Pochi excitedly shook his enormous head, his tail wagging even more vigorously in affirmation.
The price was several massive gashes appearing in the walls on both sides of the passage, with countless broken stones raining down!
Upon receiving Pochi's clear response, Han Sen's taut nerves finally completely relaxed.
A sense of post-disaster exhaustion surged through his already nearly depleted body, almost causing him to collapse to the ground.
His small life was temporarily saved!
Hooray!
Calming down, it was the excitement of being promoted to a Dragon-level executive chef.
"Got it! The next dishes will surely satisfy you!"
Radiation Fish: ???
One-Ear: ???
As Han Sen's gaze, glowing with a dangerous red light, turned towards them, the two remaining Wolf-Level Monsters, a fish and a mouse, were instantly terrified, cold sweat pouring down like waterfalls, their bodies trembling like sieves!
"Don't come over here—!!!" x2
...
...
[Killed Wolf-Level Monster "Radiation Fish", obtained Source Point x1!]
[Killed Wolf-Level Monster "One-Ear", obtained Source Point x1!]
Perhaps it was his first time enjoying a cooked buffet, but Pochi's tail wagged very happily.
After eating his fill, he lowered his head, his large nose sniffing close to Han Sen, and even extended his soft tongue to lick him once!
This lick made Han Sen's heart stop, but fortunately, Pochi didn't intend to add him to the meal; instead, he was leaving his scent on Han Sen as a declaration of ownership.
"Awo! Awo, awoo~~" (I'm going to sleep! Tomorrow, you can bring more roasted snacks~~)
Recovering, Han Sen wiped the sticky saliva from his face, a smile appearing on his dark head: "Alright! No problem!!"
Rumble! Rumble! Rumble...
Heavy footsteps gradually faded away, and the colossal, mountain-like figure vanished into the darkness at the end of the passage.
"Phew—!"
Han Sen let out a long breath, his tensed nerves finally relaxing.
He survived!
And he benefited from the misfortune!
If he hadn't been cursed with the death mission of delivering food to Pochi, Han Sen wouldn't have been able to so easily come into contact with a Dragon-level Monster, who was almost at the apex of all Monsters, nor would he have been able to obtain four incredibly powerful SSR abilities at once!
He looked down at his hands, covered in hideous black carapaces, feeling the torrent of energy raging within him like magma!
With every movement, an explosive sense of power continuously impacted his nerves, as if he could crush steel with a gentle squeeze!
Upper Tiger-level!
In just a moment, his disaster level had skyrocketed like a rocket, from the initial Wolf-level all the way to Upper Tiger-level!
The pleasure brought by this rapid expansion of power was particularly intoxicating.
Although in the One-Punch Man world, there were Monsters whose power surge was even more exaggerated, Han Sen was already incredibly satisfied at this moment!
After all, not only did he survive, but he was also unexpectedly marked by Pochi with an exclusive imprint.
A hellish start instantly turned into a true delight, what more could he ask for!
Forcibly suppressing the almost overflowing ecstasy in his heart, Han Sen took a deep breath, pushing down his slightly inflated ego: "No, it's not time to get carried away!"
"Just within the Monster Association, Dragon-level Monsters are everywhere, and Demon-level Monsters are less than dogs; this is just the beginning!"
He quickly calmed his mind and summoned the system panel.
[—No Longer Human System—]
[Host: Han Sen]
[Current Race: Monster (Unknown Insectoid Mutation)]
[Disaster Level: Tiger (Upper)]
[—Ability List—]
[Inherent Body Ability: 1]
[1, "Hardened Shell (N)" Lv3: Details omitted.]
[Ability Slots: 5/10]
[1, "Overgrowth (SSR)" Lv1]
[2, "Scorching Heat Bullet (SSR)" Lv1]
[3, "Ferocious Beast Body (SSR)" Lv1]
[4, "Beast Instinct (SSR)" Lv1]
[5, "Beginner Regeneration (N)" Lv1]
[Source Points: 4]
[—E N D—]
Looking at the four dazzling golden ability icons on the panel, Han Sen's heart uncooperatively sped up.
"Overgrowth" brought forth a surging, immense energy and vibrant vitality within him!
"Scorching Heat Bullet" provided terrifying long-range destructive power capable of easily instantly killing those of the same level!
"Ferocious Beast Body" granted him a tough physique and super defense far exceeding that of an ordinary Tiger-level at this moment!
"Beast Instinct" significantly enhanced his combat intuition and crisis perception, and also came with a burst ability under the blessing of the Rage Buff!
These four abilities complemented each other; each one, taken alone, was enough to transform an ordinary Monster, let alone having a complete set!
Although they were all only Lv1 at the moment, their power was still limited by Han Sen's current Tiger-level strength, far from the world-destroying power of Pochi's original versions.
But the terrifying potential they contained was promising for the future!
The only slightly out-of-place ability was "Beginner Regeneration," the N-level ability Han Sen casually copied from the Mutated Cockroach.
It wasn't that this ability was useless—regeneration abilities were always life-saving divine skills—it was just that compared to a string of golden icons, a white ability indeed seemed a bit underwhelming and occupied a precious ability slot.
Fortunately, as his disaster level increased, the system's ability slots had expanded to ten, temporarily alleviating the shortage of ability slots.
Next, Han Sen's gaze moved down to the Source Point column.
Killing the Mutated Cockroach (Wolf-Lower), Radiation Fish (Wolf-Shame), and One-Ear (Wolf-Shame)—these three cannon fodder only contributed a total of 4 Source Points.
