Inch by inch, Talon grew so close to the monster that he could hear its ragged breathing and its constant weird sounds as it moved its tongue around trying to lick and peel the skin off its prey.


    The more it ate, the messier the area became with blood and flesh. It took Talon an impressive effort to not throw up right there and then at the gruesome sight he was witnessing.


    Sweat trickled down his face as he finally reached the striking zone of the monster. Taking a deep breath, Talon slowly sat on his knees so that he could free his hand then picked up his spear.


    This entire time, the monster didn''t realize his presence at all. Perhaps its meal was too delicious for it to care about its surroundings or maybe it was Talon''s astonishing stealth skills that did the job, either way, he was d.


    ''Hello and bye-bye, fucker.'' He thought as he viciously thrust the spear down, aiming for the monster''s head since it looked like its weak point.


    The spear sliced through the air at top speed as it reached its target in a split second. Talon was certain that it was going to hit the target perfectly. However, merely millimeters before the spear pierces the monster''s skull, the creature''s eyes finally look away from the corpse.


    It didn''t even stare directly at the spear before its body suddenly moved and when it did, itpletely shattered Talon''s expectations.


    *Swish*


    The monster''s body swiftly dashed forward at a speed that almost appeared like a blur for Talon.


    *BANG*


    In the next split second, the spearnded, however, it didn''t hit the monster''s skull. Instead, it pierced its left side, cutting through its flesh. However, the spear''s de couldn''t cut any deeper into the monster before it squirmed its way out of that deadly situation.


    ''Shit!'' Talon frowned as he tried to salvage the situation and thrusted his spear forward, trying to hit it again. However, the monster had already escaped to the other side. ''Isn''t this a little bit too fast, Acrypha?!!''


    Looking at the creature that stood facing him right now on the other side of the room, Talon''s face grew colder. Even though it barely made any sounds at that moment, the rage he could see in its eyes was more than enough to convey what it was feeling at that moment.


    The ambush failed miserably and now Talon has to fight this thing face to face. Something he didn''t even know if he could do.


    A few seconds passed in silence before the Licker made a move, from its position it crawled toward Talon, swiftly crossing the distance between them almost instantly. Then, it lunged forward with its sharp ws forward. Even though this style of fighting was very simr to that of the Silver Bear, the speed this Licker hadpletely shattered theparison.


    Talon''s face paled slightly as he quickly moved too. Falling back, he grabbed the monster''s arms before he pushed his legs into its stomach and then threw it over his back with all the momentum he could muster.


    The Licker smashed against the countertop before itnded on its feet. Talon stood up too and looked down, there, he could see a rip in his already destroyed shirt. The monster''s ws had glossed over his skin when he threw it over his back. Luckily, it was nothing big.


    *Rip*


    "This shirt is basically useless now," Talon murmured as he ripped it apart and threw it to the side, showing his upper torso.


    ''I''m Bruce Lee now.'' He thought to himself as he grabbed his spear and took a fighting stance.


    "Come on."


    The Licker moved its tongue around as it stared at Talon without blinking. Then, it quickly dashed forward, jumping from one countertop to another.


    This time, Talon didn''t let it do what it wanted and rushed toward it, brandishing his spear. He wasn''t going to leave anything for chance.


    Talon''s focus heightened and his mind cleared up. When he got close, he sent a whirlwind of shes at the monster, trying to overwhelm it from the beginning.


    However, the Licker jumped high in the air, reaching the ceiling before it suddenly kicked its legs into it,unching it back down. Seeing that, Talon immediately tried to roll to the side.


    *BANG*


    He barely dodged the attack as hended on his feet, only for his eyes to be met with the sight of two ws about to hit his face.


    ''What?!'' With no moment to even take a breather, Talon immediately ducked. At the nick of time, the attack failed and simply glossed over his left cheek.


    However, the Licker didn''t stop there as the moment itnded, it turned around and jumped on Talon. It was so relentless in its pursuit that Talon found himself in apletely disadvantageous situation even with his status points.


