Chapter 6: Encounter with the Venomous Nine-Ringed Snake

After being filled with excitement, Alex Slayer closed the attribute panel.

At that moment, a gust of wind blew, carrying a distinct fishy and mutton scent.

"Hey! This... smells like the highly poisonous nine-ringed snake!"

Alex sniffed carefully, his eyes lighting up.

Without hesitation, he moved swiftly towards the source of the smell...

While others toiled for more than three hours to hunt beasts, Alex roamed and familiarized himself with the Novice Plains.

In this vast expanse, there were only five level 1 beasts: the blood-toothed rabbit, the giant rodent rat, the grassland gray wolf, the violent wild boar, and the highly poisonous nine-ringed snake.

The first four beasts held no interest for him; only the highly poisonous nine-ringed snake remained, and it was ripe for the taking.

However, these snakes were rare finds, and not easy to come by.

Now that Alex had caught wind of one nearby, he couldn't afford to miss the opportunity.

He proceeded cautiously, the gentle breeze carrying the mixed scent of fishy mutton and a strange fruity fragrance growing stronger as he approached.

Strange... why fruity?

Curiosity piqued, Alex quickened his pace.

Soon, he arrived at a small forest where the aroma intensified.

He knew his target was close.

Carefully hugging the ground and using low bushes as cover in this perilous world, Alex continued forward.

After a short walk, he finally spotted his prey through a gap in the foliage...

Under a large tree ahead, a five-meter-long python coiled itself, its nine distinct red rings gleaming prominently.

It was the highly poisonous nine-ringed snake!

Alex took a deep breath, his excitement palpable.

Once he dispatched this snake, he could extract its energy attributes once again.

The Venomous Hydra was the strongest level 1 beast in the Novice Plains, and the only one offering energy attributes.

Alex had learned that energy attributes were exceedingly rare and valuable.

"Hey! This snake's belly..."

Suddenly, he noticed the snake's swollen belly, as if it had recently consumed something large.

This seemed to have subdued the snake, leaving it sluggish on the ground.

Additionally, Alex spotted a small mound of earth behind the giant serpent.

Next to the dirt mound grew a half-foot tall spirit grass with seven fan-shaped green leaves and a ping-pong ball-sized red spirit fruit atop it.

The fruity aroma he had detected earlier emanated from this red spirit fruit.

The giant snake coiled protectively near the Spirit Fruit, as if guarding it.

"This red spirit fruit must be a treasure. Otherwise, why would the giant snake guard it so fiercely? Looks like I'm about to strike gold this time!"

Seeing the fruit, Alex's eyes gleamed with anticipation.

He was determined.

Without delay, he gripped his blades tightly and stealthily approached the giant snake.

Soon, he closed the distance, now just five meters away from the formidable serpent.

But at that moment, the snake suddenly turned its head, its vertical pupils fixing directly on his position.

It had detected Alex!

With no time to lose, Alex abandoned stealth and charged at the snake head-on.

Whoosh!

A blur streaked through the air, leaving an afterimage.

Boosted by his speed talent, Alex moved faster than the swift Prairie Gray Wolf.

Hiss!

Startled, the giant snake reared back and lunged forward.

Alex reacted swiftly, easily dodging the snake's venomous bite, and quickly widened the gap between them.

Hiss!

The snake, infuriated, gave chase.

However, after just a few meters, a gash appeared at its midpoint.

Splat! Hiss! Hiss!

The wound split open, and snake blood spurted out wildly!

The giant snake writhed in agonizing pain from the wound at its midsection, its pupils dilating.

Thud!

A dull impact!

It crashed headfirst onto the ground, its body twitching briefly before lying still.

In just moments, Alex had defeated the giant snake.

He breathed a sigh of relief, satisfied with his performance.

Such a display of skill not only stemmed from his robust physical fitness but also his exceptional combat talent.

It was also the first time he realized his fighting talent was more than adequate, despite his lean appearance.

Humming!

In that moment, a white light emanated from the fallen serpent, merging into Alex's body...

[Succeeded in slaying the level 1 highly poisonous nine-ringed snake, gained +40 energy points!]

Alex felt warmth spreading throughout his body, a comforting sensation, with a level progress bar materializing in his mind.

[Level]: Level 1 (70/100)

Killing the highly poisonous nine-ringed snake had granted him 40 energy points, more substantial than any other beast he had encountered thus far.

With one more level 1 beast slain, advancing to Level 2 would be a breeze.

Upgrading wouldn't pose much difficulty at all!

Pleased with the prospect, Alex smiled contentedly.

Little did he know, sharing this idea would likely earn him a torrent of criticism from billions worldwide.

In the current novice phase, humans were inherently weak, with few capable of matching a level 1 beast alone.

He never expected that an unintentional extraction of an F-rank talent would lead to such a dramatic change.

Unbeknownst to him, his visual enhancement was an F-class talent.

As he extracted it again, his visual talent would grow stronger, evolving into an E-level visual prowess.

The potential of endless extraction truly astounded him!

In truth, everyone's talents could evolve and upgrade, but the conditions were exceedingly stringent, the challenges formidable, and level restrictions applied.

Yet Alex's talent evolution process appeared distinctly different.

Repeated extraction of the same talent offered a chance at evolution.

This made his talent evolution much smoother compared to others.

Furthermore, after his innate abilities evolved successfully, there was a chance his innate abilities would awaken.

Although this chance was minuscule, Alex had managed to awaken the talent skill - Eye of True Sight - following the evolution of his visual talent.

This marked his first mastered skill.

Suppressing his excitement, Alex turned his attention to the red spirit fruit before him...

Activating the Eye of True Sight, a light screen appeared before his eyes.

[Name]: Red Python Fruit

[Grade Rank]: First-Order Spirit Fruit

[Effect]: Non-toxic, enhances physical fitness and boosts toxin resistance upon consumption.

The Eye of True Sight proved invaluable!

Instantly, Alex discerned detailed information about the spirit fruit.

He was ecstatic.

With this skill, he could identify countless unknowns.

This was the advantage of seizing resources!

Moreover, the red python fruit was indeed a treasure, capable of enhancing physical abilities.

Alex's weakest point currently lay in his physique, making the fruit a perfect fit.

Excited by the prospect, he eagerly approached the fruit.