NOVPUBNine realized that staying would mean certain death.
Desperate to flee, she started to rise, but the sinister writhing bone spike within her wound paralyzed her with pain.
She crumpled to the ground, helpless, and watched as Pierce tapped a finger on her forehead.
An imperceptible force of chaos, akin to a slithering serpent, tunneled its way into Nine’s brain.
What happened next was astonishing.
Nine, seemingly immune to the torment of her wound, stood up.
She went so far as to yank the bone spike out with her hand, her face betraying no pain.
Her eyes radiated an extreme fervor, looking at Pierce as if he were a true deity.
With a thud, Nine fell to her knees before Pierce.
Her voice full of reverence, she declared, "Honorable Lord Pierce, I am your most loyal servant, Nine!"
Pierce erupted in triumphant laughter, "Hahahaha!"
"I never expected that upon breaking my seal, I’d discover both the power of allure and purification!"
"Soon, I will return to the abyssal lands, seeking my vengeance upon you all!"
But just then, a deafening gunshot shattered Pierce’s fantasy.
Behind Pierce, bone spikes surged, enveloping him entirely, effortlessly deflecting the bullet.
He scoffed dismissively, "Heh, is that all the power you’ve got?"
As he turned back, his eyes narrowed in surprise.
A fist, as large as a sandbag, hurtled towards him, the gusts from the punch ruffling the sparse hairs on his head.
The whistling sound of the punch cleaving the air was all too audible.
The owner of that fist was none other than Daniel.
He never believed that a mere Desert Eagle could take down Pierce. That gunshot was merely a feint, with the real lethal move being packed into this punch. The power of a hundredfold damage exploded, roaring out like a beast on the hunt.
Facing this menacing blow, Pierce didn’t flinch, a sneer of disdain crossing his face. "If your weapon couldn’t harm me, how much force can a mere fist possess?"
Daniel was banking on Pierce’s overconfidence, not dodging and giving him the perfect opening.
"Prepare to meet your end!"
Power multiplied by a hundredfold, potency unparalleled!
Feeling the immense force bearing down, Pierce’s face drained of color.
His composure shattered in a moment of panic. But even in his disarray, his reaction was swift.
Whiz! Whiz! Whiz!
Bone spikes grew at lightning speed from his back, crawling over his head, forming a bony armor to shield his vital areas.
These bones were tough; the shot from the Desert Eagle had only left a mere scratch on them.
Using a hundredfold damage power would leave Daniel drained; this strike had to be fatal.
With quick thinking and agility, Daniel adjusted the trajectory of his punch.
Boom!
A deep, muffled sound resonated, the air quivering within a radius of several meters.
The floor, centered on the two combatants, cracked and spread outward in every direction.
Daniel’s fist landed squarely on Pierce’s chest.
The overwhelming force had Pierce staring incredulously at Daniel, "How can a mere human possess such immense strength?!"
With a spattering sound, Pierce spat out fresh blood, his body staggering back several steps.
Daniel furrowed his brows, trying to steady himself.
Was that all?
It appeared that while Pierce was gravely injured, he was still far from finished. Yet, with such an attack, Daniel knew he couldn’t muster a second blow.
It seemed he’d have to start over.
Taking a deep breath, Daniel reached for his pistol, ready to end his own life.
Just then, a chilling sound echoed in his ears.
"Cackle, cackle, cackle—!"
From within the iron cage, the creature made of threads suddenly opened its mouth, a nearly invisible thread spewing forth.
Whoosh!
The thread shimmered with a blinding white light.
Following that, the cage bars, thicker than an arm, were astonishingly severed by the thread one by one.
The creature let out an excited, high-pitched shriek, slowly emerging from its confinement.
This turn of events seemed to catch Pierce off guard.
"Blast it, I knew that damn cage wouldn’t hold it!"
"Wretch, quickly take control of it!"
His command was clearly directed at Nine.
Nine moved swiftly, rushing to the front of the thread creature, her eyes emanating a peculiar light.
Pierce watched with grave intensity, hoping she’d gain control. If that creature goes berserk, even I might not be able to subdue it.
However, he overestimated Nine’s abilities.
The thread creature opened its mouth again, spewing countless threads at an astonishing speed. Too swift for Nine to react, they pierced her throat, burrowing in through the wound.
