Strength

In the forest, a bear was roaring angrily, its eyes filled with fury as it looked around.

It pounded the ground with its massive fists, breaking trees and causing great destruction. The ground shook with each blow, leaves and branches scattering in all directions. 

This was a second-rank monster, the ruler of its small territory, and it was not used to being humiliated. Yet, today was different.

As the bear prepared to punch another tree, a whip of sand formed behind it and struck its back with a forceful snap.

"Roar! Roar! Ahh! Ahh!" the bear howled in pain, spinning around to see what had attacked it, but there was nothing there.

The irritation in the bear's eyes grew, and its rage boiled over. It began pounding the ground even harder, its roars echoing through the forest. The bear had never been so helpless, so tormented. 

It didn't know what was happening—something was sneaking up behind it, hitting it again and again, but it couldn't catch a glimpse of its attacker.

"Ahhhh!" the bear roared, feeling a mix of confusion and frustration. It didn't know what to do, so it could only bellow in its incompetence, hoping to scare off whatever was tormenting it.

As the bear roared, it finally noticed something unusual. Sand began moving around it, gathering from the ground and swirling in the air. The bear watched in confusion as the sand slowly started to climb up its legs, wrapping around its body. 

Panic set in, and the bear thrashed violently, trying to shake off the sand, but it was persistent, clinging to its fur and tightening its grip.

Sensing the danger, the bear quickly channeled its spiritual energy into its limbs, trying to repel the sand. This worked for a moment, the sand loosening its hold slightly. But as more and more sand gathered, the bear's spiritual energy began to deplete, and the sand once again tightened its grip around the bear's body.

Within moments, the bear was completely wrapped in sand, its massive form struggling futilely against the tightening hold.

"Ahhh!" the bear roared again, but this time, the sound was one of desperation.

The sand began to compress, squeezing the bear's body tighter and tighter. Then, suddenly, the sand turned into flames—a deep blue flame that burned with an intense heat. 

The bear could feel the flames scorching its flesh, burning through its thick fur and searing its skin.

In a last, desperate attempt to survive, the bear used every last bit of its spiritual energy to resist the flames. But it was no use. The flames were too powerful, and the bear's energy was too depleted. Within moments, the once-mighty bear was reduced to ashes, its roars fading into silence.

----

After the bear had turned to ashes, the sand around it began to move on its own, carrying the second-rank monster core to a place hidden behind some bushes.

At first, there was nothing there, just the rustling of leaves in the breeze. But then, slowly, a human figure began to appear—it was Oliver.

'Finding second-rank monsters is really hard,' he thought to himself, his expression thoughtful.

This was the third day since he had arrived at the satellite base, and this was only the third second-rank monster he had encountered. The outer areas had already been heavily hunted by squads, and it was rare to find strong monsters here.

He tucked the monster core away and began walking, searching for other monsters. From these days of fighting, Oliver had already figured out his preferred way of fighting—he would attack from the shadows, never revealing himself until the enemy was dead. His current power was perfectly suited for this style of combat.

'This will create fear in the hearts of my opponents,' he thought, a faint smile on his lips. 'Not knowing what's attacking them until it's too late.'

With this thought in mind, he continued his hunt, moving silently through the forest like a deadly predator.

----

Today, however, he encountered fewer monsters compared to the previous two days. He only managed to kill 31 first-rank monsters and 1 second-rank monster. As for third-rank monsters, he hadn't seen even one.

According to the information he had gathered, third-rank monsters were on another level compared to the first and second ranks. They had much better reserves of spiritual energy and greater control over it, making them incredibly powerful. However, reaching the third rank was a huge threshold that many couldn't overcome.

Those with talent below C level would find it very difficult to enter the third rank. Even if they did, the road ahead would be nearly impossible to walk, with the third rank being their final destination. 

On the other hand, those with C level talent had a guaranteed chance of entering the third rank, and there was even a possibility of reaching the fourth rank. It was said that the city lord, who was a fifth-rank powerhouse, only had B-level talent.

As for Oliver, he wasn't even at the first rank yet. He wasn't using spiritual energy to wield the world treasure—he was relying solely on his stamina to fight. Despite this, with the world treasure that showed ??? talent, he could easily kill second-rank monsters.

According to his own speculation, he would enter the first rank when he awakened his real talent with the help of the dark ball. For now, though, he didn't know how to absorb spiritual energy.

He had learned that humans knew how to absorb spiritual energy instinctively once they awakened their talent. This knowledge wasn't something that could be taught; it was an automatic memory that came with awakening. 

According to research by the Human Federation, the method of absorbing spiritual energy was the same for every awakeners, and it couldn't be written or explained to others. It was like a genetic lock being unlocked.

For now, Oliver would continue to hunt in the shadows, biding his time until he could fully awaken his talent in three weeks.