Chapter 491

Chapter 491: Not a Rumor

For a long time, Shi Jin had been acutely aware of the limitations of her abilities.

Her skills were impeccable for infiltration, assassination, or theft, but in the chaos of open battlefield combat, her effectiveness was significantly constrained.

At this moment, as she gazed upon the fully armored armadillo beast, Shi Jin felt akin to a predator staring at a turtle, uncertain of where to strike, and thus could only observe it as closely as possible.

She noticed that the spikes on the extraordinary beast’s surface began to retract inward, a clear sign that it was not retreating but rather preparing for another attack. There was only one conclusion to draw—

It was gathering strength; another rain of arrows was imminent.

In a way, this could be considered a form of cold weaponry, and the mastery of weapons had always been a human forte.

Guided by this conventional wisdom, many soldiers failed to pay attention to the sky. Even if they were fortunate enough to notice, it was often too late to react.

The first wave of casualties had already occurred, and Shi Jin was determined to prevent a repeat of such a tragedy. Regardless of the outcome, she knew she had to act.

“Shi Jin has marked an enemy.”

A hundred meters away, Luke, who was using a fierce wind to sweep the surface of the city wall, suddenly heard the voice of [Skydome].

Following the guidance of this "battle AI," he too noticed the unusually large armadillo.

Yan Ming, who was locked in combat with another Fifth Level Extraordinary Beast nearby, also received the message.

At this moment, he was drenched in blood, wielding two long knives forged from his own blood, engaged in the most primal yet intense hand-to-hand combat.

Nearly a year had passed since he last faced the Horned Demon. Although he wasn’t being overpowered this time, he also couldn’t swiftly defeat his opponent; they were locked in a stalemate.

Hearing the notification, Yan Ming felt a surge of urgency. If he went to support Shi Jin, what would become of this battlefield?

This was also a Fifth Level Extraordinary Beast, and if left unchecked, the city wall’s defenses would crumble within minutes.

“Leave it to me; you go help over there.”

A young voice called from behind. Turning his head, Yan Ming saw Liu Xiaoheng holding El.

“Okay.”

Yan Ming didn’t waste time on formalities. With a simple acknowledgment, he spread the pair of wings formed from the blood crystal clusters on his back and soared toward the direction marked by [Skydome].

Liu Xiaoheng set El down and, while keeping an eye on the Horned Demon in the distance, asked, “Who was that guy just now? He’s covered in blood and looks absolutely ferocious!”

El looked at the warrior numbered 00001 from the Extinction Legion with astonishment.

“Don’t you recognize your instructor?”

“Ah?”

Liu Xiaoheng froze, his mind struggling to process the information.

What he had wanted to say was that the man was drenched in crimson blood, towering over two meters tall with bizarre features. If it weren’t for the fact that he understood human speech and was actively fighting the extraordinary beast, Liu Xiaoheng might have mistaken him for some kind of beastly lieutenant.

Now, El was telling him that this monstrous figure was actually his usually stern instructor, Yan Ming?

It seemed that not all the rumors in the training camp were unfounded…

“Well, that’s certainly eye-opening,” Liu Xiaoheng murmured.

“If I survive this time, I will definitely tell others about it.”

El glanced at the middle-aged man beside him with a helpless expression.

“Say something encouraging, please.”

“So, how do we deal with it?”

Liu Xiaoheng felt that making promises before a battle was a bit unlucky, so he quickly changed the subject.

The Horned Demon was slowly advancing toward them. Though they hadn’t yet figured out how to handle the horned creature, neither of them took a step back.

“There are too many people here; we should find an opportunity for teleportation and then call for the ship’s cannon.”

El stated that he planned to learn as he went.

“Then I’ll distract it.”

Liu Xiaoheng raised his high-frequency vibrating blade and charged toward the opponent, who was many times stronger than himself.

—

As the fierce wind swept through, hundreds of "crossbow bolts" shooting from the armadillo beast were blown off course, losing their balance and tumbling awkwardly to the ground.

Perhaps some unfortunate souls were still injured, but the hurricane created by Luke had significantly weakened the majority of the spikes’ lethality.

Facing this extraordinary beast with its astonishing defensive capabilities, Luke’s options were not much better than Shi Jin’s. The two could only maintain a defensive stance, waiting for reinforcements that were already on their way.

A blood-red light streaked across the dimly lit sky, followed by a dull thud.

The two turned toward the sound and saw that Yan Ming had joined the battlefield.

With Yan Ming’s presence, Shi Jin and Luke, who were hundreds of meters away, could more clearly perceive the extraordinary beast’s immense size.

Even in his transformed state, standing over two meters tall, Yan Ming still seemed small compared to the beast.

Blood began to flow across Yan Ming’s body; his left-hand weapon vanished, while the sword in his right hand transformed into a long spike, perfect for thrusting—

He intended to return the favor.

Yan Ming had plenty of experience with this kind of enemy.

He positioned himself to aim for the gaps between the armor plates and exerted all his strength into a powerful thrust.

The beast’s armor, though thick, was no match for Yan Ming’s attack.

His long spike, formed from his blood, plunged deep into the extraordinary beast’s body. Guided by his will, it transformed into a spinning blade, slicing through the soft tissue beneath the beast’s armor.

His attack successfully breached the beast’s defenses, but it seemed to have little impact on the overall battle—

The creature was simply too massive, and Yan Ming’s current strike was insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

However, his action still enraged the extraordinary beast. With a low, rumbling roar, Yan Ming watched as the armor plates on the armadillo beast unfolded before him with a clattering sound.

The plates shifted from lying flat against the body to standing almost perpendicular to the skin, revealing the long spikes poised to launch underneath.

In that moment, Yan Ming saw how those spikes, capable of piercing through a human body, grew from the extraordinary beast. They resembled human hair, but their material strength and growth rate were far beyond anything human.

And once the spikes finished growing, they began to retract once again.

Yan Ming heard Shi Jin’s voice through the communication device:

“Be careful; it’s charging up.”

Yan Ming’s breath caught as he realized there were hundreds of "launching ports" now aimed directly at him.

He recognized the perilous situation he was in, but he was reluctant to abandon the wound he had just created—

Given enough time, his blood could churn the beast’s insides like a blender.

Unfortunately, the creature would not grant him that chance.

In the next moment, countless black spikes surged toward Yan Ming’s face and body.