Chapter 145: A Deadly Battle Against A B-Rank Monstrosity

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RUMBLE!

Outside the collapsing fortress, Kagehisa’s group had just finished dealing with the last of the berserk mutants when the entire mountain shook violently once more. The remaining ceiling and large sections of the fortress exploded outward, revealing a gigantic mass of writhing flesh, muscle, bone, and scales that roared through a massive skull-like face.

"GRYOOOOOHHHHHH!"

Genesis-05’s furious roar was truly monstrous and terrifying. Everyone present screamed in sudden pain as a sharp, stabbing headache tore through their minds. As an experiment created using a large quantity of Genesis Cells, the creature had inherited its mother’s inherent psychic abilities. It possessed the power to directly affect the mind, scramble thoughts, or even create vivid, life-like illusions.

"What the hell is that thing?!" Goki yelled, staring in horror at the rising silhouette.

Kagehisa’s eyes narrowed with determination. "It doesn’t matter what it is. Our boss is still inside. We have to go help him out. That’s...! B++ Rank?! What?! He can’t take that thing on by himself. Let’s move!"

The three ninjas nodded without hesitation and flashed through the grass as they rushed toward the ruins of the laboratories.

Back in the massive crater, Riven rose from a sea of boiling mana. He was coughing and heavily burned, yet his powerful regeneration rapidly began repairing the agonizing wounds across his body. He leaped away at the last second before a giant bony tendril could crush him flat.

"You’re one tough son of a bitch, aren’t you?" Riven clicked his tongue in irritation. "When I woke up this morning, I never imagined I’d end up fighting an alien baby."

"SHYAAAAAGGH!"

Genesis-05 hissed furiously and extended its massive jaws toward Riven in an attempt to swallow him whole. Riven raised both hands in retaliation. The Abyssal Bone King Pandemonium manifested instantly as a towering skeletal fortress that slammed down around the creature like a massive cage.

CRAAASH!

"GRRRR?!"

At the same time, Malevolent Dragon King of Yomi Embodiment forced a torrential flood of pure Black Water from both Riven’s mouth and the fortress itself, completely flooding the cage with the life-draining liquid.

"Here, you stinky son of a bitch. Why don’t you take a nice, cold bath?!"

SPLAAASH!

"GRUOOOHHHHHH!!!"

Genesis-05 thrashed violently inside the flooded cage. The many human faces embedded across its body screamed in unison.

Riven could clearly hear them — the agonized screams of the over one hundred people who had been used as materials for this monstrosity’s birth. The entire situation was completely insane.

Above all else, the creature’s regeneration was monstrous, almost equal to Riven’s own. Yet the Black Water slowed that recovery significantly, and the bone cage continued reforming itself faster than the beast could break free... at least for now.

Label, now fully recovered, climbed onto a surviving ledge with Chemy perched on her shoulder. "Riven! The Mana Reactor’s residual core is still feeding it energy! That’s how it’s gaining so much power and regenerating so quickly!"

"!!!" Riven looked down and immediately noticed how the creature was continuously absorbing the ambient Mana and steadily growing larger.

In just a few more seconds it would evolve into B+++ Rank, then quickly reach A Rank. By that point Riven would have absolutely no chance of defeating it.

"If I can overload the residual conduits and create a massive explosive reaction the moment it tries to absorb them—" Label began, already running across a surviving ledge with Noir’s help. She leaped from section to section, barely catching herself as Noir assisted her toward her destination.

"Do it!" Riven roared. He caught the monster’s massive fist just as it shattered the bone cage in an instant and grabbed him tightly in a crushing grip.

"Nnnggh?! Ngaaaahhhhh!"

Riven roared with all his might, desperately resisting the immensely powerful grip that was being fueled by practically endless explosive mana from the reactor.

"HURRY, LABEL!"

She did not hesitate for even a second. Chemy opened its mouth wide and began devouring the floating fragments of the damaged reactor, rapidly converting them into highly unstable alchemical bombs. Label immediately began lobbing those bombs into the remaining cracks of the bone cage that still partially contained the beast.

A rapid series of sharp, high-pitched detonations rang out. Genesis-05 foolishly attempted to absorb everything without any thought for the consequences. Its regeneration faltered for a critical half-second as its entire body began to explode from the inside.

It was now or never.

Riven swung his claws and swords with full force, cutting cleanly through Genesis-05’s gripping hand using Flesh-Rippling And Soul-Shattering Onslaught. He then ran rapidly across its remaining arm toward the main body.

Jaws of Gluttony.

Spectral jaws the size of a house erupted from his Aura and clamped down hard onto the monster’s remaining arm and half of its torso. At the exact same moment his Death Mithril hair shot forward like a thousand silver spears, piercing the giant eyeball embedded in its chest.

Genesis-05 screamed in pure agony and staggered backward, completely destroying what remained of the cage. Riven immediately seized control of the scattered bones, transforming them into sharp spears that lunged into the creature’s body, piercing bone and muscle and tearing everything through their path.

However, the damage still did not seem to bother the monster enough. It roared and swung its remaining arm toward Riven with crushing force. He caught the massive limb midair, unleashed every remaining drop of his power, and twisted the arm completely out of place.

CRACK!

As he crushed the limb, he finally unleashed a powerful synergy ability he had been waiting to use. He combined multiple skills and other powers together. His aura erupted violently and suddenly manifested something massive formed of bone and rotting flesh.

Great Abyssal King of Rot Phantasmal Spirit Guardian.

A gigantic black skeleton covered in rotting purple flesh emerged above the battlefield. It resembled a Lich King, with the lower half of its body completely missing so that it floated like a half-ghost and half-skeleton hybrid.

Its glowing eyes locked onto the skull-face of Genesis-05. It immediately began firing concentrated beams of deadly phantasmal energy and ghostly fire toward the creature’s head and remaining eye. With Riven’s direct support, the combined assault managed to tear that section of the monster apart completely.

BOOOOM!!!

"GRYYAAAAAAGGGHHHH!"

Genesis-05 was no longer able to attack. It could only scream in endless agony as large quantities of disgusting white and green liquid poured from its ruined body. Label watched the entire scene in pure awe from her elevated position.

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