--
'Still have no idea what that is, though.' Cedric thought as he stared at the humongous tree with many faces in front of him.
Cedric educated himself about the many races that he could possibly meet once he becomes a member of the alliance, but with how many there are, it's a little difficult to figure out who's who, especially since some races have too many similarities than unique features. Hence why he thought that this thing was initially a trait like Morning Wood.
And this isn't even mentioning those who haven't joined the alliance yet...
It's also possible that this thing was just some experiment or something similar.
Whatever it was, though, Cedric's certain about one thing. It's an enemy since it's here.
'I mean, it does look like the tutorial boss, doesn't it?'
Roar!!
The many faces all over its body roared and wailed at the same time. The sound caused the blood sea to give rise to tall waves that could swallow him whole. This was followed by a rain of thorns from the dried-up branches above.
Cedric blurred into motion, dodging the rain of thorns like an apparation while also paying attention to the thorns since he knew it couldn't be this simple.
And he's right—the thorns indeed had special properties with them. They contain a strong devouring element that could potentially become dangerous if it touches him. Also, the thorns could supply the energies they devoured even from a distance. They're also surprisingly durable.
The many-faced tree monster didn't let up after seeing Cedric not being affected by its previous attack. The blood sea erupted and thorny vines crawled forward; some were sending more thorns, while most were sent to entangle Cedric. These vines certainly had the devouring element as well.
And while the thorny vines chased after him, the many faces on the tree monster's body shot out crimson beams of heat that also homed in on him.
'Yep, certainly a tutorial boss.' Cedric hummed inwardly, convinced of his conjecture.
He raised his sword and began slicing through the many projectiles. He cut the vines, parried and deflected the rain of thorns and the beams of light, and also sent an attack of his own.
Roar!
'Tch, how irritating.'
Cedric started to get annoyed by the tree monster's roar because it's too loud. It sounded like hundreds of people crying out in rage at the same time because of the many faces on its body. It also writhes weirdly as it sends out more ways to hunt Cedric down.
'Hmph!'
Fwoosh!!
A billowing pulse of golden flame erupted from Cedric. It danced around his body, covering him in a gorgeous golden mane of scalding heat that evaporated everything that's trying to harm him.
Cedric then raised his sword and chopped at the general direction of the tree. Space was then sundered by the sharpness of his sword and the heat of his flames. His strike seemingly ignored distance and hit the humonguous whrithing tree, leaving a large and visible sword scar on its body.
ROAR!
The many-faced tree monster bellowed in pain and agony. It wrote wildly but stayed rooted on the spot. It bled black blood that mixed with the sea of blood, tainting it somehow. However, Cedric's attack didn't end there.
Once the time was up, Cedric immediately sensed movement around him.
He received a couple of life signs as feedback from his senses. None were blood specters. These things were new enemies he must face.
They resemble a human, save for their deep crimson skin and large squarish jaws with long lower fangs. They wore pieces of cloth armor and blunt weapons; some were as large or as tall as they were.
'Uh, Red Orcs?'
Yes, these creatures did look like orcs, but with deep crimson skin. And as soon as they manifested into being, they wasted no time idling by and immediately charged towards him. Cedric doubted if some even saw him first because they definitely started running even before they could complete their first thought.
'Not so smart then.' Cedric judged as he swung his sword to immediately cut them down.
Beep!
[Blood Orc, killed! You received 10 Blood Crystal Shards.]
'Ah, they're called Blood Orcs then. Okay, yeah. That's on theme, I suppose.'
And just like the Blood Specters, Blood Orcs spawned just as fast as he killed them. Each one was fearless and reckless, which wasn't surprising considering that they're just driven by pure instinct, mere puppets that follow orders implanted on them.
'Hmm, I've read somewhere that Orcs thrive in combat. Not particularly an aggressive race, per se, but just really good combatants. It seems to be wired in their genes.'
'Orcs had been members of the alliance for centuries; they're not as popular or as advanced as other races, but they're no pushovers either.'
'If that's the case, then it would make sense for them to come here to test their mettle. Doesn't explain the crimson skin, though. Orcs have green skin; like, that's one of their common defining features.'
'...'
'Ah! Maybe these Blood Orcs are just something that this world mimicked from the real one. Like the many-faced tree monster earlier.'
'Yeah, I could see that happening. And that would also explain why these things aren't too smart. They're way stronger than Blood Specters, though.'
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Designed as a race that thrives in combat, the Blood Orcs displayed rather commendable combat capabilities. They're surprisingly quick in their feet, had explosive strength, and had sharp instincts despite their dullness.
None of these posed a problem to Cedric, though. While he praised their combat capabilities, he could still slaughter them just as easily as he did with the Blood Specters. These are weak imitations after all, and none of these orcs had even an ounce of concept laws in their aura. So they're as fragile as a mortal in front of him.
Suffice it to say, the so-called Level 2 of the Asura Plane was a breeze for Cedric as well. It's like a bonus round that allowed him to accumulate blood crystals.
Eventually, he slaughtered enough Blood Orcs for another Blood-starved creature (Boss) to appear.
This time, it was a giant albino snake with wine-red pupils. It was quick, sinister, and was both a resistor and venomous. However, it's still far from being a threat to Cedric.
And thus, Cedric killed and killed, climbing through difficulty levels of the Asura Plane until he reached Level 5, where he met his first sentient creature.
"Die!!"