Blood Spirit ( First part )
Is this really a bear type spirit beast? What does it eat to grow such thing all over its body? "Peng! Peng! Peng!" The dull sound from the blunt impact of their weapon with these beasts skin, no, it is ought to be the armor that covered almost every part of its body. Although these beasts movement is quite slow in the eyes of an expert, yet, it is hard to avoid with their current body refinement rank. Beside Nacorn, everyone is already in their defending state. Without being able to counter-attack, this is absolutely not a solution for prolonged combat. They have to find these spirit beasts' weakness or else they are done for.
"I don't believe its skin is harder than the sharp of my daggers." Carone engages with another spirit beast with his best twin dagger, there is a spark of fire created from the impact between one of his dagger on a low abdomen of the beast while another one of his daggers is holding the counter-attack from the spirit beast arms.
With a grin, the bear uses its abdomen to hold one of the daggers from Carone with ease, from this sudden counter-attack of the beast Carone can only abandon his beloved dagger. Before he could even retreat, the beast takes the opportunity from his stun to land a heavy blow over his lower abdomen which sent Carone flying toward the Nacorn.
"These spirit beasts are smarter than expect." Look at the distress experience from Carone, Nacorn said with a solemn expression, everyone aware that their opponents are not some trifle spirit beast.
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"How long do we have to fight with them?" Although there are only three spirit beasts, however, its skin is harder than steel. Benak's spearhead is already dull beyond repairable. The twin daggers of Carone, one is embedded between the fur of the bear spirit beast, another one sharp changed beyond recognizable. William is even worst than the two because he has no weapon, he had never use one, now he finally realizes how good it is to own a close combat weapon instead of relying on those bombs. Only if these spirit beasts swallow the bombs directly or else don't even think about using it with this close-range combat. With almost no damage to its outer skin from the weapon, there is only death await them one he use the bombs.
Carone's dagger in which embedded on the spirit beast abdomen has been caught by its paws, not long before that spirit beast crush it with its mouth. It seems the dagger was its meal since the beginning.
"So, this the only chance to survive this crisis."
"Everyone be careful when you place the bombs on the ground. Our only chance is to make these spirit beasts eat them." William can only come up with this idea after saw one of those spirit beasts eat Carone's dagger.
William gently throws the bomb toward a spirit beast that stands not far away from him. He is praying for it swallows the bomb directly as it is smaller compare to Carone dagger.
Seeing what William did, everyone follows suit.
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"What's happening? Why did those stupid bears stop attacking them?" A bloodred figure standing over a hill not far away from the battlefield to oversee the process of his prey dying.
"It is not good, even though these bears are stupid, but at least they have never failed so miserable." It needs to come up with a new plan.
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After everything settles, all of the four of them just laid there while heavy panting. This is the first time to have met with such an opponent. Luckily the god of death still does not want their life or else...
"We don't know how long can we withstand such battle if those spirit beasts don't take the bait," Benak said while panting for breaths.
"Bah, now it is not the time to talk about it. We have to find a way to leave this place before more of them coming again." Carone did not expect such an easy solution could save their life.
"Right, now it's time to leave this place. Before more of them arrive, it is not safe anymore to stay here." William also has the same though as Carone.
"But, where are we going if we don't even know which direction is safe?" Benak's concern is not wrong, with this kind of environment it is hard to even see clearly during noontime, let alone at midnight.
"It all depends on destiny if we must have such a short life, at least let's die while experience the legend of one of the forbidden ground," Nacorn said with a straight expression.
"Let's get some rest first so we could stand a chance even if we meet the other spirit beast on the way." Without regaining some energy and leave directly is only a death wish. Who knows what kind of spirit beasts they are going to face on the way? If it were some odd spirit beast like what they had just faced, are they not deliver themself?
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"Get up!" William already carries Rosy over his bosom while trying to wake Vernora up.
"Vimo! I want to sleep more." Vernora replies with a half-awake half-asleep voice.
"Hey, young lady! get up! we have to leave now." William finds it is interesting while waking Vernora up. She seems to exhaust to even forget where she is at.
After sitting with her half-awake posture, Vernora just spread her arms wide, it was as if she is awaiting something. William finds it amusing when he sees her act like that.
Not long before Vernora realize something was off, normally Vimo ought to bring a towel and help her don her robe, the moment she opens beautiful eyes, she sees William smiling at her. 'Ah, how embarrassing?' Vernora, you have to change your old habit.
"What are you looking at? Have you never see someone sketch themself before get up." Why does she always get irritated just from this rascal look at her?
