When Leo saw the Rootspire Behemoth hurriedly swallow the lifecore earlier, he had assumed he'd lost it for good.

So when the treasure finally rolled out of the creature's ruined trunk and thudded onto the ground, his eyes instantly lit up. The previously ingested Peak 2-star mana crystal he'd bitten into was already dissolving into his bloodstream, warm power curling through his veins. His mana surged comfortably past 4500 units and continued to rise in steady pulses, making him ready for whatever came next.

The golem, meanwhile, seemed to have exhausted every defensive layer it had. It had taken the full brunt of the Solar Beam for several agonising seconds, and now the core region on its chest glowed a molten red—sluggish, half-liquid rock dripping like magma.

Leo took a step toward the lifecore, eager to snatch it up—

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEE—!

A shrill, piercing screech ripped through the chamber.

Leo's breath hitched. For something that was essentially a giant tree, the sound was disturbingly sharp and high-pitched. It stabbed into his ears, making them ring painfully. Instinctively, he clamped his palms over them, wincing at the proximity.

When he looked up, he froze.

Where the behemoth's original mouth had been seared away, a new one had split open on the opposite side of its cylindrical trunk. As it screamed, the previously charred section visibly cooled rapidly—steam rising off it in wisps—and within seconds, fresh green growth began sprouting across the burnt bark.

At the same time, the mist finally dispersed, exposing everything clearly. The behemoth seemed to sense the treasure plant's disappearance—its desperation spiking violently. The cylindrical walls around the enclosure trembled, roots groaning deep beneath the soil.

Then it snapped.

Countless roots burst from every direction like spears, exploding through the ground and air in chaotic, unpredictable arcs. The entire enclosure became a deadly storm of thrashing limbs.

A stray whip-thick root lashed across Shyra's flank, making her yelp and recoil. Niri, drained from earlier, didn't have enough mana to contribute offensively as she sat tightly holding the harness vines on Shyra. All she could do was maintain her focus on healing—waiting for her mana to refill to a safe threshold before casting [Nature's Heal] again. Being a half-spirit saved her; her recovery rate was naturally quick, and emptying her mana pool didn't overwhelm her like it would a physical beast. She simply endured, refilled, and healed Shyra in steady intervals.

The day-long battle was taking its toll. Even Shyra, usually fierce and relentless, was breathing harder now—each exhale a rough puff as she dodged the wild lashing roots, even if they had glass build, the whip-like attack still hurt. The setting sun painted the battlefield in dim, fading orange—a reminder that night was rapidly approaching.

But one creature clearly wasn't tired.

BOOOOOOM!

The Elk unleashed another antler discharge. The lightning-like blast slammed straight into the molten cavity on the golem's chest, the embedded cores pulsed with energy but flickered erratically, and the stone was now blackened and brittle.

With all its barriers spent, the golem took the full, unforgiving force of the low 3-star beast's attack. The impact carved a massive cavity—over two meters wide—straight into its chest. Two or three cores were still wedged inside, glowing blindingly bright, on the verge of bursting from the overload.

It made sense. With such a huge cavity blown open, most of the golem's cores had fallen out with the rubble, severing their connection to the main structure. The remaining ones had to work overtime to keep the giant construct moving—burning through power faster than they could regulate.

Leo, who had been slipping between the erratic roots with far more ease than the others—thanks to his smaller frame and stealth constantly flaring on—took just a moment to glance toward the fallen Earthpulse Lifecore. The Behemoth still hadn't tried to reclaim it.

But the instant Leo edged closer, the monster seemed to feel something in its immediate radius. Its surrounding roots went into a frenzy, stabbing in and out of the soil at insane speed, like stakes being hammered by invisible mallets. It had finally realised the danger of ignoring the "tiny nuisance."

One wild, whipping root smashed into the lifecore, sending it spinning and bouncing away from the Behemoth.

Both—the tree's zig-zagged mouth, and Leo's head—snapped toward the same spot. The lifecore was flying away at almost equal distance from both of them.

Brrr—swooosss!

The ground burst open, and two roots surged upward beneath the falling core, reaching for it with frantic desperation.

"Oh no, you don't!" Leo growled, activating his skill.

[Vine Estranglement]

Two thick vines erupted forward—each nearly twice the diameter of the Behemoth's roots—lunging with predatory speed.

The Behemoth's roots had just curled around the lifecore when one of Leo's vines wrapped around them both. And just like Niri had done earlier, the vine yanked—hard. The weak roots tore apart with shocking ease, splitting like over-soaked bark. The second vine shot after the falling lifecore.

But instead of catching it, the vine swung sideways—clean and sharp, almost like a perfect baseball strike.

And the "homerun"?

Directly toward Leo's waiting palm.

He had done it deliberately. Now that serpentine roots were shooting toward the lifecore—and toward him—from every angle, catching it gently would've been too slow.

The moment the ball-sized lifecore slapped into his hand, Leo's lips curled into a grin—a grin that would send a chill down any innocent soul.

"Gotcha, bitch!"

And with a sharp clench, he crushed the lifecore in his fist.

Ding!

[Earthpulse Lifecore] – Absorbed

Level 22: 167 / 19055

Stats Updated!

Vitality: 54.6 -> 74.6 [154.6 -> 174.6]

Strength: 59.1 -> 64.1 [159.1 -> 164.1]

Agility: 57.8 -> 62.8 [157.8 -> 162.8]

Stamina: 58.1 -> 63.1 [158.1 -> 163.1]

Intelligence: 109.1 [209.1]

Mana: 9819 [18819] {4890 / 18819}

With the help of the system, the life core was instantly absorbed by Leo. With his Vitality raised by an astounding 20 points, he felt as if even tackling a boulder would not shake him. Not to mention the 5-point increase in other physical attributes. Newfound strength filled his veins.

But—

"Eh? Only this much? To be honest, feels kinda low..."

---

A/N: Sorry... Even I want to kill this idiot tree as soon as possible. But it's just that, its powerful enough to even tackle the author himself(╥﹏╥)ノ

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