Without it, with her god-awful reflexes, no amount of "top players" could've saved her. Of course, there was a reason why players still risked their lives to take on higher-tier advancement trials despite the insane difficulty—attribute buffs. Before completing the Advancement Trial, players followed the standard stat progression for their class—gaining 100 attribute points every 10 levels. But once you cleared the trial, that bonus permanently increased. Clearing Normal difficulty boosted the gain by 0.2, giving 120 points every 10 levels; Hard gave a 0.4 boost, or 140 points; Nightmare bumped it up by 0.6, or 160 points per 10 levels. And so on. If you somehow managed to clear Abyss, though, that buff doubled outright. That meant 200 attribute points every 10 levels. Even better, each trial's buff stacked with the previous one. Which meant two players with the same class and equipment could end up worlds apart in raw core attributes, depending on the difficulty they'd cleared. One step ahead meant a lifetime ahead. That was how the game worked. "Grey." Since Aiden had already decided to stand atop the world and look down from the throne, perfection was the only standard he'd accept. And he had every reason to be confident. Still, he wasn't reckless. His first move was to summon Grey. A flash of light—and a half-sized dragon appeared beside him, small enough to look cute, yet radiating an unmistakable sense of power. "Let's hunt." With his divine beast at his side, Aiden stepped into the forest. A deep roar tore through the trees. Branches trembled. From between the shadows, a massive figure emerged. 'Savage Frost Wolf (Eerie): Lv. 10' 'Health: 5000, Mana: 5000''Strength: 300, Physique: 500, Agility: 300, Energy: 500' 'Passive: Unknown' 'Skills: Unknown' 'Description: A warped creature born of the Abyss, wielding the power to destroy all it touches. Beware—once it locks onto you, death follows close behind.' "An eerie creature?" Aiden's pulse quickened as he took in the beast's hulking form—three meters tall, like a moving hill of muscle and frost. Just those stats alone could wipe out a full team of level 10 elites decked in silver-tier equipment. With 5000 health, even the strongest burst-damage Shadow Assassins would cry in despair. And with 300 Strength, two basic attacks could flatten a low-defense player instantly. Not to mention whatever ridiculous skills it might have—no one could predict that. Based on how "Doomsday" handled monster design, Aiden was certain that once this Savage Frost Wolf unleashed its ability, even a heavy tank class could get one-shotted.But the worst part wasn't the stats—it was that single word next to its name: Eerie. That tag meant this monster was one of the eerie creatures. And getting killed by one didn't just mean a game-over. It meant permanent, real-world death. "No wonder they call it Abyss," Aiden muttered, his expression tightening. "This is downright sadistic." He hadn't expected the trial to throw something like this at him. And once you entered, there was no backing out. The only way forward was to clear it. Failure wasn't an option. "Go, Grey." With a sharp command, Aiden sent his dragon forward. Grey, already itching for a fight, blurred across the air—his sleek body slicing through the forest like a silver streak—landing right before the Savage Frost Wolf.The wolf towered nearly twice his size, but as a Celestial Dragon, Grey held a natural dominance. A wave of draconic aura rippled outward, forcing the massive wolf to stumble back, hackles rising in fear. Then, Grey's jaws opened wide, and a torrent of flame roared forth. 'Dragon's Breath' '–2500' A pale number floated above the wolf's head. Its health bar instantly dropped by half. The Savage Frost Wolf recoiled, panic flashing in its eyes. Grey didn't give it a chance to recover. He lunged forward, claws striking in a blur. '–594' '–600' The wolf's health plummeted again—barely a third remained. "This thing's definitely a level 10 corrupted boss," Aiden muttered, eyes narrowing.Grey's attacks carried a natural 30% damage buff. By that math, he should've been hitting for around 650 a strike. But the actual numbers were about ten percent lower. No doubt about it—the wolf had a built-in 10% damage reduction, a common trait among level 10 corrupted bosses.