Chapter 620: Sankhara-Dukkha (1/2)

Zac knew his people weren’t out of the woods just yet, but he still scanned the prompt that had appeared in front of him before deciding on his next move.

Sankhara-Dukkha (Training (6/9)): Emerge victorious and seize the Spatial Drill. Reward: Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen. (0/2)

[NOTE: Failure to comply with training regimen will result in loss of 2 levels.]

He didn’t know what the quest name was referring to, but the task was more straightforward. It also confirmed the importance of the Spatial Drill to the point that it almost felt like the System had sensed his hesitation and told him ‘do what you want as long as you get the drill’.

The problem was what he should do now. He had just killed the Second Elder a few seconds ago, and his death had instantly roused the battle lust of the Zhix as they rampaged through the army with newfound vigor. Less than a third of the native army was still standing, with Zac being the biggest perpetrator by unleashing both the third swing of [Deforestation] and [Nature’s Punishment] upon them.

He could probably force a surrender as long as they dealt with the two remaining elders, but to what end? What would he do, saddled with thousands of prisoners when they needed to move toward the core of the Mystic Realm?

But could he just slaughter them all just out of convenience?

Was there some sort of middle-ground?

“No!” a wail echoed out from the distance, and Zac turned his head to see the old lady desperately trying to break past the beasts in an effort to reach him, or perhaps the body of the Second Elder.

Her eyes were stained with tears and her old body was covered in bloody wounds. The air around her kept twisting and distorting as Grub constantly switched between slamming his enormous teeth together and releasing his massive bellows. Zac remembered all-too-well the restrictive power those soundwaves possessed.

The elder still pushed forward, shielded by a massive avatar that looked a bit like a huge scarecrow. It was made from hundreds of different plants, with leaves and fruits giving it facial features. Its limbs were made from straw and roots, and it was decked in a robe made from leaves. It stood over twenty meters tall, and it radiated both a life-force that eclipsed Zac's own wooden hand while also radiating the aura of a powerful adversary.

The grass around its feet kept growing taller as flowers sprung up around it. Perhaps it was the avatar of a God of Harvest, something the elder had used to nurture the plants of the clan. But that was obviously not its only function as that avatar alone seemed more than capable to deal with all three of Verana’s beasts, even when they were empowered by a group of elite Beastmasters.

It wasn’t very quick, but its attacks contained an enormous force. Slither tried to block as the elder and her champion pushed through Grub’s restraints, but the old lady was on a rampage. A single punch from the avatar threw the snake over fifty meters away, and it was clearly grievously wounded from the hit.

Lulu harried the old lady while running in circles as she tried to light the scarecrow on fire with her spells, but roots kept stabbing up from the ground leaving deep lacerations on the foxlike beast. It was like nature heeded the old lady’s call, lashing out at everything around her.

If nothing changed, then the third elder would soon reach the clashing armies. That wasn’t the real problem though. The problem was the look in her eyes as she unerringly stared at Zac. He didn’t know the background of this senior, but judging by the bone-chilling killing intent in her eyes as she stared at him, she was more likely to self-detonate than to surrender.

Then something suddenly changed. A ball of extremely concentrated poison shot toward the old lady as Slither unleashed one final attack before it fell unconscious. A series of thick leaves sprouted from the ground, but they were instantly incinerated as the blob flew straight toward the old lady. It contained a corrosive effect of a magnitude that rivaled [Blighted Cut], and even Zac felt some pressure from it.

The elder was finally forced to look away from Zac to meet the new threat head-on. She made a series of seals as the scarecrow hurriedly bent over, placing its two slab-like hands to block the incoming projectile. The already oversized hands of the avatar quickly grew even larger, turning into two meter-thick ramparts.

A storm of purple smoke erupted when the blob hit the wall, and even Zac felt the ground shudder from almost two hundred meters away. That wasn’t all the Beastmasters had prepared though. Grub released a piercing high-pitched wail that conjured a tunnel that swallowed the elder in an instant. It didn’t seem to hurt her, but it was like time had slowed down inside it.

The elder’s avatar was already preoccupied with dealing with Slither’s attack, allowing Lulu to fire a massive pillar of white flames straight at the old lady, incinerating the air itself. The elder moved like in slow-motion inside the pillar, but a storm of golden leaves flew out to block out the attack.

Zac breathed out in relief as he started running over. The trio had gone all-out, but it still looked like the elder would come out unscathed. However, the situation had given him a window of opportunity where he could quickly restrain her with the help of the restraint module he still carried with him. If he could capture her with the help of that thing, the war would be over since the grand elder was already wounded thanks to the Anointed’s surprise attack.

His approach was immediately spotted, and a ruthless gleam shone in the elder’s eyes as she looked at him. It looked like she had given the massive scarecrow some sort of order as well as it was slowly turning toward him, its hands mostly corroded away. But Zac didn’t care as he rushed toward her.

However, a familial form soundlessly rose from the ground like the soil was made from water, appearing right behind the old woman. There was no hesitation as Rhubat made his move the moment he saw an opening thanks to both the elder and the avatar being preoccupied.

“Wai-“ Zac said as he rushed forward, but it was too late.

The elder seemed to have realized something was wrong the moment Rhubat appeared as well, and dozens of vines appeared behind her to tie him up. But the roots were instantly turned to ash as Rhubat exploded with radiant flames; the flames from burning one’s lifeforce. Rhubat’s fist gained a golden glimmer as it punched straight through the vines and then the torso of the Cartava Lady, instantly killing her in one blow.

Her gaze never left Zac’s though, not even in death.

The foliage and fruits that made up the twenty-meter avatar rapidly started to wither and rot away as it slowly curled into a fetal position. A second later it was just a putrid ball, but simply standing in its vicinity caused Zac’s Danger Sense to go off. Something was brewing inside that ball.

”Quickly, get away!” Zac shouted, allowing the Anointed to scramble out of the way just before the crumbling avatar exploded, disintegrating the old lady and the surrounding fifty meters.

“Thank you, Warmaster,” a bloodied Rhubat rumbled as he appeared next to him.

“No problem. Here, take this,” Zac said as he threw a large Longevity Pearl to him. “Eat this thing. It might help you a bit.”

Rhubat shrugged and swallowed the pearl in one go, its massive size making the pearl seem like a small pill.

“Longevity,” Rhubat said as he looked down at Zac with surprise. ”This is a great gift.”

“I can’t have you leave us just yet,” Zac smiled, happy that the pearl seemed to have at least some effect on restoring Rhubat's remaining lifeforce.