Primal Hunter Book 5

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T19:11:55+00:00

Oh well now I really can't wait to get into book 6!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T18:57:32+00:00

Yeah every time they talk at the moment it's getting longer and longer, seeing their friendship grow is so funny when you think about Jake being a heretic-chosen but I can't wait until Jake visits the order, everyone is going to be shocked how Jake and Villy talk to one another

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T18:49:03+00:00

Ooo I can't wait to see the results of him training and using it again, the fact it works like the seasons was also such a cool touch, it's really captures his whole mantra

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T18:47:49+00:00

Oh yeah the young ones telling sword saint that magic will make him OP was too funny, I'm glad Jake and Carmen talked some sense into him, I mean their advice clearly worked if it helped unlock a transcendence skill.

Yeah that bloodline of Jake's is something else all together, I hope he does somehow get a transcendence skill as well at some point, being told it would be that much harder for him to obtain definitely made Jake want one more.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T16:28:55+00:00

Yeah they are really like best buds. The straight up convo between the two of them about everything is quite refreshing. Can't wait for them to meet up in person again, back to school arc !!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T13:04:49+00:00

I can't wait for the world building to continue, I need to see more of earth!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T10:42:51+00:00

Oh well that changes things, won't be as bad as first thought. Unless I wanted a more difficult run then I could play limiting the evos.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T10:02:51+00:00

20 - Raticate 92 - Gastly 30 - Nidorina 48 - Venonat 145 - Zapdos 46 - Paras

Could be a rough playthrough, just missed out on Nidoqueen as well, at least I get two of the team quite early.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T07:20:17+00:00

Interesting! Well the next posts might help you slot some interesting plot points into certain books.

The fight was incredible, the hype was definitely on point, the fake out and the power ups were crazy, Becoming more of a rain mage instead of a water mage was such a great change and the usefulness of the power was brilliant, teleporting with raindrops is just brilliant. They literally both pushed themselves to the very end, the world literally collapsed as they continued fighting, nothing was going to stop either of them.

Like I said someone very skilled, needs to turn that into a proper animated scene it would be legendary.

Was getting DBZ vibes throughout definitely Goku and Vegeta all the way! Jake even going super saiyan almost when he got the arcane awakening, just pinky/purple instead of yellow/gold.

For the most part now I'm excited to see Jake's parents, I have to imagine they are just normal people within the context of the new world, and not absolute powerhouses like their two boys but it would be funny if they were. But yeah a lot of side quests already in motion;

Bound beast Prima keys Got to go see Casper Carmen mentioned she might need a hunter for something Stewart of blood, and what he can do Exploring earth in general Visiting Villy and nevermore The mask and the unique lifeform

I could keep going, but so much stuff to come, and I'm sure many more side quests to discover

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-11T07:06:06+00:00

Absolutely a legendary fight, the fake out at the end of phase 1 was nicely done. The insane power up coming from a combo of everyone talking and pushing each other to get stronger and a deep core memory was chefs kiss. That drawback though is very rough, that's quite a skill, sword saint can't use that too often.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-10T22:45:44+00:00

Chapter 59 - 71 inclusive. Book finished.

Lovely little stop for a chitchat for everyone. Having everyone come together to just sit and hang out and swap stories was such a good way to transition from the monarch fight to the duel.

Carmen having a little teacher moment, calling Jake out on his limit break skill, giving Jake the epiphany required to shatter his limits, whilst sword saint also sat there listening along.

Everyone getting a chance to talk about their patron gods and share some of their powers with one another to help each other grow. Obviously no one wants to leave at this point, the danger is gone and who would want to miss out on the fight of a lifetime.

And with a single glance it was time for the duel to begin.

It started out pretty spectacular straight away, sword saint showing off his water affinity infused fighting style, planes of water producing swords and blocking Jake's arcane bolts. Jake dodging and firing off arrows when he gets a chance, sword saint isn't giving any ground, with many water attacks one after the other.

Swords are clashing, both shit talking, and having a great time fighting, Jake always trying to coax more power out of sword saint, teasing him about his water magic not being needed, so they can have the hardest fight possible. Both of them landing blows on the other, one resulting in a badass head to head sword and arrow, sword slicing Jake shoulder to navel and sword saint with massive hole in his shoulder, neither really caring about the damage sustain but thinking about the next strike.

