NOVEL NEXT Chapter 171: That's not Jasmine!
[Ruler's Hand Activated]
In a flash, Jake was forcefully yanked backward just in the nick of time as the demon's sickle sliced through the air with a loud bang.
The hunter landed a few metres away, huffing and panting as he tried his best to calm his wildly beating heart while glaring at the demon, who spun around to see Damian gripping his chest in exhaustion.
"I've had enough of you! Now I see how you managed to defeat a greater fiend despite being weak! Your human brain is annoyingly too sharp and I hate it!" the demon growled in anger as it pointed its sickle forward, then tilted it slightly.
'Damn it! I've used all the skills I have and most of them are on cooldown! What the fuck can I actually do again?! This is so frustrating!' Max thought in panic as he watched the demon lean forward, its eyes glinting with murderous rage as it glared at the hunters.
"Die!" the demon roared as it bolted forward in a blur of motion, appearing right in front of Jake. The hybrid quickly lifted a single arm to defend himself, but unfortunately, it was sliced clean off, leaving him with only six as he staggered backward in pain.
The demon was about to swing again when Lana swooped in from above. She blocked the attack with one of her remaining wings, and though it was easily sliced apart, she didn't relent. With a fierce flap, she swung her other two wings upward from below, aiming to cleave the demon in half.
In a split second, the creature's other sickle clashed against her wings, decimating them entirely and leaving her with only a single thin one.
Gritting her teeth, she snapped her fingers and from the tattered wing, half a dozen feathers shot forth like bullets. But the demon was faster. With fluid motion, its sickles spun in wide arcs, swatting every feather out of the air as though brushing away flies.
Max saw an opening and took it. As the demon thrust its weapon toward Lana, he appeared before it in a flash, his claw intercepting the sickle with a loud clang.
The second sickle came swinging, but it was blocked once more by Max's other claw. He gritted his teeth, keeping the demon's weapons occupied long enough for Jake to burst forward despite his injuries. Blood dripped from his arms, but he didn't care. All six of his hands shot out, hammering into the demon's abdomen with all the force he could muster.
A thunderous bang echoed as his fists connected, sending the demon skidding a short distance backward.
[Fireball!]
Max activated the skill again, hurling both hands forward as twin balls of flames burst out with a fiery roar. The demon crossed its sickles just in time, blocking the attack, yet the impact sent it stumbling several steps back.
Jake crouched low, then leaped high into the air like a launched missile, coming down with two of his six hands raised and ready to smash the demon's skull in.
But in a blur of speed, the creature vanished, reappearing mid-air as its sickle slashed through both of Jake's arms. They fell to the ground lifelessly a moment before a brutal kick slammed into Jake's chest with the force of a cannon blast, hurling him downwards.
He crashed into the ground with a loud boom, dirt and debris flying everywhere as a cloud of dust engulfed the battlefield.
"Rejoice, for you all will be eaten by me when I'm done with you," the demon cackled darkly as it landed gracefully on its feet.
"Rejoice, for you'll be the first person I'll be using this skill on," Max shot back, his voice filled with fiery defiance as his claws began glowing a fierce white.
[Skill: Claw Slash Activated]
[-15 MP]
He swung his hands forward, and several glowing claw slashes materialized in midair before racing toward the demon.
"I'm faster," it sneered, darting to the side, thinking the attacks would crash harmlessly into the ground. But it was wrong. The slashes halted mid-flight, twisting sharply before turning around and shooting back at it like homing blades.
'What?' the demon thought, eyebrows twitching in shock as it lifted its sickles, clashing violently against the incoming strikes and shattering them one by one.
'Again! Again! Again!' Max roared internally, his claws slashing the air relentlessly, releasing wave after wave of energy.
[-15 MP]
[-15 MP]
[-15 MP]
[-15 MP]
[-15 MP]
[-15 MP]
His mp drained rapidly as he unleashed slash after slash, each one tearing through the air like a sonic boom. Soon, nearly a hundred glowing claw marks filled the sky, hovering and spinning with feral energy. His MP was now down to one hundred fifty out of three hundred, but his eyes still burned fiercely.
