Chapter 383 - 327: Surprise Attack (2)

Chapter 383: Chapter 327: Surprise Attack (2)

WHOOSH!

The projectile shot forward with incredible speed, carrying immense kinetic energy as it slammed into the ground!

It was a sharpened Wooden Spear.

"Careful!" Hill shouted a warning.

The team members all looked up.

Amidst the dense, layered canopy, numerous agile, dark figures leaped back and forth between the branches in a flurry of movement.

A rough estimate put their numbers at several dozen, at least!

Zelir immediately identified the Demons—Demonized Forest Apes.

He had encountered this type of Demon before during a volunteer commission to gather medicinal herbs.

Demonized Forest Apes had no Special Abilities and were easy to kill.

Even if the Demons inside the ruins were more savage than those outside... they were still easy to kill.

After the first Wooden Spear missed its target, the troop of Demonized Forest Apes stopped trying to hide.

Soon, more Wooden Spears rained down from all directions!

They had clearly prepared this ambush well.

"Spread out! Take cover!"

Marcus shouted.

The Land Bird beneath him was running at high speed and couldn’t stop immediately.

So, Marcus squeezed his legs against the bird’s belly, urging it toward a nearby clearing.

The others did the same, crouching low on their mounts’ backs as they urgently scattered to evade.

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!!!

The Wooden Spears rained down as densely as a shower of arrows!

In the chaos, something unexpected happened.

"CAW!"

The Land Bird Zelir was riding stepped right into a small hole as it ran in a high-speed panic.

The Land Bird twisted its ankle, lost its balance, and fell heavily to the ground.

"Oof!"

Zelir was thrown from the bird’s back.

However, he rolled with the momentum to break his fall and wasn’t injured.

The team had successfully evaded the dense volley of spears, but their tight, arrowhead formation had fallen into disarray.

Not only had the front and rear separated, but even Gray and Hill, who were guarding the flanks, had been pushed further apart.

This left Zelir completely exposed.

The Demonized Forest Apes had now leaped down from the trees, surrounding the entire team.

"SCREECH! SQUEAK!!"

They let out sharp, grating cries that were deeply unsettling.

Just as Zelir got to his feet, another savage, deafening roar echoed through the air!

"ROAR!!!"

An immense, oppressive shadow immediately fell over him from above!

Zelir whipped his head up.

It was an even larger ape-like Demon!

Its entire body was covered in silver-white fur, and its muscles were so exaggerated they were almost unbelievable.

Every single one bulged, radiating a sense of explosive power!

Its enormous arms, which hung past its knees, were especially notable; the muscles of its forearms were even thicker than its thighs!

A single glance was enough to imagine the terrifying power they contained!

The ape Demon opened its massive maw, revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth.

Its ferocious face rapidly filled Zelir’s vision.

It leaped down from a branch, launching a surprise attack with the force of a falling mountain!

A [Difficulty: Hard] rated Demon, the Monster Strength Silver Ape!

The Monster Strength Silver Ape could be considered the Advanced form of the Demonized Forest Ape.

It possessed a larger body, freakish strength, and... being an ape, an intellect that surpassed other Demons!

This ambush had clearly been meticulously planned.

First, it used thrown Bamboo Spears to force the fast-moving team to break formation, creating an opening.

Then, it leaped down from above to take the head of the team’s core member!

It didn’t know what made this robe-clad Human Adventurer so special.

But the entire team’s formation seemed to be protecting him.

’In that case...’

’I’ll kill him first!’

As the Monster Strength Silver Ape descended, it clasped its hands together and brought them down viciously on Zelir’s head!

This blow contained not only the Monster Strength Silver Ape’s terrifying power, but also the potential energy from its massive weight.

It was like a mountain crashing down!

"Zelir!!"

Marcus cried out as he turned his head to look.

In an instant, the Magic Barrier triggered passively!

"BANG!!!"

The giant fists, carrying immeasurable force, were stopped by a barrier of faint blue light!

A massive shockwave erupted!

A fierce wind swept out, violently blasting away all the plants within a several-meter radius!

