Chapter 316: The Ambush

Chapter 316: The Ambush



As for Rain, he frowned when he noticed his teammates were already twenty meters away, and they were still moving further away from him. He could see vague, inhuman silhouettes lurking in the shadows of the distant underground hall.

It was clear that in a moment, his teammates would be completely separated.

At that time, the enemies behind them would suddenly strike.

Moreover, it was highly likely that these enemies would appear as allies to his teammates due to their distorted senses.

In other words, the situation of his teammates was extremely worrying.

Of course, it wasn't that Rain's speed was insufficient; it was just that his teammates were currently in a state of both fighting and retreating, their nerves taut with tension.

Rain was certain that if he got close, he would once again be affected by that peculiar voice, twisted into a monster in his teammates' minds.

In that case, even if he could save one or two of them, he might not be able to save them all, which was not the outcome he desired.

'At this distance, even an Intermediate-level Secret Technique like "Roar of Battle" might not be effective!'

'The main problem is this troublesome enemy hiding in the shadows.' Rain thought quickly.

Soon, that peculiar song echoed again!

Rain felt a flash before his eyes, and that unique illusion effect appeared once more.

Fortunately, he was still holding Anna's hand.

Anna was still Anna.

However, Rain was well aware that if he couldn't come up with a solution quickly, it would be too late.

'Since the enemy is using sound waves, perhaps I can counter their strange song by enhancing my own sound wave Secret Technique!'

With his decision made, Rain quickly glanced at the upgrade conditions for "Roar of Battle" on the panel:

"To upgrade Roar of Battle to an Advanced Secret Technique, the following conditions must be met: 1. Dragon Breath Technique level 14 or higher (originally Giant Bear Breathing Technique level 16 or higher); 2. Constitution of 35 points or higher; 3. Consume 3 Golden Skill Points."

Rain hadn't upgraded this sound wave Secret Technique, "Roar of Battle," in a long time.

He had already met the first and second conditions, and now he only needed to consume 3 Golden Skill Points to upgrade it, which left him with no hesitation.

Instantly, as he allocated the points, a flood of training memories related to the sound wave Secret Technique "Roar of Battle" rushed into Rain's mind! It was as if Rain had been practicing this Secret Technique in a mysterious space for over a decade.

The system prompt appeared immediately:

[Congratulations! With the blessing of your bloodline power, you have comprehended the Advanced Sound Wave Secret Technique: Dragon Roar!]



"Dragon Roar?!"

"Blessing of the bloodline?!"

Rain was stunned for a moment, but then a smile appeared on his lips. On the Weapon Master (Legendary) panel, the sound wave Secret Technique "Roar of Battle" had changed to "Dragon Roar!"

At the same time, the icon for the Advanced Secret Technique "Dragon Roar" was significantly different from the previous Intermediate-level Secret Technique "Roar of Battle."

In the icon, the technique was no longer depicted as a bear but as a young dragon with its mouth wide open, roaring. The dense, curved lines around its mouth resembled a substantial shockwave. The small text at the bottom right of the icon also changed:

Dragon Roar (Advanced Secret Technique): By combining your unique dragon bloodline and using a special technique involving the Primal Force and vocal cords, you unleash a sound wave attack with a faint dragon's might, exerting a certain degree of intimidation.

(Note: The power of Dragon Roar diminishes with distance and is proportional to the concentration of your dragon bloodline and your Constitution. To upgrade Dragon Roar to the Legendary Rank, the following conditions must be met: 1. Increased bloodline concentration; 2. Dragon Breath Technique level 16 or higher; 3. Strength of 42 points, Agility of 40 points, and Constitution of 45 points or higher; 4. Consume 4 Golden Skill Points.)



Confident, Rain patted Anna's shoulder and said, "Cover your ears."

"Okay!" Anna quickly covered her ears. Rain's previous roar had almost ruptured her eardrums, and they still ached slightly.

In fact, Anna didn't know that Rain hadn't truly unleashed the full power of his roar, and the power of that roar was only about one-third of its full potential.

With a swift movement, Rain appeared in the center of the hall.

After creating some distance from Anna, Rain took a deep breath.

The surrounding air seemed to be swallowed, and Rain's chest suddenly expanded, as if there was a steam locomotive chugging away inside his chest, and his open mouth was about to release a deafening whistle.

As Rain's neck swelled like an angry cobra, a massive surge of air burst forth from his chest!

"Roar!!!"

A loud, thunderous roar, unlike any human voice, reverberated throughout the hall, accompanied by a powerful white shockwave and an aura of intimidation.

