Chapter 206 - 205: Flesh and Blood Forest
"Ha, [Difficulty] level."
Gray patted the Longsword at his waist. "In that case, I might actually get to be one of the main attackers on this mission."
On the past few high-difficulty missions, from the One-Eyed Giant to the Blood-Handed Demon Fish, Gray had been relegated to a support role.
Though it wasn’t too risky, and since the mission rewards themselves were high, he still earned a good amount of money even with a small cut of the share.
But this feeling of being gradually marginalized within the team was not a good one.
Watching his teammates fight tooth and nail while he could only provide minor assistance left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Gray knew this very well in his heart.
’The only reason Zelir and the others are still willing to bring me along, even though my strength has clearly fallen behind, is that I can still serve a minor strategic role.’
’But the bigger reason is our friendship.’
’After all, we’re a team that started out clearing wild wolves in the Gray Wood Forest and have been through a lot together ever since.’
’As long as I’m not completely useless and dragging the team down, they won’t kick me out.’
However, Gray also understood that if he continued on like this...
...as the team challenged stronger and stronger enemies, it was only a matter of time before he was left behind.
’I can’t always expect others to accommodate me.’
"You should just worry about yourself. If you try to show off and get a hand or foot infested by accident, I won’t hesitate to chop it off."
Maki shot Gray a sidelong glance. "It’s better than you losing your life."
A muscle in Gray’s cheek twitched.
Marcus hefted the Shield in his hand. "Alright, let’s keep moving."
For this mission, he had specifically bought a Tower Shield, which was larger than his previous One-Handed Composite Shield.
The Tower Shield’s defensive surface area could cover almost half of Marcus’s body, making him feel incredibly secure behind it.
The team continued onward.
"SQUISH..."
A faint, sticky, and disgusting sound came from under Zelir’s feet.
It didn’t sound like stepping on dead leaves and broken branches.
Zelir looked down, and the corner of his eye couldn’t help but twitch.
At some point, a puddle of mud had appeared under his feet... dark-red mud.
Or rather, a puddle of flesh-paste.
This wasn’t the kind of paste made from large chunks of meat being repeatedly pounded and chopped.
It looked more like the earth itself was naturally made of this fleshy mud, almost as if it belonged there.
Marcus also noticed something was wrong.
He pushed aside the hanging vines and looked ahead, and the sight before him was horrifying.
It was as if they had stepped into a world constructed from flesh and blood.
Ahead, the trees were still trees, but most of them had been corrupted and infested by some terrifying Power.
Layers of dark-red, fleshy tissue, still faintly pulsating like blood vessels and tumors, clung to the surfaces of the trees.
Even the leaves, which should have been withered and yellow, had become thick and sticky.
When sunlight filtered through these "flesh-leaves," it didn’t reveal clear veins, but rather a web of interwoven blood vessels.
"Stay alert," Marcus said in a low voice.
The next second, as if by unspoken agreement, they all dutifully put on thick masks.
The cloyingly sweet, Bloody smell in the air was simply too bizarre.
Before gearing up to enter this contaminated land of flesh and blood, they checked each other for any gaps in their protective gear.
Only after confirming that everyone was covered from head to toe did Marcus signal to advance.
"SQUISH... SQUISH... SQUISH..."
The sound of them stepping into the flesh-paste was endless. Every time they lifted their leather boots, strands of dark-red, viscous slime would stretch out.
Beneath their masks, none of them had a pleasant expression.
It felt like walking through the viscera of some massive creature. The environment was truly unsettling, both physically and mentally.
As they ventured deeper, the corrupted area of the forest grew, and the degree of contamination became more severe.
Thick layers of flesh piled up on the trunks of many trees, almost completely obscuring their original appearance.
On the leaves, bloody water slid along the veins and gathered at the tips, dripping one by one into the flesh-paste below.
They could also see the carcasses of small animals, encased and hanging from branches.
The fleshy tumors were still contracting and pulsing rhythmically, like external hearts, drawing nutrients from within.
"Compared to the Life-Devouring Blood Boil, I think even [Challenge]-rated Demons seem downright friendly..." Gray muttered under his breath.
After advancing for some distance through this nauseating Flesh and Blood Forest, something resembling a living creature finally appeared in their field of vision.
It was a few deer.
However, they too had been infested by the flesh.
Their antlers had been replaced by deformed fleshy tumors that constantly dripped viscous fluid. Their mouths could no longer close, leaving their rotting gums completely exposed.
The beautiful spots on their coats were covered by large, proliferating layers of flesh.
They even sprouted numerous small, tentacle-like flesh buds that swayed gently.
The parasitic deers’ eye sockets were empty, yet they stared blankly at Marcus and his group.
Then, without any warning, they broke into a charge!
"Prepare for battle!" Marcus immediately drew his Battle Saber and shouted.
Maki’s Heavy Sword and Gray’s Longsword were also unsheathed.
Having been infested by the flesh, the deer let out shrill screams that were somewhere between a deer’s call and a roar, charging forward without a trace of fear!
"THUD!"
One of the parasitic deer at the front slammed viciously into Marcus’s Tower Shield.
The immense force shattered the bone structure of its front half, and then Marcus’s Battle Saber came down hard.
The deformed deer head went spinning through the air before landing on the ground.
On the left and right, Gray and Maki also lunged forward, swinging their Longsword and Heavy Sword, respectively.
Like Marcus, Gray shattered a parasitic deer’s head with his Longsword.
Maki, however, was even more direct and brutal.
His Heavy Sword whistled through the air as he executed a Vortex Slash!
"SWISH!"
After being corrupted by the flesh, the parasitic deer’s bones were much more brittle than when it was alive. Before Maki’s immense strength, it was cleaved in two from top to bottom!
Its upper body was still flying through the air while its lower half had already crumpled powerlessly to the ground.
Three parasitic deer were dispatched with ease, but this did nothing to deter their kin, who had long since lost their minds.
Several more parasitic deer continued to charge, fearless of death.
Valles calmly drew his bow, rapid-firing four consecutive Feathered Arrows infused with a small amount of Thunder Fighting Qi.
"SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!"
Four streaks of light flashed past in two pairs.
The instant they made contact, the Thunder Fighting Qi exploded, blowing the parasitic deers’ heads to smithereens!
A scorching fiery light also ignited at the tip of Zelir’s Night Peace Staff.
Fractal Fire!
Fireballs condensed from Magic Power arranged themselves in a fan shape in front of him and then blasted outward with a roar, as if he had forcefully pushed out a wall of Flame.
Any parasitic deer that Gray and Maki didn’t have time to deal with were all blown to pieces by the impenetrable barrage of Fireballs!