The outskirts were in chaos with attacks and spells flying all around.
"Shit!"
Alator cursed as he was sent flying from the impact of the attack. Even though the formation was able to stop the breath attack from the beast, the impact that reverberated inside the formation alone was capable of killing a Dormant like him. Alator crashed on the ground with blood spilling out of his mouth.
The close-combat Mages were already overwhelmed by the beasts as they slashed their swords, slaughtering the low-level vicious beasts mercilessly while being pushed into a corner.
One hacked his sword down on an Iron Horn Rhino, but the beast ducked to the side and rammed its horn into him, sending him flying with a deep hole in his stomach. This Iron Horn Rhino was a One-Star Savage Beast after all, hence needing more than one Advanced Tier Mage to subdue it.
Despite its poor eyesight, this beast has excellent hearing, a keen sense of smell, and tough skin, making it more dangerous and defensive on the battlefield.
A Redshadow Fox jumped out of the horde and opened its mouth; Mana churned around its jaw.
"Whoosh!"
It shot out a breath attack towards the bulky man dashing forward without a weapon. Immediately, he saw the breath attack approaching with terrifying speed; he pulled his brakes and quickly formed a Mana Barrier around himself.
"Shatter!"
The breath attack struck and shattered his Mana Barrier, and he was sent flying from the impact. However, before crashing on the ground, he suddenly flipped his body in mid-air and landed on his feet. Then, he slowly raised his head and smirked at the beast.
A Two-Star Vicious Iron Mantis suddenly attacked from behind, slashing its raptorial limb towards his legs. But the bulky man was quick to react. He jumped high in the air, avoiding the razor-sharp limbs of the Mantis. Then he raised his right leg. Using the momentum of his landing, the bulky man slammed his foot right on the head of the Iron Mantis below him, smashing its head into pieces.
Without wasting time, he dashed towards the Redshadow Fox. The fox glowered at the annoying human who was looking down on him. Then, it opened its mouth and shot out another devastating breath attack towards the man.
"Not this time!"
The bulky man muttered and slammed his two hands on the ground.
"Bang!"
An earth wall suddenly rose from the ground and stood in front of him, acting as a shield. The breath attack struck the earth wall and it shook violently. Cracks spread across its surface, and not long, it began to collapse. The bulky man suddenly shot out of the collapsing earth wall, with Mana exploding from his body, taking the beast unaware.
He balled his hand into a fist in mid-air, and it suddenly hardened like a rock. Before the Redshadow Fox could react, the guy slammed his rock-hard fist on its forehead, splitting it apart. Blood splashed out like a river, forming a small pond on the ground. The beast lost consciousness and slumped to the ground without even making a sound.
This bulky man was just a few steps from reaching the late stage of the Advanced tier. Even though he was an Earth Mage who can manipulate the ground and soil, despite his size, he still had incredible agility, just like a Wind Mage.
Meanwhile, Alator was totally lost in the chaos. This wasn't the kind of thug and bandit fight he was used to. This had gone far beyond his imagination. Now that the formation was finally taken down, Alator was looking for an escape route. He knew he couldn't possibly stay here, or else he would surely become a dead person.
Alator never knew that such beasts actually existed in this world. In fact, there are a lot of things Alator knew nothing about. But the appearance of the demonic beast had given him the shock of his life, and it wasn't entirely his fault; he was just like every other commoner who knows nothing about this incoming threat. The authorities had kept the matter secret from the people to avoid panic in the Wastelands.
Hence, no one knew about it. For years now, the Noble Houses had been resisting the beasts at the borders. If the people knew that demonic beasts have the ability to wield Mana like Mages as well, panic would have surely erupted in the domains. The Noble Houses call them demonic beasts due to their evil and violent nature, and their only aim is to destroy and dominate.
Right now, Alator was no longer interested in the money or reward he might get after this; he only wanted to escape with his life.
"Fall back! Long Rangers, prepare to strike!" Noticing he was beginning to have a lot of casualties, the Regent finally initiated the second plan.
The close-combat Mages began to retreat at full speed. Meanwhile, the formation was already down, and the Long Rangers were finally done casting their spells. As they stepped forward, one waved his hand and several balls of flame shot out, heading straight toward the beasts.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The balls of flame exploded in the midst of the beasts, setting the whole place ablaze, including the beasts.
"Awoooo!"
The beasts let out a miserable cry from the burning sensation of the flames. Another man stepped forward and spread his arms sideways. Suddenly, dozens of ice spikes appeared behind him.
He waved his hand forward; the ice spikes reacted to his command and shot forward.
"Shank!"
The ice spikes pierced several beasts, freezing them to death. Several more attacks were launched, pushing the beasts back. The weight on their shoulders finally reduced a bit as the beasts became a bit docile. And now, the Scripers were gaining the upper hand in the battle.
"ROAR!!!!!"
Another terrifying roar rang out in the distance. This time, the beasts which seemed exhausted and weak suddenly charged forward. Their eyes turned red as they entered into a berserk state.
This is one of the unique traits of the demonic beast. It's a state in which the beast loses its sanity and becomes extremely violent and dangerous. This anomaly can only occur when a beast finds itself in serious danger or if it comes as a command from the horde commander, which is the strongest beast among them. And that is what actually happened a moment ago.
Currently, Alator was trembling while holding a sword with his two hands. He was sweating profusely, and his eyes darted all around, looking for an escape route. Finally, Alator braced himself, took a deep breath, and suddenly dashed toward the east with all his might. He didn't even know where he was running to, and honestly, he didn't care. The only thing in his mind right now was just to survive.
"Whoosh!"
Alator suddenly felt a sense of danger and snapped his head toward his right. He saw a breath attack rushing toward him at full speed from a Bloodscale Serpent, a Three-Star Vicious Beast.
Alator abruptly stopped in his tracks and threw himself to the side, barely avoiding the attack by a hair's breadth. Still, the scorching energy that accompanied the attack blasted past his chest, disintegrating half of his clothes.
"Shit!"
Alator cursed at the burning sensation searing across his chest.
It was a Bloodscale Serpent after all, so it wasn't a surprise that the attack contained poison as well.
Alator was lucky enough to have avoided that attack, or else he would have been vaporized entirely. It was true that Alator was good at martial arts. But in front of a Mage or a demonic beast, his skills were practically useless.
Alator turned his head to the left and saw a Steel-Tusk Boar walking toward him with cautious steps. Alator quickly rolled up from the ground, picking up his sword and going into an awkward battle stance as his eyes darted left and right. He was feeling overwhelmed by the two beasts approaching on either side. He knew he couldn't even handle one, and now there were two.
"Damnit!... Am I really going to die here?"
"Flare!"
Flame suddenly rushed out of nowhere and circled around Alator, making the beasts back away from the scorching heat.
"Whoosh!"
A man shot down from the sky and landed right beside Alator with a broadsword hanging on his back. He just smiled at Alator and shook his head. Alator stared at the man with his brows knitting together. His eyes suddenly went wide; he was surprised when he recognized the person.