A huge creature came out of the huge tunnel that was previously covered in ice so that no one noticed.
A creature as tall as a two-story building with a pair of large, muscular legs came towards them at a slow pace as if trying to intimidate them, the creature's four arms which had three long fingers covered with sharp like knives claws scraping the hard ground leaving sharp marks.
The creature's face which looked like a hideous mixture between a lizard and a spider growled heavily while bared rows of sharp teeth and sharp fangs sticking out of its mouth.
[It's even uglier than the picture] Zhao Li Xin scorned in disdain.
[Come on sweetheart, give it a time... it'll get worse...] said Lory.
The beast widens its jaw and then spat a yellowish-gooey liquid in their direction.
"SPREAD OUT!" Garrof shouted urgently.
The four of them immediately jumped away before the liquid touched them.
"Don't let its spit touch you, or you will be cursed!" Garrof warned them anxiously.
Lory translated Garrof's words and then added [...told you? it'll get worse]
[My wife is wise] Zhao Li Xin sigh.
"Attack!" Garrof gives a command.
The four of them attacked simultaneously, Lloyd swung his sword that was imbued with electric power, while Garrof opened fire at Maren then the monster stuck its claws and pulled a chunk of dirt to block Garrof's bullet attack and hurled the frozen dirt at him, luckily Lloyd managed to slash it in pieces.
Meanwhile, Lory slid between the beast's legs and then swiftly slashed the beast's ankles which made the beast's footing become unsteady, Lory then take this chance to climb up the back of the beast so she could stab at the back of the beast's head.
However, the monster swung one of its arms to reach Lory, forcing her to abort her plan, at that moment Zhao Li Xin charged at high speed and then landed a heavy punch directly on the monster's head causing it to stagger a few steps backward.
However the beast refused to give up, it strengthened its footing despite the blood spurting from its ankles then let out a loud scream releasing cold air that instantly froze everything around it.
They immediately put up a barrier around them but that didn't mean Garrof and Lloyd weren't hurt in the least. Garrof and Lloyd felt numbness in their fingers which affected their ability to use weapons.
"Take your healing potion, I stalled the beast!" Lory's screams woke them from their shock.
Lory and Zhao Li Xin attack the Monster at the same time actually it's not difficult for Lory to defeat this monster alone but it means he will reveal his identity and what makes Garrof and Lloyd the worst of ultima infantry which means they might have seen him fight in the war of Dark Ages!
Lory can't even use his ice even though using ice elemental attacks would be useless because the monster is immune to the power of ice but that doesn't mean Lory can't hurt the monster with ice thorns but the problem is Garrof and Lloyd already know Lory had water gift so she can't let them see she used Ice power as well it became ice due to the elemental variation ability only possessed by the Lucient family.
[AAh, this is so annoying!!] Lory vents her frustration by cutting one of the beast's arms using a dagger infused with water power that transforms a simple dagger into a water blade.
The beast screamed in pain as one of its arms was cut off and it fell to the ground. Garrof and Lloyd were excited, and not wanting to be outdone by Lory and Zhao Li Xin they rushed towards Maren, with a special bullet Garrof fired his rifle and the bullet shot up and penetrated the monster's stomach and the monster was thrown into the air with a loud crash that fell with a loud sound.
"Nice shot!" Lory cheer.
Zhao Li Xin tilted his head as he examined the weapon on Garrof's hands, he was curious how the weapon works perhaps he will allowed to check it out after this, Zhao Li Xin's eyes lit up with excitement.
"Is it dead?" Lloyd watches for any movement from the beast.
Lloyd carefully moved carefully on the dead beast and then made sure the hole was big enough in the belly of the beast, only then he was sure the beast must be dead, Lloyd breathed a sigh of relief finally they managed to finish their task and sooner than he thought too! he hoped after this Ethan Hamilton's curse will be lifted.
Lloyd turn around then waved his hands excitedly "It's dead! Let's go back to…."
"Hey, WATCH OUT!" Garrof scream in panic.
A dark shadow loomed over Lloyd's head, a shock nailing his feet to the ground. He knew he had to move but his body refused to move. Blood dripped from between its fangs as the creature swung its claws at him.
"Lloyds, MOVE!" Garrof fired his gun at the monster but it was too late, Lloyd's fate was inevitable.
But at that moment a sudden strong blaze of fire came like a hot blade that cut Maren's arms, at the same time Lory pushed Lloyd out of the reach of the beast not long after they both rolled on the ground.
Garrof was dumbfounded as he saw the fire come from Zhao Li Xin, he guessed it must be Zhao Li Xin's 'Gift', but why he couldn't feel any mana energy from that man?
Then again, this is not the right time to dwell on that matter. Garrof fired a few shots while rushing toward Lory and Lloyd.
"Hey, are you okay?" Garrof's face was covered with worry.
it took a few seconds for Lloyd to calm himself after all he just brush with death a few seconds ago, "I'm fine..." he answered in a strained voice then he turn his head at Lory "You saved me again" He feel embarrassed yet grateful.
Lory got up from the ground and chuckles lightly "Don't get excited yet, we still have a big problem over here" Lory stare deeply at the reviving beast with a troubled expression.
They glanced at Zhao Li Xin incredulously but their attention was immediately taken by the sound of high pitch cackles that seemed to be coming from all over the place just like Zhao Li Xin's said the beast has surround them.
Weird vines emerged from within the beast and covered the beast's wounds then ran all over the body making it look like Maren was half made of trees.
"That....not the Maren I know..." Garrof's eyes widened in bewilderment, "Are they evolving or something?"
"...Or something..."Lory mumbles under her breath.
Maren reminded her of the Zhyger she had faced before in Riverblade, so to speak, what were the odds of finding another monster that could revive even after receiving a fatal wound in a matter of days? this is not a coincidence!
They hadn't been given enough time to comprehend their situation when they were startled by the roars and roars of beasts.
"Shit, the Writh is coming again!" Lloyd's voice was abrupt with a hint of urgency.
"Looks like we have big and small problems here!" Garrof clicked his tongue in annoyance as he saw the horde of Wriths rushing at them brandishing their fangs and claws.
"We got this, you help your husband!" Lloyd Saud and the two of them immediately jumped toward the Writh group while releasing their powers freely.
Lloyd swung his sword wide and took out several beasts at once while Garrof fired his gun and when the beast got too close he used body reinforcement 'gift' to punch his enemy with his bare fists. Lory watches them in silence then she turns her attention to Zhao Li Xin.
The truth is Lory wanted to help Zhao Li Xin but she feel hesitated cause she knew cultivators increased their power through many battles even a life-and-death battle could turn into a lucky one if one was lucky, then one could imagine how brutal a cultivator's path was in order to gain power so it was no wonder they tended to be cruel and heartless.
[Li Xin, do you need help?] Lori half screamed. Zhao Li Xin looked over her shoulder and smiled nonchalantly [I'm fine] Lory clenched her fists in disappointment at not being able to help her but Lory couldn't go against Zhao Li Xin's wishes.
Zhao Li Xin felt a bit guilty for making Lory worry but there was no other way for a cultivator to become strong except through a fierce battle cause when a cultivator only cultivated without fighting they were like a decoration sword, it just takes up space and is completely useless.
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