Lightning balls and spears
The abrupt shift in Sun Jing's demeanor left the creature flabbergasted. Previously, he had been cowering before it, pleading for mercy and struggling to evade its clutches. However, in the blink of an eye, the tables had turned. Sun Jing now appeared to be the predator, exuding a fierce and unbridled confidence that was not present before. For a moment, the creature was taken aback by the sudden transformation of events, realizing that it had underestimated Sun Jing.
Without hesitation, the creature conjured another bolt of lightning and launched it at Sun Jing. In response, Sun Jing swiftly sidestepped the attack, his eyes transfixed on the crucifix in his hand. He then sprang into action, hurtling towards the creature and hurling the cross like a giant shuriken. The creature was caught off guard by the move, and barely managed to evade the projectile, which cleaved a nearby bus in two with ease. To the creature's astonishment, the cross hurtled back towards Sun Jing like a boomerang, much to his chagrin.
Sun Jing eyed the crackling lightning that was still dancing in the sky, unfazed by the ferocity of the storm. In a sudden motion, he hurled the cross towards the creature once again, which the creature nimbly dodged. However, as the cross ricocheted back towards Sun Jing, he did something unexpected. He leapt onto the cross, gripping it with all his might as he hurtled towards the creature with incredible speed and ferocity. The air was filled with the deafening sound of thunder as the two clashed, each determined to emerge victorious.
With a resounding cry, the system's announcement reverberated through the air, proclaiming Sun Jing's acquisition of a new skill. The creature's eyes widened in disbelief as it watched Sun Jing soaring towards it atop the cross, his newfound ability allowing him to ride atop the cross with astonishing ease. The creature frantically hurled a barrage of lightning balls towards Sun Jing, but the latter effortlessly evaded them with his newfound ability.
As Sun Jing closed in on the creature, a sense of terror began to grip it, realizing that it was in grave danger of being vanquished. But much to its surprise, Sun Jing came to a halt beside it, gazing intently at its form. "So this is how you look like," Sun Jing muttered, studying the creature closely. It bore a striking resemblance to a gargoyle from folklore, emblazoned with the character for "thunder" on its body. Despite its fearsome appearance, the creature was actually no larger than a human toddler, its form shrouded in a pulsating aura of lightning that obscured its true identity from afar. Few could have ever hoped to approach a thunder gargoyle such as this, let alone engage it in combat as Sun Jing had just done.
"Don't make the mistake of underestimating a thunder gargoyle," the creature growled, incensed by Sun Jing's remark. It lunged at him in fury, but halted abruptly as Sun Jing glided towards it, stopping just shy of the gargoyle's neck with the cross pressed up against it. One wrong move and the gargoyle would be dead. In that moment, the creature experienced a chilling realization of its own mortality, fear seizing hold of its heart.
Breaking the tense silence, the system's voice chimed in once more, announcing that Sun Jing had unlocked yet another skill. "Detect unlocked!" It allows the user to observe small details and low-level invisibility skills. Sun Jing was elated to have acquired such a powerful ability, knowing it would serve him well in the future. Meanwhile, the thunder gargoyle remained fixated on Sun Jing, searching for any means of escape. Suddenly, Sun Jing's expression shifted to a cunning grin, sending shivers down the gargoyle's spine as it sensed that he was plotting something sinister.
Returning to the ground, Sun Jing surveyed the timer. "Only 5 minutes left. Let's make the most of it." He cracked his knuckles, glancing at his increased level which had risen by two since unlocking his new skills.
Sun Jing formulated his strategy while the thunder gargoyle took advantage of the situation and tried to flee. Not one to let such an opportunity slip by, Sun Jing taunted the creature with a bold challenge. "Why run away? I'm standing right here. Shouldn't you be attacking me instead?" Infuriated by Sun Jing's challenge, the thunder gargoyle hurled two balls of lightning at Sun Jing. To the creature's surprise, Sun Jing did not dodge the attack. As the bolts of lightning approached him, a smile crept across the thunder gargoyle's face. However, the creature's expression quickly turned to one of shock and disbelief as Sun Jing used his cross to deflect both of the lightning balls, causing two cars to explode in the process.
Unfazed, Sun Jing challenged the thunder gargoyle to unleash a stronger attack. "Is that the best you can do? I thought you were the mighty thunder gargoyle." Enraged and humiliated, the creature channeled more energy to form a lightning spear and launched it at Sun Jing. Once again, Sun Jing raised his cross and, with all his might, managed to deflect the spear, causing yet another car to explode.
While the thunder gargoyle was amazed by Sun Jing's ability to deflect the spear, it also recognized that it was no easy feat. Seeking to test Sun Jing's limits, the creature used its entire lightning aura to form ten lightning spears at once. It hurled the first spear at Sun Jing, who raised his cross once again to deflect it. The thunder gargoyle then threw the second spear as soon as the first one made contact with the cross. Sun Jing quickly noticed the second spear and raised his cross to deflect it as well. The thunder gargoyle was pleased to see that Sun Jing was struggling to keep up. "Die, human!" the creature exclaimed as it threw five lightning spears at Sun Jing, one after another with only short breaks in between.
Sun Jing's countenance was merely a façade of fear and apprehension; he was, in fact, perfectly calm and collected. As he deflected the five spears with consummate ease, the fear dissipated, replaced by a look of unyielding determination. The thunder gargoyle was dumbfounded, realizing that it had been outmaneuvered by Sun Jing's wily tactics. Enraged and determined to crush his opponent, the creature launched all its remaining spears at once. Undaunted, Sun Jing stood his ground, calmly raising his cross and in a frosty voice, he uttered, "Block!" The spears collided with the cross, creating a brilliant flash of light as the cross glowed with an otherworldly radiance. To the amazement of all present, the spears disappeared as if they had never been, and the cross remained unscathed. Sun Jing locked eyes with the thunder gargoyle, which, sensing its defeat, fled the scene without so much as a backward glance.
"Detect!" exclaimed Sun Jing, his keen visual ability allowing him to discern the thunder gargoyle's silhouette from a distance exceeding one hundred meters. With the cross in hand, Sun Jing took aim at the creature and muttered, "Let us ascertain the efficacy of this particular technique."
Ten seconds of anticipation later, the system declared, "Locked on unlocked!" Sun Jing grinned with satisfaction and launched his cross towards the thunder gargoyle. Within seconds, a message from the system confirmed his success: "Congratulations, you have slain a thunder gargoyle, thereby gaining one level and two hundred bronze coins."