The Divine Beast, the Six-Armed Demon Ape
"Oh? Is this your territory?" Rog swept his gaze over the mountain ravine.
Aside from this unusual Six-Armed Demon Ape, there were five other adult Level Nine Six-Armed Demon Apes. Each had deep black fur, stood three or four meters tall, and carried a weapon such as an iron club made of metal. They all looked like bad news.
Rog cautiously flew into the air, looking toward the terrifying Demon Ape, which stood over four and a half meters tall and had six arms.
This was a true Saint-level Magical Beast. Its sheer brute strength alone could rival that of a peak human Saint-level warrior. On top of that, it could wield weapons with all six arms, and its sharp claws were weapons in their own right. Its combat strength was absolutely not to be underestimated.
"I can't let it get close. Otherwise, I definitely won't be able to hold it off." Though Rog was speaking with Dimont, they were still some distance apart. The Six-Armed Demon Ape, with its pair of dark golden eyes, also watched Rog with a cold gaze, searching for a chance to charge in and fight at close quarters.
Dimont had already realized that Rog was probably a physically frail Saint Magus. If it found a chance to get close, this human Saint-level expert would certainly have no chance of surviving. However, it wasn't a flying Magical Beast. Although it could fly after becoming Saint-level, its speed was only average, and it might not be able to catch up with Rog.
"At this distance, I wonder if my 'Death Ray' will work." Rog was also quietly assessing his fighting style. Right now, he was a pure mage, and if the Six-Armed Demon Ape so much as brushed against his frail body, he could die on the spot. So he didn't dare get too close and could only try a long-range Soul Attack. If the distance made it too weak, Rog would have no choice but to flee.
"Soul Ray, go!" This time, Rog marshaled all the soul power he could and unleashed a hazy gray beam straight at the fearsome-looking Six-Armed Demon Ape. His instincts told him that this Demon Ape was no ordinary creature.
"Whoosh!" The invisible soul power gathered into a laser-like beam and pierced straight into the depths of the Six-Armed Demon Ape's soul. "Roar!" The Six-Armed Demon Ape let out a painful cry, and Rog's expression changed. The attack had indeed struck it, but Rog's Soul Attack sensed a black halo deep within its soul.
"What is that? Innate Divine Radiance?" That was the first thing Rog thought of. It seemed the Six-Armed Demon Ape's bloodline hadn't mutated; instead, it had undergone a "Return to Ancestry." Perhaps, in the distant past, when the Glais Continent had first come into being, one of the creatures born there had been a Divine Beast called the Six-Armed Demon Ape. However, even the descendants of Divine Beasts were only Saint-level Magical Beasts.
Even the God-Eater Rat Beirut, as powerful as he was in the original story, hadn't passed down the God-Eater Rat's innate ability to any of his three descendants. This Demon Ape could undergo a Return to Ancestry like "Bebe," which meant it was exceptionally fortunate.
Although he still didn't know what level of Divine Beast the Six-Armed Demon Ape was, even the most ordinary kind was a sure Deity-Level Reserve. There were only three Deity-level experts openly known on the continent at present. Moreover, Divine Beasts had innate divine abilities, and most Deity-level experts of the same level who hadn't mastered Fusion Profound Mysteries were no match for them.
"Although the distance was a bit far, there are hardly any Peak Saint-level experts who could withstand that attack. But Divine Beasts are born with Innate Divine Radiance. It not only lets them use innate divine abilities, but also greatly boosts their soul defenses. That's a bit of a problem." Rog could sense that his attack had still seriously wounded the Six-Armed Demon Ape. But killing it through Soul Annihilation wouldn't be easy. Rog would probably have to expend most of his soul power, and he wasn't planning to kill this Six-Armed Demon Ape now, anyway.
"Leave for now." After looking at the Six-Armed Demon Ape from afar, Rog chose to retreat for the time being. He would wait until he was stronger, then find an opportunity to enslave this Divine Beast's soul-or he could make it his Magical Beast companion instead.
