Ring of fire

The Hercules beetles proved to be a formidable challenge for most of the party. Their hard outer shells and rapid bursts of movement made them unpredictable foes. However, their true strength lay in their forceps, which were capable of crushing an average human's bones in seconds. Their raw power alone made them dangerous, but their resilience meant that even if one could withstand their attacks, taking them down was a completely different ordeal.

The most difficult part of this fight wasn't the beetles themselves—it was disguising Ray's true strength. He had to act as if he was struggling, keeping up the illusion for the rest of the group. In reality, these creatures were nowhere near his level. With the assimilation of basic and intermediate-tier crystals, along with his siphoned mana, his physical power had far surpassed that of the average fighter. Instead of eliminating them outright, he decided to turn this into a training exercise. He needed to refine his dexterity while using the gauntlets.

With one hand, he blocked the beetle's powerful pincers. With the other, he slashed at their exoskeleton using the jagged black claws on his gauntlets. The crowd of onlookers watched in awe, completely oblivious to the fact that this was just practice for him. To them, it looked like a high-stakes battle, a struggle against the monstrous insects. After enough time had passed, Ray infused his gauntlets with Ki and made quick work of the beetles, shattering their tough exoskeletons like brittle glass.

Now that his opponents were dealt with, Ray turned his attention to Gary. He was faring well, though his fight was far from easy. Two beetles took turns attacking him from both sides, their pincers striking in coordinated bursts. However, instead of evading, Gary took an entirely different approach. He parried one beetle's attack in such a way that it redirected into the second beetle. Their forceps clashed against each other, their strength inadvertently working against them.

Despite this clever strategy, frustration was beginning to show on Gary's face. His Ki-infused sword, though powerful, was not strong enough to pierce the beetles' reinforced armor. He needed something more.

Patiently, he waited. Both beetles lined up their pincers for a simultaneous thrust. The moment they lunged, Gary sidestepped with impeccable timing. Using the momentum of his dodge, he swung his sword, guiding the beetles' attacks into each other. Their forceps impaled one another, their own strength turned against them. Both creatures let out a final screech before collapsing, lifeless.

Martha and Monk demonstrated excellent teamwork. Monk used his black sash footwork to weave through the beetles' attacks, effortlessly slipping between their lunges. His movements were so fluid that it appeared as if he were dancing. As he did this, he kept the beetles' attention locked on him, luring them into Martha's range.

Martha, positioned at a distance, had recently upgraded her bow to an intermediate-tier weapon. This allowed her arrows to finally penetrate the beetles' tough shells. However, while the arrows stuck into the beetles, they failed to deal immediate lethal damage. The creatures were sturdy both inside and out.

Recognizing this, Monk capitalized on the openings created by the arrows. With each strike, he slammed his fists into the protruding shafts, driving them deeper into the beetles' bodies. The moment one beetle fell, he repeated the process on the next. It was a slow but effective strategy, and soon enough, their enemies were motionless.

Ian, however, found himself in a dire situation. He was locked in a brutal struggle against his opponent, the beetle having caught him in its forceps. The monstrous insect was attempting to crush his ribs while simultaneously dragging him closer, its razor-sharp mandibles snapping hungrily. Ian, on the other hand, resisted with sheer brute strength, keeping the beetle at bay through nothing more than raw power and willpower alone.

On the other side of the battlefield, Kyle was proving to be all but useless. He managed to avoid sustaining any major injuries, but his attacks were doing nothing to damage his opponent. His sword was too weak, his swings too ineffective against the beetle's armored body. He was simply surviving, not fighting.

Ian, after what seemed like an eternity, finally managed to overpower his opponent. With a final roar of exertion, he tore the beetle's forceps clean from its body. The creature let out a deafening screech before collapsing, motionless. Ian held the severed forceps in his hands, analyzing them for a brief moment before gripping them like twin axes. His expression shifted. 

He was going to make use of them.

With renewed vigor, he turned his attention to Kyle's adversary. Wielding the forceps as makeshift weapons, Ian made quick work of the beetle, tearing through its defenses in a way Kyle had failed to do. Within seconds, the fight was over.

Dan was doing surprisingly well. Unlike the others, he had abandoned traditional weapons altogether. Instead of using a spear, he opted for the massive stick they had all struggled to lift when they first met him. He swung it like a club, his brute force making up for his lack of cutting ability. Though his attacks didn't pierce the beetle's armor, the sheer impact of his blows left noticeable dents. Slowly but surely, cracks formed in the exoskeleton. Eventually, yellow liquid began oozing from within, and the beetle succumbed to its inevitable demise.

Last up was Slyvia. Her defense was flawless—every attack sent her way was nullified by her shield. She moved with such precision that the beetle couldn't land a single clean hit. However, there was one major drawback—her offense was lacking. No matter how many times she struck with her sword, the beetle's tough outer shell refused to give way. Her strikes, though graceful, simply weren't enough.

The beetle seemed to recognize this. Realizing it couldn't break through her defense, and that she lacked the strength to harm it, it lost interest. Without hesitation, it turned and scuttled away, searching for an easier target.

Martha, having already dealt with her own beetle, noticed Slyvia's opponent fleeing. Without missing a beat, she nocked an arrow and let it fly. The arrow found its mark, pinning the beetle's forcep to a nearby tree. With its movement restricted, the rest of the group made quick work of it.

As the group began to recover, a sudden creaking noise echoed through the forest. Before Ray could react, a massive tree came crashing down, separating him and Gary from the others. They instinctively stepped back, but before they could move, the fallen tree erupted into flames, forming a fiery barrier around them.

Gary hadn't ordered the group to return to the academy for help merely because of a small forest fire. Instead, three figures stood before them, clad in high-level beast equipment. One wielded a sword, another spun a chain with a weighted tip, and the third carried dual daggers.

They all had one thing in common—their faces were concealed behind red masks with two slits for eyes. They were clearly the ones responsible for the fire, their intent unmistakable. They wanted to separate Ray and Gary from the rest of the group.

Ray activated his Dragon Eyes, scanning the figures. "They don't show signs of the shadow plague," he muttered.

"Do you think they're from the Dark Guild?" Gary asked.

"Whoever they are, they're strong," Ray replied.

Before they could discuss further, the swordsman lunged forward, leading the assault with a leaping overhead strike. Ray instinctively raised his left arm to block while preparing to counter with his right, but as the blade met his gauntlet, it sliced through with little resistance.

Ray's eyes widened. He twisted his body at the last moment, avoiding the full force of the strike and using his shoulder to knock the swordsman off balance. Quickly, he put distance between them.

His heart pounded. The fact that the enemy's blade had cut through his gauntlet meant only one thing—it was a higher-tier weapon.

This was bad.