Because the lava-octopod crocodiles on this level mainly hid in the lava, it was difficult to hunt them unless they attacked first. So Eric didn't spend much energy on hunting these creatures.

  Time was running out, and he focused on heading straight to the octagonal fire crystal collection point.

  After taking a few wrong turns, Eric finally arrived at the collection point. It wasn't that he was directionally challenged as a skeleton; it was just that the hand-drawn maps in this world were incredibly abstract.

  The maps drawn by Ile were much more precise, except for the fact that she tended to break three special steel-cased pencils per map.

  The octagonal fire crystals grew on a pitch-black island in the center of the lava, shimmering with a beautiful hue. However, the vast majority of crystals were four- or five-sided.

  Those that grew to eight sides were extremely rare and considered the finest quality. In addition to the fire crystals, several lava crocodiles were lounging on the island, strolling.

  These fire crystals also benefited the fire crocodiles, so to collect the crystals, Eric had to deal with the crocodiles first.

  "Quite troublesome," Eric muttered, observing.

  Besides the crocodiles on the island, many more were lurking beneath the lava, so he couldn't be careless. Soon, he identified the highest-level leader among the fire crocodiles, a second-order fire crocodile at level 21. He had to take out this crocodile first.

  The fire crocodile was basking lazily at the highest point on the island, surrounded by high-sided fire crystals.

  Eric found a good sniping spot, raised his staff, and aimed at the crocodile. A yellow, indigo, and blue magic circle opened at the top of his staff. Lock on.

  "First-tier magic..."

  A blue water sphere compressed, and a yellowish-brown rock wrapped around it, growing into a stone cone. Then, a wind vortex formed by wind magic enveloped the stone cone, which began to rotate slowly.

  As it rotated, water vapor gradually seeped through the stone cone, creating a flowing pattern on its surface.

  The rotation sped up, forming a wind vortex tail around the stone cone. The staff trembled slightly, and the stone cone seemed ready to detach and shoot out at any moment. He kept charging until he reached the limit of rotation.

  "Water Wind Cone!"

  The Waterstone cone sliced through the air, whistling as it shot straight at the fire crocodile. It hit precisely, piercing through the crocodile's neck and rotating inside.

  The water sphere exploded within the crocodile, dousing its scales and causing a hissing sound, raising a wisp of white mist. The crocodile's temperature plummeted, and its lava-like blood cooled and solidified within its body.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  [Ding, Lava Hexapede Crocodile defeated, +800 experience]

  His experience bar, which had been at 5000 points, surged significantly. Before the remaining fire crocodiles could react, Eric flapped his bone wings, leaped into the air, and flew towards the island.

  The open space of this level finally allowed him to take advantage of his aerial mobility. He hovered in the air, raised his staff, and aimed at the remaining fire crocodiles.

  "First-tier magic..." He charged again. This time, facing the other first-tier fire crocodiles, he didn't use the elemental wind cone but opened only two magic circles.

  "Wind Cone!"

  The stone cone, propelled by wind magic, spun and whistled through the air, hitting a fire crocodile.

  Another precise hit, taking down a level 18 fire crocodile. He flew higher again, dodging a barrage of lava fireballs, and raised his staff once more.

  "First-tier magic... Wind Cone." He became more proficient with each use, gradually increasing the spell's proficiency in battle.

  After hitting the fourth fire crocodile, the remaining ones seemed to realize the danger and stopped engaging him directly, retreating into the lava. They used the lava to evade his attacks, and whenever he flew low, they would surface and spit fireballs at him.

  "Smartened up, haven't they?" Eric couldn't help but comment on the crocodiles' behavior. But his goal wasn't to hunt these fire crocodiles; it wasn't worth fighting them to the death. He landed on the island and began searching for the octagonal fire crystals.

  Seeing this, the fire crocodiles tried to sneak onto the island again.

  As soon as they did, Eric flew back into the air and cast Wind Cone. The crocodiles retreated into the lava once more. This back-and-forth continued a few times, resulting in the death of two more fire crocodiles. Eric didn't mind the delay; he treated it as an opportunity to level up. Finally, the fire crocodiles learned their lesson and stayed in the lava.

  Eric quickly searched for the octagonal fire crystals. While other adventurers might need to count the facets, Eric efficiently identified each one. Soon, he had collected more than the required amount of octagonal fire crystals and flew off the island without looking back. Mission accomplished.

  It was time to head back. But he hadn't encountered the Hyena Adventure Team yet... Maybe they didn't think he could make it to the twenty-first level and were waiting for him on the upper levels. In that case, it was time to switch from defense to offense. He had completed his mission; they had missed their best chance to ambush him. Now, it was his turn to hunt them.

  After all, they had threatened to kill him; they were the enemy, and the enemy needed to be eliminated.

  Back in the passage, he returned to the twentieth level. Eric didn't rush. He spent a day searching the twentieth level for the Hyena Adventure Team but found nothing, only hunting a few lizardmen. So he gave up searching on this level and went down to the eighteenth level. And there he found them.

  "Lucky," Eric's soul fire in his eye sockets flared up. He was getting excited. The eight-person team was well-organized and explored with ease. Two heavy armor warriors, two swordsmen, one archer, two mages, and a priest. The heavy armor warriors were at the front and back of the team.

  The swordsmen were on the flanks, and the rest were in the center. The team leader, Hukudo, was the mage in the center, the protected core, directing the team. It would be difficult to carry out a decapitation strike and take out Hukudo directly.

  If he made a move now, he would have to face the entire team. It was a bad move. He needed to find an opportunity.

  Eric activated [Stealth] and followed the team from a distance. Don't expect a skeleton to be merciful; skeletons don't have hearts.

  "Captain, it's about time we took a break," the heavy armor warrior at the front of the Hyena Team complained. They had searched level by level and hadn't seen a trace of the skeleton. (The "skeleton" here referred to Eric, who had called himself a skeleton).

  "Wait until we finish searching this level," Hukudo didn't let his guard down.

  "Come on, captain, not again!" the archer with a large bow on his back couldn't help but complain. Seeing the low morale and lack of enthusiasm among the team members to continue searching, Hukudo frowned slightly. But for the team's cohesion, he had to compromise as the captain.

  "Alright, let's find a place to rest for the night," he said. The skeleton following behind gleamed with excitement in its eyes.