Chapter 10 – Cain Evil Plain
Cain held his breath, his eyes never leaving the Verdra Insect standing in front of him. The creature moved at high speed, almost like a green flash that was difficult to follow with the naked eye.
"Damn… this isn't an opponent I can face head-on," Cain thought.
SHRRAK!
The Verdra Insect shot towards him, its two arm blades flashing like swords ready to slash. Cain jumped aside, but in a matter of seconds, the creature was already attacking again with a series of slashes!
"Not good!"
Cain rolled back, almost slicing through his chest with the blades. Instead, the large tree behind him was split in half like butter, falling with a roar.
One problem arose, the Verdra Insect's movement was limited between the trees, but that didn't mean anything if he could cut through all of them.
Cain gritted his teeth, sweat dripping down his forehead. I have to think of a strategy.
His eyes swept around, watching the Verdra Insect's movement patterns. Although fast, there was a repeating pattern.
The creature always attacked in two consecutive slashes, before retreating slightly to assess the situation.
If I can take advantage of it.
Cain took a deep breath, then dashed straight forward!
The Verdra Insect, as expected, immediately lashed out with a quick slash! Cain slammed his body into the ground, narrowly avoiding the blade. As soon as the second strike came, Cain jumped to the side and grabbed onto a tree trunk!
The Verdra Insect had just realized that Cain wasn't retreating like before!
Cain planted his feet on the tree, then used the force of the thrust to jump behind the Verdra Insect's body!
With quick reflexes, Cain gathered Xenova in his hand. He couldn't deliver a direct attack, but there was one way to change the situation.
Cain reached out his hand to the Verdra Insect's neck and immediately channeled Xenova's energy in the form of vibrations into its nerve points!
The Verdra Insect shook violently, as if it had suffered a sudden shock. It jumped back in a chaotic motion, as if it had lost its balance for a moment.
Cain landed safely on the ground, catching his breath.
"Success… I disrupted the flow of energy in its body!"
However, the Verdra Insect was far from defeated. Now, it was staring at Cain with a murderous gaze! The next attack would be even more vicious.
Cain tightened his fists.
"Alright… let's finish this."
The Verdra Insect stomped the ground, creating a small gap beneath it before shooting towards Cain like a green bullet.
Cain immediately jumped to the side, but this time his opponent's attack was different. Instead of slashing straight, the Verdra Insect twisted its body, making the sharp blades in both hands spin like deadly saws!
SWOOSH!
Cain barely managed to dodge, the tip of the blade cut his shoulder slightly. Warm blood seeped out, but Cain didn't have time to worry about it.
"Damn it! He learned from my fighting patterns too?!" Cain thought.
There was no longer any gap in the Verdra Insect's attacks. It was now attacking relentlessly, slashing, stabbing, and swinging its blades at inhuman speeds.
Cain retreated while using his instincts to avoid each attack. His feet moved nimbly, following the air currents around him, but he still couldn't hold on like this!
His eyes swept around, looking for something he could exploit. Trees? No. Roots? No.
"Wait..."
Cain saw a gap in the ground where the Verdra Insect had jumped. A small hole in the ground.
"Maybe this could work!"
Cain pretended to be cornered, allowing the Verdra Insect to become more aggressive. As soon as the creature jumped once more Cain ran straight at it!
The Verdra Insect swung its blade in one full swing but at that moment, Cain jumped into the air!
"Now!"
Cain kicked the Verdra Insect's head down, right into the hole he had made himself!
BAM!
The Verdra Insect's head sank into the ground, its body stuck in an awkward position. Cain didn't waste this opportunity!
He quickly gathered Xenova in his hands, then pressed both of his palms against the Verdra Insect's neck.
GROOOOOHH!
A powerful vibration erupted from Cain's hand, sending a shockwave straight into the Verdra Insect's body! The creature writhed in pain, his hand blades flailing wildly in the air, but Cain kept pressing harder on the insect's neck!
"Break!"
CRACK!
The Verdra Insect's neck began to crack from the inside, before finally shattering with a loud bang!
Cain stumbled back, breathing heavily. Sweat soaked his body, but he finally managed.
Among the remains of the Verdra Insect, something gleamed in the dim light of the forest.
A Xenova crystal.
Cain smiled tiredly, then picked it up.
"Xenova crystal? Looks like I'm pretty lucky, one crystal for two points... now I need two more."
Cain looked at the Xenova crystal in his hand, the faint light from the crystal's surface glinted in the darkness of the forest. He knew this was great luck, just a few hours in this forest, and he had already obtained a Xenova crystal.
However, this luck could turn into a curse.
The Xenova crystal radiated energy, and in a place like this where everyone was competing to get it, anyone who sensed its energy would come hunting for it.
Cain immediately turned his head to the side.
His eyes swept around with great caution. The moving leaves, the snapping twigs, even the gusts of wind felt like lurking danger.
"Is someone watching me?"
His heart was beating fast. He couldn't take any chances.
He looked back at the crystal in his hand, trying to think quickly. The energy was weak, but it could still be felt.
Suddenly, an idea came to his head.
Control Flow.
One of the basic Xenova techniques that Rin had taught him. A technique that allowed one to control the flow of Xenova energy inside and outside their body.
"If I can control my own energy, then I should be able to control the energy in this crystal too…"
Cain closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then aligned himself with the flow of Xenova inside the crystal.
His hands gripped the crystal tightly.
