Golden-Patterned Thunder Ant

Thud! Thud!

In his human form, Moke strolled through the forest, his steps steady and resolute.

Not far away, more than a hundred azure wind wolves watched him with fear and hatred. They were restless, yet not a single wind wolf dared to attack him.

"Those beasts, I killed dozens of them, and they still weren't willing to let it go?"

Moke thought casually.

The wind wolf pack had attacked him earlier, but he had not even needed to transform. Wielding the Iron Leaf Sword in his human form, he had slaughtered dozens of wind wolves in less than a minute.

He had also killed the two Sixth-Level wind wolf leaders, leaving the remaining wolves too afraid to surround and attack him. Yet they were unwilling to leave just like that.

After Moke left the area, the hundred-plus wind wolves surged forward one after another, rushing toward the corpses of the two wind wolf leaders like the wind.

The fastest few were Fifth-Level wind wolves. They tore open the heads of the two leaders, intending to devour their Sixth-Level Magic Crystal Cores.

However, there were quite a few Fifth-Level wind wolves in the pack, and they even began fighting each other over them.

"Damn, I thought you lot were loyal. Turns out you were just fighting over Sixth-Level Magic Crystal Cores."

Seeing this when he looked back, Moke cursed under his breath in annoyance.

Then he headed west through the Magical Beast Mountain Range without looking back.

After traveling more than a hundred kilometers and gradually entering the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, Moke finally arrived at a lake in the heart of the range.

"According to the information I got, the Purple Crystal Spirit Fox lives near this great lake, right? It seems to like eating the Golden Spirit Fish in the lake."

Moke looked around vigilantly, as he was still in human form.

The main reason was that his appearance after transforming into a Holy Dragon Warrior was truly rather terrifying.

High-level magical beasts possessed great intelligence. Upon seeing such a horrifying form, they would become cautious, and might even avoid him in advance.

The lake hidden in the center of the Magical Beast Mountain Range was enormous. Several high-level magical beasts were drinking around it, and the closest to Moke was a Seventh-Level Magical Beast, a Golden-Striped Leopard.

The Golden-Striped Leopard's senses were extremely sharp. The instant Moke appeared, it locked onto him.

Roar!

A human actually dared to appear in the Magical Beast Forest. The Golden-Striped Leopard growled at Moke, then sprang forward like a golden arrow. Its speed was astonishing.

"A Seventh-Level speed-type magical beast. It poses quite a threat even to me in human form."

Holding the Iron Leaf Sword, Moke remained motionless. Only when the Golden-Striped Leopard leaped before him did he suddenly twist his waist, sending the Iron Leaf Sword in a light, fleeting arc toward the leopard's most vulnerable spot—its neck.

However, the Golden-Striped Leopard was among the best of the Seventh-Level Magical Beasts. Its speed could even rival that of an Eighth-Level Magical Beast. Its body twisted strangely in midair, forcibly causing Moke's certain strike at its neck to slash into its rear haunch instead.

With this attack speed, you're only a Sixth-Level Warrior. You can't hurt me...

Roar!

The highly intelligent Golden-Striped Leopard thought as much. Its sharp foreclaws were about to tear apart the head of the weak warrior before it, but the intense pain from its rear made it roar in fury. Even its swipe toward Moke's head became distorted.

Moke rolled aside to evade its claws, while the Golden-Striped Leopard landed awkwardly.

Its rump was gone. The Iron Leaf Sword had sliced away a huge chunk of flesh, along with muscle and bone. The moment it landed, it tried to flee.

Unfortunately, its shinbone had been broken, greatly reducing its speed.

Slash!

Moke caught up at once. The Iron Leaf Sword brushed over the Golden-Striped Leopard's neck like a gentle breeze, and its massive head flew into the air.

What Moke did not know was that a small purple beast had been watching him ever since he fought the Golden-Striped Leopard. However, the purple beast had been cautious and had not attacked.

