151 Dread-Lightning Lion

The original appearance of this chapter can be found at N0v3l.B1n.

Deep within the Whisper Forest was an area covering dozens of kilometers packed with Level 5 Wave Beasts. These creatures were the leaders of giant packs with thousands, and sometimes dozens of thousands of underlings.

On top of a mountain, gazing over all those Level 5 Wave Beasts, there was an even stronger creature. It was almost two meters tall, with golden fur that seemed more resilient than any common metal, and lightning arcs revolved around him, unleashing an aura of destructive might and immense speed.

That creature was the Dread-Lightning Lion, a Wave Beast with a Lineage that could help it rise all the way to a Wave Champion rank.

The days of the Dread-Lightning Lion were calm, as it only had to unleash its aura to keep all other Wave Beast at bay and devour the offering its underlings would bring to it every morning. It would only face danger when facing other Wave Beasts that wanted to take its domain, but thanks to its strength, it never lost.

Right from the start, the Dread-Lightning Lion felt that something odd had happened since its underlings had not brought him the morning offerings. Wave Beasts have a strict hierarchy, and any form of rebellion was punishable with death, so there was no way those Level 5 Wave Beasts would simply forget their duties.

The Dread-Lightning Lion rose, and its Life Wave burst with power as it noticed a presence on the mountain right next to the one it was sitting on.

Wave Beasts take great pride in their instincts and perception, so the fact that the Dread-Lightning Lion did not notice the human until now disturbed it greatly.

The Level 6 Wave Beast focused on the human and saw it was wearing full black armor with a red helmet. The one thing that drew its attention the most was the red light coming from his eyes.

Although the human’s sudden arrival shocked the Dread-Lightning Lion’s heart, it survived thanks to its power and ability to control its emotions.

.....

“ROAR!”

The Dread-Lightning Lion roared with all its strength, calling for its pawns to come.

Cain’s eyes narrowed as he saw that. There was nothing wrong with calling for reinforcements. Actually, it was the smart way to do things.

However, most Wave Beasts were too terrified of looking weak in front of their pawns, so they would rather risk their lives than ask for help.

Facing the Level 6 Dread-Lightning Lion would already be challenging, and doing it while dozens of Level 5 Wave Beasts attacked from the sides would be impossible.

Luckily, Cain did not have to worry about it. When he arrived at this place, the first thing he did was test the limit of his assassin’s skills, and the result was impressive.

The Dread-Lightning Lion saw that no one answered his call, and as it focused on its sense of smell, it detected a faint smell of blood in the air. Immediately, the Wave Beast’s eyes widened as it understood what had happened.

All its pawns, dozens of Level 5 Wave Beast, were dead, and the one that did it was so silent that no one noticed it until all of them had perished.

It was clear to the Dread-Lightning Lion that the man in front of it was responsible for its pawns’ death. That also provoked a flash of realization in its eyes, as the Wave Beast understood that running away would leave it vulnerable, and the only way it could survive was by killing the man now that he was in its perception.

“ROAR!”

The Dread-Lightning Lion roared again, but this time it was not calling for help but unleashing every ounce of power inside its body, ready to take this as a life-and-death battle.

A pillar of yellow lightning burst from the Dread-Lighting Lion that rose more than twenty meters into the air, generating a picture that only natural phenomena could provoke in the Old World.

Cain’s eyes narrowed as he felt the might of the Wave Beast, and he knew that if he were to underestimate it, even with all his gifts and powers, he might lose his life in this forest.

‘Good!’

Cain came to this forest to test the limit of his battle power, and the only way to find it was to face an enemy that could put his life in danger, a battle where a single mistake could mean the end.

His Astral Wave burst with immense strength as he unleashed a 2000% Wave Burst, and his heartbeat was so strong that it generated a sound that echoed through the forest as he activated Asura Form: First Gear.

That was not all, as arcs of blue lightning began to move across his body, similar to how the yellow ones did with the Dread-Lightning Lion.

The human and the Wave Beast had Lineages that focused on lightning conversion. Still, Cain trained with a technique, giving his blue lightning the same power as the Dread-Lightning Lion’s yellow despite the difference in their cultivations.

