Chapter 273

Ray’s eyes widened as he realized that there wasn’t enough time to switch with Elyon, given the extreme speed at which the attack was coming.

"Please don’t die..."

Elyon had already realized the situation they were in and understood that the idea of dodging was completely impossible at the moment.

But before the strike could land, light crackled and manifested around the celestial, forming a shimmering, spherical barrier of light that stood firmly around him.

The attack collided with the shield, producing a loud screech that echoed through the night sky.

Cracks appeared around the sphere for a few seconds before it cleared off.

The next second, the fractures appeared again while Ray anxiously watched his energy bar dropping at a ridiculous pace.

While the barrier was up, Elyon wasted no time in leaving the chair, just in time for Ray to crash into it as the cracks deepened across the barrier faster than before.

The moment the boy took control of the seat, lightning crackled around his feet as he activated the VMS boots and then proceeded to vault backward with blazing speed, dispelling the barrier at the same time.

He landed a few meters away from what had attacked him.

Now that he was safe for the time being, he could finally lift his head to take in the sight of what had tried cleaving his body in half.

Luckily, his incredible vision was still working, piercing through the thick veil of the night sky to see the beast standing a few meters away.

It was a titan of calcified dread, a mountain of sun-bleached chitin that seemed to have been birthed from the very bedrock it now claimed.

Its massive frame was a fortress of pale, abrasive armor, every inch of its surface pitted and scarred like the wind-ravaged cliffs of a dead world.

Dominating its forward mass was a singular, spiraled lance—a horn of jagged ivory that pierced the sweltering air, thirsting for the sky.

Below it, the creature’s face was a nightmare of evolutionary cruelty.

Secondary tusks curled upward like the ribs of a shipwreck, guarding a maw where stone-grinding mandibles twitched in a rhythmic, mindless hunger, shedding a fine, choking mist of pulverized silt with every movement.

As it shifted, the sound was visceral—the tectonic groan of dry plates sliding over one another, layered over the deep, percussive thud of a heart that beat with the slow, cold patience of the earth itself.

It did not walk so much as it anchored itself to reality.

Its primary limbs were serrated scythes, lined with rows of hooked, obsidian-hard teeth that bit into the gravel with a sickening crunch.

Sparks didn’t fly; instead, clouds of ancient dust billowed from its joints, turning the air into a golden shroud that masked its true scale.

It stood there, a silent, breathing monument of devastation, waiting for the wind to carry the scent of something soft enough to crush.

’Er... Inspect.’

[Inspect]

[Name: Earth Shaker]

[Rank: King]

[Ability: Earth]

[HP: 50/100]

[MF: 30/300]

Now that Ray took a closer look, indeed, the beast looked quite injured.

Its massive frame was lined with a few cracks here and there; its horn was only half its usual length, and one of its tusks was badly cracked.

It looked like the creature had just come out of a tough fight that rendered it this heavily damaged.

But what could have been strong enough to put a King-rank beast in this condition?

It was even bleeding... or whatever it was, because ancient dust could be seen flowing steadily from the fractures on its massive body.

’Could it be another King-rank beast?’

".....?!"

’Wait. Ah, shoot! This is a fucking King-rank beast! The same as that blasted Minotaur. Oh, I’m so dead!’

He wasn’t even given time to gather his thoughts or sort out how he wanted his will to be made.

The beast simply charged at him with a deadly speed that was far too great for a creature of its massive size.

Quickly rising to his feet, Ray shifted into a combat stance while watching the Earth Shaker close the distance.

Within mere moments, it was upon him, swinging one of its massive scythes from the side toward the Tribrid’s head.

Luckily, the boy was fast enough to activate his boots, allowing him to dive beneath the beast’s hulking legs, thereby dodging the serrated limb that hammered heavily into the earth, kicking up a dense cloud of dust.

Unfortunately, the Aspirant didn’t even have the time to take in his surroundings or the arena of the battle, as the creature spun around almost immediately.

A second slash of its scythe descended from above like a hammer of death toward the human’s head.

This time, there was no way he would be able to dodge the strike in time, so he swiftly crossed his hands above his head just in time as the blade crashed onto his arms with thunderous force.

The earth beneath their feet surged upward as the Tribrid was pushed deeper into the ground from the sheer impact of the hit.

The hooks of obsidian-hard teeth bit into his flesh with immense force, and dark blood could be seen rolling down the human’s hands.

Ray was forced to grit his teeth at the agonizing amount of pain he was going through, with the jagged hooks digging deeper into his skin with each passing breath.

It felt as though his arms were being sawed repeatedly.

That wasn’t all, though.

The beast refused to give him even a single moment of breathing space, as its second scythe lunged toward the human’s exposed side with blazing speed.

__

A/N: Hey everyone! I just want to hear your thoughts. It’s been a while.

How do you all see the book so far? If you have been reading this far, means the book is nice, yeah?

So on a scale of 1 to 10; lemme hear your rating for the book.

[Silently; Please be a good score. Fingers crossed 🤞 😩]