The Forest of Fire Creatures Part - 5

As Kane made his way to the top of the hill, away from the forest, he didn't bother to face any monsters. He saw no need to do so; he had already accomplished his three goals: reach at least level 7, test the "Replicate" skill, and obtain a trait.

The mission content of the "Historical Void" fragment specified "Defeat" the monsters in the forest, but it did not mention that he should eliminate them all.

Doing so would take too much time, and time was what he needed most at the moment. Besides, he had gotten more rewards than he expected: the Puppeteer skill, the black crown, and the Mark of the Calamity Emperor trait. These were things he had not expected to obtain.

'But I didn't expect the first leader to believe me so easily. Could it be that the original Kane really was his descendant?' mused Kane, knowing that a figure with the leader's power in the mausoleum would have easily detected a lie.

He shook his head, trying to push the idea away. From the difference in eras, it should be impossible for anyone to have Augustus's family blood.

'But, if we go by the Bible, which says we are all descended from Adam and Eve, then we are all blood brothers. It wouldn't be so far-fetched for the original Kane to be their descendant...' Kane thought, chuckling.

Swoosh!

Suddenly, a white flame appeared only a few centimeters from his body. Kane is lost in thought, fails to react in time, and can barely cover his face with his arms.

"Damn it!" cursed Kane as he felt the burning in his arms. 'Shit, I was too careless, thinking this place was a playground,' he thought as his face contracted in pain.

He quickly removed his coat and hid behind a nearby tree. Scowling and gritting his teeth in pain, he tore the coat and pressed the pieces against the wounds on both arms while trying to stifle groans. The flames had burned the superficial skin, exposing the raw dermis.

'Where did that attack come from? I didn't feel it at all... And what kind of monster is that? I'd love to replicate that ability,' Kane thought as he moved through the trees, looking for the monster.

Finally, he located the monster that had attacked him, although it was not inside the forest but near a hill. Its appearance was similar to that of a lizard, but the size of a pony and as long as a snake of more than a meter.

A white flame burst from his mouth, seeming to incinerate everything in its path. Kane activated his unique ability despite the pain in his arms: "Replicate."

Symbols and patterns related to the lizard's white flames began to appear in his field of vision. With the ability now in place, Kane continued to move through the trees. He wouldn't engage the creature directly; he wasn't foolish enough to attack head-on.

Sensing movement among the nearby trees, the lizard opened its mouth and launched another flame like a flamethrower, incinerating everything around it.

As he moved around, Kane understood more about the flames: he could create a "miniature sun," allowing him to see through the darkness.

His ability also revealed that the flames were dense and golden and capable of instantly manifesting on any target.

'I wonder what kind of enhancement this skill will have...' Kane thought as he continued to move through the trees. He had already grasped much of the technique but realized he wasn't as fast as he had been with the "Threads" skill, which he replicated from the Fire Thread Snake.

He deduced that, depending on the complexity of the skill, the more time it took him to understand it, the more time it took him to fulfill the necessary condition and activate the "Replicate" skill.

After a few minutes, he finally understood how it worked. In addition to creating a miniature sun and manifesting a flame instantly on his object, it also had other properties: purification and exorcism.

However, these two properties are not omnipotent. Both functions are limited to what is considered "evil."

For example, the undead are not necessarily evil but incompatible with the "real world." They need to return to the underworld to be purified and exorcised.

With this, Kane fully understood the ability.

Ding!

[You have perfectly understood the "White Flame" skill of the white flame lizard monster]

Ding!

[Conditions fulfilled: the unique ability "Replicate" has been activated]

[You have successfully replicated the target's "White Flame" skill]

[By upgrading the skill "White Flame" 10 times, the skill "White Flame" has become "White Sun"]

[You have obtained the ability "White Sun"]

After a glance at the message windows, Kane unhesitatingly activated the newly acquired skill, as he had no other way to approach the white flame lizard.

Upon activating it, a small all-white sun appeared in his hand, and Kane felt his limited Mana quickly drain away.

'This consumes mana like a demon,' he thought as he assessed how long he could keep the miniature sun active. Without wasting any more time, he threw it straight towards the lizard.

The miniature sun disappeared from his hand and, in an instant, manifested on the monster's body, who was not expecting that attack. It tried to jump aside to dodge it, but it was too late.

The small white sun engulfed the white flame lizard quickly, emitting a piercing screech before being reduced to ashes.

[You have successfully killed 'White Flame Lizard'!]

[Level up!]

[Stamina increased by 3.]

[Mana increased by 2.]

[Strength increased by 3.]

...

After the windows disappeared, Kane exhaled deeply, his face marked by pain. He began walking up the hill with heavy steps, wishing to escape from that fragment of historical emptiness.

Upon reaching the top, he sighed in relief as he saw the dungeon exit from which a thick whitish-grayish mist emanated.

"Phew, I finally completed this dungeon... I really want to go home and rest," Kane muttered as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, feeling the throbbing pain in his arms, where the dermis was still exposed.

Without wasting any more time, he stepped into the grayish-white fog.

[You have cleared the fragment of the historical void 'The Forest of Fire Creatures.']

...

Author's note: I'm sorry for posting the chapter late. I had a minor inconvenience, and I couldn't post it at the time I had planned.