Erik stood among the dead Verandors. After collecting his thoughts, he looked around. He muttered, "Such weak creatures, yet even they still offer a bit of experience points."
Erik looked at them with contempt. They had a lot of powers, yet their survival strategy made it so that their only response to danger was to flee.
Erik's disdain for the Verandors grew as he pondered their feeble existence. He couldn't fathom how such powerful beings could lack courage and resilience. It was clear to him that their survival strategy was a futile attempt to prolong their inevitable demise. Erik scoffed at their cowardice, realizing that true strength lies in facing challenges head-on, not running away from them.
His attention then shifted to one of the dead bodies. The creature's lifeless eyes gazing vacantly into the canopy above made him feel slightly sorry, but that was how life was. However, there was also eagerness in Erik's eyes; the power he would acquire wasn't great, but its utility was undeniable. "Now, for the real prize," he said with a slight smirk.
He quickly removed his Flyssa from its sheath and cut off the creature's head. The beast's brain crystal was spared any unnecessary damage thanks to the precise and speedy nature of the cut.
Erik skillfully carved an incision along the head's crown while he held the severed head in the other hand.
After removing several layers of tissue, including flesh, muscle, and bone, he finally reached the brain crystal. He removed it carefully, pausing momentarily to admire its intricate form, and then carefully tucked it away in a pouch attached to his belt. He needed his hands free for the next part of the process.
After that, Erik reached into his bag and pulled out a transparent plastic cup. Kneeling down next to the body of the Verandor, he cut a vein on the side of its neck, releasing the thick, dark blood and allowing it to flow into the cup.
As the container slowly filled, a rich and metallic aroma of blood filled the air, arousing an intense eagerness within him. Without hesitation, he dipped two fingers into the crimson liquid. He savored the taste as he licked it off his fingers.
[VERANDOR'S DNA ACQUIRED. STARTING THE ANALYSIS.]
[ANALYSIS COMPLETE.]
[100 DNA POINTS ARE REQUIRED TO EXTRACT THE DNA. 500 TO GET IT WITHOUT INCURRING PAIN AND LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS.]
[24450 DNA POINTS DETECTED. DO YOU WANT TO START?]
<Yes, use 500 DNA points, and I also want to absorb the DNA with Conal's power, so wait for the procedure to end and then absorb the DNA through your powers.>
[UNDERSTOOD. WAITING.]
[VERANDOR'S DNA HAS BEEN FOUND COMPATIBLE WITH THE BRAIN CRYSTAL POWER "ANIMAL SHAPE SHIFTING" TO STRENGTHEN THE POWER; THE HOST IS REQUIRED TO DRINK AT LEAST 20 CC OF BLOOD.]
After taking a few deep breaths and bringing the cup to his mouth, Erik quickly drank the blood in one swift motion. The Verandor's blood had an unexpected sweet taste; it had probably eaten something that increased the amount of sugar in its blood, but the young man had no idea what this could be. The blood still tasted metallic, but the sweetness made it easier to drink it.
[BLOOD ABSORBED. DNA STORING PROCEDURE STARTED. PLEASE WAIT.]
[PROCEDURE COMPLETE.]
[STARTING DNA ABSORBTION.]
Erik experienced a surge of energy and warmth that spread from his core to the ends of his fingers and toes.
He took a moment to enjoy the feeling before wiping his mouth with his hand and drinking a water bottle. However, it was now time to move on to the brain crystal.
The young man quickly retrieved it from the pouch he had stashed earlier. He removed any remaining brain matter and impurities by carefully wiping them away with a small cloth.
Then he placed the brain crystal in his mouth without a second thought. The crystal was still warm, but not as much to be uncomfortable. Then Erik swallowed it in a single gulp.
[VERANDOR'S BRAIN CRYSTAL ACQUIRED. STARTING THE ANALYSIS.]
[ANALYSIS COMPLETE.]
[100 DNA POINTS ARE REQUIRED TO EXTRACT THE POWER. 500 TO GET IT WITHOUT INCURRING PAIN AND LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS.]
[23950 DNA POINTS DETECTED. DNA EXTRACTION IN PROCESS. DO YOU WANT TO PAY THE DNA POINTS TO EXTRACT THE BRAIN CRYSTAL POWER ONCE THE PREVIOUS PROCESS ENDS?]
<Do it.>
[BRAIN CRYSTAL POWER EXTRACTION ON HOLD. WAITING FOR DNA EXTRACTION TO END.]
After the battle ended, Erik took his time to rest, drink something, and look around. It was just another Monday for him, but if anyone else saw him, they would be scared of him, who was standing amid a field of corpses as he was in a candy store.
Once he was ready to hunt again, Erik reached into his pocket, took out his phone, and dialed Thorne's number.
After a few rings, a familiar and gruff voice picked up and said, "Thorne here."
"It's Erik," he began, glancing back at the sprawled forms of the Verandors. "I've got twenty bodies for you to retrieve. I'm sending you the coordinates now. And, Thorne, as soon as the VANs are full, take them back immediately. We've barely scratched the surface of the day, and there's still much to do."
On the other side of the phone, there was a brief pause. Thorne was left shocked again by how fast Erik managed to find and hunt 20 Verandors. He knew these beasts started running away as soon as they sensed danger, which meant that Erik only had a small window of time to kill them all. Yet, Thorne learned that being shocked by Erik's prowess was stupid, as it was clear that he was hiding his strength from the world and was more powerful than he made it appear. "Understood. We're on our way."
When Erik hung up, he immediately forwarded the coordinates to Thorne. Amid the natural world, the digital blip on his screen seemed oddly out of place.
He then quickly tucked away his phone and left without lingering. The young man paused momentarily to ensure he had not left any trace he would regret later. Then, once he had concealed the severed head, he began his journey and returned to the forest's innards.
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