shadow slave: Avatar of Apocalypse Chapter 41 41: Scavenger Successfully Saved

The strange centurion collapsed awkwardly at the base of the Ashen Barrow and stopped moving entirely.

Its posture was ridiculous.

Lopsided and crooked, it looked less like one of the terrifying officers of the Carapace Legion and more like a poorly assembled puppet abandoned in the middle of the wasteland. Compared to the graceful, reverent centurion they had seen kneeling before the Ashen Barrow days ago, this thing looked almost insulting.

Even worse, it had arrived without an offering.

There was no transcendent soul shard.

No tribute.

No sign of reverence whatsoever.

If the posture alone wasn't disrespectful enough, the absence of a soul shard practically scread provocation.

From a distance, it honestly looked suicidal.

High atop the Ashen Barrow, the Carapace Demon stirred.

The enormous creature slowly rose from beneath the crimson canopy of the giant tree, polished steel armor glimring beneath the dying sunlight. The tallic surface of its body reflected the orange-red sky beautifully, making the monster resemble so ancient warlord forged from silver and blood.

Its horned head tilted downward.

Watching.

Observing.

Two dark crimson lights slowly ignited deep within the demon's eyes.

Then, the giant moved.

Each heavy step shook the hill slightly as the awakened demon descended toward the strange visitor waiting at the base of the Barrow.

Despite the horrifying pressure radiating from the monster, the fake centurion remained perfectly still.

Motionless.

Silent.

The Carapace Demon eventually stopped several ters away from it.

The giant creature lingered there for a few monts, clearly suspicious.

It was intelligent.

Far more intelligent than the scavengers or even the centurions.

The labyrinth was filled with deadly traps and incomprehensible horrors. A cautious creature would test the situation first instead of rushing forward recklessly.

At least…

That was what Sunny, Nephis, and the others had assud.

Unfortunately, they were completely wrong.

Without even a mont of hesitation, the Carapace Demon suddenly lunged forward.

One massive scythe flashed through the air with terrifying speed.

The fake centurion was instantly cut in half.

The thick adamantine chitin split apart like wet paper, the upper torso flying into the air before crashing heavily into the grey sand.

And inside it—

Nothing.

Empty.

On the opposite side of the Ashen Barrow, Sunny nearly tripped while sprinting up the slope.

"That was too fast!" he cursed.

Cassie clung tightly onto his back as he ran with everything he had, his lungs burning.

Behind them, Senrix grimaced.

"That thing didn't even think first?!"

"It IS thinking!" Nephis shouted while climbing upward ahead of them. "That's the problem!"

Originally, the plan had been simple.

Use the shell of the dead Carapace Centurion to disguise Sunny's scavenger Echo as another mber of the legion.

Send it to the base of the Ashen Barrow.

Distract the demon.

anwhile, the five of them would circle the hill in advance, bury themselves beneath the ash-grey sand, then sprint toward the giant tree while the demon investigated the fake centurion.

Once everyone safely climbed into the branches, Sunny would dismiss the Echo and complete the first phase of the plan.

Simple.

Deceptive.

Relatively safe.

Unfortunately, the Carapace Demon apparently believed in imdiate violence.

Now their timing was ruined.

They weren't even halfway to the tree yet.

"Plan B!" Sunny yelled.

A mont later, the shattered shell exploded apart.

The scavenger Echo burst free from beneath the broken carapace, throwing chunks of chitin away with its pincers before imdiately rushing toward the towering demon.

The much smaller Nightmare Creature darted beneath the giant's massive body, attempting to tangle its legs and buy ti.

It was doing exactly what Nephis had once done against a centurion.

Using size against size.

Unlike Nephis, however, the scavenger possessed its own sturdy carapace. Crushing it beneath sheer weight alone would not be easy.

But the Carapace Demon understood that imdiately.

Its torso twisted with horrifying speed.

One massive pincer struck outward like a cannon.

The scavenger was swatted away instantly.

Its body flew through the air before crashing violently into the sand hard enough to crack the ground beneath it.

Sunny winced.

The Echo's carapace almost shattered from the impact.

"Damn it…"

Ahead of them, Nephis had already reached the giant black tree.

Without wasting even a second, she threw her seaweed bag aside and began climbing the enormous obsidian trunk using cracks in the bark.

Elysia followed close behind her, moving gracefully despite the pressure.

Senrix stopped briefly and glanced back downhill.

His expression darkened.

The scavenger Echo slowly forced itself back onto its legs.

Its movents were shaky now.

Damaged.

But the stubborn creature still raised its pincers defiantly toward the demon.

A harsh screech echoed across the wasteland.

Sunny felt strangely emotional seeing it.

"Go, buddy…" he muttered under his breath while running.

Two shadows followed the scavenger as it charged once more.

One bestial.

One human-shaped.

The distance to the tree was finally shrinking.

But downhill—

The Carapace Demon calmly stepped forward.

Four massive arms moved simultaneously.

Scythes.

Pincers.

Perfectly coordinated death.

The awakened demon was about to tear the scavenger apart completely.

Then—

TWANG!

A silver arrow split through the air like lightning.

The shot ca from the hillside.

Elysia.

The arrow slamd directly into one of the demon's eyes with terrifying precision.

The Carapace Demon staggered slightly for the first ti since the battle began, its tallic head snapping sideways as sparks and dark azure blood burst from the impact point.

A furious roar exploded from the monster.

That single mont of interruption was enough.

Sunny instantly dismissed the scavenger Echo before the demon could retaliate.

The wounded creature vanished into shadows just as a gigantic scythe carved through the space it had occupied a heartbeat earlier.

The steel blade struck empty air.

Sunny nearly collapsed in relief.

"He's safe…"

Elysia landed lightly beside the tree roots after firing the shot, exhaling softly.

"Seriously," she muttered while lowering her bow, "that scavenger is sohow more suicidal than Senrix."

Senrix looked offended.

"That's impossible."

"It charged an awakened demon twice."

"…Okay, maybe a little."

Above them, Nephis finally looked downward from the tree.

"Hurry," she ordered coldly. "It's coming."

Below the hill, the Carapace Demon slowly turned its head upward.

Its damaged eye glowed with violent crimson fury.

And for the first ti since arriving at the Ashen Barrow—

The monster had truly noticed them.