Chapter 205: Airdrop... Awoo!?
"Crack... crunch... crack... crunch... crackle..."
The sound of bones grinding came from all directions, gradually becoming concentrated from a scattered mess. In the end, it was as neat as countless Soldiers drilling on a parade ground. That monotonous, mechanical sound felt as if it could constrict one's Heart, beating "thump—", "thump—" along with the grinding sound, causing involuntary panic. One feared the sound's Approach, yet also dreaded that if the sound disappeared, their Heart might stop beating with it.
"They're here."
I frowned. A streak of Blood-like crimson slowly appeared In Front. No, not a streak, but an entire mass, like a vast Sea of Blood. Besides the gray Wall, there was only endless crimson.
A mighty horde of Burning Dead, mixed with slow Corpses, tall Sand Raiders, and agile Huntresses, with an unknown number of Death Archers hidden within, was slowly closing in on us.
"L-Lord, behind..."
Carter stammered, his face filled with the ashen color of Despair.
Nonsense. I knew without looking back that the scene behind was definitely no better than the one In Front.
"Kate, tell me, where is the Central Area of the Sewer?"
Looking at the crimson army gradually closing in, I asked hoarsely.
"L-Lord, the exact... the exact location... I... I don't know either. I've only... only heard of it. If I'm not mistaken, there's a Passage a few hundred meters ahead. Turn right, then... then go forward a few hundred meters more, turn left, and keep going. You should... you should reach it."
Kate was completely flustered, speaking only out of instinct. Let alone the Central Area, even the Passage a few hundred meters ahead seemed incredibly distant in the face of the crimson army that was already closing in to within dozens of meters.
So we were already this close to the Central Area of the Sewer. It seems these vast numbers of Monsters are probably greatly related to that place.
The situation was quite bad now. With such a massive Monster Army, even I, if I just stood here helpless, would eventually be submerged by the crimson tide. The most important Town Portal Scroll couldn't be used, and I had three burdens beside me. How to choose was truly a Trial.
Looking at the Monsters already close at hand, I gritted my Teeth. Since standing here was just waiting for Death, I might as well gamble. I had a Premonition that something existed in the Central Area of the Sewer. It might lead to our complete annihilation, or it might be an Existence that could allow us to escape safely.
"You three, hide yourselves as much as possible."
I had the other four Ghost Wolves surround the three people and the Oak Sage, forming a circular Defense Formation. Light Snow , Poison Creeper, and I stood In Front of the circular Defense Formation, forming a sharp triangular Attack Formation. Fortunately, the Sewer was relatively narrow, so even with a Formation consisting only of me and a few Pets, it was enough to block the entire Passage, eliminating the worst-case scenario of being attacked from all sides.
The other three followed my instructions. Kate and Holt quickly crouched down, hiding their tall Bodies behind the Ghost Wolves to avoid becoming Targets for the Burning Death Archers. Princess Marisa, however, seemed at ease. Her Physique was already shorter than the Ghost Wolves, so she didn't even need to crouch or bend down; she didn't even need to lower her Head.
"Roar—"
I let out a roar that was half-human, half-beast. My entire Body rapidly expanded, and in a moment, I transformed into a giant Werebear Form over three meters tall. Light Snow also roared with me. That roar, filled with Battle Intent and Blood, actually made the entire Monster Army pause for a moment. As for Poison Creeper, it quietly lurked Underground. Compared to Light Snow and me, who were brimming with Battle Intent, it was more suited to playing a role similar to an Assassin. However, this Assassin was quite formidable; its Potent Poison group kill was simply as terrifying as the Death God's Scythe to these Normal Monsters.
After drinking a few Potions, I took a deep breath, clenched my Fists, and felt the Strength throughout my Body surging. This Feeling was very strange, making me feel that the Monster Army before me was merely insignificant and not worth mentioning.
Junk, Junk, they're all a bunch of Junk. Under the stimulation of Strength, my Battle Intent was ignited infinitely. My crimson eyes were filled with excited Blood-color. That Strength, which seemed about to surge out, urged my Footsteps, from slow to fast, uncontrollably rushing towards the Monster Sea ahead. Pulled by my Battle Intent, Light Snow and Poison Creeper also followed, followed by the Ghost Wolves forming a circular Defense.
"Roar—"
I roared excitedly, not swinging my Fists or extending my Claws, but turning sideways and directly slamming into them with my shoulder.
"Crackle—, crackle—"
The crowded Monster Army, coupled with the narrow Sewer, allowed my Body to forcefully wedge into the Monster Army. The broken limbs and Crushed Bones squeezed and snapped before my eyes, flying beautifully. Violence, the pleasure generated by absolute Violence, made me roar loudly. Break, shatter, I will squeeze all of you into powder.
