Chapter 177: Deep Sea Lobster
The Deep Sea Lobsters surged forward as one, their massive claws snapping through the water with enough force to crack stone. Gray met them head-on.
He activated Sovereign’s Presence, letting his aura flare outward in a wide pulse. The lobsters hesitated, their antennae twitching, their instincts screaming that this creature was something beyond the usual prey. But their territorial rage was stronger than their fear, and they pressed forward anyway, their claws raised.
"Okay," Gray said. "Hard way it is."
He fired Void Reaper’s Lance at the nearest lobster, the void-edged spear tearing through the water and punching through its face plate. The creature shrieked, its claws flailing, as the bleed effect began to tick.
[VOID REPER’S LANCE — 236 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 1164 / 1400]
[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]
Cindy raised both hands, her silver glow flaring bright. Frost spiraled from her fingertips, spreading through the water in crystalline waves.
"[Frozen Current]!"
The wave of cold slammed into the lobsters, coating their shells in a layer of ice. Their movements slowed, their claws snapping sluggishly, their antennae drooping as the cold seeped into their joints.
[FROZEN CURRENT — ALL TARGETS SLOWED BY 40%]
Then she followed it up with another spell, a larger one this time. Her frills splayed wide as she gathered mana, the water around her growing heavy with cold.
"[Ice Shard Storm]!"
A spiral of frozen shards erupted from her hands, spreading through the water in a wide arc. The shards struck all four lobsters, cracking their shells, tearing through their joints, and scattering ice across the sand.
[ICE SHARD STORM — 152 DAMAGE TO ALL TARGETS]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 1012 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 1248 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 1248 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (4) — HP: 1248 / 1400]
"Nice!" Gray called out. "Keep them clustered!"
"I’m trying!" Cindy shouted back, already preparing her next spell.
Lily darted forward, her five points spinning like saw blades. She projected a volley of black spines that shredded through the nearest lobster’s antennae, severing them cleanly. The creature shrieked, its sensory awareness drastically reduced.
[LILY — DARK SPINE VOLLEY — 186 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 826 / 1400]
[ANTENNAE — SEVERED]
[SENSORY AWARENESS — REDUCED]
The lobsters, despite their slowed movements, were still dangerous. One of them lunged at Cindy, its massive claw swinging toward her small body.
"Cindy!" Gray shouted.
But Cindy was already moving. She dissolved into a vortex of water, reforming ten meters away, the claw snapping shut on empty space.
"I’m fine!" she called. "Focus on your side!"
Gray turned back to the first lobster, which was still reeling from Lily’s attack. He activated Tectonic Shift, slamming his tentacles into the seafloor. A jagged spire of stone erupted beneath the lobster, launching it upward, its guard broken.
[TECTONIC SHIFT — 186 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 640 / 1400]
[STUNNED — 2 SECONDS]
Gray fired Needle Storm into the lobster’s exposed underbelly, the crescent blades carving through the softer flesh between its shell plates.
[NEEDLE STORM — 168 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 472 / 1400]
[PARALYZE — 2 SECONDS]
The lobster froze mid-air, its claws locked open, its body twitching. Gray drove all eight blade-tentacles into its exposed underside.
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 240 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — HP: 232 / 1400]
Overcharge sealed its fate.
[OVERCHARGE — 232 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (1) — DEFEATED — 1,200 EXP]
The lobster’s body went limp, drifting toward the seafloor. Gray turned toward the remaining three, his luminous gaze sweeping the battlefield.
Cindy had clustered two of them together with a Water Vortex, their massive bodies tangled, their claws snapping uselessly at each other. Lily was harrying the third, darting in and out, her dark spines chipping away at its shell.
"Good," Gray said. "Keep them busy."
He fired Void Reaper’s Lance at the clustered pair, the void-edged spear punching through both lobsters at once.
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 228 DAMAGE]
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 224 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 1020 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 1024 / 1400]
Cindy’s voice rang out again.
"[Glacial Lance]!"
A spear of ice shot across the battlefield and struck the clustered lobsters, shattering against their shells but driving them further off balance.
[GLACIAL LANCE — 312 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 708 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 712 / 1400]
Gray activated Current Dash, dissolving and reforming directly above the pair. He drove all eight blade-tentacles into the gap between them, tearing through shell and flesh.
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 244 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 464 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 468 / 1400]
Then he activated Arcane Burst.
The pulse of disruptive mana erupted from his body and slammed into both lobsters, destabilizing the mineral reinforcement in their shells. Cracks spread across their armor, their defenses crumbling.
[ARCANE BURST — 202 DAMAGE]
[SHELL INTEGRITY — COMPROMISED]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 262 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 266 / 1400]
Cindy raised both hands, her silver glow blazing.
"[Ice Shard Storm]!"
Another spiral of frozen shards tore through the wounded lobsters, shattering their cracked shells and piercing the soft flesh beneath.
[ICE SHARD STORM — 156 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — HP: 106 / 1400]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — HP: 110 / 1400]
Gray fired Void Reaper’s Lance one final time, the void-edged spear punching through both lobsters in a single clean strike.
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 232 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (2) — DEFEATED — 1,200 EXP]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (3) — DEFEATED — 1,200 EXP]
The last lobster, the one Lily had been harrying, was already wounded and disoriented. Its antennae were gone, its shell cracked, its movements sluggish. It tried to retreat into the sand, but Lily wasn’t about to let it escape.
She spun, her five points blurring, and projected a concentrated volley of dark spines that punched through the lobster’s weakened shell and into its core.
[LILY — DARK SPINE VOLLEY — 188 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (4) — HP: 1060 / 1400]
The lobster shrieked, thrashing weakly. Gray appeared above it, Void Reaper’s Lance already charging.
"You did well, Lily. I’ll finish it."
He drove the void-edged spear into the lobster’s exposed back, punching through its cracked shell and into its core.
[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 336 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (4) — HP: 624 / 1400]
[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]
The lobster convulsed, its claws snapping weakly. Gray wrapped his tentacles around its head and activated Grip Jaw, crushing the last of its resistance.
[GRIP JAW — 68 DAMAGE]
[GRIP JAW — 64 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (4) — HP: 292 / 1400]
He drove Overcharge into its core and watched the light fade from its eyes.
[OVERCHARGE — 294 DAMAGE]
[DEEP SEA LOBSTER (4) — DEFEATED — 1,200 EXP]
Gray released the corpse and drifted back, his bell heaving with slow, steady pulses. The water around them was thick with sand and debris, but the battle was over.
Cindy drifted beside him, her frills swaying with exhaustion.
"That was a lot of lobsters."
"Four," Gray said. "That’s not a lot."
"It felt like a lot."
Lily spun happily between them, her dark core pulsing with pride.
Cindy smiled, reaching out to pat Lily’s core.
"You did great, Lily. Your spines are getting stronger."
Lily pulsed brightly, her five points spinning with joy.