Chapter 369: The Gutripper

Chapter 369: The Gutripper

At this moment, Rain was atop a Talon Eagle, pondering over his battle with the projection of the Darksea Goddess Helmar.

It was a sort of post-battle analysis.

At the beginning of the fight, the unprovoked Helmar projection was exceptionally difficult to deal with, effortlessly employing various spells and extraordinary combat techniques.

The seamless transitions between techniques and spells gave Rain the impression that he was fighting a high-performance robot, and all his responses seemed to be anticipated by his opponent.

It wasn't until the opponent's emotions began to fluctuate that the precision of their attacks, like perfectly meshed gears, diminished, allowing Rain an opportunity to counterattack.

Now, as he reflected on the battle, he realized there were two key factors in his victory.

First was his thick skin and robust physique, a credit to his top-tier Steel Body and Rapid Healing innate talents, which were the merits of his mutated Dragon lineage.

The second factor was his advancement to a Tier 2 Liquidation Wizard, which further enhanced his psychic power, enabling him to sense and capture the opponent's attacks. If he had remained at the level of a Tier 1 Wizard, the battle might have been even more challenging.

Additionally, these two factors also determined the direction of Rain's future enhancements.

First, he needed to further strengthen his psychic power to accelerate the Liquidation process. This required him to quickly seek out the Constructionist School and request the second layer of the Steel Heart Advanced Meditation technique from Mentor Mogaro.

This was also one of the prerequisites for his job change to a Dragon Lineage Mage.

Therefore, in terms of importance, accelerating the Liquidation process was the top priority.

Second, he needed to find opportunities to continue enhancing the concentration of his Dragon bloodline. Perhaps after joining the Swordsmaster Headquarters, he could deliberately seek out dragon-related or dragon-descended monsters for missions to achieve this.

Lastly, Rain planned to study the combat style of the Darksea Goddess Helmar, further integrating Metal spells into his own fighting style.

Of course, this was a massive undertaking, and he would need to peruse more ancient texts and contemplate which spells and techniques would be most compatible, a process that couldn't be rushed.

For now, with an abundance of rare metals, he could practice the Liquidation kill spell 'Multi-Cut Net' and incorporate it into his own combat style.

This would serve as a supplement to his current balance between close combat and ranged attacks.

As time passed, a majestic mountain range came into view, with a gap in the middle revealing a faint purple hue—the entrance to the Beverly Pass and the Purple Wartwood Forest.

Rain immediately controlled the Blood Feather Talon Eagle to land slowly.

The eagle's blue and purple plumage and Rain's white Wizard Robe were distinctive features, and the battle that had taken place not long ago was still fresh in the memories of the guards.

They immediately recognized the young Rain, the Empire's Swordsmaster.

Soon, a guard from the Beverly Pass came to inform their superior of Rain's arrival.

"Haha, Rain, I didn't expect to see you again so soon!" A hulking, bearded Great Knight strode over, greeting Rain with enthusiasm.

This was the same Great Knight who had helped Rain interrogate the Black Flame Cultists previously.

"Greetings, Great Knight Grey." Anna smiled politely.

"Why don't you both come and rest at my place for a while?" Grey suggested.

"Thank you for the offer, but we must continue on our journey," Rain politely declined.

"That's a shame. Rain, Anna, I'll accompany you both," Grey said, slightly flattering.

Ever since witnessing Rain's extraordinary strength, Grey knew that if given the chance, he should establish a good relationship with him.

"Then we'll trouble you," Rain said, looking around and not refusing.

At this moment, outside the pass, there was already a long line of caravans and travelers waiting to pass through, and having the guards clear the way would undoubtedly speed up their journey.

For Rain, the sooner he returned, the better, and as an imperial combatant, this was a convenience he should enjoy.

Seeing Rain's agreement, Grey gestured excitedly, and a team of guards quickly cleared the way, escorting Rain and his companions through the Beverly Pass.

But halfway through the journey, something unexpected happened.

Suddenly, several crows flew overhead, their hoarse caws indicating that a large number of Wind Phoenixes were gathering ahead.

