The force pushed me slightly into the ground. My neck and limbs struck the inside of my shell, sending a dull ache through my body.
It hurt... but it was still bearable.
For a brief moment, I almost thought the old skeleton had exaggerated. He had made Demonic Beasts sound like monsters capable of crushing someone in the same realm with ease, yet this attack wasn't nearly as overwhelming as I'd imagined.
To my surprise, another attack didn't come.
Instead, I heard the wolf slowly circling around me before stopping beside my shell.
Sniff...
Sniff...
A warm breath brushed across the thick moss covering my shell as it lowered its head, sniffing me again and again.
...What's it doing?
It kept sniffing the moss covering my shell without attacking again.
Good thing I never bothered cleaning it off.
The thick moss clinging to my shell had almost hidden my scent, leaving the wolf unable to figure out what I really was. A low growl rumbled from its throat as it continued sniffing for several more moments before finally taking a few steps back.
...Is it leaving?
The thought had barely crossed my mind when every instinct in my body screamed.
Danger.
BOOOOOM!!
"Ghk!"
A mouthful of blood burst from my mouth as an overwhelming force smashed into my shell. The ground beneath me cracked apart, while the crushing impact tore through my body. My vision blurred, my ears rang, and every bone felt as though it had been shaken loose.
W-What...
What the hell was that attack...?
The first attack hadn't even come close to this.
Damn...
So this is the true power of Demonic Beast Qi...
Even that Mountain Stone Centipede's Qi-infused strike wasn't this terrifying...
Another sharp howl echoed through the clearing.
So... the rebound hurt it too...
The thought had barely crossed my mind when the howl gradually turned into a deep, furious growl. Instead of retreating, the beast sounded even angrier than before. Every growl became heavier and more violent, as though the pain only pushed it further into madness.
Before I could make sense of it, another surge of Beast Qi erupted outside.
BOOOOM!!
"Ghk...!"
Fresh blood sprayed from my mouth as another claw slammed into my shell. The terrifying vibrations from the previous strike hadn't even settled before another wave tore through my body. My limbs and neck violently struck the inside of my shell, sending another wave of pain throughout my body.
A sharp howl echoed through the clearing once again.
Yet before the sound had completely faded—
BOOOOM!!
Another claw crashed into my shell.
"Ugh...!"
More blood spilled from my mouth.
My breathing turned ragged, and the ringing in my ears grew louder with every passing second. Every violent impact sent another terrifying vibration through my shell. Black Carapace Guard held firm, protecting it from even the slightest crack, but it couldn't stop the force passing through it. I could almost feel my bones groaning under the repeated shocks.
Another pained howl echoed through the clearing.
It didn't retreat.
The howl quickly turned into a furious growl before another surge of Beast Qi erupted outside. The pain from the rebound hadn't slowed it down in the slightest. If anything, every howl was followed by an even fiercer attack, as though it had completely abandoned any regard for its own injuries.
If this keeps up... I don't know how much longer I can take it...
Every breath burned my lungs. Blood continued dripping from the corner of my mouth while my thoughts became slower and harder to hold together. Pain throbbed through every inch of my body, and even gathering my thoughts was becoming difficult.
Only then did several faint blue windows slowly appear before my blurred vision.
[Warning: Host has suffered severe internal injuries.]
The blue windows remained before me, but the words refused to stay in focus. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make sense of them. My consciousness grew heavier with every passing second, and even keeping my eyes open had become a struggle.
Just as I felt myself slipping away, Earth Sense suddenly trembled. Another Beast Qi fluctuation had entered its range. It was closing in rapidly, and with every passing heartbeat, the ground beneath me shook a little harder.
The wolf noticed it too.
Its rough, painful breathing suddenly stopped. The killing intent that had been pressing down on me didn't disappear... it shifted somewhere else.
A heartbeat later, a completely different roar erupted through the forest.
It wasn't the wolf.
The roar was deep and powerful, completely different from the wolf's. Even its pressure made my Earth Sense quiver. Almost immediately, the wolf answered with a furious growl, and the next instant I heard heavy footsteps charging across the ground.
BOOOOOM!!
The ground beneath me lurched violently, nearly bouncing my battered body off the earth. One roar answered another as trees cracked somewhere ahead and the ground trembled beneath me.
I couldn't make out anything anymore. All I had left were the sounds of two beasts tearing into each other.
They're... fighting...
A small sense of relief washed over me.
At least...
I could breathe...
My body had already reached its limit. Every breath felt heavier than the last, while the pain spreading through my body gradually became distant. My eyelids felt as though they weighed a thousand pounds, and even keeping my thoughts together was becoming difficult.
The blue windows still floated before me, but the letters had long since become meaningless.
Just... a little longer...
Earth Sense suddenly screamed.
What now...?
Something's coming... fast...
Before I could even react—
BOOOOOM!!
"Ghk...!"
Something slammed into my shell from the side before I even realized what had happened, sending my body flying once again.
The cold wind whipped past me while everything spun out of control. My body spun uncontrollably through the air as the little strength I had left slipped away with every passing second.
How many times have I been sent flying in just a few days...? And how many times have I coughed up blood already...?
The absurd thought barely crossed my mind before—
SPLASH!!
An icy chill swallowed my entire body.
The rushing current seized me immediately, carrying me away before I could even struggle. The distant roars of the two beasts grew fainter and fainter, soon drowned out by the endless sound of rushing water.
My eyelids grew heavier.
The last traces of blue light slowly faded away.
Then...
Everything went dark.
[! SYSTEM CRITICAL WARNING !]
[Host consciousness: Lost.]
[Body condition: Critical.]
[Multiple injuries detected.]
[Broken limbs detected.]
[Blood loss: Excessive.]
[Attempting to cauterize wounds...]
[Failed.]
[Warning: Host life signs declining.]
The unconscious tortoise drifted helplessly with the current.
The battle between the two beasts had already disturbed the surrounding forest.
Even without directly affecting the river, the sounds and pressure from the fight gradually faded into the distance.
The river flowed fast and unforgiving, carrying everything in its path downstream.
The small body was carried along by the current, completely unable to resist.
Then...
A presence approached.
Hidden beneath the dark water, another beast noticed the scent of blood.
It slowly moved closer.
To the creature, this was nothing more than injured prey that had fallen into its territory.
A free meal.
The beast opened its jaws and rushed forward.
But the moment its attack struck—
BOOOOM!!
The impact spread through the water.
The tortoise's shell remained unmoved.
The force that should have crushed the tortoise's body rebounded toward the attacker, causing the beast to recoil in surprise.
It wasn't enough to injure it, but the brief hesitation was all the river needed.
The current immediately seized the unconscious tortoise, carrying him farther downstream.
Beneath the surface, however, another current flowed with terrifying strength. It pulled everything caught within it toward a far more dangerous part of the river.
The beast gave chase for a short distance, but soon stopped. Even it seemed unwilling to enter those waters.
Unaware of everything around him, the unconscious tortoise continued drifting with the current.
Far ahead, beneath the dark water, a massive whirlpool slowly turned.
The hidden current drew him closer... and closer...
There was no way for his unconscious body to resist.
Slowly...
The river swallowed him.