Jayden clenched his jaw. "Dominance...? You want to dominate that thing?" he clicked. The system was basically sending him on a suicide mission.
A low growl echoed through the trees.. deep, guttural, and primal. The kind that sent weaker beasts fleeing and made the bravest tremble. It was close.
From several distance away, Jayden could see the beast... towering and monstrous, no longer bothering to cloak itself. It was reborn.
The C-Rank Greater Wolverine Stalker marched through the forest like it owned it... because now, it did. Trees bowed from its presence. Its tallic claws dragged against bark and stone, sparking as they scraped. Its crimson eyes burned like hellfire, scanning, seeking. It could feel Jayden's presence, like a predator sensing wounded prey.
But it wasn't rushing. Oh no. It was taking its ti... because it knew nothing could stop it now. Not in this forest. Not in its domain.
Jayden wiped blood from his face, adrenaline slowly overriding the pain. Luna's voice ca in sharp and cold.
[Jayden... I hope you're not seriously thinking what I think you're thinking.]
"I am," he whispered, eyes locked on the beast's pulsing red aura. "Killing the beast would earn lots of Exp, and not to ntion a direct level up,"
[But it's not worth the risk] Luna retorted. [You could die, that thing is a monster]
"Well, guess I'll have to beco one too," Jayden chuckled. "If I wanna win this... I have to be like it,"
[Wait, you an... ?]
"I absorbed the gene of the E-Rank version, earlier. If I integrate it, I might stand a chance,"
[Jayden, that's reckless] Luna said. [Even if you integrate the genes, you'll still be E-Rank. While It's C-Rank now. You'll be a cub trying to fight a lion.]
"I don't need to match it's strength," Jayden growled. "I need just a little bit of primal intelligence. I need to think like it. Move like it. Be it,"
He balled his fists. "With it's beast instincts in my body and my own human intelligence backing them up... I'll be able to outsmart it,"
Luna sighed. [Okay, but rember. If...
"I die, you'll kill . I know," Jayden finished her statent. "But don't worry, I won't,"
[Alright, I'll convert the Hp into the required Ep] Luna stated. [But if I do this, you'll have only a few Hp left]
Jayden's gaze turned serious. "Do it," he muttered. And the system imdiately responded
[Exchange Confird]
[Converting 40 Hp into 20 Ep...]
[Conversion complete. You have received 20 Energy points]
[Ep: 100/100]
[Hp: 110/210]
[System Notice: You have hit the 100 Ep mark. New Skill Available]
[You have unlocked the skill;
*Beast Gene Integration:
-Type: Active
-Effect:
Once skill is activated, selected beast genes would fuse with Host. Granting access to the physical and physiological features and developnt of such beast]
(Costs 100 Ep)
*Note:
-Features depends on the beast's evolutionary Rank at ti of energy acquisition.
(i.e. if Host acquires the energy of a beast when it was E-Rank. Host can only possess the E-Rank properties of such beast)
But more features would be available as the beast's rank evolves inside the Host's body]
-Genes would be integrated into the Host body but will remain dormant. They can then be activated/accessed through Host's will, along the skill: Partial Transformation]
Jayden scanned the new skill's info in a blink. His heartbeat kicked into high gear.
He didn't hesitate.
"Integrate Wolverine Stalker Gene," he ordered
[-100 Ep]
[Gene Integration Active: Wolverine Stalker]
[Gene Integration... 20%]
[Gene Integration... 50%]
Jayden saw the system's ssages, he was filled with anticipation and excitent. But just as the integration reached eighty percent, Jayden suddenly felt a sharp pain erupt from all over his body.
"Argh!" he scread, dropping to his knees as it ripped through him like molten steel. His muscles twisted, bones groaned, veins pulsed with burning heat. But there was no visible effect on the outside. Everything was happening inside of him.
It felt like being shredded and reforged at the sa ti. A thousand blades slicing through his nerves. A dozen hamrs pounding on his skull and spine. He clenched his fists, digging his nails into his palms to keep himself from losing consciousness.
If he blacked out now, he was dead. But he didn't black out. He endured.
Seconds crawled by like years, until at last, it ended. The pain vanished.
Jayden collapsed back onto the forest floor, soaked in sweat, gasping like he'd just survived drowning. Notifications blinked across his vision like victory banners.
[Gene Integration... 100%]
(Integration Complete)
[Wolverine Stalker Gene (E-Rank) has been successfully Integrated]
[New skill unlocked; Partial Transformation]
[Seasonal Quest Complete]
Jayden didn't smile. He didn't cheer. He just lay there, breathing, his heart thudding heavily as he read the system's ssages.
His muscles were sore. His bones ached. But he didn't have ti to wallow. He forced himself upright, eyes darting across the treeline. The forest was too quiet.
Then he felt it. A tremor in the earth. A deep, predatory presence drawing closer.
He whipped his gaze left and there it was
Just eighty ters away. The beast. It was coming.
"Shit!" Jayden gritted his teeth. "I don't have ti to go through the notifications, I need to act now,"
Then he paused. Eyes wide, a grim realization settling into his gut. "I don't even know how this is supposed to work,"
His gaze flicked toward his hand, then back to the trees. The distance between him and the monster was vanishing fast.
