Chapter 45: Elemental Body, Wind-Shadow Beast

Chapter 45: Elemental Body - Gale Shadow Beast

The two rode on the back of the Dragon Rhino.

The wide armor and heavy shield gave Lu Cang a sense of security.

Trand was different from the fat man from yesterday; he was a more seasoned veteran.

Although his physique was hidden beneath the armor, the hard lines of his face suggested he possessed robust muscles.

Level 3 was a watershed moment.

It was said that the vast majority of class-changers in the world peaked at Level 3.

Moving from Level 3 to Level 4 was a threshold.

It was difficult for ordinary people to cross.

Consequently, one often saw Level 2 adventurers who were still young people around twenty years old.

But Level 3 adventurers ranged from their twenties to their fifties and sixties...

[Gale Shadow Beast - Elemental Mutation]

A Tier 3 Lord-class monster.

During investigations, it was highly suspected to be a special subspecies. Intelligence suggested that an Observer had been noticed by it while investigating from a distance and was subsequently hunted.

The Observer had nearly lost their life.

This piece of intelligence also indicated that its perception was extremely keen and its tracking range was very long.

[Observer] is a non-combat profession, skilled at long-range observation, discovering hidden traps, finding invisible units, and possessing the ability to identify enemy weaknesses and flaws.

It was said that an Observer above Level 5 could even lock onto a person's exact location from thousands of miles away.

To facilitate observing the surroundings, the carriage windows were large and bright.

The "Everlight" was lit.

The shadows of this forest were swept away.

"It's very close."

Although Maize did not see it, he could sense the presence of the enemy.

It was the restless sound of wind rustling through the trees; in this terrain, trees surrounded them from all directions.

Boom—!

The Dragon Rhino smashed directly through the trees, charging in a straight line!

Winding around made one vulnerable to attack!

Swish!

"It's coming!"

Lu Cang felt the agitation of the elements!

Boom!

Before his eyes could even turn!

Heavy walls of earth had already risen from the ground!

Rumble, rumble, rumble!

Three layers of heavy walls rose instantly beside them! Immediately following, the feedback from the impact against the earth and stone surged back!

Bang!

The first layer of heavy walls was struck, spiderwebbing with countless fine cracks!

So fast!

He hadn't even seen the enemy's movements with his eyes!

The opponent had already launched an attack!

If not for his extremely keen perception of the elements, he might truly have been caught off guard.

But through this strike, he finally confirmed the opponent's position.

A magic-type attack—"Shadow Slash."

Swish!

Lu Cang felt a dense surge of dark elements slashing toward them!

Bang!

However, these two incoming slashes struck directly against the barrier Lu Cang had generated in mid-air.

[Hardened Barrier (LV: 188)]

The barrier emitted two dull thuds.

These two slashes had absolutely no effect.

[Rapid Ice Shuttle]

[Thunder Flash]

[Breathless Wind Swarm]

[Wind Blast]

[Lateral Sprouting Pillar]

[Poison Vine Lash]

...

Ice left long trails behind as it pierced through layer after layer of trees.

Crack—!

Boom!

Thunder Flashes flashed in succession!

Beneath the Dragon Rhino's feet, shadows expanded—

[Sinking Shadow Marsh (Tier 2) (LV: 152)] —Extremely large range, merges with shadows, causes sinking, spreads rapidly, traps quickly, and provides stickiness.

Pillars of earth surged and collided!

A storm carrying the Breathless Wind Swarm erupted instantly!

Boom!

Over a dozen spells erupted simultaneously, instantly obliterating the dense forest to the side!

And the [Gale Shadow Beast], which had originally been hiding among the trees, was finally exposed in Lu Cang's field of vision.

It moved at an incredibly high speed and appeared as a mimetic dark shadow.

Its body looked like a mixture of transparent wind and murky shadow; during its frantic sprint, it resembled a flowing stream of black gas.

It was impossible to see clearly amidst the gaps between the trees.

But...

Once the vast stretches of forest were blasted away and shredded by Lu Cang in an instant!

This monster finally had nowhere left to hide!

Almost the moment it realized the threat.

It immediately transformed into a stream of black wind, piercing toward Lu Cang!

"Is this a fake?"

Luo Si's eyes widened!

Previously, when Lu Cang had insta-killed a Tier 3 Lord monster, he had always used two or three spells to do it, which was already quite exaggerated for a Level 2 mage.

What on earth was this instantaneous burst of spells?

Hey!

You just blew away an entire forest!

Is this the strength of a Level 2 mage?

Was the strength he showed before just the tip of the iceberg? No way...

Luo Si's heart was filled with shock.

While shocked, Luo Si also prepared to face the enemy.

"Protect!"

Ding—!

A thin veil of light actually lit up around Lu Cang.

[Protection Spell (LV: 2)]

A protection spell from a Tier 3 Healer.

Healers are different from mages; they have many non-chanting spells.

They can be released instantly, but they require time to recover.

That's right... they are skills with cooldowns that can be stored multiple times.

Meanwhile, Trand had already twisted his body, shielding Lu Cang behind him while facing the direction of the monster.

Lu Cang's eyes narrowed slightly.

This monster was an elemental mutation.

It had lost its physical body and become an elemental form.

Physical attacks without elemental enchantment would have almost no effect on an elemental body.

However, elemental attacks that possessed an elemental advantage over the monster's type would deal massive damage.

Using "Holy Light Cross" should be able to heavily wound it directly.

Or using the Tier 2 "Light-Piercing Spear" should also yield excellent results.

But seeing Trand standing in front of him.

An idea occurred to Lu Cang.

He wanted to see how they fought.

He had spent so much money to hire them, yet he had never seen them in combat.

Although it was just for insurance, considering he might need them for a while longer.

He should at least see to what extent they could protect him.

Otherwise, having to hire new people every single time would be quite a hassle; compared to teaming up with strangers, fighting with people you know was much safer.

Bang!

The BOSS transformed into a stream of black wind, piercing forward like a long spear!

But before it could even get close to Lu Cang, it slammed into an invisible barrier with a loud bang!

[Hardened Barrier (LV: 188)]

The barrier erupted with a booming sound.

This strike failed to break the defense of his Hardened Barrier.

Lu Cang could feel that while this monster was very fast and excellent at concealing its movements, its damage was quite low.

Bang!

The BOSS suddenly recoiled, bouncing back a distance like a ball of black energy, before immediately lunging toward Lu Cang again!

Trand roared, "Your enemy is me!"

In that instant!

Lu Cang felt a powerful aura erupting from Trand!

Immediately following, he felt a surge of hatred rising from the man!

[Combat Skill: Hate Taunt]

So there's a taunt too.

Lu Cang leaped backward, jumping directly off the Dragon Rhino!

Before he even hit the ground, a massive ice shuttle formed beneath his feet.

Sizzle—!

The ice froze his feet in place.

Stepping on the ice shuttle, Lu Cang synchronized his speed with the Dragon Rhino, effectively achieving flight through this method.