Rolan went to scan the forest some more and found out that there were more monsters available to be integrated. He surmised that his storage and shapeshift skill were still able to house more monsters inside.
He went to the north where the fire salamanders were commonly found, and his travel was worth it.
They lived in desert lands, and the heat was scorching. They breathed fire, as Rolan saw them from a distance.
As for his plan, he needed to evade such scorching breath and not get burnt. And so, he devised a plan. He immediately sneaked and hid using his camouflage skill from the basilisk, then tried to approach one.
He soon leapt and stabbed the head of the fire salamander, which wiggled to free itself from his sword.
Rolan, in the process, was flung and rolled to the side. His sword was stuck in the head of the fire salamander, making him bite his lower lip.
He immediately stood up, and the fire salamander breathed fire at him. He dashed to the side, and his hem was burnt to a crisp, making him pat it away to disperse the fire.
Rolan then saw that the fire salamander was in pain, and his sword did its job. It crashed to the ground, weakened and limping.
He immediately approached the poor fellow and grabbed his sword, twisting it in the process.
"Hmmm, the salamander was able to spit fire even with its injuries. Such tenacity." Rolan clicked his tongue.
He immediately saw its monster soul essence and harvested it. He then integrated it into his soul realm.
[System notice: Fire Breath, Grow Limb, Spit Lava, Scorching Cloak, Tail Whip, Firewall, Slow Regeneration skill obtained]
[Fire salamanders had high resilience and fire-element attacks.]
The next monster was called slime. It was mostly found in peaceful grasslands, and he ventured there. The wind brushed his cheeks, and it felt cold for a moment.
At last, he arrived at the place and started hunting slimes. One slime appeared, and he was astonished that it was duplicating—bouncing at him to attack.
As easy as slashing them all up, he panted as he saw them duplicating one after another. But he was able to kill them before one could duplicate any more.
After the tiring battle, he gathered their monster essence and integrated it. Albeit tiring, he was excited.
[System notice: Bounce, Duplicate, Absorb, Internal Storage, High-Speed Regeneration, Analyze skill acquired]
[Slimes were peaceful creatures with great abilities.]
Rolan immediately went on to find more monsters. By the rivers of the forest lay monsters that had electrical abilities. They were none other than Electric Eels. He ventured there and found what he sought.
The monsters were swimming in the rivers, and they were hard to find.
So Rolan went to the rivers and fished there, minding that Electric Eels liked a certain bait—their favorite food: the lizard fish.
They were effective bait for them.
He hunted and trapped two. He immediately went fishing and waited for the Electric Eel to bite. Time went by so fast.
The bait succeeded, and it was pulled!
Rolan grabbed the pole and pulled, exerting his strength with all he had. The Electric Eel electrocuted him, but it was already mid-air, crashing to the ground with its heavy and large body.
Rolan stabbed it and saw that it was not moving anymore. He harvested its monster soul essence and integrated it into his soul realm.
[System notice: Electrocute, Paralyzing Emission, Crippling Tackle, Dive, Electrocuting Cloak, Electro Burst, Electromagnetic Pulse, Paralyzing Shockwave acquired]
[Electric Eels were dreadful monsters with electrical capabilities.]
The next target was the Ice Turtles that resided just nearby. He went toward their habitat along the side of the river and saw them playing with each other. One immediately saw Rolan and became alert.
Rolan drew his sword and prepared for battle.
It used the Water Gun skill, and Rolan sidestepped, nearly getting hit.
"Oh, sheesh! This is troublesome!"
He dashed toward the turtle and slashed diagonally. The turtle used a Bubble Barrier, and it deflected his slash.
Boing!
His slash was ineffective!
Rolan was then attacked with Ice Spikes conjured by the Ice Turtle, launching them at him.
He blocked the spikes and dashed forward, slashing it. This time, there was no Bubble Barrier, and he killed it in the process.
Rolan harvested the monster's soul essence and integrated it into his soul realm.
[System Notice: Water Gun, Water Blade, Water Bullet, Bubble Barrier, Ice Spikes, Ice Bullets, Bubble Bomb skill acquired]
Upon his reap, Rolan felt that he had integrated many monsters—but still had slots to spare. As he watched his soul realm, there was still space.
Soon after, he went to his next destination. His next monster to hunt was the Earth Giant Tortoise. Their habitat was located in the forest near the rivers. Rolan arrived at the designated place and saw one.
He drew his sword and prepared for combat. The monster attacked with its skill Earthen Stomp, making the ground vibrate and leaving Rolan off balance.
He stood up after the attack and ran toward the enemy, slashing its shell. Though hardy, he was able to leave a scratch.
The tortoise used another skill, Rumble, making the ground shake for several seconds.
Rolan leapt and stepped back from its area of effect. The turtle used Earth Spike and threw it at him. Rolan deflected some and evaded others. His sword rang with every spike he parried.
The enemy then used Rising Earthen Rock on his foothold, flinging him into the air. The tortoise followed up with another Earth Spike, and Rolan struggled to deflect it.
He landed and was assaulted by the Rolling Boulder skill. He rolled to the side and evaded it.
Rolan dashed toward the enemy and slashed vehemently, not letting it use another skill. He chipped away its health, its life ebbing away. It had huge health points, making it a difficult battle.
After killing it, Rolan harvested its monster soul essence and integrated it into his soul realm.
[System notice: Earthen Stomp, Rumble, Earth Spike, Rising Earthen Rock, Rolling Boulder skill acquired]
The next monster was the Slaying Mantis, located deeper in the forest. Rolan hunted for them.
He scanned the forest and found one after several minutes of tracking. They did not live in groups, giving Rolan a better chance to duel one.
He saw one and attacked. Their blades clashed, and the mantis used Wind Blade, which Rolan narrowly dodged.
It followed up with Flurry Attack. Rolan's sword was battered with rapid blows, and he deflected each strike. The clunking of metal resonated through the forest.
The enemy used Footwork and Raise Sensitivity, increasing its speed and making Rolan a bit overwhelmed.
It then used Double Slash, and Rolan blocked the attack. He immediately kicked the mantis away.
As he approached again, it used Pump, increasing its strength with each use. Rolan didn't let it power up more.
He attacked with relentless slashes, overwhelming the mantis. One of its arms was cut and dropped to the ground.
"A chance!"
Rolan attacked with more fury. The monster struggled to defend itself with only one arm. Rolan slashed and cut off its other arm—then its head.
Its head rolled on the ground, and Rolan harvested its monster soul essence, integrating it into his soul realm.
[System notice: Wind Blade, Reaper Slash, Gust, Double Slash, Flurry Attack, Footwork, Raise Sensitivity, Pump skill acquired]