NOVEL NEXT Chapter 424: I am right here, bitches
The next couple of days slipped by in a strange lull, a silence that felt unnatural for a world as chaotic as Earth Online. In the light faction continent, cities and villages bustled as usual. Everyone went about their business as if nothing had happened.
As for Lotera City, players avoided the abyssal zone entirely.
No guild dared to stage another raid, no lone adventurer tested their luck. Word had spread too far, too fast. It wasn't just difficult, it was a death trap.
The promise of treasures, rare mobs, and hidden quests normally would've been irresistible, but the sheer brutality of the place had burned itself into the collective memory of the player base.
Respawns were relentless, monsters were stronger than entire raid groups, and resources were nearly nonexistent. Entire parties had crawled back broken, some losing ten, twenty levels in the process. Others hadn't crawled back at all. Even the greedy guilds, who lived and died on risk versus reward, made the same decision. Stay away.
And so, while other parts of the continent thrummed with activity, the abyssal zone stood silent, an untouched scar on the map.
Meanwhile, the dark faction continent was not nearly as silent. Damon recovered from the blood coral consumption soon enough and regained his consciousness. But he felt pretty weak and exhausted overall. He walked out, planning to take it easy the next couple of days, when a shocking sight awaited him.
In the distance, ten demonic auras ripped through the air. Their pressure rolled over the battlefield like a storm front, making even the ground tremble. Damon's group was locked in combat, fighting desperately against the overwhelming tide.
Mark swung his fist like a juggernaut, his Titan bloodline roaring to life, while Kate's staff shone crimson as her blood globes detonated one after another in brilliant arcs. Kaelthorn and Ellora were equally fierce, and it still wasn't enough.
Even with the assistance of the merpeople, everyone was barely holding on.
The demons weren't ordinary mobs. Each one towered like a nightmare with bulky frames and horns on their heads, their levels flashing 130. Their claws ripped through the air like scythes, and their howls carried pure malice.
Every strike from Damon's allies chipped away at them, but it was clear the group was being pushed to its absolute limit. Damon's gaze hardened. Something was not right. Everyone in his group was exceptional, to say the least. Just this much shouldn't be enough to push them back. What was happening?
Then he saw it. The entire area was covered with huge craters of rotting blood and flesh. The whole forest was destroyed. There were broken horns, torn wings, claws, and all sorts of demon remains scattered around.
Damon immediately understood. This was not the first ten demons his group was fighting against. It looked like they had already carved through dozens, if not more. It wasn't weakness that made his group falter. It was exhaustion. Anyone would get worn out if they were constantly in battle.
What was happening? Why were all of these demons suddenly rushing here?
Wait, where was Erin?
His gaze landed on a rock on the side where a heavily injured serpent was lying, its once-glorious scales cracked and dulled, venomous blood leaking sluggishly from deep gouges along its body.
Erin was injured?
He couldn't believe it. Something strong enough attacked them to injure Erin? It was impossible. This area was on the outskirts, and there shouldn't be any strong demons around. The murder of crows was an exception. There was no way there would be other strong demons here.
There was no time to think now. Damon decided to first give a hand to the group and deal with these ten demons before worrying about what was going on.
His figure blurred as he appeared behind the first demon with an enormous burning crimson lance. He shoved the lance directly into the throat of the humanoid demon.
The muscular demonic creature barely had time to register the strike before the blood-forged lance tore straight through its throat. The crimson spearhead erupted out of the back of its neck in a spray of gore, carrying with it a burst of golden fire that seared the wound shut even as it ripped the demon apart.
The hulking creature choked, claws raking at the weapon impaling it, but Damon didn't give it a chance. His hand twisted, and the lance detonated in a blossom of blood and flame, blowing the monster's head clean off. Its body toppled like a felled mountain, crashing into the ground with an earth-shaking thud.
Blood essence flowed freely into Damon as all eyes, friend and foe alike, snapped to him.
Mark paused mid-swing, his knuckles dripping Titan-forged power, and barked out a savage laugh. "About damn time!"
Kate's chest rose and fell, exhaustion pulling at her features, but her lips trembled into a small, relieved smile. The six blood-globes hovering behind her brightened as though reinvigorated just by Damon's return.
The demons, however, did not falter. Nine pairs of blazing amber eyes fixed on Damon, their killing intent spiking, howls echoing like war drums. Their claws curled and wings spread wide, as though they understood instinctively, the tide of the battle had shifted, and he was the axis upon which everything turned.
Chains of blood uncoiled from Damon's body, slamming into the ground with whip-like cracks that sent dust spiraling upward. "I am right here, bitches. Come and get me."
The nine demons answered his taunt with roars that rattled the ruined forest. Their combined malice swelled like a tidal wave, shaking the very air. They fanned out, circling Damon, claws scraping stone, wings thrashing the smoke-filled sky.
But the very next second, the chains of blood turned into spears that pierced each one of the demons. Each one shot out with the speed of lightning and the weight of mountains, drilling straight through demon flesh.
Nine screams erupted at once, roars of agony as their massive bodies convulsed under the sudden impalement.
Black blood gushed in fountains, sizzling against the already ruined earth. Their claws swiped wildly, wings flailing in desperation, but every movement only drove the spears deeper.