NOVEL NEXT Chapter 852: Centipede
"Damn, is this guy the son of the Void Soul Tower or what?" Max cursed under his breath, disbelief and irritation mixing as he took in the sheer number of life-protecting treasures and monstrous companions Raul had.
For a mere fourth-level Legend Rank expert, his arsenal was beyond excessive—borderline absurd.
Raul didn't give him time to think. His finger shot forward, pointing directly at Max as his face twisted in rage. "Kill him for me!" he screamed at the monstrous centipede.
The giant centipede let out a sharp, ear-piercing screech as it shot forward like a bolt of black lightning. Its elongated body, more than ten feet long, tore through the air and even made the space around it ripple with a deafening bang. Its speed was terrifying, leaving behind a streak of shadows that made it look like a living storm. Before the beast even closed in on Max, its two long crimson tentacles lashed out like whips, slicing through the air with murderous intent.
"Damn it!" Max cursed under his breath, his expression tightening. He knew very well that he couldn't possibly defeat a peak Legend Rank monster like this centipede unless he unleashed all four of his mastered concepts or resorted to his Infernal Demon Transformation, which would reveal his trump card far too early. Fighting it head-on was suicide, so he immediately pulled back, his body flashing in retreat. But Raul was relentless, urging the monstrous centipede forward, its speed and power hemming Max in completely. There was no path up and no room down—their combined assault left him with nowhere to run.
For a brief moment, an old memory flashed in Max's mind—Kevin, the insect user who had given him an incredibly hard fight not long ago. Kevin's insect swarm had almost overwhelmed him then, and this centipede was even stronger, even more dangerous. Max clenched his teeth; he couldn't afford to get entangled by this creature now.
His mind raced for a solution, and then he remembered it—Mirror Moon Lake. His eyes flashed as an idea sparked, and without hesitation, he turned sharply and shot toward the shimmering waters nearby.
"Quick, stop him!" Raul barked, immediately realizing Max's intent. He surged forward with murderous speed, the centipede streaking after him like a living spear of darkness.
But Max was faster. He reached Mirror Moon Lake in an instant, his body plunging straight into its crystalline surface, vanishing beneath the ripples.
"Chase him!" Raul roared, leaping in right after, his monstrous pet following behind, churning the lake into chaos.
A few heartbeats later, Raul heard an intense crashing noise from below. His sharp eyes caught Max at the lake's bottom, swinging his sword with brutal force, striking at a deep rocky ridge. The echo of that strike vibrated through the water like a bell, and immediately the lake stirred violently.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
From the darkness of the lakebed, a swarm of ferocious fish-like monsters burst out, their scaly bodies twisting with wild power, their eyes blood-red and their jagged jaws snapping open and shut. The murderous aura radiating from them boiled the water around them.
"Fish Lizards?!" Raul's face instantly darkened. These were notorious lake-dwellers, savage and territorial. Even a small group could overwhelm a careless expert.
He spun, intending to retreat back to the surface, but before he could move, a sharp and vicious sword energy sliced through the water, aimed directly at his back. The blade aura tore through the dense water pressure as if cutting through thin paper—it was Max!
Raul instantly understood. Max had intentionally provoked the Fish Lizards to attack him and then followed up with his own strike to force him into chaos.
"Hateful!" Raul's voice rumbled with fury, his face twisting with rage.
Now, with a swarm of enraged Fish Lizards charging at him from the front and Max pressing him from behind, Raul's situation instantly turned dire. But he wasn't just anyone—he was an insect controller who could command monstrous lifeforms, and he had the terrifying centipede under his control.
With a sharp mental command, the black centipede roared forward, engaging Max and intercepting his strike, while Raul himself summoned several poisonous insects from his body to shred through the Fish Lizard swarm.
Yet the Fish Lizards were no ordinary beasts. Among them were three creatures at the mid-stage of the sixth level of the Legend Realm, their bodies massive and their strength terrifying. Nearly ten more beasts were at the fourth and fifth levels of the Legend Realm, making the swarm incredibly deadly and overwhelming.
Even with Raul's monstrous insects, he was immediately caught in the chaos, his body forced back violently by their sheer numbers and brute strength.
At the same time, Max used the moment of confusion to disengage completely, pushing himself out of the Fish Lizard swarm's frenzy and darting upward, bursting through the lake's surface like a lightning bolt.
The giant centipede was a terrifying existence, a creature possessing the strength of a peak 10th level Legend Rank beast. Even if Max used every sword technique at his disposal, killing it head-on would be an almost impossible task.
But Max had no intention of wasting time or energy fighting a monster that wasn't his main target. The moment he saw what was unfolding below, he made his decision without hesitation—he turned and escaped, using the chaotic situation to his advantage.
What Max saw made his lips curl into a faint grin. The Fish Lizards, provoked earlier by his strike, had now fully descended upon Raul and the giant centipede. These were no ordinary creatures. Fish Lizards were infamous across the region for their ferocity and tenacity.
A single Fish Lizard at the sixth level of the Legend Rank was already enough to give most experts a headache. But three of them at once, supported by an entire swarm of lower-ranked beasts, was another story altogether—it was a nightmare.
Raul's expression stiffened as reality sank in. He had no choice but to grit his teeth and command the giant centipede to hold off the advancing herd, even if it meant certain death for the beast.
This centipede, however, wasn't an ordinary summon. It wasn't Raul's contracted mana pet but rather an elder-level creature from the Void Soul Tower, bound by powerful contracts and absolute loyalty. It wouldn't hesitate, even if Raul ordered it to sacrifice itself.