C17 Cold Stone Grass

In the heavens, a luminous full moon hung solitary and high, outshining the now dimmed stars.

The vast, primeval forest teemed with the terrifying roars and mournful cries of beasts, the air thick with the stench of blood. A faint crimson mist shrouded the already fearsome and perilous woods, transforming it into a veritable battlefield of Asuras.

Suddenly, a pair of massive golden-striped leopards burst from the dense underbrush. Their eyes were a milky white, clouded orbs streaked with copious amounts of scarlet. They lunged towards Lin Yuan in a frenzy.

"You've truly lost your mind!"

Lin Yuan's eyes narrowed with a dangerous glint, and he flicked his tongue out to sample the environment. Every rustle and stir within a five-hundred-meter radius around him registered in his mind.

This golden-striped leopard was merely a Level 2 Demonic Beast, yet it had the audacity to launch an assault on Lin Yuan, who had ascended to the stature of a Level 4 Demonic Beast. Its madness was beyond comprehension.

Lin Yuan was unimpressed by this feeble creature. With a nonchalant sweep of his massive tail, he struck at the leopard. His attack power had now reached 4 attribute points, rivaling even the formidable big black tiger. He was certain that this blow would shatter the leopard's limbs on impact.

His tail descended with force, striking a large tree. Branches quivered, and a shower of soil and broken stones erupted, but Lin Yuan's gaze turned icy.

The strike had missed!

The golden-striped leopard, though utterly deranged, moved with astonishing agility. It dodged the sweeping tail and managed to rake its claws across the soft scales of Lin Yuan's belly, inflicting several deep gashes. It then snapped its jaws in an attempted bite.

Enraged and caught off guard by the leopard's audacity, Lin Yuan could no longer afford to underestimate his opponent. His tail whipped out with renewed vigor, his speed now surpassing 4 attribute points. Despite his colossal size, he was swift. Effortlessly, he ensnared the golden-striped leopard and executed a Strangulation, pulverizing it.

The relentless crunching of bones echoed until Lin Yuan released his grip. The leopard's outer skin remained unbroken, but beneath it, the bones, blood, and muscle had been utterly decimated by the tremendous force.

Lin Yuan nonchalantly tossed aside the carcass of the Golden Striped Leopard and was promptly greeted by a system alert.

"You have slain a Level 2 Demonic Beast, earning 0.1 attribute points and 1 mission point."

Earning a mere 0.1 attribute points for defeating a Level 2 Demonic Beast left Lin Yuan with a tinge of regret. It seemed that slaying any Demonic Beasts below Level 2 would yield no further rewards. And as he advanced to Level 4, the challenge of accruing attribute points would only intensify.

The forest offered little in the way of refuge. Lin Yuan had hoped to find a temporary hideout and wait out the night before addressing other matters. Yet, he soon realized there was nowhere to conceal himself. Coupled with the paltry single mission point he had just acquired, Lin Yuan resolved to go on the offensive.

Despite the peril, the forest, bathed in the eerie glow of a blood-red moonlight, brimmed with potential fortunes. Beyond the mission rewards, this was a time when numerous exotic treasures emerged.

Take, for instance, the moment Lin Yuan flicked his tongue; he detected a spiritual herb a kilometer away, radiating a potent medicinal force that surpassed even the Cloud Rain Flower he had previously consumed.

After a brief contemplation, Lin Yuan hastened towards it. For the first time, he leveraged his impressive speed, unimpeded, covering the kilometer distance in an instant and arriving at the vicinity of the spiritual herb.

He also sensed several Demonic Beasts with formidable auras closing in swiftly. Surveying his surroundings, Lin Yuan found the spiritual herb thriving within a massive, azure boulder.

The surface of the stone was remarkably polished, with a hint of jade-like luster. The spiritual herb had sprouted through the tough stone, now basking in the crimson moonlight. Its branches and leaves swayed gently, as if animated by the soft mountain breeze, giving it an ethereal presence.

"A high-grade Cold Stone Grass has been located."

The system's voice chimed in timely, providing details about the Cold Stone Grass.

"The Cold Stone Grass seeds take a millennium to germinate. Once separated from the parent plant, the seeds drift on the wind, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon for a decade before taking root. Upon landing, they create a unique barrier, gradually amassing spiritual energy to envelop themselves. After a thousand years, the rich spiritual aura transforms into a vast Cold Stone. Within the heart of the Cold Stone, the grass sprouts every ten years until it finally breaks free and reaches maturity."

As the Cold Stone Grass pierced through the massive Cold Stone, the stone emitted a crisp, shattering noise. From the heart of the stone oozed a green, paste-like substance, mingled with a dense spiritual energy reminiscent of an endless, rolling river, enveloping the surrounding ten miles in a thick, spiritual mist.

This spiritual energy coalesced into a pale green vortex, visible to the naked eye, with the sprouting Cold Stone Grass at its epicenter. The system's alert chimed in once again.

"In fifteen minutes, the Cold Stone Grass will reach full maturity. At that point, it will transform into numerous seeds that will scatter to the heavens on the breeze. The Cold Stone Grass must be harvested at the exact moment of maturity, or it will wither away."

"Fifteen minutes!"

Lin Yuan monitored the Cold Stone Grass's condition while three figures charged toward him. A Forest Elephant with four massive tusks, a green rhinoceros, and an enormous black bear were closing in.

Lin Yuan could tell that the Forest Elephant, larger even than himself, had attained the status of a level four demonic beast. Both the rhinoceros and the black bear were level three, yet their presence was far more formidable than that of typical beasts of their level, hinting they were on the cusp of level four.

The black bear, having lost its senses to the Blood Moon, charged without hesitation, targeting the formidable Forest Elephant as its opponent.

Lin Yuan and the rhinoceros faced off. Lin Yuan had been the first to reach the site, his length sufficient to encircle the Cold Stone completely. He coiled around it protectively, like a mother hen with her chicks, awaiting the precise moment the Cold Stone Grass would ripen.

The rhinoceros pawed the ground restlessly, its bright, keen eyes fixed on Lin Yuan while also keeping a watchful gaze on the Cold Stone Grass. In an instant, it hunkered down and charged like an armored chariot, its might capable of cleaving mountains and shattering rocks.

Ordinarily, Lin Yuan would never opt to clash with a rhinoceros of such formidable strength. But now, encircling the Cold Stone, retreat was not an option. He braced himself for the confrontation.