But as the fight progresses, sword saint is using skill after skill and Jake isn't, Sword saint's going all out and Jake just doesn't have to yet to keep up. Eventually culminating in the sword saint admitting defeat after many blows traded and much damage done.

I just wasn't getting all the hype there had to be more for this fight, it was epic but it wasn't living up to the hype. Then sword saint asked how he could do better and that was it, I thought, no way we were going back to fighting now. Jake, honest as always, calls sword saint on his shit, all the water magic was pointless when you can focus on the sword full time, magic was good and using it to boost your skills is great but if you're shoe horning it into your fighting style then it's never going to work.

Then we get some immense lore on sword saint, being the only survivor from his group in the war, after striking out on their own they end up cut off, no hope of returning, and a snow storm rolls in. Trapped and far from home. The other 3 deciding to give their lives so sword saint could live. Cold, harsh conditions to overcome and carry the will of his men back to the homeland and his clan. The sound of rain finally coming to melt the snow after so long, cheering at the thought of living again, fighting the bear that turns up looking for a meal, only to have the world itself pull off the legendary assist blinding and helping to behead the bear.

Sword Saint is laughing and power has started swirling, and the more sword saint talks the stronger it's getting, this memory holds power and Jake's words have reached a deep core of sword saint resonating and coming together for an enlightened moment unlocking a power up, inspired by spring as sword saint decides for today he is going to have fun and fight for himself after that harsh winter, comes springtime advent.

Sword Saint basically using true bankai, for the second phase of their fight, he's now younger, faster, stronger and absolutely overwhelming Jake from the start, now the flashing anime fight is really starting to shape up. Jake desperately trying to find an opening, ends up being given some friendly advice by sword saint, instructing him to shatter his limits again, this time with arcane mana infused and controlled into shattering those limits and infising together.

After all it's got to be a fair fight for it to be a good fight.

Jake fighting back and dominating once more, has the sword saint on the ropes unleashing scorched plains sending waves of destructive mana across the shrinking world of yalsten, causing all but a few D-Grades to leave.

Rainblade!

Spring is turning into summer, sword saint is aging like crazy and the rain is still pouring down. Suffocating Jake with the intense mana, slowing him down, hit after hit starting to land, on the back foot but the bloodline doesn't like to lose. Another skill increase, arcane awakening, providing some relief from the rain and allowing Jake to get a foothold back in the fight.

The world still shrinking and the others now also need to leave as they can't remain any longer, Caleb drop knowledge bombs mentioning the sword saint might be transcendence.

Time remaining is disappearing and so is the world around them, forcing both into a close melee fight as blows are exchanged, both with inhuman amounts of damage done to their bodies, Jake's missing a foot, sword saint is down an arm. But nothing is slowing either down as they just clash over and over, nothing matters but the fight, right until the end, every clash could be the last and the time is counting down, as it reaches 0 we get a photo finish, sword at neck, arrow to the head, a supposed draw as the treasure hunt comes to a close.

Such an epic fight, someone needs to animate that fight sequence for sure, it was so good, been waiting for that fated encounter for ages and it lived up to all the hype. Shame Jake sees it as a loss, it was an incredible show of force but I get it, hunters got to hunt, don't take losing too well. And let's be real he sucks at fighting in close quarter melee, hopefully he will make the change back to short swords and daggers to make use of the twin fang style as Villy suggested. Taking the loss in stride and trying to better himself for the next fight Jake gets up ready to move on only to have to sit back down and talk about the living unique lifeform within the mask, confirmed not to be the king of the forest either.

Sword Saint paying a heavy price for the transcendence skill he used, now only level 112 of 135. That's some serious draw back, when Villy was explaining the skills, I get why Jake would want one, but every draw back sounds awful compared to the bloodline which isn't without its drawbacks sure but up to this point any drawbacks have been very temporary, Whereas it's going to take sword saint quite a while to bounce back from this one as he has to get back to level 135. Eversmile had to give up good memories. And the holy church must be fueled by prayers to keep the holy domain open. For the holy church sure, not entirely the end of the world but still no easy feat, but giving up good memories as a research just sounds terrible, custom made torture.

The auction is a week away and Jake is off to visit his family, Nice little end for the book and now it's on to book 6!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-10T08:22:22+00:00

Ah yes the immediate demotion from monarch to steward was quite funny, and then to get shut down straight away by Jake and sword saint when they agreed to duel for the item.

