Chapter 179 - 178: Controlling the Battlefield
The light from the Night Peace Magic Wand in his hand shifted constantly.
Once fully charged, he unleashed two Empowerment Magic enhancement spells in quick succession!
The first was cast on Maki, increasing his attack power so he could better deal with the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm’s reinforced carapace.
The latter went to Marcus, bolstering his position on the front line.
"This..."
Maki had been feeling anxious because his previous attack had little effect, but he suddenly felt a wave of power seep into his body.
His muscles were injected with new vitality, an explosive power surging within him!
Maki felt the change in his body, finding it somewhat hard to believe.
He glanced back at Zelir in disbelief.
’Was this the Magic he cast?’
He clenched his fist!
A power even stronger than what he felt at his absolute peak pulsed through his veins. Born alongside it was an unparalleled confidence!
On the other side, Marcus was feeling the same way.
Although the Constitution boost from Zelir wasn’t as great as Manlin’s, it still raised his overall Defense Power to a new level.
He felt much more confident in facing the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm’s attacks.
An Empowerment Mage was an absolutely coveted member for any Adventurer Squad.
Not to mention, this Empowerment Mage could also cast powerful offensive Magic!
However, casting two Empowerment Magic spells in succession had taken its toll on Zelir.
With a sweep of his hand, he took a Source Energy Crystal Stone from his Storage Pouch, then quickly focused his mind and began to draw the Magic Power from within it.
Empowerment Magic was already Magic Power-intensive, and buffing others cost even more Magic Power than buffing himself.
Now, the Magic Power reserves in his sea of consciousness had dropped below half, and he had to replenish them immediately.
While Zelir was replenishing his Magic Power, Maki pressed the advantage.
He raised his Heavy Sword high and brought it down in a vertical slash!
SWOOSH!
CRACK!
As the blade flashed, the carapace that had only shown a faint white mark from his previous strike now shattered, sending fragments flying!
Valles also coordinated with Maki.
Wherever Maki’s slash left a mark, he would promptly follow up with an Armor-Piercing Thunder Arrow!
BANG!
The Glazed Arrowhead plunged into the fractured carapace and then exploded violently, dealing secondary damage!
Meanwhile, with the Constitution bonus from Zelir, Marcus fought with increasing ferocity.
He swung his Shield with vigor, smashing it into the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm’s head again and again like a heavy hammer.
Perhaps the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm had been battered into a daze and couldn’t get its bearings.
It opened its massive maw and lunged, but missed Marcus completely. In return, it was met with a heavy blow from his Shield, followed by a relentless counterattack from his Battle Saber.
In the rear, restoring Magic Power with a Source Energy Crystal Stone was far more efficient than sleeping or Meditation.
Zelir felt that with a mere thought, a large amount of the Magic Power stored within would flow directly into his body.
However, even with this high-speed recharge, Zelir could still detect a sense of discord from the foreign Magic Power inside him.
The more he absorbed, the stronger that feeling of discord became.
’This is probably why the usage frequency of Source Energy Crystal Stones is restricted.’
His Magic Power replenished, Zelir watched the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm get relentlessly bombarded by various attacks and raised Night Peace.
A brilliant blue light flashed.
BOOM!!!
The violent Magic Power of the Aurora Energy Beam once again dealt a heavy blow to the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm!
This time, the carapace on its head near its mouthparts was almost completely destroyed.
The Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm let out a cry of extreme pain. Its body began to tremble erratically as several clusters of yellowish-brown light coalesced before it.
"It’s Rock Bullets! Dodge!" Marcus roared.
WHIZZ! WHIZZ! WHIZZ! WHIZZ!
The fully formed, yellowish-brown lights scattered outward, covering a large area of the cave.
Marcus and Maki were forced back, while Zelir and Valles in the rear had no choice but to break off their assault and take cover.
THUD THUD THUD THUD...!
The hard Rock Bullets, carrying immense kinetic energy, bombarded the surrounding cave walls and floor, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Zelir did a quick scan with his Perception.
’These Rock Bullets are infused with Magic Power... If I try to block them with Fog Flowing Gauze, I probably won’t be able to take it.’
’As expected of a Demon with a Challenge Rating, they all have some form of Magic.’
Taking advantage of the lull in the group’s assault, the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm made a move no one expected.
It opened its massive maw and slammed it into the ground!
Its entire inner mouth structure inverted, blooming outward like a flower. As the ring of sharp teeth made contact with the ground, it instantly chewed through and cut away the rock at an incredible speed.
In just a few seconds, its massive body had already burrowed underground!
"Damn it!"
Maki rushed to the edge of the hole and looked in, but the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm’s figure was long gone.
"Did it... get away?" Marcus also hurried over, frowning at the deep pit.
"No... it didn’t run." Maki’s expression grew grim as he looked around.
The vibrations from deep within the rock hadn’t disappeared; instead, they were now spreading out in all directions.
The Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm knew full well it was no match for them in a frontal assault in an open area.
So... its only option was to use the terrain to launch a surprise attack from an unexpected angle!
For a moment, the entire mine shaft was filled with strange noises coming from within the rock strata.
The sound was sometimes on the left, sometimes on the right, and sometimes it seemed to be coming from right above their heads.
Like some kind of unplaceable surround sound, it circled around them, fraying everyone’s already tense nerves.
The members of the squad took up defensive stances, warily observing their surroundings.
’Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm... where will you emerge from?’
’The ceiling, the left, the right, the floor?’
A stone circle appeared silently beneath Zelir’s feet, enclosing him.
"Zelir! Below you!" Valles was the first to notice and roared a warning.
Zelir’s reaction was also extremely fast.
The instant he heard the warning, his calf muscles tensed and he leaped lightly into the air, his movements far more agile than one would expect from a Mage.
At the same time, the stone circle beneath him shattered. A spray of rubble burst outward as the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm tore through the earth and appeared!
In its perception, among these Adventurers, the one who posed the greatest threat was this Mage...
It had to kill him!!!
Its mouthparts were already wide open the moment it burst from the ground, its menacing ring of sharp teeth clearly visible.
Zelir was still in mid-air, with no way to leverage a dodge; he would have to wait until he landed.
But the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm shot out from underground even faster!
At this rate, it would catch him in its jaws while he was still in the air!
Marcus and Maki were both falling back, rushing toward Zelir, but it was obvious they wouldn’t make it in time.
The distance between the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm and Zelir shrank rapidly. Just as it was about to devour him, a strange Force Field erupted from his body!
Not Fog Flowing Gauze, but Ring of Resistance!
BANG!
Violent ripples of energy spread out in a ring.
The powerful repulsive force actually managed to halt the Thousand-Teeth Rock Worm’s forward momentum cold!