Bernice Canyon was a mysterious place.

There were several sky high stone pillars here, some of which were so high that he couldn't see the top of them. The wyverns' nests lay on top of these pillars.

Wyverns.

They were essentially winged lizards; no, it was more appropriate to call them dinosaurs with wings.

Like bats, their wings and 'hands' were connected, and a fully grown, adult wyvern's wingspan was more than 6 meters long.

They also had long, lithe necks, and their faces resembled the velociraptors that appeared in Jurassic Park. Wyverns were also capable of spewing paralytic poison from their mouths.

Their skin was tough and durable, and it came in a variety of colors, including green, yellow, black, etc.

Wyverns were over level 300. Adult, named, or leader wyverns were a little over level 350.

Kuaaahk!

A shadow passed overhead. It was the wyverns freely flying through the azure sky.

Kang Oh gripped Demon Sword Blood.

He only had 20 days before his battle with Valan! This was his last spurt!

Wyverns were the most suitable opponents for him right now. Of all the monsters that he'd encountered in the west, wyverns were at the top of the food chain.

If he got the chance, he'd try to hunt the unique wyvern that the Veteran Adventurer, Jayce, had told him about.

Kang Oh strode forward.

Kyaoh!

One of the wyverns, which was flying low, noticed Kang Oh. Food!

Based on its size, it had to be a Young Wyvern.

'Just right.'

Kang Oh waited for the wyvern to come to him first.

The wyvern opened its mouth wide and flew towards Kang Oh. Kang Oh moved to the side, avoiding the wyvern's attack, and immediately swung Blood at its wing.

When fighting against a monster that can fly, the best way to deal with it was to damage its wings and disable its ability to fly.

Swish.

Blood scratched its wing. 'Scratched' was an apt term for it.

'As expected, it's tough.'

While most flying monsters' wings were weak and delicate, the wyvern's wing felt tougher than a whale's tendon.

Kya!

The wyvern flapped its wings and spewed a green poisonous mist at him.

Fatal Paralyzing Poison!

Kang Oh rolled on the floor.

Spurt!

The poisonous mist filled the space he'd once occupied. If he'd gotten hit by it, then he'd likely have become paralyzed and become the wyvern's food.

Kang Oh jumped up and attacked the wyvern's wing once more. However, the wyvern forcefully flapped its wings and rose into the air. Demon Sword Blood split nothing but air.

'You really can't underestimate it.'

Wyverns were brutal monsters that possessed potent paralytic poison and incredibly flying skill. But they were also quite clever.

They usually operated alone, but if threatened, they called their allies. If it called for it, they would run away too.

Which meant that they were really difficult to hunt!

'That's what makes it worth it!' Kang Oh's competitiveness flared. 'C'mon, wyvern!'.

Swish!

The wyvern circled high in the sky, and then plummeted to the ground like lightning! Right above Kang Oh!

Kang Oh just waited.

Right before the wyvern's mouth made contact… Kang Oh turned his body, causing the wyvern to graze his side. He'd dodged it by a hair's breadth!

But that wasn't the end of it. It followed up by engulfing Kang Oh in its wings.

There wasn't anywhere else to go. Of course, Kang Oh hadn't had any plans of running away.

"Huahp!"

Kang Oh swung Blood upwards!

Tempest Tiger!

A roaring tiger-shaped aura ripped the wyvern's wing to shreds.

Boom!

No matter how thick a wyvern's hide is, it wouldn't be able to withstand a close range Tempest Tiger.

Bam!

Kyaaaa!

The wyvern shrieked in pain, as one of its wings had been torn apart.

Whoosh.

The aura was followed by a raging whirlwind. Kang Oh retreated so that he wouldn't be swept away by the whirlwind.

However, the wyvern pierced through the whirlwind and dashed at Kang Oh. Its eyes were filled with rage.

Kang Oh grinned.

He need not fear a flightless wyvern!

* * *

Kang Oh comfortably dealt with the Young Wyvern. After testing a few things, he gathered some useful information.

First, in order to pierce through the wyvern's skin in one hit, he needed to use Tempest Tiger, Darkness Strike, Abyss Claw, Fresh Blood Wave, or Blood Bomb; attacks with extremely high destructive power.

Alternatively, he could use Slash and focus entirely on the resulting wound!

Lastly, he could pierce through its skin if Ubist's 'Fang Bearing Blade' effect, which ignored a target's defense, activated.

Kang Oh had thrown a Gladion's Dagger at full strength, but it still couldn't pierce through its skin.

Throwing a dagger at a flying wyvern, causing it to plummet to the ground, wouldn't work.

He'd also learned that a wyvern's regenerative abilities were extraordinary. The wyvern's damaged wing was fully restored rather quickly.

It could also spew as much paralyzing poison as it wanted. However, it couldn't use it in quick succession. After all, it needed time to gather the poison in its mouth.

Its face, its neck, its wings, its body, and its tail; its entire body was a deadly weapon. He made sure to remember that 'You can't afford to underestimate a wyvern!'.

'Bout time to finish it off.'

Kang Oh increased the strength of his attacks.

The wyvern let out a bizarre, resounding shriek.

Kyagyagagaga!

Kang Oh instinctively knew that it was calling other wyverns for aid.

'Either cast a silence curse on it to keep it from calling its allies or block its mouth.'

Now he had even more useful information. He quickly finished off the Young Wyvern.

[You have defeated a Young Wyvern.]

Kang Oh quickly picked up the loot it'd left behind: a tooth and wyvern skin, which could be used to create extraordinary defensive equipment. Then, he entered a small, nearby hole and hid himself.

Kyaaa!

Guaaah!

More than twenty screaming Young Wyverns had come. However, they couldn't find Kang Oh and soon dispersed.

