Chapter 77: Bony Brute Force Vs Nanotechnology

Reclining against one of the mountains just before the path stood a titanic figure around ten meters tall, its features hidden beneath ragged, pitch-black robes whose sleeves had been torn apart, revealing skeletal limbs underneath.

It was the first being Declan had seen still standing upright, but his eyes displayed caution as he noticed the corpse seemingly blocking the path forward.

’Was it a corpse that had died standing, or...’

In the next moment, his suspicion was confirmed, and Declan’s expression immediately changed.

CLAAANK!

The sound of bones clattering together echoed through the area as he watched the figure’s finger bones twitch, and in the next instant, its hands flexed as it rose upright from where it had been reclining against the mountain.

CLAAANK!

CLAAANK!

More bones clanked as it straightened itself, curling and uncurling its skeletal hands before the space where its face should have been.

It soon paused, its unseen gaze landing upon Declan, who stood fifty meters away.

"Y..."

"You... never... here..."

The ghostly voice came from the side, sounding like bones crackling together.

"What did it say?" the NCEG voice echoed in Declan’s ear.

"It said, ’You never here.’"

"Hostility detected. Prepare to run!" the voice said, but Declan didn’t turn his back.

He had a feeling that the second he turned around would be the second he died.

"Run, Declan. You’re an explorer here, not a combatant. Run!"

"It’s... it’s too late."

The second Declan finished those words, he hadn’t even blinked before finding the hulking body directly before him, less than a meter away.

’Wh... so fast!?’

BOOOOOOM!

Declan took a single step backward, his spine crackling as it shot him toward the ground, narrowly avoiding the bony claws that blasted apart the air above him.

Planting one leg firmly against the ground, he smashed his other leg down with all his power, sending himself shooting sideways just as the bone titan’s massive leg slammed into the spot where he had stood, blasting open a meter-deep crater.

The bone titan slowly turned its head, but the moment its gaze fell upon the area ahead, it found Declan already racing toward it like a blur of light.

Its bony claws slammed into the ground as he closed to within a meter of it, but Declan vanished, reappearing in the air at the bone titan’s eye level with both hands outstretched toward its face, each one covered in the Nano Photon Blaster.

"GO TO HELL!"

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A massive pillar of destructive energy burst from his palms and slammed into the creature’s skull, but the titan didn’t dodge.

Instead, its other claw swung through the air and collided with Declan’s side.

BAAAAAAANG!

A circular shockwave exploded outward as Declan was blown violently away, tumbling across the ground for twenty meters before rolling through the ground and dragging himself to a stop.

WHIIIIISTLE...

All he heard was the sound of whistling, and he turned forward just in time to find the hulking bone titan charging toward him.

Its robes had been blasted apart by Declan’s last attack, revealing its true features: it held no skin, only bone.

Yet for a solid second, an image appeared in Declan’s head, showing a being with flowing crimson hair and a demonic grin on its face as it rushed toward him.

VROOOOOOM!

The air was torn apart as the bone titan’s claws slammed toward him, but Declan jumped and weaved through the gaps between them before rushing forward and kicking toward its face.

Its bony mouth opened and clamped hard onto Declan’s foot, and in the next moment, it raised its head, lifting him high into the air before violently jerking it downward.

BAAAANG!

"Gasp!"

A gasp of pain escaped Declan’s lips from the horrifying impact, his eyes spinning wildly in their sockets as his entire body was smashed against the golden ground, only for the bone titan to immediately lift him and slam him back down again.

For the next few seconds, his battered body was repeatedly smashed into the earth as the enormous creature continued its relentless assault.

"Declan, are you—"

BAAAANG!

"Hey, can you hear—"

BAAAANG!

"Say something!"

BAAAANG!

BAAAANG!

BAAAAANG!

The sound of endless destruction rang across the battlefield as the bone titan repeatedly smashed Declan into the ground, each impact sending cracks racing through the golden earth and leaving his body looking as though he had been completely overwhelmed.

Only after seemingly satisfying itself with the relentless beating did the titan finally stop, throwing Declan upward before launching itself after him, its massive leg swinging toward him with terrifying force.

BOOOOOM!

A circular shockwave exploded through the air as the strike sent Declan flying into the distance.

BOOOOOOM!

BOOOOOOM!

BOOOOOOM!

Explosions continuously erupted across the battlefield as his body ricocheted violently off the ground before finally smashing into the rocky silhouette of a massive stone formation, becoming buried deep within the rock as dust and debris filled the surrounding area and silence descended over the battlefield.

