The Primal Hunter

Jake watched the battle again, this time already knowing the outcome, allowing him to focus on aspects he hadn’t before. He observed their clashes and primarily the Viper as he kept a close eye on the claws and the poison running through them at all times.

He focused on the axe warrior and his indomitable will.

On the way that the Viper used all his skills and manipulated magic.

He focused on everything he could as time rewound again after the Viper escaped, as Jake once more intimately experienced the escape skill related to Wings of the Malefic Viper. Soon after the escape skill was used, time rewound as Jake experienced everything again.

This happened a dozen times as the Path of the Heretic Chosen skill stayed active longer than ever before. Perhaps it was due to it consuming two attempts, or maybe it was due to the way this attempt worked, but either way, it allowed Jake to learn more than before.

Fang and Wings were the two skills truly in focus, yet Jake felt like he learned just as much from Valdemar as he did the Viper. The man was what Jake could only describe as inspirational. His utter aura of dominance and willpower that didn’t allow a single trace of doubt to enter his mind, as well as skills that synergized with this, made him an absolute monster. He truly never made a move believing it wouldn’t work or fight, believing he couldn’t win. Was this delusional? Perhaps… but it clearly worked for him.

He was the epitome of a warrior despite not necessarily being the most skilled fighter from a technical point of view. Every attack was infused with every fragment of his will, and every atom of his body radiated battle intent. Jake was in awe the more he looked on, but sadly the period of the skill was soon over.

A final time he experienced traveling with Wings as he focused on it, but he felt he was still a distance away from fully comprehending it. In fact, he had learned a lot more related to Fangs as he felt he was just on the cusp of comprehension.

But then something changed. Jake flew away with the Viper, but instead of time rewinding or the vision ending, Jake was returned to Valdemar and the golden orb. The axe warrior’s weapon had broken from that final strike as he stood unarmed and looked up at the orb as he breathed heavily.

Then he took out a bottle from some spatial inventory and opened it. He went over to a pool of the Viper’s blood as he poured the liquid from the bottle out onto it.

“Cheers, mates, first drink’s on you guys. I bloody won,” he said as he took a whisk of the bottle himself, and to Jake’s amazement, his wounds stopped festering soon after as he stabilized himself from all the poison in his body. It wasn’t a healing potion or an antidote he had drank but alcohol so fucking pure it washed out and neutralized much of the poison. It was not a cure, but at most a temporary fix. Not that Jake in any way thought it possible the man would succumb to his wounds, even without knowing he had later become a god.

Valdemar then finally turned his attention towards the golden orb as he flew up to it, the barrier around it fading just as he did. The orb was nearly a hundred meters in diameter, but when the man laid his hand upon it, the size reduced to fit in his palm. He looked at it a bit as he put it into his storage and just flew down and landed on the ground again as he took out another bottle of alcohol as well as two mugs.

“One for the legend made today!” he said as he poured the liquid into one of the mugs. It was a golden ale-like drink of sorts, and the mugs were both old and wooden.

“And one for those of tomorrow!”

The second mug was filled as he placed it on a stone away from him and lifted the first mug to drink.

moment, Jake felt like Valdemar looked straight at

the testee had disappeared. Not just gone invisible

a projection in charge of the dungeon monitoring tool said. It was only detectable due to direct system assistance from the dungeon,

a Bloodline or a Transcendent. Transcendent being the more probable, no matter how improbable it was for a D-grade

“Are you su-“

human reappeared. Instantly something felt different as the Hydra also stopped up.

meant, but whatever had happened in the brief moment he was gone had somehow led to a change none of them

he genuinely wished for the

is in a state of enlightenment,” the beastkin said, as he frowned before grinning.

still occupied as the Hydra stopped a few hundred meters away, looking on with newfound caution. Jake himself only now noticed he had gotten a notification quite a

*Skill Fusion Detected*:

+ [Basic One-Handed

quickly became clear this was merely an intermediary

Upgraded*: [Improvised Weapon Mastery (Rare)] --> [Fangs of Man

the Hydra being able to close in and attack at any moment, Jake checked the new skill

instead the tools they wield and their ability to adapt anything into an instrument of destruction. Allows the hunter to more effectively use anything deemed compatible as a melee weapon. Makes the hunter more familiar with any weapon wielded. Adds a bonus to the effectiveness of

the broken wooden stick in his hand and Eternal Hunger in the other. The Bloodfeast Dagger had fallen

knew instinctually that his new skill worked with it. He grasped it tighter but felt it break as Jake’s grip was

had flooded the fang with energy… no, with a sense of self. A sense of ownership as he truly made it into his weapon. Made it part of him. He also remembered what Villy had said of warriors seeing their weapons as extensions of their bodies through long-time nurturing.

as the Hydra looked on cautiously. It was still healing, so it wasn’t losing out by doing so, and besides… it didn’t seem smart enough to know what Jake was doing or trying to

replicate that feeling. A few moments passed as

the Hydra, it had only been around a minute since it had smashed Jake away, but to him, it had been

one. Jake did hamper himself a little as he dove into the battle, not necessarily to fight to win but to capitalize

clashed as Jake was slightly faster than before, likely due to the increased agility, or maybe just because he was not frustrated like before and his mindset calmer. He

he was smashed back, but Jake stabilized and attacked again. He ran on pure inspiration as he smashed down the wooden stick,

A small

a string of mana, he got another stick as he dove in. He slipped under an attack as he stabbed again in failure. This kept up a few more times as Jake got