Chapter 233

CRASH—!

The entire cavern jittered the moment the two werewolves reached the Minotaur.

It was as if the beast had already sensed a fundamental shift in their auras, forcing it to abandon its playful facade and take the encounter more seriously.

The moment the trio were within range, the Minotaur pulled its heavy mace from the stone, swinging it upward in a savage arc toward Felix, who had surged out front.

Lightning fizzled and danced across the iron weapon and then—

Bang—!

A concentrated beam of lightning rushed out toward the werewolf.

Felix, charging fearlessly, didn’t flinch.

Without hesitation, he brought his hands together in a loud, firm clap.

Instantly, the Minotaur found itself transposed directly in front of its own lightning beam.

The energy smashed into the creature with immense force, causing its massive body to quiver from the paralyzing and electrocuting effect of its own hijacked ability.

Clap—!

In a blur of motion, Bruce swapped positions with Felix and was now standing directly in front of the staggered Minotaur.

His right fist was drawn back like a coiled spring, his left arm cutting through the air to maintain perfect balance.

The beast’s eyes lit up in pure horror.

BAM—!

The werewolf’s fist crashed into the beast’s snout with thunderous force.

The ground beneath their feet caved in almost immediately under the sheer pressure of the blow.

A loud crash resounded throughout the cavern, followed by the beast’s body flying backward with such immense momentum that its back connected with the far wall in a flash.

The stone disintegrated into crumpled rubble, burying the monster beneath the debris.

The spectators looked at each other in stunned silence, their shock barely having time to solidify before another loud bang echoed.

Bruce was already dashing forward with blazing velocity.

In a mere second, he was upon the area where he had blasted the beast.

His claws gleamed dangerously with obsidian energy as he swung them downward to finish the job.

However, before he could land the killing blow, a thunderous explosion rocked his position.

A violent blast of lightning burst out from the rubble, pushing Bruce backward and sending him sliding across the cavern floor.

Bursting forth from the ruins, the Minotaur gave chase with overwhelming speed.

In a jiffy, it was towering before the werewolf with its mace raised high above its head.

The weapon screamed down toward Bruce’s skull with lightning speed.

All Bruce could do was lift his massive hands above his head just in time to absorb the impact of the spiked mace.

The ground beneath his feet shattered into a wide chasm, with debris blowing upward and mixing with arcs of stray electricity.

Bruce clenched his jaws tightly, every muscle in his transformed body bulging as he pushed against the beast’s monstrous strength.

Luckily, he wasn’t alone in this struggle.

Felix swooped in almost immediately, his own claws shining with an obsidian glow.

Crossing his hands in front of his face, he hauled them back out, causing an X-shaped slash of energy to erupt.

The projectile sped toward the beast’s exposed back.

Feeling the tingle of energy heading its way, the Minotaur immediately zipped to the side, allowing the slash to miss and tear through the ground instead.

Bruce huffed for a moment as he turned, his gaze fixed on the beast whose muscles twitched with adrenaline.

Bang—! Bang—!

He surged forward while the beast also dashed ahead. In a second, they met dead in the center.

The monster hauled its mace forward with crushing speed and strength.

Bruce, who was grinning like a madman, swung his fist forward with full force.

In a flash, his knuckles collided with the head of the Minotaur’s mace.

The iron spikes threatened to rip into his furry skin, but due to his high endurance and the density of his transformed state, his fur held firm.

The mace was unable to move forward, and neither was Bruce’s fist.

The duo froze in the center, glares locked in a stalemate.

But the Minotaur wasn’t about to let the moment pass.

Its second hand rushed from below toward Bruce’s side in a powerful, lightning-charged blow.

Clap—!

Bruce vanished from sight, leaving the Minotaur’s fist to slam into empty air with a loud crash that shook the very atmosphere.

Lightning strikes scattered into the air as a violent blast of wind whooshed outward from the impact zone.

Even from the considerable distance they maintained from the main clash, the other Aspirants remained safe.

Trish, however, stood much closer to the center of the storm.

Though the shockwaves hadn’t knocked her back, the gale ruffled her hair wildly, and stray bolts of lightning sizzled into the stone around her position, narrowly missing her.

Before the Minotaur could reposition itself after the swap, Felix had already dove forward.

With his legs fully transformed, his velocity had increased exponentially, confirming his role as a speed-oriented werewolf.

His jaw shifted into a deadly snout filled with rows of jagged, razor-sharp fangs.

He opened his maw wide as he crouched low, skidding across the floor toward the beast’s exposed abdomen, ready to rip the flesh apart.

With lightning arcing around its hooves, the Minotaur zipped backward just in time, causing Felix’s jaws to snap against the empty air with a loud, echoing crack.

Zipping forward from the shadows behind, Bruce reached the beast’s new position the moment its feet touched the ground.

A jagged lightning bolt was immediately shot his way.

With a desperate twirl to the side, Bruce avoided the strike by the skin of his teeth.

Vaulting off the cavern floor with immense power, he spun through the air, hauling his leg forward in a devastating roundhouse kick.

The Minotaur lifted its massive arm just in time to intercept the blow.

The impact shook the beast’s entire limb, rattling its bones and forcing it into a long, heavy slide.

Slamming its mace into the ground to provide leverage, the monster finally ground to a halt.

It swung the heavy weapon from below, sending jagged waves of lightning bursting forward toward the werewolf.

Unfazed, Bruce leaned into the attack, his eyes glowing.

’Hey kid. I need a speed boost now.’

«System! 3 points to agility and the last point to strength!» Ray barked internally.

[Done]

[AGI: 56>>>59]

[STR: 57>>>58]

Bruce felt the surge of fresh energy flowing through him like a rushing stream.

His veins became fuller, and his thighs bulged incredulously under the strain of his newfound power.

Bang—! Bang—! Bang—!

The werewolf began zipping in between the incoming lightning strikes.

Earlier, he had sensed that he was just a fraction too slow to evade the attacks with his base speed, which was why he had demanded the boost.

Now, he was able to weave through the electrical barrage, even if only by a hair’s breadth.

Leaping and darting from side to side, Bruce was doing a masterful job against the lightning strikes.

However, the moment he avoided the final bolt, the Minotaur suddenly appeared directly in front of him, already mid-swing with a sideways strike of its mace aimed directly for the werewolf’s head.