Chapter 58 Alone In The White Stone Cliff
The White Stone Cliff stood tall and firm over Lucas. The white stone would have looked pristine and majestic if not for the countless cracks that ran across its surface. The cracks may have complemented its beauty as well, if not for the fact that each crack might hold a ferocious beast within that will devour anything that comes close.
Far below, Spot swiped his sharpened claws and killed a Clip Claw Spider in one blow.
Ever since he ranked up to Iron Star 3, killing a solitary Iron Grade-Iron Star 3 beast has been a breeze for Spot. Although a Clip Claw Spider was an Iron Star 4 beast, it offered almost no resistance when subjected to Spot's claws.
[You have killed an Iron Grade-Iron Star 4, Clip Claw Spider (100%): You gained 5.7 XP]
This was the second Clip Claw Spider that Spot had eliminated upon returning here. Since Lucas was already an Iron Star 3 summoner, the experience points he gained were a little less compared to before. The good thing about this, though, was the fact that Spot could now kill the Clip Claw Spider with even more ease than before.
His two hunts were particularly easy, and Lucas was able to afford looking around while Spot was killing the beast. Discover exclusive content at empire
"Where is it?"
He muttered to himself, searching for the place where the 'cage' could have been hidden.
If his suspicions were correct, then there should be another 'cage' hidden in White Stone Cliff, and perhaps there was another one in the Ember Ants area as well.
However, searching for one was easier said than done. The White Stone Cliff was also a massive place. It not only contains the White Stone Cliff itself but also the forest parallel to it. There was no definite size, but everyone understood that White Stone Cliff was a massive place full of beasts, up to be hunted as long as one has the capabilities.
"Continue forward," Lucas ordered as Spot dashed ahead of him.
Reverting to the Gentle Dog willingly would weaken him for a while, but he could still transform back immediately if he wanted to, unlike when he reverts when the transformation reaches its limit.
Walking ahead of Lucas, Spot was alert and cautious. In fact, it had been him who spotted the two Clip Claw Spiders that Lucas had slain, so Lucas didn't need to focus on searching for his next target and instead just focused on searching for the cage and confirming his suspicions.
Unfortunately, it seemed like his luck had run out this time around. Or maybe he had just not searched enough yet.
Some time later, Spot found a Rock Back Lizard hidden in a crack above them. After luring it down below, Spot killed the beast with one fell swoop before they continued forward.
Noon came in the blink of an eye. As of this moment, Lucas and Spot had already killed a total of 8 Clip Claw Spiders and 5 Rock Back Lizards.
He still had no clue where the cage was, but Lucas' mood was uplifted as he realized that he was actually earning more points here compared to his time in Giant Dark Forest. The reason was because the Clip Claw Spiders give more experience points, and although they were solitary, there were also numerous of them here in White Stone Cliff.
Here, he could find one Clip Claw Spider in less than fifteen minutes, and with Spot's efficiency, he could kill them almost in an instant. Due to Spot's strength increase, they could now confidently and boldly hunt a Clip Claw Spider as well, lessening the risk for both of them.
Lucas also came to the understanding that his approach before was extremely wrong. Instead of fighting a group of scarce, weaker beasts, he should have gone to find stronger ones that he could easily find instead.
If there were numerous beasts living in a group, the hunt would be worthwhile and could match the amount of rewards he'd receive from hunting a stronger, solitary beast. However, doing so would mean that Lucas would have to take care of himself, as he might be in danger if one of the beasts tried to attack him instead.
The two options had their own risk, but Lucas determined that the risk in fighting a stronger one was greater but was more manageable and controllable, but at the same time, the reward was also greater.
'Learned something new from experience, I guess.'
Anyway, Lucas found a safe Spot and ate his lunch. It was the same food that he had given to Ethan earlier. The taste was wonderful. As expected of his mother's cooking. Spot also took some share; Lucas' mother had specially prepared Spot's own portion as well. And from the looks of it, she added some extra meat to his meal too.
Talk about being a favorite.
After he was done eating lunch, Lucas and Spot continued ahead. Spot searched for a beast to kill, while Lucas looked around the forest, searching for the cage—if there was one to begin with.
Some time later, Lucas and Spot even returned to the area where they saved the seniors from before.
To his dismay, he did not find any beast in there, much less the cage that he had been searching for. Lucas sighed as they moved to a different location.
Time continued to pass, and the number of Clip Claw Spiders and Rock Back Lizards they killed continued to grow.
As for the Cliff Borne Ram, Lucas did not meet any at all. And even if he did, Lucas thought that it might even be possible for Spot to eliminate it given that he had already ranked up.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
The Cliff Borne Ram he saw here a few days ago was indeed just a rare case.
'...Or was it?'
Perhaps due to that incident, Lucas did not meet any students here in White Stone Cliff as of yet. They must also be trying to avoid this place, lest they stumble upon that 'injured' Cliff Borne Ram that killed those seniors a few days ago.
After all, those who chose to hunt in White Stone Cliff were typically the weaker third-year students or the more powerful second-year students—if any. And neither group would want to face a Cliff Borne Ram.
So it was only natural that they would avoid this place for now.
Lucas had also avoided this place for the same reason, until he returned with more confidence and another agenda in mind.
With a sigh, Lucas looked around the surroundings that had already begun to dim.
Summoning his grimoire, he decided to check his progress today.