Fiery Sword Technique: Burning The Sky

Slimes—low-level creatures, weak and plentiful. Killing one earns you a meager 10 experience points. But the numbers quickly work against you. Slaying a thousand might seem like a quick path to power, but as levels increase, so too does the required experience. 

At level 1, it takes 100 slimes to advance. At level 2, the experience earned from each slime is cut in half. And by level 3, the drop rate falls to a single point per kill. By the time a Hero reaches level 5, slimes barely offer 0.1 experience points per kill, making it an agonizing grind.

Anyi knew this well.

His eyes swept across the battlefield, now littered with the remnants of Ariana's attack. Nearly two-fifths of the slime mass had been wiped out in that golden barrage. Miruku had done her part, slicing through the smaller slimes with lightning speed, but her exhaustion showed that their pace wouldn't be sustainable.

Anyi was still level 1.

The remaining slimes had reformed into a condensed mass, about a third of their original size, still threatening but diminished. He quickly calculated the experience needed for his ascent through the early levels. To reach level 5, he required 7,500 experience points.

"Sigh..."

He focused, recalling the elemental sword technique he had long mastered. A memory flashed in his mind, the feel of fire coursing through steel.

[Skill System: Fiery Elemental Sword Technique verified.]

[Unlocking Lv1 skill: Flaming Slash]

[Skill mastery detected: Max level]

[Promoting skill: Flaming Slash -> Burning The Sky]

Anyi smirked. It was just as he had expected. Though his current level restricted him from unlocking higher-tier skills, his mastery of the technique far surpassed his limitations.

'Multiple releases, 30% Mana,' he commanded internally.

[Warning: Weapon type is physical, reducing damage output of the Fire-type skill by 60%. Fire-type skill used against Water-type enemies (Slimes), further reducing damage by 40%.]

Debuffs. Annoying, but manageable. His sword wasn't optimized for elemental attacks, and slimes—being water-aligned—would resist the fiery onslaught. But that didn't matter. He only needed to cull most of them, leaving just enough for Ariana and Miruku to gain their share of the experience.

He gripped the hilt of his sword tighter. 

[Casting multiple Burning The Sky]

"Crackle!"

Suddenly, flames erupted from his blade. The fire roared, not just along the steel but in the very air around him. Heat rippled outward, distorting the atmosphere in waves, yet his hand remained untouched by the scorching flames.

'Damage reduced by 90%...'

"Ten percent," Anyi muttered to himself. He had to leave at least that much. This battle wasn't just his to win—it was an opportunity for others to gain the experience they needed as well.

"Burning the Sky."

Anyi's silver-white sword slashed through the air, its flames trailing behind as if unable to keep up with his speed. In an instant, time seemed to pause. The flames, momentarily suspended, erupted outward in a sweeping arc.

The air cracked with the force of the attack, and the fire surged forward in a massive wave, consuming everything in its path. Grass withered to ash, earth scorched black, and the slimes—once writhing and multiplying—had no chance to even melt. They evaporated, their gelatinous forms vanishing into nothingness.

The roaring fire collided with the towering mass of slime. The sizzling hiss of water meeting fire echoed across the barren land as layer upon layer of slime was incinerated, the once-mighty slime mountain flattened in mere moments.

When the flames finally dissipated, only scorched earth remained.

[Level increased! Lv1 → Lv4! New skills unlocked, Hero sama should check them out promptly!]

The field, once crawling with slimes, now lay silent.

Anyi stared at the devastation he'd caused. "...Was that too much?"

He dismissed his sword with a flick of his hand, the white light flashing briefly before the weapon vanished. 

"Whoa..." Layton, his cheeks bulging from eating slimes whole, stood slack-jawed. He stared at the desolate landscape in front of Anyi, eyes wide. "That's... insane!"

He couldn't help but question if he had been doing everything wrong. Should he have raised his attributes differently? Was Anyi just that strong?

"Yeah!! Anyi is so awesome!!" Ariana, having recovered some of her mana, cheered from behind, clapping her hands in excitement.

Miruku watched as well, her eyes wide with admiration. She imagined herself standing before villagers, facing a giant monster alone. She'd defeat it with a single swing of her sword, saving everyone. They'd look at her in awe, calling her their hero. In her fantasy, she'd sheath her sword and say coolly, "Don't worry, you're safe."

Super cool! So strong!

But then, reality hit both Ariana and Miruku at once. Their excitement turned to discomfort as their stomachs growled loudly, and they clutched their bellies.

"So... hungry..." Ariana groaned, collapsing on the ground.

Beside her, Miruku moaned, "Hungry, hungry, hungry..." and curled into a ball.

[Holy Hero: So hungry ah so hungry ah so hungry...]

Layton, ever helpful, grinned. "No worries! Just eat some slime!" He gave them a thumbs-up, confident in his advice.

Anyi sighed. "Go to the village and tell them to prepare food. I'll bring them back."

"You sure you don't need help? I'm quite good at carrying things, being a porter and all!" Layton offered eagerly.

"I'm faster," Anyi replied dryly, lifting Ariana with one hand and hauling Miruku around his waist. "Before they starve, I'll get them food."

Layton chuckled and waved, quickly running off toward the village.

As Anyi made his way, Ariana continued her chant. "So hungry, so hungry, so hungry, so hungry, so hungry..."

Miruku echoed, "Hungry, hungry, hungry, hungry, hungry..."

Anyi sighed again. "It's so noisy."