Alex started collecting the horns of thunder wolves. He placed them carefully into the spatial ring. Then he moved towards the river and thought, I have to wash myself.
After the world ended with nuclear destruction, technology ended with it. In order to survive the harsh new conditions, humanity underwent mutations and gained elemental power. They abandoned the pursuit of technology and began pursuing elemental mastery. With that shift, humanity returned to using cold weapons—swords, spears, daggers. Skills were developed by combining elemental power with these weapons.
Alex had learned four skills so far. One was Shadow Merging—through it, he could hide and travel through shadows for half an hour. The cooldown was 15 minutes.
The second skill was Shadow Daggers. He could form and shoot sharp daggers made of dark element shadows, but he could only fire five before complete exhaustion.
The third skill let him erase his presence entirely, cloaking himself with the dark element.
He didn't know any powerful skills related to the wood element. For healing, he just used raw elemental energy to force wounds shut. Alex didn't know, but people who possess the wood element usually can't use raw energy to heal.
Alex's father and grandfather had both used spears as their main weapon. Alex didn't inherit their techniques—he only knew rudimentary dagger skills from a few old books found in the Cave of the Great Sage. The Great Sage, according to legend, had wielded a spear imbued with dark elemental power and once fought the Tyrant Dragon, slaying it. That was according to a book written by the Great Sage himself. That looked shady, Alex thought. Praising yourself is always shady.
Alex never learned proper skills for cold weapons. His father had tried to teach him the basics of the spear, but back then, Alex hadn't been interested. Now, he needed it. The only thing he knew now was how to begin the basics of spear training.
Alex began his journey into spearmanship with determination and discipline. With no access to proper weapons, he crafted a makeshift spear from bamboo and sharpening one end with a dagger. Though crude, it served its purpose.
For the first seven days, Alex trained near the riverbank, beneath the trees. From sunrise to sunset, he practiced stances and footwork . He learned how to hold the spear correctly—dominant hand near the base for power, the other near the middle for control. He moved with the spear, rehearsing advance-and-retreat steps, pivoting on bare feet to maintain balance and fluidity. His goal was to make the spear an extension of himself.
Once comfortable with movement, Alex advanced to thrusting drills. He marked a thick tree with black charcoal, then began striking at it with both short and extended thrusts. He focused on precision—aiming at the same point repeatedly to build muscle memory and control. Every thrust was sharp, followed by a quick pullback. His arms strained with effort; sweat mixed with dirt on his skin, but he didn't stop.
Day after day, under the sun and through the rains, Alex trained without pause. This relentless routine continued for four months. Over time, his strikes became cleaner. His stance solid. His eyes focused. The spear no longer felt like a tool—it was part of him.
Eventually, Alex decided it was time to test his skills in real combat. To improve his weapon, he took one of his daggers and bound it tightly to the spear's wooden shaft using rope and leather strips from monster hide. It wasn't elegant, but it turned the training spear into a deadly weapon. Now, it was time to hunt.
Alex entered the Green Zone Forest. He spotted the Earth Bear—a large beast covered in golden-brown fur, with a long scar slashing across its snout.
Alex smirked. "Oh, hello there, buddy. How are you? Do you remember me?"
The Earth Bear growled, deep and low.
Alex replied, "Oh, you do. Don't worry, I'm just here to practice my spear. I won't use my elemental power."
He took the stance, dominant foot forward, knees slightly bent. He started with long thrusts. For the Earth Bear—just an E-rank monster—the speed of Alex's spear was felt like lightning. The first strike tore across its back before it could even react. The bear roared and stumbled backward.
"Oh, don't worry, I won't kill you. Just fight me," Alex said casually.
Alex didn't go for the kill, but the bear always did. He practiced long thrusts and short thrusts, dancing just out of reach. But the Earth Bear, enraged, breached the gap. Its claws found flesh—slashing Alex's arms and legs. Blood ran freely, staining his clothes, but Alex didn't falter.
When the sun finally lowered behind the trees, Alex stepped back and said, "Let's stop for today. I'll come here next week. Heal yourself in that time."
The Earth Bear, its golden-brown fur now soaked in blood and dirt, growled once more. This human is too much, it thought. He just kept playing with me. I don't want to see this human ever again.
Alex walked back to his usual spot—his body painted in dried black mud, blood dripping from cuts, his muscles sore. He dropped his spear beside him and lay back on the grass.
"Let's just rest for now," he murmured to himself.
After living through nightmarish memories for the past six months, Alex had become focused solely on becoming strong.
He kept himself busy—spear training, hunting monsters, and cultivating his dark and wood elemental powers.