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Kaden's muscles coiled with raw strength as he squared off against the monstrous green snake. It looked very similar to the last green snake, with the same disgusting exterior. It was almost as if the dead one had come back to life again. 

The last time he had faced this creature, he had almost lost himself and only barely escaped with his life—forced to retreat, humiliated, relying on vultures and trickery just to survive.

Not this time.

This time, Kaden wasn't the same weakling who had barely scratched the surface of power. His body had been reforged, his mana enriched, his instincts sharpened. He no longer needed distractions or cunning diversions.

He was ready. He could feel it. He can fight this thing. He observed the fight between the snake and the vultures. He was confident he could take this on now. 

Besides, his timer clock was still running and a new target had popped up. There was no way he was going to let this chance slip by. This ugly snake was his and so was the egg sac.

The snake hissed, its sickly green body coiling like a massive steel whip, preparing to strike. Its forked tongue flickered.

The serpent lunged, its fangs glistening with venom, but Kaden's reflexes were sharper, faster. He sidestepped with inhuman agility, his feet barely touching the uneven ground before he retaliated.

[Thorn Whip.]

Dark vines erupted from his palm, slashing through the air, their barbed tips embedding deep into the snake's flesh. The beast shrieked, its massive body convulsing as the vines twisted, tightening like a noose.

But it wasn't enough.

The snake thrashed violently, using its mana-enhanced strength to resist the ensnaring roots. It lunged again, this time faster.

Kaden met it head-on.

[Sanguine Roots.]

The cavern floor exploded with jagged, blood-hued roots that speared upward, ensnaring the snake mid-strike. The beast shrieked as the roots drank its essence, its scales cracking, its once-mighty body weakening.

Kaden's lips curled into a wicked grin.

He yanked the thorn whip and the two skills combined crushed and squeezed the snake. The snake let out a strangled cry as its ribcage caved inward, its internal mana surging in a desperate attempt to resist. Its quasi-mana core flared.

Kaden didn't let it happen. Before it could react or shake itself lose, he made the next move. He had already done it once and he didn't really need a new strategy the second time around.

[Thorn Whip: Spear Form.]

With a fluid motion, he condensed his vines into a singular, spear-like construct and drove it forward—straight through the snake's open maw, impaling it clean through the skull.

A sickening crunch echoed as the beast froze. Twitched.

Then, with a final gurgled hiss, it died. The massive body collapsed—the sheer weight sending tremors through the cavern floor.

But something was wrong.

It wasn't over.

Before the corpse even hit the ground, low rumbles shuddered throughout the cave. Notifications flashed in front of Kaden informing him about the kill and his level up but he did not have any time to pay attention to that.

He could practically hear it.

Something massive shifted deeper within the cave—low growls, heavy footfalls, the slithering of many more creatures surging toward him.

The cavern walls cracked. Loose stone began to rain down, dust filling the air as the entire structure shook violently.

More.

More were coming.

Did the damn thing call more beasts to guard itself?

Kaden was able to stand toe to toe against a single quasi-core beast now but what about many? He would be a fool to become that overconfident. He immediately turned and started running back to the ground above. They shouldn't follow him beyond that? Right?

He would only know if he actually managed to get there. "Fuck it." Kaden decided and ran as fast as he could. He had somehow once again ended up in the same situation but at least this time he had gained a lot more. He had no regrets.

Behind him, the cavern roared with chaos.

The echoes of enraged hisses and guttural growls vibrated through the underground tunnels, a chorus of approaching death. The air itself seemed to tremble under the force of whatever beasts were stirring to life—called forth by the dying throes of the snake he had just slain.

Kaden didn't look back. He didn't need to.

The entire cave was collapsing.

Chunks of rock fell like deadly hail, smashing into the uneven ground behind him. Cracks spiderwebbed across the cavern walls, releasing plumes of dust that clouded his vision. The once-distant tremors were now earthquakes beneath his feet.

And then came the slithering.

Not one. Not two.

Dozens. Maybe even more.

He could hear them. The slithering of massive, scaly bodies, some squeezing through tight passageways, others bursting through stone with sheer brute force. He had awakened something bigger.