Chapter 222: Kraken

Alex also noticed something important. This was not one of the tentacles he had damaged earlier.

It was completely uninjured, which he had to injure it first. Alex quickly created small claws of vibrating mana around his fingers and used them to tear through the surface of the tentacle.

The wound was shallow and barely noticeable compared to the size of the creature, but it was enough to trigger the regeneration. The damaged flesh immediately began rebuilding itself as Origin Energy flowed toward the injury.

Alex covered the injured area with his mana. Because the wound was only on the surface, he did not need to penetrate deeply into the monster’s body to observe the process. He carefully examined the movement of its Origin Energy, trying to understand and learn how it was being used to rebuild the damaged tissue.

He watched and watched, paying as much attention as possible to every change in the Origin Energy. Alex knew he did not have much time before the tentacle brought him to the monster’s main body, so he memorized every detail he could while continuing to resist the pressure around his body.

Another mana pulse spread outward. This time, Alex sensed something different. They had reached the bottom.

The tentacle stopped moving, and the pressure surrounding Alex became even more immense. The water pressure alone was enough to crush an ordinary person instantly, and even Alex’s Superior Body Reinforcement was struggling to protect him from it.

Alex sent out another mana pulse. His expression changed when he sensed something enormous directly in front of him. A giant maw was opening in the darkness.

The tentacle holding him began moving again, slowly pushing Alex toward the open mouth. Alex realized that he was about to be swallowed, and there was no longer enough time to continue observing the monster.

He immediately summoned the metal piece from his inventory.

The metal glowed faintly from the compressed Fire Element Mana inside it, and Alex did not hesitate before flicking his finger and sending it toward the open maw. The monster reacted immediately, shifting its body as it realized something dangerous was entering its mouth, but the distance was far too short for it to dodge. The metal piece disappeared into the darkness of the monster’s open maw.

Alex had only used a limited amount of Will to stabilize the compressed Fire Element Mana, so the moment the metal entered the monster’s body, that Will began fading and the compressed mana became unstable again.

The monster immediately closed its mouth, apparently realizing that Alex was trying to do something dangerous. Unfortunately for it, the metal had already passed deep enough into its mouth that there was no time for the creature to spit it back out before the compressed Fire Element Mana went completely out of control.

Then the explosion happened.

The blast was far more powerful than Alex had expected, and the force struck him before he could properly protect himself. His body was thrown backward and smashed into the wall of the underwater cavern as water, heat, and light erupted through the darkness around him.

For a brief moment, the monster became completely visible through the light of the explosion. It was a gigantic octopus-like creature with an enormous body surrounded by thick tentacles, each one large enough to crush Alex with ease, while its massive mouth was filled with rows of sharp teeth.

The sight was enough to make Alex understand why the creature had been so dangerous. Its body was enormous, and even after suffering his previous attacks, it had possessed enough strength to drag him through the dungeon without slowing down.

Then the explosion disappeared into the darkness.

[Level 19 Shallow-Depth Kraken (Mid Rank Species) killed.]

[You have leveled up. Level 16 → Level 17.]

[Mana (+1), Mind (+1), Stat Points (+2)]

[Sustained Breathing Spell has leveled up. Level 1 → Level 3.]

[Superior Body Reinforcement Spell has leveled up. Level 1 → Level 3.]

[Soul Reinforcement Spell has leveled up. Level 5 → Level 6.]

[Blood Vitalization Spell has leveled up. Level 6 → Level 7.]

Alex was pleased by the upgrades. He leveled up, and he gained two levels in two spells. His injuries began healing almost immediately, and the clarity that came with level up healing quickly returned to his mind. Unfortunately, he was still trapped beneath a massive piece of stone that had fallen from the cavern wall during the explosion.

He pushed against it with all his strength, but the stone barely moved. Alex tried again, putting even more force into the attempt, but the boulder still refused to move enough for him to escape.

Finally, he stopped relying on physical strength alone and began infusing mana into the stone while simultaneously pushing against it. By moving his mana inside the stone and the pushing the stone at the same time, he managed to shift the massive boulder just enough to create a gap.

Alex quickly swam out of the space before the stone could settle again. He coughed several times, and blood escaped from his mouth as he realized that being pinned beneath the boulder had caused new injuries despite the healing from his level-up.

Alex did not panic and immediately used Minor Heal. The knowledge he had gained while observing the Kraken’s regeneration allowed him to control the spell much better than before, making the healing process noticeably faster.

The spell quickly patched the worst of his injuries and stopped the bleeding, although the broken bones would still take some time to recover. Alex moved his body carefully to make sure nothing was seriously damaged before continuing.

[Minor Heal Spell has leveled up. Level 1 → Level 3.]

’Two level-ups at once. Nice,’ Alex thought as he looked at the notification.

He wanted to check the rest of his notifications and examine his improved stats, but he was still underwater and his supply of air was running low. Alex quickly searched for the Kraken’s Gene Potential, and thankfully, the enormous amount of Origin Energy inside its body made it easy to locate.

He immediately absorbed it.

[Your Species level has increased. Level 9 → Level 10.]

[Your Species level has reached Max Level.]

[Your Species can now evolve. Choose an evolution...]

..

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