Chapter 70: The Haunted Dunes
He grabbed hold of Sera and threw her to the side as he was tackled by one of the creatures that had jumped at him from the tree. With a crash, he was taken down to the ground.
Despite the creature's attempt to bite him, he pierced its chest and threw it off him, clutching its still-beating heart in his hand. Archer stored the heart in his Item Box and got to his feet, but another beast pounced at him as soon as he did.
Using his wing, he stopped the cannibal's pounce, causing it to become disoriented. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Archer impaled the creature with his slender tail. More and more of the creepy creatures started to approach him.
Archer used Void Blaze, burning all the closest creatures, but he was too busy paying attention to the beasts before him. Suddenly, another one crept up behind him and attempted to slash him with its filthy claws.
But he quickly cast Cosmic Shield, blocking the attack. Its claws scraped across the shield, sounding like a teacher scratching a chalkboard, but Archer didn't budge. He cast Blink and reappeared behind the creature, shooting a bolt made from lightning at it.
It seared right through its body, hitting another creature just before it. But even more of them appeared and started to surround him, blocking off his escape by foot.
Which he was never going to try. Smiling as he fired loads of lightning bolts, hitting numerous creatures, but more replaced them, frustrated Archer. 'What the hell, why are there so many of them.'
Archer looked around to see dozens of these horrifying creatures, with blood oozing from wounds on their bodies. Some were walking on all fours, while others stood upright, their movements jerky and unsettling.
The creatures emitted creepy noises, a mix of growls and hisses, making the hairs on the back of Archer's neck stand up. They circled him with their eyes fixed on him, and he felt a creeping sense of unease.
Archer tried to stay calm, but the sight of these creatures and their creepy movements started getting to him. He could feel his heart racing and his palms sweating as they closed in on him, knowing he had to act fast if he wanted to escape alive.
The creatures started to close in on him, and Archer instantly cast a spell he rarely used. 'Thunder Wave.'
A monstrous, violet wave swept out from him, striking all the creatures and sending them running back into the fog. Just as he thought he was alone, one of the creatures jumped out of a bush not far from him and started running toward him.
Archer was about to attack it, but Sera quickly jumped out and started hovering in the air. She let out an adorable growl and released a stream of beautiful fire, hitting the creature directly in the face.
When he looked at the corpse, Its head was gone, and the body dropped to the ground. He went around collecting the intact bodies. Sera approached Archer, looking at him with a grin as she perched on his shoulder. He laughed to himself and continued to make his way south.
He traveled for days but still didn't reach the other side. It took him close to a week to cross the Blackwoods. Emerging from the dense jungle, Archer blinked in the bright sunlight that shone down on him.
He took in his surroundings as he sighed to himself, ''This must be the Haunted Dunes.''
Before him stretched a vast, scorching desert, its dunes shimmering in the heat. The air was dry and oppressive, and he could feel the sweat beading on his forehead. But he noticed a small road snaking its way through the desert, leading off into the distance.
It looked like a thin ribbon, barely visible in the distance, but it was the only path he could see. With a deep breath, he set off towards the road, his feet sinking into the hot sand with each step.
Sera chirped as she took off. She was flying around, and he decided to check his status after killing those creepy creatures and the other random beasts. 'Status.'
[Experience: 9500/12000]
[Level Up: 90>91]
[SP: 16>76]
[Cosmic Shield: 3>4]
[Element Bolts: 2>3]
After calculating his gains, he realized he had earned a total of 14,800 experience points. Of these, 4,000 came from defeating the creepy-looking creatures, while another 5,000 came from killing various beasts he encountered in the jungle.
The remaining 5,800 experience points came from the hearts he had looted during his journey. When traveling through the jungle, he consumed all the hearts he had collected up until then, gaining sixty stat points in the process.
However, he had not yet allocated the points he earned until now.
Archer decided to distribute his points, putting twenty-six into mana and ten into the other attributes, except for charisma and intelligence, which received five points each.
[HP: 2300>2400]
[Mana: 8600>9080]
[Strength: 1500>1600]
[Constitution: 1700>1800]
[Stamina: 1500>1600]
[Charisma: 1750>1800]
[Intelligence: 1350>1400]
Feeling pleased with his progress, Archer couldn't help but feel excited as he saw his mana level approach 10,000. Walking along, he pulled out a bottle of Honey Brew and started drinking it.
When he finished, Sera plopped down on his shoulder and curled up, falling asleep after eating all those insects. Archer journeyed for hours, but all he saw was an endless expanse of desert.
As he looked up, he noticed the sun beginning to set, prompting him to retreat to his Domain and take a refreshing bath. Entering his Domain, Archer noticed the same sun setting in the distance.
Looking around, Archer spotted a group of kids running around. In the empty field behind the tent city, he saw Mohemet training about 100 men. With a smile, Archer made his way to the cottage.
As he entered, he was greeted by the delightful aroma of wildflowers and freshly baked bread. Archer saw a few brownies cooking in the kitchen, and they turned around to spot him.
They started rushing around, loading up a plate full of food. They spoke as they walked over to him with smiles on their little faces. "Master Archer, here is some food for you."
Smiling at the little brownies, he took the plate of food and went to the balcony. "Thank you," he said.
After the two brownies bowed and went off to continue cooking, Archer made his way over to the balcony. He sat down and started to eat the delicious food they had prepared for him; he was enjoying the bread they baked.
They gave him some bacon-looking meat, bread, and other meat. Looking out over his Domain, he gazed at the sprawling tent city and the other wooden buildings stretching into the distance.
Beyond them, he could see a beautiful lake shimmering in the sunlight and a majestic mountain range rising up in the distance.
Closing his eyes, he imagined the Domain growing in size. The land around everything he created becomes a sea of grassland as far as the eyes can see.
Archer created a large lake and a massive redwood forest in the west, adding every peaceful beast he could think of.
He opened his eyes as he shook his head, and checked his mana.
[Mana: 3000/9080]
Seeing he had 3000 mana left, he continued, closing his eyes. He started picturing loads of lake beasts roaming in the massive lake in the west.
Finishing up, he stood and made his way to the bedroom. While undressing, he entered a room and jumped into bed. Sera saw him and followed him to bed, curling up next to him. As the morning light filtered through the window, Archer stirred from his slumber and slowly opened his eyes.
He sat up in bed and stretched his arms, feeling the stiffness of sleep leaving his body. Grabbing his clothes from his Item box, he put them back on one by one: first, his shirt, then his pants, and finally, his long boots.
Casting a cleanse on himself, he pulled out a meat wrap. As he did, Sera opened her little red eyes and pounced at him. She grabbed the meat wrap and flew off as she let out a giggle sound. ''Stop taking my food, Sera!''
He pulled out another as he exited the Domain. Archer continued walking through the Haunted Dunes as he stepped out of his Domain.
The sand shifted beneath his boots, and the wind howled in his ears. Summoning his Draconic Form. 'Draconis.' All his features, except his teeth and claws, were visible as his wings extended, and he smiled.
Sera crawled into his shirt and clung like a baby monkey. He took off and started flying south. Archer flew for a couple of hours before he noticed a caravan slowly moving in the distance.
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