Like a human bulldozer, I pushed forward more than ten meters before my momentum stopped. The area I had passed through had become a road paved with Bones.
But these emotionless Skeletons did not know Fear. In the Opportunity where I stopped, the surging Monsters had already refilled the Space behind me, surrounding me completely with layers of crimson. There were also Fire Arrows occasionally shot from some Corner. I didn't need to think to know who was responsible for this.
You think you can trap me? Not a chance.
Looking at the Skeletons that didn't even reach my waist, I narrowed my eyes, spread my arms to both sides, and spun violently like a top a few times. With the continuous crisp cracking sounds, the Surroundings were instantly cleared.
Slaughter, a crazy slaughter. Wherever I passed, there were only scattered Crushed Bones. Individual lifeless Skulls were either thrown into Mid-air, or flew off to unknown places, or were even directly smashed into powder.
Fortunately, the Brain filled with surging Battle Intent still retained a trace of Consciousness. The Scepter I held in my hand was a very wise choice. The Resistance Aura could make our Party safer. Of course, the Mercenary Duo and Princess didn't have the fortune to enjoy this. Firstly, to hide their Strength. Secondly, as long as the Ghost Wolves didn't die, the Monsters couldn't touch them anyway.
Resistance Aura plus Werebear Transformation, and adding the Frozen Armor that was activated at some point, the Burning Dead could barely break my Defense. The Damage dealt was all below 1 point. Coupled with the Physical Damage -1 from the golden Ring, the current Burning Dead were completely unable to pose a threat to me. As long as the Equipment's Durability wasn't exhausted, I could stand there and let them Hack at me for a year, and not a single hair would fall.
"Swish— swish—"
The crimson Skeletons before my eyes suddenly turned a ghastly green and let out painful wails. With this as the center, the ghastly green color rapidly spread out, extending more than ten meters away before gradually disappearing. Nearly a hundred Monsters were enveloped in the green shadow of Death. They let out painful wails. Even Skeletons couldn't endure the green cutting like the Death God's Scythe.
Poison Creeper had caught up. With the Tacit Understanding formed over a long time, I only glanced briefly before continuing to push forward. The Skeletons first corroded by Poison Creeper's Potent Poison had all turned into bone water. As for those ghastly green and half-dead Skeletons poisoned, they were so fragile they would fall with a push. They were already lambs waiting to be slaughtered. As expected of Poison Creeper, known as the King of Group Kills, dealing with these swarming Normal Monsters would likely leave even a Sorceress far behind.
"Clang—"
As if hitting a slightly hard object, I narrowed my eyes and looked. Huh?! Who was it? It turned out to be the Big Guy Sand Raiders, and the Corpse known for its slowness.
Seeking Death. I roared, raised my large palm high, and pressed it directly onto the Sand Raider's Head. With a loud "bang," the Sand Raider, who was not much shorter than me, was violently pressed to the ground by me. Its withered limbs flailed weakly.
Big Guy, just growing tall isn't enough. You also need to find a Method to nourish your body, which is like dry firewood that would fall over with a gust of wind. Leaving my final Advice, I stepped over its Head. Falling in the swarming Monster crowd, there was absolutely no possibility of getting up again. Its Destiny was only one—to be trampled into meat paste by other Monsters while still alive.
As for the Corpses, I instructed Light Snow and Poison Creeper to try not to kill them, just knock them to the ground and let them fend for themselves. Corpses would explode with Poison Mist after Death. The three of us naturally weren't afraid, but the four Ghost Wolves behind, especially the fragile Mercenary Duo and Princess Marisa, couldn't handle it. Under permissible conditions, I would still try my best to Protect their Safety.
The situation seemed better than I had imagined. With me, Light Snow , and Poison Creeper exerting our full Strength without reservation, the Speed of advancement was quite considerable. In no time, we had already rounded two corners. A straight Passage with no visible end opened up before us. In the winding Sewer, I had never seen such Terrain. Perhaps, as Kate said, as long as we kept going along this Passage, we could reach the Central Area of the Sewer.
And in that dark depth, I felt a trace of oppressive Aura. That was the Might that only Monsters of Minor Boss Level or higher could emit.
The Mastermind was indeed still inside. I roared repeatedly, swatting away the few Huntresses and Sand Raiders around me.
Suddenly, an indescribable sense of Crisis surged into my Heart. Before I could react, two Fire Bolts and an Ice Arrow had already hit my Body.
There were Sorceress-type Monsters too! My Heart trembled. I quickly looked in the direction of the Attack, only to see several Skeletons standing there, their Bodies either surrounded by Flame, or made of ice jade Bones, or flashing with Lightning Glow. They were busy preparing the next wave of Spells. And deep in the Passage, there were dozens more such figures, but we hadn't entered their Attack range yet, so they could only wander far away.
