STRIKER: Independent Beast Tamer

Special Base (Wilderness)

Jeremy Night and Stella began to wait in the abandoned valley. The other beasts had fled from the place. They had thought blood would attract other corrupted beasts right away.

But no corrupted beasts appeared in their vicinity. It might take time for the beasts to appear. Stella flapped her six beautiful butterfly wings, hovering in midair.

She used her vision power to scan the surroundings. She could not spot a single beast within a thousand miles.

On the other hand, Jeremy Night was doing the same. He didn’t spot a single beast lurking within 500 meters. He knew Stella could see far, so he asked her. Her reply was the same.

If they continued to stay here, they might ruin the chances of other beasts getting water from the area.

”We should take a break somewhere else,” he said to his lifeline beast.

Stella agreed. Then, they made it back to the surface on the other side of the slope. After arriving there, he looked around; the place was an open field. He didn’t plan on going back soon.

He raised his head and looked toward the sky. The daylight had faded, and night would fall soon. He decided to change his hunting ground. They had done well in this abandoned valley.

If they continued to stay here, they might encounter higher-tier beasts—it could possibly even be a Tier-8 beast.

He didn’t want to face such a beast yet. Both he and his lifeline beast had dealt with a Tier-7 Double-Headed Lizard not long ago.

However, he was not satisfied with the fight. He knew that the double-headed lizard was not the strongest among the Tier-7 beasts, having seen some truly terrifying ones before.

They possessed insane abilities-more than just one. Thus, he wanted to fight against a greater number of Tier-7 corrupted beasts.

”Stella, we are going to another place. That place has a dangerous cliff. I found some rare treasure there once,” he said to her.

[Okay, we should change destinations. I haven’t found any other beasts.]

He heard her voice. Right then, he called her back. She vanished from the spot, returned to the mental zone, and began to rest.

Jeremy sighed in relief. He could now deal with corrupted beasts alone; otherwise, she would finish them off before him. Next, he recalled the route in his mind and began heading toward that place.

It was one of the areas where one could encounter higher-tier beasts.

Time passed.

Night fell. He left the open land and returned to an area of dense green vegetation. He unsheathed his blade and used its edge to carve out a path for himself.

He couldn’t believe how quickly the vegetation had taken over the area. Even so, his vision was not hindered, allowing him to cover ground much faster.

If he continued at this pace, he could reach his destination before midnight.

As he cleared the way, his eyes caught something moving in the sky. He immediately halted.

For a second, he thought it was his imagination. But as he continued to observe his surroundings, his eyes locked onto the flying shape in the sky roughly 400 meters away.

He activated his second eye power to inspect it. The power revealed that it was indeed a living creature, likely an insect-type corrupted beast.

He didn’t know whether there was an insect swarm nearby. The last thing he wanted to encounter in the wilderness was insect-type corrupted beasts, especially at night.

If a swarm were near, it could pose a real threat to him. He had faced such a situation before; last time, he had handled it using his self-created starlight threads.

Jeremy collected his thoughts and sheathed his blade, continuing on foot. Once he became a Tier-5 Tamer in the future, he would be able to use flight abilities.

It didn’t take long for the dot to draw closer. He saw that it was a bug-type corrupted beast over half a meter in size, capable of posing a threat to him. ℯℯ𝑙.

When the bug-type beast drew near, he appraised its strength: a Tier-6 beast. The corners of his lips curled upward. He had been looking for a Tier-6 beast, but he hadn’t expected to run into one so soon.

The bug beast possessed sharp, powerful scythe-like appendages. As it moved, it tore through the vines, slicing them to pieces. Its wings were strong, but they were in no way comparable to those of his butterfly lifeline beast.

Buzz!

When the beast closed the distance, the loud buzzing sound filled his ears. He immediately activated his self-created technique:

”Net Shield.”

He thrust his hand forward. Spiderweb-like threads shot out from his palm, rapidly weaving into a four-layered net.

Pfft!

The Tier-6 bug beast collided straight into the layered net shield. These threads were anything but ordinary, they were formed of pure starlight.

Upon contact, the threads sliced cleanly through the beast’s body, meeting no resistance whatsoever.

The bug beast’s momentum carried it through to the other side. A second later, its severed parts fell to the ground one by one.

Splat!

A torrent of blood gushed forth from the severed sections. The beast collapsed with a heavy thud as a massive pool of blood spread around it.

Jeremy was unfazed. However, he couldn’t store the sliced carcass inside his storage container, as it would create a mess.

He decided to leave the corpse behind and resume his journey. Picking up the pace, he unsheathed his blade again to cut through the weeds and thick vines.

[Let me help you.]

Jeremy heard Stella’s voice in his mind. He was surprised, he hadn’t expected her to wake up, nor did he know whether she had sensed the battle.

Swoosh!

Still, he summoned her out. A moment later, the beautiful butterfly beast materialized before him.

Slash!

In an instant, she unleashed her speed ability. Her massive wings, shimmering with starlight power, severed the hanging vines and overgrown branches in a clean sweep.