While fighting Horrik, Alex suddenly bumped into an old-looking tree standing in the middle of the road. He was sure this tree hadn't been there before, but with the seriousness of the fight, he had no time to process it.
What Alex didn't expect was that this tree wasn't just a tree-it was a beast. Before Alex could react, the tree beast attacked Horrik, catching him completely off guard and bringing him down.
Horrik's eyes became bloodshot. Blood poured from his mouth and nose, and his body stiffened as if paralyzed. His hands shook, then everything stopped. Horrik was dead, claimed by the tree beast.
But the sight didn't end there. Roots continued to grow from the open wound in Horrik's stomach, pushing their way out until his torso was split apart, leaving a gruesome scene.
Alex stood there, watching every moment closely, his grip on his axe tighter than ever, prepared to strike if the tree beast turned on him.
[Your Qi is low. Any further use of your Qi will consume your life force.]
Seeing this warning, Alex deactivated his Astral Body, which greatly reduced his Qi consumption and gave him some time to think.
[A Walk Tree Beast has been spotted.]
[Beast Stage: 3]
'Am I really about to face another Stage 3 enemy right after fighting one?' Alex thought, feeling his exhaustion start to weigh on him.
But he quickly steeled himself. 'Well, since you're a beast, I won't need to hold back,' he thought, preparing for whatever was to come.
"Refill!" Alex shouted, and soon, energy surged into him from his artificial Qi core, quickly refilling his main Qi core and recharging his strength.
Throughout the fight with Horrik, Alex had relied mostly on two skills. The first was his Astral Body, which allowed him to create a decoy of himself that he could swap places with at any time. The second was his Overlap skill, which wasn't exactly battle-related but had been crucial during this fight.
Alex was using his Qi Absorption technique, which let him gather Qi into his Qi core. But instead of going directly to his main core, the Qi was stored in an artificial Qi core. This extra core acted like a reserve tank, allowing him to refill his main Qi core if he ran low in battle.
Thanks to this technique, Alex had managed to keep fighting Horrik for so long, and right now, it was helping him again.
After the tree beast had killed Horrik, Alex could feel the beast's attention shift directly onto him, even though he couldn't see its face.
'I don't think my Astral Body will be much help here. I'd better handle this on my own,' Alex decided.
Without warning, the beast's roots shot forward, aiming straight at Alex to strike him down. Alex gripped his axe tightly, and his whole body began to vibrate. As a result, the roots phased right through his body, unable to touch him. While still in this phased state, Alex swung his axe at the roots, slicing through one with a clean swipe. He quickly moved on to another root and did the same, chopping it down.
The beast reacted by pulling its roots back, seemingly in pain.
'It's a good thing the Phantom Technique isn't just for phasing or creating an Astral Body—it can also make my strikes hit harder,' Alex thought.
The Phantom Technique allowed Alex to vibrate his body so intensely that he could pass through objects. When taken to a higher level, he could create an Astral Body, an external image of himself. Creating the Astral Body took a lot of focus, but keeping it active was a little easier.
But there was more. At a certain level of vibration, the Phantom Technique made his strikes much more powerful. Right now, when Alex had swung his axe and struck the tree roots, each swing of the axe actually landed multiple times on the same spot with the same force and speed due to the vibrations.
After pulling back its roots, the beast let out a deep, low-pitched roar. Alex couldn't tell exactly where the sound was coming from, but it rumbled through the air, signaling the beast's next move.
At the same time, the tree's cut-off limbs started growing back to their original size.
Once the roots were fully restored, the tree began to spin. As it spun, its branches and roots stretched and grew even more, knocking down anything in their path.
Clenching his axe tightly, Alex hurled it at the tree. But one of the thick branches batted it away, sending it flying to the side.
Alex quickly called the axe back to his hand and, without hesitation, rushed toward the whirlwind of tree branches.
'I guess I need to cut down the tree itself,' Alex thought, determined.
As he approached, Alex phased through the whipping branches, inching closer to the main body of the tree. He focused, transferring his vibrations into the axe, and swung it hard at the tree's trunk.
The axe struck deep, sinking into the bark. Black blood oozed from the wound, coating the blade. But Alex quickly realized that one hit wouldn't be enough to take the tree down.
Just then, more branches swung down toward him. This time, they all struck him hard, sending him flying backward into the distance.
'What just happened? I thought my phantom body was active,' Alex thought, confused.
Midair, Alex managed to steady himself, slowing down before he landed. However, the force still made him skid across the ground, leaving deep marks in the dirt.
'That was a strong physical hit,' he thought, catching his breath. 'I should be getting an energy boost… but what should I use it for?'
Thanks to his peaceful energy, Alex had a strange effect where he got an energy boost every time he was hit in battle. But he knew that this boost didn't always come without risk. Some hits could be so powerful that they'd kill him instantly, while others could leave him helpless for the rest of the fight.
According to the Pendragon Book of Knowledge, he'd learned that this energy boost could be channeled in two ways: he could direct it to his mana core or Qi core to increase his power, or he could use it to heal himself.
During his battle with Horrik, Alex had taken some heavy blows, and each time, he'd chosen to use the boost to heal his wounds rather than increase his strength.
'I don't need to change my plan; I just need to switch weapons,' Alex decided.
At that moment, his inventory appeared, covering his axe. After a few seconds, a new item materialized in his hand.
It was a round, spherical object with a short pipe extending from one side.
"Now let's see how you handle the Qi Cannon," Alex called out, preparing for his next move.