"Hmm? Rain, something's not right ahead. The crows say there are many Wind Phoenixes gathering," Anna frowned slightly, turning to Rain and whispering.

As a Druid, Anna was well-versed in the language of various creatures.

"Wind Phoenixes gathering?" Rain peered into the distance.

This was the territory of the Wind Phoenixes, and a large gathering of them wasn't unusual.

However, as he observed more closely, he sensed something amiss.

A faint sense of threat emanated from the front and both sides.

At that moment, numerous small gray dots emerged from the distant skies on both sides of the pass, soaring straight towards Rain's position.

"What? So many Wind Phoenixes!" the Great Knight exclaimed, his face turning serious as he looked towards the horizon.

The travelers and caravan guards within the pass were filled with panic.

"How can there be so many?" Grey asked, his expression grave.

"There's never been an attack of this scale by Wind Phoenixes before!"

Rain understood the situation; the attack was directed at him.

"Lord Grey, they're targeting me. Please protect Anna!" Rain quickly devised a strategy.

The Talon Eagle, even without passengers, couldn't outfly the Wind Phoenixes, known for their speed. With Anna and Rain aboard, the eagle would be nearly at full capacity, making escape impossible.

Even if they managed to escape, they would soon be caught.

"Prepare the Purple Wartwood Fruits!" Grey ordered his subordinates to hide Anna in a nearby cave.

At this point, Rain had a hunch about who was behind this attack.

It couldn't be someone from the Empire.

If it were, the Empire could have easily directed the Wind Phoenixes to nest elsewhere.

Nor could it be the Black Flame Cult.

When Rain had defeated their High Priest Erikson at the Beverly Pass, not a single Wind Phoenix had come to their aid.

So, it must be the Darksea Goddess Hela who's behind this.

Other than that, Rain couldn't think of anyone else who would have the power to command the Wind Phoenixes to attack him.

"Chirp, chirp!"

Thousands of Wind Phoenixes circled above Rain's head, and soon, a golden-winged Wind Phoenix, several times larger than a normal one, appeared above Rain and Gray.

The nearby merchant caravan and imperial garrison soldiers all turned pale, exclaiming:

"This... this is the Mutated Windhawk Overlord, 'Gutripper' Merik!"

"Its speed is incredible, and it loves to use its lightning-fast wings to slice through the waist and abdomen of its prey. The wind blades on its wings can instantly cut through the prey, spilling their guts all over the ground." One of the caravan guards spoke with a pale face!

"That's right, and then, the prey often dies from fear and agony."

"So, that's how it got the nickname 'Gutripper'." The caravan master next to him, with a pale face, echoed in agreement.

"Merik, are you attacking Beverly Pass on behalf of the Wind Phoenix tribe to declare war on the Empire?" Bearded Great Knight Gray scolded.

"Don't try to threaten me with that!" The golden Wind Phoenix's bird-like head sneered in a very human-like manner.

"If it's a declaration of war, it would be our Queen who makes the move, not me."

"And do you think I'm unaware of the agreement between our tribe and the Empire? The agreement only restricts our Queen from acting freely, but there are no restrictions on us."

"Now, if you leave immediately, of course, if you want to die with this human, then I'll grant your wish." Merik narrowed his golden round pupils.

It was indeed targeting him, Rain thought to himself.

Gray, the highest-ranking officer guarding Beverly Pass, had his face turn red from the opponent's provocative words.

Just as he was about to say something, Rain patted his shoulder and said calmly, "Leave it to me. Rest assured."

"Be careful, Rain." Rain's calm words seemed to calm down Bearded Gray as well.

He suddenly remembered that the young wizard before him was extremely powerful. The last time, he easily defeated the High Priestess of the Black Flame Cult.

Although the Wind Phoenixes were formidable, he had high hopes for Rain.

Indeed, at this moment, his presence here would only increase casualties and had no other significance.

"Retreat!" Gray waved his hand heavily, quickly withdrawing the guard team to the side.

