[Wind Splitting Claw Level 4]

As Norris brushed past the stone-skinned wild boar, his claws plowed deep grooves into the thick black-furred skin, exposing dark red muscle fibers.

It looked tragic, but this injury was far from fatal to the stone-skinned wild boar; it only served to enrage it.

The boar's hooves struck the ground rapidly as it turned its head to charge at Norris.

Norris was aware of this too. Using the specialized vision provided by the Fungal Network, he "saw" the boar's movements without needing to turn around.

Since connecting to the Fungal Network, as the boss mentioned, he gained this special vision within the boss's controlled area.

It could see farther than the eye, with a full 360-degree view with no blind spots, though not as familiar as using eyes.

When the tusks, carrying the boar's stench, came at him again, Norris suddenly leaped up in place.

The boar's charge lost its target but couldn't stop in time, crashing into the thick tree trunk behind it.

Norris seized this pause, unleashing a Mushroom Cannon that had been brimming with energy from his right chest.

After the explosion, the boar, without its hind limbs, struggled in a pool of blood but posed no further threat.

Stepping onto the boar, his claws sank into its head, ending the battle.

Norris, panting, dropped his head to gaze at the blood dripping from his claw tips, eyes glowing with excitement.

The feeling of treading on a once-powerful demon, reigning atop the food chain, enraptured him.

This was a joy that the Norris who used to hammer rocks in the mines daily could never experience!

[Level Up: Level 22 → Level 23]

After clearing slimes for several days and hunting demons alone these past two days, every kill was above his level.

Leveling up again in a short time was expected.

The attribute increase brought a sensation of power growth; Norris hugged his arms tightly, not even noticing the rasping sound of his claws against the scales.

Once everything passed, Norris rested contentedly beside the stone-skinned wild boar's corpse, unbothered by the blood and stench.

Glancing at his somewhat damaged clothes, Norris casually tossed them aside.

Maybe the boss was right; having become like this, there's no need to be bound by so-called feelings of shame!

He should be more liberated...

"Norris, hide, adventurers are heading your way."

"Oh oh!"

Picking up the clothes off the ground and quickly putting them back on, Norris crawled into a dense bush.

The boss's perception was strong, always able to warn ahead so he could hide.

After all, he couldn't be seen like this now.

Losing his human identity wasn't painful for Norris; instead, he felt relieved without having to worry about debts.

The only discomfort was the food; the boss's seasonings were just salt…

Footsteps approached, and Norris buried himself completely within the leaves.

A somewhat familiar voice came from ahead.

"So, the sixth layer is dark..." Fei Ling complained with some annoyance.

It was that girl!

For a moment, Norris wanted to step forward to apologize for running away last time.

If possible, he also wanted to ask the girl's name.

Just before getting up, Norris caught a glimmer in his peripheral vision, his claws capable of easily tearing boar skin...

Right, he was no longer human.

The debts and his brief encounter with the girl vanished along with his human identity.

In the dark, Norris lowered his body even more...

Beside Fei Ling, Vera glanced up at the glowing dome: "Isn't there a Glowing Mushroom? It's not completely dark."

Behind them, Fei Yin used her magic staff to maintain an orange-yellow Lighting Technique.

"The dome is so high, what use is that fluorescence? At least there are some mushrooms on the fifth layer, but the sixth is all dark!

It's so dark it's hard to find the way; don't miss the Flower Demon from last time."

"Don't worry, I remember the way." Vera said while shaking the map in his hand, marked with his notes.

"There's a scent of blood!" Fei Yin, who had been silent, suddenly alerted.

The three immediately became vigilant.

Fei Yin's magic staff glowed brighter, even illuminating the bush where Norris hid, though he stayed well concealed without exposing any scales.

Soon Vera and her team discovered the dead stone-skinned wild boar.

"Freshly killed." Fei Ling judged at a glance.

Vera crouched, checked the boar, and wondered, "There's claw marks and explosive damage, maybe an adventurer? But claw weapons are rare; I don't recall anyone in town using them. Why didn't they take the tusks after killing it?"

After two seconds of silence, Vera suddenly whispered, "Let's go!"

The twins reacted quickly to Vera's words, promptly following his lead.

Fei Ling was ready with a Special Arrow in hand, prepared to aim and shoot at any moment.

Since being raided last time, they devised tactics for next time.

Whether they work depends on actual combat.

The three soon departed.

Once they were out of sight, Norris fled back to the fifth layer.

Returning to his Mushroom House.

For the first time since awakening, he felt uncertain about the future, dejected by his "non-human" state.

Not far away, Xiao Hai witnessed him running frantically back to the Mushroom House. She bit into the motionless Puki in her embrace, showing a satisfied expression.

Her schedule was packed today!

After waking up, she counted Bright Crystals, ate Puki, then continued counting Bright Crystals!

Lin Jun naturally noticed Norris's situation, although he didn't understand why he was so down after seeing those three.

No more than some mood swings after becoming non-human; didn't Dylan feel a bit too initially?

Frankly, Lin Jun couldn't empathize; he still had hands, feet, and a mouth to taste delicious food.

And then there's him, a mushroom!

How could Lin Jun connect with him emotionally?

Lin Jun didn't know how to comfort him, nor did he want to waste effort doing so—perhaps offering some customized nutrition?

Ultimately, all he demanded of Norris was to run some skill-adding experiments, nothing else.

As for participating in slime extermination tasks or going to the sixth layer to hunt demons for leveling up, that was Norris's idea, and Lin Jun didn't oppose.

Even if Norris took a sudden downturn, moping in the Mushroom House all day wouldn't affect Lin Jun's experiments.

If Norris truly couldn't see a way out and ended it all, it would only be slightly regrettable.

Being "non-human" was an unchangeable fact here; if he couldn't adjust his mindset and accept it, Lin Jun couldn't help.

In the end, it all depended on Norris's final thoughts.

...

They found the location of the big Flower Demon on the sixth layer.

Vera and the team stared at the huge flower bud left in the small basin...

Where did the Flower Demon go?

Such a huge Flower Demon, where did it disappear to?

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