ch22- Hidden Peril

A strange atmosphere hung over the quiet forest, where Alex and his team found themselves at a monster zone, yet no creatures were in sight.

"Could this place already be cleared?" someone wondered aloud.

"Or maybe the monsters fled because there are so many of us?"

The group began speculating, but those with sharper senses had already grown wary. The eerie stillness set everyone on edge.

"Look over there! There's a crystal! This really is a monster zone!" someone called out, spotting a giant gray crystal wall behind a few fruit trees. 

This exclamation seemed to stir something in the forest. The once-quiet woods erupted with a sudden rustling sound from all directions.

"Watch out! The monsters are in the trees!" a warning cry rang out.

Despite the alert, the monsters' ambush left most of the group in panic. Dozens of hidden creatures launched a swift and deadly assault, throwing the team into chaos. Screams filled the air as the monsters took advantage of the dense forest to surprise the scattered group.

Alex's squad, positioned at the front, wasn't spared from the ambush. Two large, grotesque blue creatures swooped down from the trees, causing Chloe and Sarah to burst into tears. Even Peter and the other boys turned pale with fear.

Only Alex and Tanya managed to stay composed. With his superior reflexes and mental fortitude, Alex reacted immediately, activating his "Mighty Strike" ability and slicing one of the monsters in half with an upward slash. Tanya, having stayed alert due to her earlier unease, was startled but quickly summoned a fireball, annihilating the second monster in an instant.

"Stick together! Don't scatter!" Alex shouted, pulling the squad back from the brink of danger. His yell snapped Peter and the others out of their fear, and they hurried to regroup behind Alex. The two frightened girls were safely enclosed in the middle.

But the situation remained grim. The monsters' first wave of attacks had likely caused significant casualties. While some squads had managed to fend off the ambush, the entire group was now in disarray.

"Let's focus on saving people first!" Alex ordered, quickly scanning the battlefield. His team rushed to aid another vanguard squad under attack nearby.

Two blue scythe monsters had ambushed this group as well. Though the monsters weren't particularly powerful, their ability to move swiftly through the trees had severely wounded several team members. Alex's squad managed to kill one of the creatures, but the other quickly fled into the trees, disappearing before anyone could pursue.

"This isn't working fast enough," Peter said, frustrated after several failed attempts to kill the fleeing monsters. The team was starting to regain control of the situation, but the hit-and-run tactics of the creatures were taking a toll.

"Let's just go for the crystal," Peter suggested. 

After a brief discussion, the others nodded in agreement. The total number of monsters in this zone wasn't that high—around fifty. The monsters had only managed to gain the upper hand due to the terrain. Now, with about half the monsters killed, only twenty or so remained. But the slow pace of hunting them down continued to cost lives.

Destroying the crystal would put an end to this quickly. Once they had the last crystal shard, they could retreat safely. Without the cover of the trees, the remaining creatures wouldn't pose much of a threat to the team.

As Alex's squad approached the massive gray crystal, several monsters instantly charged toward them.

"Alex, take the two on the left! Chloe, use your vines to bind the one on the right!" Peter called out.

Three blue scythe monsters rushed at them. Alex skillfully engaged the two on his side, while Chloe, though a bit flustered, managed to use her vine entanglement ability to bind the third with the help of the others. 

The three monsters were quickly taken down, but just as they were about to destroy the crystal, a much larger threat emerged.

"Look out!" Alex shouted.

A purple scythe monster lunged toward Tanya, its massive blades slashing down. Alex barely managed to block the strike, stepping in just in time.

There was a purple scythe monster hiding among the others all along, waiting for the right moment to strike. Its sudden appearance had gone unnoticed until now.

After the failed attack, the purple monster retreated into the trees, vanishing into the dense foliage, moving too fast for the group to follow.

"Don't hold back on your abilities! The moment it appears again, we need to take it down!" Peter shouted, his voice filled with urgency.

The looming threat of the purple scythe monster kept everyone on edge, but Alex chose not to wait. He struck the gray crystal with all his strength, hoping to lure the creature out again.

As cracks began to spread across the surface of the crystal, the monster couldn't hold back its fury any longer. It launched a second attack, this time targeting Chris. 

Before anyone could react, the purple scythe blades slashed into him, spraying blood everywhere. 

The creature moved in for the kill, but Peter, standing beside Chris, swung his blade just in time. His weak strike didn't do much damage, but a sudden flash of electricity stunned the monster, causing it to freeze for a brief moment.

Seizing the opportunity, Peter activated his "Earth Shield" ability, raising a two-meter-tall wall of earth between Chris and the monster. Jason and Daniel rushed in to drag the severely wounded Chris to safety.

Once the purple monster recovered from its paralysis, it smashed through the earth wall, but Alex was already waiting for it. With a roar, he unleashed another "Mighty Strike," bringing his sword down on the monster's head.