Chapter 18 – Payoff

Alex felt an impact.

It was like he had been hit by a speeding car.

Alex couldn't even discern all the different sounds that reverberated throughout his body.

He heard and felt several cracking noises, quickly followed by the sounds of rupturing flesh.

Alex couldn't breathe!

"Urgh- Hurgh!"

Alex puked and coughed violently as he spat blood out of his mouth.

'I can't breathe!'

Alex coughed violently as more and more blood came out of his body.

It felt like there was water in his lungs, and he desperately wanted to get some air, but only a disgusting gurgling sound came out of his mouth.

CRK! CRK!

Alex turned over to his side as he curled up like a shrimp. The sounds of cracking bone rang throughout his body as they quickly snapped back to their original place.

30 seconds of absolute agony and panic passed.

"Hurgh!"

Alex puked up a huge mass of blood, and he took a deep breath.

The panic slowly subsided as Alex gulped in a ton of air.

Then, he simply sat down.

This was way worse than he had imagined!

How was anyone supposed to do that multiple times?!

Alex only lay on the ground, trying to hold back his tears.

This was torture!

However, the burning of the Mana intensified again.

Alex had eaten an entire fruit, and one jump wasn't enough.

Alex's mind fell into disarray as he couldn't make a decision.

"I don't want to anymore!" he shouted to himself.

However, as he felt the Mana become even more intense, he stood up and climbed the tree again with shaking and fidgety limbs.

Alex didn't want to, but he jumped again.

This time, he landed on his back.

CRACK!

Alex had protected his head, but his spine broke apart.

Another 30 breathless seconds of panic and pain passed.

Alex's body shook as he lay on the ground.

He didn't want to anymore!

It was so painful!

Alex wished that he was back on earth, but that wish couldn't come true.

He didn't want to do this!

However, the burning sensation of the Mana intensified again as his body fully regenerated.

Alex slowly sat up as he slowly walked over to the tree.

He had to hold back his tears.

However, he climbed up the tree again, this time, higher than before.

It was time for his legs.

Alex climbed all the way to the top.

His entire body shook, but he jumped.

Alex fell for several seconds.

CRACK!

Alex's legs shattered as his kneecaps shot out of his body, one of them hitting a tree and another one sliding on the ground.

Some of the bones in Alex's torso also broke, but he managed to barely stay alive.

This time, it was easier since his lungs hadn't been damaged too much.

The worst thing had always been the inability to breathe.

The inability to breathe brought a sense of existential dread to him. This dread was far worse than the pain.

This time, the intensity of the Mana didn't increase again.

He had used up enough Mana.

For a while, Alex only lied on the ground, not moving.

He didn't think about anything.

He only lied there and paused.

Several minutes passed, and the sensations Alex had felt in the past half an hour shot through his mind.

It was like he was trying to come to terms with what he had just felt.

It was so very different from his life on earth.

Sure, he had gone through tough training on earth, but this wasn't training.

This was torture.

Silence.

For a while, Alex only listened to the silence of the forest.

'Why am I doing this to myself?'

Silence.

'Is this really the best way?'

Silence.

'I don't know.'

Alex looked over to the tree.

'Two fruits are left.'

Silence.

'Should I?'

Silence.

Swish!

Alex's eyes suddenly snapped open as he heard the sound of moving foliage.

CRSH!

Alex gritted his teeth violently as blood exploded out of his arm.

A panther!

Alex had utterly forgotten that he wasn't in some safe location.

He was in a forest filled with violent animals and creatures!

Alex had lied on his back, and the panther had wanted to bite his neck.

Luckily, Alex had barely managed to block the bite with his left arm.

The panther bit down on Alex's forearm, destroying the muscles.

Yet, surprisingly, Alex's bone didn't break.

The panther was violently trying to scratch him with its claws, and several wounds appeared all over Alex's body as his hand went to his back.

But there was nothing on his back!

Alex realized that he had taken off his sword when he had decided to land on his back.

'Fuck!'

The panther let go of Alex's arm and jumped back.

However, Alex grabbed the panther's neck with his right hand.

Whoosh!

The panther jumped back, but Alex was pulled along.

Judging by the distance, the panther was stronger than the panthers on earth. After all, it had just jumped back two meters while pulling Alex with it.

However, the panther wasn't the only thing stronger than the earth-variant.

Alex had managed to keep hold of the panther's neck all this time with only one hand, which surprised him.

He was sure that he hadn't been able to do that a couple of days ago!

The panther tried to get rid of Alex and attacked him with its claws, but Alex's instincts kicked in.

Alex immediately pulled himself closer and hugged the panther's neck with his arms and its torso with his legs.

The panther tried to get rid of Alex and cut him a couple more times, but Alex didn't let go.

The panther shouted aggressively, trying to get Alex away from him, but as Alex's legs tightened even more, its aggressive shout transformed into a whimper.

Alex felt how his legs squished the panther's organs and muscles as its bones started to creak.

Alex's eyes opened with surprise.

BANG! CRACK!

Alex pulled his right arm back and punched the panther's chest, which quickly caved in.

The panther stopped moving, and Alex quickly took hold of its head and neck.

CRACK!

And the panther was dead.

Alex breathed in several times as the adrenaline slowly subsided.

Then, he looked at his body.

'Have I done that?' he thought in shock.

This panther was not small, and its power was no joke.

Yet, the panther hadn't been able to break Alex's bones, and Alex had broken its bones just by punching.

The difference in power was apparent!

For some time, Alex only looked at the panther with shock.

Something like this was only possible in a dream.

How could a human kill a big cat with bare hands and with such ease at that?

After a while, Alex looked at his right hand as he clenched it into a fist.

Then, his eyes narrowed.

'It's not for nothing!'

'My past few days of pain have shown that they are not for nothing!'

Alex's gaze immediately went to the last two fruits.

Then, he walked over with determination and ate another one.

The pain, panic, and torture were horrible, but the feeling of seeing his own power increase by so much had washed all of these things away.

He wanted more!