us stood motionless, staring in the direction the monster was approaching. From the heavy, thunderous footsteps echoing through the forest, he knew it was something massive. His senses stretched to their limit, yet he couldn''t detect the creature.


    That sent a chill down his spine. Even though he was covering a 10-kilometer radius, the monster still remained out of reach, but its steps were felt strongly as if it was right beside him. Suddenly, something shifted. A 4-meter-tall creature crossed into his sensing range, and us''s eyes widened in shock.


    The monster is enormous. It has a muscr build, covered in dark, blood-streak fur. It has red eyes. Elongated, razor-sharp ws and serrated fangs made it the perfect killing machine.


    A wild, untamed mane framed its savage face, and a powerful tail, tipped with a sharp, bone-like spike, swayed behind it, promising deadly strikes.


    us instinctively took a few steps back but kept his focus sharp, watching the creature''s every movement. Its heavy steps left smoldering fire in its wake, the ground singeing beneath its feet.


    "Red Eye Sabertooth Tiger," us muttered under his breath, recognizing the Devil monster immediately. A fearsome fire-type beast, known for its brutal attacks with its ws and teeth.


    The reason they''re dangerous is that after reaching the Terror stage, they begin to evolve. Their first evolution allows them to walk on two legs, making them look like monstrous humans.


    But that''s not what makes them terrifying. It''s their ws. After evolving, their ws be deadly weapons. They move like humans, and they attack like humans—only fiercer, faster, and stronger.


    Now, approaching with an intense fire aura, was a Tier 7 Devil Red-Eye Sabertooth Tiger. us knew he had two choices: run or fight. But he also knew this was a rare chance to win himself a Fire-type devil core.


    Despite the danger, us''s sword appeared in his hand, radiating ice qi. He was about to fight fire with ice.


    us''s control over ice far surpassed his mastery of fire. In dangerous situations like this, he always relied on ice. Today was no exception. The monster, still kilometers away, was already exuding an aura more terrifying than the Zombie Kings he fought during the Arcadian mine invasion.


    In fact, the aura felt eerily simr to that of the Zombie Emperor, the one the War Goddess battled back then. us knew he''d have to up his game for this fight.


    "Brat, kill this monster. The reward will be worth it," his senior''s voice echoed from his soul sea, making us grin. He knew that obtaining the Fire Devil Core from this Red-Eye Sabertooth Tiger would benefit him immensely.


    "I''ll do my best," he muttered, just as the monster appeared before him, towering and radiating immense power. us locked eyes with it.


    Without a second thought, the monster charged. us dashed forward to meet it head-on. Boom! The two collided, and the force sent us flying backward, mming into the ground.


    Cough! cough!!


    "What the hell," he muttered, spitting out two mouthfuls of blood.


    "Brat, wee to your first real fight with a Devil. Try not to die," his senior remarked sarcastically. us pushed himself up, narrowing his gaze. This was it. He had truly stepped into the big leagues now.


    The Tiger''s ws, dripping with fiery energy, glowed as it leaped into the air, descending on us with terrifying force. us dashed forward, narrowly dodging, and shed his sword backward in a swift counterattack.


    A thin arc of ice, coated with sword qi, shot out and struck the monster''s side. But there was no damage. Its fur was like titanium—unyielding and imprable.


    "No worries," us muttered with a grin. "If one strike doesn''t kill, I''ll use a hundred."


    His sword shed forward, sending multiple arcs of ice toward the beast. Each onended, but the result was the same—no damage at all.


    The Red-Eye Sabertooth Tiger barely flinched as the ice arcs bounced off its thick fur. It growled, its fiery aura intensifying, and its eyes burned with rage. us could feel the heat in the air as the monster charged again, faster this time, ws outstretched.


    The Tiger shed its fiery ws at us''s head, but he ducked just in time and kicked forward,nding a blow on its leg.


    "That hurt," us muttered, wincing. But the monster was knocked slightly off bnce, giving us an opening to strike.


    His sword shed forward, and a thick arc of ice, coated with sword qi, surged out. It hit the Tiger''s chest, pushing the beast back a step.


    us didn''t let up. He charged again, aiming for the monster''s left arm. But before his de couldnd, the Tiger erupted in mes, its ws glowing bright red.


    sh!


    A powerful strike from the Tiger''s ws sent fire w marks flying toward us. He reacted quickly, stepping lightly on the ground and raising an ice wall for protection.


    The fiery attack crashed into the ice, shattering it instantly. Although the ice defense wasn''t that great, the attack was very powerful to the extent that itnded and shattered the ice instantly and then headed toward him


    "What?" us gasped, eyes wide as the remnants of his defense crumbled. The Tiger''s strength was far greater than he anticipated.


    us shed his sword, sending an ice arc to meet the fire arc. The two forces collided and exploded, pushing us back several steps. He wanted to dash forward, but before he could move, the Tiger appeared within striking range.


    "This is not good," us muttered, realizing he was trapped. He tried to retreat, but at that moment, the Tiger opened its maw. Like a dragon, it unleashed a torrent of fire, red and scorching, spraying toward him with terrifying speed. The mes moved like bullets, aiming to disintegrate himpletely.


    us, whocked strong defensive abilities aside from the bell and the flower, quickly summoned the ice lotus and instantly activated the Absolute Ice Domain.


    The moment the domain formed, it freed us from the lock the Tiger had ced him in, giving him just enough time to evade. He rolled across the ground, dodging the deadly mes, and in the same motion, activated the Ice Beam ability of the lotus. A concentrated beam of ice shot from the lotus, striking the monster with precision.


    The Tiger roared in pain as the beam hit, pushing it back several meters before it crashed onto the ground.


    "My turn," us growled, dashing forward, his sword glowing with ice qi. "I have to kill it without using the Pentaface Bead," he muttered to himself, determined. His sword shed forward, aiming for the Tiger''s heart.


    But the Tiger was too fast and too strong. Its fiery w shed with us''s sword, pushing him back effortlessly. When it came to speed, us couldn''t keep up.


    Strength? He was outmatched. Even in defense, he was barely holding on. Each strike proved how much weaker he waspared to the monster. One small mistake would cost him his life.


    It was overwhelming. Fighting a Tier 7 monster while only at Tier 3 was something almost no one could do—yet here he was, doing it. But for the first time, us truly felt the gap in their power. The Tiger wasn''t just strong; it could use abilities like a human, making it far more dangerous than he had anticipated.


    Now he understood what the Senior had meant when he warned him. The day he faced a Devil, he would need every skill and technique he could muster. The realization sent a chill down his spine.


    "Round two," us muttered under his breath. His golden eyes shed, shifting to a deep crimson, giving him the appearance of a demon king.


    As the red light radiated from his eyes, a wave of crimson energy burst out, causing the Tiger to stagger. It hesitated, and us smirked, seizing the moment. He dashed forward with newfound ferocity.


    "Give me your core!" he roared, his sword shing forward with deadly intent, aimed right at the Tiger''s neck.