Endless Evolution As A Skeleton In A Game-Like World

The salamander stared at Ark for a short while. Most monsters would have attacked without understanding what had happened, but it seemed this one was more patient than most.

Still, it could not stall forever. It stared beyond Ark, probably at its sister or lover, who was locked in a battle with Olivia and Thalia.

She wouldn’t survive long against them, and it must have known this, because in the very next second, it hurtled forward.

”Impressive!”

Swishh!

Ark immediately lashed out with his scythe, the weapon twisting in the air as it met its claws. A vibration rippled forward from the impact, and the scythe trembled in his hands.

He gritted his teeth and smiled internally.

He had almost missed its movements entirely. If not that he had trained his eyes for the past few weeks, keeping up with the monster would have been next to impossible.

The monster dashed to his side once more, showing off a level of flexibility unbecoming of a beast. Its tail coiled in the air, racing at Ark from the left, while it drove its head forward to bite off his torso.

But Ark leaped into the air at the very last moment. The monster raised its head to stare at him and was about to lunge, when lightning rained down—

Bang!

Naturally, the monster was too quick, and far too nimble to be caught by the attack.

The lightning exploded into the floor, creating a net of cracks, as well as spilling magma into the air.

The salamander did not wait for him to land... it jumped right through the dirt and magma, flying right at him.

And then its throat and teeth began to glow like embers.

’A fire attack while I am in the air?’ Ark laughed, the longer they fought, the more the beast seemed to impress him.

The jet of flames spewed out of its mouth, reflecting off Ark’s skull as they bubbled forward. He could have used [phase], he could have used [rebound]... he could have even used his mana defense to offset the damage.

But those skills would be no fun...

Instead, Ark opened his mouth and responded with an attack of his own, [Wave of pulverizing light]!

The salamander’s eyes widened with confusion as a beam of light tore through Ark’s mouth and slammed right into the stream of fire.

The two attacks clashed against each other, bubbling like an overloaded furnace, just before an explosion rang out, sending both of them flying in different directions.

They didn’t stay down for a millisecond. The moment their bodies touched solid ground, they were back on their feet like feral beasts.

The salamander growled with rage as it charged forward. And then right from its head, down to its tail, its entire body was completely engulfed by orange fire.

And once that fire had coated every inch of it, its speed suddenly multiplied. One second, Ark was predicting its path, and in the next, a heat wave washed over him, and the monster was by his side.

?!

A flaming tail lashed out like a whip. Ark could see the direction it would go, he could see the fire flickering over the thick, scaly tail.

But he could not dodge it.

Bang!

Ark was flung back like a baseball, his body rolling over the floor several times. If not for his high defence, and the mana shield that appeared in the last moment, his ribs would have caved in.

He had not even come to a stop when the monster grabbed onto his leg and launched him into the air once more.

Swoosh!

Fire was sent flying in bursts of flaming balls. Ark swung his scythe, slicing fire ball after fire ball, his scythe turning hot in his palms

But just as he landed, and the flames cleared, the salamander was gone—

Something whipped out from behind him.

SWISH—!

Ark’s body vanished just in time, as the tail sliced through the spot his head had been.

This time he did not reappear, instead, he used his stealth skill to buy him time, sneaking up on the monster. And when he reappeared, he was right beside it.

”I know I slacked off with upgrading my agility... but did you really have to rub it in my face?”

The salamander’s head snapped in his direction, only for a resounding kick to rock its head up.

Ark had to fully extend his leg to meet its jaw, but the audible crunch was every bit worth the pain he felt in his thigh bone!

”Ha!”

He jumped back and the salamander gave chase. It caught up to him before he could even take a breath, but just as it swung its claws, Ark was gone.

??!

Bang!

This time, Ark’s fist dug into its soft underbelly, causing the monster to gag and tremble in pain. It twisted its body, its mouth was wide open as it locked it around Ark’s torso.

Snap!

It bit down on plain air. And the ark appeared right above it, his two hands clenched together into fists. But the salamander had anticipated this attack, its flaming tail was already charging towards Ark’s chest like a spear.

But before it could make contact, Ark used unwind to return to the spot he had once been, right next to the salamander.

Swish!

He swung his scythe in an upward arc, and the weapon sliced right through the monster’s face, tearing off scales and drawing blood.

Webs suddenly wrapped around the monster’s limbs, neck and tail, tying it down to the floor. It tried to break itself free, but more steel webs wrapped around it, pinning it to the floor.

”That should deal with that annoying speed of yours...” Ark sighed as he stared down at the monster.

The salamander hissed, biting down on the webs with its serrated teeth, but when one was snapped, more webs were there to replace it.

Ark was sure the fight was over... he lifted his scythe and was about to loop off its head, when a loud cry suddenly echoed through the air.

He turned around to see the black salamander pinned to the ground, Olivia’s clawed feet pressed down on its neck and drawing blood.

”It looks like they are just about done...” Ark muttered, before turning around to stare at the monster.

But what greeted him was a very different sight...

The steel web had pinned the salamander to the floor, and just a few seconds ago, it had been helplessly chomping down on it. But now...

Its body trembled as it pushed against the webs, its feet shaking as it stood up straight. Its golden eyes were wide open, and the slit in its eyes had grown so thin that it was nearly invisible.

”Oh?” It seemed the dying scream of its partner had forced the monster to dig through its reserves to summon every last bit of energy it had left.

Its body glowed brighter. Its scales began to pulse with heat, melting the webs like they were plastic. Ark immediately dashed back, just as an explosion rippled outwards, bathing the area with searing heat.

The monster snarled, every last bit of intelligence lost from those golden eyes.

Before, it had been composed, calculated in every action... but now all that had burned away, leaving behind a beast that only knew destruction.

It lunged forward, and its body cut through the wind like a missile, its maw wide open to rip Ark to shreds. But Ark repositioned himself, his fingers tightening around the shaft of his weapon.

He had less than a second before the monster would get to him.

His azure blue orbs faded, and when they ignited once more, they glowed a bright gold...

[Transcend]

Ark could feel wild energy burning within his chest. His limbs were overflowing with power, and he could even feel his mana stores rise.

A skill reaped from a deity...

Was every bit as powerful as he expected it to be.

The monster whose speed had once been nearly impossible to keep up with, was now much slower. Still, Ark could feel it, the price for forcing out this level of power from his body would be steep.

”If you could use this power when you were in your right senses, then maybe you would have been able to protect her...” Ark sighed, just before he swung his scythe.

The weapon not only blurred, it vanished, the shaft whistling as it ripped apart the very wind.

Stab!

The weapon dug right into the monster’s side, blasting blood into the air and causing it to freeze in its steps.

Once he yanked out the scythe, more dark blood gushed out of the wound, and the monster collapsed flat.

The fire coating its body dimmed, and its eyes returned to normal as it bled out on the floor.

Ark turned around to see how the others were doing. They had defeated the monster, and Olivia was about to slice off its head, when Ark heard a broken voice from behind him.

”P...lea...se.... sister... sp..are.”

When Ark turned around to find the source of the voice, he could see the salamander staring up at him with his head bowed.

”Spare... sister...”