Chapter 49: Bone Fin |
A terrifying gale from the punch struck, prompting the dual-wielding swordsman to react instantly. He shifted his footwork, yet at this moment, he seemed a step too slow.
The strike dragged out a blur of afterimages, the massive fist resembling a madly charging wild boar.
If it landed, his body would likely be torn to pieces.
Fortunately, in the very next instant, an illusory figure emerged and embraced him.
Summoning Spell: Green Spirit Embrace.
It summoned the spiritual power within the surrounding vegetation to embrace the target, providing protection and healing.
Opper had cast his second spell just in time, saving the dual-wielding swordsman.
The phantom of the Green Spirit shattered instantly, and the dual-wielding swordsman was sent flying backward, though his body suffered no significant injuries.
Purr retracted his fist, his eyes, showing signs of Whale-ification, locking onto Opper.
The moment he saw Downs, Opper realized that the one backing Purr and the Watchman was likely that muddle-headed Holy Knight.
Of course, looking at the situation now, perhaps the truly muddle-headed one was Opper himself.
"You can''t afford it," Purr stated, a flash of murderous intent in his eyes as he advanced toward Opper.
Opper keenly sensed the killing intent and immediately understood that this was the most difficult type of enemy to deal with.
Throughout his years as a merchant, he had experienced many things, including no shortage of double-crosses and betrayals.
However, the vast majority of those enemies were only after money and resources.
Therefore, in most situations, things rarely escalated to a true life-and-death struggle.
But Purr was different. He had faith.
Just like Arlo. Arlo possessed absolute conviction, and for the sake of his ideals, he was often impossible to reason with.
Purr was the same. He also possessed absolute conviction, and perhaps went a step further than Arlo—it was pure faith.
"I am useful!" Opper immediately blurted out. "I know a lot of information regarding Nels."
"If I die, all that intelligence dies with me."
Realizing that his opponent would not stop easily, Opper shifted to psychological warfare, hoping to make Purr hold back in the ensuing fight and ensure his own safety.
At the same time, Opper felt a twinge of regret.
He was ultimately not suited for combat, and his strategic arrangements had been flawed.
From the very beginning of this battle, he had made quite a few mistakes.
For instance, he possessed a ring imbued with the force-field spell Deflect Missiles, so there had been absolutely no need to instantly recall the Feather Sky Serpent.
Instead, he should have let it assist Arlo in quickly dispatching the Watchman, allowing them to consolidate their forces.
Furthermore, from that moment on, he should have directly used his high-power spell scrolls instead of trying to conserve them.
As a result, because the Feather Sky Serpent was now entangled with Purr, and the dual-wielding swordsman was in close proximity to the enemy, it was no longer easy to deploy his scrolls for fear of friendly fire.
There were many similar detailed blunders.
If he had just avoided those mistakes, the current battle would have been significantly easier.
"But it''s not too late," Opper muttered. He continued to retreat, using his words to hold Purr''s attention, while subtly lowering his hands, letting his sleeves obscure them.
"Nels''s family has actually been secretly gathering intelligence on him," he declared.
"They even contacted me once, hoping I could slip certain substances into his food while extracting some of his blood and hair."
"Additionally, there is one piece of extremely crucial information that is absolutely vital to Nels." Opper spoke, vowing solemnly, and his earnest demeanor did not seem faked.
This actually succeeded in drawing some of Purr''s attention.
"And that is..." Opper''s tone shifted sharply as he tore open a scroll, presenting it in front of him. As his voice dropped, a massive, blinding flash of white lightning erupted.
Shaping Spell: Falling Thunder!
This was one of Opper''s trump cards, obtained from others at the cost of five Whalehide Ore scrolls.
Opper turned his head and squeezed his eyes shut to prevent the brilliant electrical flare from blinding him.
Simultaneously, he maintained a steady backward retreat while preparing another spell.
The Summoning System was internally divided into numerous factions.
Opper leaned toward Void Summon and Specific Summon techniques.
A Void Summon involved projecting Mental Power outward, letting it pulse and spread at a specific frequency deep into the ethereal void to sense and call forth a desired summoned creature.
This required constantly synchronizing one''s mental frequency to match the summon, as well as sacrificing a portion of Mental Power as a toll to unseen entities before the creature could finally be brought into reality.
The Feather Sky Serpent, for example, had been summoned in exactly this manner.
On the other hand, a Specific Summon was like the previous Green Spirit Embrace.
It was restricted to drawing upon the power of Green Spirits residing within the immediate vegetation.
And the summoning spell Opper was currently preparing was also a Specific Summon.
This time, the targeted subject was something physically on his person, the foreign organism he was most closely bonded with—the Nest Beast.
This creature originated from the Old Pastor, but due to differing cultivation methods, it had undergone drastic changes.
The Old Pastor had enhanced its control over blood and its raw kinetic power.
Opper, however, had amplified its parasitic nature.
Unfortunately, every time it was utilized, its ferocity would grow, which was why Opper disliked using the entity.
But at this juncture, he seemingly had no other choice.
Because just moments ago, he had once again sensed a dormant Nest Beast being activated.
This meant that another one of his subordinates had been critically wounded and was forced to trigger the Nest Beast''s symbiotic healing to survive.
That Downs was far stronger and more troublesome than he had anticipated.
However, in the very next moment, Opper could only rejoice that he had made the right choice.
Because amidst the fading light of the thunderbolt and the thick smoke generated by the electrical discharge, a colossal figure swung its arm, tearing through the haze, and stepped out.
Purr was charred black all over. His already massive frame had continued to expand, now reaching an imposing height of around four meters.
"Very strong. But the power the Lord bestowed upon me isn''t limited to mere Whale-ification!" Purr roared, his still-trembling body rapidly stabilizing.
Bit by bit, the intense agony was swiftly converted into raw strength, flooding every inch of his body.
The trait known as Pain Essence allowed his suffering to become the fuel for his continued growth.
Purr''s back violently bulged before several jagged bone spikes pierced through his skin, forming something akin to a whale''s dorsal fin, though far more razor-sharp and pronounced.
His Whale-ification, fueled by absolute faith in Nemus, had completed yet another evolution!
He successfully acquired two additional traits stemming from Whale-ification—
Damage Self-Healing: The self-healing ability was further strengthened and solidified, allowing rapid recovery from the majority of bodily injuries.
Bone Fin: Spiked bone fins grew from his back, granting him a minor ability to adjust his own body weight. The current adjustment range was ±10%.
"The power the Lord granted allows me to grow from pain, and then sweep away every obstacle in my path!" Following his declaration, his gigantic body charged forward with terrifying speed!
Ahhh!!!
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