F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 358: Instigators

Beneath the heavenly canvas of onyx and mystical, dark aquamarine, three young humans sprinted along the seemingly dead treelines.

Daru found it a little uncomfortable that both his comrades glanced at him from time to time, sometimes even on the verge of saying something, only to hold themselves back at the last second.

He said he would explain how he had survived later, perhaps during the next Hissing, but seeing his comrades unfocused on the path ahead frustrated him.

Daru sighed and began explaining how he chanced upon the elite proceeding to hide inside the hollow of a nearby gray sap tree, and so he simply proceeded to copy what the monkey did...while ruining its safety plans.

Peter and Elara’s eyes widened upon hearing the last part of his story before he secured safety at the last second.

A sense of somewhat twisted joy crept into their hearts, and what little remained of their displeasure towards the other was gone in the four winds.

The two SSS-rankers somehow found it strange that the elite weren’t upon them yet, concluding that it might have gone back to its comrades to pursue them more effectively as a tribe.

No.

As it turned out, the huge monkey was dead, cooked in dark aquamarine death plumes until not even its bones were left.

That was certainly an effective way of disposing of a pungent corpse...

"Ha! Hahahaha! Alright, I admit I’m liking you more and more as a comrade. I’ll come clean. I’ve been looking for reasons to call you dead weight. I, Peter Fan, declare that you’re not. As for you, princess, your sudden emotional outburst put you lower in my list."

Daru detected pure sincerity in the SSS-ranker’s tone this time.

It had always been difficult to tell whether Peter was being genuine or not, so this was quite refreshing to him.

As for Elara, she snorted, sidestepping a tree after almost ramming straight into it.

"Who actually cares about the list of a lizard-eating fool like you? I’ll tell you what. I haven’t even worked with those two half-jerks yet, but I already hate them less than you!"

Peter’s mouth twitched in amusement at the retort, but before he could engage in a bit of playful verbal war — at least for him — rustles, cracks, screeches, and barks echoed in the distance behind them.

The Gray Ateles Mortis tribe was back.

It was definitely good that they dealt with that troublesome elite, but this doesn’t change things a lot.

The monkeys were still faster, and they would soon catch up — probably in a minute or two. The three of them were still in deep trouble.

Nonetheless, they were in a better position to make Elara’s plan work.

They made use of the time to head further and further east.

Soon, the monkeys were once again brachiating on the trees around them and running on fours a shrinking distance behind.

But there was something wrong with them.

Unlike earlier, their communications seemed more hectic and urgent. The monkeys circling them from the east also seemed a bit wary of their surroundings while moving from branch to branch, some even stumbling a bit due to rushing.

They were clearly in a hurry to herd them back west.

A wide smile appeared on Elara’s face.

"We’re close, don’t back down! We break through if they block us!" she instructed.

The other two nodded, eyes keeping track of their pursuers.

What she said had happened sooner rather than later.

Four Gray Ateles Mortises blocked their path. However, Daru and his comrades steeled themselves and charged at them head-on.

The plan, though, was simply to break through, not engage.

Daru combined Havoc Rush and Phantom Lunge, emerging on the other side after effectively confusing the monkeys.

Elara, meanwhile, shot to the skies as a piercing, silver tornado before landing behind two of the monkeys.

[-140]

She received some fall damage, but nothing notable in comparison to what could’ve been had she failed.

It was Peter whose method was the simplest.

As it turned out, he could focus his commands on a single target, making them more effective.

The Gray Ateles Mortis that was blocking his way simply stood and let him pass.

Those behind exploded in fury at the failure of their comrades, especially the three elites who were swiftly catching up from the southwest, pointing at the escaping intruders.

The chase had disturbed the entire tribe to this degree! 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Elara’s plan, however, was much grander.

She didn’t know how much farther they had to run east, but she was sure that they would at least make it.

Sure enough, more gazes landed on them. The same, ruthless, glossy black ones, but attached to a strikingly different body.

The trio shuddered slightly upon hearing cries coming from the other side.

These were of a significantly lower pitch than that of the Gray Ateles Mortises, sounding more like growls and roars.

Hesitation crashed upon the pursuing tribe.

However, as the three elites caught up and took the lead, seemingly ordering the rest to follow, the standard monkeys quickly did, their gazes turning colder.

Meanwhile, Peter slapped his forehead.

"This...is your plan?"

Elara scowled, shooting a glare at the Aziyan SSS-ranker’s way. "Tell me, then. What other option do we have?"

"Woah, woah, relax! I’m about to say this is wild and fun!"

The moment he finished explaining himself, figures appeared in the distant trees.

Ateles Mortises.

These ones, however, have long, rich, raven-black fur.

Leading them were two elites, but if one listened closely, one would hear them calling for reinforcements.

How could the Black Ateles Mortises allow the grays to run rampant in their territory?

A few more moments later, the blacks decided that they had enough numbers. They rushed forth, brachiating in fury.

"Oooohhh boy!" Peter chuckled with hints of both nervousness and excitement.

A monkey war was upon the Spider Graveyard.

As for whether they would survive or be among the fallen primates, it was up to a mix of fate and their abilities as the apex of their generation.