The giant wolf released a deafening roar before charging toward Victor like a collapsing mountain. Its massive claws tore through the air with terrifying force while the surrounding ground shattered beneath every step.

Victor narrowed his violet eyes slightly.

Then he stepped forward and threw a punch directly toward the beast’s approaching claw.

Boom!

A violent shockwave erupted throughout the chamber.

Victor was pushed backward several meters instantly while the giant wolf merely slid slightly across the ground. Cracks spread beneath Victor’s feet as he stabilized himself calmly.

The wolf did not give him time to recover.

It lunged again immediately.

Its enormous jaws aimed straight for Victor’s neck while killing intent flooded the entire chamber.

Victor twisted his body sideways and barely avoided the bite. However, the wind pressure alone sliced apart several strands of his hair.

His eyes sharpened afterward.

Then he struck the wolf’s ribs with another heavy punch.

Boom!

The impact echoed loudly.

Yet Victor instantly frowned.

The wolf’s body merely trembled slightly before its gigantic tail swept toward him like a steel whip. Victor crossed his arms instinctively.

Bang!

His body was blasted across the chamber before crashing through a stone pillar.

Dust filled the surroundings.

Victor slowly walked out from the rubble while rolling his shoulder slightly.

A faint ache spread through his arms.

His expression remained calm, but his mind had already reached a conclusion.

"The combat prowess of this beast comes purely from physical strength."

His violet eyes locked onto the wolf again.

"It should be around one hundred thirty stars."

Meanwhile, his own physical prowess remained far lower despite his monstrous overall strength.

"My physical combat prowess is only around twenty nine stars."

That gap was enormous.

The giant wolf roared arrogantly before charging once more, seemingly sensing its advantage.

Victor clicked his tongue softly.

"Tsk."

Then a faint smile appeared on his face.

"If I cannot fight you physically, then I will use mana."

The moment his words fell, metallic mana erupted from his body instantly. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Silver light wrapped around both of his fists rapidly before condensing into a pair of sharp metallic gloves. The surrounding air became heavy immediately as dense mana fluctuations spread outward.

Victor’s combat prowess surged violently.

One hundred fifty stars from his spell.

Twenty nine stars from physical strength.

Together, his combat prowess climbed directly to one hundred seventy nine stars.

Far beyond the giant wolf.

The beast instinctively halted for a brief moment.

For the first time, danger appeared inside its crimson eyes.

Victor disappeared instantly afterward.

Boom!

The ground beneath him exploded apart.

The wolf barely reacted before Victor appeared directly before its face and punched forward casually.

Bang!

The metallic glove smashed into the wolf’s jaw with overwhelming force. Bone cracking sounds echoed loudly as the gigantic beast was sent flying across the chamber violently.

Before it could even land, Victor vanished again.

Short Distance Teleportation activated silently.

He reappeared above the wolf midair before driving his fist downward mercilessly.

Boom!

The monster crashed into the ground hard enough to create a massive crater.

Blood exploded from its mouth.

However, Victor did not stop.

He moved like a phantom throughout the chamber. Every teleportation was followed by another devastating punch. The metallic gloves tore through flesh and shattered bone effortlessly.

The wolf attempted retaliating multiple times.

Its claws, fangs, and tail swept through the chamber violently.

Yet none of the attacks could even touch Victor anymore.

His movements had become absurdly smooth.

Finally, the giant wolf staggered weakly while blood covered its massive body completely. Fear gradually replaced the ferocity inside its crimson eyes.

Victor calmly walked forward afterward.

Then he clenched his right fist tightly.

Metallic mana compressed around the glove until the surrounding air distorted faintly.

The wolf roared desperately and lunged one final time.

Victor simply punched forward.

Boom!

The wolf’s head exploded instantly.

Its enormous corpse collapsed lifelessly onto the shattered ground afterward.

Silence filled the dungeon. Victor slowly lowered his fist.

Not a single scratch existed on his body.

Victor calmly looked toward the items lying down where the corpes fell.

The shattered dungeon chamber remained silent after the battle. Cracks stretched across the walls from the violent impacts earlier. Yet amidst all that destruction, three objects quietly emitted faint light.

Victor stepped forward slowly.

The first item was a silver ring engraved with ancient runes. The second was a dark crystal roughly the size of a fist. Dense energy fluctuations radiated continuously from both objects.

And the third one was a mana core.

Then the system window appeared before his eyes.

[Item: Ring

Grade: E High]

[Function: Passive healing after receiving injuries. Can restore 0.1% of the user’s condition per second if sufficient mana is available.]

[Class Requirement: All Classes]

Victor’s eyes shifted toward the second item immediately afterward.

[Item: Physique Core]

[Rank: E]

[Function: Can increase the physique of a Novice Rank awakener by up to 10 points.]

[Maximum Usage: 5]

Victor’s eyes widened instantly.

For several moments, he simply stared at the crystal silently.

"So items like this actually exist."

His expression gradually changed afterward.

A satisfied look appeared across his face while countless calculations surfaced inside his mind immediately. Ever since creating the Body Strengthening Spell, he had already realized how terrifying physical evolution could become for a mage.

The problem was strain.

His body constantly struggled to handle the increasingly abnormal mana and spell output. If his physique continued lagging behind his magical abilities, serious consequences would eventually appear.

"Good."

Victor picked up the Physique Core slowly.

"If I collect enough of these after entering the Novice Realm, the burden on my body will reduce significantly. I might not even need to overuse the strengthening spell anymore."

A faint smile appeared on his face afterward.

Then he stored all the items calmly before looking toward the portal that had appeared inside the boss chamber.

The swirling green gate radiated faint spatial fluctuations continuously.

Victor’s expression gradually turned colder.

"Now then," he muttered softly. "I should ask the Morningstars about that butler."

The moment he remembered the assassination attempt, killing intent flashed briefly through his violet eyes.

"That bastard definitely tampered with my equipment. Otherwise, the full body armor should have protected me even against Legendary Rank attacks. Yet those insignificant insects managed to injure me."

His voice became colder afterward.

Victor no longer possessed the same emotional restraint as before. Ever since comprehending time magic, something fundamental inside him had changed.

His emotions still existed.

However, they now felt strangely distant beneath an overwhelming sense of superiority.

Without wasting more time, Victor stepped into the portal.

The world distorted instantly.

Space twisted around his body before his vision blurred briefly.

The next moment, Victor emerged outside the dungeon.

However, his eyes widened immediately.

The entire world before him was swallowed by darkness.

Not ordinary darkness.

This darkness was alive.

Immense dark elemental mana covered the entire city like a suffocating ocean. The skies themselves had turned pitch black while violent mana fluctuations distorted the atmosphere endlessly.

Victor frowned slightly.

"What is going on?"

His voice sounded calm, but he looked rather disturbed.

Without hesitation, Victor activated Dark Sense.

Instantly, the surrounding darkness became visible to him as clearly as daylight. Endless streams of dark elemental mana flowed throughout the city like giant rivers. The pressure radiating from them was terrifying beyond words.

Then Victor activated Mana Sense as well.

The moment he did, his expression changed slightly.

"This mana..."

He recognized it instantly.

Diana.