In all the folklore of Anril, the Shapeshifters were usually depicted as the mount of Demons. They came to the human world in hellfire, along with blood and slaughter.
The birthplace of these beasts was definitely locations which suffered calamity. No matter if the disaster was natural or man-made, it was certainly a catastrophe that claimed the lives of thousands and millions. Only this could trigger the birth of the Shapeshifters, which were an amalgamation of pure negativity.
Suffering and hopelessness were the greatest sources of energy for them.
As they were created from negative emotions, their bodies were neither tangible nor a figment, and were born with all sorts of Dark Magic. At birth, they would be at least level-16. When they had finished evolving, they might surpass the level-20 mark, and become a Legendary Beast.
Although that Shapeshifter in front of them had yet to surpass level-20, it had already evolved once. There was fire circling around its four limbs, and the color of dark red around its horn. That meant that the beast before them was at least a level-18 one. Since its body did not have a definite form, the beast would have great immunity to any attack—no matter if it were to be a magical or physical one. On top of that, with its proficiency in Dark Magic, it would be extra difficult for even Macklin, a level-19 senior, to defeat that Shapeshifter before their eyes.
How could these Adventurers be able to deal with such a formidable monster?
Strength-wise, the adventurers definitely had an edge over those beasts. Their abilities, however, were not on the same level. Among the 30-odd adventurers, the strongest was just level-12, and the weakest was only level-8.
In Master Gerian’s words, if they wanted to battle a Shapeshifter in such a group dynamic, they would be digging their own graves!
Nearly 10 men stayed at the front line. Each of their heavy armors had obviously gone through inscription to protect themselves against Dark Magic from the Shapeshifter. They miraculously pulled through the deadly attacks, and gave the mages behind them precious time to do their recitation.
Yet, how would the abilities of a Shapeshifter be limited to Dark Magic?
One warrior lost his life in a short distance attack.
When the beast charged at him with its dark-red horn, his thick and heavy armor was as if a thin white sheet of paper. Despite having protection, the long horn pierced through his chest. The sharp tip that passed through his back showed faint but bright gleam. Amidst that shriek, blood flowed out profusely, leaving behind an impressive crimson that stained the long horn.
Yet, the time that the warrior bought with his life did not manage to bring any impact.
The levels of the soldiers in the camp were too low.
That was the weakness of a mercenary corps. In Felan Kingdom, there were very few mercenary corps which had the finances to employ powerful mages to aid them.
A full set of magical equipment cost at least a few million. How many magical beasts did one have to kill in order to earn this amount of money?
Unless the Guild of Magic had the ability to pay a hefty sum to employ them, no Magic Shooters would want to join the guild as an Adventurer.
That being said, who would dare to invite Gerian into the team?
Lin Li noticed two Magic Shooters in the mercenary corps before him. And that made the team one of the strongest already…
Apart from them, the abilities of others were undoubtedly horrible. They were a bunch of level-eight and level-nine mages—nothing comparable to the mages in Jarrosus Guild of Magic. Besides, they were from the capital, Alanna.
Since their combined strength was weak, their fate had been sealed.
In that precious recitation time, most of the mages had already summoned their strongest spells, ranging from Flaming Storm to Arcane Missile, and then Icy Spear to Fireball. The over 10 spells that were cast together raged a magnificent scene of brilliant sparkles…
However, what followed that blinding ray of light was a raging howl.
Although the deaths of those mages on the front line happened almost concurrently, the damage they could do to the Shapeshifter was minimal. Among them, the Flaming Storm had the biggest impact. After all, it was still a spell that only Magic Shooters could cast. Yet, in dealing with the beast, it seemed to have lost its usual impact. When the sparks were cleared, there were only burnt marks on the body of the beast.
Lin Li sighed disappointedly upon witnessing that scene. The Flaming Storm was indeed a powerful spell to injure Shapeshifters—but too weak to kill.
Since Shapeshifters were created from resentment, the most effective way to deal with them would be to use the Holy Light that had purification properties.
However as Felan was a magical kingdom, very few people would choose to become a Priest. That being said, it was even rare to be see a Paladin around.