Burning Soul Mage, skilled in Fire Bolt, Ice Arrow, and Charged Bolt.
Damn it, it's the advanced form of Skeleton Mage—Burning Soul Mage. They didn't come late or early, but chose to interfere at this most crucial moment. I cursed fiercely in my Heart. What kind of Attack Power is this? The Damage from a single Fire Bolt was even higher than the Fireball from the Exiled on the third Level of the Tomb.
Cursing fiercely in my Heart, I didn't dare to hesitate for a moment. Poison Creeper detached from the triangular Attack Formation and quietly lurked Underground. Its main Task from now on was to deal with these Skeleton Mages, and also give those annoying Death Archers a profound lesson. It was imperative to make them understand, after their unrestrained display along the way, that it wasn't that retribution wouldn't come, just that the Time wasn't right. When the Time came, they would definitely be repaid a hundredfold.
With Poison Creeper gone from the Formation, the Pressure on Light Snow and me increased significantly. However, facing these Physical Attack type Monsters, I completely ignored the Damage dealt. It was just that the Equipment's Durability was dropping severely. If I were to repair it in a high-consumption city like Lut Gholein, at least one-third of the Gold Coin earned on this trip would be spent.
Thinking of this, my Anger grew even stronger. I wished I could tear every Monster that scratched me into ten thousand pieces. This was Money!
After drinking a Potion for who knows how many times, I checked my Life. It was still maintained at around 95%. High Defense is indeed good.
As we continued to advance, the straight, gradually widening Passage began to become more spacious. But this was not good News for us. It meant we were exposed to more Enemies, and the Skeleton Archers and Sorceresses had more Opportunities. Fortunately, Poison Creeper was still stirring up trouble in the Monster crowd, temporarily slowing down the Attack of the Ranged Monsters. Otherwise, I would have been driven mad by attacks from all sides.
At the same time, relying on my wide Vision, I also saw the true face of the Mastermind this time.
Radament.
A Mummy-like Corpse, still wrapped in some black Bandages. Although somewhat shriveled, its earthy yellow Body was preserved very well. Only its Head was an empty, chilling Skull. Its Physique was slightly taller than a Sand Raider, almost reaching my Height.
There is a general Law in the Diablo World: small-sized beings are not necessarily weak, just like us Humans, but large-sized beings are definitely very Strong and will never be outwardly Strong but inwardly weak.
Looking at its massive Physique, my Heart trembled. Boss, don't tell me this is a Demon Lord Level Monster.
Fortunately, having seen Andariel's Might before, I quickly judged that this guy was just a Minor Boss, at most only slightly Stronger than a Mini-Boss.
A Mini-Boss is fine. Let alone a Mini-Boss, even if it were Demon Lord Level, as long as I got close, I could beat you until you were looking for your Teeth all over the ground.
Just as I was feeling relieved about this, I was startled to find that the Party could no longer advance.
What's going on?
I killed a few Skeletons under my Feet, intending to take another step forward, but before I could move my Footsteps, these Skeletons, which were already as broken as could be, seemed to rewind. Their broken Bones suddenly reassembled, even more miraculously than a Transformer.
Out of the Corner of my Eye, I only saw the Monster called Radament in the distance gently beckon with its right hand towards us, a hint of contemptuous smile simultaneously showing in its Corner of the Eye.
Damn it, this cursed bastard is a Summoning/Resurrection Type Mini-Boss, the same kind as Bishibosh. In this narrow place, in this vast Monster Sea, it's simply synonymous with invincibility.
Let you pretend, let you laugh. I snorted coldly. My Scepter instantly switched to the Divine Language Staff. The surging Inferno swept out in a fan shape, instantly vaporizing the surrounding Skeletons.
Let's see how you resurrect now. I provocatively glanced at the opponent and strode forward. But I hadn't gone far before I was blocked by Monsters again. These Monsters didn't Make a Move or Defend. They did only one thing: they desperately pushed me back. No matter how infinitely Strong I was, I couldn't withstand the combined Strength of hundreds of Monsters. Chairman Mao was right, there is indeed great Strength in numbers.
Watching the Skeletons that had just been killed instantly stand up again, I finally understood the profound Meaning of 'the Dao is one foot high, the Demon is ten feet high'. Looking at Radament's relaxed Appearance, I didn't know how many it could resurrect. I estimated that even if we were exhausted to Death, it would at most just catch its breath a few times.
If I could use a Town Portal Scroll now, I would disappear in a flash In Front of this Mini-Boss, one hundred percent. Unfortunately, I couldn't.
Of course, that doesn't mean I was completely helpless. There were Methods, and I could think of two.
The first, of course, was Airdrop Encirclement. This Support-type Mini-Boss had limited melee Strength. If the five Ghost Wolves swarmed it, and it still didn't die, I'd take its surname.