Divine Beasts were rare, especially in a material plane, and he had even encountered an "underage" one. As the saying went, if Heaven gave it to you and you didn't take it, you'd be punished for it. This Six-Armed Demon Ape was his for the taking.
Dimont, was it? Just you wait.
After leaving the Six-Armed Demon Ape behind, Luo Ao went on to kill several more Level Nine Magical Beasts in the days that followed, including such notoriously ferocious beasts as the Thunderbolt Single-Horned Tiger.
Another day, Rog spotted a "big guy" in the distance.
"Hm? That's a Level Nine Black-Patterned Triceratops. This fellow's also a member of the Dragon Clan, so it's bound to have plenty of treasures." Rog was in high spirits at the discovery of a Level Nine Dragon Clan Magical Beast. Dragon Clan Magical Beasts had an almost universal tendency to hoard treasure, so this Black-Patterned Triceratops was sure to provide him with plenty of loot.
The Black-Patterned Triceratops was astonishingly large. It was over ten meters long and three or four meters tall, with a powerful build and three sharp black horns on its head. Its body was covered in layers of blue-yellow armor-like scales, marked with all kinds of black patterns.
The Black-Patterned Triceratops crouched there like a terrifying super tank. Even the largest land animal on Earth, the elephant, would have been a tiny thing beside it.
"Too bad this world doesn't give you an advantage just for being big." Though Rog was a tiny speck compared to the enormous Black-Patterned Triceratops, he only sent a Soul Ray at it from far away, and the terrifying-looking Dragon Beast became a motionless statue, never moving again. Its soul had been completely destroyed, leaving only an empty shell.
"Let's see if this fellow has any treasures." Rog went around the Black-Patterned Triceratops and entered a cave behind it. He could already see a lot of metal glinting in the distance. There were definitely plenty of treasures in there.
"Let's see. These are just weapons used by warriors. They're no use to me. This looks like a well-made Red Flame Stone spear, but it's not very suitable for me." Rog picked up a spear made of Red Flame Stone. Red Flame Stone was as hard as Black Jade Stone, making it a decent weapon in this material plane.
"Not bad, but aside from this Red Flame Stone spear, the other items are just average. The most valuable is a piece of Necro Jade, but it's only palm-sized. It'd probably be enough to make just one dagger." Rog had only the space ring he'd inherited from his convenient teacher, and it didn't have much room inside. He only took the most valuable items and couldn't be bothered with the rest of the odds and ends.
"Death Cut!" Once outside, Rog used this special kind of Necromancy to cut through the Black-Patterned Triceratops's skin and scales, then took out its Dragon Crystal. He didn't waste its three most precious horns, either. As for the rest of the scales, Rog couldn't be bothered to gather them.
In the days that followed, Rog entered the territory of another Saint-level Magical Beast, a Blue-Eyed Flame Lion. Although this Blue-Eyed Flame Lion was reasonably strong, it was nowhere near as powerful as the Six-Armed Demon Ape. Rog killed its soul with a single Soul Ray from afar.
Whether he was taking a Magical Beast companion or a Soul Slave, he couldn't just take any old creature. Otherwise, it would burden Rog's own soul, and, in serious cases, could even affect his cultivation. So this Saint-level Magical Beast wasn't as lucky. Rog killed its soul outright.
Among the Blue-Eyed Flame Lion's collection, Rog found quite a few good things. In particular, there was a space ring. The ring itself was nothing special, but the things inside were rather interesting.
"My objective on this trip has been achieved. It's time to head back." Rog retraced his steps. Sure enough, during this time, the Earth Violent Bear had finished absorbing the Red Demon Tiger's magic core and had now broken through to Saint-level.
"Master, my name is Wald." After breaking through to Saint-level, Wald could change his size. Rog had him shrink to the size of a puppy and follow him as they slowly left the forest.
Nothing like the usual wish-fulfillment face-slapping scene happened as they left the forest. Even though he had such an adorable little bear with him, he didn't encounter a princess or a young lady from some great family, nor did he run into any villainous lackeys trying to steal his Magical Beast companion. What a disappointment. He might as well have flown back.