I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel

Chapter 55

Terror Birds.

They were pretty famous creatures.

In popular media, they were often portrayed as being eaten by Smilodon.

Would that have happened in real life? Well, who knows?

Look at their size and those beaks.

If a Smilodon messed with them, it would end up with a hole in its skull.

I haven’t seen any Smilodons around here, but if they did meet, I’d say it would be a 50-50 chance.

Terror Birds 5, Smilodon 5.

But wow, these things are massive.

If Tang Soyeong were here, she’d probably be freaking out.

"That’s... that’s the legendary phoenix!"

Well, since they’re called Terror Birds, she’d probably just call them that.

I wonder what she’d actually say.

“Kikikikikikik!”

The Terror Bird is a formidable creature.

Its powerful attack and impressive speed make it a dangerous opponent.

Especially its curved beak—it’s designed to deliver devastating vertical strikes.

If you get hit by that, it’ll leave a gaping hole in your bones.

But that attack isn’t flawless.

For its strike to be effective, I’d need to be smaller than it.

That’s because its main attack requires almost a straight downward motion.

Standing on two legs, I was definitely not smaller than it.

That didn’t mean I was out of danger, though. It just meant I could avoid its most dangerous attack.

“Grrrr...”

I growled low, continuing to intimidate them.

The Terror Birds seemed momentarily taken aback by my size.

From a distance, they probably thought I was just a large lizard.

Maybe they thought I was standing up for a brief moment because of an itch.

What lizard fights on two legs, after all?

Their confusion was understandable.

“Kikikikikik!”

But I couldn’t let my guard down.

Though they were surprised, they hadn’t abandoned the idea of hunting me.

These Terror Birds had likely hunted creatures similar in size to me many times before.

Even if they hadn’t faced a two-legged lizard, they were familiar with two-legged dinosaurs. They were common in this area.

“Kikikikikik!”

The one on the left was slightly smaller.

It was probably taking orders from the larger one on the right.

Should I target the leader first or take out the weaker one?

There was no time to think.

Thud, thud, thud!

The larger Terror Bird charged at me.

With a top speed of 50 km/h, there was no way I could dodge it with my short lizard legs.

No ordinary lizard could.

But I wasn’t an ordinary lizard.

I activated Dash and used Small Dragon Ascension Steps to dodge its charge.

“Kikikikik!”

The Terror Bird seemed startled.

I immediately followed up with Dragon Claw Hand.

Swoosh!

I aimed to rip off its wing, but I only managed to pull out some feathers.

Still, the initiative was mine. I could have attacked again with my other hand.

But instead, I pulled back.

This was a 2-on-1 fight.

If I stayed to land a second blow, the other Terror Bird would be on me in no time.

Thud thud thud thud!

Just as I dodged, the second bird’s beak came crashing down.

If I hadn’t pulled back, I would’ve been hit.

I jumped back again.

Thud!

Even for me, dodging such fast, close-range attacks wasn’t easy.

I widened the gap between us, putting us back in a similar situation as before.

“Kikikikikik!”

The Terror Birds were communicating in their screeching voices.

They were likely discussing how to handle the large lizard in front of them, which matched their speed.

The only thing that annoyed me was that they weren’t planning on retreating.

“Grrrr...”

They were making another mistake.

Not immediately closing the distance between us was a misstep.

They should’ve either fled or pressed the attack right away.

[Poison Creation LV4] activated.

Sssss!

A large amount of poison was generated out of nowhere.

Boom!

A surge of overwhelming energy crushed the Terror Birds.

Unlike when Baek Yeon-Yeong used it, my Overwhelming Aura simply slowed their movements.

But that was enough.

Goryong Kick.

I took one step toward them.

Crack!

With Overwhelming Aura combined, I finally grasped the essence of Middle.

It’s slow but strong.

It’s slow, but you can’t dodge it.

It’s powerful, and you can’t escape.

This was the essence of Middle in Goryong Kick.

Gangryongjinpok.

Boom!

The ground began to tremble.

From the point where I stepped, the earth split open. The cracks spread toward the Terror Bird’s feet as if a living dragon were swimming beneath the surface.

Whooosh!

The shockwave surged forward, swallowing the fleeing bird.

“Kieeeeeek!”

It screamed, but it was already too late.

I ran forward and gripped both hands tightly.

Well done.

Two chickens.

I finished them both with Dragon Claw Hand strikes to the head.

Boom!

[Level Up].

[Level Up].

[Level Up].

Three levels from two Terror Birds.

A bit disappointing, but I can’t complain.

It was a decent harvest.

Plus, I’d secured two large chickens to eat.

Eating both would probably give me another level.

Then, suddenly, I heard the sound of birds.

“Kaaaaak!”

It seemed like crows had caught the scent of blood and were coming to investigate.

I could spare them a little meat, but could they quiet down?

They might attract other creatures.

I looked toward the source of the sound.

It wasn’t crows.

It was a smaller bird, brightly colored, circling overhead.

An... parrot?

“The lizard killed the flightless birds!”

It was definitely a parrot.

And it could talk.

...Wait a second.

Parrots usually repeat words they’ve heard, right?

But this one... seems to be speaking on its own?

Is it some kind of freakishly smart mutant?

[Gold Macaw LV3]

Even using Eyes of the Wild, the parrot appeared to be a normal bird.

“Kaaaa! The Snake Queen is smiling!”

This was unsettling.

What did it mean by Snake Queen?

Whatever it was, it didn’t sound good.

I should catch that bird and make it spill whatever it knows.

I braced my legs, ready to pounce.

“Uwooo....”

Boom.

Something massive was approaching, crashing through the trees.

“Kaaaaak! The King is passing by!”

Boom....

“Uwooo....”

Finally, it came into view.

A massive, pure white figure.

What should I even call that thing?

No one would call it a bird.

Its body below the neck looked like some giant bird out of a fairy tale.

But the upper half was the problem.

Flowing black adornments.

It looked like it could recite Confucian texts with ease.

A long neck.

And a human face.

“Uwooo!”

It’s a Jinpeng!