"You..."

CLAAAANK!

The sound of bones clattering together echoed through the silence as the skeletal titan slowly walked toward the path where Declan had been sent flying, its voice rattling through its empty skull.

"Muss..."

CLAAANK!

CLAAANK!

"DIEEEEE!"

CRAAACK!

The sound of something stirring within the rocks echoed across the battlefield, and moments later, a hand dragged itself out from the depths before the rest of a crouched figure emerged from the rubble.

It was none other than Declan.

Blood covered his forehead, with a thin line running from the top of his head straight down across his nose, while the voice of the NCEG monitoring operator continued ringing desperately in his ear.

"Declan! Declan Ezra! Are you okay? Can you hear me!?"

The voice rang ceaselessly in his ear, but Declan paid it no attention, instead giving a simple command to the system.

’Hey, system?’

[Yes.]

’Sever the connection temporarily.’

"Decl... Decl...a...n..."

The voice distorted before abruptly fading away, leaving complete silence inside his head as the system panel flashed before him.

[Connection temporarily severed.]

[Host actions are no longer under monitoring.]

Declan stared at the panel for a moment before humming softly, and almost immediately, his battered appearance seemed to disappear as he rose to his feet, calmly cracking his back and flexing his hands as though the beating he had just received had been nothing more than an inconvenience.

"The combat suit really is tough, huh?"

He looked down at his body, inspecting the sleek material covering him, and despite having just been slammed around like a sack of meat, there wasn’t a single tear in the combat suit.

WHIIIISTLE...

The familiar sound of whistling echoed across the battlefield once more, causing Declan to raise his head as the bone titan came charging toward him, both massive claws dragging across the golden ground as it rushed forward.

In response, Declan reached into his coat and pulled out a couple of objects, which weren’t cubes this time but rather small spherical devices that fit neatly within his palms.

He crushed one within each hand, and immediately, nanotechnology erupted from the spheres, spreading across his hands and wrists before forming something far more substantial than the Nano Photon Blaster he had used previously, with a pair of full nano gauntlets taking shape around his arms and extending all the way up to his elbows as they began blazing with concentrated energy.

Declan brought his gauntleted fists together.

"Activate Combat Mode!"

WHIIIRR!

WHIIIRR!

Light immediately began shining across his combat suit as nanobots activated throughout its surface, accompanied by the mechanical whirring of countless tiny components working together.

VROOOOOOOOOM!

The air split apart in the next instant as the bone titan swung both claws toward him, its enormous limbs tearing through the air with enough force to create a violent disturbance around them.

Declan leaned slightly forward.

BOOOOM!

The ground beneath his feet violently shook as a nozzle suddenly emerged from the soles of his combat boots, blasting out a concentrated burst of energy that launched him forward at incredible speed.

CLAAAAAAAANK!

The titan’s claws slammed together with a deafening clash, yet Declan was already standing only a few inches from its face, having slipped directly between the incoming claws before they could crush him.

Calmly, he extended one gauntleted hand and planted his palm against the titan’s skull.

BOOOOM!

The nozzles beneath his feet fired once more, releasing another violent burst of energy that propelled him forward, and the force dragged the bone titan’s enormous body along with him as Declan accelerated across the battlefield, his grip remaining firmly planted against its skull.

Then, with a violent twist of his body, he spun around and snapped both arms upward, using the momentum to hurl the bone titan into the sky as its massive body soared nearly fifty meters above the ground.

The titan thrashed violently in midair, its skeletal limbs flailing as it struggled to regain control, but Declan had already stopped beneath it and raised both gauntlets toward the creature.

Destructive energy began swirling violently within his palms, growing brighter and denser with every passing second as the air around him trembled beneath the immense concentration of power, while Declan’s eyes narrowed as he stared up at the bone titan.

"Maximum Destruct Protocol: Absolute Erasure!"

KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

What came out wasn’t just a few rays of destructive energy, but a massive pillar of energy that continuously burst forward with overwhelming force, the resulting impact powerful enough to send Declan dragging backward across the ground until a five-meter-tall mound of earth had been pulled up behind him.

When the explosion finally stopped, Declan’s palms slammed against the ground as the remaining energy dissipated, the sound of molten material sizzling and melting echoing through the battlefield.

Turning back toward the bony titan, Declan found its hulking frame slowly crumbling into ashes that scattered and faded into the wind.