Chapter 424 - 347: I’ll Take Over the Battlefield (Part 2)

Chapter 424: Chapter 347: I’ll Take Over the Battlefield (Part 2)

Savage, jagged Bone Spikes burst through the skin, erupting from its forehead, jaw, and the sides of its neck.

Its already massive head now looked even more terrifying, exuding a sense of immense Power.

It threw its head back and roared, a furious cry that sounded like a dragon’s.

The Rock Dragon Snake!

"What’s going on..."

Gray stared at the newborn Dragon Snake roaring at the sky, his face etched with shock. "It has an ability like this?"

How could it sprout a head with a completely different Attribute?

"It is a Cruelty-grade Demon, after all... No one knows all of its specific traits for sure."

Marcus murmured, his expression grave as he watched the Rock Dragon Snake.

"According to previous battle records, everyone only knew that a fully grown Nine-headed Dragon Snake possesses nine different abilities."

"But there are no records of anyone ever fighting a juvenile Nine-headed Dragon Snake, so no one knew it could transfer its Magic Power, or that it could forcefully spawn another head..."

"The higher the tier of the Demon, the fewer the battle records. Naturally, that means there are gaps in the intelligence."

Valles drew a Black Tungsten Steel Glazed Armor-Piercing Arrow from his quiver and nocked it.

"We’re usually the ones using intel to outsmart Demons. I never thought we’d be the ones baited by a Demon for a change..."

"After this fight, others will know."

Zelir slowly exhaled, turning to glance at Zanxi, who was taking notes at the edge of the Forest Area.

"I guess that makes us the pioneers... paving the way for those who come after us with new intelligence."

"I’d rather keep resting in the shade of our predecessors’ experience," Gray muttered.

On the central battlefield.

"What the hell is this thing?"

Adrian frowned. "Looks like... the Head of Rock?"

"Looks like one tough customer..."

Redia raised her shield, cautiously positioning herself in front of Adrian.

The Rock Dragon Snake lowered its massive head, which was covered in jagged Bone Spikes.

Its brown, vertical pupils coldly gazed down upon the tiny humans before it.

"Let’s see what you’re made of!"

Adrian was the first to act, casting his Magic. He tentatively formed an Instant Flash Ball.

BANG!

The dazzling ball of light exploded against the rocky head.

But the expected scene—a crater several meters wide being blasted open—did not materialize.

Only a few small stone chips were blasted away, an almost negligible amount.

And they were quickly regenerated by its Magic Power.

"Tch..." Adrian looked embarrassed.

A normal Instant Flash Ball could shatter rock, but against the specially enhanced defense of the Head of Rock, its destructive power was clearly not enough.

Light Magic’s primary strengths were burning and purification.

In terms of pure destructive power, it didn’t rank among the top tiers of Elemental Magic.

"Grrr..."

The Rock Dragon Snake let out a low growl.

’Rock cannot be melted by Flame, nor washed away by water, and it certainly cannot be purified by light!’

’It represents absolute defense and the purest Power!’

’Now... you cunning, despicable humans!’

’What new tricks can you possibly play now?!’

The earthen-yellow light in its Snake Eyes flared, and a heavy will descended from the earth itself.

The entire clearing in front of the cave began to tremble violently before the ground started to bulge and burst apart!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

As if buried landmines had been triggered, large swathes of the ground erupted upward.

A wide-scale eruption of earth and rock!

Countless massive rocks, mixed with churning earth, shot skyward from fissures in the ground like oil from a gusher.

The entire battlefield instantly erupted into chaos.

"Watch your feet!"

An urgent warning rang out.

Adrian looked down at his feet.

Cracks snaked across the ground’s surface, weaving together.

Before Adrian could take evasive action, the Power of Earth erupted.

Countless sharp shards of earth and rock shot toward him like shrapnel.

At the critical moment, a shimmering, translucent barrier materialized around Adrian.

It was the Level Five Defense Magic, Shield of Radiance.

The shimmering light flickered as it collided with the earthen shockwave. Debris mixed with Magic Power rained down on the surface of the Shield of Light.

Adrian blocked the sudden attack.