To be able to find a someone who had the skills to purify a Shapeshifter would be more difficult than teaching Andoine the art of creating pharmaceutical products.
Of course, magical spells would work too—provided they had a strong enough impact.
For Andoine, it would only take him one legendary magical spell in order to kill a Shapeshifter.
And that was what differentiated the realms.
To the people who were at the legendary-level, intangible opponents like the Shapeshifters were definitely not a challenge.
For example, to Andoine would not need to consider what spells he should use to deal with the beasts. With the sufficient amount of strength, any spell would be enough to kill—just like how earlier on in the jungle, Andoine’s instant yet simple Fireball managed to take lives so effectively…
Unfortunately, the old man left too hurriedly.
Or else, Lin Li would really hope to seek his help to take down that rare Shapeshifter in front of him.
If anyone could get ahold of the horn of a Shapeshifter, they would be envied by everyone. With the addition of their horns, even the value of a normal metal could be multiplied by a hundred times. That was due to its firmness, which had been proven by how the Shapeshifter managed to slit open the thick and heavy armor of the warrior so easily as though it was a thin piece of paper.
Weapons that were forged from the horns of Shapeshifters would hold an extremely mighty Dark Force that could break all protective barriers. With the horns of Shapeshifters, the Spell of Frost would be a mere joke…
The magical crystals of the Shapeshifters were even more precious to mages. The negative emotions contained inside would be able to enhance the Mental Spells and Spiritual Spells by many folds if one of such crystal were to be attached to their staffs.
Lin Li was very tempted just by the thought of how he could make use of the body of a Shapeshifter for his benefits.
Yet it was like a goldfish—one could only see, and not touch…
While Lin Li was feeling his share of disappointment, a series of shrieks could be heard from the camp. From afar, the Shapeshifter that was provoked by the magical spells looked like a wild horse that had gone loose. Its dark-red horn conducted a massive slaughter in the camp.
Under the firm and strong horn, the heavy armor was as if a floating cloud. No warrior could withstand the Shapeshifter’s attacks. At first, there were seven or eight warriors battling the beast. Within a second, half were down. Fresh blood oozed out of their wounds, leaving behind a ground of red.
The charging Shapeshifter was like a real nightmare—it was using its own unique method to spread suffering and hopelessness.
“BUY SOME TIME FOR THE MAGES!!!” a voice commanded when the team was close to collapsing. That exasperated howl belonged to a young man with golden hair who was standing at a corner of the battlefield.
The shrill cry indeed helped to delay the collapse of the team. It motivated the remaining warriors to raise up the weapons in their arms and block the charging Shapeshifter.
At the same time, the mages behind them completed another recitation. They grew smarter this time round. Instead of using offensive spells to hurt the Shapeshifter, they utilized all sort of spells that dealt with states. Among them, there were the Delaying Spell, Blinding Spell, and Weakening Spell, all cast over the Shapeshifter like a net.
After all, the body of the Shapeshifter was half intangible and half tangible. The massive low-grade attacks that focused on its body affected the beast as well. Although resembling insect bites, lacking the power to kill, that indeed caused an irritating feeling for the beast.
It is the frustration you get when a buzzing housefly circles around your ear continuously—and you really would hope to smack that tiny bug dead.
And that was what the Shapeshifter did…
That pair of red eyes reflected an extremely bright light. What followed was a huge gush of Dark Force, which distorted the surrounding space. From how the magical elements sizzled like boiling water, Lin Li knew that it was a powerful and destructive Dark Magic.
“Why…” Lin Li sighed as he shook his head. He had expected that to be the ending of the team with no one ranked higher than level-12.
“Let’s go back to Alanna.”
Lin Li summoned the Hastening Spell for himself and Sean to make an escape before the Shapeshifter shifted its target to them.
In fact, that was the only time Lin Li dared to leave the location.
The battleground was in-between the cave and the jungle. If one wanted to return to Alanna with the same path they came, they could either use the Power of Flight like Andoine or cut through the battlefield. Yet Lin Li feared that if they were to do the latter, they would trigger the Shapeshifter’s hostility.