And despite his exhaustion, he muttered under his breath, "Let's see you dodge all of these."
With a snap of his fingers, the slashes shot towards the demon, who quickly blitzed out of the way, trying to avoid them. But the attacks spun around midair and went after him again, twisting like serpents that refused to miss their prey. The demon shot upward, hovering for a brief moment, but the slashes still pursued relentlessly.
In frustration, the demon brought out its twin sickles and began clashing rapidly against the incoming slashes, sparks bursting out with each collision.
But there were too many. About five broke through its defense, crashing into its exposed shoulders and arms, even scratching across its face. With each hit, blood sprayed out violently.
Yet just as quickly as the injuries appeared, they healed, the wounds stitching shut as if time itself was reversing. But the demon didn't relent. It snarled and kept fighting, rage burning in its glowing eyes.
And seeing how occupied it was, Lana dug her talons into the ground before launching herself into the air, exploding behind it in a burst of speed.
In a flash, her single wing shot forth, aiming to tear through the demon's back. But even while focused on blocking Max's slashes, the creature reacted with terrifying precision. Without turning around, it swung its sickle backward, meeting her claw mid-attack with a metallic clash that cracked the air.
Then, in one brutal motion, it swung the sickle and smashed Lana directly into the path of the incoming claw slashes. The attacks struck her by accident, sending her tumbling through the air as blood splattered everywhere, even from her mouth.
Her thin single wing retracted back into her body, and her talons disappeared as she reverted to her human form, lying on the ground, bleeding heavily.
"Shit, shit! Lana is down," Jasmine mumbled, biting her nails in worry.
"Let me take over."
The sudden voice made the C-rank hunter spin around.
"Daki, did you say something?" Jasmine asked, causing the other C-rank to stare at her with confusion.
"Huh? When did I say anything?" Daki asked, brows furrowed.
"Let me take over."
The voice came again, clearer this time, and Jasmine's eyes darted around in panic.
"Who's there? Who's speaking? Show yourself now!" she shouted, twisting and turning as the others continued fighting the demon alone.
"Jasmine, are you okay? What are you talking about? No one's here except us both," Daki said, watching her friend's behavior grow more frantic by the second.
"No, there is someone here! Show yourself!" Jasmine yelled, grabbing her hair in confusion and frustration.
"We can't let the dragon die. With him, we can win this war against the demons. Even as strong as our race is, we can't do this alone. You want to save him, right? He's part of your squad. Then let me take over."
The voice echoed again, this time directly inside her head.
Before Jasmine could respond, her eyes caught sight of Jake's hand getting sliced off again, leaving him with only two. He was sent flying backward, and Max, refusing to back down, darted forward in anger.
"He's going to die! Let me take over, you weak bitch!" the voice roared in her mind, sending chills down her spine.
"Wh… who are you? What are you? How did you get inside my head?" Jasmine muttered, her body trembling.
"You've felt my power before. I lent it to you when you were close to death. Now I want to save the dragon, so stop asking stupid questions, you annoying bitch!" the voice thundered, full of fury.
Then, in a flash, the demon appeared directly behind Max, its weapons thrust forward at astonishing speed — too fast for the dragon to evade in time.
"Fine! Save Max!" Jasmine shouted in dread.
"About time. Let's just hope your weak body can handle me."
A loud rumble shook the sky. The demon froze for a moment before…
BAM!
Something slammed into Jasmine's body. Her hair floated above her shoulders, her eyes glowing fierce white, her knuckles blazing with pure energy as she glared at the demon, who now looked completely thrown off.
"Hey, Proto-Echelon, time for me to join this fight. Get away from the dragon, now!" Jasmine thundered, swinging her hand into the air with all her might. The sheer force caused a loud bang as a beam of light shot forward with terrifying speed.
"Huh?" The demon muttered, switching from offense to defense in an instant. It raised its weapons just in time as the energy blast struck it, hurling it far back with enough force to make the ground quake.
"What?!" Daki screamed in pure shock.
For the first time since the battle began, none of the three powerhouses had managed to lift the demon off its feet — but Jasmine, with a single strike in the air, just did.
'Wait… that's not Jasmine.'