Goria

A chorus of howls echoed through the air.

In the distance, a figure could be seen leaping among the trees, followed by several dark figures. The roars of the Orc grew closer. Soren hoisted Vivian onto his back and prepared to retreat, while Goria quickly cast a Spell. However, the monsters from all directions seemed to have spotted them. Several incredibly agile figures could be vaguely seen leaping down from the tree trunks, intending to circle around and intercept them. One of the figures stood out conspicuously—a large, dark Cheetah.

Mutant beast!

Some special beasts possess mutated genes, possibly related to forbidden experiments during the Arcane Empire era. They once appeared in large numbers for a period, but many were later hunted down, and the survivors mostly escaped to the Astral Plane and Outer Planes. Some beasts in the Material Plane have inherited these mutated genes, and when their CR advances to a certain stage, genetic mutations may occur. These beasts possess Spell-like Ability, but their numbers are extremely rare; most simply possess high intelligence and powerful hunting abilities.

These beasts are said to be the failed products of experiments on Lycanthrope.

Soren stopped and handed Vivian to Goria beside him. The black Cheetah blocking their path was formidable; it was nearly the size of Siberian Tiger, its elegant body displaying clearly defined muscles, like a bodybuilder among wild beasts. This represented its strength, perhaps even greater than that of Brown Bear, and the power of its Claw could Rake through armor. The Cheetah's charging speed was terrifying, Soren dared not continue fleeing, as that would expose his back to it.

In a short sprint, almost no creature could outrun this mutated, large Cheetah!

Jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards—in the wilderness, Cheetah are more dangerous than tigers because you're practically impossible to outrun on land. If you try to run away from such a creature, you'll only be pounced on in an instant and mercilessly have your throat snapped. Soren took a deep breath as he charged, then channeled all his strength, leaping ten meters or so, and swung his Scimitar down at the Black Panther's head. The beast had no armor; its Animal Hide alone couldn't withstand his attack.

A light, graceful leap.

The large Black Panther nimbly dodged his attack, a mocking, Taunt smile appearing on its face. This beast was more intelligent than imagined; its CR might have reached at least the third tier.

But it was still too careless!

Soren missed his first strike and instantly raised his finger. In just a second, two Magic Missile shot out from his fingertip. At such close range, no matter how fast the Black Panther was, it couldn't possibly dodge them. The next moment, a small hole was opened in its neck. The two Magic Missile pierced its panther skin, leaving a wound about three centimeters deep, and blood immediately splattered out in large amounts.

Given Soren's Spell power, those two Magic Missile fired at such close range must have dealt at least twenty points of damage!

One point of Spell power can enhance the power of one point of Magic Missile. It's no joke for a high-level Wizard to use Magic Missile to pierce through armor. Soren's Spell power is also around ten points. Even without considering the Fortitude Save from Constitution, he can still inflict a minor injury on the target. The suddenly injured Cheetah was clearly a fraction of a second slower, and Soren immediately swung his blade, slashing at its back with a splatter of blood. This cut created a wound nearly five centimeters deep, but it lost its strength after breaking through the muscle layer, and he could only withdraw his blade and retreat hastily.

A strong Constitution reduces damage!

Roughly, two points of Constitution increase Damage Reduction by one point; some creatures with high Hit Points can even use their muscle layers to clamp weapons.

Dragonkind are among the best of these.

Without Supernatural Weapon to deal with Draconic creatures, even if you manage to break through its Dragon Hide, you can't penetrate its tough muscles or damage its vital internal organs. Simply trying to kill Dragonkind through bloodshed is an extremely difficult task.

Sharp claws flashed with a cold light.

The thick, resilient leopard tail lashed out, whistling like a whip. Soren twisted to avoid it, three shallow scratches appearing on his arm, and the tail lashing his waist. But his Constitution could withstand it. The other monsters nearby were getting closer, and Soren couldn't afford to waste any time. In an instant, he pulled out his Withered Wooden Wand and pointed it at the Black Panther in front of him.

A Spell Aura appeared.

Suddenly, the weeds on the ground grew wildly, coiling around the Cheetah like tenacious vines. Even with the strength of a large feline, it couldn't break free for a moment. Those brief seconds or two were enough for Soren. He leaped onto the Black Panther's back, using his strength to push it down, then gripped his Scimitar tightly and slashed down. The power of [Sword Momentum - Heavy Chop] erupted in an instant, and the Scimitar cleanly severed the Black Panther's head.

The gushing blood traveled three to five meters. The headless corpse of the Black Panther stiffened for a moment before collapsing with a thud.

A row of documents appeared:

"Activate [Sword Momentum - Heavy Slash]!"

"Triggered Decapitation Attack!... Deals 125 points of decapitation damage to the target!... Target dies!..."

"Extracting Soul Energy"

"You have gained 2450 Slaughter Experience points!"

It was indeed Cheetah of rank three or higher.