Cain and the Dread-Lightning Lion increased their auras more and more, filling the air with arcs of blue and yellow lightning until they finally reached their peak and leaped toward the other.

The two mountain peaks were almost fifty meters apart, but Cain and the Dread-Lightning Lion unleashed so much strength that they clashed in the air without losing momentum.

“?Boom!”

A yellow and blue lightning explosion appeared between the mountains when Cain and the Dread-Lightning Lion clashed. Both used speed to enhance their strength, but the Wave Beast came on top during the first clash.

The Dread-Lightning Lion showed a small smile as it saw that its claw pushed the human’s arm back, but it did not last long.

Cain saw in Virtual Sight that he would lose the first clash with the Dread-Lightning Lion, which is why before the claw sent him crashing down, he twisted his body and connected a ferocious kick to the beast’s temple.

“Boom.”

“Boom.”

Two small blasts echoed through the forest once the human and Wave Beast crashed into the ground. The Dread-Lightning Lion rose from the ground with pain on its face since the collision harmed it.

Unlike the Wave Beast, Cain’s face showed nothing. He was not hiding his pain since right before the collision with the ground, he used Wave Focus and directed all of his Astral Wave to his back before morphing it into a soft substance through Wave Transmutation.

Cain showed a small smile as he noticed the almost null damage he endured by displaying an inhumane speed of control over the Four Basic Wave Arts.

However, that smile did not last long as coldness and killing intent burst from his eyes when he focused on the Dread-Lightning Lion again.

The Wave Beast noticed the human’s gaze and answered with the same ferocity as it flashed forward, ready to hip him apart with its claws.

Cain did not simply wait for the Wave Beast but flashed forward as the lightning around his arms grew denser. Less than a second after that, he saw a claw coming from above, ready to split him to pieces, but he dodged to the side while still moving forward.

The Dread-Lightning Lion could not believe that the human had dodged its attack. One of the keys behind its power was its immense speed, but the human was even faster.

Actually, Cain’s speed was not faster than the Dread-Lightning Lion, even with Asura Form, but he used his martial skills and Virtual Sight to dodge that lightning claw.

Unfortunately for the Wave Beast, it did not have time to wonder about the secret behind the human’s speed as a fist with immense strength, speed, and penetration force landed on the side of its body.

Cain saw how his punch sent the Wave Beast flying away, but he was surprised to see that it managed to recover control mid-air before landing on the ground and using its entire body as a torpedo.

Even with his immense speed and martial skills, Cain could not dodge that attack, so he was forced to form a cross with his arms and focus all his Astral Wave in them to block that strike.

The Dread-Lightning Lion’s head clashed directly with Cain’s guard and sent him flying away, breaking several trees in his path. A ferocious light appeared in the Wave Beast’s eyes as it ignored the pain of its fractured ribs and dashed toward the human.

Cain had weakened the damage of the collisions by covering his back with his transmuted Astral Wave. Still, the initial clash left an iron taste in his mouth, indicating internal damage.

He then saw how the Dread-Lightning Lion bounced toward him with its claw about to reach him. Yet, this time he was able to counter it.

Just as the claws were about to reach him, Cain dashed forward and sent a kick toward the Dread-Lightning Lion’s jaw, sending the creature back.

Cain did not waste this opportunity and dashed forward, ready to unleash a barrage of strikes, but just as he was about to reach the Dread-Lightning Lion, he saw how the beast’s body glowed.

That glow made Cain’s instincts scream danger. He immediately stopped his advance, tearing some of his muscles due to the inertia, before jumping back and covering his entire body with lightning.

Less than a second after the Dread-Lightning Lion’s body glowed, a blast of immensely powerful yellow lightning emerged, discharging an extremely destructive force in all directions.

Cain had escaped from the blast’s epicenter, but the yellow lightning would still reach him with enough power to overcome his defenses. Despite the massive drop in his energy pool that it would generate, he activated his Nullity Armor’s ability, inducing a force field that protected him.

The yellow lightning’s blast made Cain feel his entire body would melt, but thanks to all his protection, he escaped without receiving a lethal wound.

‘That was close. Had I been in the core of the blast, I would have died.’