Starting as a stray dog, I embarked on a journey of cultivation.

As the third-tier demon core entered his stomach, a scorching and violent energy instantly surged through Gou An's entire body.

The scalding force surged through his meridians and flesh, causing his whole body to swell, as if his body would be torn apart by the immense energy at any moment.

He gritted his teeth and endured the excruciating pain, then focused his mind, closed his eyes, and opened the attribute panel, where he saw his demonic power value rapidly increasing.

Fifty, one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, five hundred, the demon power value kept soaring, and finally increased by a full eight hundred points.

[Current Realm: Tier 2 Demon Beast]

[Demon Power Value: 2400/2000]

[Demonic power overflows, automatically triggering a realm breakthrough...]

As the breakthrough process began, the surging heat in his abdomen slowly settled down and was systematically absorbed and refined by his physical body.

This breakthrough took a long time to complete.

[Current Realm: Tier 3 Demon Beast]

[Demon Power Value: 400/4000]

Looking at the new values ​​on the panel, Gou An was secretly surprised.

He originally estimated that it would only take 3,000 demon power to advance from the third to the fourth rank, but the threshold was 4,000.

Based on this calculation, the amount of demonic power required to advance to each rank is twice that of the previous rank.

Before the words were even finished, the panel refreshed with another notification.

[Congratulations on breaking through to the third tier of demon beast! You have gained six demon power points.]

You can exchange Hex Points for Hex Arts from the following options.

【Greedy Wolf Claws: Claws enhanced, sharp as a knife. (Exchangeable for 6 Demon Points)】

[Iron Skin Technique: Skin is strengthened to the point of being as hard as iron, defense skyrockets. (Exchange for Demon Points: 5 points)]

[Turbid Mist Breath: Inhales and exhales the tainted demonic power accumulated within the body, spewing out a pungent gray mist. (Exchangeable for Demon Points: 4 points)]

[Hairy Needle Protection: The fur temporarily hardens and stands on end, each hair resembling a fine splinter, slightly increasing defense. (Exchangeable for Demon Points: 2 points)]

[Carrion Eater: Consuming rotten flesh, feces, and other similar items grants more Demon Power. (Exchangeable for 1 Demon Point)]

Staring at the five options for sorcery, Gou An pondered deeply.

Currently, he has no decent offensive methods. Relying solely on his natural sharp teeth to bite, he can at most hunt weak creatures like wild rabbits and pheasants. He can hardly contend with monsters of the same level.

The Wolf Claws perfectly compensated for his weakness in close combat, and at first glance, it seemed like the best choice. He almost decided to exchange for it immediately.

But then, a sudden realization dawned on him.

Even if you have sharp claws and have learned the art of attacking and killing demons, are you going to take the initiative to go into the mountains and fight to the death with all kinds of demons?

There are countless monsters stronger than oneself in the mountains, so close combat is the worst possible strategy.

Being in the Monster Mountain Range, survival is always the top priority; staying alive is the most important task at present.

Having made up his mind, he focused his attention on the two skills: Needle Protection and Mist Breath.

The needle-like protective gear can enhance physical defense, while the misty breath resembles smoke and functions as a tear gas canister, making it perfect for escaping danger.

Both are essential survival skills.

Gou An immediately decided to make the exchange in his mind. In an instant, two warm currents surged through his meridians, traveled through his muscles and skin, and imprinted the two demonic arts into his blood.

After breaking through to the third tier, Gou An's body size increased by half a circle again, and his physique had caught up with the old dog king who once dominated the dog pack.

After completing his breakthrough, he immediately tested the two new demonic arts he had acquired.

Activating the protective hair needles, the yellow hairs all over the body stood up and hardened, becoming as hard as wooden spikes. This not only significantly increased the defense but also provided a considerable counter-damage effect.

If any other monster were to pounce and bite, it would surely prick its mouth and cause it to bleed profusely.

He then tried to expel a cloud of foul-smelling mist, and a cloud of grayish-black, fishy-smelling mist gushed out of his mouth.

The black fog quickly spread, obscuring the view, and a pungent stench assaulted the senses.

This sorcery can both obscure the opponent's vision and harass them with its foul energy.

With his cultivation improving, he felt a sense of relief and pride, realizing that leaving the pack was indeed a wise move.

Otherwise, I'd probably still be living under the tyranny of the old dog king, continuing my chaotic, primitive life with that pack of stupid dogs.

Having tasted the sweetness of success, Gou An is now somewhat dissatisfied and has even begun to be greedy.

He thought that a third-tier demon core could directly provide him with 800 demon power points, so what about a fifth-tier one?

He still remembered the spot where that fifth-tier Ice Flame Tiger had just died.

Let's go back and check, what if the demon core is still there?

As for the remaining pills of human cultivators in the storage bag, Gou An dared not eat them for the time being, nor did he have time to study them in detail.

He simply put the pills back into the bag, hid the storage bag in a corner of the cave, and then slipped out of the cave entrance.

Following the original route, Gou An proceeded cautiously and stealthily.

After finally finding their way back to the original location, they discovered that both the man and the tiger had vanished.

"What a pity!" Gou An sighed inwardly.

Just as Gou An felt he had made a wasted trip and was about to leave, he suddenly heard the voice of a human female cultivator coming from above.

"It was you, you bastard, who just stole my senior brother's storage bag!"

Gou An looked up and saw a female sword cultivator floating in the sky directly in front of him.

She stood in mid-air, sword in hand, her clothes fluttering, her face beautiful and her figure slender.

At first glance, she does have some good looks and a great figure.

But for Gou An now, there was no time or inclination to appreciate beauty.

The killing intent emanating from this woman was genuine.

run!

Gou An's first reaction was to turn tail and run, using all his strength.

During the run, Gou An discovered that as the demon beast's realm improved, the demonic technique of running fast like a dog's legs that he had learned before was also enhanced.

Its speed is much faster than when it was a second-tier monster.

However, the female sword cultivator chasing him was not slow either, and she caught up and the distance between them was getting closer and closer.

"Take this!"

The female swordsman pointed her finger at Gou An, and a flying sword shot out, heading straight for Gou An's back.

Gou An sensed the danger behind him. His strong will to survive made him twist his body and change direction, barely avoiding the sword.

The flying sword struck the ground and exploded, the shockwave sending Gou An flying.

Once Gou An regained his footing, the female swordsman caught up with him again.

Having no other choice, Gou An immediately opened his mouth and spat out a cloud of black mist.

The black fog instantly spread through the forest, forming a large area of ​​black fog.

Upon seeing this, the female swordsman immediately stopped in mid-air.

He covered his nose with a look of disgust.

"That stray dog ​​is disgusting!"

The next second, the female swordsman suddenly swept her sword horizontally, creating a whirlwind that dispersed the black mist.

But as the fog dissipated, Gou An was no longer there.

The female sword cultivator immediately glanced around and discovered that Gou An had taken advantage of the previous gap to run off in one of the directions, so she had no choice but to chase after him again.

At this point, Gou An was already exhausted and was about to be caught up.

He knew in his heart that if he were caught this time, he would probably be dead.

But heaven never truly forbids a way out, and just when Gou'an was at his wit's end...

Suddenly, I saw a group of familiar figures on the hillside in the distance.

They were the pack of stray dogs from back then!

Without thinking too much, Gou An silently apologized to himself: I'm sorry!

He plunged headlong into the pack of dogs, determined to die with them!

Gou An didn't believe that the female sword cultivator could find herself among so many wild dogs.