Shapeshifters would not care whether you were adventurers or not. As long as you were a human being, it was all the same to them.
But it was not a problem now.
Thanks to those mages, the Shapeshifter had been close to becoming crazy. Even if Lin Li were to walk towards it casually, it wouldn’t pay any attention to him. To the Shapeshifter, the number one priority was to find out how to get rid of the buzzing housefly.
To be safe, Lin Li did not use the Illuminating Spell. Both men crept stealthily towards the camp in the dark…
Their footsteps were very light. As they stepped on the lush green grass, there were only rustling sounds.
The vigorous movement of the Dark Force and the sizzling waves of magical elements gave everyone a sense of suffocation.
“HOLD ON! EVERYBODY HOLD ON!” the golden-haired youth screamed with all his might. His voice had already gone hoarse from all the shouting. Red veins surfaced in his eyes too.
However, it was too late…
The brightness of that ray of red light in that pair of eyes filled with suffering and despair had already reached the maximum. The sizzling magical elements were like strong rush of water that surged towards the dam constantly, as if an extra gush of it would open the flap of the dam and flood the entire camp.
“Brother, you are in real danger…” was what Lin Li really hoped to tell him.
Actually, he felt really sympathetic for that group of adventurers.
However, sympathy was sympathy, and rendering support was another matter altogether.
Doing one’s best to turn the tide of the battle required true abilities. If a level-13 Magic Shooter were to fight a level-18 magical beast, that was not helping, but digging his own grave. Lin Li was not that virtuous enough to be willing to sacrifice himself so foolishly for bunch of strangers…
Hence, he could only feign ignorance, and continue walking deeper into the woods.
At that moment, the Dark Force that had been accumulating for quite a long time exploded suddenly.
Instantly, there were plumes of black smoke spreading all over the place. From afar, it not only looked like black circular ripples, but also a black blooming flower. The moment he came into contact with the black fog, the warrior that charged at the front disappeared in a violent explosion.
That was a real explosion, where blood and flesh splattered all over the place.
That “POM!” gave everybody goosebumps on their heads. There were also some fragments of armor among the splattering pieces. Despite having undergone the inscription process, the armor was as fragile as a piece of duckweed when it came into contact with the black ripples.
“Death Ripples…” Lin Li exclaimed in shock. It was the legendary level-18 magic spell that not many Archmages specializing in Dark Magic could grasp! He could not believe that he’d just witnessed that spell from a magical beast…
Sh*t. They were totally doomed…
The Shapeshifter was terrifying enough just with its mastery in Dark Force. Now that it was as proficient in the life-threatening Death Ripples, it made the beast before them even more horrifying.
Not all Shapeshifters had the ability to attack their opponents with the Death Ripples.
How a Shapeshifter was able to own Dark Magic was similar to a Fantama Panthera—depending on nature. The greater its innate qualities, the more advanced its Dark Magic.
For a Shapeshifter, its strengths were dependent on the amount of negative energy within its body. Thus, it would be based on the scale of the disaster it was created from.
To create a Shapeshifter that had the abilities to cast the Death Ripples, the disaster would have cost the lives of at least ten thousands.
The thought of a ten-thousand-lives-big bloodbath made Lin Li pause in his steps. He had a vague impression he’d heard about a wide scale catastrophe…
The depressing sound of a series of explosions echoed from the battlefield. In the blink of an eye, the few warriors who survived out of luck previously died under the attack of the Death Ripples.
They were too close to the sudden strike of Death Ripples. There was no room for escape.
At that instance, the battlefield saw a scene of bodies blown into pieces.
The Death Ripples was spreading at top speed like a plague towards the mages. Within seconds, they would fall due to it. Then, the entire team would be annihilated.
At this crucial moment, a beam of bright white light shot through the crowd, separating the black fog.
In that moment, Lin Li could not help but become dumbfounded. He clearly remembered that he felt an underlying sense of pure holy energy from that shining glow of light.
“Holy Light!” Lin Li exclaimed. He was so stupefied that he went into a daze. It was a known fact that the Felan Kingdom was the kingdom of mages. It would be extremely rare to find anyone who had a holy occupation and was skilled enough to use the Holy Light to purify any Shapeshifter.
