Chapter 63: Miasma Swamp VIII

After walking for another fifteen minutes, Ben noticed that the terrain was gradually changing.

The muddy ground became firmer, and the trees grew farther apart. Several large rocks covered in dark green moss were scattered throughout the area.

However, what caught his attention was the unusual concentration of energy beneath the surface.

He stopped and looked around.

’There are several energy fluctuations nearby.’

Unlike the previous crystals, these fluctuations seemed to be moving.

Ben extended his perception and soon identified their source.

Several creatures were hiding beneath the moss-covered rocks.

"Morbius, there are more creatures ahead."

"I noticed them."

Morbius looked toward a large boulder.

"Be careful. These ones are stronger than the insects you just killed."

Ben nodded.

Before he could approach, the ground suddenly shook.

Crack!

Several cracks appeared across the muddy surface as enormous creatures emerged from beneath the rocks.

They resembled thick-bodied lizards, with dark green scales and short, powerful limbs. Their backs were covered in irregular bony plates, while their mouths contained rows of sharp teeth.

There were five of them.

Ben immediately examined their status.

[Species: Miasma Rock Lizard]

[Rank: F-Rank]

[Realm: Silver Realm - Second Stage]

[Level: 45]

[Threat Assessment: Moderate]

’Five Silver Realm Second Stage creatures.’

Their strength was higher than that of the Miasma Crawlers, but they were still manageable.

The largest lizard opened its mouth.

A thick stream of green liquid shot toward Ben.

He moved aside using Mist Walker.

The liquid struck a nearby rock, producing a sizzling sound as its surface rapidly corroded.

’Their saliva is poisonous as well.’

The other four creatures immediately surrounded him.

They moved surprisingly well despite their bulky bodies, coordinating their attacks from different directions.

Ben raised his hand.

White Missile!

Several projectiles appeared around him and shot toward the approaching creatures.

However, the lizards lowered their heads, allowing the bony plates on their backs to absorb most of the impact.

BOOM! BOOM!

The explosions scattered some of the surrounding moss, but the creatures continued advancing.

Ben raised an eyebrow.

’Their defenses are stronger than I expected.’

He extended his left hand.

Ruination Dimensions!

The space around two of the lizards distorted, restricting their movements.

Before the remaining creatures could react, Ben appeared above one of them.

His right hand was covered in concentrated White Ruination.

White Ruination Sword!

A sharp white blade formed around his hand and descended.

The attack cut through the creature’s bony plates and struck its body.

The lizard collapsed.

Ben immediately retreated as another creature lunged toward him.

Its jaws snapped shut just inches away from his previous position.

He used Mist Walker again, appearing several meters behind it.

At the same time, the two creatures trapped by Ruination Dimensions began struggling.

Their bodies released waves of miasma, weakening the spatial pressure around them.

Ben didn’t give them enough time to break free.

Two beams of white energy shot toward their heads.

White Ruination Ray!

Both attacks pierced through their defenses, killing them instantly.

The remaining two creatures hesitated.

Ben took the opportunity to raise his hand.

Several spatial distortions appeared around their bodies.

Their movements slowed, and before they could release another attack, White Ruination swept across them.

A moment later, both creatures collapsed.

[Targets Eliminated.]

Ben lowered his hand.

The fight had been slightly more troublesome than the previous encounter, mainly because of their defensive scales.

However, they hadn’t posed any real danger.

Morbius glanced at the fallen creatures.

"You’re getting better at handling groups. At least you aren’t wasting as much energy as before."

Ben nodded.

He was gradually becoming more familiar with the combination of his abilities.

Rather than relying on powerful attacks to overwhelm every opponent, he could use Ruination Dimensions to restrict their movements before finishing them with White Ruination.

It was a much more efficient approach against multiple enemies.

He approached the remains and began examining them.

As expected, the creatures possessed several useful materials. Their bony plates were particularly durable, and their poisonous saliva could probably be used in alchemy.

However, Ben was more interested in finding another Miasma Core Fragment.

He carefully examined the first creature.

Nothing.

The second one also had no fragment.

But when he reached the third creature, he discovered a small dark green object lodged near its heart.

Ben extracted it using Ruination Dimensions.

[ Miasma Core Fragment Obtained ]

[ Mission Progress: 2/10 ]

’Another one.’

He continued examining the remaining bodies but found no additional fragments.

After storing the materials, Ben checked the mission interface again.

He still needed eight fragments.

Although the progress was slower than he had initially hoped, he now understood that stronger creatures weren’t necessarily guaranteed to contain them.

Morbius looked toward the deeper part of the swamp.

"The energy fluctuations are becoming more concentrated ahead. There should be more creatures in that direction."

Ben followed his gaze.

He could also sense something unusual.

The miasma in the distance seemed to be flowing toward a particular location, forming a faint current that extended through the forest.

’Could there be a source of miasma deeper inside?’

If so, that location might contain more of the resources he had been searching for.

Ben opened the map on his student device.

Most of the surrounding area was still unexplored, and the academy’s database contained very little information about the deeper regions.

He closed the map.

"Let’s check it out."

Morbius nodded.

The two continued following the flow of miasma, gradually moving farther away from the academy’s recorded exploration zone.

After another half an hour, the surrounding environment changed once again.

The trees became noticeably larger, and their trunks were covered in thick layers of dark green growth. Their roots extended deep into the ground, forming an intricate network across the muddy terrain.

