LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 76: Mass Leveling!!
Cassius heaved a soft sigh.
He knew the fate of Hoshito rested on his shoulders, but it wasn't like he could fight the Tyrant God either. However, that didn't mean he couldn't still think up something that could vanquish the monster before Stella and the rest of the MoonShiner Hunter Party entered the Gate.
A while ago, when he was running from the Sand Devourers, Cassius realized that, just like regular living organisms, the Sand Devourers needed to consume food to survive. And in this particular environment, there was really only one thing they could munch on.
Coming upon a large fenced area on the eastern side of the barren desert, Cassius saw a countless number of large, house-sized horned cows scattered all over the place. Similar to cows, yet adapting features resembling the harsh arid environment, they appeared oddly rocky.
They somehow knew to stay inside the fence enclosure, with the majority grazing on a specific type of weed that grew out of the molten sand. This enclosure, similar to a few others spread across the endless desert, was constructed atop a sandy, crystallized chasm. It was like the one Cassius had hidden in, but far more outwardly protruding.
"I don't know how these were built here or if they were left behind before the Sand Devourers arrived in these lands, but none of that really matters," said Cassius, his hands already slashing down to shatter a large portion of the fence. "The Sand Devourers have an inherent ability that allows them to sense what happens on the desert's surface; they use this to locate and hunt. But what would happen if some of their groomed cattle suddenly left a place they shouldn't be able to leave?"
His brows raised in anticipation, just imagining what was about to go down.
Just as he expected, a resounding rumble began to shake the desert, growing progressively louder. Tens of thousands of Sand Devourers were rushing toward the cattle enclosure, fury evident in their small, beady eyes. They crashed through sand hills, rammed into each other, and disregarded everything else in their advance.
"None of them are above the Sand Devourer Lord Rank, as the Tyrant Kings and Tyrant God are smart enough to understand that they no longer have a need for their cattle," Cassius spoke with a keen gleam in his calculative eyes. "But with just those coming right now, I should both be able to level up and reduce their numbers."
His plan was simple. If the Tyrant God was too much for him to handle in his current state, then he just had to continue leveling up. And to level up, he needed EXP bags, which would obviously come in the form of massive, ugly wyrm monsters. After amassing enough strength from grinding the Sand Devourers, he would preemptively make his move against the oddly gorgeous Tyrant God and turn her into his EXP bag as well!
"Of course, the Tyrant God and Tyrant Kings will figure out that something is up when tens of thousands of Sand Devourers die, but by then, I will already have everything I need to begin Step 2." Cassius smiled mysteriously, his thoughts unknown to all but himself. "For now, however, it's time to take them all out as efficiently as possible."
He already knew what he had to do to accomplish this, and it was something related to Step 2 of his 'Exterminate the Wyrms' plan. At once, he raised his hands above his head, Lilith in one hand and his Newbie 3 Sword in the other.
Cassius grinned before speaking words that resonated in an awfully familiar manner, just as before. "I…"
OOOM!
The violet-colored cryptic runic lines appeared once again, erupting with an absurd level of power. Yet, before the residual energy waves could reach the Tyrant God, he condensed them, expertly controlling the emission of energy.
'I won't make the same mistake as last time, and by the time you do eventually realize what's happening, it'll already be too late…!'
"AM…!!!"
The second word was spoken; the release of energy grew ever more uncontrollable!
Cassius's face frosted over, his words following suit. Glitchy and distorted, he finished the last of the recitation. "I AM—"
"A.T.O.M.I.C.!!!!"
As soon as the Sand Devourers arrived at the area where the fence was broken and large cattle were running free, they were forced to look up at a rapidly expanding eruption of purple light. For a moment, they felt like they were floating above the clouds, experiencing something that could only be described as otherworldly.
Then they died.
The blast of purple light stretched out so fast that every single one of the cattle and Sand Devourers in this settlement was erased. Like an eraser over pencil markings, they faded into oblivion, leaving behind only a crater that spanned three miles in every direction. The damage this time was even greater than the last time the Skill was used, entirely attributable to all of Cassius's level-ups and increases in power.
Descending to the center of the crater, Cassius watched as the last of the purple Atomic light dispersed. He felt the same overwhelming aura signature flare up in rising anger but was far more focused on the system notifications bombarding his vision.
*Ding~!*
[You have slain 95,000+ Sand Devourers, including tens of thousands of C-'s, thousands of C+'s, and ~15 B-'s!]
[Your Experience Bar has tremendously advanced!]
[You leveled up!]
[You received 30 AP!]
[All of your Main Attributes have increased by 10 Stat Points!]
[You leveled up!]
[You received 45 AP!]
[All of your Main Attributes have increased by 15 Stat Points!]
[You leveled up!]
[You received 70 AP!]
[All of your Main Attributes have increased by 25 Stat Points!]
[You…]
Although each level required exponentially greater amounts of EXP than the previous one, it also came with far better rewards. And that was just referencing the automatic rewards, not even including the Gold-Ranked Skill Boxes waiting to be dumped into Cassius's inventory.