Chapter 1436: Every Second |
Babu was being besieged by Gao Changkong and Lancelot from both sides, leaving him completely unable to spare a hand to block the attacks launched by Zhang Yi and Huahua.
A fierce glint flashed through his eyes.
The moment before the attacks reached his body, his [Space Swap] ability activated instantly!
The one who swapped positions with him was none other than Lancelot.
However, after the position swap, there was not a trace of surprise in Lancelot's eyes. Instead, as if he had been prepared for this long beforehand, he swiftly dodged to the side!
Zhang Yi and Huahua's attacks missed, yet a smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"Just like the plan predicted—he'd have no choice but to use his ability to evade our combined strike. But this means he'll have at least a five-second cooldown period."
And all of this, Zhang Yi had already discussed with Gao Changkong and Lancelot long in advance.
Babu had a time ability, but did Zhang Yi not have one as well?
Between identical-type Awakened, it all came down to who had the stronger ability and who had better control over it.
The advantage Babu held over others simply wasn't as apparent against Zhang Yi.
"Click!"
Zhang Yi reloaded with practiced ease, then swiftly adjusted his gun barrel, locking onto Babu's position once again.
Huahua also opened her massive maw, a kaleidoscope of multicolored light flickering within as she began charging an even more powerful high-energy particle beam.
This time, Babu could no longer use his [Space Swap] ability to dodge.
Gao Changkong and Lancelot charged in from both sides, their giant swords in hand, unleashing a frenzied assault of thousands of strikes per second against him!
Forcing him to be completely unable to spare any focus to deal with Zhang Yi and Huahua's attacks.
"Boom!!"
Zhang Yi and Huahua's attacks blasted directly into Babu's torso. Even though he tried his best to evade, facing a Hunter of Zhang Yi's caliber, unless he was completely focused on defending, there was simply no way to dodge the bullets fired from his gun!
Babu's massive frame was sent flying with a heavy thud, and even the dark silver heavy armor on his body let out a "crack" as it fractured!
He barely managed to steady himself, and a pitch-black depression had formed on his chest. This thick suit of armor had been nearly penetrated, with web-like cracks spreading outward from the breach.
All it would take was one more hit, and his armor would shatter on the spot!
"It's working! Keep it up!"
Gao Changkong and Lancelot's eyes flashed with excitement as they spoke eagerly, once again charging at Babu with their giant swords in hand.
Two Epsilon-class Awakened, nearly Black Chariot-tier in power, joining forces—their fierce assault had almost no blind spots. The violent pressure from their swords had nearly expelled all the air within the temple, turning the space into a near-vacuum.
Yet Babu raised his head, and from beneath his helmet—which revealed only a narrow slit—his gaze held not a trace of fear.
His [Space Swap] ability activated once more!
He dodged the third attack.
Within five seconds, Zhang Yi and the other three could only land two rounds of their combined assault.
After all, sniping from a position five kilometers away while needing to wound General Babu and pierce his armor required Zhang Yi and Huahua to gather energy—it wasn't something that could be done instantaneously.
"It's fine. Even if our tactic only succeeds once every five seconds, a few more rounds will still deal enough damage."
The problem, however, was just how much damage was needed to kill Babu!
Defeating a Black Chariot-tier Awakened might be achievable.
But killing one? That was far too difficult!
The higher the rank of a combat-type Awakened, the harder they were to kill.
For now, though, this was indeed the best approach, and the only method that was showing any results.
So, the four of them continued executing their plan.
The next time Babu's armor was struck, it shattered with a "crack." The armor on the left side of his chest burst apart, scattering into pieces that clattered to the ground.
Babu's gaze swept toward the distance beyond the temple doors, and he swung his battle axe with all his might, fending off Gao Changkong and Lancelot.
He was like a towering giant facing the challenge of two mere insects.
From a physical standpoint alone, he was terrifying enough. Without the emergence of Awakened, it would be hard to imagine humans ever being able to defeat such a creature.
Even ancient beasts would struggle to contend with him.
Zhang Yi pulled the bolt, reloading. The void energy surged from the dark vortex behind him like a tide, flowing through his arm and merging into Thunderstrike.
"Let's continue."
He said coldly.
At the twentieth second, Zhang Yi's bullet once again struck Babu's body—this time, it pierced clean through him!
"Pfft!"
The holy silver bullet streaked across the sky, trailing blood before slamming into the wall and clattering to the ground.
Gao Changkong and Lancelot's eyes lit up instantly.
"We did it!"
This was the first time they had inflicted a heavy wound on Babu since the battle began!
"Don't get too excited yet. Don't forget—he can turn back time."
Zhang Yi reminded them calmly.
Gao Changkong replied, "I haven't forgotten. But his time reversal can only be used once per minute. In the gap before he can use it again, we have a solid chance of killing him!"
Babu's body wobbled unsteadily. Zhang Yi's shot had dealt no small impact to his body, and combined with Huahua's combined attack, he had nearly been knocked flat.
But he quickly steadied himself, lowering his head to glance at his chest.
The bullet had left a hole the size of a human fist—though a human's fist, not his own.
So, to him, it wasn't a fatal wound.
He had just barely dodged the shot to his heart, and since the bullet hadn't remained lodged in his body, the injury was acceptable.
He raised his battle axe, once again casting a challenging glare at Gao Changkong and Lancelot, and even a meaningful glance past the temple doors toward the distant sniper.
"This bastard... is way more troublesome than I imagined!"
Zhang Yi frowned.
In his mind, that last shot should have been enough to force Babu to activate his ability and reverse his personal time.
After all, the bullet's tip had been laced with a lethal poison—just 0.1 milligrams would be enough to kill an adult elephant.
Yet this man's physical durability far exceeded Zhang Yi's expectations.
From the look of it, Babu's injuries simply weren't severe enough.
Babu understood perfectly well that his [Time Rewind] was an incredibly powerful ability, but the cooldown period between uses was also his most vulnerable moment.
So he wouldn't use it lightly, only when truly forced into a corner.
"No matter. There are still forty seconds left. I refuse to believe you can survive the relentless assault of four Epsilon-class Awakened for a full minute and still walk away alive!"
Zhang Yi didn't hesitate, pulling the trigger once again.
A holy silver bullet, symbolizing death itself, wrapped in the force of the void, screamed toward Babu's chest!