Chapter 1073 (1/2)

As the leader of the expedition, Vualla handled the lion’s share of the fighting against the enemies directly in front of them. And oftentimes she spread that to enemies that were visible to her as they rushed forward. Although her squad gallantly handled the task of keeping the foes pestering them from the sides off of her back, it only took an additional five minute of fighting before Vualla was starting to feel gassed.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one who was nearing her limit.

She glanced behind and looked at her squad. Of the people behind her, it was clear that three of them were beginning to accumulate too much Nether damage to continue to fight. They needed time to recover. Considering the fact that they probably had two more minutes of activity before they reached the destination indicated by Randidly…

And if he is mistaken… A thin voice whispered. But Vualla shook her head and banished that thought. If she let doubts creep into her head now, all of the work that they had done would be wasted-

A sudden appearance of almost thirty Nether Beasts dragged Vualla’s attention forward. Her eyes quickly scanned the group; what she saw made her face twist into a scowl. It seemed like whoever was in charge was finally getting serious about eliminating the Aether dagger that was cutting into this base’s heart.

Likely due to the grand array on the frontlines that created defensive stars in their chest, most people on the front had taken to grading the high-Level Nether Beasts based on the number of stars you would need to possess in order to resist the ambient Nether energy that each beast released.

Of the thirty Nether Beasts that appeared, Vualla could sense that twenty were four-star Nether Beasts. Even worse, their leader possessed the caustic strength of a five star Nether Beast. It opened its mouth to roar and scent a shockwave that made the surrounding area quake. As someone who possessed three stars currently, Vualla couldn’t rely solely on the physical to rival even the weakest Nether Beast of this group.

But Vualla had something much more deadly than her physical body. She had the blade she had so carefully polished her whole life with the stated purpose of destroying everything in her path.

She had grown up in a military household, so even before the System had earned Vualla’s ire, she had been preparing herself for a life dedicated to killing. She had carefully visualized the most complete destruction she could imagine and learned to unleash it to annihilate both Nether and Aether alike.

Young Vualla still hadn’t been satisfied with her small capability; even as her peers were left in the dust she continued to push herself to create a more comprehensive and piercing image. Annihilation became the god to which she prayed. And her own exercise of power was her sincerest form of worship.

As she raised her gauntleted fist, Vualla said a silent prayer to that familiar god. But as she did so, she felt the surrounding air reverberate with the strength of it. Those pure moments of connection to her life’s work were the only thing in this vast darkness that could give her confidence that she would survive. Because here, as it was with all places, destruction demanded its steep price and accepted no deferment.

Well, confidence now comes from my power and also…

But Vualla didn’t let her finish that thought. Not now, not with enemies ripping toward her with their claws spread wide to butcher and gut her allies. To be vulnerable now, even only to herself, would have been a mistake. Instead, she simply threw a punch that held every ounce of her baleful will to end this farcical world.

In response, the world rocked backward a half step as she unleashed her unfiltered power. The Nether Beasts attacking them from the front were gone. Still, they weren’t out of the woods yet. Vualla’s felt a bone-deep weariness settle across her shoulders. She only had a few more punches fo that caliber left in her.

Perhaps even more dangerous, more and more Nether Beasts were appearing from the sides and launching sudden attacks on their group. Mostly these were two-star Nether Beasts, but numbers were beginning to wear on an already depleted squad. The steady accumulation of injuries was catching up with them.

Vualla did her best not to think about the fact they were supposed to cause a distraction after this.

Plus, with three individuals nearing the end of their strength…

Although she hated herself for it, Vualla turned around and glanced at Randidly Ghosthound again. It was clear from his face that this speed was already too much for his image body to handle. To ask him also fight was a bit…

Randidly looked up sharply as if he sensed her gaze. Which, Vualla realized, he probably did. Somehow Randidly Ghosthound was able to detect the presence of the Nether Beasts even in the Great Rift. Some part of that piercing green gaze could see in a way that Vualla didn’t truly understand. He was an enigma. Every fact that she learned about him just made her more confused about what he was truly capable of.

Which was probably why her life had felt so… different since she had encountered him. Like he was the push that took her off the rehearsed script of her life and into something completely fresh and new.

His smile was wan as she continued to consider him. “You want me to help out against the Nether Beasts, right?”

“If you can do so without dying yourself,” Vualla said frankly. “Your ability to sense the surrounding area is useful enough that losing you now would be a waste, considering that there is more we need to accomplish here.”

“If he isn’t just making it up,” Kel’ev muttered. But Vualla ignored him. Randidly Ghosthound might be a lot of things, but a liar was not one of them.

It also wasn’t irrelevant that Randidly Ghosthound was also not a snitch.