped.

In the black mist-filled underground, the massive Black Armor Giant Ape stood tall, its entire body dyed red with dark red blood, a Ferocious Beast corpse lying at its feet, over thirty meters long.

This Ferocious Beast resembled a giant python, slender but without scales, its entire body covered in tough, smooth red snake skin, its head ferocious with a mouth full of sharp teeth.

This was also a powerful Fourth Order Ferocious Beast, its strength similar to the dark red Ferocious Beast it had encountered earlier.

But because its entire body had no 'bones', being composed entirely of extremely tough muscles, even the Black Armor Giant Ape couldn't kill it with a single blow.

A full-force punch on the Ferocious Beast would have most of its power dissipated by the smooth snake skin, and with its powerful explosive force and agile speed, the Black Armor Giant Ape spent half an hour finding an opportunity to blast its head.

Puchi! The Black Armor Giant Ape sat on the ground, hugging the Ferocious Beast's corpse and tearing into it with large bites.

Same-level Ferocious Beasts were large, and their meat was tough and difficult to tear, so the giant ape spent most of its time 'eating' each day it entered the Ruins.

By the time it had eaten this Ferocious Beast, several hours had passed, and its height had increased by one meter, reaching seventeen meters.

The basic strength of its human form had also soared by more than 60 points, entering the Third Order.

In the early morning, Qin Siyu's knock woke Jiang Hou.

When he opened his eyes, he saw Scarlet Eye, who usually nested in the living room, was now lying on his chest, its butt facing him, its tail swishing leisurely.

Jiang Hou was a little strange: "Scarlet Eye, how did you get in?"

Meow~ The ethereal little cat meowed, not 'answering', but jumping to the edge of the bed and looking back at Jiang Hou.

"Okay, I know, I'll get you some cat food later." Jiang Hou yawned, then got up to change clothes and wash up.

"Jiang Hou, I'm leaving first."

Jiang Hou had just come out of the bathroom when the girl with a loose ponytail, biting a piece of bread and carrying her backpack, waved at Jiang Hou, hurrying to leave.

"What's the rush? It's still early," Jiang Hou asked, puzzled.

"A classmate of mine in the cosplay club asked Rou Rou and me to help them take some promotional pictures, so we have to go early today."

Cosplay? Jiang Hou was taken aback. What was this all about?

But Qin Siyu had already left.

"Girls have so many things to do." Jiang Hou shook his head, first pouring cat food for Scarlet Eye, changing the water, and only then did he take care of himself.

After finishing breakfast and leaving the house, Jiang Hou clearly felt that the atmosphere was a bit restless.

Not far away, he saw two shop owners arguing loudly over a trivial matter, even coming to blows. At the intersection, a car driver and a motorcyclist also started fighting.

The reason was that the motorcycle was blocking the car's right turn, and the motorcyclist didn't yield when the driver honked.

"Because of fear?" Jiang Hou's eyes narrowed.

The Demon Dragon Temple revealed the hidden secrets of the extraordinary, and ordinary people suddenly realized that there were so many people and monsters with powerful abilities around them.

After two days of excited and agitated discussions, most people slowly developed a fear in their hearts that they didn't even realize.

Fear of the power those people possessed, not knowing if anyone around them was an Awakened, and whether they would be punched to death for a joke.

And those who had conflicts with them, whether they would awaken extraordinary abilities one day and come to their door for revenge.

There were also the pictures of Pollution Monsters circulating on the internet, hideous and terrifying, and they might encounter one while walking at night and be devoured alive.

All of this was the source of unease.

At school, Jiang Hou had just arrived at his seat when he felt that the atmosphere in the classroom was a bit strange, as if it wasn't as lively as usual.

Jiang Hou asked in a low voice, "What happened?"

"Hehe, it's nothing, just a small group broke up," Zong Zheng Nanmo said with a gloating expression, pointing to the distance with a grin.

There, Jiang Zhong, who usually had a hearty smile and was handsome, sat in his seat with a cold expression.

In the middle of the classroom, the bright and beautiful Li Mengwu also sat in her seat, her expression calm, casually twirling a pen in her hand, seemingly not caring at all.

The remaining members of the small group sat in their seats, their expressions tangled, wanting to say something but hesitating.

Seeing this, Jiang Hou shook his head and didn't pay any more attention. A few high school students having emotional problems was none of their business.

School ended quickly in the afternoon. Jiang Hou and Zong Zheng Nanmo arrived at the activity room, but Jiang Ruochan wasn't there today. She just sent a message with an address, telling them to gather at ten o'clock in the evening.

"The president isn't here. I wanted to tell her that I've broken through to the Second Order," Zong Zheng Nanmo said with some regret.

It was Jiang Hou who had been showing off all along, and today it was finally his turn to show his face, but who knew that the president, this big shot, wouldn't be here.

"Broke through to the Second Order?" Jiang Hou then asked curiously, "How is it? What changes have occurred in your strength?"

"Hehe, the changes are huge. I feel like I'm terribly strong now." Zong Zheng Nanmo was a little excited, and as he spoke, he stretched out his right hand, and streams of materialized cyan whirlwind appeared out of thin air, wrapping around his arm.

"Kill!" Zong Zheng Nanmo shouted, waving his hand, and instantly there was a sharp, ear-piercing explosion.

Dozens of tiny wind blades mixed in the cyan gale swept through the air and landed on the wall ten meters away, making a crackling sound and stirring up a cloud of dust.

When the dust settled, more than a dozen knife marks, two centimeters deep and twenty centimeters long, appeared on the wall.

"How is it? Pretty strong, right? The wind force carried by this Wild Wind Blade can blow enemies away and cause a lot of damage." Zong Zheng Nanmo's face was full of confidence.

"...Not bad." Jiang Hou thought for a moment and gave his affirmation.

That attack just now posed no threat to him, but an ordinary person would be seriously injured even if they didn't die.

Those tiny wind blades could cut two centimeters into a cement wall. This power was enough to tear through iron sheets. Even if an ordinary person wasn't torn to pieces, their skin would be ripped open.

Zong Zheng Nanmo continued excitedly.

"Besides that, I can now control the wind, push away the air, and create thrust to make myself run faster and more lightly."

"This move is also good." Jiang Hou nodded. Zong Zheng Nanmo's strength had indeed undergone a qualitative improvement after reaching Second Order, and he shouldn't be a hindrance to tonight's operation.

Next, Zong Zheng Nanmo dragged Jiang Hou to continue testing his abilities, and the two didn't leave until 5:30.

At night, at 9:30, Jiang Hou opened the window after Qin Siyu returned to her room to prepare for bed. His figure leaped, jumping directly from the fourth floor and disappearing into the darkness.