Chapter 266: Auto Hunting Hundreds Of Monsters

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Vladimir swung both arms in a powerful cross-shaped motion, crimson energy flaring around him like living fire. "Blazing Cross."

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!

The entire clearing erupted in a wave of scorching heat and light. All the Corrupted Dryads screamed in pure agony as the attack completely consumed them. Their twisted bodies burned to a crisp within seconds and collapsed into piles of glowing ashes that scattered across the forest floor.

One after another, items began to spawn as they died, each one shining with intense golden light as their value was multiplied by the x10,000 effect. The golden radiance reflected off the wet ground and the remaining dead trees, creating a strange, almost festive contrast against the rotting, mist-filled surroundings. The air filled with the sharp scent of burnt wood and something far fouler, like decaying vegetation mixed with ash.

"Hey, you’re taking everything on your own? Why not leave a single thing for me?"

Amidst the thick gray mist, Riven emerged in the flesh. He had left his Shadow Self behind to watch over Elisa while she continued sleeping peacefully at home. The decision had not been made lightly.

That previous night the two of them had talked at length about the risks and benefits. In the end she had decided to let him enter the dungeons personally with Daniela so they could gain the maximum benefit from the first clear of this place. Of course, there was another practical reason behind the choice. When Riven only controlled his Shadow Self, he remained significantly weaker than when he used his real body. The difference in raw power and reaction speed was simply too great to ignore when efficiency mattered this much.

"Hah?!" Vladimir glared at Riven with clear irritation, still breathing heavily from his own attack. "You’re nobody to say that. Look at you..."

Behind Riven lay dozens of Corrupted Dryads, all of them already dead. Their corpses were covered in blazing swords made of ghostly fire and hundreds of different magical poisons, all further enhanced with dragon flame to ensure they burned thoroughly. The mixed scents of ash, poison, and scorched wood filled the air so strongly that it almost stung the nostrils. The ground around them was blackened and steaming.

"I was just walking. They ended up dying the moment they got closer."

Riven did not even need to bother fighting these low-level monsters directly. His Mana Aura had evolved so much thanks to his newest skills and talents that it now moved and attacked on its own with almost independent will.

Quite literally.

His Spiritual Energy granted Riven the power of "Aura Spiritualization," turning his own Mana Aura into a true Spiritual Art and, in a way, into something similar to a living Spirit that responded to his presence alone. With his Divine Spirit Heart constantly pumping Spiritual Energy and Mana into him in a steady cycle, he could expand his aura across a wide area and simply walk past groups of weak enemies, allowing them to die almost instantly as his Mana Nature took care of everything without conscious effort.

His current Mana Nature combined the Ten Thousand Poisons Heart Sutra with Netherworld King Swordsmanship. When further imbued with his Dragon Flames, the combination became incredibly deadly. Invisible blades of poison and ghostly fire drifted through the air around him like a protective storm, cutting and burning anything that came too close without him needing to lift a single finger or waste a more powerful technique.

This was what Riven had come to call "Auto Hunting." He simply walked forward at a steady pace and let his Aura handle all the busywork. It was both efficient and remarkably quick, allowing him to clear large areas of weak foes while conserving his stronger skills and stamina for the more dangerous opponents that waited deeper inside the dungeon.

"More are coming! I can sense them!" Daniela called out from a short distance away. She was wearing her cute golden Pierrot uniform, the colorful fabric standing out brightly against the gray mist and the dark, rotting trees. Even in this grim and decaying place, the cheerful design of her clothes felt strangely out of place, like a splash of carnival brightness in the middle of a nightmare.

RUMBLE!

From behind them, four massive creatures emerged with heavy, deliberate steps. Unlike the ordinary dryads they had been fighting, these were huge monsters that appeared far more rarely, yet they always seemed to gather wherever the smell of blood and death became strong enough to draw them.

[Carnivorous Great Flower – D Rank: Level 50]

They were gigantic, five-meter-tall flowers with rows of sharp, glistening teeth that looked capable of crushing bone. Their bodies were formed from thick, writhing vines and living trees that pulsed with unnatural life, and they moved quickly on long wooden roots that resembled the legs of enormous spiders. Each step they took left deep, muddy gouges in the soft ground, and the sound of cracking wood followed them.

They hissed loudly in unison and released thick clouds of deadly poison into the air. The toxic mist mixed with the natural fog of the orchard, creating a thicker, more dangerous haze that clung to the skin and stung the eyes with every breath.

Noir barked once with sharp warning and immediately generated a solid shadow barrier around Daniela to keep her completely safe. The dark dome pulsed with protective energy, sealing her off from the approaching poison and the worst of the toxic air.

At the same time Riven blurred forward, a pair of powerful draconic wings erupting from his back and propelling him through the air at high speed. The force of his sudden takeoff sent nearby vines and dead leaves flying in every direction.

"Die."

The moment he closed the distance, he summoned Fenrir’s Fang into his hands and swung the massive blade at full power without holding anything back.

SLAAAAAAAASH!

A gigantic horizontal cleaving attack was unleashed, Divine Cross.

All four of the giant D-Rank Monsters were eliminated instantly. Their massive bodies were bisected cleanly in a single stroke and then exploded outward under the residual power of the technique, burning into mismatched piles of foul-smelling burnt vegetation.

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