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Oliver wasn't quite sure how to respond after being scolded by the lion.

However, there was no way he would give up a treasure he had already obtained.

At that moment, the sunflower creatures began telling the lion what Oliver had done.

Apparently, upon hearing it, the lion looked even angrier.

"Brat, how dare you!" it roared again at Oliver.

"Return the seed at once," it said, then lunged with its claw.

Oliver calmly stepped aside using Void Step.

He had stepped forward, but ended up appearing several meters behind instead.

Now, he could freely decide where his step would land.

'I should just leave,' he thought.

"Don't think you can run away!"

The lion immediately gave chase upon seeing Oliver trying to flee.

Its speed was incredible—almost matching the speed of Oliver's Void Step.

As it chased him, its mouth opened wide, gathering golden light into a sphere just in front of its gaping maw.

It looked like a small sun, and the heat radiating from it was so intense that Oliver could feel it from afar.

He figured if he got hit, his flesh might actually cook.

However, as the lion used that technique, its body suddenly began to shrink.

Within moments, its height had dropped by two meters—from six meters to four.

Whoosh!

The golden sphere shot toward Oliver at extreme speed, incinerating leaves in its path into ash even without direct contact.

Without thinking, Oliver released void particles with all his spiritual energy.

He had already reached the Third Stage, so he had enough energy to create a massive barrier that surrounded him on all sides—even above his head.

The void particles formed a solid cube, and he stood inside.

There wasn't a single gap in it.

Boom!

A deafening explosion echoed outside.

The void cube trembled violently, but it was clear the explosion couldn't penetrate it—because the moment it touched the cube, it was completely neutralized.

The attack had been incredibly powerful. Oliver could feel the cube thinning as it withstood the impact.

His energy inside his Spiritual Space was completely depleted, but was quickly refilled by his reserves.

He didn't feel tired at all.

Whoosh!

The void cube disappeared.

The surrounding area wasn't just destroyed—it had turned into a massive, superheated crater.

Dark smoke billowed into the sky, and the golden lion stood at the edge of it.

It appeared shocked to see its target unharmed.

"You can't kill me," Oliver said to the lion.

With its body now smaller, its power had clearly diminished. Oliver was confident he could defeat it easily.

"If you don't return the seed, I'll chase you to the ends of this world. Even your soul will be reduced to ash if you face my true body," the lion growled, its tone raspy and eyes murderous.

"Say that when your real body is actually here," Oliver replied with a mocking tone.

He didn't feel the slightest fear, especially when it was only twice the height of a human.

"Lion, now take my attack!" he shouted, taking a step and appearing right in front of the lion in an instant—catching it off guard.

But it was too late.

Oliver thrust his spear straight into its head.

His spear was coated in a massive amount of void particles. He used up nearly half of his energy for it.

Bang!

The void particles exploded upon impact, instantly disintegrating the light-based body of the lion.

In a blink, half of its body had vanished.

"Human, just wait! Don't think this world is big enough for you to hide!" the lion's voice roared one last time before its remaining form vanished.

It disappeared completely, leaving nothing behind.

Oliver could only frown—if that had been its real body, he would have struck it rich.

The body of a Boss Monster was not only incredibly valuable, but its Monster Core held a completely different level of worth.

Of course, if he had faced the lion's true form, he would have been the one to die.

Looking to the side, he noticed the sunflower creatures had followed him—still demanding the seed back.

Unfortunately for them, the Golden Lion Boss who came to help had been defeated.

Even so, Oliver chose to leave.

He worried the lion's true body might actually show up.

What surprised him was that he found a wooden bridge ahead—spanning across the river and connecting his side of the land to the opposite one.

The bridge was built in an ancient style, yet looked extremely sturdy—as if it wouldn't collapse unless someone deliberately destroyed it.

Even the wood didn't seem brittle.

Oliver crossed the bridge out of pure curiosity.

The land on the other side was filled with tall hills covered in trees.

There weren't many clear paths to walk, blocked by low-hanging branches.

Thankfully, his every step could bypass those branches effortlessly.

"What!"

After climbing over several hills, he was stunned to find the corpse of an enormous snake.

This wasn't like the anacondas he had fought before. This snake's corpse stretched perhaps three hundred meters long, with a body as thick as a truck.

Its head was massive—dead with its jaws wide open.

Oliver trembled, knees going weak at the sight of the serpent.

It was clearly already dead, but he couldn't help imagining what it would have been like alive. If it had been, he might've been swallowed whole.

He saw an arrow lodged in the snake's neck.

It seemed to be the cause of death.

The arrow radiated lightning energy, which appeared to have electrocuted the entire body of the massive snake.

"What kind of being is strong enough to kill this snake so easily?" Oliver wondered aloud.

He took deep, repeated breaths—trying to convince his brain that the snake was truly dead so the fear would go away.

It was a natural fear, emerging from witnessing a creature far too massive.

Once the fear subsided, he approached the corpse.

Its height was a little over five meters, while its width was about four.

If it were only that, he wouldn't be afraid. A snake's true intimidation didn't come from its width or height—but its length.

Driven by curiosity, he touched the serpent's body.

Its skin had no scales—perhaps this was a type of earth snake.

Despite lacking scales, its skin was incredibly tough.

It was still slightly warm, cooling gradually.

This suggested the snake had only recently died—perhaps just a few days ago, as large creatures took a long time to begin decomposing.

'This corpse is worth a lot too, but it seems the one who killed it didn't think so,' Oliver thought.

There was always value in monster corpses—especially those of high-level beasts.

Their meat might not be useful, but their bones and skin could be crafted into various items.

For instance, bones were materials for forging weapons, while their hides could be used to make high-quality clothing—essentially artifacts due to their powerful defensive properties.

Those who seriously ventured into the Chaotic World wouldn't wear ordinary leather shoes like Oliver's. Their footwear would be made from the hides of powerful monsters—guaranteeing protection for their feet.

'But still, I can't carry this snake's body. The space in my Observation Ring is too small,' he thought.

Even so, he couldn't help but consider destroying the snake's flesh using his void power—then collecting the skin and bones.

If he could sell them, then why not?