Chapter 21: The Zombie Hunter (1)

After leveling up to Level 7, Klaus felt a massive surge of power. His spiritual qi pool had grown several times larger, filling him with more than ough ergy to unleash his attacks. He'd only just started tapping into the ice elemt, mainly because Klaus had always had a thing for ice.

Ever since he was a kid, he was fascinated by anything related to ice, so it was only natural that he instinctively started using it as soon as he awaked. Now, his Moon Slash skill was on a whole new level. Klaus wt on a rampage, taking down Tier monsters left and right.

He needed 38,400 points to hit Level 8, so he knew he had to go all out. The stronger he got, the better his chances of taking on Tier 3 monsters. Last time, he got lucky and caught a Tier 3 monster off guard, but he wasn't sure he'd get that same stroke of luck again.

Ev if he did get lucky again, it would only work once. But to make 40 million gold in three days, he'd need that kind of luck hundreds of times over. This time, he planned on staying out in the field for a few days before heading back.

Ev though he'd awaked, Klaus knew almost nothing about cultivating. To really get a grip on the intricacies of the cultivation world, he knew he'd have to move to the city, where he could gather the knowledge he needed to navigate this new life.

Right now, Klaus's top priority was getting several times stronger so he could gather the funds needed to move his small family to the city.

Slash!

A sword light flashed, sding a sharp ice arc slicing through the air. The arc struck a Tier Hound, killing it instantly.

"I still don't have that sharpness and effortlessness I crave," Klaus muttered, staring at his sword with a puzzled expression. For the past five hours, he'd be hunting and honing his sword skills, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't break through to the next level.

Sure, he could take down a Tier monster with a single strike now, but it still didn't have that razor-sharp precision he wanted. There was always some dullness to his attacks. It was frustrating. With a sacred class like his, he couldn't help but get a little obsessed, hoping to fix it before moving forward.

"I guess I'll have to keep killing more monsters—maybe I'll figure it out," Klaus sighed as he stored the body and continued his rampage.

"A zombie," Klaus muttered, stopping in his tracks. He narrowed his gaze at the figure standing over a monster's lifeless body, its mouth smeared with blood and chunks of meat. It was clear the zombie had killed the creature and was now devouring it.

The zombie's head jerked up as it caught sight of Klaus. Its eyes, empty and lifeless, locked onto him. The creature growled a low, macing sound that st a chill down Klaus's spine. His grip tighted a the hilt of his sword, his focus sharping as he prepared for the fight.

After dispatching another small group, Klaus found himself standing in a clearing. He took a momt to catch his breath, looking a at the fall bodies. "Not bad," he thought, "but I need more if I want to buy a house," Klaus said with a small smile.

A sudd noise behind him made Klaus spin a, sword at the ready. A larger Zombie, clearly stronger than the others, was lumbering toward him. Its eyes glowed with a dull, eerie light, and it moved with more purpose than the weaker ones.

Klaus tighted his grip on his sword. This one might be more of a challge, however, he quickly dismissed that though wh he saw the Zombie move. The Zombie lunged at him, but Klaus was quicker. He sidestepped the attack and brought his sword down in a powerful arc, severing the creature's head in a single blow.

As the body fell, a bright stone rolled out. Klaus picked it up, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. "Low grade but worth more than the plain , I guess there is some luck following be after all."

He pocketed the stone and pressed on, his confidce growing with each kill. The deeper he wt, the more Zombies he countered. But of them could stand up to his speed and skill.

In a few hours, Klaus had gathered several more stones, but he wasn't satisfied yet. He wanted more. In fact, he wanted so many that ev if he took a break from hunting for a while, he'd still be in good shape financially.

"This place is good," Klaus thought to himself. "The deeper I go, the stronger the zombies I counter. If I can manage to get a few Medium-grade stones, that would be great."

He wasn't aiming for the Higher-grade stones—those were found in Tier 3 Zombies, and he knew he wasn't ready for that yet. He still had to sure he had the strgth to take them on. But now wasn't the time to push his limits recklessly.

Klaus continued to press forward, his eyes sharp and his sword ready. He countered another group of Tier Zombies, slightly stronger than the ones he had fought before. They moved with a bit more coordination, their growls louder and more macing. Klaus didn't hesitate. With swift, precise movemts, he cut them down one by one, his sword flashing in the dim light of the forest.

Wh the last Zombie fell, Klaus quickly searched the bodies, hoping for a Medium-grade stone. His heart skipped a beat wh he found one—a dull blue stone, larger than the others he had collected. It wasn't a High-grade, but it was better than the Low-grade stones he had be gathering.

"Perfect," Klaus murmured, storing the stone in his space ring. "Just a few more like this, and I'll be set. But these Zombies are becoming stronger, I have to test my limit and distribute the points accordingly."

He continued his hunt, slaughtering more Zombies along the way. The deeper he vtured, the stronger the Zombies became. Their numbers grew, but so did his determination. Klaus was reltless, cutting them down with precision, collecting stones, and moving on without hesitation.

Finally, after heading ev deeper into the forest, Klaus countered a differt kind of Zombie. This one was unlike the others. It still had the rotting appearance of a Zombie, but its eyes were sharp, not dull and lifeless like the rest. In its hands, it held a bone sword, gripped tightly as if it knew how to use it.