Chapter 77: The Overlord’s Descent!

WHOOSH!

The next moment, thirty large stones, like thirty small meteors, streaked across the sky with a sharp whistling sound as they smashed toward the enemy.

The instant the stones were thrown, Ryan activated Spider Silk Swing and followed closely behind them, rapidly swinging through the forest.

At this moment, although Owen and Gareth were meditating with their eyes closed, their Mental Awareness had been continuously radiating outward, covering a range of roughly forty-five to sixty meters around them.

Every rustle of leaves and movement of grass within that range was clearly detected, allowing them to maintain a high level of vigilance at all times.

They did not know whether Ryan would arrive on time.

However, this area was already relatively close to the deeper regions of Ashfall Forest, making it considerably more dangerous.

The large group of black-clad guards was an important target.

If a high-level Exotic Beast suddenly intruded and wiped them out before Ryan arrived, it would be a considerable loss.

Therefore, Owen and Gareth had to continuously extend their Mental Awareness outward, remaining alert to their surroundings and preventing any unknown entity from approaching unnoticed.

WHOOSH!

The next moment, the thirty large stones entered the range of their Mental Awareness.

"Eh?!"

Owen and Gareth sensed them almost simultaneously.

Their expressions changed drastically as they abruptly opened their eyes and sprang to their feet.

Both of them looked upward and saw the rapidly descending stones.

"Not good! Enemy attack!!!"

The moment their warning rang out, the thirty massive stones, propelled by the terrifying strength of Ryan’s Overlord Body Bloodline, descended like a rain of falling stars.

In an instant, they were less than nine meters away from the Sterling Family’s black-clad minions.

The guards looked up.

What they saw was a sky filled with enormous stones hurtling toward them.

The dark sky seemed to be raining doomsday meteors upon the earth.

It was a terrifying sight.

The expressions of the Sterling Family’s black-clad minions changed drastically.

Their previously orderly formation instantly descended into chaos.

They were all Origin Sea Convergence Realm Bloodline Fighters and did not possess the powerful Mental Awareness of Owen and Gareth.

By the time they heard the warning and looked up, the enormous stones were already descending upon them.

Moreover, the thirty stones covered an extremely wide area.

There was simply not enough room for them to dodge, nor was there enough time to escape the impact zone.

They immediately turned pale with fear, screaming and pushing against one another as they desperately tried to flee.

"Oh no!"

Seeing the chaos among his subordinates, Gareth’s expression changed, and anxiety flashed through his eyes.

"Owen, I’ll protect Jake. You go and deal with the incoming attacker! Find out whether it’s Ryan or some Exotic Beast. How dare they launch such a brazen sneak attack? Dismember their limbs!"

Ryan was concealed behind the flying stones with the Gray Light Shield, and amidst the chaos, the Sterling Family had no idea who their attacker was, or whether it was even a person.

"Yes, adoptive father!"

Owen’s expression also turned furious.

His figure suddenly blurred as he shot forward.

The two of them absolutely could not leave Jake together.

If the attacker was Ryan, doing so would allow him to exploit the opening and rescue Jake.

As long as Jake remained in their hands, they weren’t afraid that Ryan would refuse to show himself.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The next moment, countless stones crashed into the crowd.

"Hmph!"

Seeing this, Gareth’s expression became incomparably gloomy.

His spatial ring flashed.

A massive shield-shaped secret treasure suddenly appeared in his left hand.

He raised it above himself, blocking the rapidly falling stones.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The enormous stones slammed heavily against the giant shield, producing a series of deafening impacts.

However, as the barrage continued, Gareth gradually felt a faint numbness and pain spreading through the arm holding the shield.

His expression slowly changed.

Who was this attacker?

Was it a person or an Exotic Beast?

How could their physical strength be so terrifying?

Even his arm was beginning to ache from blocking the falling stones.

The truth was that Ryan’s primary targets were not Owen and Gareth.

Only a small number of stones had been thrown toward their position.

However, Owen had already rushed forward to deal with the attacker, leaving Gareth to block the incoming stones alone.

That was why he felt such tremendous pressure.

Jake was also lying not far in front of Gareth.

With an Origin Spirit Realm Peak expert protecting him, combined with the fact that Ryan had deliberately avoided Jake when throwing the stones, he remained completely unharmed.

The rest of the Sterling Family’s black-clad minions, however, were not so fortunate.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

In an instant, countless massive stones rained down upon them like hailstones smashing through banana leaves.

The black-clad minions immediately released heart-wrenching screams.

Mournful cries rose and fell as blood and shattered flesh splattered in every direction.

In the blink of an eye, most of the black-clad minions had been crushed to death.

Even Owen’s intervention was unable to change the situation.

Having reached the Origin Spirit Realm Initial Stage and possessing astonishing speed, he barely managed to blast several of the falling stones away, causing them to deviate from their original trajectories.