But the eruption of earth and rock wasn’t a single blast. More cracks spread, constantly appearing around him before exploding violently.

BANG! BANG BANG! BANG BANG BANG!

Under the targeted assault, Adrian was battered by successive impacts, and his Shield of Radiance was put to a severe test.

Ripples of force passed through the violently trembling Shield of Radiance, striking Adrian’s body.

"Cough—ack!"

A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from his lips!

Although the Shield of Radiance had absorbed most of the eruption’s force, Adrian’s Constitution was only that of a normal person—it wasn’t anything special.

Under the relentless impacts, his insides churned, and he found it impossible to even focus his thoughts.

The other team members couldn’t help Adrian, as they too were being battered by the eruptions.

This vast expanse of earth and rock was the Rock Dragon Snake’s home turf.

It didn’t even need to aim; it could unleash the power of the earth anywhere it pleased to harm its enemies.

Shaman stumbled, nearly falling to the ground.

He was positioned relatively far away, at the edge of the battlefield, and hadn’t been caught in the eruption.

After regaining his footing, Shaman didn’t dare hesitate for a moment and immediately began Casting.

Healing Skill!

Healing Skill! Healing Skill! Healing Skill!

Streams of green light surged forth, entering the bodies of Adrian and the other team members to stabilize their injuries.

The teams on the flanks, on their way to regroup, were also hit by the indiscriminate eruptions.

Zelir had just taken a step when the ground beneath him cracked and abruptly exploded.

The Magic Barrier anchored by his Trigger Skill instantly activated, blocking most of the damage.

Although some of the force still hit Zelir...

But...

...his current physical constitution far surpassed that of an ordinary person.

The aftershock of an attack like this wasn’t enough to injure him.

Other than a slight tremor, he felt nothing unusual.

RUMBLING sounds echoed continuously as the battlefield descended into chaos, filled with swirling dust and scattered debris.

After a long while, the chaos finally subsided. The clearing in front of the cave was now a complete wreck, as if it had been plowed over and over by hundreds of oxen.

The flat ground was gone, replaced by a crisscrossing network of pits and trenches of all sizes—a scene of utter devastation.

Adrian staggered back two steps, clutching his chest and planting one hand on the ground for support.

"Adrian!"

Zelir bent down and steadied Adrian by the shoulder. "How are you? You okay?"

"I’m fine..." Adrian waved his hand weakly.

He said that, but his face was deathly pale, and traces of blood still stained the corner of his mouth.

’Damn it... The Rock Dragon Snake is definitely doing this on purpose!’ Adrian thought resentfully.

’The eruptions were chasing me. No matter where I ran, the explosions followed. I couldn’t shake them.’

’I had no choice but to tank the damage with my Shield of Radiance.’

’I took too many hits, and now my body is about to give out.’

Kilian and the others also trudged over through the uneven terrain.

Kilian breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Adrian was still alive.

’Thank goodness he’s okay.’

"What should we do, Kilian?"

Rolin asked, her voice full of worry, "Should we keep fighting?"

In her heart, she already wanted to retreat.

Rolin had seen what just happened.

The destructive power of Light Magic wasn’t very high to begin with, and Water Magic’s was even lower.

Facing the Rock Dragon Snake, which was known for its Defense Power, Rolin could immediately predict the outcome.

’Even if I used all my Magic Power to cast Water Prison at its full strength, the effect would likely be minimal.’

Kilian didn’t answer right away, but the twitching corner of his eye betrayed his inner turmoil.

He didn’t want to give up, but objectively, the decision wasn’t his to make.

After all, he was just a Vanguard.

’If our Mages have no way of breaking through the Rock Dragon Snake’s defense... then dragging this out will not only be fruitless, it might even lead to casualties!’

Kilian silently clenched his fists, his jaw tightening.

’Things really took a nosedive...’

’We were so close to taking this thing down!’

From the rear, Shaman watched the team nervously, awaiting the final decision.

He didn’t really want to continue, either.

A few more eruptions on that scale, and he couldn’t guarantee there wouldn’t be fatalities.

"Everyone else, fall back."

Zelir’s voice suddenly rang out.

"Kilian, Redia, Marcus, stay behind and cover me."