Chapter 31: Twilight Hollows

Chapter 31 - Twilight HollowsDamon logged in at 5 in the evening, and it was almost 10 now. The last time he consumed blood was around 6.30 to 7, which means he was able to go three hours without blood just fine. Of course, now he was ravenous, considering he had just evolved. His entire body was like a furnace needing fuel—red, warm, living fuel. There was no way he was logging out right now. It would be a suicide to do something like that. He first needed food. "I need something good..." Damon muttered as he pulled up the system map. His gaze instantly landed on a spot. That was right—he was level 15 now, thanks to the three levels he had gotten from the world boss. That meant he finally had access to the low-tier dungeons. And there, nestled between two ridgelines of blackened forest on the outskirts of Niera City, was exactly what he was looking for. [Twilight Hollows – Recommended Level: 15–20. Environment: Low Light. Threat Level: Moderate. Affinities: Shadow.] It was a place most beginners avoided unless they came in groups. The enemies inside weren't particularly powerful, but they were fast, vicious, and hunted in packs. Shadow panthers. Shadow hounds. These beasts were a pain in the ass for most players, but to Damon? They were walking buffets. With his newly enhanced senses, each heartbeat, each rustle of fur against shadowed bark, would be as clear as thunder in a silent room. This dungeon was going to be a piece of cake. Even better? The monsters here had a decent chance of dropping two particularly useful skills: [Stealth] and [Shadowmeld]. Both were core abilities for assassin-class players, and absurdly powerful when paired with vampire racial bonuses. Stealth would allow him to vanish from sight under low-light conditions, while Shadowmeld allowed him to merge with shadows entirely, becoming untargetable for a few precious seconds. With both in his arsenal, Damon could move like a ghost and strike like a demon. Damon did not wait any longer and sprinted towards the Twilight Hollow dungeon. He was so hungry that he could lose his mind, but man, did the boosted stats feel good. He had finally taken the first step, and his body felt freer and lighter. The last time around he had managed to reach all the way until Blood Monarch before everything went to shit. His stats back then were incomparable to his current stats. That was a whole different ball game. The fights, the monsters, everything became exceedingly complicated and thrilling. Compared to that, he was still playing in the kiddie pool, but this time, he planned to drain it dry. Soon he arrived at the entrance of the dungeon. The dungeon portal. A blackish purple miasma swirling in the middle of nowhere. Damon entered the dungeon with notifications chiming in front of him. [Ding! You are entering a dungeon: Twilight Hollows] [Recommended Level: 15–20] [Dungeon Objective: Defeat the Alpha Howler] "Hunting time!" Damon stepped inside the dungeon and immediately his body went on high alert. A soft growl echoed to his left. A pair of yellow slitted eyes blinked open from the underbrush. Then another. And another. Shadow Panthers. Their fur blended into the darkness almost perfectly, but to Damon, they were as bright as flares. He could see their muscles tense, their paws shift silently across dead leaves. Five of them, circling. In his past life, this would've been a death sentence at this level, but he did not have a race evolution then. Getting a race evolution this early was defintiely a big cheat. Damon smiled and raised his hand. His palm shimmered crimson, the blood within it swirling, condensing, forming into a sleek spear of pure force. "Let's test this new toy out." [Blood Lance – Activated] He didn't wait for them to make the first move. With a flick of his wrist, the spear flew—silent, sharp, and devastating. The air howled in its wake. The lead panther barely had time to blink. The lance pierced through its body, pinning it to a gnarled tree trunk. Damon purposefully did not kill it, only leaving the beast gravely wounded. At the same time, he dashed toward the second panther with a feral grin on his face. The thrill of the hunt, the scent of blood, the thrum of power in his veins—it was intoxicating. The second panther pounced, claws outstretched. Damon sidestepped with preternatural grace and caught the beast mid-air, his enhanced strength letting him twist and slam it into the dirt. Before it could recover, he brought his fangs down into its neck. Warm, coppery blood surged into his mouth, and a shiver ran down his spine. The panther twitched once, then went limp. [Ding! Bloodline Extraction Initiated] [Target: Shadow Panther - Tier 1 Beast] [Ding! You have extracted the ability: 'Stalk'] [Stalk – E Rank Passive Skill: Your footsteps produce no sound when moving within shadowed terrain. +10% movement speed when undetected.] [Ding! You have slain Shadow Panther Lv 17] [Ding! You have gained experience points] Great. He got a skill on the first try but the blood was not nearly enough. He was hungry and he needed more. The other three panthers had already gone into stealth but Damon instantly sensed an attack from behind him. A blur of shadow lunged for his back, fangs bared. Damon ducked, twisted, and drove his elbow upward. Bone crunched. The panther's growl turned into a strangled yelp as it flipped midair and slammed into a mossy rock. "Nice try," Damon muttered, stepping forward as if on instinct. The moment the beast hit the ground, he was on it. His fingers dug into its scruff, lifting it by the neck, eyes gleaming crimson. The animal snarled and flailed, but Damon was stronger—so much stronger. He sank his fangs in. Warmth exploded across his tongue. The panther's essence flowed into him, and the inferno raging inside his body dimmed just a little. Not enough. Nowhere near enough. But it was something. [Ding! Bloodline Extraction Initiated] [Target: Shadow Panther – Tier 1 Beast] [Ding! Partial Bloodline Extraction. You have gained 1 agility stat point] [Ding! You have killed Shadow Panther Lv 16] Sёarch* The nôᴠel Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Ding! You have gained experience points.] He tossed the drained corpse aside. The last two panthers were nowhere to be seen, but he could feel them. One of them was climbing the ridge above him. The other was crouched to his right, teeth bared behind thick undergrowth. Damon smiled. Bring it on!