"One Wolf-Lower equals two Wolf-Shame; the drop rate for these Source Points is a bit low!"
Han Sen pouted, saying that even a mosquito's leg is meat, meaning it was better than nothing.
His gaze returned to the ability list, and he clicked on Pochi's core ability, "Overgrowth," with a hint of anticipation.
[To upgrade "Overgrowth (SSR)" Lv1 -> Lv2, requires Source Points: 1000 points.]
...
Han Sen's mouth twitched violently, and he almost spat out a mouthful of old blood.
One thousand points!
In other words, upgrading a golden ability by one level actually required killing a thousand of the weakest Wolf-Shame minions?!
This difficulty was simply outrageous!
Uh...
But on second thought, that was a high-rarity ability on par with Dragon-level Monsters, something he shouldn't normally be able to access at his current level!
With such horrifying upgrade requirements, it... it was quite reasonable.
It seemed that in the short term, upgrading SSR abilities could only rely on grinding or serendipitous encounters.
Abandoning unrealistic fantasies, Han Sen turned his attention to his initial Monster ability, which came with his body.
[To upgrade "Hardened Shell (N)" Lv3 -> Lv4, requires Source Points: 4 points.]
This one was just right.
Although this N-level ability was common, it was obtained through his own mutation, so it should be considered his innate ability.
Upgrading it would genuinely enhance his physical hardness.
However, Han Sen didn't rush to add points; his gaze fell on the bonus ability he casually copied, "Beginner Regeneration."
[To upgrade "Beginner Regeneration (N)" Lv1 -> Lv2, requires Source Points: 1 point.]
As expected, under the same rarity, the higher the ability level, the more Source Points required for upgrading.
After initially understanding the system's point-allocation mechanism, Han Sen weighed his options and quickly made a choice.
With the SSR abilities "Overgrowth" and "Ferocious Beast Body," Han Sen's current HP and defense already surpassed his disaster level, making him definitely a top-tier existence among Tiger-level Monsters.
Compared to the slight increase in hardness provided by "Hardened Shell," the recovery ability provided by "Beginner Regeneration" was undoubtedly more cost-effective.
"System, add points for me!"
[Consumed Source Point x1, "Beginner Regeneration" level increased! Lv1 -> Lv2!]
As the system prompt sounded, a faint but continuous warm current was generated out of thin air within his body, flowing slowly through his limbs and bones like a trickling stream.
Han Sen could clearly feel that his body's recovery speed had increased slightly, and the subtle damage remaining in his body after forcibly activating "Scorching Heat Bullet" and the fatigue from energy consumption were being smoothed out at a faster rate.
Although the increase was not significant, the effect was immediate!
"Not bad."
A hint of satisfaction flashed in Han Sen's eyes.
He still had 3 Source Points left, and checking the system, he could indeed upgrade it one more level.
Then continue!
[Consumed Source Points x2, "Beginner Regeneration" level increased! Lv2 -> Lv3!]
This time, the newly generated warm current within his body had noticeably strengthened!
Wherever the warm current passed, it was as if even his cells were cheering.
In layman's terms, both his HP and MP recovery speeds had seen a more significant improvement!
[Source Points: 1]
The remaining 1 Source Point could not be used for upgrading and could only be temporarily put aside.
And feeling the real changes within his body, Han Sen felt much more at ease.
Although it wasn't much, as long as he added points, he could become stronger!
This kind of positive feedback that was immediately effective felt great!
He stretched his limbs slightly on the spot, adapting to the surging power and the changes brought by his new abilities, then closed the system panel and quietly organized his thoughts.
The most urgent task was to first leave this hellhole filled with Pochi's saliva and the smell of burnt barbecue, and return to the area where tasks were previously assigned.
According to his predecessor's few memories, completing the task would allow him to claim a reward, and the content of the reward was precisely the root cause of his mutation into a Monster—
"Monster Cell"!
This item was collected from the flesh and blood cells of the Monster Association's apex existence—the Monster "Orochi."
After large-scale cultivation through special methods, they eventually formed into active, distorted lumps of flesh, each resembling a pulsating fresh heart!
Eating it could cause unpredictable secondary or even multiple mutations in Monsters; with good luck, their strength might skyrocket!
Of course, there was a greater possibility of being unable to withstand the strange energy contained within, leading to direct self-destruction!
However, a so-called Monster—
Is a twisted existence that has abandoned humanity and completely detached from the human world.
Possessing a mode of thinking completely different from humans, under the extreme craving for violence, mere death is simply not worth mentioning.
Han Sen didn't want to die, but his thirst for power was no different from other Monsters.
He immediately made a decision—
No matter what, he had to get his hands on the "Monster Cell" reward!
He had the system with him, so perhaps he could avoid some risks and transform it into an increase in strength!
Incidentally, Han Sen felt that he should also go back and get a lay of the land.
Being in this hellish Monster Association, being completely clueless wouldn't do.
The manga's depiction of the Monster Association mostly focused on the high-level combatants, while the underlying ecosystem, specific power divisions, and Monster numbers were all vague.
More importantly, he had to quickly figure out the current timeline!
The Monster Association arc involved many major events, especially that man with an extreme obsession with heroes—
Garou!
If he had already become active or even undergone Monsterification, then this seemingly impregnable underground lair could become the target of the Hero Association's encirclement at any time!
It might even attract a certain bald guy or a certain flat-chested green-haired loli, bringing a dimension-shattering blow from these two abnormal individuals with strong character designs!
Saitama & Tatsumaki: Achoo—!! x2
"Damn it, who's cursing me?!" x2