Ch.370Two Battlefields (3)

–

‘That was close.’

Blood flows down over my eyes, accompanied by intense pain and dizziness.

Salman had kept one last move hidden. The attack he launched grazed the top of my head, leaving a wound.

‘If I had thrown the spear just a little later, I would have been the one hit.’

Though I couldn’t see the formless attack clearly, judging by the amount of bleeding and pain, it seemed I had narrowly avoided it.

Despite sustaining a serious injury, the Sky Mother wasn’t overly concerned.

Just as the Wendigo has “Ice Spirit” and the Chimera has “Great Flame,” the Thunderbird also possesses unique characteristics.

Specifically, the trait called “Spring of Life.”

The Thunderbird’s blood and bodily fluids contain components that accelerate wound healing, allowing for rapid recovery even from severe injuries. As long as blood remains in the body, recovery is possible at any time. This trait is well-suited for the Thunderbird, which relies on speed for close combat.

However, it cannot recover from poison or viral attacks. And since it’s a trait that enhances natural healing ability, recovery speed varies depending on the severity of the injury.

‘First, let’s stop the bleeding.’

The more blood leaks out, the slower the recovery of injuries.

She concentrated her consciousness on the wounded area. A small hand appeared from around her neck and covered the wound on her head.

This wasn’t an ability of the Thunderbird or herself. It was an effect of the “full-body suit” she was wearing.

The unique-grade equipment exclusive to Volfs basically has shape-shifting capabilities. Such equipment transforms to match the body as it changes from humanoid to beast form. The reason her entire body appears to be made of black metal now is because she’s wearing unique-grade equipment.

The name of the unique armor she’s wearing is “Obsidian Arms.”

This full-body suit, made using Voltex One’s “Ring of Agony” as material, can create several black arms as its name suggests. Up to five arms can be generated.

This might not sound particularly impressive, but the true value of the suit lies in these black arms.

When a tool is placed in one of these arms, it’s automatically stored inside the suit. Stored tools cannot be detected until taken out again, and no one but the suit’s owner can retrieve them.

When storing bulky or oddly shaped objects, the suit changes its form accordingly. If an object is too large even for that, it cannot be stored.

Thanks to the Obsidian Arms, one can use various weapons even while transformed into a beast. Just like how she had hidden the Golden Spear of Shaman in her wings before throwing it at Salman.

‘Moreover…’

Unlike in the game, she could directly control the black arms herself. This allowed her to create hands to stop the bleeding. Since complex and delicate movements were possible, the arms could be utilized for various purposes beyond combat.

‘It feels like I have more arms now.’

Is this how AMorph and Isabelle feel?

With such thoughts, she descended to where Salman had fallen.

Breaking through the clouds as she descended, the first thing her eyes caught was a mountain. A massive Mountain Crawler the size of a small mountain was crouched down, lying prone.

In front of it stood PS-111, a mutant screamer that looked like a mix between a spider and a scorpion, perfectly still.

The atmosphere was different from what she had expected.

‘Why aren’t they fighting?’

Salman had fallen with the Golden Spear of Shaman pierced through his chest. Like her, he was wearing high-level armor, so he wouldn’t have died instantly. Though he couldn’t have avoided a critical wound.

Therefore, the orders he gave to that Mountain Crawler should still be valid.

‘Come to think of it, where did he go?’

“Middle one. Abnormal reactions detected in the Mountain Crawler administrator’s body.”

PS-111 spoke while pointing beneath the Mountain Crawler with its hook-like claws.

There lay Salman, with the golden spear pierced through him.

“Gr, grgrgk! Ugrgrgigigik?!”

With broken wings, his body trembled violently. His condition seemed strange for someone in a dying state.

“Suspected symptoms of Psyonium-based stimulant use. Cell collapse and mutation occurring simultaneously. Loss of control over the body…”

“■■■■■■■■■■■■!”

At that moment, Salman let out a horrific scream. The ear-splitting noise echoed across the land covered in embers.

Along with it, energy bullets poured out from Salman’s body. The Mountain Crawler, which had been lying down to protect its master, was instantly riddled with holes.

“This is a dangerous target. It must be eliminated.”

“…Damn it.”

Beside the fallen Mountain Crawler, Salman, or rather the grotesquely mutated Simurgh, rose into the air.