"This isn’t good!" Pierce realized the creature was attempting to take control of Nine.
In a flash, he let out a charge-like roar, barreling towards the creature like a heavy-duty tank.
Interrupted in its endeavor to control Nine, the creature turned to face Pierce, its body budding with countless dark spots.
With a series of cackles, the spots broke the skin’s surface, revealing a myriad of threads.
Daniel glanced at the creature’s identification result, taken aback.
"Master of All Beings, Kenton Dasten!"
"It’s also one of the Great Old Ones!"
"Including Atelarxus, this makes the third Great Old One I’ve encountered. Although they’re not in their original form and their danger is a mere fraction of that, it’s still concerning."
"Why are they appearing one after another? What does it signify?"
"Are these monsters returning to Earth?"
If so, humanity’s future seems to be shadowed by unending despair.
Regardless, these were mere speculations.
Daniel hid to the side, silently observing the clash between the two Great Old Ones, seizing the moment to replenish his strength.
In truth, he was unaware of what the Great Old Ones truly were.
However, through system identification, he deduced that they were immensely powerful beings.
They viewed humans as their servants, much like deities requiring the devotion of faithful followers.
Yet, all the Great Old Ones bestowed upon humanity was endless terror, chaos, and madness.
Pierce’s flesh was punctured repeatedly by innumerable threads, bleeding profusely. "Damned Dasten! You’ve been sealed for millions of years, yet you still dare to defy me at every turn!"
It seemed Dasten understood Pierce’s words, but while Pierce, being a remnant of a soul, could speak, Dasten, not in its true form, remained mute.
Instead, it emitted a cacophonous cry: "Cack-cack-cack!"
Pierce grasped a bone spike, ruthlessly driving it into Dasten’s left hand.
The spike acted as a nail, pinning Dasten’s hand firmly to the ground.
Dasten let out an agonized scream, even as it continued to spit threads in a desperate attack against Pierce.
These two ancient dominators, once mightily powerful, were now engaged in a primeval battle of mutual aggression.
As moments ticked by, flames raged on.
Apart from Pierce, Dasten, and Daniel, the entire mall stood empty, every trace devoured by the inferno.
The epic battle between the two Great Old Ones moved from the first floor to the fifth and then back down.
By the time Daniel fully regained his strength, the brutal clash between the Great Old Ones had drawn to a close.
Pierce’s spinal bone spikes, once his pride, were cut down by Dasten’s threads, shearing away half of his back to reveal mangled flesh and sinew.
His limbs lay severed, scattered across the floor.
The incapacitated Pierce lay on the ground, his expression still menacing.
"Damn you, Dasten! Mark my words!"
After uttering this proclamation, a crimson gleam flashed and then vanished from the eyes of Pierce, or rather, Jack.
Suddenly, Jack erupted in a terrifying scream, "It hurts! It’s so painful!"
"My back, my hands, my feet! What has happened to me?!"
"Help! Somebody save me!"
However, what he saw next was Dasten slowly crawling towards him.
Jack’s eyes rolled back in sheer terror, and he passed out, soon becoming a delectable feast for Dasten.
His last memories remained of participating in the ’Wild Treasure Hunt’ show in Mauritania.
To his end, he couldn’t fathom the events that had unfolded or understand the humanoid monstrosity that stood before him.
...
Dasten then turned its attention to Daniel, who sat nearby, regaining his strength.
It seemed to sense the impending danger posed by this human and acted with caution, not rushing into an assault.
But Daniel stood up.
His strength fully restored, it was time to bring an end to this ordeal.
He calmly looked at Dasten, his eyes devoid of any emotion.
The reason he hadn’t escaped during the major combat was precisely for this moment.
Regardless of the victor, it would always end in one dead and one injured.
With Pierce defeated, the upcoming scenario was considerably easier for Daniel.
Daniel spoke softly, "Thank you for taking care of Pierce for me."
Dasten’s throat vibrated constantly, emitting a wary noise.
Numerous threads once again emerged from its body.
Facing such a sight, even a creature with the monstrous defenses of Pierce would have retreated, but Daniel simply smiled.
With a mere thought, Daniel drew his Desert Eagle, triggering Spirit bullets while unleashing a power magnified a hundredfold.
