Chapter 268: Breaking the Unyielding
Chapter 268: Breaking the Unyielding
In an instant, Kraya understood the enemy's intentions.
The opponent was attempting to use a decapitation tactic on Rain, so they cast a suspected 'Tracking Mark' spell on her, while their Great Axe Golem would pursue and engage her based on the mark's location.
This not only eliminated the possibility of Rain's decapitation attempt but also forced him into a direct confrontation with the golem if Kraya couldn't escape its pursuit.
Rain had just demonstrated a powerful hammer technique, instantly felling the ten-ton golem with a single strike, but Kraya didn't believe he could repeatedly unleash such powerful attacks.
After all, people get tired, and combat consumes a lot of physical energy, especially when using high-power techniques like Rain's, which would undoubtedly be extremely exhausting.
If Rain were to engage in a prolonged fight with the Great Axe Golem, the entire battle's rhythm would fall under the opponent's control.
The enemy could control the golem while casting various weakening spells on Rain.
In the end, exhausting Rain's strength or weakening him would lead to an easy overall victory.
Realizing this, Kraya quickly retreated while slightly anxiously shouting to Rain, "Rain, they want you to fight the golem!"
"Don't fall for it!"
Although Kraya wanted to warn Rain, from a rational perspective, it wasn't a good choice.
Galina's face, however, showed a hint of mockery.
She had already discovered that the young Golden Rank Swordbearer had a fatal weakness—his mission seemed to be protecting the beautiful Duke Hubert's daughter.
When 'Buffalo' Bidars charged into the enemy formation, they abandoned their advance and turned back to guard the girl, revealing their intention.
From this perspective, 'Buffalo' Bidars's death wasn't entirely without value.
It still had some use.
Additionally, the Duke's daughter's strength was slightly weaker. If she were a Senior Knight, it would be more challenging to deal with. But if she were a Peak Knight, escaping the golem's pursuit would be almost impossible.
This time, Galina didn't plan to worry about the mission anymore.
Her top priority now was to eliminate the young Golden Rank Swordbearer before her.
She had already lost two capable subordinates, and it wouldn't be worth it if it were only for Laksoor's men.
However, if she could eliminate a Golden Rank Swordbearer, these losses would be valuable, and she could even sacrifice a little more.
If successful, she would undoubtedly receive commendations from the church's higher-ups and rewards from the Great God of the Hunt during the Black Flame Prayer Ceremony.
As for Laksoor's mission to capture the Duke's daughter alive, it was no longer important.
Who knows, she might even become Laksoor's superior later.
With this thought, Galina's lips curled slightly.
But the smile lasted less than a second before she froze!
Suddenly, a tall, black, one-horned warhorse emerged from the thick fog nearby. It lowered its head slightly, allowing the Duke's daughter to mount it successfully.
"Xihulu!"
Swift Warhorse 'Little Black' carried Kraya, and with a proud neigh, it immediately activated its innate ability, 'Swiftness.' Its agile figure was like an arrow released from a bowstring, darting off into the distance with a 'whoosh!'
In comparison, the Great Axe Golem Guardian's speed was completely outmatched, resembling an eighty-year-old granny chasing after Usain Bolt.
Riding 'Little Black,' Kraya was now at a safe distance from the golem guardian behind her.
In other words, Galina's plan had barely been implemented before it went bankrupt!
Rain watched this scene with a smile on his face.
Even though Kraya hadn't reminded him earlier, after witnessing the enemy's use of a 'Tracking Mark' spell, Rain had an idea of their possible backup plan.
So, he immediately ordered Swift Warhorse 'Little Black' to stand by on the sidelines.
As expected, it worked wonders!
Rain, with a calm expression, approached Galina, and in an instant, the ground cracked, and a circular wave of air rose, sending mud flying in all directions.
Using the powerful counterforce, Rain, holding the Skull Warhammer, was like a silver lightning bolt, charging towards Galina!
The enemy's decapitation tactic had failed, and now it was Rain's turn to attempt the same.
Galina, seeing Rain's rapid approach, immediately solemnized her expression and started chanting a spell. The next second, her left and right sides suddenly had two more figures running in opposite directions.
Rain narrowed his eyes and furrowed his brows slightly.
He discovered that all three illusory figures had a human-like aura.
However, Rain didn't hesitate and continued charging towards the first figure.
At this moment, all three figures made the same hand movements, placing both hands on their chests to cast a spell, seemingly initiating the same dark magic.
"Hammer of Annihilation!"
Rain swung the Skull Warhammer in his hand, aiming for the rather enchanting face of the figure of Galina, and struck down with a powerful blow!
But the figure of Galina didn't dodge or block the attack, instead, she revealed a charming smile.
In an instant, all three figures made the same gesture, pointing their fingers towards Rain. A beam of light shot out, and Rain was hit, his speed instantly decreasing.
Although Rain had just smashed the figure of Galina, the lack of resistance made him realize that he hadn't struck her physical body.