Since it was already difficult to hire a legendary mage to join the team, Lin Li found it unbelievable that among this group of adventurers, there was such a member with that sacred occupation.
Although the Death Ripples was a level-18 magic, the spell that took it down was a holy spell that was at least level-15.
“Wait, that’s not a divine occupation…” Lin Li realized his mistake soon after.
As the black fog dispersed, Lin Li saw clearly that it was only a silver plate that emitted the Divine Power, and not any divine occupation.
The golden-haired youth gripped the silver plate tightly. His handsome face was covered with sweat. Anyone who saw that scene would have been petrified. No one could have thought that the powers of a Shapeshifter would be so extreme.
All thanks to the timing he used the sacred weapon. If he was late for a second, the mercenary corps he’d built up so strenuously would have been wiped off entirely by the Death Ripples…
The sacred weapon was so valuable. It could overcome a level-18 magical spell with the shocking Divine Power within it.
Unfortunately, that sacred weapon could only be used once…
At the thought of that, a streak of disappointment was reflected in the eyes of the golden-haired youth. He’d brought his mercenary corps to the Nightmare Mountains to battle the legendary Shapeshifter as he had gotten ahold of this weapon. From the day he’d acquired this sacred item, everything had been planned.
They planned to let their warriors hold back the beast and their mages use the traditional Attacking Spells to weaken it bit by bit. When its powers have been weakened to the minimum, he would take out his sacred weapon and inflict the most critical blow.
Unfortunately, luck was not on their side.
They had miscalculated the fact that their opponent was a Shapeshifter that would be skilled in the Death Ripples…
Now that the sacred weapon had its powers drained, even if there was a strand of magic left, it would be hard for them to pose any threat to the Shapeshifter. If they delayed any further, the entire team would be wiped out completely.
The golden-hair youth made a decision.
He raised the silver plate high up in the air. Under the blazing light, the light reflected off the plate was exceptionally dazzling.
“RETREAT!”
What followed the command was another beam of light from the silver plate. The only difference was that this time, the light was much dimmer than before.
The pure Divine Power shot out of the silver plate once more. But this time, it was not to ward off Dark Magic. It was to attack the Shapeshifter, which had been releasing those Death Ripples.
Even though that was only the remaining powers of the divine weapon, it had innately antagonistic properties against the Dark Ripples. The impact it resulted in was beyond what one could imagine. There was a bolt of dazzling white light that penetrated the body of the Shapeshifter’s body immediately.
Dark-red smoke gushed out of the wound of the beast profusely. To the Shapeshifter that did not have a fixed body, these were like its blood, its energy source. Every time it escaped from its body, the beast would get weaker.
Under that single strike, the Shapeshifter had lost more than a quarter of its energy.
If he were to use this weapon at the beginning, it would be almost impossible to deal with the monster. That weapon could only weaken it slightly when the over 30 adventurers charged to the frontline in their respective batches, and even employed the Flaming Storm on it.
“Such a loss…” The golden-haired youth sighed disappointedly.
If only he was able to delay the attack by another minute! With just an extra minute, he would have been able to use that sacred weapon to inflict a deadly blow upon the level-18 magical beast…
Unfortunately, it was too late…
There was not enough power in the sacred weapon to kill anymore.
That last strike only helped to agitate the beast further. Other than that, it was meaningless.
“ROAR…” The ear-piercing growl of agitation almost sliced through the eardrums of everyone. That was the first time that the creature got injured from the fight, causing it to reach extreme anger. The red light in its eyes became more prominent than ever, just as if blood was going to ooze out of them. The fire that surrounded the hooves grew even more threatening too.
The mercenary corps had started to retreat. With the protection from the rest of the archers, the mages managed to exit the battleground. Before they arrived, they had already practiced the retreating drill countless times.
Although they were at the losing end, they showed no chaos nor panic. The mages walked at the front, while the archers followed closely behind.
If the warriors were still alive, that place would have belonged to them…
The mercenary corps retreated like the tide. Yet, the eyes of the Shapeshifter did not even glance at them, and remained fixed on the silver plate—the enemy that attacked it!
