Chapter 397: A Risk That Wasn’t Worth It
“Guh…”
Xeno had been holding on by a thread, nausea clawing at his insides with every breath. His mental stamina was nearly spent. But still, he chugged another Blue Potion and kept on blasting [, dragging the Corroded Elder Dragon’s aggro back to himself.
A torrent of blood weapons of all kinds rained down on him, and worse, from the fountain of gore that poured from the Corroded Elder Dragon’s ruptured heart, blood clones had formed. Among them, one in particular mirrored Hannah: instinct-driven, reckless, and devastating in close quarters. Compared to Diniel’s precision archery or Leleia’s synergy with the Spirits, this clone was a nightmare. Xeno staggered like a boxer on the verge of a KO, barely staying upright as he fended off a hail of savage punches and kicks.
A three-pronged spear shot down from the sky, aiming straight for his chest. Xeno raised his silver shield just in time to deflect it, but as he caught his breath, a blade slashed in low and struck the back of his knee. His stance crumbled, and he hit the ground hard.
The breath left his lungs. Every inch of his body screamed. His guts felt like they’d been churned with a whisk, and the iron taste of blood flooded his mouth. For a split second, the idea crossed his mind, [Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to just lie here. Just for a moment…[]
“Damn it…!”
He forced the thought away with a roar, wrenching himself to his feet just as the Hannah-clone dove from above with a spinning heel drop. He rolled aside, the attack slamming into the earth with a thunderous crash. A cloud of dirt and shattered stone erupted into the air, but Xeno crawled clear, gasping for breath.
“You can scream all you like,” came Leleia’s voice from the side, her tone razor-edged as always. “It won’t stop the attacks.”
She parried a stream of blood weapons with her slender rapier, enhanced with the Sylph’s wind powers.