Unfortunately, the four Ghost Wolves couldn't be freed up now. If I used Airdrop Encirclement, it would mean directly exposing the other three people in the Monster crowd. It was also certain that with the Strength of the three of them, they would definitely die faster than Radament, and much faster.
Unless I Have No Choice, I would absolutely not use this Method. After all, having come this far, they were half-companions.
The second Method was very simple. With the large number of Monsters in the Sewer providing Experience, I had now leveled up to Level 23. Counting the Skill Points added by Cain's Book of Wisdom, I happened to have 10 Skill Points remaining. And the Skill Level of Ghost Wolf was Level 10. As long as I put all 10 Skill Points into Ghost Wolf, the Skill would just reach the Level for a major leap in Strength (Druid's Summoning Skill has a small leap at Level 10, and a major leap at Level 20. As for Level 30 and above...). At that time, the Strength of the five Ghost Wolves would increase by more than double, which would be more than enough to handle the current situation.
However, Kashya's Advice made me hesitate. The Strength of Light Snow and the others was already sufficient for the First Act. Their primary focus should be on improving their Technique, not their Strength. If I blindly added Skill Points to the Ghost Wolves, while it would certainly greatly increase my own Strength, doing so would undoubtedly be like drinking poison to quench thirst. They would gradually become addicted to the pleasure of instantly killing Enemies. When they encountered Stronger Enemies, they would realize that their Claws had become dull and their Teeth were no longer sharp.
Clearly, adding Skill Points to the Ghost Wolves now was definitely not a wise choice, and it might even affect my future Development Path. I had to think twice before acting.
During the short Time I was thinking, the Battle situation changed again. Radament saw that the Enemy was difficult to deal with and seemed to finally make up its mind, bringing out its Hidden Strength. Under its Summoning, teams of shiny black Skeletons swarmed forward.
Horror Skeleton—the ultimate troop type of Skeletons.
Terror Mage—the ultimate troop type of Skeleton Mage.
The appearance of these two Powerful Monsters finally changed the situation on the Battlefield. I, with my thick skin and rough flesh, was still alright. In crucial moments, I could drink a Potion of Full Rejuvenation. But Light Snow 's Pressure clearly began to increase. It was a Dexterity-type Pet, and Defense was not its forte. Moreover, the Surroundings were a Sea of Skeletons, completely rendering its Speed useless. The appearance of Horror Skeletons and Terror Mages immediately made it look disheveled.
On the other hand, the other four Ghost Wolves were not particularly targeted by Radament. Coupled with the perfect Tacit Understanding of the four Ghost Wolves, they could still hold on for a while. As for Poison Creeper, it was the least worrying. If it was in Danger, it could completely burrow Underground, and no one could Attack it.
It seemed it was no longer Time to hesitate. Whether to abandon my companions or sacrifice my future Development, I had to make a choice. Damn it, I really shouldn't have agreed to that cursed Jerhyn's thankless Task in the first place.
I sighed deeply, my Gaze becoming firm again. Call me despicable, call me shameless, but I need Strength to Protect the people I love.
I glanced back. The three people were probably still huddled within the Ghost Wolves' encirclement. Perhaps they didn't know that in the next moment, they would be completely exposed to the Enemy, hacked into meat paste, and then become one of the Skeletons. They would probably feel Despair, then Anger, and would question me, asking why I abandoned my companions.
But I also had something I couldn't give up.
"Alice, do you think my decision is right or wrong? To abandon the companions along the way for the sake of future Development..."
Turning back, unable to bear looking at the three people about to be visited by the Death God, I slowly raised my hands. Even if Alice would scold me and hate me, I had to do this.
Until the moment of my Death, I would use my Strength to Protect the people I love most, even if I were hated by the world, even if I were spat upon by the very people I sought to Protect. Yes, I am such a selfish person. I would rather those close to me suffer Pain for me than suffer sorrow for those close to me. No one can stop my determination.
"Airdrop..."
"Awoo..."
A long, drawn-out howl sounded from my side.
"Airdrop... Awoo...!!?"
Uh, I bit my tongue. But this is too much of a mood killer, isn't it? I finally made up my mind to be the bad guy.
Before I could react, the crimson Sea of Skeletons was instantly swallowed by endless White Light. My eyes were stinging from the countless white rays. The Sewer, which could withstand Meteor Attacks, began to tremble faintly. The large amount of mixed Emotions transmitted from Light Snow almost burst my Brain.
In this world of pure white, as the Master, and having the deepest Bond with Light Snow , I instantly understood the Meaning expressed by that massive amount of Emotions—
Light Snow was very angry, and the consequences were severe.
Yes, Light Snow had been angered by the endless Sea of Skeletons. As a noble Snow Wolf King, to be surrounded by these low-Level Skeletons and suffer such Wronged Feelings, this was Shame, great Shame.