Kang Oh exited the hole and strode forward, looking for the appropriate prey to hunt.

* * *

Veluster.

It was the name of a small, quiet village.

Because it didn't possess an intercity transfer gate, most people didn't come here.

This is where Kang Oh and Asu met.

"Let's go."

They held hands, taking a stroll through a small forest near Veluster.

"Now that you're done promoting your album, you have a lot of time off, right?" Kang Oh asked.

"Yep. I finally got a chance to get a well deserved rest," Asu smiled and said. Her golden hair fluttered in the wind. "How did you spend your time, Oppa?"

"Me? I..." Kang Oh softly told her what he'd been doing lately.

"You've been working hard too, huh?"

"Yeah. I really have."

"Good job." Asu patted his head. It'd been a long time since someone had patted his head.

Kang Oh softly stroked her cheek with the back of his hand.

"Hehe." Asu laughed, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"Let's go."

"Ok."

They kept walking, and eventually stopped at a small lake. The lake was completely clear, the birds chirped beautifully, and the cold breeze was refreshing.

"I like this." Kang Oh stretched out both his hands.

"Me too." Asu did the same. "Virtual reality sure is amazing. To think that it was possible to create such a beautiful world!" Asu said.

"There must be a ton of beautiful places in the real world too. Let's go somewhere real next time."

Kang Oh was the one that'd suggested that they only meet in game. If they had a date in real life and someone found out, then Asu would be in huge trouble. But he wanted to visit a beautiful place with her in real life too.

"Sure." Asu smiled.

Kang Oh tightly grabbed her hand.

He didn't want to let go.

* * *

His date with Asu had completely revitalized him.

Kang Oh's body was filled with energy!

He enthusiastically hunted wyverns again and again.

And finally...!

[Proficiency in Demonic Swordsmanship has reached 100%.]

[Demonic Swordsmanship has risen to high-rank.]

[You can more adeptly wield a demon sword.]

[Any attacks, skills, spells, or item effects involving demon swords are strengthened.]

[Fame has increased significantly.]

[Proficiency in the Demonic Swordsman skills, Darkness Strike and Devil Trigger, has increased.]

[You have already acquired the reward for reaching High Rank Demonic Swordsmanship, Seal Demon.]

[You have learned Darkness Chain instead.]

When he'd first obtained Demon Sword Blood, Grande Loxia, Blood's original owner, had taught him the Demonic Swordsman skill, Seal Demon. But it seemed like it was an automatic reward for reaching High-Rank Demonic Swordsmanship. Because he already knew Seal Demon, he'd been given another Demonic Swordsman skill to replace it.

'Darkness Chain, huh...'

Kang Oh immediately looked over the skill information.

[Darkness Chain]

Create a chain out of darkness. The higher your proficiency, the more powerful the chain becomes. The chain also lengthens.

The chain can be controlled by will. However, learning how to properly control the chain requires a lot of time and practice.

Type: Active/Skill.

MP Cost: 50 (Consumes MP/second).

Cooldown: 8 seconds.

Rank: Beginner.

Proficiency: 0%.

'This is the first time I've seen a description explicitly say that a skill is hard to use.'

Kang Oh immediately tried out Darkness Chain.

Swoosh.

He extended his hand, and out came a black, glimmering chain. Kang Oh kept pushing the chains out until he couldn't anymore.

'Its max length is about 10 meters.'

Kang Oh deactivated Darkness Chain, and the chain immediately turned to dust, disappearing without a trace.

A short while later...

Kang Oh extended his hand again.

Darkness Chain!

This time, he targeted a boulder that was in front of him. However, the chain couldn't reach it and it weakly fell to the floor. He tried a few more times, but the same thing kept happening.

'Controlling it really is difficult.'

But if he learned how to properly use it, then it'd be really useful! He could wrap the chain around a wyvern's mouth, preventing it from calling its allies, or keep a flying wyvern from escaping.

'It took me a whole day to learn how to throw projectiles, so... Alright, I'm going to spend the whole day practicing!'

Kang Oh left Bernice Canyon so he wouldn't be bothered. Then, he moved to a quiet, vacant lot and practiced using Darkness Chain. For the whole day!

However...

"Damn it all." Kang Oh furrowed his brow. Night had already fallen, but Kang Oh still couldn't adeptly use the skill.

Ultimately, Kang Oh wasted the next day, and the day after that to practice Darkness Chain.Only then was he able to aim the chains where he wanted, and wrap them around something once.

'Good.'

This was good enough! He planned on learning everything else in battle. Kang Oh headed for Bernice Canyon once more.

* * *

Darkness Chain made it easier to deal with the wyverns than he'd expected.

He could grab onto the flying wyverns, and wrap the chains around either its wings or its neck. If need be, he could use the chains to pull himself onto the wyvern's back and ride them.

Not only that, but High-Rank Demonic Swordsmanship had increased his damage across the board, so he was able to more quickly and safely hunt the wyverns than before.

Kang Oh was completely absorbed in hunting, and gradually made it deeper and deeper into the canyon.

"Mm?" It had suddenly become dark, so Kang Oh raised his head.

'That's...!' Kang Oh's eyes widened.

A giant, horned, red-skinned wyvern was soaring through the blue sky.

Kuhaaaaaaahk!

Its roar resounded throughout the canyon. Kang Oh felt goosebumps all over his body.

[You have heard the Wyvern King, Draka's roar.]

[You are petrified, and are struck by a sense of fear and terror.]

[Your high Mental stat, as well as your Indomitable and Courage stats have allowed you to overcome your fear.]

[You were not able to completely overcome your fear.]

[Your movements become slowed, and all abilities decrease by 10%.]

He was the unique wyvern that the Veteran Adventurer, Jayce, had told him about!

The Wyvern King, Draka!

This was Kang Oh's first glimpse of him.