Additionally, Rain was certain that he had struck the enemy's real body, but he hadn't expected that it would recover and reappear, rendering his previous efforts futile.
At this moment, all three figures of Galina simultaneously cast another spell.
This time, the opponent did not cast any offensive sorcery but once again unleashed the near-instantaneous black beam representing the 'Tracking Mark', this time targeting Rain.
The black beam instantly illuminated Rain's head, marking him with a faint black light.
Rain immediately understood the opponent's intention.
Apparently, the plan was to have the Giant Axe Golem Guardian abandon its pursuit of Kraya and instead target him!
At this moment, affected by the opponent's slowdown sorcery, Rain's movements were slowed, and if caught, the combined assault would be unbearable.
As expected, heavy footsteps rapidly approached from a distance, drawing closer to their location.
The situation was turning against Rain.
Of course, Rain had a solution, but he didn't want to use it just yet.
The opponent was still at a distance, and Rain planned to use that item when he had a higher chance of killing the opponent.
"However..."
"If it's just three phantoms, there might be a way."
Rain's eyes remained calm as he gripped his heavy hammer and charged towards the nearest phantom!
Seeing Rain, who was affected by the slowdown spell, still so determined to eliminate one of her phantoms, Galina couldn't help but smirk.
"Strong, but his mind seems a bit slow."
"Perhaps, without the Giant Axe Golem's assistance, I could take him down on my own."
As Rain launched his attack, Galina didn't dodge but instead began casting another spell.
Based on the content of her incantation, Rain deduced that this spell was different from the previous two sorceries.
It was likely that she was preparing a more powerful offensive sorcery!
In Galina's view, while Rain could continue to eliminate her phantoms, he would soon be subjected to her 'Bursting Dark Flame' attack.
She didn't believe that Rain could withstand it unscathed.
Once injured, he would immediately fall into a passive cycle, suffering from her negative sorcery that would slow his actions, followed by her 'Bursting Dark Flame' attacks, until he collapsed.
This was the drawback of the knight's path; a senior knight without any means to dispel negative effects would be at a significant disadvantage.
Suddenly, as Rain's hammer struck Galina's phantom, two more violent creatures emerged from beside Galina's other two phantoms—a small foal-sized ferocious war dog and a feathered raptor with blue and purple plumage diving from the air!
Instantly, Galina's three phantoms were simultaneously attacked by Rain and his two pets!
Rain's phantom was shattered by his hammer!
The phantom attacked by the Bloodfeather War Eagle's claws dissipated like bubbles.
Meanwhile, the Spiritful War Dog 'Cookie' bit into a resilient black membrane next to the last phantom.
Although he couldn't bite through the membrane, this action revealed Galina's actual position.
At the same time, the sudden attack interrupted the sorcery 'Bursting Dark Flame' that Galina had just prepared.
"Enchanting Gaze!"
Galina stared at Cookie's dog eyes and used a rare eye technique, causing Cookie to foolishly change his attack direction and charge towards Rain.
At this moment, Cookie saw Galina as Rain, and Rain as Galina.
Cookie's interference left Rain speechless. He slapped Cookie away, but this delay allowed the Giant Axe Golem Guardian to catch up and launch an attack from behind!
A six-meter-wide arc of cold light flashed by!
Within the radius, both knights and cultists were instantly killed!
Rain dodged with a jump, but he also lost the opportunity to counter-attack.
The Giant Axe Golem immediately pursued, and this time, instead of a horizontal sweep, it delivered a heavy axe chop from above!
Just as Rain was about to dodge, two black energy hands emerged from the ground, grabbing his plate armor boots and holding him in place.
The caster was none other than Galina, who was standing at a distance.
Having landed a hit, Galina laughed excitedly, "Haha! You've fallen for my Demon Spirit Grasp!"
Galina was thrilled, perhaps due to the pressure Rain had put on her earlier.
In her eyes, Rain had no chance of turning the tables.
She couldn't imagine how a senior knight could recover from such a situation.
This critical moment made everyone's hearts race with tension once again!
The intense battle between Rain and the cult leader was awe-inspiring, leaving the onlookers amazed.
If it were anyone else in this situation, there would be no hope, but Rain was different. He had turned the tide in the previous two battles, so could he do it again this time?
Everyone watched with bated breath, wondering how Rain would overcome this crisis.
Facing the descending giant axe, Rain let out a soft sigh.
"Ah!"
With this light yet distinct sigh, Rain's left hand suddenly produced a dark tower shield, which he raised high and activated the intermediate secret technique 'Iron Wall'!
"Clang!"
A shower of sparks erupted as the shield blocked the attack!
Although Rain was nearly buried halfway into the ground, he had indeed endured the blow!
"What just happened?" the crowd wondered.
Both allies and enemy cultists witnessed the transformation—Rain, who had been holding a war hammer, now wielded a tower shield!
Was this a magic trick?