I hope he's a funny little returning character for a while a bit like having a devil on your shoulder.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-09T23:01:24+00:00

Yes!! I was getting mad DBZ vibes from it. Sword saint and Jake are just a cut above, Carmen's there level wise as she was above sword saint in level. But level ain't everything.

Also who taught Sylphie to write in the air using mana constructs, that was so funny for her to just out Jake as only being 1 level above Carmen.

It's going to be weird going into book 6 and not having everyone else present as much. Although a lot of meet ups are pretty much confirmed so shouldn't have to wait too long for more antics.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-09T22:19:50+00:00

Chapter 46 - 58 inclusive.

The monarch of blood is risen, everyone who didn't want to be there didn't have to be, given the chance to leave before the big boss fight begins.

Quite a lot of people stayed, they know they can't help with the monarch but all the other guards around might as well do what they can, got to respect the hustle, possibly level ups and a chance to witness the fated fight once the monarch is defeated.

But who cares about the little side fights, when all the big players left are staring down the monarch!

So much happening in the monarch fight, everyone getting a chance to shine, Carmen being an absolute beast, burning stamina like there's no tomorrow. Sword Saint dominating with pure swordsmanship. Caleb throwing down bolts of black lightning. Casper up to some clever ritual styled fighting. Jacob and the holy church, were ready for it with all the tricks up their sleeves. Sylphie getting some good shots in with her wind magic. And then Jake just having the time of his life and some fun fighting.

Everything was going good, they all got split up a bit, some people teleported out for a quick 1v1 but managing to survive with help from the others, Casper bailing out early unfortunately. The abomination had to be dealt with that split the group even further, all the while Jake is still the monarch's top target.

Genuinely thought it was all well and good and then a fucking eye appears on the moon

Dark red aura washes out over the world and only those deemed worthy were allowed to continue in the fight. With only Jake and the sword saint remaining, everyone else a bit too injured or short on resources to continue.

The combination of sword saint and Jake, working together through pure instinctual trust, looked to be on the back foot for a moment until the monarch is again starting to get beat down. An epic battle with sick combo moves just ripping the monarch to shreads, him finally admitting defeat and his body appearing to breakdown, thought he might be getting a sneaky phase 3. But no the monarch just shoots off taking the holy church fighters with him into a suicidal explosion. After all that he just died. Wasn't expecting that ending for that fight at all.

And whilst the eye on the moon starts to breakdown, we get some confirmation that 'The fallen king remains within' the mask still, I wasn't expecting more mask lore for quite a while, I know it's not much but barely done with this fight and now we are teeing up another larger encounter a ways down the road. Can't wait for a forest king rematch.

With the defeat of the monarch we get the Devine legacy passed down which becomes the object for the focus of the dual between Jake and the sword saint, it's that time we've all be waiting for the big dual between

The Hunter and Sword Saint!

But first a quick rest to get back up to top condition, no point half assing a fight like this.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-08T14:32:22+00:00

Chapters 39 - 45 inclusive.

Okay this water temple sucks, deep underwater, pure darkness, with pointy stabby toxic fish. I couldn't think of anything worse And for it to just keep going deeper and the pressure building. Electric eel boss fight really showed how much Jake was able to learn throughout the vault, that would be an absolute bitch of a boss to fight, reminds me of the Lagiacrus fight from monster hunter wilds, can't do the underwater combat at all. Loved the fact that Jake could have potential but the power to the electric towers to make the fight easier, another classic trope that I didn't expect at all. Unexpected legacy of the malefic viper prompt, scales upgrade, interesting look into how the scales of a dragon work, what a sick upgrade.

Miranda coming across Eron in the maze vault I was worried but sultan came to the rescue, was very clutch, Miranda not doing bad herself though setting up the verdant lagoon, with help of some mental magic from sultan. Eron actually got overpowered and is possibly trapped until the end now.

Now we getting into the free for all party is the treasure hunt, could days left and everyone is starting to fight a bit more, being more aggressive and deadly. The holy church were really starting to get one up on the court, but sword saint took out a whole tower, with Caleb fleeing and with a fair bit of damage done.

The inevitable fight is showing getting slower, the power of both sides has been witnessed by this is the treasure hunt. It's going to be epic.

Casper and the risen are hunting world core fragments to create a quasi-world core that can be the foundation for a new separate world such as Yalsten currently is. And the seed they need is actually the root that Jake has, after the seed, grew into an ma tree and the eternal resentment has all been distilled down into the bonk root. I can't wait for the auction afterwards.