Rain's Advanced Secret Technique, "Dragon Roar," unleashed a powerful sound wave that echoed throughout the entire underground hall.

The peculiar song also disappeared without a trace.

In an instant, the four squad members, who were over twenty to thirty meters away, regained clarity in their eyes.

Suddenly, everyone looked around in bewilderment, wondering how they had ended up in their current positions, as if pondering what had just happened.

But the next second, they stared in astonishment at the area a few meters away.

Several meters away, numerous male Blood Curse Nagas, holding tridents and bearing ugly dragon-faced features, stood in shock, their attention fixed on the scene.

It turned out that these creatures, who had been hiding in the shadows, saw the opportune moment and emerged, intending to ambush the group.

However, the male Blood Curse Nagas never expected that the human in the center of the hall could emit such a powerful roar, its might was so great that it not only broke through the Sirens' song but also shattered the illusion they had created!

Moreover, the hint of intimidation contained in the roar momentarily left them a bit dazed.

By the time they regained their senses, they realized their ambush plan had failed, and these male Blood Curse Nagas immediately turned around and fled back into the shadows.

Meanwhile, in a part of the underground hall that Rayne couldn't see, there was a recessed horizontal slot with three human-faced, bird-bodied monsters inside, staring at each other in surprise, as they too had been startled by the recent events.

"I just felt a hint of dragon might (Siren language)."

"What about you?"

"I felt it too!"

"Did a dragon descendant come here?"

The Sirens fell silent, not daring to speak.

In the underground hall.

"Slow spell!" Vieri quickly opened a scroll of Slow, causing the male Blood Curse Naga in front of him, who was trying to escape, to become sluggish.

Rayne's eyes lit up, and he didn't miss this opportunity. The Tempered Adamantium in his hand instantly transformed into a spear.

"Whoosh!"

A black lightning bolt flashed by, and blood splattered as a male Blood Curse Naga was pierced like a bullet, its entire body pinned to the hard wall of the underground hall.

Since the spear had struck the creature's head, it died instantly, but its powerful vitality kept its body twitching.

"Indeed, it's an ancient Blood Curse Naga!"

"It seems that the disappearance of the two squads before was probably their doing." Vieri said indignantly as he quickly approached the dead male Blood Curse Naga.

Is this the ancient Blood Curse Naga?

Evelyn and the others kept watch while curiously glancing over.

"Captain, I think I might know what that song was all about now."

"If I'm not mistaken, that song should come from an ancient sea monster called the Siren. It's said that their song has a strange magic that can make people lose themselves in an illusion and become unable to extricate themselves."

Vieri spoke solemnly.

"Siren? Do you mean those human-headed, bird-bodied monsters? But isn't it said Evelyn, who was also studying the wizardry path, seemed to have heard of this monster and couldn't help but be surprised.

"Yes, there is such a rumor, so I can't be sure, just a guess." Vieri nodded.

"But from the effect, it's almost identical to the description of the Siren song in the ancient books." Vieri added.

Evelyn looked thoughtful, nodded and said, "Now that you mention it, this voice does sound very similar to the description of the Sirens in the ancient books."

"In ancient maritime diaries, there are often records of ships sinking or being lost, many of which were caused by Sirens who used their strange songs to bewitch the minds of captains and sailors."

"I wonder where these Blood Curse Nagas found the Sirens."

"Hmm, but I didn't expect the captain to be able to break the Siren song. The upcoming battle will be less daunting."

Just as Vieri finished speaking, Rayne suddenly turned his head and looked towards the passage that had originally led to the Sealed Gateway.

The group looked up and saw a monster with a body far larger than an ordinary male Blood Curse Naga quickly slithering out, exuding a powerful aura.

Behind it were two squads of more than twenty male Blood Curse Nagas following closely.

'Tide Piercer Rulagats!' Rayne's expression turned solemn as he spoke.

Hearing this name, everyone trembled, and then looked at the distinctive horned conch arm, realizing what was going on.

This was the equivalent of a human knight's title, the Blood Curse Naga title holder, and also the one Captain Rayne had mentioned before!

The creature's remaining single eye was fixed on Rayne, its attention unwavering.

"Captain, you don't need to pay too much attention to us. Without the interference of the Siren song, we can handle these Blood Curse Nagas." Angus raised his shield and said quickly.

He knew that in Rayne's level of combat, once distracted, it would definitely not be a good thing.

As team members, they could be injured and bleed, but they must not become a burden.

"Hmm, be careful." Rayne nodded, understanding their intentions.

As Rayne approached, the ordinary male Blood Curse Nagas scattered, whether out of fear or respect for the stronger opponent, they formed a semicircle around the area.

