NOVPUB
Chapter 80: 020: Melee
Lucas felt that his life had never been this tumultuous as it was today.
This was supposed to be a one-sided massacre. They had spent one or two months carefully preparing for today’s operation.
But despite being a seemingly foolproof mission, something went wrong. What should have been hunters turned into prey instead, and even he himself was caught in a life-and-death crisis.
After fighting with all their might, they had finally seen a glimmer of hope to escape. Unexpectedly, someone who had no business appearing at this moment suddenly showed up.
To save or not to save?
Lucas was caught in a dilemma, unsure of what to do. But never in his wildest dreams did he expect that this person he had hardly paid attention to from the start would turn out to be so powerful!
Incredibly powerful!
In the earlier fight, Lucas had participated too, but most of the enemies were taken down by Lynch alone. He could quickly figure out the best counterstrategy to nullify others’ spells, while his own spells easily shredded through his foes.
Even though their strength was supposed to be similar, Lynch felt like he existed on an entirely different level!
"You’re the Shadow Sword, aren’t you?!"
At this moment, even someone as slow-witted as Lucas realized that the hidden expert in the academy’s hunting grounds was none other than Lynch standing before him.
He couldn’t help but feel a rush of anger: "You had this kind of strength all along—why were you hiding it?!"
If they had known about Lynch’s capabilities earlier, they could have devised a far superior battle plan today. The situation would have been ten thousand times better than it was now.
Moreover,
Thinking about how he had acted like a clown over the past few days, Lucas didn’t even know how to face himself.
"Is now really the time to be dwelling on that?"
Lynch frowned. Not to mention, he had just saved Lucas’s sorry life moments ago. Whether or not he wanted to keep his strength hidden was his own business—what right did Lucas have to comment?
Lucas was taken aback.
Fortunately, as arrogant and self-righteous as he could be, Lucas still knew how to prioritize when the situation became urgent.
He immediately became serious: "Avery and the others are still inside. Those Blood Origin Cultists were targeting us and even brought out an Ausen Giant Python. We need to hurry and meet up with them—they’re in the cave ahead!"
As Lucas was speaking, Lynch had already crouched down and was quickly searching the corpses of the Blood Origin Cult apprentices.
Seeing this, Lucas couldn’t help but blurt out, "What are you doing?"
Lynch replied, "Picking up spoils."
The corner of Lucas’s mouth twitched. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say.
After quickly collecting the spoils of war, the two immediately made their way toward the cave.
A short while after entering, a strong stench of blood began to permeate the air. After walking a few more steps, they saw numerous corpses and severed limbs scattered around. Only a small number belonged to the Blood Origin Cult; most were from their own side.
Both Lynch and Lucas’s expressions grew grim.
The reason? It became clear that the dead here weren’t just ordinary soldiers; there were also Apprentice Knights, fully-fledged Knights, and even Count Edmund, who led this operation with the strength of a Mid-level Knight.
Just last night, the Earl had been sharing boastful tales with the male apprentices about swapping lovers with his two sons. Now, his body lay in two mangled halves on the ground...
Even Lynch felt deeply uneasy when gazing into the Earl’s lifeless, unblinking eyes.
"We need to move, now!"
After proceeding deeper for over ten minutes, they finally found Avery and the others.
Fortunately, though there were heavy casualties outside, Avery and her group were still alive.
However, their situation could hardly be called good...
In the wide-open cave chamber, Avery and Adam huddled in the center, along with a group of surviving Knights, Apprentice Knights, and common soldiers. Altogether, only a few dozen of them remained, forming a defensive formation to fend off their attackers.
Their enemies outnumbered them several times over—members of the Blood Origin Cult—including a dozen or so Low-level and Mid-level apprentices, not to mention a large number of modified followers.
These followers were largely humans altered through bloodline integration, organ transplants, or cellular infusions. Their strength was on par with ordinary Apprentice Knights.
As if that weren’t bad enough, an Ausen Giant Python loomed nearby.
The uneven strength between the two sides should have led to their defeat long ago. Their prolonged stalemate was purely thanks to Avery’s magic.
She was in a peculiar state now, her entire being radiating pure white brilliance, exuding a sacred aura that bathed her in divine light. Behind her, a massive phantom resembling a mythical Angel loomed.
Whenever one of their own was wounded, she would swing her magic wand, sending down a cascade of Holy Light—a powerful healing effect. Lynch watched with his own eyes as a Knight whose neck had been nearly blown open recovered in just seconds.
Beyond healing, the Holy Light seemed to grant buffs too. The Knights and Apprentice Knights bathed in its glow moved faster and hit harder than before.
Lynch was taken aback. "Divine Attribute Magic?"
Divine Attribute Magic—the result of combining bloodline and spirit—possessed incredibly potent powers. It required extraordinary bloodlines and vast resources to harness; ordinary apprentices could never master it. Lynch had only ever read vague descriptions in books.
There wasn’t time to dwell on it.
Standing on the outskirts of the battlefield, Lynch and Lucas noticed a flicker in the space not far from Avery. There, a figure had been concealed.
It was a Mid-level Apprentice, seemingly enhanced by chameleon-like bloodline abilities. His entire body had transformed into that of a giant lizard, with rough, bumpy skin constantly shifting colors to blend seamlessly with his surroundings.
Using this ability, he had remained invisible amidst the battlefield’s chaos and crept toward Avery, the core of the team, intending to ambush her.
Two Knights stood guard near Avery, but neither of them had noticed the approaching enemy.
Now less than five meters away, Lucas urgently shouted, "Avery, watch your back!"
But it was already too late.
Just as Lucas’s voice rang out, the lizardman dropped his camouflage and launched a sneak attack on Avery.
With a body even larger than a Bengal Tiger’s, he leaped forward, razor-sharp claws aimed at the Knights protecting her. One Knight didn’t react in time and had his head crushed instantly. The other was sent flying by a swing from the lizardman’s massive tail. In the blink of an eye, Avery was left alone.
Avery’s expression changed slightly. She quickly retreated, while the nearest Knights rushed to her aid. But the closest one was still over ten meters away, and the gigantic lizard already bared its sharp teeth.
The situation was spiraling toward the worst possible outcome. Just then, a streak of black lightning suddenly shot through the crowd from dozens of meters away, slamming into the corpse of the decapitated Knight.
A layer of violent dark elements rapidly emerged on the corpse’s surface, causing it to swell. In the next moment—
"Boom!"
A thunderous explosion shook the cavern!