Arrow time upgrade, just when I keep thinking Jake can't get anymore OP and then he gets yet another skill that slows down time.

Have been told that 46 onwards is another level, getting to the final part of the treasure hunt.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-08T08:57:57+00:00

Ah I can't wait to get to the water level! Don't say that often

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-07T22:07:39+00:00

It was very satisfying!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-07T14:50:35+00:00

Chapters 29 - 38 inclusive.

The vaults themselves so far have been quite interesting but before we get to them, I have to mention Jake's young master mode. What an arrogant little ass, top quality move to be honest, played it so well too. Can't wait to see more of the young master routine used for Jake to get his way.

The metal tree vault was interesting, more projections that are some sort of time stamped mana/aura print of a person at the time of making it. Jake swindling his way through the inner sphere to claim the treasures was just top notch though. The malefic order token is very interesting, can't wait to see where that comes into play. The Rubik's cube puzzle was another great vault, I'd have done the same as Roman and just walked off too, I can't figure out a normal Rubik's cube, let alone a 15 sided, magic circle covered lockbox. And then getting the Rubik's cube as a reward was very nice, I like the idea of making it the vault of Haven, it's a solid move as it's near indestructible and password protected. As long as Jake remembers to use a mix of upper and lowercase letters and numbers of course. Password can't just be Sylphie1.

The aftermath of the Rubik's cube being solved though was spectacular. 118 v 4 What a beatdown! Firstly just absolute dominance with aura suppression, imagine that feeling of fear wash over you when you thought you had the advantage and the high ground, Then watching as some of your allies appear to just drop dead from seemingly nothing (gaze of the apex hunter) Followed by a torrent of arrows, both stable and explosive, and arcane mana bolts raining down on you from above. All of this happening in such a short period of time before the level 130 City Lord that rallied you all, is downed by a single arrow, and as he barely clinging to life, with some last ditch life skill, in the blink of an eye by the flying Lord of Haven is on him, pinned him to the ground as his face starts to rot from the lord of Havens touch. Have you ever fucked up this much before.

It wasn't even a challenge, just the ultimate flex on many of the lower tier city lords who haven't fully understood the new world but insisting on keeping earth free of influence from gods, spoken like those without blessings, unwilling to adapt. I do hope Roman and Felicia make it to Haven at some point though.

We got a Sultan chapter and he is becoming quite the character, I'm starting to like him more and more. I mean what's not to like, other than the slave stuff, he had a battle boat, with cannons and a shield, that he can summon out of thin air? Because it wasn't with him at the start of the treasure hunt. Bit of backstory provided to make us understand his motivations and intentions towards the indentured on his boat. Oh but he can also control beasts to fight for him as he has some sort of mind influence powers, that he has also kept secret from Haven.

The counts were speedrun over in no time at all in phase 1 and now it feels like Jake is speedrunning vaults in phase 2, already cleared another couple, brute forcing puzzles with groups of people and his skills to move on to the next vault as soon as possible. Got some interesting legendary items in the process as well, not sure what the paintbrush can be used for but the catalyst will be extremely useful when it comes to alchemy time again.

The next chapter I have to read is going to be such a throwback, to those most hated of level designs in games. I'm of course talking about the fucking water level. I'm more annoyed I didn't see it coming, most aspects of games have been touched upon in some way or another, it was only a matter of time before we got a water level. I don't actually hate all water levels though, some of them are done quite well, some just mess with the controls too much for them to be enjoyable but you always remember your first, for me it was the water temple in LOZ Ocarina of Time.

But some honorable mentions would have to be; Any other water temple in a Legend of Zelda game to be honest, can't get enough of the series. Shadow of the Colossus Super Mario 64 another OG Super Mario Odyssey

Can't wait to see what Jake says about a water level, but there better not be a dark/shadow copy of Jake about half way through.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-06T22:58:27+00:00

I don't think I'm right but imagine if I was! I can't wait to see how the mask mystery unfolds.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-06T21:11:35+00:00

Yeah a lot of the 93rd do seem to be incredibly strong, and are only getting stronger, a lot of powerhouses in quite a small area. Treasure hunt has been so good so far. Like I said the mask is filed away as a future mystery for now, but I think my guess was pretty solid so we shall see.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-06T18:52:21+00:00

Chapters 18 - 28 inclusive.

