The battle intensified.
Tentacles struck from above.
From the sides.
From below.
Lin Mu moved continuously, his body a blur as he destroyed each incoming attack. Cattaleya fought beside him, her strength matching his in raw force. Still... They had underestimated sothing.
The reach and scope of the lava. It was simply everywhere and before they could realize it sothing appeared from behind ng Bai...
CRACK!
SLICK
A tentacle erupted!
It was fast, silent and most of all deadly.
It surged upward, aiming straight for him.
ng Bai turned around, but it was already too late... The molten limb was already upon him.
The mont stretched thin and everyone saw the tentacle.
It erupted from the molten ground behind ng Bai with terrifying speed, its form surging upward like a spear forged from living lava. Its surface churned and bubbled, droplets of molten rock flying outward as it closed the distance in an instant.
"ng Bai!" Cattaleya shouted.
Lin Mu reacted without hesitation.
His body blurred as Blink activated and Space folded.
He moved.
Yet... The tentacle was too close to ng Bai.
All of it happened too sudden and too fast. In the fraction of a mont it took for Lin Mu to perceive the threat and trigger his skill, the tentacle had already reached its target.
The molten limb struck him hard.
ng Bai was hit squarely, his body thrown forward like a rag doll, the impact carrying imnse force despite the fluid nature of the attack.
A burst of light erupted around him.
The talismans.
Layer upon layer of defensive arrays activated at once, forming barriers that absorbed the force of the strike. One after another, they shattered under the impact.
Ten of them broke instantly.
Then more cracks spread across others.
But they held.
The remaining layers absorbed the rest of the force, preventing the molten energy from reaching his body directly.
ng Bai was flung through the air, spinning uncontrollably.
"Shrubby!" Lin Mu shouted.
The beast reacted imdiately.
Little Shrubby surged forward, his movents explosive. Flas and lightning gathered around his claws as he tore through the incoming tentacles, ripping them apart as they tried to intercept him.
His path was direct.
Unwavering.
He reached ng Bai just as the latter began to fall toward a patch of unstable rock.
Shrubby caught him securely.
The young man was shaken, but alive.
anwhile... Lin Mu landed.
His expression had hardened.
The brief mont of vulnerability had passed.
Now...
There was only action.
He moved fast.
His fists struck out, each blow carrying imnse force as he shattered the tentacles that approached him. Molten limbs burst apart under his strikes, their forms collapsing back into streams of lava that quickly reford and attacked
again.
Cattaleya fought beside him, her strength unleashed without restraint. Each punch she threw broke apart multiple tentacles, her movents aggressive and
unyielding.
Elyon supported from the side, his attacks precise and calculated, his dark claws cutting through the limbs with efficiency.
Daoist Chu maintained defensive formations, reinforcing their position and
shielding them from stray attacks.
ng Bai, now back with Shrubby, focused on defense, relying on his talismans while trying to contribute where he could.
Yet... Sothing beca clear.
There was no end.
The tentacles kept coming.
No matter how many they destroyed, more rose from the lava. The entire environnt seed to be alive, the molten lakes acting as an endless source
of attacks.
"This is not sustainable," Daoist Chu said, his voice strained.
Lin Mu noticed it as well.
The regeneration.
The consistency.
"This is an elental," Daoist Chu continued. "A large one. As long as its core
remains intact, it will continue indefinitely."
Lin Mu's eyes narrowed.
"Where is the core?"
That was the problem.
The lava stretched endlessly.
Everywhere he looked, it was the sa.
His spatial perception revealed nothing distinct. The energy within the molten
lakes had blended into a uniform state, making it nearly impossible to
distinguish one part from another.
Even his gravity sense offered no clarity here.
The mass of the lava was too distributed.
Too uniform.
He could not isolate a center.
Fifteen minutes passed.
Relentless combat.
Endless attacks.
Their movents remained sharp, but the strain began to show.
Lin Mu understood.
"This cannot continue."
He made a decision.
"Everyone gather!" he called out.
They did not question him.
Cattaleya disengaged and moved toward him, breaking through the tentacles
that blocked her path. Elyon followed, his movents swift and efficient. Daoist Chu withdrew his formations and repositioned.
Shrubby moved as well, carrying ng Bai as he tore through the incoming
attacks.
Within monts...
They regrouped.
"All of you stay together," Lin Mu said.
"Shrubby, carry them."
The beast lowered himself slightly, allowing the others to secure their
positions.
"What are you going to do?" Cattaleya asked.
Lin Mu did not answer directly.
"Defend."
That was all.
Lin Mu? stepped forward and firmly planted his feet in a horse stance. Once he
was stable and rooted, he drew his fist back as energy gathered within it. This
ti it wasn't just immortal Essence and normal immortal qi but rather the Water Immortal Qi!
It was pure and condensed as it flowed into his arm with controlled intensity.
The surrounding heat reacted soon as the molten environnt seed to
ripple with the opposing elent manifesting.
Lin Mu's focus sharpened completely as this was not a normal strike. This was a variation, as such he didn't know what kind of effects it would have. It was a
new application of the Water affinity he had gained.
The energies coiled and twisted together as the ribbons rged forming a
structure that resembled a double helix, its form fluid yet stable, its color a deep, vibrant blue that stood in stark contrast to the fiery surroundings. The technique stabilized before Lin Mu moved and jumped, rising above the
battlefield.
When he reached the top, his arm surged forward as one of his strongest skills was used.
"Mountain Collapsing Fist: Third Form - Aqua Devastator!"
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