But against more than a dozen black-clad subordinates scrambling like ants on a hot pan, this tiny amount of assistance was ultimately insignificant.

Moreover, the attack had been unleashed with the full strength of Ryan’s C-Grade Top-Tier Overlord Body Bloodline.

Combined with the terrifying momentum generated by the stones falling from a high altitude, the resulting destructive force was absolutely no joke.

Unless one possessed an exceptionally powerful physique or a Bloodline specializing in physical strength and defense, it was nearly impossible to withstand such a terrifying indiscriminate attack.

And these black-clad guards were merely low-level Origin Sea Convergence Realm martial artists.

Most of their Bloodlines were only around the D-Grade Excellent level.

Against this kind of overwhelming attack, they were simply too fragile.

Finally, all thirty stones crashed into the ground.

For a brief moment, everything fell silent.

Then...

BOOM!

Dust billowed into the sky.

Sand, soil, and smoke surged outward, while countless stone craters and corpses littered the ground.

The entire area looked like a scene from hell.

Only two of the black-clad guards had managed to survive, barely escaping death thanks to Owen’s desperate intervention.

"Damn it!!!"

Seeing his black-clad subordinates fall in droves like wheat beneath a scythe, Owen’s face twisted with fury.

Blood and fragments of flesh had even splattered across his body.

"Who dares to launch a sneak attack against my Sterling Family?!"

With an enraged roar, he charged forward even more frantically, intending to tear the attacker into pieces.

However, when the smoke and dust gradually dispersed, there was no one in front of him.

Because while everyone’s attention had been focused on the barrage of flying stones, Ryan had already used Spider Silk Swing to exploit the numerous towering trees along the way and rapidly circle around to the rear of the group.

His true target had always been Jake.

At this moment...

Ryan cut the Spider Silk in mid-air and immediately switched to the Overlord Body Bloodline.

Then, with a sharp whistle, his body suddenly descended.

Using the momentum of his rapid fall, he unleashed a powerful downward elbow toward Gareth, who stood at the Origin Spirit Realm Peak.

"Superior-Grade Origin Realm Combat Skill, Exploding Heavy Elbow!"

Ryan’s arrival was incredibly sudden.

Dense yellow Origin Energy enveloped the tip of his elbow.

As it tore through the air during his descent, a terrifying whistling sound erupted.

The air seemed to be pierced by the force of the attack, and transparent ripples spread outward from the tip of his elbow.

The downward strike was unbelievably fast.

In the blink of an eye, Ryan’s elbow was less than a meter from Gareth’s skull.

"Spider Silk?! Ryan?!"

Gareth caught sight of the severed Spider Silk and immediately recognized Ryan.

A trace of surprise flashed across his eyes.

Then his expression turned furious.

Instead of retreating, he advanced.

He abruptly raised the giant shield in his left hand and smashed it upward toward Ryan’s descending attack.

"Superior-Grade Origin Realm Combat Skill, Flame Shield Strike!"

In an instant, yellow Origin Energy surged through Gareth’s body.

A red flame imprint suddenly appeared in the center of the shield.

Immediately afterward, crimson flames rapidly spread across the entire shield face.

A gigantic shield enveloped in raging crimson flames materialized, radiating terrifying heat.

Gareth had never expected Ryan to arrive on time.

Even less had he expected Ryan to completely bypass the front of the group and circle around to attack him, the strongest person present.

A cold sneer appeared in his heart.

A mere Origin Sea Convergence Realm Fifth Stage dares to confront an Origin Spirit Realm Peak expert head-on?

He’s simply a mantis trying to stop a chariot. He truly doesn’t know his own limits!

Therefore, Gareth did not hesitate.

He directly used his strongest shield technique to meet Ryan’s attack head-on.

"Ryan..."

Hearing the commotion above him, Jake weakly raised his head.

When he saw Ryan descending from the sky like a god, his expression froze.

His eyes immediately reddened, and his voice trembled with emotion.

"You fool... Why did you still come...?"

When the Sterling Family had captured him this time, Jake had already resigned himself to death.

He was genuinely moved that Ryan had come to rescue him.

But at the same time, he desperately wished Ryan had stayed away.

Ryan had only awakened his Bloodline recently.

No matter how strong he was, Jake knew that his strength was still limited.

He simply did not possess the ability to openly confront a great family like the Sterling Family.

In this situation, if one of them had to die, it was better for only one person to die.

There was no reason for both of them to throw their lives away.

Jake had been oppressed by those with power and influence since childhood.

He had always been powerless to resist.

Whenever someone stronger targeted him, all he could do was endure it.

He had long since become accustomed to accepting his fate.

But now, for the sake of an ordinary commoner like him, Ryan had actually dared to openly confront the Sterling Family.

To Jake, it was simply not worth it.

Not worth risking his life.

Not worth throwing away his future.

Yet Ryan had still come.