"Hah!" Krune shouted, morphing his ethereal form to condense a hand as he threw a Sun Stone, frowning when it made an arc and only traversed three meters.

""

""

"Let me try it again." Krune acted as if the first throw had never happened, picking up the Sun Stone before flying towards a Poison Spectre, hurling the Sun Stone towards it.

The Poison Spectre had an ethereal figure, capable of morphing its shape as it pleased. When it saw the Sun Stone coming at it, it expanded like a sheet of blanket while a hole formed in the middle. The Sun Stone passed through the hole, failing to kill it.

Fortunately, the higher quality radiance from the Sun Stone singed the sides of the hole, causing the Poison Spectre to shriek in pain as it unleashed a breath of misty substance that tried to corrode everything in its path.

Krune relied on the Talisman's defense as he swerved around at his top speed, picking up the Sun Stone once again as he hurled it towards the Poison Spectre, noticing that it managed to dodge once again, only suffering minimal damage from the Sun Stone's radiation.

Suddenly, the Poison Spectre condensed a hand, causing the tip to resemble a long blade as it slashed towards Krune.

'The protection from the Talisman might dissipate if I endure this attack head-on.' Thinking as such, Krune summoned his Soul Needle, holding it by condensing his ethereal form into a hand, defending against the attack.

The moment their attacks met, both of them flinched. Krune flinched since he felt tired all of a sudden. The energy exertion was too much for him. As for the Poison Spectre, it flinched in pain as the Soul Needle burned through its sword, causing it to melt and drop on the ground before dissipating into thin air.

Taking advantage of its momentary weakness, Krune swerved right at it, plunging the Soul Needle into its body as he poked repeatedly. When the Poison Spectre retaliated by grabbing hold of his ethereal form, it shrieked in pain as its hands melted.

After all, Krune carried another Sun Stone within his ethereal form, causing it to be tinged with an orange hue. And this not only protected him from the Poison Spectre's attacks but also damaged it in return.

Within a minute, Krune managed to kill the Poison Spectre, laughing in the end. "I am strength!"

"" Calveb didn't say anything, suddenly throwing his Sun Stone, causing it to impact upon a Poison Spectre caught unawares. It screamed in pain as its body melted, dying immediately.

""

"Fuck!" Krune groaned, realizing how easy it was for a regular person to kill a Poison Spectre. Only he had struggled so much.

"Let's get moving." Unwilling to mope about it, Krune led the way as the duo passed through the swamp, remaining still whenever the poisonous winds blew past. They were tensed as the barrier protecting them trembled whenever this happened.

In the end, it held up as they continued to travel, killing numerous Poison Spectres that tried to attack them. Then again, Calveb took charge of it, having tied up a rope around the Sun Stone. This way, he quickly pulled it back after throwing it at a Poison Spectre.

"Let's rest," Calveb said all of a sudden as he panted in exhaustion. "The effect of the Talisman is also wearing off. Let me make another one."

"Alright," Krune replied as he watched Calveb use another Talisman Pastel to create a second Talisman. This way, they would be able to travel for two more hours without any worries.

They had long since arrived at the uncharted territory. And now, they continued to proceed even deeper, watching the number of Poison Spectres increase constantly. Soon, they had to fight their way through the path, noticing that it was getting harder and harder to do so as time passed.

But upon seeing this, Calveb was only becoming more excited. "The greater the hurdles, the stronger the resulting treasure."

"You're right about that. It seems this Spiritual Mark is stronger than what we had assumed at the start." Krune nodded, noticing Calveb pull out a piece of wood as he made a hole in its center. He then inserted a Sun Stone into it, locking it perfectly within.

He then used a Talisman Pastel to draw over the Sun Stone, also covering both the sides of the piece of wood, creating a complicated diagram. After expending a Talisman Pastel, he laughed, activating it, suddenly erecting a barrier that hummed with an orange hue.

Now, the moment the Poison Spectres closed in on them, they screamed in pain, beginning to melt. The radiation prevented them from even nearing the duo that now calmly proceeded forward.

"You could have done this at the start," Krune muttered, realizing how easy it was to move now.

"But, this would make it hard for me to move. That's why I hadn't used it at the start." Calveb said, wiping his sweat as the temperature within the barrier continued to increase.

But, this also meant that it was getting harder and harder for the Poison Spectres to harm them. Eventually, they arrived before a pond where the Poison Spectres seemed to emerge, as if they were birthed here.

After observing a little, they concluded that the Poison Spectres were indeed being birthed here, making eye contact as they muttered in unison, "This is a strong Spiritual Mark!"

"You sure you don't want this Spiritual Mark?" Calveb asked.

"Nope." Krune laughed, thinking, 'Once I regain my cultivation, I can use my Spiritual Incarnation to do wonders beyond this Spiritual Mark's capabilities.'

"Thank you!" Calveb said as he approached the pond, noticing a tiny symbol hovering at its center. Upon sensing his presence, it emanated a faint fluctuation, transmitting information about itself to Calveb, causing him to laugh as he looked at Krune, bowing once. "I'll always be grateful for your help. Please send a message to the Dotrite Clan if you wish to ask for my help. I'll come rushing to your aid."

"Good luck!" Krune said in response.

Nodding, Calveb accepted the Spiritual Mark, causing the symbol to swerve into his head before fusing into his soul, giving him the ability. Immediately, his body vanished from the trial grounds.

"Waitfuck!" Krune shouted in alarm when the barrier shielding him vanished along with Calveb, causing all the Poison Spectres to stare at him, laughing eerily.