Slowly, he focused his mind into the crystal, feeling the pulse of its energy like a faint heartbeat.
He directed his own Xenova flow to surround the crystal's energy, wrapping it like a cocoon, suppressing it, absorbing every little wave that wanted to escape into the air.
Seconds passed…
And finally silence.
Cain opened his eyes.
The Xenova energy from the crystal had completely disappeared.
He smiled in satisfaction.
Now, no one could sense his crystal. He was no longer easy prey.
After successfully hiding the Xenova crystal, Cain moved deeper into the forest.
The trees grew denser, and only a little sunlight managed to penetrate the gaps in the leaves. The forest atmosphere grew darker and damper.
In the middle of the journey, Cain realized something.
Some of the plants around him looked familiar, he had read about them before going to bed, from the book Rin gave him.
Mournshade Frond, a small and inconspicuous black mushroom, had a poison strong enough to paralyze a large elephant.
Scorchbane, a red banana-like fruit, with rough skin and a faint sheen. If eaten, it is corrosive, enough to destroy flesh from the inside.
However, he remembered something interesting, there was a certain species of monkey that could eat the fruit without any problems. He remembered it again if he was not mistaken the name of the monkey species was Emberfang Primate, they attacked by spitting their corrosive saliva that even human workers could melt easily, plus they had sharp claws coated with a strong corrosive substance because they ate Scorchbane.
Cain turned his attention, he looked at his surroundings and saw grass that was tall enough to cover his body.
He quickly took a knife from his bag, then stabbed the Mournshade Frond that was nearby, then hid among the tall grass.
This mushroom has no smell, but its poison is strong enough to paralyze a large elephant.
However, the problem is its color.
The liquid produced by this mushroom is pitch black, too striking when compared to the red bananas that the monkeys will eat.
Cain racked his brains.
He observed the surrounding environment looking for something he could use to disguise the color of the poison.
Among the roots of the trees, he found some reddish-brown moss that seemed to contain thick liquid and took a few leaves to use as a container.
He crushed the moss and mixed it with the black mushroom poison.
Little by little, the liquid changed color.
From pitch black, to a dark red almost indistinguishable from the original color of the red banana.
Cain smiled faintly.
Now, he had the perfect poison.
Odorless, without suspicious color and strong enough to paralyze anyone who touched it in just a few minutes, let alone eaten, the effects would be felt quickly.
Cain moved quickly and silently, climbing the banana tree trunk deftly.
His hands and feet gripped tightly, making sure there were no suspicious sounds.
Once he reached the top, he took a deep breath and got to work.
Carefully, he smeared the dark red liquid onto several bananas hanging in bunches.
His fingers were protected by the leaves and he did not touch the skin, this was to ensure that not a single drop would get on his own skin.
One, two, three…
Cain worked efficiently, selecting the ripest bananas because those were the ones that would be the ones to so the monkeys would be after him. The liquid quickly seeped into the skin, then into the fruit.
Once finished, he slowly went back down, making sure there was no suspicious movement.
Once he was down, he crouched and hid back behind the tall grass.
His eyes continued to watch the banana tree, waiting for the arrival of the monkey herd that would be the victims of his plan.
He held his breath, sharpening his hearing.
It was almost noon.
And if the information from the book was correct, a group of Emberfang Primates would soon come to take the red fruit.
And more importantly, they would definitely take it to their nest, to feed their own herd.
Cain smiled faintly.
If he could follow them, maybe he could find something useful.
Cain remained silent, like a shadow that blended with nature.
The Flow Control technique made his breathing light, his pulse almost imperceptible.
Like leaves swaying in the wind, his presence dissolved into the rhythm of the forest.
His eyes were sharp, observing the movements of a group of monkeys who were still busy with their bananas.
One of the monkeys suddenly scratched his arm with a confused expression, his eyes narrowed as if something was wrong. However, the others continued to pick their favorite Scorchbane.
There was no hint of suspicion in their gazes.
The typical primate laughter was heard as they swung from branch to branch, moving towards their hidden nest.
Cain was in no hurry.
With steps as smooth as a shadow, he followed them, keeping a safe distance.
Cain stepped carefully between the trees, following the group of monkeys jumping from branch to branch. His breathing was regulated to the rhythm of his steps, making sure he remained silent. A small branch breaking under his feet was only a small sound, but enough to make one of the monkeys stop for a moment, looking back. Cain held his breath, blending with the shadows of the trees, until finally the monkey moved again.
His mind and body were in tune with nature, making sure no sound could give away his presence.
The monkey nest finally came into view, a large cave with green moss crawling up its walls. The air inside felt more humid, emitting the scent of wet earth and rotting fruit. From inside, the sounds of other monkeys who had not yet come out could be heard, waiting for food to be brought in. Cain pressed his back against a large tree trunk, catching his breath, preparing to see his poison plan work.
Time began to slow down.
Cain stared unblinkingly, his fingers groping for the handle of the weapon at his waist, preparing for anything untoward to happen. For a moment, doubt crossed his mind, would this plan really work?
His eyes never left the group of monkeys who began to collect the red bananas in the middle of their nest. One of the larger monkeys sniffed the banana a few times, hesitating for a moment. Cain clenched his fists. If they realized something was wrong, his plan would fail. However, after a few seconds of tension, the large monkey bit into his banana and the others quickly followed suit.
A faint smile appeared on Cain's face, he watched for a while and saw several Emberfang Primates begin to fall and could not move, even their noisy voices could not be heard.