Chapter 357 - 315: Boldness from Skill
The Thorny Giant Beast began its Charge!
Its massive body thundered forward. Every heavy stomp of its limbs left a shocking, deep crater in the ground.
The wreckage and dead trees in its path were crushed to splinters.
The display of force was simply overwhelming.
In the final few meters of its mad dash, the Thorny Giant Beast raised its right claw and unleashed a ferocious swipe!
"Everyone, scatter!"
Marcus roared.
His limbs were nimble. Aided by the speed Gain from Swift Blessing, even Marcus, clad in a full suit of Armor, managed to execute a tactical evasion.
Marcus dove sharply to the right. A clumsy but effective roll allowed him to dodge the Thorny Giant Beast’s swipe.
*WHOOSH...* BOOM!
The massive claw grazed past Marcus’s scalp, slamming down violently on the spot where he had just been standing.
The earth shook violently, and dirt exploded upward!
Along with the deafening boom, a small shockwave spread out.
Countless fist-sized fragments of rock shot out in all directions. Marcus, still unsteady, was nearly knocked over again by the aftershock.
’As the Vanguard, I can’t just tank every hit blindly.’
’I have to draw its aggro while keeping myself safe.’
’As long as I can hold the enemy back and buy time for my teammates behind me, that’s enough!’
But before Marcus could even catch his breath, the second wave of attacks followed.
The Thorny Giant Beast’s reaction speed was astonishing!
Its first strike having missed, its other claw—the left one—swept in, scraping along the ground!
The distance was too short, the coverage too wide.
This time, Marcus had no way to dodge and could only block it head-on with his Tower Shield!
"Bring it on!"
Marcus tensed every muscle in his body as his Fighting Qi surged forth.
CLANG!!!
The explosive clang of metal rang out across the clearing!
The Thorny Giant Beast’s claw, just the palm of it, was almost as large as Marcus’s entire body.
The Power of its swipe was far greater than the Fog Demon’s!
With that one swipe, Zelir could hardly see where Marcus was, completely obscured by the palm of the Thorny Giant Beast.
Dust and mist erupted with a violent gust of wind.
There was no stalemate.
Under the crushing weight of absolute tonnage and Power, even with his Indestructible Body, Marcus was instantly knocked back!
SCREEECH...
The surface of his Tower Shield was deformed by the blow.
He couldn’t keep his footing at all. His legs slid back uncontrollably, plowing deep furrows in the earth.
Loose earth billowed up as the smoke cleared.
Marcus slid back more than ten meters before he managed to stop. His head spun, and his vision blurred.
*Huff...* COUGH, COUGH...!
Marcus coughed up a mouthful of salty, bloody saliva, a wave of nausea washing over him.
He felt as if his internal organs had been displaced. His entire left arm seemed to have lost all feeling, a numb, aching sensation mixed with sharp pain.
’At least nothing’s broken... I can still hold up my shield.’
The two swipes left Marcus with a lingering fear.
"Smash its head!"
Zelir roared the command.
’The Thorny Giant Beast isn’t documented in any bestiary, so we can only rely on instinct to find its weak point.’
’No matter how you look at it, if we blow its head to pieces... that should be enough to kill it, right?’
’Besides, there’s a partially bloomed flower bud right on the Thorny Giant Beast’s head.’
The Aurora Energy Beam surged forth!
To ensure its piercing power, Zelir compressed his Magic Power to the absolute limit, making the beam more condensed.
The blue Magic Power slammed violently into the Thorny Giant Beast’s head, but it only chipped away a shower of wood splinters.
Its external Vine Armor was exceptionally thick, with various thorns twisted together like strands of a rope.
The Aurora Energy Beam couldn’t penetrate it at all and failed to cause any substantial damage.
The Longbow was drawn to a full moon.
Accompanied by the grating sound of a taut bowstring, Valles’s fully charged Thunder Arrow also burst forth in a brilliant flash!
The Glazed Arrow found a gap in the Vine Armor on the Thorny Giant Beast’s head, burrowing into it at a wickedly clever angle, before a torrent of frantic electricity poured in after it.
BANG!!!
That single shot forcibly tore open a gap!
The impact blasted the Thorny Giant Beast’s head to the side, causing it to let out a pained, furious roar.
Valles didn’t dare get greedy with rapid shots.
Against an opponent with this level of heavy armor protection, only a fully charged Thunder Arrow could deal enough damage.
Zelir sketched out a new Spell Structure, and a searing flame lit up within his wand.
’The Aurora Energy Beam isn’t very effective. Time to switch.’
’Although Fractal Fire’s ability to break through defenses is weaker than the Aurora Energy Beam’s...’
’...it is, after all, a plant-type Demon.’
’It’s worth a try!’
Zelir poured immense Magic Power into Night Peace, conjuring ten Fireballs at once.
The Fractal Fireballs poured from the tip of his Magic Wand in a rapid volley!
The flames streaked across the battlefield, continuously bombarding the area around the Thorny Giant Beast’s head and neck.
An unexpected scene unfolded.
The moment the Fractal Fireballs made contact with the purple-black vines clinging to the beast’s body, they immediately unleashed an extraordinary destructive force!
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG...!
The purple-black vines actually burst apart, triggering secondary explosions!
Flashes of fire lit up one after another beside its cheeks, the sound of explosions unending.
Large swathes of the Vine Armor were scorched black. The Thorny Giant Beast was blasted so hard its head shook back and forth, having suffered a truly heavy blow!
Even if Flame was strong against plant-type Demons, Zelir hadn’t expected the effect to be this outstanding.
’Damn it... if only I could use Magma Pillar!’
’Fractal Fire is still a spell meant more for clearing out mobs. With Magma Pillar, one shot could probably incinerate half its body!’
"Nice!" Hill’s eyes lit up.
Zelir’s Fireball assault was remarkably effective.
The Thorny Giant Beast, which had been charging forward ferociously, was blasted back repeatedly, its entire upper body rearing up.
And it was this very movement that gave Hill the rare opportunity they had been waiting for.