“What a waste…” The golden-haired youth sighed as he looked at the Silver Plate in his hand. Then, he clenched his teeth, and threw out that weapon.
The sacred weapon created a brilliant silver trace behind it as it flew over and descended into the thick growth.
And while the Silver Plate was flying, the Shapeshifter took its chance to flee. The fire around its hooves went away quickly together with it as it escaped like a gush of wind.
“F*ck!” Lin Li cursed in shock. Never had he expected that the battle would end so abruptly, and that he’d still face the tragic consequence of it…
The place where the silver plate fell happened to be Lin Li’s hiding place.
The legendary Nightmare Mount had a frightening speed. Before the silver plate even touched the ground, the Shapeshifter had already dashed in front of the two men. That moment, Lin Li’s hair stood up. He felt despair and absurdity, just as if he was knocked down by a train suddenly while sitting at home watching the television programme.
The train—no, the Shapeshifter—was like a red bolt of lightning that struck Lin Li. Its dark red horn was like a hammer, knocking hard into Lin Li’s waist.
Retribution… This must be my retribution… At this moment, ‘karma’ was the only thing that filled Lin Li’s mind. He chose to be a passive bystander, and watched the mercenary corps fight to the death. It was the time for him to receive his retribution now, and die like how the other warriors did…
‘A transmigrator being killed in a road accident—how absurd this is!’ Lin Li never felt so indignant. On the verge of dying, the only thing Lin Li felt like doing was to shout at the Shapeshifter, “F*ck you, Shapeshifter—it’s time to get a driver’s license!!!”
“Mr. Felic, Mr. Felic… Are you alright?” After closing his eyes from quite a while, he heard Sean’s voice.
“Huh?” Lin Li cried in doubt. How could Sean speak when he is dead? Then, he suddenly remembered he was attacked by the horn of the Shapeshifter before this. Why did he feel no pain at all? Did the horn have anesthetic effect?
Thinking of which, Lin Li opened his eyes.
Then, he was stunned…
The view before him was sheer absurdity.
The culprit lied at his feet on the lush green grass. A faint scent of holiness emitted from it.
And the ultimate killer—the Shapeshifter—had vanished completely…
At that instant, Lin Li did not know if he should cry or laugh. He thought he was definitely going to die, yet woke up with zero injuries. The only thing that was amiss was that there was a small hole on his Robe of Wrath, located where the horn of the Shapeshifter struck…
“This is too surreal!”
Lin Li could not believe his own eyes. He felt as if he was a serial killer who was apprehended by the police but merely sentenced as a thief…
Lin Li always wanted to hunt Shapeshifters—how would he not be aware of the horn that struck him? That was the firmest weapon on earth, filled with the powerful Dark Magic which could break all protective realms. Not to mention that he was only wearing the Robe of Wrath, even if it was the thick and heavy armor that the warriors wore, he would not be able to block the harsh impact the horn inflicted on him. That sharp weapon struck him like a bolt of lightning—how would it only create a small simple hole in his body?
“But…”
It was what made Lin Li felt like something was amiss.
“Don’t tell me it’s because of that?” Lin Li muttered as an object flashed in his mind…
The pocket of the Robe of Wrath was exactly where the horn of the Shapeshifter struck on.
Thinking of which, Lin Li reached into his pocket frantically. His fingers came into contact with that eerie piece of crystal.
Although the surface of the crystal was filled with decorative patterns, the light it reflected was a sinister dark red.
When Lin Li first noticed it, he thought he had seen wrongly.
Lin Li was absolutely clear that in that cave, the crystal was transparent. However, why did it show rays of dark-red when the exited the cave?
Soon after, Lin Li understood everything.
That was because he smelled a familiar scent that came from that piece of crystal.
One could forget the color of the crystal, but not its scent. Lin Li would never forget that unique smell belonging to a Shapeshifter. This dark and pressurizing smell would only be emitted by these beasts born during suffering and disasters.
“God dammit! That Shapeshifter got eaten by a… crystal?” At that point of time, the only term that came to Lin Li to describe the unbelievable scene was the word ‘eaten’.
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