    With no time to even think about his next move, Talon followed his senses as he focused on the presence of the Licker around him.


    *Swish*


    "Ugh." He cursed as he felt a stinging pain in his back. ''Why is it always my back?!''


    For the next minute or so, the Licker relentlessly rained down on Talon from all angles. Where itnded, it wouldunch back at him with even more speed and rhythm.


    In that short period of time, Talon sustained countless small cuts as he tried to dodge every attack. The situation was quickly getting worse with each second. The injuries kept umting while Talon was barely able to injure the monster once or twice.


    Acrypha watched the entire fight with a tense expression on her face. Talon was clearly unable to keep up with the Licker''s speed.


    ''He can''t hold on for longer.'' She thought to herself as she saw Talon''s exhausted expression.


    Acrypha wanted to help him and give him some suggestions on how to fight this monster. However, she realized quickly that it was a very bad idea. Even in his dire situation, Talon was stillpletely calm and focused. She noticed a subtle rhythm he was trying to create.


    When Acrypha understood what he was trying to do, her eyes widened. ''He''s learning its movement patterns.''


    It was very subtle, but she could see Talon starting to understand how the Licker moved. The injuries he was sustaining constantly were starting to reduce slowly.


    Meanwhile, Talon''s entire mind was now a calmke. His senses were heightened to their peak as they studied every move the Licker made. Whenever it attacked, Talon moved his body swiftly, dodging the attack as he quickly countered back with one of his own.


    The de made contact with the monster''s skin but never anything deeper. However, those small cuts seemed to affect the monster''s body as its movements started to be a little sluggish.


    [Ding!]


    [Your skill ''Enhanced Focus'' has leveled up.]


    When that happened, Talon''s senses experienced another breakthrough as he felt the world be clearer around him. That weird sixth sense feeling he got before heightened a little.


    *Swish*


    As the monster unknowingly jumped on Talon, thetter''s reaction speed suddenly increased and it took it byplete surprise. Using that opportunity, Talon thrust the spear into its abdomen.


    The de pierced the monster''s flesh and went deeper into its body. The Licker screeched as itnded on its back violently. Slowly, it stood up as blood leaked out of its body.


    "Hah… Hah, that hit… was good…" Wiping the blood on his face with the back of his hand, Talon smiled weakly as he stared directly at the Licker.


    He could notice the fear that was welling within its eyes. It seemed a little hesitant to attack again after what happened.


    "If you aren''t going to attack, then let me do the honor," Talon said as he tightened his grip on the spear and dashed toward the Licker and shed horizontally.


    Thetter jumped back avoiding the attack before it attacked Talon again. The two shed violently. The monster''s sharp ws and Talon''s spear hit each other again and again constantly.


    If the fight before was brutal, then what was happening now was in apletely different league. The two sides didn''t hold back anything. It was akin to a deadly brawl between two beasts.


    Talon waspletely focused on the hideous monster. He was still bleeding heavily as he constantly dodged certain death at thest moment. However, the rush of excitement he felt from all of that was undeniable.


    As twisted as it may sound, Talon found himself engrossed in this brawl like nothing before. He was in dire danger, but it was fun… Ridiculously fun. Each move he made, each attack and counter attack, hell, each breath he took at that moment felt amazing.


    However, a fight of this level meant that if one side made a mistake, it was certainly over.


    At some point, Talon wanted to rush forward. However, he didn''t notice the pool of blood beneath him and stepped on it. Immediately, his gave slid forward, destroying his bncepletely as he started falling.


    Screeching, the Licker stood on the wall before itunched itself forward, taking that opportunity.


    Talon''s eyes widened slightly as he saw the uing attack. His heart beat louder in his ear and everything went quiet.


    His mind didn''t evenprehend the threat he was facing. Instead, at that moment, his instinct was the one that led his decision-making.


    He didn''t know how or why, but his instinct wanted him to do one thing and one thing only.


    [Ding!]


    [You have activated the skill ''Tear Of Reality''.]


    (A//N: Thanks to everyone who supports the book with power stones and golden tickets, you guys are the best:) )