Chapter 18: Abyssal Demon

Cain’s eyes narrowed as he saw that giant fist enhanced by Life Wave approaching him at a shocking speed. He managed to dodge the attack while continuing advancing and used the momentum to strike the spear’s rear, pushing it deeper into the Metallic Gorilla’s shoulder.

“AHHHH!” The Metallic Gorilla roared in pain as the spear practically drilled through his shoulder.

However, just as Cain was about to continue his onslaught, he saw the Waver Beast’s left arm coming at him.

According to the simulation, that attack should have crippled the Metallic Gorilla’s left arm, giving Cain enough time to break some of the beast’s ribs, but things did not go that way.

Cain only managed to form a cross with his arms, using them as a shield against the beast’s slap.

Although the slap sent Cain flying away, it did not harm him other than numbing his arms. While the [A.I. Chip Module]’s simulation was not perfect, it was correct that the spear would greatly hinder the Metallic Gorilla’s left arm.

Cain’s eyes focused, but he was still a little shaken. This experience showed him that he should only take the simulations as a guide and not blindly trust them.

.....

“Wave Burst!” Cain pronounced those words as his Astral Wave output increased exponentially.

The ability Wave Burst was something all Wave Cultivators could use, just like Wave Cloak. It allowed one to increase their Wave output, enhancing their strength but affecting their stamina and the amount of time they can have their Wave Cloak active.

“AHHHHH!” The Metallic Gorilla roared, this time not with pain but rage, as it also used Wave Burst.

Cain and the Wave Beast flashed to each other, with the first taking a turn to the beast’s left in the last second.

Not only did Cain dodge the Metallic Gorilla’s attack, but he landed a heavy blow on the beast’s knee.

That strike was enough for the Mattalilic Gorilla’s legs to bend, allowing Cain’s kick to land straight in the back of the beast’s head.

Such a blow in the back of the head caused massive trauma to the Metallic Gorilla’s brain, which Cain took full advantage of.

Cain used all his strength as he began to strike the Metallic Gorilla’s liver, making the creature feel immense pain while at the same time taking away its focus and drive.

Although he only used his fist, Cain was an Astral Wave Warrior, so the might of his punches was stronger than what an Essence Wave Warrior could provoke by striking with a hammer.

Of course, only low-level and weak Essence Wave Warriors that lacked skills and technique would use their Essence Wave like that.

The liver was the largest gland and a center of blood circulation, and unlike the heart, it lacked a rib cage to protect it, so one could imagine the amount of damage it would take by receiving Cain’s blows.

The Metallic Gorilla felt it suffocated, while blood did not stop emerging from its maws, forcing it to get down on all fours.

Cain’s eyes became cold as he saw that, and he immediately jumped on the beast’s back. He grabbed the Metallic Gorilla’s head with his left hand and began to strike the upper section of the spine with his right one.

“?Boom!”

“Crack!”

The sound of crashes and cracks emerged from the impact area as Cain shattered the cervical vertebrae and severed the spinal cord, killing the Wave Beast.

Cain felt his blood burning due to the thrill of battle and the flaw of his Lineage, but luckily he managed to calm down fast.

The youth deactivated his Wave Cloak as a sense of exhaustion assaulted him. The battle had been short but using Wave Burst took a toll on his endurance.

He took his spear out of the beast’s body, opened its ribcage, and extracted the heart before flashing away, only stopping once he was sure there was no one close to him.

The following month went like that, with Cain hunting down Wave Beasts and using the hearts he obtained as both food and a source of Life Wave to improve his Wave Cultivation.

Every day, he went deeper into the forest, and like Captain Josef told him, the enemies’ power grew. Sometimes he would find a pack of Peak Level 2 Wave Beasts.

Of course, Cain was not suicidal. Other than scanning them and marking their location, he did nothing to those packs.

Cain picked up a sulfur smell on the thirty-nine day inside the Military Academy Secret Trial. As soon as he did that, he pushed his focus to the limit.

The reason was that the sulfur smell did not come from a Wave Beast. According to the Dark Race Compendium, that was a characteristic of the Infernus Daemon Race, one of the Dark Races!

Cain made sure he was in peak condition before following the scent. After twenty minutes, he was able to see his target.

It was a man with a large muscular body, obsidian skin, and an expression full of savagery and chaos in his eyes. There was a scar on his chest, but other than that, he seemed in perfect health.

He stood meditatively in a deforested zone next to a river. While that made it hard for him to hide, it also forced opponents into revealing themselves to attack. That display of strategy alone was a testament to why a member of the Dark Races was so much harder to handle than a Wave Beast.

As soon as Cain’s eyes landed on the member of the Infernus Daemon Race, he felt hatred. He had never seen one and much less interacted with them, but as a member of the Godslayer Humankind, he was taught from a very young age to see them as the enemy and loathe them.

And if the Godslayer Humankind Empire indoctrination was not enough, Cain felt resentment because he lost his father in the war against them.

‘System, scan him.’

Cain even slowed his breathing as he focused on the enemy and waited for the system’s analysis.

[Target scan successful

—

Race: Infernus Daemon Race

Lineage: Abyssal Demon

Path of Power: Astral Rebirth (Level 2 Wave Warrior)

—

Stats:

Strength: 0.61

Agility: 0.33

Vitality: 0.54

Astral Wave: 0.51

—

Note: There is a foreign object hidden inside the target’s body]

Cain’s eyes narrowed as he saw those stats, and by the amount of Astral Wave, he deduced that the Abyssal Demon was already at Peak Level 2.

As for the foreign object inside the Abyssal Demon, while it drew some interest, it was not Cain’s main concern right now.

‘System, scan me.’

The Absolute Life Form System followed Cain’s command, and a new virtual screen appeared for him, this time with his data.

[Scanning Vessel

—

Name: Cain Laurifer

Race: Godslayer Humankind

Path of Power: Astral Rebirth (Level 1 Wave Warrior)

Linage: Lightning Lupus

Wave Talent: Low Tier 4

—

Stats:

Strength: 0.15

Agility: 0.20

Vitality: 0.17

Wave: O.16

—

Arts and skills:

Soldier Cultivation Technique.

Soldier Skills

Lycan Physiology

Lightning Conversion

??]

The system showed Cain the immense difference between their stats, but that did not mean he would give up.

First, he used the [Basic Virtual Simulation] tool to project the outcomes of a battle between him and the Abyssal Demon.

In most of the simulations, he died or had to run away with severe injuries, but there was a path he could take that would allow him to win.

Cain took a deep breath, hid in the shadows, and waited for the right time.

.....

The chance presented itself after five hours when the Abyssal Demon took a moment to begin circulating his Astral Wave. He had just started training when a spear flashed toward his back.