Chapter 34: The Hunt and the Ascent

The thick, flowing blood had completely dyed the transport platform red. The monster’s howls, the shrill scream of the chainsaw sword, the savage clash of serrated blades cutting through flesh and bone, and the roaring engine of the transport vehicle reverberated ceaselessly.

"Madness! Utter madness!"

Alba cursed under his breath, but he knew perfectly well that Li Nanke was not mad; in fact, he was calmer than anyone. Glancing at the hellish scene behind him, where the transport platform had become a purgatory and monsters had gathered in droves, Alba followed the plan and stomped hard on the accelerator, speeding away.

The moving transport vehicle acted as bait, luring monsters onto the platform. When enough monsters had gathered, Alba could rapidly drive out of the area, shaking off other pursuing creatures. The broad platform made for an ideal battlefield.

The only real concern was the Aggregated Aberration. With experience from last time, Alba would immediately turn into a mining tunnel branch and switch routes whenever he heard those heavy footsteps approaching from afar, continuing to lure monsters.

He had lost count of how many monsters Li Nanke had slain. It was obvious this man was intentionally hunting large numbers of them. At first, Alba didn’t understand the purpose of such madness, but as the hunts increased, the reasoning gradually became clear.

Initially, Li Nanke suffered injuries from being beset by monsters, but as the hunts continued, he moved with greater ease and skill. Moreover, Li Nanke demanded larger and larger gatherings of monsters, slaying them faster each time.

Li Nanke was growing stronger at a visibly rapid pace through these repeated hunts.

Alba felt envious of such supernatural power, but he knew that, were he in Li Nanke’s place, he would soon be torn apart by the ravenous beasts. Supernatural power was merely a tool—the outcome depended on who wielded it. He knew he could not remain silent when struck by a monster’s bone blade, nor could he muster the courage to face a giant aberration head-on.

Even just glancing at the carnage on the platform behind him, blood and flesh flying, demanded tremendous courage.

He meticulously followed the plan, providing Li Nanke with opportunities to hunt, and was glad to see his protector grow ever stronger. Why worry so much? Better to cling to this lifeline and escape!

Soon, the savage battle on the platform faded into silence again, leaving only the man’s heavy, labored breathing.

Alba was about to slow down and turn the vehicle to lure the next batch of monsters when Li Nanke spoke, "Let’s go. That’s enough. Keep moving forward."

Alba hesitated. "That’s it?"

He asked, but his hands obeyed Li Nanke’s instruction, pressing the accelerator and driving on.

Li Nanke reclined in the rear of the cab, resting. The chainsaw sword leaned against his side, its serrated blade smeared with blood, bits of flesh, and tufts of hair—a weapon of pure carnage.

After prolonged slaughter, even with the blessing of the primary essence "Deep Sea," he felt some fatigue.

With so many aberrations slain, he had accumulated a vast amount of source energy. Yet, as with guiding the dream last time, the amount gained from killing ordinary monsters wasn’t constant; it diminished as the number slain increased.

He had now reaped enough benefits; lingering here would be unwise, and he had more important tasks ahead.

Li Nanke turned his thoughts to his spiritual world.

His human trait "Armament" had risen from level 3 to the maximum of level 10, and the primary essence "Deep Sea" had reached level 7 with the infusion of source energy.

Both traits and primary essences required more source energy as their levels increased, particularly when advancing from level 9 to 10 to attain their ultimate abilities.

Primary essences consumed vast amounts of source energy—maxing one out required several times more than a trait.

Thus, Li Nanke had first maxed out the easier trait "Armament," whose ultimate ability—mastery of most melee weapons—was of marginal utility to him. Still, "Armament" greatly increased the power of melee weapons.

With "Armament" at full level, if he encountered another berserker-type monster with tough hide and flesh, he was confident he could decapitate it in a single strike, given the right opportunity.

With "Deep Sea" at level 7, his muscle fibers, neural reaction speed, and organ resistance to pressure had all improved dramatically.

Li Nanke rested in the rear of the cab. His slow-twitch muscle fibers had strong oxidative capacity, and with the enhancement from "Deep Sea," his body cleared lactic acid faster, reducing its accumulation in his muscles and alleviating fatigue.

Another major cause of muscular fatigue was the depletion of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the body’s most direct energy source. Normally, replenishing ATP required a high-carbohydrate diet, converting food into glycogen stored in muscle, and then into ATP during intense exertion.

But source energy seemed a far more advanced form of energy. It could directly enhance traits and essences, and, when accumulated in the "self," participate in the body’s metabolism and energy supply, so that even after prolonged combat, he felt no excessive hunger from physical exertion.

"So, in the dream, there’s no need to eat, nor any feeling of hunger..."

Thanks to the improvement of "Deep Sea," by the time the transport vehicle reached the central mining area’s large freight elevator, Li Nanke had nearly recovered.

Riding that elevator would take them straight to the surface and out of the deep pit prison.

Alba was about to slow down and stop, but Li Nanke said, "Keep going. We’re heading deeper into the mine."

"What? Why?"

"Don’t ask questions. If you want to live, listen to me."

Alba gazed longingly at the escape route so close at hand. He could escape the prison, yet Li Nanke insisted they press on.

He wanted to jump out and flee alone, but lacked the courage.

The planet’s surface environment was extremely harsh, and judging from the fresh tire marks near the freight elevator, some convicts had already removed their collars and escaped via the elevator.

If he tried to escape alone, who knew what dangers he might face.

Sticking with Li Nanke offered the best chance of survival, and since the vehicle had sped through the latter half of the tunnels, there were no monsters to be seen. There were no prisoners deeper in the mine, so it was unlikely any new monsters would appear out of nowhere.

With this in mind, Alba cast one last reluctant glance at the freight elevator and drove on into the depths of the mine.

After guiding the dream last time, Li Nanke understood that simply completing the key and final nodes given by the Far Shore would not yield the greatest rewards.

To maximize the benefits, the optimal strategy was to dig deep and uncover the hidden nodes lurking within the Forbidden Dream.

And in the depths of the mine, the strange stone stele unearthed by the prisoners was certainly a hidden node!