Chapter 991: Severance
The compressed magma sphere smashed into the lava river, instantly sending up a giant wave of molten rock dozens of meters high. When it struck a boulder over thirty meters wide, it exploded with a thunderous boom, reducing the massive stone to dust...
Sryess's attack frequency was terrifyingly high; its four arms crossed and intertwined, hurling seven or eight compressed magma spheres every single second.
Reina soared through the air like the nimblest of giant birds, effortlessly weaving past every compressed magma sphere. The frost aura around her grew ever stronger as she flew straight for Sryess.
On the ground, Hubert charged forward recklessly, bathed in magma. When he stepped onto the lava river, his monstrous strength pressed the molten flow down four or five meters deep without sinking in at all—like a humanoid tyrannosaurus, he barreled in a straight line toward Sryess.
Patchwork Golems and Anderson forced their way forward, clearing a path with torrents of spells. Their advance was anything but slow.
The Mage Legion, just released from the demi-plane by Leon, all cast their Flame Elemental Avatars at once, transforming into a cloud of fire that surged straight ahead.
Seeing his attacks achieve nothing and his enemies closing in, Sryess erupted in rage, roaring as all six of its arms plunged into the lava river.
The crimson third eye on its brow surged with countless magical runes, unleashing a violent wave of mana. Three seconds later, a red beam as thick as four or five tree trunks shot instantly toward the front ranks of the Mage Legion.
In an instant, fifty shields appeared in front of the fire-cloud Mage Legion. The shields combined into a single massive barrier, flames roaring atop it, forming a gigantic shield more than fifty meters across.
On the shield's surface, the snarling head of a flame elemental—its gaping maw—bit down fiercely on that thick red beam.
Ripples of shockwaves spread from the point of collision, scattering the lava river below. The ground within hundreds of meters was blasted into rubble.
Three seconds later, the light faded. The Mage Legion emerged completely unscathed.
Seeing even his strongest blaze was useless, Sryess hesitated, fear creeping in. He turned, trying to flee back toward the magma lake.
At that moment, Reina finally found her chance. She dove, unleashing a burst of ice-blue light from her jaws—a torrent of Absolute Zero Breath—striking Sryess squarely as he tried to escape.
Crack...
Crack...
Frost surged. In an instant, a layer of ice formed over Sryess's body, freezing even the magma flowing through the cracks in his skin.
The moment Sryess froze, the Patchwork Golem unveiled a new weapon—a massive cannon barrel extended from its thigh, gathering a blinding light at the muzzle. The beam pierced straight through Sryess's body from behind, vanishing only after shooting a kilometer away...
Hubert's skin flushed red, a dragon's roar rumbling in his throat. His arms—thicker than Leon's waist—seemed to grow even larger as he gripped Slaughter, swinging it in a white shockwave that smashed directly into Sryess's jaw.
The terrifying force exploded. In an instant, the back of Sryess's skull burst open with a bloody hole. The power was so overwhelming that the impact barely registered where it landed; only when it transmitted to the rear of his head did his body react.
His colossal body—over a hundred meters tall—was sent flipping over by Hubert's single strike.
Then Anderson's elemental storm struck, smashing into Sryess's face and driving his head deep into the ground, as if someone had stuffed it there by force...
In the sky above, a massive magic array materialized around the Mage Legion. A vortex appeared beneath them, and a giant spear—tens of meters long—shot forth...
The spear, trailing a long tail of compressed air, struck Sryess's neck with crushing force—almost severing his head entirely...
The frost of Absolute Zero Breath faded...
In less than three seconds, Sryess could only scream once before all six arms dropped, his body collapsing by the lava river, utterly silent.
"If that Sryess had escaped into the magma lake, we'd never have killed it. The lake below is definitely connected to underground lava rivers. Unless you're a Sky Rank with rules tied to magma, you'd have no hope of slaying it down there. Leon, let me have its third eye..."