"The item in your hand... It's not right! This is the metal-type magic 'Metal Transformation Technique'!" Galina immediately realized the truth, her eyes widening in surprise.
As a sorcerer, she had sensed a distinct surge of magical energy.
"You're also a wizard?!"
"But something's still not right!"
"Even if you know the rare Metal Transformation Technique, it's impossible to transform metal so quickly!"
"This can't be!"
"I understand! You... You've made Metal Transformation Technique your Talent Spell!" Galina muttered, revealing Rain's secret.
Kraya, standing nearby, also looked at Rain with a puzzled expression.
As a count's daughter and a student at the Imperial Royal Academy, she had an extraordinary perspective and realized that Rain was a rare metal-type wizard!
Some secrets, once revealed, lose their effectiveness. This was why Rain had kept his ability hidden.
(End of Chapter)For ordinary people or knights who are not well-versed in magic, it might be acceptable, but for most official wizards, once Rain demonstrates his abilities, they can somewhat guess his capabilities.
However, this was not Rain's most powerful move, as he intentionally delayed his reveal to mislead the enemy.
Facing a giant stone golem over five meters tall, Rain, with his Great Strength Talent and mastery of various secret techniques, had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation.
This golem, weighing over ten tons, possessed immense strength, and a head-on clash would be extremely exhausting.
The current issue was that Galina, standing by, kept using her Malevolent Grip to force Rain to engage in a direct battle with the Giant Axe Golem Guardian.
Initially, if the golem didn't have that layer of black light, Rain could have found an opportunity to repeatedly strike specific areas like the knees or ankles, quickly disabling its mobility.
The problem was that the black light absorbed almost all damage, making it difficult for Rain to disable the golem's actions.
After Rain jumped into a pit half a meter deep, the Slowdown Sorcery and Demon Spirit Grip attacked again!
Rain had no choice but to use the Iron Wall technique to block a strike from the Giant Axe Golem, but the next moment, Rain unleashed the advanced secret technique, Hammer of Annihilation, on the golem!
As Rain knocked down the golem, Galina's face showed no signs of worry.
Instead, her enchanting gaze became even brighter.
"Turns out it's just a half-baked wizard, making me worry for nothing." Galina thought to herself.
"High Priestess, High Priestess, something's wrong! Look, the energy core is almost depleted!"
A Black Flame Cultivator nearby, looking anxious, rushed over with a metal ring ouroboros in hand, displaying a segmented energy bar.
The energy bar was almost at its limit, flashing intermittently as a warning.
Galina, upon seeing this, turned and left without a word.
She couldn't say anything else when facing someone who could break the golem's defense with sheer strength.
'Bang!'
Another dull impact sounded, and this time, the black light on the golem stopped flickering, while Rain's Hammer of Annihilation finally struck the golem itself!
It was known that when Rain mastered the intermediate secret technique, Shockwave, he had already knocked down an obsidian giant with a single strike, earning the title of 'Myister County Town's Battle Master'.
Now, having mastered the advanced secret technique, Hammer of Annihilation, Rain struck the golem's chest and abdomen, creating a basin-sized cavity.
Instantly, the golem's internal structure was shattered.
The five-meter-tall golem, after being struck, remained motionless.
However, for Rain, the battle wasn't over.
Galina was still fleeing.
Some fearless Black Flame Cult fanatics shouted, "For High Priestess Galina! For the Great Hunter God Luen!" and charged towards Rain.
Rain didn't stop, but his chest swelled, veins popping out on his neck, and he roared.
"Roar!!!"
A rampaging gust and ear-splitting sound wave swept through the area, causing the faces of these fanatics to contort in shock as the force of the wind tore at their skin, even rupturing their eardrums instantly.
Within a twenty-meter radius, all the fanatics, in an instant, remained standing in their attacking postures, frozen in place.
The next moment—
"Plop! Plop!"
The sound of heavy objects falling to the ground filled the air.
Dozens of fanatics fell like wheat being harvested, forming a large semicircle, their bodies neatly falling outward.
So many black-robed fanatics couldn't even delay Rain for a second.
With a neigh, "Whinny!" Swift Warhorse 'Black' burst forth from the side, and Rain leaped onto it, pursuing Galina's direction.
Although Bloodwing was affected by the mist and couldn't guide Rain's direction, Rain had already instructed Spirit Greyhound 'Cookie' to track the enemy.
With Cookie leading the way, Rain quickly closed the distance between them.
Galina, with her enchanting gaze, realized that if she couldn't slow down Rain's pursuit, she would be caught soon.
She had considered using her eye technique to attack Rain when he got close.
But considering that Rain was also an official wizard, his mental strength would likely be formidable, making the eye technique's effect potentially poor or even causing backlash.
This thought deterred Galina from using her eye technique.
She hesitated, then tore off a crystal pendant from her neck, looking pained, but still crushed it and pointed it behind her.
End of Chapter
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