"A wise choice!" Gutripper Merik couldn't help but laugh triumphantly at this scene.

In its eyes, Rain was already a sitting duck. With the imperial guards at Beverly Pass stepping aside, the opponent was now alone, with no chance of a comeback.

Soon, it would be able to bring Rain's head to the Queen and receive her praise.

"Chirp~"

"Take him down, Wind Blade Barrage!" To avoid any unexpected delays, Merik immediately let out a loud chirp.

At the same time, it flapped its unusually large wings, and the next second, the very front of its wings suddenly emitted two crescent-shaped, pale cyan air currents, like two blue lightning bolts, striking directly at Rain.

Merik's first attack seemed to sound the charge!

The countless Wind Phoenixes in the sky began to chirp in unison, quickly following their leader's pace and using their Wind Blade attacks on Rain.

Although their wind blades had limited power, only a little over a meter in length, and some Wind Phoenixes could only release one wind blade, their numbers were more than enough.

"Boom, boom, boom!" Many wind blades directly struck the ground around them, and instantly, dust and smoke rose, their power was so great it was like a bomb had exploded.

Amidst the exclamations of the crowd, Gutripper Merik nodded in satisfaction.

This was his confidence.

In his understanding, as long as the opponent wasn't an epic-level powerhouse, facing tens of thousands of wind blades, there was no chance of escape.

"Ding, ding, dang!" At this moment, an unusual sound came from within the dust and smoke.

Merik narrowed his golden eyes, peering through the smoke and dust to observe carefully.

He saw that the wind blade attacks heading towards Rain's body were almost completely blocked by Rain's four Hawk Shields, and the wind blades that slipped through the shield gaps were crushed by Rain's bare hands.

"Hmm, not bad speed!" Seeing Rain's series of afterimages and movements, Gutripper Merik was also surprised.

What he didn't notice was that as Rain moved, the massive Wind Phoenix army in the sky also began to move accordingly.

Soon, the Wind Phoenix formation changed from the original four-sided ring formation to a dense fan-shaped distribution, with Rain at the apex of the fan.

Seeing this, Rain couldn't help but smile.

As the saying goes, if you come, I will return the favor. It was time for Rain to counterattack.

"Metal Transformation Spell!"

"Cutting Net!"

"Sharpening!"

Rain, having experienced many battles, quickly cast three dark metal nets that seemed to appear out of thin air. In an instant, the metal nets glowed with intense silver light.

"Spell Combo!"

With a heavy swing of Rain's right hand, the three metal nets, glowing with silver light, flew towards the Wind Phoenixes in the half-air fan-shaped region.

"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!"

Rain's timing was perfect, as the Wind Phoenixes had just finished their first round of wind blade attacks and were about to launch their second wave.

(End of Chapter)The first Metal Cutting Net, despite being battered by the combined wind blades of numerous Wind Phoenixes, managed to barely hold its ground, but the subsequent two Metal Cutting Nets that followed were too much for the Wind Phoenix flock to withstand.

Two subsequent silver nets, sharp as ever, plunged into the dense crowd of Wind Phoenixes.

Instantly, the Wind Phoenixes wailed in agony, suffering heavy casualties! Limbs were severed, wings torn, and countless scattered feathers rained down like a downpour of birds. The once dense flock was now riddled with holes, thanks to Rain's 'Multi-Cut Net' spell combo.

The clear blue sky was now visible through the massive gap in the Wind Phoenix formation.

The key was that Rain's move completely shattered the flock's morale, causing them to scatter in disarray.

The tide of battle had turned!

"Good!" Bearded Gray exclaimed, his face turning red with excitement.

"Amazing!"

"As expected of Rain!"

"Rain, kill more of them!" The other Imperial Guardians couldn't help but praise him.

The Wind Phoenixes, a constant nuisance at the Beverly Pass, were despised by the stationed troops, who secretly wished for Rain to decimate them.

"You're asking for death!" Merik, known as the 'Gutripper', widened his eyes at the scene, his ferocity intensifying.

