Chapter 184: The Third Trial: A Voice in the Chaos
The sound barrier broke as the tentacles collided with his last location, raising dust and rubbles as a deep crater formed on the sturdy slabs.
Winds blew Adam\'s red mist wildly, menacing to reveal his form and causing his body to roll further away. .net
"Witness my perfection!" Ignatius gloated, pleased by the devastation his attack provoked. Then, as Adam jumped back on his feet, he struck again with three tentacles.
"Overhead and from the left!" echoed the voice in Adam\'s ears, urging him into action. Uncertain of its origin, he perceived it as another fragment of his own mind, aligning to confront the monster.
Trusting the voice, he ducked to the right in haste, his eyes glowing with fury. "DON\'T DISTURB ME WHEN I CAN FIND A BODY!" He roared, drawing negative energy like a vacuum.
His blood-red cape extended to reach ninety percent of the original\'s size as he pointed his hand towards Ignatius.
Behind him, red bullets emanating blood-chilling frost materialised one after the other until their numbers reached a hundred. Yet, he wasn\'t satisfied. Drawing inspiration from forgotten memories, he changed their forms. Emphasising the sturdiness and sharpness of the heads, he shaped them into sleek, aerodynamic arrowheads.
With their stabilising fines at the back, their velocity and design, the penetration potential of these projectiles would, by far, be higher than sniper\'s bullets.
Then, with a mighty shout, he controlled them to spin at terrifying speeds, enhancing their stability and penetration further before releasing them like cannonballs.
A cacophony of loud and distinctive whoosh resounded as the air parted. Turbulent airflow rippled in their wakes as they closed in on the gloating Ignatius.
Plasma cannons didn\'t scare him, much less mere arrowheads. Moreover, despite its sickening looks, this form was a pure condensation of nature\'s might and was much more durable than his human-looking body.
His smile widening, he opened his arms wide, welcoming the pitiful arrows as they shattered like glass against his torso and limbs.
"It doesn\'t even tickle, boy. Let me show you what real projectiles should look like." He declared, his voice laced with pride and joy as he crossed his arms and tensed his muscles. Terrifying spikes eighty centimeters long sprouted from his skin. Then, releasing his muscles like springs, he swung his arms open, propelling them in a barrage akin to a rain of spears in every direction.
The room\'s lights dimmed as the projectiles engulfed Adam in their shadows. Yet, his eyes fearlessly scanned them, searching for a path to salvation.
"Half a step left. Bend your right knee thirty degrees. Raise your arm..." The voice, more distinct, suddenly spoke again, aiding him in this desperate situation.
With its guidance, he danced nimbly in the middle of the barrage, moving his limbs at complex angles under Ignatius\' widening eyes.
His smile turned into a frown as Adam avoided his attacks with unnatural instincts. "Something is wrong." He muttered, using his sharp eagle eyes and hearing to scan the man\'s body. Yet, he failed to find anything out of the ordinary.
"Is he blessed with beast-like instincts?" He mused, once more confused by his weak opponent\'s resourcefulness. After all, despite not going all out, Adam held quite well, only losing his right arm and being superficially sliced by the wind pressure. Yet, his consciousness would soon be replaced by Misha\'s.
As the spikes collided with the chamber\'s walls, causing them to crumble, Adam stood unwounded in the middle of the chaos. With a smirk, he raised his head to gaze hatefully at Ignatius before charging at the monster, his Beastbane dagger in hand.
"Rotate to the left!" The voice kept guiding him, becoming increasingly clearer as he dodged the incoming tentacles before reaching the seven-meter-tall Ignatius.
"Aim for his paws and lower abdomen!" It said again, sounding excited.
Rapidly, Adam slid to the ground, dodging another tentacle before rising to his feet and focusing his energy on his dagger.
An ominous, red vibrating aura encased the chilly blade, increasing its penetration before he raised his left arm and struck the first paw. Piercing through the fur and leather shallowly, the dagger drew blood.
"Continue until you reach his heart." The voice said before adding. "This monster needs three to aliment its body. I left two in its chaotic lower parts!"
With clear instructions and vengeance at arm\'s reach, wisps of red smoke emanated from his eyes as he swung his dagger, swiftly digging into the paw\'s flesh with rage.
"ARGH!" Ignatius screamed in pain as cold and burning sensations assaulted him through his connection with Misha\'s soul and his body. Hastily, he collapsed on the ground, aiming to crush the insect under his terrifying weight.
However, this action was too predictable. The moment the joint bent, Adam jumped out. Gusts of wind rose and ruffled his hair as he bent forward and manifested an energy wall to resist the pressure for two seconds.
Then, he jumped on the monster\'s bent torso and lacerated the leather between the fourth and fifth vertebrae.
"His second is behind the bones. It might be tricky to reach it." A feminine voice said, causing Adam\'s movement to slow briefly. "WhO ArE YoU?" He asked, sure she wasn\'t a fragmented part of his mind.
"Focus on dealing with Ignatius! We\'ll talk later." She said sternly before falling silent.
Simultaneously, Ignatius located Adam through the painful contradicting sensations and roared in fury, "I don\'t care about your body anymore, insect. Die!"
His long, gorilla arms moved with lightning speed in a clapping motion, about to crush Adam like the ant he was. Yet, his eyes widened. The second his movement started, the man jumped and began condensing blood-red energy into a terrifyingly long spearhead.
As the same red, vibrating aura encased it, the air trembled. Using his control, he made it spin forcefully, drawing air currents in a menacing frost whirlwind around it.
"WHAT\'S THAT?" Ignatius yelled after seeing the menacing construct. Dread gripped his heart as a single thought devored his mind.
\'It\'s stronger than plasma cannons!\'