A deep roar of anger left the chameleon's maw as it suddenly swiped to the side, only for a scythe's edge to flash past its neck, carving a deep three-centimetre line within. Another mournful roar echoed through the forest.
Red blood covered its entire body, various blade marks scattered all over it. Now, with its neck oozing blood, it felt tempted to run as it instantly retreated, scrambling back into the trees. It climbed rapidly, its body shifting to blend with the leaves. But then—
A shadow appeared right on top of the tree, standing in its path as Ryuk soared downward, his scythe raised high above his head.
Instantly, the chameleon lashed out its tongue toward the falling Ryuk, who swung his scythe with all his power.
RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP!
The sound of flesh being ripped apart rang through the forest as Ryuk's scythe passed through the chameleon's tongue, severing it into two clean halves before continuing its deadly arc. The blade sliced through its maw, cleaving downward—until it reached its very tail.
The ground shook heavily as he landed, blood and organs raining from the sky, splattering all over his body. He shrugged them off, a grin of exhilaration forming on his face as a notification flashed before his eyes.
[CONGRATULATIONS! You have killed a Grade C Slithering Chameleon Beast!]
[You have obtained 2,000 EXP!]
[Total EXP: 9,800/10,000]
"Nice..." Ryuk mused, his gaze settling on the carcass of the chameleon before narrowing in thought.
"The forest might contain beasts far stronger than I am... but I am not helpless. The more beasts I kill, the more EXP I gain. And the more EXP I gain, the more levels I climb—along with earning more attribute points."
"With enough attribute points, it's only a matter of time before I rise to the top of the hierarchy."
"All I need is to keep hunting down beasts. The weaker, the better. As I grow stronger, I'll move on to higher-level beasts, which will no doubt fetch more EXP..." Ryuk mused, forming a small plan in his mind.
But before he could go further, he was interrupted by the sight of Isha appearing beside him, her gaze fixed on the chameleon's corpse.
'Good job,' she said.
Ryuk simply shrugged his shoulders, but then his eyes flashed as another idea formed in his mind.
'I have Isha, and right now, she is the safest here since I can instantly call her back to the Pet World.
'This place is teeming with beasts, and while I'm no longer the weakest, it would still be an unfortunate scenario if I ended up encountering a powerful beast like that anaconda. My chances of survival would be close to nil.'
'n short, I need to be aware of the areas where the weaker beasts are—and the ones where the stronger ones reside.'
'If there's one thing I know about beasts, it's that they establish territories. I need to understand the layout of this forest, but doing that myself would be too risky.'
'Why don't I send Isha instead?'
'She's incredibly fast and can even glide in the air. With her power and beast bloodline, she can easily sniff out other beasts' territories. And even if she comes across a powerful creature on the level of that anaconda, I can simply recall her into my Pet World, keeping her safe while also protecting myself.'
Ryuk quickly discussed the plan with Isha, who listened before giving a casual shrug of agreement.
"Cool. But it's getting late, though," Isha said, pointing her claws toward the distance, where the red sun was dipping into the horizon.
It was only a matter of time before darkness completely took over, and who knew what horrific carnivorous beasts would emerge at night?
That was worth considering. For that reason, Ryuk decided to postpone his plan until the next morning.
'This chameleon owned this tree. It must have been its territory. I couldn't see it before because of its exceptional hiding ability.'
'But now that it's dead, I might as well claim this tree as my own territory. I can rest here for the night.
Ryuk turned his gaze to the enormous tree behind him. Without wasting another second, he got to work, climbing higher and higher until he reached the very top.
From this vantage point, Ryuk could see miles into the distance—and what he saw shocked him.
Even from here, he could make out colossal beasts, some nearly seven meters tall, their massive forms distinguishable even from afar. Most were slumbering, but their sheer presence made Ryuk's heart pound.
Grade B... They're all at Grade B!
He was still processing the sheer scale of these creatures when he noticed something peculiar. Each beast had a distinct area surrounding them—an environment unique to their nature.
For example, there was a gigantic lizard-like creature resting atop a mountain, its immense size easily discernible. Hot lava seeped from its nostrils and lips, flowing down in thin, molten streams.
Another part of the forest was shrouded in utter darkness, with dried leaves and scorched ground sizzling with steam. From there, Ryuk could barely make out the Dark Anaconda, wound up into a coil, seemingly in deep slumber.
There was a dozen more such creatures—each one a testament to how dangerous this place truly was.
Thankfully, they were far away from his current location.
Ryuk muttered to himself before descending the tree. He moved to the surrounding trees, slicing them down with precision.
Soon, he had gathered a large stack of wood in his arms, and with Isha's help, he carried them up into his newly claimed tree.
Carefully, he found a smooth section between two branches, placing another tree trunk over it as he began constructing something.
Isha watched Ryuk work with curiosity, wondering just what the hell he was doing. But she wasn't too concerned and soon slipped away, leaving him to his task.
Three hours later, Ryuk wiped the sweat from his brow, redrawing his scythe.
In front of him stood a mini-home—shaped like a hut, crafted entirely from tree branches and leaves, carefully hidden amongst the foliage.