"Oh! By the way, my young lady we have to leave now, else no one knows when will those beast coming again..." William told Vernora a brief of what happened last night. What! How can she sleep without knowing there is fighting that happened next to her.
"Could please stop call me this young lady, or that young lady? I do have a name, don't you know?" Vernora always finds it is irritating when talking with this rascal. "I am Vernora..." She pauses after mention her first name.
"Eh, what is your last name? Don't you have the last name?" William asked her with interesting eyes, yet there is only an angry face that could be seen from Vernora before he could hear another reply from her.
"Just Vernora without any last or middle name, it is Vernora. Do you hear me clearly?" After heard the angry voice from her, William knows he had stepped on a cattail.
"By the way, I am William Max. You can call me William." Since she gave her name, at least he should return the favor.
"Now, let's go." Before William could get out of the tent, Vernora mosquito voice could be heard by him again.
"I need to solve my daily need, can you guard me." What have you just said Vernora, you are so stupid? How can you talk about something like that to a man, not to mention a hooligan?
"Since we are leaving soon, just do it here. I will stay at the entrance." William doesn't want to waste more time, because no one knows when will they are under attack again.
"You don't need this tent anymore? It still can reuse." Vernora hates wasteful men the most.
"We don't even know if we pass this trail of dead or not. Why bother about it?" William glanced back at her before closing the tent entrance.
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"These are red lotuses, it is hard to even find one in the city. However, they are blooming like flowers in the park, here. What is that in the middle of the pond? It is the snow lotus that only exists in the record, right? It seems to mature at any given moment, too." Carone describes the scenes in the pond in front of him with a beaming smile face.
A faint sigh voice could be heard by Benak after seeing such never seen spiritual herbs, "It is already a good fortune for over ninth generations of praying if we can have our life returning. What is the use of treasures if we don't have our life to enjoy it?"
Just as Carone about to go into the pond, there is a wave over the water surface if one doesn't look closely they will think it as the wind blowing. "Wait! There is something in the water. Everyone on high alert!" Nacorn who had just breakthrough recently caught the ripple effect very well from the pond.
Not long, the ripple of water inside the pond increasing more and more often, it was as something about to resurface.
Four men and a woman with a white puppy on her hand all have a serious expression as they look at the pond where many red lotuses blooming like flowers in the park.
"Is it a lizard?" That spirit beast movement is pretty fast even after leaving the water. Without waiting for anyone to respond, Nacorn charges at the spirit beast with his sword, yet, there is only a dull sound after the impact on the spirit beast body. It was as this spirit beast has the same body constitute from the first spirit beast encounter early.
"What kind of monster is that? We had just face a steel eating bear, now we are also facing a lizard that can melt everything that comes into contact with its saliva." Carone miserable comment heard by everyone, but now it is not time to think about that.
"We don't know exactly how many of them in the water, so everyone, you need to aware of our surroundings." After an initial crash with one of the lizard type spirit beast, they know how hard to deal with many of them at the same time.
"No, we better leave this place at once. If we want to loot these spiritual loti, we need to bring them toward a trap." From William's views, they cannot win no matter what if they were to fight them in close combat. "Let's retreat for now."
After walking for a while, they see a natural cave not too far from the pond. With careful inspection to avoid step into a spirit beast liar, finally, they are at ease. Since those lizards did not follow them after the left vicinity of the pond, they are also felt a bit relieve. What is coming next, it is the plan to loot the spiritual lotuses.
"Everyone, we all know within that pond must have more than one lizard. Even the worst scenario might occur that we could have to face their king. I don't believe that there is no higher rank lizard within their rank. The one that comes out this morning might be a layman only, especially within the vicinity of the snow lotus, that is likely the place for the higher rank spirit beast to guard personally." It is a piece of common knowledge for every adventurer that the spirit beast is the guardian of the spiritual herb.
"Do any of you have any idea how to lure them away from the pond?" William question everyone's opinion.
"Why not throw something into the pond? That way those lizards will come out for sure." Benak said about his opinion. "Bah, do you want all of us to die from the siege of lizard?" Carone knocks Benak forehead with his palm.
"Not a bad idea, but we need to execute it carefully." William thinks that idea is not bad, but to make sure to lure only a few lizards per time. "How about this..."
After preparing everything according to the plan, Nacorn alone returns to the pond. A cold long wind passed by, the lotuses dancing and the water ripple create a harmony that no one would think about this beautiful scenery as a deadly zone.