Even the poor, fallen Land Bird was thrown several meters by the aftershock.

Although the Magic Barrier, anchored by a Trigger Skill, blocked the Monster Strength Silver Ape’s Tai Mountain Meteorite Pendant...

...at the moment of impact, a sliver of the force still passed through the barrier and struck Zelir.

An indescribable sense of impact and pressure washed over him!

"Cough...!"

His superior Constitution helped Zelir withstand the blow, but his feet still sank several centimeters into the dirt.

’Holy... crap!’ Zelir cursed inwardly. ’This thing really packs a punch.’

’If it had been any other Junior Mage, even with a Magic Barrier up, the shockwave alone would have been enough to cause internal injuries.’

The danger wasn’t over. Seeing its attack fail, the Monster Strength Silver Ape let out an enraged roar.

The muscles in its arms bulged again as it tried to brute-force its way through, crushing the barrier!

Zelir raised Night Peace, channeling all his power into the Magic Barrier.

A massive amount of Magic Power poured in, rapidly strengthening the defensive barrier!

The entire sequence—from being at a slight disadvantage during the initial attack, to steadying his footing, to now mounting a counter-offense—lasted only a few short seconds.

The Monster Strength Silver Ape’s eyes were filled with astonishment.

’This Human Mage... I didn’t smash him into a pulp?!’

THUD...!

The Monster Strength Silver Ape was knocked back two or three steps. It stared intently at Zelir, its eyes filled with shock and uncertainty.

’He really is the strongest one on the team!’

Seeing that Zelir was unharmed, the other members of the team breathed a collective sigh of relief.

’These monkeys are pretty cunning...’

Hill was especially surprised.

’Zelir can handle a surprise attack of this level so easily...?’

At the same time, two more massive figures appeared on the perimeter.

They were also Monster Strength Silver Apes!

This constituted a very powerful Demon Tribe.

Three [Difficulty: Hard] rated Monster Strength Silver Apes and several dozen Demonized Forest Apes.

It was enough to dominate a large swath of the forest.

If a typical team were surrounded like this, they’d probably be thinking about their last words right now.

However, Zelir shouted, his eyes fixed on the Monster Strength Silver Ape in front of him, "Don’t come over here!"

"You guys handle the main front! This one’s mine!"

’Trying to ambush me, huh?’

’I didn’t die... so now it’s your turn.’

Hearing Zelir’s command, Marcus, who had been about to move toward him, paused.

He gave Zelir a nod from a distance.

The gesture meant, ’I trust you.’

After so many battles together, Marcus was well aware of Zelir’s strength.

The battlefield was thus quickly split into two parts.

On the main front, Marcus, Gray, Valles, and Hill faced two Monster Strength Silver Apes and several dozen Demonized Forest Apes.

On the other side, Zelir stood alone against the Monster Strength Silver Ape that had ambushed him.

The battles on both sides erupted at almost the same time!

"AWOOO!!!"

The two Monster Strength Silver Apes on the main front roared, stood upright, and pounded their chests!

"THUMP! THUMP-THUMP! THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP!"

They even did it with a certain rhythm.

Upon hearing the sound, the nearby Demonized Forest Apes’ eyes turned blood-red, and their morale soared.

Their "Scree! Aah!" cries blended together, filling the forest with an even greater cacophony of madness and killing intent!

"This is why I hate mounts..." Hill frowned, concealed in the shadow of a tree trunk.

If it weren’t for the commotion the Land Birds had made, they most likely wouldn’t have been ambushed by this troop of Demonized Forest Apes.

Hill was confident she could have detected the ambush ahead of time otherwise.

Shadow Fighting Qi activated around her, with wisps of energy coiling about.

Marcus met the Charge of the Demonized Forest Apes, fearlessly raising his shield to block them.

Valles had already drawn his Longbow, Moonlight, and was aiming from a half-kneeling position on the ground.

Sparks of lightning flashed on his bowstring as he fired in rapid succession!

"THWANG! THWANG! THWANG!"

Arrows infused with a small amount of Thunder Fighting Qi shot through the air!