Only after Moke killed the Golden-Striped Leopard, when the purple beast determined that he was merely a Sixth-Level Warrior, did it turn into a purple blur and dart toward him.

The purple beast was truly fast. Caught in its sudden attack, Moke had no time for any extra movement. The force of the wind already made the back of his head turn cold.

At that critical moment, a suit of golden scales covered Moke's entire body in an instant.

Clang!

The sharp claws of the purple beast, capable of tearing apart the body of an Eighth-Level Magical Beast, struck the golden scales on Moke's neck, producing the sound of clashing metal.

Screech! It let out a startled cry. Its pride and joy, its sharp claws, had failed to even crack the opponent's scales!

And wasn't this a human?

How had scales suddenly grown on him? And why was their defense so absurdly powerful?!

The purple beast was horrified, and its first thought was to flee at once.

But how could Moke give it that chance? After transforming, he swung the Iron Leaf Sword even faster, as if he had merged with the wind.

Before the purple beast could retreat, Moke thrust the sword through its head with a backhanded strike, skewering it on the Iron Leaf Sword like candied fruit.

"Purple Crystal Spirit Fox, I didn't find you, but you came right to me."

Moke chuckled. Ignoring the Golden-Striped Leopard's corpse on the ground, he carried the Purple Crystal Spirit Fox's body and quickly headed toward another part of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

More than a hundred kilometers west of the great lake, beneath a smooth cliff face that looked as though it had been carved by blades and axes, Moke tore apart the Purple-Eyed Spirit Fox and threw it on the ground, allowing its distinctive fragrance mixed with the stench of blood to spread outward.

He himself hid discreetly in a tree not far away.

"The Purple-Eyed Spirit Fox is an Eighth-Level wind-element magical beast. It likes eating Golden-Scaled Fish, but its favorite food is the eggs of the Ninth-Level Magical Beast, the Golden-Patterned Thunder Ant."

"For that reason, the Purple-Eyed Spirit Fox is deeply hated by the Golden-Patterned Thunder Ant colony, and it has also become one of the Ninth-Level Magical Beast Golden-Patterned Thunder Ant's favorite foods."

From the beginning, Moke's target had not been the Eighth-Level Magical Beast Purple-Eyed Spirit Fox, but the Ninth-Level Magical Beast Golden-Patterned Thunder Ant.

After all, Eighth Level could not compare to Ninth Level. Moreover, Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants were smaller and less likely to attract attention, making them Moke's best possible choice.

Several hours passed without any movement.

Moke was not in a hurry. He continued waiting patiently, as he had long known that Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants were cautious by nature and usually hid in caves beneath the cliff.

Rustle, rustle!

It was not until dawn the next day that faint sounds suddenly came from within the cliff.

Then, two fist-sized creatures crawled out and scanned their surroundings.

Suddenly, their speed surged to the limit, and in the blink of an eye, they darted to the Purple Crystal Spirit Fox's corpse.

"They finally came out!" Moke was overjoyed. He sprang down from the tree, his speed instantly soaring to its limit. He even cast a Sixth-Level wind-element support spell on himself, though it barely helped.

Chirp, chirp!

The two Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants were shocked. The corpse really had been deliberately placed here by someone!

However, they were both Ninth-Level Magical Beasts, the rulers of this region!

Facing the golden-scaled monster charging at them, the two Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants opened their mouths, and several bolts of purple lightning arrived in an instant.

Crackle!

The purple lightning they unleashed was truly powerful, comparable to peak Seventh-Level magic. Wherever it passed, the air carried the smell of scorching.

Yet what astonished the two Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants was that the lightning striking the golden-scaled monster simply vanished without a trace!

The golden-scaled monster charged straight at them as though it felt nothing at all!

"The Holy Dragon is immune to all magic, and you dare cast magic before me?"

Like a demon god descending from the heavens, Moke entangled the two Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants in the blink of an eye.

Although he had not comprehended the laws of wind, driven by his immense strength, the Iron Leaf Sword became like a phantom, attacking the two Golden-Patterned Thunder Ants from every direction.