Chapter 1060 (2/2)

Shaking his head, Randidly pointed quickly twice down toward the approaching monsters. “There and there. They should arrive a few seconds apart, so you might want to engage the first as hard as you can to attract the second.”

For the first time since they had met, Randidly saw Zauna tilt her head to the side and open her mouth. Which weirdly meant that the upper half of her head moved upward a tiny bit, in a similar way to a puppet would be made to look while it was speaking. “...handle three…?”

Randidly chuckled. “Honestly, I wish it was more. Ten seconds until they get here. Don’t let them touch this bubble or else we will need to endure the Nether for the rest of our stay here.”

“And that was when the jealous mongoose leapt out of the bog!” Salazar continued to enthusiastically tell his story, his eyes so filled with stars that he didn’t even notice that his audience had drifted away. Which at least also meant he would not easily notice the approaching Nether Beasts. “From its belt, it drew a curved dagger, which it licked provocatively while gazing at my heavily pregnant mother…”

Randidly shuddered. Even letting his concentrate slip for a second let too much of Salazar’s story into his mind. It would be a while before he could scrape his consciousness clean. So instead of staying inside the bubble of Salazar’s image while he could, Randidly deliberately left the safety early and floated out into the caustic Nether.

His skin began to burn. Randidly’s breath came faster and rougher.

Congratulations! Your Skill Nether Acclimation ® has grown to Level 119!

Yea, that’s the stuff. Randidly grinned out into the vast void around them. Now that he was out within the Nether, his feel for the surrounding area grew even more acute. But there was still too much strangeness to parse apart and Randidly didn’t have the time or attention to give the environment his consideration.

Randidly inhaled. His heart was pounding. The fire was burning in his chest.

Grim Chimera exhaled, its murderous appendages tingling in anticipation.

With a roar, the first Nether Beast arrived. It was not a jellyfish or a bat, but this time something that looked like a cross between an angler fish and an eel. With its milky eyes, slick and bulging body, and strange wiggling singular antenna, it certainly fit the part of a strange monster from a different dimension better than the prior two types of beasts Randidly encountered.

But ultimately, its form didn’t matter.

Man is Proud, but the Chimera Takes.

Randidly ripped forward. Such was his momentum that he practically cut through the sizzling Nether as he shot forward toward the Nether Beast. While he was moving, Randidly’s entire focus narrowed to the tip of his bone spear. All the weight and momentum he could muster was thrust and compacted into that singular point. The tip of his spear rumbled ominously, even though the sound was dampened by the Nether around him. The Nether Beast twisted, but Randidly was too quick; the beast’s body was punctured like a balloon hit with knife.

Nether splashed outward in a wave as Randidly’s tightly compacted image smashed into the core of the Nether Beast. Unfortunately, Randidly felt the core crack but it didn’t completely shatter. And its two fellow Nether Beast’s roared down at Randidly’s back.

Chimeric Avoidance.

Congratulations, your Skill Chimeric Avoidance (L) has grown to Level 201!

Randidly spun away, earning two shallow gashes across his back where the antenna of the attackers scored hits. Scanning quickly, Randidly determined that Zauna had successfully stopped the other two beasts and focused back on his own opponents. The Nether Beast Randidly had struck originally was gathering itself together, but its fellows flipped around and shot after him. Grinning, Randidly spread his arms wide and welcomed them with talon and spear.

Cursed Appetite of a Wraith.

Randidly pulled deeply at the surrounding space. The Nether Beasts stalled for a split second as his image smashed against them, but Randidly missed that opportunity to strike because he paused briefly as well.

Because when he pulled, Randidly’s will caught on the wafting image that Salazar was madly producing as he grew increasingly fervent in his storytelling. And when that image was pulled toward Randidly, it funneled into his body and was transformed into strength. And strength in the body of the Grim Chimera became confidence in violence.

When the two Nether Beasts attacked him, Randidly didn’t dodge. He simply raised his spear and activated Man is Proud, But the Chimera Takes once more. The Skill propelled him forward so he smashed directly into the skull of the left Nether Beast, and this time both the outer bubble and the core was completely destroyed. Wreathed in a nova of Nether guts and gore, Randidly began to laugh.

Congratulations! Your Skill Man is Proud, But the Chimera Takes (L) has grown to Level 173!

While the first Nether Beast continued to try and restore the Nether hemorrhaging from its core, Randidly’s emerald eyes locked onto his last remaining prey in prime condition. “Come on then, don't you dare disappoint me.”