The evolution of the Splash Shooters had completely caught Reigns by surprise.

The Tier 1 evolution had made them fiercer and stronger. On top of that, something even more shocking had happened.

"You can move?" Reigns scowled as he looked at them carefully.

The Splash Shooters immediately reacted as if they understood his words. Their large roots twisted and vibrated before slowly dragging their bodies across the cracked ground.

Reigns raised his brows after seeing their pathetic slow movement.

It honestly looked awkward.

Still, it was far better than before.

They couldn’t leap toward their enemies or rush around quickly, but at the very least they could now reposition themselves and somewhat dodge enemy attacks.

That alone was enough to celebrate.

"So you won’t be as useless as before."

The Splash Shooters suddenly let out offended screeches.

The huge bulb-like heads immediately drooped downward while their leaves wilted, as if deeply hurt by Reigns’ words.

Seeing that reaction, Reigns awkwardly waved his hand.

"I didn’t mean that in a bad sense..."

"POP!"

"POP!"

POP! POP!

"POP! POP!"

Reigns himself wasn’t even sure what he meant anymore, but the Splash Shooters began started bouncing around excitedly the next moment, making weird popping noises.

Some even spun around happily.

Reigns stared at them silently before shaking his head helplessly.

Then he opened his status panel.

*****

Name: Reigns De Luther

Class: Plant Sovereign

Tier: Tier 1 Lv14

Subclass: [Farming] [Plant Summoner] [Plant Tamer]

Lifespan: 70

Tradable Lifespan: 55200

Strength: 27

Agility: 30

Stamina: 25 >> 40

Perception: 30

Mana: 30 >> 40

Free Attribute: 0

Talent: Infinite Evolution

Skills:

Phantom Steps Tier 1

Berserker Tier 1

Insight Tier 1

Lightning Steps Tier 1

Arcane Blast Tier 1

Iron Sanctuary Tier 1

[Farming]

Bronze Hand Tier 1

Earthly Plough Tier 1

Soul Scythe Tier 1

Splash Shooter Farming Tier 0 [18/25]

[Plant Summoner]

Splash Shooter Tier 1 [14/16]

Healing Sprout Tier 1 [1/1]

Dryard Tier 1 [1/4]

[Plant Tamer]

None

*****

Reigns quietly looked over the panel, narrowing his eyes slightly.

His stamina and mana stats had increased quite significantly after consuming the heart earlier.

The sudden boost had made him feel much more confident about facing any stronger opponents that might appear ahead.

What made him frown, however, was that despite having few Tier 1 Splash Shooters, the panel still displayed them as Tier 0.

Either it was a glitch, or that was simply what it was.

He slowly closed the panel.

Then he glanced around and decided to fully fill his summon slots.

"BLOOM!"

The ground suddenly exploded apart.

Soon, three more massive figures emerged from the earth, releasing deep growling roars.

At first, giant vines shot upward from the cracked roads. Then more and more vines twisted around each other, bulging unnaturally until they slowly formed gigantic humanoid figures.

"Dryads... Dryads..."

A shrill roar erupted from the newly summoned creatures.

The Tier 0 Splash Shooters immediately crawled backward in fear upon hearing the terrifying sound.

Meanwhile, the evolved Tier 1 Splash Shooters instantly snarled back aggressively toward the newcomers.

The atmosphere immediately grew tense.

The Dryads lowered their massive heads while the Splash Shooters floated aggressively in place, as if both sides were trying to establish dominance over the other.

Seeing the two groups preparing to clash, Reigns quickly stepped forward.

"Calm down, guys... Don’t fight among yourselves."

His voice grew slightly firmer.

"If you want to prove yourselves, wait until we find the enemies."

Only after hearing Reigns’ words did both sides gradually calm down.

The Dryads stepped back heavily while the Splash Shooters stopped growling and floated away reluctantly.

The tense atmosphere gradually faded.

Reigns then continued deeper inside the gate.

Most Descending Gates usually had a Gatekeeper guarding either the entrance or the core area of the dungeon. To properly clear the dungeon and get out of this damned place alive, you had to kill that Gatekeeper.

After thinking for a moment, Reigns unsummoned the Splash Shooters and kept only two Dryads at his side as guards.

The giant tree creatures walked alongside him while their heavy footsteps faintly shook the cracked roads.

Reigns quietly traversed the ruined city.

Collapsed buildings surrounded him from every direction while broken glass crunched beneath his feet. Burned vehicles remained overturned across the streets, and thick smoke still rose from some distant areas.

The entire place felt dead.

Not even the sound of wind could be heard beneath the eerie silence hanging over the ruins.

As Reigns continued through the destruction, his eyes suddenly paused after spotting something at the far end of the ruined road.

A funeral home.

The old building stood crookedly amidst the destruction, with several sections of its walls already collapsed.

The broken signboard hanging outside swayed slowly, releasing faint creaking sounds.

Reigns narrowed his eyes before slowly walking toward it.

But just as he took a few steps ahead...

A sudden voice echoed beside his ears.

"It’s your fault Arvin and the others died."

"Huh?!"

Reigns immediately stopped and quickly looked around.

His eyes swept across the ruined surroundings.

But he found nobody.

Only rubble, destroyed roads, and ruined buildings remained around him.

Confused, Reigns scratched his head before turning toward one of the Dryads walking beside him.

"Did you hear a voice?"

"DRYAD!"

The giant creature loudly screamed before shaking its massive head sideways.

Reigns frowned.

"How weird..."

He muttered quietly as he paused once more to carefully observe the surroundings.

For some reason, the voice had sounded extremely close.

Almost as if someone had whispered directly into his ears.

After failing to find anything, Reigns let out a soft sigh and continued forward.

As he ventured deeper into the ruined streets, several monsters emerged from broken buildings and underground cracks; some crawled wildly across the walls while others charged directly at him with horrifying screeches.

This time, Reigns didn’t rely entirely on his summons.

Alongside the Dryads acting as guards beside him, Reigns personally fought the monsters by himself.

BANG!

One creature had its skull crushed after Reigns slammed his fist directly into its face.

Another monster rushed from behind, only to be ripped apart by a Dryad’s enormous arm.

Dark blood splattered across the cracked roads non-stop as the battle raged on.

After killing numerous monsters one after another, a familiar notification finally flashed before his eyes.

[You have gained 1350 days of tradable lifespan.]

[You have leveled up.]

The moment Reigns saw the notification, a smile finally appeared on his face.

"Finally..."

He looked genuinely happy as he watched the numbers increase.

He was just about to say something proudly to the Dryads beside him when suddenly...

Another voice echoed again.

"If you had showcased that bravado earlier, we would have been alive now."

"..."

Reigns’ smile slowly disappeared, and his expression darkened immediately.

’Now who the hell is spewing this bullshit...’