Anderson stared at Sryess's corpse, unable to hold back a request.
Leon ordered his men to dissect the giant beast, then asked a question, curiosity evident in his voice.
"What do you want its eye for?"
These monsters went extinct back in the Age of Gods and Demons. There's barely a trace of them in this era, not even a mention in the apocalypse. Clearly, they weren't considered all that powerful.
Anderson gave an awkward smile.
"That third eye is a huge boon for Relic Spirits. It accelerates their growth. This species was never common, and the reason they died out in the Age of Gods and Demons is precisely this—though almost no one knows it. Any records have long since vanished into history..."
Leon didn't mind, nodding in agreement.
The first time Anderson met Dubois, he took some damage. Though he's recovered now, it set his growth back a bit, his strength diminished.
Once Leon agreed, Anderson hurried out, directing the others to dissect the beast's corpse.
Soon, the hundred-meter-long body of Sryess was carved up. Its hide was stripped and cut into pieces; once tanned, the thick skin would become a thin, supple leather—perfect for crafting fire-elemental robes.
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Not only does it actively attract fire elements, but it's also highly resistant to flame. Ordinary elemental fire only strengthens Sryess's hide.
Beneath the skin are innate flame runes, each one amplifying the power of fire spells.
There isn't much hide suitable for making robes, but Sryess's massive body still yielded enough for the Mage Legion's needs.
The Mage Legion's strength would rise again as a result.
And this beast had seven magic crystals: one in its head, one in each of its six arms. All seven were just shy of Sky Rank, level thirty-nine, but each contained a hint of transcendence—worth far more than ordinary crystals of that grade.
Its blood is an ideal material for alchemical ink, especially for fire-element arrays—using this beast-blood ink produces especially potent effects.
The flesh can be used to cultivate warriors, greatly boosting swordsmen's physique. Eating enough can even grant a trace of Sryess's abilities—just a sliver, but enough to make a swordsman much stronger.
The organs serve as prime ingredients for alchemical potions. Since this beast fed on magma, its innards are like burning iron—perfect for making lava and fire demon potions, far superior to those made with plant materials...
Even the bones, which look like crimson metal, are the result of years spent devouring magma and condensing its minerals. Sryess's skeleton is much tougher than ordinary steel—using it as raw material is like mining a small vein of ore.
But the most precious part is Sryess's third eye. Its essence can accelerate Relic Spirit growth and repair their injuries. In Northend, you won't find anything like it for sale.
True Relic Spirits grow the slowest, especially those with high intelligence like Anderson or Lord Sean. They're exceedingly rare.
Normally, a Relic Spirit takes at least a thousand years to reach this level, and that's if everything goes smoothly and growth is steady.
Anything that speeds up Relic Spirit growth is always in high demand in Northend. You never see it for sale—even if someone brings it to auction, the house will buy it outright, never resell.
A Relic Spirit that can aid mages in battle is extraordinarily rare; only those that awaken intelligence have such abilities.
Lord Sean's special ability involves souls—tearing them apart by force. Without such power and intelligence, he wouldn't have made a name among countless True Relic Spirits.
Relic Spirits' powers can sometimes far surpass those of their relics. So when a Relic Spirit is damaged, it's a serious matter.
Aside from resting and slowly healing inside their relics, there's almost no way for a damaged Relic Spirit to recover quickly.
Last time Anderson was injured, the damage struck at his very core—even his intelligence was affected. If the wound had been worse, he'd have become a mere echo of a Relic Spirit, intelligence lost.
Now, with something that can both accelerate growth and heal injuries, Anderson can't help but care...
Leon sighed inwardly. Even without Anderson spelling it out, he could guess why monsters like Sryess—those with names—went extinct, and why it happened back in the Age of Gods and Demons...
Looking over the harvested materials, every part of Sryess—from the inside out, down to the last claw—made for excellent raw material. Not a scrap went to waste.
You'd never see this with any other magical beast.