Unknown waters, unknown island.
"Ice Dragon's... Iron Fist!"
An angry shout resonated through the forest, followed by a flash of blue light, a dull thud of impact, and the crackling sound of ice rapidly forming.
Loya dropped from more than ten ters in the air, landing lightly on his feet.
"Good. This wild boar is enough to last three days," Loya said, glancing at the boar—which had shattered into several large pieces after being frozen solid—with a sigh.
The boar was imnse. Even the two tusks protruding from its head were as thick as Loya's arm. Lying on the ground, it looked like a small hill; a single hind leg, now fragnted on the dirt, was taller than Loya himself.
Its size could no longer be asured in kilograms, but in tons. Yet, even this massive creature would barely sustain him for three days.
Since accepting his identity as a Dragon Slayer, Loya had begun exploring the island. Initially, for safety, he had hunted rabbit-like creatures covered in scales. Now, even the giant wild boars that ruled the island had been added to his nu.
Over the past few weeks, Loya had discovered a sad truth: it seed the only things left on the island to eat were these boars. Everything else, excluding the poisonous animals, had been eaten.
The unique physiology of a Dragon Slayer required a massive daily intake of food. On top of that, Loya had to factor in the nutrients needed to strengthen his physical attributes. He had to eat, and eat a lot.
Back at Tier 1, Level 0, a dozen coconuts were enough to fill his energy bar. But after hitting Level 3, coconuts no longer provided even a sliver of energy, forcing Loya to change his diet and hunt the island's fauna extensively. He realized that the stronger the creature, the more energy it provided—the only way to keep pace with his rapid progression.
Thus, by constantly leveling up and changing his diet, Loya had achieved his first rare achievent since transmigrating: he was eating an entire island into extinction.
Dispelling the surrounding ice, Loya used a construct of frozen water as a skewer to link the pieces of at together. With a grunt of effort, he easily hoisted the at, which was ten tis his own size, onto his shoulder.
The strength bonus granted by Dragon Body far exceeded what he had demonstrated on his first day. Back then, he hadn't fully recognized his own capabilities, and his brain's instinctive protective chanisms had capped his output. After weeks of practice, Loya had learned to lift those ntal limiters and unleash his true power.
Carrying the at skewer, Loya returned to his ho: a cave. It had originally been the lair of a three-ter-tall brown bear, but Loya had usurped the dwelling—and killed the owner for dinner.
He pulled a lighter from his pack and shook it. There was only a thin layer of liquid butane left; it wouldn't last much longer.
He left the at outside the cave and went inside to retrieve a handful of tinder. These balls of dried leaves were perfect for starting fires. Loya owed a debt of gratitude to Bear Grylls and others like him; by watching their videos, he had at least learned the basics of wilderness survival—starting a fire.
He gathered dry branches, arranged them, and lit the tinder. Soon, a campfire crackled. Thanks to the power of Ice Dragon Slayer magic, he didn't have to worry about accidentally burning the forest down.
He cleaned a large piece of leg at by the stream, skewered it with a sturdy stick, and set it to roast by the fire. He kept the remaining at frozen in a pile of ice, then sat back, staring at the sky as the at roasted.
The past few weeks had transford Loya from an outgoing, gaming-obsessed shut-in into a taciturn island hunter. During the first three days, he had been frantic, curling up on the beach every night, terrified he might miss a passing ship.
But as ti wore on, that hope and anxiety had been smothered by despair. He had vented, roared, and cried, but it did nothing to change his situation. He realized that energy was better spent gathering leaves to pad his bed than wasted on panic.
Regaining his composure, he cleaned up his act, using ice to carve a large "SOS" sign into the sand and at the island's highest point. He didn't know if anyone in this world would recognize the signal, but even if they didn't, the presence of man-made text on an uninhabited island would surely be conspicuous.
Then, there was the long wait.
The white salt deposits left by seawater on the rocks were his only source of salt. He knew it was slightly toxic and bad for him in the long run, but without replenishing the salt in his body, he wouldn't even have the strength to hunt.
He sprinkled a layer of salt over the roasted at and tore into it. Before long, a piece of at as thick as his waist had disappeared.
He took out another piece and set it up. He was full, but his energy wasn't maxed out yet.
Loya ntally whispered "Golden Finger," and the panel appeared.
Na: Christopher Loya (Automatically corrected by the world)
Energy Stage: Tier 1, Level 10
Energy Value: 85/100
Magic Power: 1000/1000
Magic Recovery Rate: 100/min
Because he had used his magic frequently, Dragon Body had improved from 10% to 11%. Thankfully, his biggest fear—the increase of Dragon Force—had not materialized; it remained at 1%.
Beyond that, his stats had seen the most growth. His Magic Power had hit 1000—double what it was when he first arrived—and his recovery rate had also doubled.
He had finally reached Tier 1, Level 10. Today, according to the logic of his browser-ga-like system, was the mont he would break through to the second stage.
He ate several more large chunks of at until his energy hit 100/100.
Loya licked the grease from his fingers, hovered his hand over the arrow on his status screen, and selected "Upgrade."
Hum!
The familiar sound resonated, and the blue magic circle appeared beneath him. Blue energy materialized and flooded into his body.
But today was different. The sheer volu and intensity of the energy were far greater than before. In the blink of an eye, the energy swirled around him like a cyclone, encasing him in a blue cocoon of light. An inexplicable pressure radiated outward, spreading through the surrounding area. The forest seed to freeze; even the chirping of insects went silent.
The trees were still, the water flow stopped, and even the clouds in the sky hung motionless. In this frozen tableau, the only thing moving was the pulsing cocoon of light.
It felt as though thousands of years had passed, yet it might have only been a split second. Suddenly, the world resud its motion: the sea breeze rustled the leaves, the stream flowed again, and the forest grew noisy once more.
Crack!
A soft sound broke the silence. The cocoon had turned deep blue, and a small fissure appeared on its surface.
Crack... crack, crack!
The gap widened, revealing a faint, pale blue glow within.
BOOM!!
The cocoon exploded. A fierce chill surged outward, flash-freezing a large section of the forest. Through the white mist, a humanoid figure was revealed.
Loya was unrecognizable. He was now ten centiters taller and far more muscular. A dense layer of pale blue dragon scales, each the size of a fingernail, covered his body—a sight that would have made anyone with trypophobia shudder. His pupils had turned into golden vertical slits, radiating a cold, chilling danger that made the spine tingle.
But the state didn't last long. As the energy dissipated, the scales and sharp talons slowly receded, and he returned to his normal human appearance. Loya closed his eyes, feeling the surging magic power within. After a long mont, he opened them and stared at the diamond pattern on his wrist with excitent.
"Finally... I can pull out the big guns."
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