Chapter 365: A Tough Battle (2)
Chapter 363
"HALO OF PROTECTION!"
In a panic, Ray shouted out the name of his skill while simultaneously dashing in front of the cohort with his tower shield positioned firmly in front of his body.
"Gather around!"
The cohort wasted no time in grouping up just as a radiant barrier encompassed them all from all sides, shielding them just in the nick of time from the heavy impact of the swarm.
Bam—!
Mandibles and scythe-like legs flashed forward, bashing into the barrier as the arachnid beasts covered their position from every angle.
The barrier cracked for half a second before rapidly repairing itself.
Ray gritted his teeth, watching his energy bar deplete at an astonishing speed.
’For real?! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!’
"Prepare for a counter!" Ray bellowed as he strengthened his grip on the shield in front of him.
The others wasted no time in preparing themselves, shifting into their combat stances while looking around at the mass of spiders swarming over their position.
Luckily, the King-rank beasts—which numbered about twenty or so—didn’t move from their initial positions.
Just for a second before he let down his barrier, Ray cast a swift glance toward the towering spider queen with a heavy frown on his face.
’If she’s the queen and has a lot of King-rank beasts under her grasp, then that means she’s stronger. Way stronger than a King-rank.
Damn it all! This is a death sentence! One damn King-rank beast can kill us all, and we have twenty of them plus something even stronger? This is completely above my paygrade!’
"Going down! Brace for impact!"
Before his energy could plummet any further, Ray immediately dismissed the barrier.
Unhesitatingly and without delay, Kai grabbed his crystal club and swung it forward with all his force.
Wam! Bang!
The club connected with a loud bang as two of the spiders were bashed in the small gap between the chitin plates covering their legs.
The legs snapped, and the force of the bash sent their bodies hurling into a few more from their group.
Swinging her hands forward, two big ice columns burst out of Trisha’s fists, crashing into the faces of two of the spiders and sending them sliding away.
Lifting his hand into the air, an orb of light spun rapidly around Ray’s palm, and without delay, he swung it forward.
A second later—
Bang—!
A deafening sound rippled through the whole chamber as the orb of light crashed into the vanguard of spiders.
With explosive force, it ripped through their bodies; armor and chitin or not, it didn’t stop the projectile.
Tensing his calves, Felix exploded forward with a fierce dash.
In a flash, his claws flashed in front of a spider.
The beast tried to dodge just as a second one lunged toward the werewolf.
Sensing the pincer movement, Felix clapped his hands loudly.
In a blink, he swapped positions with the lunging spider, causing it to collide with its comrade as they went crashing into the ground.
Bolting toward them, Felix cocked his hand backward and drove his fist forward.
A thunderous sound rang aloud as his fist blew a hole right through the armor of the beast, sending its body hurling into the others until they clattered away.
Lifting her hand into the air, Trisha swung it back down, summoning a dozen sharp ice spears that plunged cleanly into four beasts trying to encircle her position.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sharp sound of Chloe’s arrows almost bouncing entirely off the spiders’ thick chitin echoed through the chamber.
While the arrows failed to pierce the armor, the blunt kinetic force distracted the beasts for half a second, slowing their advance just enough.
It was all the time Chloe needed.
Finishing her concentration, she pushed both hands outward, releasing a massive burst of telekinetic force that crashed into the pack of spiders and sent them hurling into the distance.
’I don’t have the luxury of time to be holding back anymore. Let’s go all out!’ Ray howled inwardly.
Grabbing his shield with zero hesitation, he charged straight forward into the center of the horde.
The spiders turned in unison toward the lone, advancing human whose eyes were fixed entirely on the King-rank beasts guarding the rear.
"Fool."
Nebula’s mocking voice echoed directly inside his mind once more.
With an explosive burst of speed, the surrounding spiders darted toward Ray.
’Good. Good. Come to me and only me.’
Ray could immediately feel the immense pressure on his cohort lessening as the Advanced-rank spiders diverted their attention, lunging after him in a frantic attempt to prevent him from reaching their queen.
Just like that, within seconds, Ray was completely swarmed on all sides.
Whirling around, he slammed his shield down in front of his face just in the nick of time.
A heavy stone scythe bashed into the surface with all the raw strength the beast could muster, but the impact barely budged the Tribrid standing firmly behind his defense.
Spinning his free hand around, a sharp bone spear materialized in his grip.
He slid the weapon perfectly into the vulnerable tendons connecting a spider’s front limb.
With a harsh slash downward, Ray tore through the muscle, sending the crippled beast crashing hard into the stone floor.
Pivoting cleanly on his heels, the boy’s leg flashed through the air.
Despite the beast’s heavily spiked body, the hazard did nothing to deter the Tribrid, who hammered his shin directly into the side of its torso.
Bang!
The spider was lifted completely off its feet and sent rocketing backward like a ragdoll.
In the process, its tumbling body crashed into its incoming comrades, scattering them away like a bunch of bowling pins.
The moment his foot touched the ground again, Ray leaped high into the air.
A split second later, another spider’s scythe tore violently through the exact pocket of space he had just occupied.
His muscles bulged as he tightened his grip on the shield in his grasp.
Twisting his torso while still mid-air, he cocked his arm backward.
Then, with a thunderous crack that ripped through the air, he hurled the heavy shield forward like a lethal frisbee.
The velocity of the throw was so immense that within a single blink of an eye, the rotating edge of the bone shield severed dozens of arachnid heads, which rolled heavily to the ground.
Thud!
Ray landed back down right in the thick of the swarm, instantly sensing even more spiders charging toward his position.
It was clear they had now deemed him the primary threat on the battlefield.
Whether it was by the direct telepathic command of their queen or their own survival instincts, he couldn’t be sure.
But the plan was working.
His cohort was no longer being overwhelmed.
Ray straightened his posture, cracking his neck from left to right.
A pair of dual bone swords materialized in his hands as he calmly sensed the incoming wave of mandibles and scythes speeding toward him from every angle.
"Time to farm some more experience points," he muttered silently, casting a cold look past the horde toward Nebula.
His lips curved into a dark smirk.
’Thank you. You’re going to make me a tad stronger before we finally clash.’
A heartbeat later, Ray vanished from view.
Comments