Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix-Chapter 1137: Delay

All of a sudden, the monster jumped from the sand, ignoring everyone else, and then charged toward Liss. Everyone else jumped to the sides to make good use of that chance, but Liss used Impulse backward and soon turned her body. Before long, Liss began to emit a blast of wind through the back of her suit and then began to fly away.

"... She wants to buy us some time," Rain thought.

It didn't take long for the monster to disappear in the distance, so everyone was left speechless, mainly by the lack of reaction from the leader of the group. Fortunately, Liss knew which direction the other groups were, so she could avoid causing them trouble.

"What is the plan?" Terra asked. "Liss is probably the best wind mage that we have, but she doesn't have infinite mana."

"We will prepare an ambush to that beast to cause as much damage as possible," Roan declared. "She should know that we will need some time to prepare for this, and she knows the limits of her mana, so we should have ten minutes."

The team took a collective breath as they absorbed the gravity of the situation. The monstrous centipede's physical prowess was beyond anything they had encountered before. Its adaptability, regenerative capabilities, and the corrosive nature of its attacks meant that a hastily devised plan would be ineffective. The need for a meticulous strategy became evident.

A sense of urgency was in the air in the initial moments of silence. The team members exchanged glances, each understanding the weight of the task at hand. Soon, however, the silence was broken as the members, driven by the adrenaline of the battle and the necessity for swift action, began to speak up.

The planning session unfolded rapidly, thanks to the shared determination to overcome the monstrous adversary. Each team member brought their unique skills and expertise to the table, forging a plan that aimed not only to damage the creature but to exploit its vulnerabilities and limit its ability to regenerate.

Before long, Rain could sense the giant centipede returning to their location, and then everyone assumed their fighting stances and positions as well. Liss was surprised to see that upon her return, everyone had disappeared. Still, then, all of a sudden, a javelin fell from the sky and pierced the body of the monster.

The monster groaned in agony and slowed down. Soon, the beast began to tremble even more as thorns of ice spread around and pierced its body in dozens of spots. The ice moved from one side to the other like lightning violently. That was because Sakaki was using his own power to control the mana like lightning. Thanks to it, the monster was pierced and immobilized in several spots.

Still, before long, the javelin returned to Rain's hands, but the ice remained there. It just stopped growing… until the others stepped in and then used their frost gloves and fired blasts of cold wind toward them.

The monster tried to move again to sink into the sand and get rid of the ice, but the thorns of ice began to get thicker and completely freeze the parts that pierced it. The monster soon lost control over twenty percent of its body… Still, the beast was, if anything, stubborn and soon began to sink on the sand instead.

"Give me a break," Rain thought as he was falling from the sky. He landed at the top of the head of the monster and then pierced it with the javelin.

In the next moment, Sakaki used Rain's mana and electrified the whole body of the beast. The colossal centipede shook in agony, its massive form contorting as pain coursed through its body. Smoke emerged from the creature, a visible manifestation of the torment it endured from the coordinated assault.

Rain, at the top of the monster's head with the javelin embedded in its skull, observed the creature's reaction closely. The team, though having dealt significant damage, refrained from delivering a fatal blow just yet. freewebnoveℓ.com

Recognizing the need for caution, Rain decisively cut off the mana supply to the javelin. The electrification ceased, and the monster, now partially immobilized by the ice, continued to writhe and struggle.

The team's decision to withhold the final blow was strategic; they aimed to conduct experiments and gather crucial information about the creature's resilience, vulnerabilities, and responses to different forms of attacks.

"Cover its entire body in ice, but keep an eye on the mana levels of the creature," Roan said. "Is this truly enough?"

"Cold temperatures can significantly impact the metabolism of living beings, and this effect is particularly pronounced in extreme cold conditions. Metabolism refers to the complex set of chemical processes that occur within an organism to maintain life.

These processes include the conversion of food into energy, the synthesis of molecules, and the regulation of various physiological functions," Sakaki explained. "With our trap, this thing here that probably never met cold in its entire existence will be unable to respond for a while."

"I see… I will report our success to headquarters," Roan said.

"Well, this was a bit boringly unexpected," Terra said. "What now?"

"We have to wait for headquarters decision," Rain said. "Transporting this thing back to the headquarters will be hard and too dangerous, though. "We might have to kill it here and take some parts of it. The relics have experience dissecting those creatures, so it is fine."

Everyone looked at each other in discomfort for a while. They didn't mind killing a monster that almost ate them, but treating them like that wasn't something that they were used to… at the same time, they didn't feel any sympathy for it either.

Regardless, everyone kept working on enveloping the monster in a thick layer of ice that eventually covered the whole body of the creature. Still, even despite all that time, it didn't look like the headquarters had reached their decision… the wonders of democracy.