The CR is estimated to be around 12. It was not caught off guard by Spell; dealing with it would be even more difficult than dealing with Earth Elemental.

"Brother, be careful!"

Vivian's exclamation suddenly came from behind Soren. In an instant, Goria also cast a spell, first casting a Spell on them, and then raising her hand to shoot a blood-red beam of light forward.

--"Finger of Death!"

The dull thud of the bowstring rang out. Without a second thought, Soren activated the Elemental Crystal on his body, and a yellowish-brown mark spread from the ground to his entire body. Almost as soon as the Stoneskin was cast on him, a sharp arrow flew by and struck him directly in the chest. The force of the arrow made him take a step back.

Beside the bushes ahead, a tall, burly Half-Breed Orc, wielding a powerful bow, fixed his menacing gaze on Soren.

But the next moment its gaze turned to astonishment!

Because Soren didn't fall, the arrow struck his chest. But it merely lodged between his ribs; the arrow, which should have pierced him, had its damage reduced by about twenty points by Stoneskin, plus his own 20 points of Fortitude Save from Superhuman Constitution. Although the arrow hit his chest, the damage was far less than expected. He gritted his teeth and pulled out the arrow; his leather chest Leather Armor had been pierced. His opponent was using a finely crafted, powerful bow.

The crimson light struck the tall, burly Half-Breed Orc in the next instant. He stiffened for a moment, then fell straight to the ground!

Level 7 Spell [Finger of Death]!

The Finger of Death wielded by a high-ranking Northern Witch is no joke; it's not easy for any profession below rank four to pass the Death Saving Throw test.

The inability to pass Death Saving Throw ruling means instantaneous death!

After pulling out the arrow, Soren ignored his wound and fiercely swung his sword to block the attack of another Half-Orc beside him. The heavy battle axe, carrying a fierce force, made him sink. To his left, a Gnoll- like half-orc swung a short axe, which struck Soren in the back the next moment.

Clang!

The short axe seemed to have struck solid Marble; Soren's Leather Armor on his back only dented slightly. He suffered almost no damage. His opponent wasn't particularly strong and probably hadn't been specifically trained with throwing weapons. The short axe's attack power didn't exceed 20 points, failing to break through Soren's Stoneskin Protection from Energy.

The presence of the Northern Witch drew the attention of most of the hunters. At least half of them bypassed Soren and rushed towards Goria and Vivian behind him. Wizard were the most terrifying beings; they absolutely could not be given a chance to unleash their spells. A monstrous creature, whose face was so hideous that even Soren couldn't recognize it, roared and suddenly began to grow considerably larger. Then, it took a deep breath and charged forward on all fours, its speed almost unbelievable.

Rage hybrid beast!

Despite the perilous situation, Goria remained calm and composed. She even had time to pull Vivian behind her before suddenly drawing her staff and pointing it. A Fireball the size of a washbasin flew out, not targeting the enemy in front of her, but exploding directly in the open space ahead. Rewind a second. The rapidly charging monster had no time to stop. Driven purely by inertia, it entered the core of the Fireball's explosion just as it charged forward.

The next second, its entire body was a bloody mess, its chest blasted to the bone. Even its fur was on fire.

"Vivian, look carefully!"

Goria possessed an imposing aura, completely different from the image Soren had of her. She spoke in a cold voice, "Do you remember the motion calculations I taught you? Positioning and Spell prediction are crucial skills. Many enemies are extremely fast; Spell don't necessarily need to be aimed at them to be effective!"

The sound of whistling wind arose.

Two throwing axes and a longsword were hurled towards their location, but Goria didn't care. She slammed her staff into the ground with a thud, then rapidly began casting a spell, saying, "Spell protective energy field is fundamental for Spellcaster. In battle, you must ensure you are always under the Energy Protection Field."

Bang bang bang.

The thrown weapon seemed to strike invisible air, producing a muffled thud upon hitting the Energy Protection Field. Goria's expression remained unchanged, as if she hadn't even glanced at the charging enemies. Focus is the most important fundamental skill for Spellcaster in combat; Spellcaster cannot afford to be distracted and allow enemies to interrupt their Spell. The skill of focus also allows them to be more sensitive to changes in their surroundings.

--"Black Tentacles!"

Six energy tentacles burst from the ground, shooting out in an instant. Half of the nearby enemies were momentarily stunned, then swirled up and hung upside down by the energy tentacles. The Black Tentacles cast by the high Witch were completely different from those cast by Soren. The energy Tentacle Constriction and strangled two enemies, then entangled and dragged everyone who came near back, hanging them in the air.

Goria then slowly raised her staff and said solemnly, "Vivian, you must always remember one thing: for Wizard, control is more important than damage!"

An eerie silence fell over the battlefield.

It was at this moment that everyone, including Soren, truly witnessed the power of a high-ranking Northern Witch!

This is the true style of a high-level mage!

...(To be continued~^~)