Initially, Merik had planned to have his thousands of Wind Phoenixes unleash a barrage of wind blades, at least wounding Rain severely, while also gauging his abilities.

But to his surprise, not only did the wind blade barrage fail to harm Rain, but Rain's counterattack was incredibly fierce.

In an instant, Rain unleashed a metal-type spell combo that Merik had never seen before, slaughtering at least hundreds of Wind Phoenixes under his command.

Merik's heart bled at the sight.

He knew that most of his Wind Phoenixes were related to him by blood.

Some were descendants, while others were his parents, all loyal to him, forming the core of his Windhawk Overlord status.

Merik also sensed that the energy fluctuation from Rain's spell wasn't particularly strong, roughly equivalent to a Third Level Wizard's power.

As one of the four Mutated Windhawk Overlords, the 'Gutripper' Merik was unafraid.

Even if Rain was a Third Level Crystallization Wizard, Merik was confident he could cut him in two!

A streak of light, woven with aquamarine and gold, plunged from the sky.

The light shot straight towards Rain's position with incredible speed, like a dual-colored lightning bolt.

"Sizzle!"

Merik's sonic boom created a white band of air, slicing the Purple Wartwood trees on both sides in half.

The grass beneath him, several meters away, was also mowed down, leaving a strip of bare earth in its wake.

The sheer power of this attack was evident.

"Be careful!" Anna exclaimed, her mouth slightly agape.

"Rain, watch out!" Bearded Gray, witnessing this, paled and shouted a warning.

Such power would have surely killed him.

He wondered if Rain could withstand it.

Merik unleashed his signature move, the origin of his 'Gutripper' moniker—the Wing Slash!

His nearly ten-meter wings gathered an incredibly dense aquamarine blade-like energy.

Facing the onslaught, Rain's pupils contracted.

The energy on Merik's wings surpassed that of the few Third Level Crystallization Wizards he had encountered, reaching near-legendary levels.

"Dragon General Form!"

"Metal Transformation Spell!"

"Iron Wall!"

"Metal Barrier!"

"Roar!!!"

With a mighty dragon's roar, Rain's neck veins bulged, his muscles swelling. His white wizard robe exploded into shreds, fluttering in the air.

His exposed skin thickened and darkened, and he transformed into a fearsome dragon-human hybrid, wielding a large single-bladed battle axe.

In an instant, a savage dragon-man with an axe stood before Merik.

Merik showed no fear, instead accelerating and aiming a waist-high slash at the dragon-general Rain.

Merik had absolute confidence in his signature move.

Once, he had even sliced through the abdomen and spine of a legendary Ironhide Demon Dragon known for its defense, killing it instantly.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Four crisp sounds echoed as the Hardened Gold-reinforced hawk shields were almost instantly sliced in two by Merik's wind-infused wings.

Only the top-tier 'Iron Wall' fortified tower shield managed to briefly stall Merik.

But it couldn't hold!

As Merik's wings were about to slice through the tower shield, a massive scaled dragon claw grabbed Merik's beak and head.

Merik's beak was the focal point of his 'Wing Slash', where his power was most concentrated.

Just as he realized this, a silver arc of light slashed from the base of his right wing, upward, severing it.

The light was a single-bladed giant axe, imbued with the top-tier axe technique 'Flash Cut'.

Shield shattered, wing severed, Merik's beak barely penetrated Rain's dragon claw before he felt searing pain in his left wing.

With his left wing cut, Merik's balance was broken, and his signature 'Wing Slash' was useless.

His speed drastically reduced, Merik felt darkness before his eyes. His head and beak were then clawed by Rain, leaving him unable to even scream.

The next moment, another silver arc of light flashed.

Merik felt a sharp pain in his abdomen, and then a lightness as something seemed to leave his body.

A gruesome scene unfolded:

A massive dragon-man held the severed upper body of the mutated Windhawk Overlord Merik, his left claw dripping blood, but his ferocious aura remained undiminished.

The Gutripper, the one who guts others, had his own guts ripped out.

(End)

Chapter end