Chapter 2959: Hunt
Across a distant region of the endless desert, five figures streaked through the sky at terrifying speed, leaving long trails of spirit energy behind them as storms of sand exploded beneath their passing.
At the front flew Supreme Dunadan himself, cold winds spiraling endlessly around his body while frost spread across the air in his wake. Behind him followed Duke Damien and the Star Tower Lord, both radiating powerful Grand Magus pressure, alongside Arctus the formation master whose floating flags constantly shifted around him like a protective orbit. Slightly below them rode Ayla atop her massive silver tiger, the beast running directly across the air itself while its glowing eyes continuously scanned the wastelands beneath.
For almost an entire day, the group had relentlessly pursued the trail left behind by the missing Supreme Hunter Marc.
Using Ayla’s extraordinary beast-tracking abilities, they had actually managed to locate the infected supreme once earlier. Unfortunately, even after successfully cornering him, they failed to restrain him. The supreme combat instincts remained terrifying, allowing him to escape before they could engage the battle.
This time, however, Arctus had fully prepared himself.
The formation master continuously kept dozens of prepared formation flags floating near his sleeves, each already infused with spirit energy and ready for immediate activation the moment combat erupted.
"He’s near," Ayla suddenly said.
The silver tiger beneath her abruptly stopped atop a massive sand dune, its silver fur standing slightly while low growls escaped from its throat. Ayla slowly turned toward a distant rocky hill several miles away, her sharp eyes narrowing carefully.
"There’s a cave inside that hill," she said grimly. "His trail entered it."
Supreme Dunadan gazed toward the distant hill before turning back toward her.
"Are you certain?"
Ayla took a slow breath before answering.
"I can’t be completely certain. Senior Marc is a supreme being... and he wasn’t called the Supreme Hunter for nothing. Even."
Her expression darkened slightly.
"But I’m sure the trail entered that place."
Hearing this, Dunadan slowly nodded before glancing toward Duke Damien.
The old spirit champion’s eyes immediately glowed gold.
Several seconds passed before the elderly man finally spoke.
"Yes... there’s definitely a powerful presence hiding inside., from the signature... It’s the same corruption"
The surrounding air instantly grew colder.
Dunadan immediately made his decision.
"Arctus. Follow directly behind me."
The formation master nodded quickly.
Meanwhile, the remaining three were ordered to stay outside the cave entrance. The underground tunnels were far too narrow for five Grand Magus to fight efficiently together, especially against another supreme-level existence. Large-scale techniques would become restricted while movement itself would turn chaotic.
Without wasting further time, Supreme Dunadan stepped directly into the cave darkness.
Arctus followed closely behind him.
The cave interior was massive yet strangely silent. Traces of faint purple miasma drifted through the air. The deeper they traveled, the more unnatural the atmosphere became.
Minutes later, Dunadan’s eyes suddenly sharpened.
Movement.
The entire mountain violently shook.
Without hesitation, the supreme raised one hand and unleashed a devastating ice spell toward the rapidly approaching figure hidden within the darkness ahead. At the same time, Arctus activated multiple formation flags instantly, preparing to seal the surrounding cave.
BOOOOM!!
Ice exploded throughout the tunnel.
However, when the dust cleared—
It was not Marc.
A massive corrupted desert beast burst out instead.
The creature resembled a gigantic armored rat over thirty meters long, its body covered in thick black armor plates while crimson eyes glowed beneath layers of corruption. Black saliva dripped continuously from its jaws as it released an ear-piercing screech before charging straight toward them.
The beast itself possessed strength rivaling a Grand Magus.
Unfortunately for it, its opponents were far beyond ordinary Grand Magus.
Supreme Dunadan shattered the creature’s armored body with two devastating attacks, freezing and exploding half its flesh apart within seconds.
Yet during those brief moments, the beast accomplished its real purpose.
Dark gooey liquid exploded throughout the cave.
The strange substance spread rapidly across the walls, floor, and surrounding air before sticking directly onto Dunadan and Arctus themselves. Although not immediately dangerous, the liquid possessed terrifying restraining properties that interfered with movement and spirit energy circulation.
That was when Supreme Dunadan finally realized—
It had been a trap from the very beginning.
The hunted had become the hunter.
At almost the exact same moment, miles away outside the cave entrance, a figure suddenly stomped against the desert ground hard enough to collapse the surrounding dunes before launching upward into the sky like a comet.
The incoming figure descended directly toward the cave entrance with overwhelming momentum.
Duke Damien and the Star Tower Lord reacted instantly.
Golden spirit energy erupted around the elderly spirit champion as half a dozen massive spectral arms materialized before him. Beside him, the Star Tower Lord summoned a gigantic shield forged from cosmic fire and light.
Both defensive techniques collided directly against the incoming attack.
BOOOOOOMMM!!!
The impact shook the surrounding mountains violently.
The incoming figure shattered through both techniques with terrifying brute force. The spectral arms exploded apart first, followed immediately by cracks spreading across the cosmic shield before it completely collapsed.
Ayla’s quick reaction prevented disaster.
The beastmaster unleashed multiple crimson arrows infused with raw power.
BAM! BAM! BAM!!
The barrage finally slowed the descending figure enough for the others to evade.
Then the smoke slowly dissipated.
Everyone froze.
It was Supreme Hunter Marc.
Or rather—
What remained of him.
Half of his body had already transformed into parasite flesh. Purple organic matter covered portions of his chest, neck, and face while multiple yellow eyes blinked beneath cracked skin. One arm had mutated completely into a monstrous claw surrounded by writhing tendrils and parasite flesh.
Yet despite the horrifying transformation, his remaining human eye still retained awareness.
Ayla visibly trembled.
"Senior Marc..." she whispered weakly. "No... what did those things do to you...?"
What followed was a brutal battle.
The infected supreme moved with monstrous speed while retaining all of Marc’s terrifying combat instincts. Every strike carried enough force to collapse hills while corrupted spirit energy spread continuously across the battlefield.
Within seconds, both Ayla and the Star Tower Lord suffered injuries.
If not for Duke Damien repeatedly launching powerful soul attacks to briefly restrain Marc’s mind, one of them would have died already.
Fortunately at that moment supreme Dunadan manage to broke free from the restraining slime within the cave, forcing Marc vanished once again into the endless desert storm.
Afterward, silence filled the battlefield.
Supreme Dunadan slowly clenched one fist while freezing winds spiraled violently around him.
"...Damn."
His cold gaze remained fixed toward the distant desert horizon.
"That thing is toying with us."
The supreme narrowed his eyes slightly.
"But why? ... for what purpose...?"
