CHAPTER 202: NECROMANCY? (2)

Adrian did not waste a breath. [Analysis] activated instinctively, his eyes scanning the horde as data flooded his mind.

[Analyzing...]

[Rank: 9-Star]

[Element: Darkness]

...

Every single one of them was of 9-Star rank. Adrian’s jaw tightened. These weren’t the fodder he had mowed down earlier.

The air vibrated with their collective aura. But just immediately. He released his to suppress them. His aura succeeded in getting rid of theirs, but that was just it. They didn’t seem as affected as Adrian would have hoped for, leaving him no option but to take them on for the fight.

The horde didn’t give him time to ponder. A massive skeletal beast, resembling a warped mammoth with jagged bone spikes protruding from its spine, charged first.

~FWHUM!~

Its thunderous steps cracked the earth, and it swung a trunk-like appendage wreathed in shadow flames toward him.

Adrian dodged the attack with a burst from his suit’s thrusters, the air scorching where the attack passed.

Close behind, a wraith unleashed a barrage of darts at him, prompting Adrian to counter by raising his Mana Gun and firing a volley of condensed blasts.

~ZAPP! ZAPP! PSHH!~

The shots struck true, piercing the skeletal beast’s wrist — where its core was located — and exploding in bursts of blue light. But unlike before, the cores didn’t shatter outright.

The impacts only cracked them, dimming the monsters’ regeneration but not halting it. Shadows knit back together almost immediately, the wounds closing with a sickening squelch.

’Fuck, the Mana Gun’s not enough this time,’ Adrian realized in frustration. He didn’t think it was a good idea to waste his internal mana either, so Adrian was left with no other choice than to return the gun to his [Inventory()].

’I’ll need more firepower.’

With no choice but to close in. He activated Phantom Steps, his form blurring into afterimages as he weaved through the chaos.

The first target was a regenerating creature that lunged at him with elongated arms, its claws extending like whips to ensnare him.

Adrian met it head-on, channeling mana into his fists for a Vortex Counter. His palms spun mid-air, catching the claw strike and redirecting its momentum, sending the creature hurtling into a cluster of its brethren.

The impact bowled them over in a tangle of limbs and shadows.

But they recovered fast. Seizing the opening, Adrian transitioned into a martial barrage; his hands moving in flowing patterns of Twin Dragon Spiral.

The strike succeeded in destroying the monster’s core, turning it into dust and out of the fight.

The battle soon devolved into a whirlwind of defense and offense. Adrian was a lone fortress against a tidal wave.

Yet for every one he felled, more pressed in closer. A group of wraiths coordinated an assault, merging their forms into a massive shadow vortex that pulled at him like a black hole, threatening to crush him in its depths.

Adrian used the suit’s boosters to resist the pull, then retaliated with a wide-arc Vortex Counter, spinning the vortex’s own force against it and dispersing the amalgamated horror into harmless wisps.

Minutes stretched, and slowly the horde thinned. The last beast met its end when Adrian feinted left, drew it in, and delivered a mana-infused uppercut straight to its forehead where its core was located.

[Congratulations! You have killed a magical creature!]

[Magical Crystal harvested successfully!]

This time, Adrian didn’t relax. Instead, choosing to hover in the air just in case more were to come.

’Although there’s a chance, it’s not logical for it to happen again—’

~RUMBLE~

As if mocking his very thoughts, the ground sang again. This time it was deeper and more profound, shaking the very foundations of the forest.

This time, the creatures numbered in the hundreds, a seething mass that blotted out the forest floor. To make matters worse, one creature stood out.

[Analyzing...]

[Rank: Transcendent]

[Element: Darkness]

...

The Transcendent beast was unmistakable. It was a colossal wraith, towering like a dark monolith, its form a swirling abyss with crimson eyes that pierced his soul.

Surrounding it were skeletons, wraiths, and hybrid beasts that combined the worst of all.

Adrian’s blood ran cold.

’This... this is impossible. How can they keep escalating?’

He dove into the fray, but the difference was immediate. These monsters adapted to his tactics.

A skeleton parried his Resonant Fist with a bone shield that absorbed and reflected the energy, forcing him to dodge his own amplified attack.

He fought like a demon possessed. Phantom Steps carried him through gaps, his martial techniques evolving on the fly; a spinning heel kick that shattered a hybrid’s tentacle turned it to dust, a defensive whirl that redirected a storm of shadow bolts gave him breathing room.

The Transcendent entity didn’t stay idle, unleashing area-wide attacks: waves of dark energy that withered the air itself, forcing Adrian to push himself to the maximum to defend. And it was more than clear he wasn’t having it easy.

[Durability: 78%].

’This can’t go on forever,’ Adrian thought, mid-dodge from a skeleton’s earth shaking stomp that had cracked the ground into fissures.

’It’s clear they’re products of necromancy. But that doesn’t explain everything. Where’s the Necromancer controlling them?’

Adrian didn’t have enough information on how necromancy worked in this world. But universal laws applied: everything required energy.

It was one theory he always believed in. Something had to power this endless horde. Just like their cores managed their regeneration.

’If it’s summoning, there must be a reservoir, a focal point drawing from... what?’

The struggle still intensified for Adrian. His attacks landed precisely on their cores, felling dozens, but the toll mounted.

A hybrid beast’s claw raked his side, sparks flying from his suit for the umpteenth time since the battle began:

[Durability: 62%].

He retaliated with a flurry of punches, shattering its core, but more swarmed. The apex unleashed a beam of pure oblivion, forcing him to burn thrusters for evasion.

It became too overwhelming for Adrian, and without a clear battle plan, the battle was becoming futile.

He could destroy all the beasts, only for more to come for him. Adrian knew he had to seek respite.

~BOOM!~

A direct hit from the Transcendent wraith aura wave slammed him back on the ground.

[Durability: 56%].

’I can’t win this head-on. It’s time I retreat.’

Evacuating wasn’t easy. The monsters anticipated, tendrils shooting up to ensnare his flight path, skeletons leaping with unnatural agility to block him.

He blasted through with a desperate Vortex Counter, redirecting a barrage to clear a path, then ignited his thrusters at full power.

Shadows grasped at him, tearing minor chunks from his suit, but he broke free, soaring high and away, putting precious distance between himself and the horde.

Panting in the sky, Adrian’s mind whirled. ’Infinite? No, nothing is truly infinite. The energy source... it has to be finite. Maybe it could be hidden. But how are they manifesting so quickly and so powerfully?’

Just then, Adrian’s eyes glowed a bright blue, or rather, they glowed with realization. He knew exactly what was happening, or rather, had a guess that clicked like a puzzle piece snapping into place.

Without hesitation, he turned around and rocketed back toward the battlefield.