"I need to atleast check the skill," he hissed. And just as he thought about the partial transformation skill, a screen appeared, pouring out all the information on the skill.
*Partial Transformation:
Type: Active
Description:
The skill taps into the integrated beast gene, allowing the host to temporarily adapt the physical attributes, beast's instincts, strengths, and combat style of the selected beast.
*Effects:
-Controlled Partial Tansformation:
Host can temporarily morph certain parts of their body independently. Host can decide to only imitate specific features: Claws, body size, skin texture, etc. of a beast they have already integrated.
(This skill is dependent on Host's willpower and requires no Ep to activate. It is activated when Host focuses on the parts they want to morph)
-Complete Partial Transformation
(Hybrid form):
Host morphs into a "half-state"... part human, part beast. A hybrid form that balances the Host's intelligence with the primal power of the beast.
In this form, physical stats relating to the nature of beast selected are enhanced along with primal instinct.
(10 Ep to activate)
*Cool down: 10 minutes
*Note:
-Skill duration depends on Host's stamina (i.e. The longer the skill is active will lead to the increase in physical strain)
[System Notice! First ti perk granted: First use of the Hybrid transformation is FREE and costs no Ep to activate]
Jayden stared at the screen, lips tightening as the beast's growl rumbled through the trees.
He clenched his fists.
"Alright," he growled, eyes glowing faintly.
"I've played the part of prey long enough... Now let's see what it feels like to beco the predator,"
Jayden didn't hesitate. Not anymore. The C-Rank beast was drawing closer, each step a drumbeat of death pounding through the forest floor. Now about forty ters from Jayden. Maybe even less.
He stared at his trembling hands, blood sared across his fingers, adrenaline thundering through his veins.
And then... he spoke the words that would change everything.
"Activate Complete Partial Transformation," he whispered. "Wolverine Stalker,"
The system didn't wait.
[Partial Transformation Activated – Wolverine Stalker (E-Rank)]
[No Energy point Consud – First Use Perk Active]
[Hybrid Transformation has begun...]
Jayden exhaled and waited for the transformation to take place, but Luna's voice suddenly echoed in his head.
[Alright, Jayden] She said softly. [This is gonna hurt. A lot]
Jayden frowned, he already knew what she was talking about. But before he could mutter a reply...
Pop!
Then ca the pain. But It wasn't like before. It wasn't daggers or hamrs.
This was wildfire. This was his entire nervous system exploding into chaos. His cells and DNA were rearranging partially into that of a Wolverine Stalker.
"Arghh!"
Jayden collapsed to his knees as his spine cracked with a sickening pop-pop-pop, elongating slightly. His arms twitched violently as muscle fibers twisted and swelled beneath the skin. Veins pulsed. His skin darkened, taking on a slate-gray hue, and bristled with fine, armor-like fur... more like thorny threads than animal hair.
Jayden grunted, trying to hold back a cry as his fingers curled inward... bones grinding, claws piercing through his fingertips with a wet, satisfying shhnkk.... They were long, vicious, and curved like obsidian scythes.
His jaw cracked, reshaping just enough to allow his canines to extend... longer, sharper. Not fully beast. Not fully man.
A predator caught between two worlds.
And his eyes... They blazed red.
Not blood red. Crimson with wild, ancient instinct. A rage that belonged to sothing older than man, deeper than thought.
He let out a low, guttural snarl. Not a scream. Not a howl. Sothing... in between.
Then the system screen appeared in his line of sight.
[Hybrid Transformation Complete]
[Temporary stat boost is in effect;
30 Strength
20 Speed
10 Agility
20 Stamina
20 Perception
30 Defense]
Jayden rose, steady now. Taller, broader, heavier. Shoulders hunched with power. Breathing slow and sharp, like a blade being drawn from a sheath.
The notifications faded from his vision. He could rather feel the transformation, he could feel the increase in strength.
But mostly, he could feel the instinct and perception of a wild animal.
Every sense inside him sharpened like a blade. He could hear the heartbeat of several beasts in hiding. Sll the sap bleeding from a cut branch. Sense the vibration of footfalls from nearly seventy ters away.
He could hear everything. He could feel everything.
The forest before him wasn't just trees and dirt anymore. It was a hunting ground. A chessboard. Every root, every leaf, every shift in wind.. it all made sense now. He could use them all, even better than he did before. He had received intelligence of a beast.
Primal intelligence.
The air grew tense. And then... A snarl. Not far off echoed. It was here... the beast. It had reached Jayden's spot.
The Greater Wolverine Stalker stepped into the clearing, towering like a nightmare sculpted in blood and bone. Its crimson aura shimred around it like living fire, licking at the trees. Its claws scraped the ground, causing sparks. Its eyes... glowing twin furnaces, locked directly onto Jayden.
They stared at each other.
Beast vs. Beastman
Jayden didn't speak. He just moved... fluid, calculated, animalistic. Circling the edge of the clearing like a wolf testing its prey. The beast mirrored him, hunching low, breath ragged, shoulders heaving.
It knew that this wasn't the sa prey it had mauled earlier. It knew that Jayden was already different, so it beca wary, making sure not to underestimate him.
Then... they both charged.
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