Demonic Sword. Elucidator

"Roar—"

A deafening roar erupted once more. This time, a black shadow identical to the beast's head surged forth from its massive body. The shadow was even larger than the creature itself, and as it bellowed, the terrifying sound waves shattered the water prison surrounding it, sending shards flying in every direction.

Lion Mastiff Roar! This was the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's signature move; the sonic attack alone was enough to crush most enemies.

Huo Yuhao offered a bitter smile at the sight. As expected, it wasn't going to be that simple...

It was fortunate that he had anticipated the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's attack pattern and sealed his hearing in advance.

The beast opened its fang-filled maw and lunged straight for Huo Yuhao.

With a beat of his eight dragon wings, the wind whistled past his ears as he dove toward the ground, narrowly dodging the bite.

He hadn't expected to trap the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff with that move alone, but at the very least, the aquatic environment was now prepared.

Deep purple lightning snakes began to slither across his body. Lightning brought dryness, yet Huo Yuhao spared no soul power to maintain the damp environment around him.

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's strength stemmed primarily from its incredibly robust physique; naturally, its defense was equally terrifying. Breaking through that defense with his own attacks would be difficult, and his meager level-36 soul power wouldn't allow him to drag this out any longer.

He only had a split second of opportunity. He needed to use the high-piercing property of Ultimate Lightning to open just a single gap.

To defeat a stat-check monster, one could only rely on mechanics and execution.

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff couldn't fly; it relied on its raw power to leap, so once it missed its bite on Huo Yuhao, it began to plummet.

No matter how powerful it was, it couldn't defy the laws of physics. In mid-air, it had no leverage, and this was the moment its defense was at its weakest.

He didn't use Spiritual Detection to track the beast's descent. Instead, he used his eyes—not just focusing on the beast's lower limbs, but taking in its entire body, using his five senses to capture the opponent in its entirety.

The fall lasted only two short seconds, but to Huo Yuhao's senses, those two seconds felt agonizingly long.

Finally, the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's hind legs touched the ground first, an action that inevitably exposed its belly.

Lion Mastiff, lion and dog—a feline and canine species appearing in one creature. It wasn't just a genetic mutation; it was a miraculous chimera.

But it was obvious that for such a reptile, the belly would always be the most vulnerable spot, and it was the only place where Huo Yuhao could currently break through its defense.

Having already prepared his sprint, he stepped forward with his right foot, Ultimate Lightning surging madly into his leg and stimulating his muscles.

He launched himself like a spring, turning into a bolt of lightning as he charged toward the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff.

[Thunder Breathing, First Form, Thunderclap and Flash.]

His right hand was completely covered in deep blue dragon scales, the dragon claws sharp and coated in deep purple lightning so dense it felt as if it were overflowing with plasma.

He swung his transformed right hand down with force. The tactile feedback told Huo Yuhao that he had connected!

"Oh..."

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff let out a miserable shriek. A massive amount of blood poured from the belly wound carved open by the dragon claws, and the highly destructive Ultimate Lightning seeped into the gash, continuously ravaging its body from within.

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao silently thanked Baili Du for his guidance.

Baili Du had told him not to rush into obtaining a soul ring for his Deep Blue Glazed Dragon martial soul, but rather to spend more time comprehending Ultimate Water and Ultimate Lightning, exploring his own methods—in other words, delving deep into his own martial soul.

That was why, even though Tianmeng Iceworm had suggested several times that he go to the Far North to obtain high-level soul rings and soul bones, Huo Yuhao had never agreed.

He had only wounded the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff; this couldn't be counted as a victory yet. Furthermore, the beast had a trait where it became more frenzied the more it was injured. He had wounded it several times before, only to lose in the end to its near-suicidal counterattacks, being shaken to death by the sheer force of its impact.

Huo Yuhao exhaled, his cyan-gold vertical pupils glowing with a deep blue halo. The dragon scales on his body retracted, and a profound, mysterious aura emanated from him.

Nothing special happened, but the blood flowing from the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's wound began to accelerate, gathering into a blood-red sphere of water in front of Huo Yuhao.

Water content in blood exceeded 90%, and Ultimate Water possessed the ability of [Water Manipulation]. As long as it fell under the concept of water, it could be controlled by Huo Yuhao—provided, of course, that his spiritual power was sufficient.

This was the true value of [Ultimate].

However, this method was simply too cruel... Huo Yuhao couldn't help but turn his head and close his eyes. Truth be told, he didn't want to do this.

"I'm sorry... for using such a shameless method."

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's once-sturdy body rapidly withered. It swayed in defiance before crashing heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Those brownish-yellow eyes stared fixedly at Huo Yuhao, seemingly filled with nothing but resentment.

The blood had been drained; no matter how much strength it had left, it was meaningless.

A cold, emotionless electronic voice echoed:

[Congratulations to [ID0001 Huo Yuhao] for clearing Stage 2. Assessment completed before reaching level 40. Tactical and strategic evaluation in progress, rewards being calculated...]

[Comprehensive Tactical and Strategic Evaluation: A-.]

[Reward: Magic Sword, Elucidator.]

Huo Yuhao froze. A weapon reward? Back in Stage 1, it had only slightly increased his physical strength...

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff's corpse dissolved into gold and black particles. Left in its place was a long sword—a black long sword.

The hilt featured hollowed-out patterns, and it was slightly longer than a standard one-handed sword. The blade, the edge, and the hilt were all a pure, absolute black. Although the blade was slightly thin, that pure black, reminiscent of the source of darkness itself, gave off an impression of being indestructible.

The edge was naturally sharp; no reflected light could be seen from any angle, as if it could even cut through light itself.

Huo Yuhao beckoned, and [Magic Sword, Elucidator] flew into his hand.

His hand sank slightly. So heavy! It must weigh at least a thousand pounds.

He swung it a few times. This so-called magic sword felt as if it had been custom-made for him; it was incredibly easy to handle.

Examining the longsword, Huo Yuhao felt a sense of melancholy; if he had defeated the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger or the Pure-Blooded Silver Dragon, would the rewards have been even greater?

Lao Huo indicated that he was overthinking it; regardless of which soul beast he defeated, the reward remained the same.

[[ID0001 Huo Yuhao], do you wish to continue the assessment? Do you wish to proceed with cultivation insights?]

Huo Yuhao shook his head decisively. "Log out."

After his consciousness returned to his physical body, Huo Yuhao opened his eyes.

He blinked, then raised his hand to look at the storage watch on his wrist that displayed the time.

The flow of time in the Douluo World was different from that of the Douluo Continent; that great battle had only lasted a minute here on the Douluo Continent.

He climbed out of bed and, sure enough, saw the black sword lying quietly to the side.