It seems the fight isn’t over yet.

–

“Grrrrrr”

The Magmasaur growls with its six eyes wide open.

Even the king of the volcano recognizes that I’m no ordinary opponent. From now on, it will fight with all its might.

‘The same goes for me.’

Thanks to “Superior Enhancement,” my body has fully recovered. Plus, with the emblem of hunting activated, my entire body is overflowing with power.

Moreover, No. 26 and Isabelle have entered combat mode and are hovering above my head, facing the beast.

It’s not just the creature that wants to settle this here.

“Grrrrrrrrrr!”

“■■■■!”

“■■■■!”

“■■■■!”

The creature, which had been standing still, roared. My heads and I roared back fiercely, refusing to back down.

As if responding to our roars, a volcano erupted again in the distance. Clouds of flame and ash covered the sky, and fragments of crust thrown up by the explosion fell back to the ground.

Under the falling rain of fire, the demon of the volcano began to move. Each time the hundreds-of-meters-sized monster extended its four legs, thunder-like sounds echoed.

Against the charging beast, I stretched out my wing-arms. The membrane of my wings spread wide like clothes fluttering in the wind. In that state, I kicked off the ground and lifted myself into the air.

The distance between me, gliding low, and the Magmasaur charging toward me closed instantly.

The moment I collided with it, a tremendous impact struck my entire body. The ground beneath its feet and the air enveloping my wings shook violently from the shock wave.

Though I took quite a hit from the collision, it wasn’t as bad as what the opponent suffered. After all, I had struck its head with both my legs while gliding.

“Grrrrrr!”

The enemy groaned lowly, apparently quite dazed from being hit by my legs. Meanwhile, the heads on both my sides bit into its back.

The hidden double jaws inside their mouths shot out and embedded themselves in the creature’s lava-like exterior. The skin was so thick that no blood spurted out.

Still, it must have been quite painful, as the beast shook its body violently. Its powerful tail moved fiercely, trying to strike me.

The tail came flying through the air with a menacing sound. To block it, six erosion tentacles hidden on my back moved. Each tentacle, with its pointed appendages spread out, grabbed the incoming tail.

“Grrr?”

Perhaps thanks to the emblem of hunting, although strong force pressed against my tentacles, I could withstand it. The creature seemed confused by the different outcome compared to earlier.

But this wasn’t the end. I pulled both necks and tentacles to get closer to its back.

When I become the emblem of hunting, two additional arms with sharp bone scythes sprout from my body. These bone scythes are as hard as my head carapace and sharper than any weapon.

I struck down on the beast’s back plate with my new weapons that had grown from my lower waist. Even the incredibly thick carapace of the creature couldn’t withstand it this time. Not just the elongated bone scythes, but even the ends of my arms sank in deep enough to disappear from sight.

“Gr, grrrrrrrr!”

The creature screams in pain, experiencing this sensation for the first time. Filled with rage, the Magmasaur tries to collapse while I’m still attached to it. It intends to crush me under its massive body.

Naturally, I have no intention of letting that happen. I spread my wings and flew upward. My bone scythe arms were pulled out, causing magma-like blood to spurt, and the rock-like skin that my mouths had been biting was torn off.

But the creature, as if it had been waiting for this, extended its long neck and bit my ankle.

Before I could feel the pain rising from my foot, my body plummeted straight toward the ground. After slamming me down with immense force, the creature raised its front leg.

Just before the front leg could pierce my chest, it stopped in midair. Countless purple threads had appeared from nowhere, entangling the creature’s leg. No. 26, another Apex creature like me, had bound it with psychic power.

Behind the creature, immobilized by the invisible force, I sensed a chrome-colored snake approaching. Isabelle quietly moved closer to avoid being noticed by the enemy and landed on its back. In front of her was the wound I had created earlier. She used her many arms to widen the wound and then thrust her head inside.

“Grrrk!”

The Magmasaur let out a short scream as something suddenly burrowed into its wound.

The leg bound by psychic power trembled. Soon after, with a sound of tearing air, the psychic net was ripped apart. Due to the creature’s exceptional physical abilities, even No. 26 couldn’t maintain the binding for long.

‘But that’s enough.’

The creature’s front leg pierced where my right neck should have been.

“Grrr?”