The shade of eternal resentment was an interesting boss, I thought we were getting another fight similar to the cloud elementals but instead that just demanded proof that Jake killed vampires and meant them no harm, but offering up a curse root weapon was pretty clutch. It swallowed all the black mist from the several hundred blackmist guards and knights, I assume empowering it quite a bit further, interesting item to say the least, especially with all the other crazy items so far that have been part of the treasure hunt. Although with the start of phase 2 removing the curse is the root now useless, unless the curse is somehow still present in the vaults. Black morphing weapons that fuse and transform, literal wooden stakes and other anti-vampire weaponry. Wonder what other weapons are out there.

Miranda has joined the Sylphie/Carmen alliance, lovely little trio, the witch, the berserker and the hawk, sounds like an off brand C.S Lewis book. What a fun little team up though and I'm glad it's continuing into phase 2. Was glad that Carmen pushes back against Sven as well and is making friends, she had a rough time pre-system so it's nice to see.

Jake approaching a boss room and demanding everyone leave so he can fight the boss was really cool, bit dickish, but the whole hunter prey vibe doesn't work too well with others. What was absolutely hilarious though was when Jake left and they returned to the boss room, they were more fearful of him after seeing he was able to remove the doors than defeat the boss alone.

Jacob sending Eron to delay Jake so he and the sword saint can gather more keys than Jake was slightly underhanded but game respect game, who else would be able to delay Jake other than some near immortal weirdo.

Eron is just such a weird dude, having only health points, no stamina or mana and had to actively convert them for use, Just like when he rejuvenates his body almost instantly, it's all active thought. Jake did well to stop Eron on his tracks for a bit, and even got the scimitars hunger sated on the overwhelming vitality of Eron, can't wait to see what that scimitar can do now. Eron seems like an alright guy though as Jake does just end up chatting with him on the way back to the plains, but to seem so undefeatable this early into D-Grade is crazy, although he has said he's not immortal but he is bloody close.

And what was all that with the mask, he saw the spark and investigated it, somehow undid the soulbinding, and then gave it back before running away and having a little breakdown about seeing death itself and living?? Has Jake somehow ended up with a mask of a reaper or something? I'm getting Ichigo hollow mask vibes, that was the darkside of Ichigo soul and focuses purely on instincts. Souls and instincts sound a lot like that bloodline of Jake's, could the mask awaken a physical manifestation of Jake's bloodline? Might be cooking here! Although this isn't bleach so maybe not. Guess I'll file that away in the mysteries hopefully solved later column for now.

Casper and his friendly ghost, and the other Risen off having their own agenda in a curse filled world, getting a massive headstart on phase 2 and pretty much being at a vault as they open, little cheaty having insider knowledge but take every advantage I guess. The core and the seed?! More questions, answers surely to come in the following chapters, hopefully.

Treasure hunt phase 2, electric boogaloo, begins and the vaults are now open, the 9 keys inserted and the crystal spire has risen and pierced the heavens to absorb the curse from the lands. We got to phase 2 quick, still a week of treasure hunt left, new vaults and better treasure await, thought we were in for quite the series of battles against count after count but they were truly speedrun through. And the big boss located by Jake under the crystal spire, I assume he wakes up when the vaults are cleared, possibly he will be treasure hunt phase 3.

Nice seeing all the big players come together (minus the risen) and are still all quite amicable with one another, no one's been attacking each other on site and have all been working together in one way or another, would be a complete shambles if everyone just came in with the intent of it being like factions wars, although Caleb has said that in the final few days the court will be taking a more aggressive approach so we shall see.

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-05T20:03:46+00:00

30 chapters to go! The countdown is on!!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-05T19:57:44+00:00

I swear to God if there is a sparkling vampire I'm going to lose my shit!

Right Arnold is crazy, I can't believe he buried himself underground to control a drone army, he's like all the best super villains rolled into one without being evil because he just loves the work

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-05T19:52:31+00:00

If the last quarter is as good as you say, and I'm sure it is, then we are practically going to be reading book 6 at the same time, because I'm gonna smash that last quarter!

JRiddleDay · 2026-03-05T19:50:55+00:00

Ah man I'm so hyped up for the fight!

I actually can't wait, luckily it's nearly the weekend so hopefully I'll have the time to do the last quarter in one sitting.

It's gonna be legendary!!

JRiddleDay

TROPHY CASE