The miasma was also considerably denser.

Even with the Leonardo Lament Ring weakening its effects, Ben could feel the pressure increasing around him.

He glanced at Morbius.

"How much farther?"

"Not much. The miasma is flowing toward a location somewhere ahead."

Morbius paused before adding, "There’s something else. The energy fluctuations here are rather unusual."

Ben looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"The miasma isn’t spreading naturally. Something is continuously drawing it toward the same location."

Ben’s expression became thoughtful.

’Something is absorbing the miasma?’

If that was the case, the source might be a powerful creature, a special plant, or perhaps some kind of natural formation.

He continued forward, paying closer attention to his surroundings.

A few minutes later, they reached a small slope.

Beyond it was a shallow basin surrounded by enormous trees.

Ben stopped at the top.

The scene below was considerably different from the surrounding forest.

Thick green fumes covered the entire basin, and several dark pools were scattered across the ground. The water inside them was almost black, with occasional bubbles rising to the surface.

However, what attracted Ben’s attention was the enormous tree growing in the center.

Its trunk was several dozen meters wide, and its roots extended throughout the basin.

Unlike the surrounding trees, its bark was almost black, with faint green patterns spreading across its surface.

More importantly, the surrounding miasma was continuously flowing toward it.

Ben narrowed his eyes.

"Is that tree absorbing the miasma?"

Morbius examined it for a moment.

"Most likely. But there’s something strange about it."

"What?"

"The energy inside that tree isn’t purely poisonous. I can sense miasma, corrosion, and death energy mixed together. There’s also another fluctuation I can’t identify."

Ben’s interest increased.

He opened his student device and searched the database for similar vegetation.

However, after checking several entries, he couldn’t find anything that matched the tree in front of him.

’An unrecorded resource?’

He looked toward the basin again.

Several creatures were moving between the dark pools.

They resembled large, dark green amphibians, but unlike the Corrosive Miasma Toad he had encountered earlier, these creatures were considerably smaller.

Their bodies were covered in thick scales, and their backs had several raised protrusions.

Ben examined one of them.

[Species: Miasma Swamp Beast]

[Rank: F-Rank]

[Realm: Silver Realm - Third Stage]

[Level: 57]

[Threat Assessment: Moderate]

’Third Stage Silver Realm.’

He checked several others.

Most had similar levels, although a few were slightly stronger.

There were at least a dozen creatures scattered throughout the basin.

Ben looked toward the enormous tree.

’If these creatures are gathering around it, there might be something valuable here.’

Morbius seemed to understand his thoughts.

"Don’t get too excited. The creatures aren’t the only things you need to worry about."

Ben glanced at the dark pools.

The water produced a faint corrosive fluctuation, and the surrounding ground was covered in patches of blackened vegetation.

He could already imagine how dangerous it would be to fight several creatures in such an environment.

"I’ll be careful."

He examined the basin once more before making a decision.

Rather than rushing toward the tree, he decided to deal with the creatures near the entrance first.

He raised his right hand.

Several white projectiles formed around his body.

White Missile!

The projectiles shot toward the nearest creatures.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Three explosions erupted near the edge of the basin.

The creatures immediately reacted.

Several heads turned toward Ben, and a series of angry cries echoed throughout the area.

One of them opened its mouth and released a thick stream of green fumes.

The others quickly followed.

Within moments, a large portion of the basin was covered in poisonous clouds.

Ben raised his left hand.

Ruination Dimensions!

The space around the incoming fumes distorted, forcing the poisonous cloud to spread around him.

However, he didn’t attempt to block the entire attack.

Instead, he used Mist Walker and moved along the edge of the basin, avoiding the densest concentration of miasma.

The creatures quickly noticed his position and began rushing toward him.

Ben’s eyes narrowed.

’Good. Come closer.’

He extended his hand.

Several spatial distortions appeared beneath the approaching creatures.

Their movements suddenly became sluggish.

Before they could break free, Ben released several White Ruination Rays.

The beams pierced through their defenses, and three creatures collapsed almost simultaneously.

[Targets Eliminated.]

The remaining creatures became more cautious.

Rather than approaching individually, they gathered together and began releasing poisonous fumes.

Ben examined their movements.

’They’re trying to prevent me from getting close.’

He didn’t need to approach them.

A faint white glow appeared around his left hand.

The space surrounding the creatures began compressing.

At the same time, White Ruination spread through the distorted area.

The creatures struggled as their defensive energy gradually eroded.

A moment later, several beams of white light pierced through the poisonous cloud.

The remaining creatures fell.

Ben lowered his hand.

The battle had consumed some energy, but he hadn’t needed to use his strongest attacks.

He glanced toward Morbius.

"That should be enough for now."

Morbius looked at the fallen creatures.

"You’ve attracted the attention of everything in the basin. I doubt those were the only creatures living here."

Ben nodded.

He was already aware of that.

More importantly, he had noticed something during the fight.

The miasma released by the creatures hadn’t dispersed naturally.

Instead, it had slowly drifted toward the enormous tree in the center of the basin.

Ben looked at its dark trunk.

’That tree is definitely absorbing something.’

He decided to investigate it after checking the remains.

There might be more Miasma Core Fragments among the creatures, and he didn’t want to overlook them.

After all, he still needed eight more to complete his mission.