"Human, you're very bold to come back. Now, die!" Tide Piercer Rulagats had been filled with anger from the moment he saw Rayne.

"Hoo!"

As the words left his mouth, the white horned conch in Rulagats' left hand whistled fiercely and struck towards Rain with incredible speed.

Facing the swift and precise stab, the hardened adamantium in Rain's hand had already swiftly transformed into a lance, countering Rulagats with a powerful strike!

The tip of the lance and the top of the horned conch clashed, instantly sparking a shower of sparks.

"Ding!"

Almost simultaneously, an ear-piercing clanging sound reverberated throughout the arena.

Whether it was the two teams of male Blood Curse Nagas on the side or the members of Rain's squad, everyone's brows were tightly furrowed at this moment.

After their initial clash, the two in the arena quickly separated, with Rain taking a few steps back while the over three-meter-tall Rulagats slightly leaned back, maintaining a stalemate.

However, in the next second, Rain tapped his toes, shattering the stone ground, and took the initiative to attack.

Instantly, three figures appeared in the arena, attacking Rulagats from the left, middle, and right with their lances.

This was Rain utilizing the Intermediate Secret Technique 'Shadow Step' with his lance, launching a powerful assault.

Although the number of phantoms didn't reach the four he could achieve with daggers, even with just two phantoms, Rain's lance offense increased significantly.

This scene caught Rulagats off guard, and he momentarily hesitated, as this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. However, he quickly recovered.

But in a high-level duel, this momentary hesitation gave Rain the advantage.

Rain's lance suddenly thrust from the left, aiming directly at Rulagats.

Caught off guard, Rulagats could only choose to raise his white horned conch like a shield, quickly blocking the attack.

"Clang!"

In the instant after the clash, Rain borrowed the rebounding force and rapidly stabbed dozens of times, so fast it seemed like Rain was holding dozens of lances, all striking towards Rulagats at once.

Instantly, the dense clanging sounds of "clang, clang, clang" filled the air, incessant and deafening!

Rulagats' white horned conch was bombarded, forcing him to retreat step by step.

This caused Rulagats' anger to surge, and he realized that the human he had thought would be an easy capture actually possessed such a significant increase in strength.

"Tide Piercer!"

With a low roar, a blue ripple burst from Rulagats' robust body.

Rain was instantly pushed back several meters by the overwhelming aquatic energy.

Taking advantage of the distance, Rulagats quickly gathered his strength, and his white horned conch instantly gathered three streams of light blue water vortexes.

This was Rulagats' signature killer move - 'Tide Piercer'!

Seeing this, Rain narrowed his eyes, and the lance in his hand quickly transformed into a dark, two-handed warhammer, appearing in his hand.

Just now, he had fought Rulagats with the lance, and this allowed Rain to have a clearer understanding and positioning of his own strength.

At the same time, it also gave him a deeper insight into the Weapon Master profession.

However, this time, Rulagats was using his signature move, so Rain had to respond with his own!

Rain also muttered a spell, and then suddenly leaped into the air!

In mid-air, Rain raised the warhammer with both hands, his entire body resembling a fully drawn war bow, and fiercely swung the warhammer towards Rulagats!

Seeing this, a mocking smile appeared in Rulagats' single eye.

He clearly remembered that the last time, when his opponent had done the same, his two-handed warhammer was shattered with a single strike.

This human, foolishly, was attempting the same move again!

In the blink of an eye!

Rain's warhammer and Rulagats' horned conch clashed.

"Clang!!!"

But upon contact, Rulagats' expression changed drastically, as the tip of his white conch was shattered into powder, and a stinging pain emanated from his left palm.

However, Rain's warhammer also shattered at the same time, which made Rulagats relax a little. But strangely, the high-speed bursting fragments of hardened adamantium mostly hovered in front of Rain, and then quickly re-condensed, rapidly transforming into a new two-handed warhammer.

This scene left Rulagats momentarily stunned.

Metal-type Wizardry?

"Bang!!!"

Rain held the warhammer with both hands and launched another attack!

Due to the damage to Rulagats' favored weapon, the horned conch, he was now at a disadvantage, with more defense than offense.

Rain seized the opportunity and consecutively unleashed the Secret Technique 'Shadow Step', using the afterimages to briefly distract Rulagats' attention before powerfully striking with the 'Annihilation Hammer'!

Caught off guard, Rulagats had no choice but to raise his horned conch again to block!

"Crack!"

This time, the horned conch broke at the elbow, and Rulagats emitted a muffled grunt, his face contorting in pain.

