Chapter 95: Flames and Fury

Explosive Flames!

Piercing Shot!

The battle kicked off quickly.

As bursts of vibrant spiritual energy erupted in the massive lava cavern, the fight officially began.

Yenir and six other Third-Stage Awakeneds formed long lines with their respective teams, facing off against their individually activated Second-Stage Peak Mutants.

The remaining eighteen fighters grouped together to clear out the other emerging monsters.

Compared to real-world combat, within the system’s constraints these creatures acted like rigid machines, making them somewhat easier to handle.

At the farthest front, Yenir directly engaged the mutant he had activated. Like the other six Second-Stage monsters, his opponent was a multi-headed blood corpse over three meters tall, its body stripped like raw meat.

Among the many mutant types, the multi-headed blood corpse was average in speed and strength—with slightly higher defense, making it an easy kill under normal circumstances. Still, for Yenir, who was masquerading as a Third-Stage Awakened, it posed a significant challenge.

His current power, bolstered by his equipment, barely touched the edge of Second-Stage Peak strength. With that level, defeating the multi-headed blood corpse seemed nearly impossible.

However, relying on his past-life combat skills and Object Control, Yenir figured he could wear the beast down.

At close range, after narrowly dodging the blood corpse’s lunge, he immediately chose to create distance, dragging the monster into an open area to fight.

Two members of his team were only Second-Stage in strength; should the blood corpse break through, they wouldn’t even be able to flee.

Clang!

In a split-second misstep, Yenir’s dual swords crossed as they slashed at the creature’s legs, yet his full-force strike resulted only in two dull clanks of metal.

Feeling the intense rebound force at his wrist, Yenir’s heart sank, and he quickly pulled away to regain distance.

Noticing the two gaping, baby-mouth-like cuts on the blood corpse’s legs, he instantly realized his strength attribute was still too low.

A single sword strike could barely breach its defense.

Unfazed and not letting frustration take over, Yenir adjusted his attack angle as a surge of spiritual energy burst forth.

Enchantment! Blazing Flames!

Whoosh!

As his weapon skill activated, a sudden surge of flame engulfed his Longsword, unleashing a wave of searing heat.

Under a thousand-degree heat, the air warped and the bloodstains on the blade evaporated instantly.

Roar! Roar!

After two furious roars and the monster’s frenzied bellow, the beast charged at him at high speed, its gaping maw straining to swallow Yenir’s upper body whole.

With precise timing, Yenir summoned a Dagger that shot out like a streak of silver, aiming squarely at the creature’s ankle.

Though small, the Dagger, charged with tremendous kinetic energy from his focused mental power, forced the charging blood corpse to stagger and slightly alter its lunge.

Sidestepping adroitly, Yenir’s eyes narrowed as he unleashed a burst of power from his right hand, executing a swift downward slash along the mutant’s joint.

Chii!!

Unlike earlier strikes that only caused superficial wounds, the high temperature now brought a burst of charred stench from the slash’s edges accompanied by a sizzling sound.

His blade carved a massive gash, and the high-temperature enchanted flames scalded the internal muscle tissue completely.

Roar! Roar!

Wincing, the blood corpse let out two furious roars from its giant heads before wildly lunging at Yenir, who had slipped behind it. However, due to its injured joints and reduced agility, Yenir managed to sidestep the assault once again.

That was acceptable; slowing the monster down meant the rest of the battle would be much easier.

Exhaling, Yenir clumsily rose and maneuvered behind the blood corpse once more, using his enchanted flames like a blunt blade slicing through meat to steadily drain its life force.

Coupled with the nimble, almost eerie movements of his Dagger, he provoked incessant roars from the multi-headed blood corpse as if toying with it.

By targeting its joint vulnerabilities, within just over a dozen seconds he reduced the monster’s speed to a crawl.

Yenir was well aware that his disguise as a Third-Stage Awakened relied solely on his equipment skills.

That meant he only had one chance to unleash a full burst of power.

A head-on assault was a lost cause—his only option was to wear the creature down to severe injuries, then unleash every skill in one final explosive burst.

From behind, two of Yenir’s teammates watched with anxious awe as he danced around the monster.

To them, his tactics were incredibly daring—a single misstep could lead to disaster.

Gazing at the spectral figure clinging to the blood corpse, the two provided what support they could while whispering among themselves:

“Lord Ye Lin fights remarkably well… but why does his damage seem so low?”

Taking precise shots when the moment was right, the Middle-Aged Man soon realized, with resignation, that his attacks barely harmed the blood corpse—instead, they only fueled its fury.

“I don’t know… Is anyone still holding back their skills at a time like this?”

Not too familiar with Third-Stage combat tactics, Li Ke anxiously glanced at the other Third-Stage fighters.

It was clear that while their side still hadn’t found an end in sight, the other six Third-Stage battles were nearly over.

Even Huang Kai, famed for his defense, was enveloped in a burst of yellow spiritual energy as he charged with his shield, smashing one of the monster’s heads to pieces.

Meanwhile, the most formidable fighters, Wang Yangping and Yun Ming, activated their Third-Stage skills to decapitate their respective targets.

……

After half a minute, the enormous cavern—once filled with thunderous roars—fell silent.

At that moment, nearly everyone had finished their battles; only Yenir remained locked in combat with the monster.

Clutching a one-handed hammer and shield—the very weapons that had just crushed a blood corpse—Huang Kai slowly rose and instinctively turned toward the source of the noise.

Seeing that the sound came from Yenir, he paused for a moment, a flash of disdain crossing his eyes.

“Damn, is this kid fooling around?”

“I, a defense-focused Third-Stage, already killed that monster. And this kid is still dawdling?”

(Cursing under his breath.)

All eyes turned to Yenir’s perilous figure, and in that instant many felt a strange unease.

Although the blood corpse Yenir was battling looked utterly disheveled—like a slab of scorched meat riddled with burn marks—it was obvious that the fight was far from over.

Especially for Yenir, who was entangled in prolonged combat; his situation looked so dangerous that it seemed he might lose his head at any moment.

A Third-Stage fighter in such a state was downright embarrassing. Even a few Second-Stage Peak Awakeneds couldn’t help but mutter their discontent.

Judging by the damage Yenir had inflicted, it seemed far less than the impact of their skills.

Is he really Third-Stage?