Timely Help

Silver-level!

The monster before them was like a blade freshly drawn from its sheath. Even from a distance, its presence was so intense that it felt as though it could slice through the very air, leaving a sensation of sharp pain on the skin.

Shrouded in a sinister silver light, the malformed beast began to transform. The tumors on its face ruptured, spilling out multicolored toxic fluids. Shockingly, these fluids, like concentrated acid, dripped onto its face, corroding and melting away its features until only raw flesh and exposed bone remained. But beneath the disfigurement, the beast's eyes gleamed with a disturbing, almost human-like excitement.

Look closer, and you would see pink granulation forming beneath the ruined flesh. The beast's wounds were already beginning to heal, its flesh regenerating at an alarming rate.

Rebirth!

Feng Zhiyong felt a chill crawl down his spine. Though an ordinary man, he had enough experience to recognize danger when he saw it. His instincts screamed at him: whatever was happening to the beast, it spelled doom for them all.

"Kill it!" Feng Zhiyong shouted, his voice cutting through the terror that gripped his men. Despite being a seasoned soldier, he had never faced a creature so terrifying, so full of malevolent power. He forced himself to stay focused, to drag his soldiers back from the brink of fear-induced paralysis.

"Damn it... I'll avenge Allen!" roared the Qigong Master, the closest of the group to the now-deceased Ghost Assassin. The loss of his comrade drove him to the brink of madness. In his rage, his hair stood on end as he gathered every last ounce of his strength. Opening his mouth, he unleashed a glowing orb of energy, aiming it directly at the malformed beast.

Fueled by fury, the Qigong Master pushed his body to its limits, channeling all his power into this single attack. It was reckless—he would need a long time to recover, if he survived at all—but in that moment, nothing mattered except vengeance. The thought of retribution blazed in his mind, consuming all other thoughts.

A long-range strike.

The Qigong Master's power, concentrated at his mouth, was capable of piercing steel at fifty meters. Now, it was all aimed at the beast.

Boom!

The blast hit the malformed beast squarely, halting its transformation. The force of the attack, driven by the Qigong Master's rage, charred the beast's chest, sending flames licking at its fur.

But the beast didn't even flinch.

In the next instant, to the shock of everyone watching, the creature spread its wings and, with a thunderous flap, launched itself into the air.

With a single, powerful stroke, it scattered the dust around it, moving even faster than before. In a blink, it was upon the Qigong Master.

"Look out!" the Iron Forger shouted in desperation.

The Qigong Master heard the rush of air, sensed the deadly intent, and his entire body screamed in alarm. He tried to dodge, to throw himself to the side, but it was already too late.

Crunch!

The sound was sickening.

The malformed beast's jaws clamped down on the Qigong Master's left leg, tearing it from his body in one savage bite.

The beast's teeth were like massive iron pincers, each bite capable of crushing bone with ease. The Qigong Master had no chance to escape. His left leg was gone, ripped away in a heartbeat. The pain that followed was unimaginable, a searing agony that few could endure.

"Ahhhh!"

The Qigong Master fell, his body slamming into the ground. He stared down at the bloody stump where his leg had been, his mind struggling to comprehend what had just happened. Then, like a tidal wave, the pain hit, flooding his senses. He screamed, clutching at his severed leg, rolling on the ground in a desperate attempt to escape the agony.

In mere moments, his skin turned an unnatural shade of blue, and the wound on his leg began to emit a rancid stench. Large blisters, like grotesque eggs, formed on his flesh. The Qigong Master, lost in a fevered haze, scratched at these blisters, tearing at his own skin until it festered and bled. Within seconds, his body lay still, unrecognizable and lifeless.

Poison.

The venom of the malformed beast was beyond lethal.

At that moment, Feng Zhiyong realized just how outmatched they were.

Roar…

The malformed beast ignored the dead and dying around it, its gaze fixed on the remaining soldiers. It let out a roar, a sound that echoed like the wail of a banshee, promising death to all who heard it.

"Concentrate all your firepower! Kill it, now!" Feng Zhiyong's fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white. He had no other options left. The creature's power far exceeded his expectations, leaving him no choice but to order an all-out assault.

Their firearms were their only hope.

The soldiers, despite their terror, responded with the discipline drilled into them over years of service. Almost simultaneously, they opened fire, the air filled with the deafening roar of gunfire.

The weaker malformed beasts fell like wheat before a scythe.

But the silver-level beast—though clearly injured—still pressed on. It had just ascended, and its new power hadn't fully settled into its body. Hundreds of bullets tore through it, yet it endured. Although its wings were shattered, rendering it earthbound, it was far from defeated.

The Iron Forger gritted his teeth, veins bulging across his skin as his entire body glowed red, like molten iron. He charged the beast, every step carrying the weight of a furious avalanche.

Like a Branding Iron.

The Iron Forger wasted no time. Exploiting the opening created by the barrage of gunfire, he struck the beast's waist with a powerful punch.

The blow tore through the beast's flesh, leaving a gaping, bloody hole. Foul blood gushed out, and the creature collapsed to the ground, seemingly lifeless.

The Iron Forger allowed himself a moment of hope. He took a deep breath, readying another strike, this time aiming for the beast's head. One final blow to end the threat once and for all.

"A foolish move."

"Do they really think killing a silver-level monster would be that easy?"

In the pool of its own blood, the malformed beast's eyes snapped open.

Its blood-red gaze filled the air with a thick, nauseating scent of death. Deception! The beast had been playing dead, waiting for the perfect moment. Now, its body began to swell, bones creaking as they grew. The creature's form expanded, becoming even more monstrous, more terrifying.

Rage.

The malformed beast opened its massive jaws, and the Iron Forger, caught too close, was helpless as the beast's maw closed around him.

Crunch!

The beast's jaws snapped shut, severing the Iron Forger in two. His upper body, along with his head, disappeared into the creature's gullet.

"Looks like it's my turn now..."

From the shadows, Chen Feng finally stepped forward. He placed his hands on the ground, and instantly, two twisted, dark shadows began to take form…

The battle was all but lost.

Now, it was time for…

True Reinforcement!