[Particle Execution!]
Aegon had just activated the skill, his hand stretched toward, facing the monster.
He didn't flinch at its terrifying appearance because he was sure this was the last time he was going to see it.
Just then, the monster was warped in an immediate space of purple, and at the same time hundreds of thousands of microscopic, high velocity particles such as sand and dust rose.
And in an instant warped into the monster's body all at once from every direction. At this moment, the body of the monster enlarged and the monster seemed confused.
It had the expression that said; 'what is going on… did you do this?'
It didn't expect this, but how could it? It was only a monster and it had never seen Aegon used the skill before.
The monster claws were still out, facing Aegon as they were supposed to grab and tear him apart, but the situation had changed.
"Your time is up…" Aegon said, with a smile.
The monster had an expression of fear as if it didn't want to die, it was in its final second and wanted to let out one last howl.
To call its elder brother, but it was futile, its body had already expanded twice the normal size..
It was as if it had been pumped with air or helium. In this moment, the monster was simultaneously bombarded from the inside out, as if struck by a million impossible punches.
And after it burst, a large wave of blood arose in a massive size, engulfing Aegon and even going to a farther direction.
[Ding! Mission Half Completed!]
[Enemies Killed: 250/500]
[New Skill Obtained: Debris Storm!]
[100X Enhancement… Completed!]
[Skill Evolved into: Cosmic Pinball!]
The system appeared before Aegon, and he was taken aback.
"Half of the mission completed?"
'How's that possible, just earlier it said one hundred and sixty-nine, how did I get eighty-one more kills?'
The question hung in Aegon's heart as he stared down at the system, and just then something seemed to catch his gaze.
On the ground where he had killed the monster, there was a glowing light sparkling.
'Is this…'
Seeing this, Aegon approached the light and just as he had gotten closer, the light stopped blinking and stayed still.
"What is this…"
Aegon bent down and picked the yellow light with his right hand.
It looked just like an oval shaped stone, but one thing was wired.
"It's half broken…"
Just as the words left Aegon's lips, the system popped another window before him.
[Ding! Item Drop Detected!]
[B-rank Essence Stone Acquired!]
[Stone Status: Half of a yellow Stone!]
[Description: When the second half of the stone is found and merged, a new creation will be formed. Creation can be an artifact, a weapon or others.]
"B-rank Essence Stone, what does that mean?"
Of course Aegon didn't know about this, since he was still lacking in some information.
The thing is, in the Abyss when Framers kill monsters, the monsters are said to leave an item behind.
And majority of the time, these items can be what is known as Essence Stones.
Essence Stones are marbles that is dropped by monsters after that are killed. Farmers use this stone to increase their strengths by absorbing the essence within it.
A weak monster drops a small Essence Stone, and a small Essence Stone can only increase a Farmer's strength by a half of a half percent.
A mid monster drops a mid Essence Stone, and a mid Essence Stone can only increase a Farmer's strength by half a percent.
A large monster drops a large Essence Stone, and a large Essence Stone can increase a Farmer's strength by one percent.
It is possible for a Farmer to obtain more than one small, mid, or large essence stones if they kill more than one monster that drop any of the stones.
Essence Stones can also be used, not only to increase Farmers strength but as a means of transactions.
For instance, if a Farmer has accumulated a lot of essence stones they can either use it to increase their strengths, or when they leave the Abyss can use it to buy weapons, magical artifacts, or mythical objects from high-end shops.
Of course, these essence stones can also be used to craft gears.
Aegon stared deeply at the glowing half stone in his hand and thought inwardly:
'Does this have anything to do with the increase in kills?'
It was a mystery that his kills had suddenly jumped to half of what he needed to complete the mission, yet he acquired a new skill on it.
'What is going…'
Aegon turned around and tucked the stone into the pocket of his cargo. It was at this moment that the fog that once blocked his vision began to clear.
And just as he was able to see through, his gaze landed on Nyra and the rest of the Farmers whose expressions indicated hope.
^_________^
"He's alive?"
Sinon mumbled, her expression both dumbfounded and doubtful.
"Of course he is…" Nyra responded.
Sinon turned to Nyra looking confused as the words slipped from her lips.
"How is that even possible? That monster was at least B-rank if not more, and he survived?"
Nyra didn't give Sinon a glance, but only uttered, as she walked towards Aegon.
"He's a S-rank Farmer after all."
For some reason she had already believed that Aegon was a S-Rank Framer. Why wouldn't she? He was displaying strengths that they couldn't comprehend.
However, that wasn't even up to one percent of his true strength.
On the other hand, Sinon shrugged, although she was the one who brought up the idea of him being a fake ranker, she still didn't want to believe it herself.
After all, S-rank Farmers are said to be royals who don't show their faces often; except when needed the most.
'When needed the most?' Sinon thought inwardly. 'When needed the most?…'
She looked around and a thought came to her:
'This isn't the Abyss, at least not the one in usually enter. But even if this was and had happened to some other farmer, words would have gotten out.'
'But there's nothing. Although there have been reports of Farmer's missing inside the Abyss. This isn't the cause, is it?'
Sinon paused for a moment then turned her gaze towards Aegon, who was already talking to Nyra.
'Is that… If he's truly S-rank, does that mean he's here to investigate the disappearce of the Farmers? Although, it is normal for Framers to die inside the Abyss, this report said they were a lot more and all at the same time.'
'If that's the case, it would only make sense that they sent a S-rank Farmer for the job. But if those Farmers didn't come out alive, what does that say for us?'
Sinon wasn't the one to question things but when she did, it always meant that something was serious.
Her spirit was lifted a little, after all they had a S-rank Farmer with them, and she was a D-rank middle stage, there was a massive difference in the ranks.
"S-rank is the only rank that is not grouped into stages…" Sinon mumbled, with a smile of ease on her face.
At this moment, Nyra turned around and Sinon saw the fierce expression on both Aegon and Nyra's face, then she remembered that there was a horde of monsters behind them.
Sinon walked towards them, and was about to comment on Aegon's achievement but got interrupted by his own words, saying:
"I am going to face the coming monsters…"