But my right neck wasn’t where it stomped.

While No. 26 was buying time, it had already separated from me.

The detached “right head” struck the creature with its combat arm.

“Grrrr!”

“?!”

The creature staggered greatly after being hit in the head by another “me.” Seizing the opportunity, the third “me,” the “left head,” leaped at the creature.

Kicking off the ground with thick legs, it charged and pushed the opponent forcefully with its wing arms and combat arms. Even the hundreds-of-meters-sized giant could no longer withstand it and sat down.

“Gr, grrk?”

The creature seemed shocked not just by the pain, but more by the sudden appearance of new enemies.

“Grrrrrr”

“Grrk!”

My two heads, which had gained new bodies thanks to “Hydra Division,” growl at the creature.

I acknowledge that the Magmasaur is strong. I also admit that its physical specs are superior to mine.

That’s why I decided to increase our numbers.

‘It must be confused by the increased number of enemies.’

It was already struggling with me and No. 26, and now two more enemies of similar caliber have appeared.

But the mighty Apex didn’t back down. The creature tries to rise and open its mouth wide.

“Grrrr…gk?”

The right head and left head rushed in, timing their attack as the creature was about to roar. The right head climbed onto its back and grabbed its upper jaw with its combat arm. The left head pressed down on its front leg to prevent it from rising while simultaneously gripping its lower jaw.

In that position, the two of them began to exert force to tear apart the creature’s maw.

“Gugggk!”

“Grrrrrr!”

“Grrr!”

The creature, pinned down by two “me’s,” struggles desperately. I pierced its abdomen with my bone scythe arms and shook them violently. The rock-like skin protecting its belly came off, and fragments of intestines and blood leaked from inside.

“Gugg!”

“Guk!”

The Magmasaur howls in pain. It kicked the left head’s abdomen with all its might using its front leg. The head was thrown back with its waist bent in a grotesque direction.

‘Where do you think you’re going!’

I immediately pulled out my bone scythe arms and took over what the left head had been doing. I wrapped my erosion tentacles around the creature’s two front legs and firmly gripped its lower jaw with my combat arms.

With its entire body suddenly restrained by me, the only attack method left to the creature was its tail. Its tail flew toward me, trying to tear me apart.

I was prepared to sacrifice my claw-equipped tail, but the enemy’s tail stopped in midair. No. 26 had halted the tail with psychic power.

“Guggg…grrrrrr!”

The creature’s mouth, gripped in my hands, gradually opens wider. The skin between its jaws tears, and magma-like blood flows out from inside.

The sweet smell flowing down my wing arms—a signal that the enemy’s life is nearly at an end.

At that moment, the creature’s struggles to escape me ceased. Simultaneously, a thick membrane covered all six of its eyes. It was a sign that the fire and thunder demon’s powerful attack technique, “Ion Lightning,” was about to be launched.

Just before black lightning could be fired from the forcibly opened maw, the creature’s body twitched. What spewed from its mouth was not lightning but only acrid smoke.

“Guruk?!”

‘Isabelle!’

Earlier, she had entered the enemy’s body through the wound I had created. It was all to attack its electrical generation organ.

Of course, even she couldn’t destroy the Magmasaur’s electrical generation organ completely. While not as tough as its skin, its internal organs are still very sturdy.

However, buying even a brief moment of time was enough. I thrust my wing arm into the creature’s widely opened maw.

“?!”

“Grrrrrr!”

“Grrrr!”

My wing arm shoved into the enemy’s mouth, two combat arms gripping its lower jaw, and the right head gripping its upper jaw—a total of five arms exerting all their strength.

All for the sole purpose of tearing apart the Apex monster’s maw.

A moment later, a chilling sound came from the creature’s mouth. Beyond the breaking of the bones connecting its jaw, its head was being torn apart into upper and lower portions.

Blood pours down like a waterfall from above. Licking the hot, sweet blood with my tongue, I gave one final push with my arms.

My body was suddenly pulled backward. I could feel the enemy’s bones and flesh at the ends of my wing arms and combat arms. The right head that had been on top also fell backward.

Then the ground shook violently. The Magmasaur, having lost its head, had finally collapsed to the ground.

I took a large bite of the creature’s lower jaw that I had torn off.

What my tongue detected was the taste of victory.