His left elbow was bent backwards at an unnatural angle, clearly broken.

But Rain's attack was far from over. After quickly regaining some strength, he consecutively unleashed the 'Annihilation Hammer'!

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Instantly, Rulagats' waist, chest, shoulders, and other parts of his massive body exploded, revealing gaping wounds the size of basins all over his enormous body.

As the top-tier techniques were unleashed, Tide Piercer Rulagats was completely overwhelmed.

The next second, Rain leaped forward with a swift stride, jumping high into the air.

"Bang!"

The dark great mace traced a semi-circular arc in mid-air, striking Rulagats' ugly dragon face. A small hole appeared on his forehead, and the immense force caused the back of his head to explode, scattering red and white jelly-like substances on the ground.

Rulagats' massive body staggered, and he slowly fell backward, his eyes filled with reluctance.

A huge, transparent Naga phantom emerged from Rulagats' dying body, dragging a long tail flame behind it. It circled around Rain a few times before disappearing into the hammer's head.

The sight of this shocked the two teams of male Blood Curse Nagas, their faces filled with terror. They turned and fled without any intention of fighting.

Rain, however, had other plans. With a quick transformation, his great mace became a great sword, and numerous small quad darts protruded from the broad blade.

Rain spun in place, and in an instant, a dense swarm of black quad darts shot out, targeting the fleeing male Blood Curse Nagas.

Screams filled the air as Rain slowly advanced, his weapon transforming back into the great mace.

"Clap! Clap!"

With each skull-crushing sound, a soul phantom was extracted, swirling around Rain several times before merging into the mace.

Rain counted silently; he had single-handedly killed eleven Nagas, while the rest were taken down by Neor and the others.

The ten soul energies required for 'Soul Fragment Impact' had been gathered.

It wasn't that Rain had foreseen the danger, but rather that he didn't want to miss this rare opportunity to collect soul energy.

After all, finding ten enemies of formal knight rank or higher elsewhere wouldn't be easy.

'Is it possible to switch between various techniques so freely, even to the point of commonality?'

Through the battle with Rulagats, Rain gained a deeper understanding of the epic profession 'Thousand Blade King.'

"Captain, look!"

Neor and his team, who had been pursuing the male Blood Curse Nagas, were now in front of Rain. About ten meters ahead of them, a blue water membrane blocked their path.

"It's a Water Membrane Barrier, capable of blocking external interference, including sound, light, and energy fluctuations. There must be some secret within!"

"I can unlock it!" Neor, as a scroll master, instantly recognized the type of barrier.

Meanwhile, within the Sealed Gateway, High Priestess of Blood Curse Nagas Sereniss suddenly looked up from the depths of the hall where Rain's group was.

She had just sensed the unique soul fire of Rulagats go out. "How is this possible? Is Rulagats dead?"

"Did the Dragon Empire send an Imperial Guardian?"

"Probably not. But who could it be?"

Sereniss pondered for a moment and decided to temporarily halt the ceremony. She headed towards the blue water membrane.

Suddenly, the blue water membrane vanished, and a group of humans appeared, facing Sereniss.

From Rain's perspective, after unlocking the blue water membrane, they saw a stunning female Six-Armed Naga with a short staff, approaching them.

An unexpected encounter ensued.

Rain's pupils constricted, and he roared, "Bang!"

He executed the Shadow Step, creating five shadows that rushed towards the Naga.

This time, the weapon he transformed was not a lance but his preferred great mace. He unleashed the top-tier technique 'Annihilation Hammer' combined with 'Soul Fragment Impact.'

The Naga's aura remained restrained, but Rain sensed the terror within her seemingly unassuming body. She was an incredibly powerful opponent, almost on par with Princess Menia.

Rain's first strike, a powerful blow with the mace, was aimed at the Naga.

Sereniss was momentarily stunned, then smiled and waved her staff. Three defensive wizardry lights appeared around her and flashed by.

But as they made contact, her face contorted in horror.

"Ahhhh!"

Only two of the three defensive wizardry lights shattered, yet Sereniss cried out in pain, clutching her head. Her counterattack, however, was swift and fierce.

One of her three pairs of arms aimed at Rain and struck with lightning speed.

"Bang!"

Despite Rain's 'Metal Barrier' and Tempered Adamantium Shield, he was hit like a cannonball, flying backward. He traced a parabola in the air and crashed into a huge bone frame behind him, bouncing off to the side.

Rain felt a 'crack' beneath him, and his entire body was immersed in a large, sticky liquid with a peculiar fishy odor.

Suddenly, a system prompt sounded.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end