Chapter 44

“Kill Him! Unleash all soul pets!” Yeshua roared with rage when he saw Rao Wu and the beastkin. Heeding Yeshua’s command, the soldiers swiftly summoned several soul monsters onto the wasteland.

Most of the remaining soldiers were Soul Students, who, after releasing the beastkin, had two open slots to summon soul pets. And so, within moments, over eighty soul monsters stood between Rao Wu and Yeshua.

Roughly fifty-something Black-Tooth Jackals led the pack. Right behind them, twenty-something Shriek Fangs, dog-sized feathered beasts that thrived in deserts, followed the charge. These monsters primarily attacked with their powerful long tails, fangs, and piercing shrieks. Finally, thirteen aerial birds and insect soul pets completed the attack.

The beastkin, used to the high numbers, spread out as they charged, which, in turn, forced the monsters to spread out to avoid the beastkin flanking them and going directly for the humans.

“Out of my way!” Oblivious to the overall strategy, Rao Wu roared as he charged through a pack of Black-Tooth Jackals. However, the raging monsters ignored his shout and opened their maws to bite his hands and feet. Eyes narrowed, Rao Wu shouted without slowing his pace, “Lu Lin!”

Whip! Following Rao Wu’s shout, two green snakes slithered out his back and slapped six to seven jackals. Before the jackals could recover, Xian Da popped out of their shadows and sliced as many necks as possible.

Not to be outdone, Rao Wu’s dagger danced left and right, cutting into the soul monsters. Blood blossomed like roses in the evening sun, dyeing the youth’s gray fur a terrible red. Just like that, Rao Wu broke through the first blockade, but he was forced to stop when he ran into several Shriek-Fangs.

The Shriek Fangs ahead of Rao Wu were all bonafide warrior-rank Third Phase monsters, which was just a bit tougher than Rao Wu and his soul pets could currently handle. Rao Wu, barely able to keep up with the monsters’ speed, just about blocked in time as a Shriek Fang attempted to bite his head off.

Bang! “Ugh.” Rao Wu swallowed blood that rose through his throat as the impact sent him flying back.

“Die!” An enraged Xian Da jumped out of the attacker’s shadow, looking to launch the sneak attack, but the Shriek Fang quickly retreated before the Dusklight Wolf’s claws made contact.

Having missed its target, Xian Da suspended in the air for a brief second—a second which the Shriek Fang took advantage of!

“RAAA!” The Shriek Fang opened its mouth and released a terrifying screech. The terrible sound unleashed a sonic wave that slammed Xian Da into the ground and sent the poor Dusklight Wolf sliding across the earth.

Other Shriek Fangs, eager to rip apart the injured Xian Da, took the chance to pounce on him.

“Xian Da!” Rao Wu, who had just recovered from the initial impact, scrambled to reach his partner, but neither he nor Lu Lin could get to the cub in time. Rao Wu, in desperation, opened his mouth. He was about to unleash his trump card when a shout from the side drew his attention.

“Claw of The Mad Dog!”

Rao Wu stared in shock as the giant claw's silhouette appeared and then struck the Shriek Fangs before they could maul Xian Da.

“Get behind me!” Rubik roared as he led the other beastkin to charge into the monsters’ ranks. Intent on keeping up the momentum, the captain swung his sword in a horizontal arc and then shouted, “Mad Dog’s Tail!”

This time, Rao Wu saw the entire process. Following Rubik’s shout, a bright blue light burst from his arm and then into his sword. Afterward, the ‘light’ blasted out of the blade as he swung it, taking the shape of a blueish tail as it slapped the Shriek Fangs even further back.

Rubik could see Rao Wu’s curiosity, but he did not have the patience to answer. “Get the humans! We’ll take care of their soul pets!”

“You can’t—” Rao Wu was about to warn them of the Shriek Fang’s strength, but his eyes popped open when he saw a lycan punch a Shriek Fang’s skull, sending it sliding back a few meters. The Shriek Fang wasn’t particularly injured, but that attack proved the beastkins’ abnormal strength.

Within seconds, the humans’ soul monsters switched tactics, ganging up on the beastkin at a minimum of two-to-one ratio. Some of the stronger beastkin like Rubik even challenged three to four soul monsters on their own.

Rao Wu marveled at the beastkin’s strength that allowed them to match these terrifying monsters with their bare bodies. He dreamed of the day he could confidently punch the strongest soul monster without flinching, but such a day was still very far off.

For now, Rao Wu had one job. The youth’s eyes narrowed as he caught Yeshua’s gaze from across the battlefield. That’s right. While the beastkin attacked the body, Rao Wu would go straight for the head!

“Lu Lin! Clear a path!”

“As you wish, master.” Lu Lin did not complain despite having only two seeds left, even though neither was particularly suitable for this task. Rao Wu gave her a mission, and she intended to carry it out no matter what. With that in mind, the Dryad’s eyes glowed green as she channeled life energy into her vines.

Boosted by the tremendous energy, both vines grew two meters thick as Lu Lin spun in place and then flipped the bulky monstrosities over her shoulder in a shocking display of strength.

Boom!

Rao Wu burst into a harsh as the vines crashed into the ground ahead, forcing the soul monsters to skirt either side or get crushed. As he pushed on, Rao Wu looked over his shoulder and said, “Thanks, Lu Lin! Assist Rubik, but be careful!”

Lu Lin nodded as she retracted the vines and then backed away. “Good Luck!”

“I don’t need luck!” exclaimed Rao Wu, revealing a foxy smirk as he twirled his dagger. He dodged a Black-Tooth Jackal, vaulted over a charging Shriek Fang and then slid under another Shriek Fang’s dive. The youth displayed mind-numbing agility and spatial awareness as he successfully danced his way through the soul monsters’ attacks.

“Hup!” Within mere moments, Rao Wu broke through the soul monsters and then charged at the ‘vulnerable’ humans.

Yeshua’s eyes burned with rage as he glared at the charging youth. However, he kept his calm as he swung his arm forward, “Engage!”

“OOH!” The soldiers drew their swords and then charged at the youth.

Rao Wu, expecting the clash, brandished his dagger and then launched at the closest soldier. However, his hair suddenly stood on end, causing him to come to a sudden halt. His decision proved to be the right one when a fireball exploded where he should have been.

Rao Wu glanced to the side, and his eyes widened when he saw a Soul Student cluck her tongue in exasperation. That’s right! He almost forgot that humans could use soul techniques to augment their battles. What’s more, they weren’t restricted to a single specie’s soul technique like hybrids and beastkin.

The female soldier used a flaming soul technique commonly found among fire-type soul pets, [Fireball].

For the first time, Rao Wu felt true fear as he came to a harsh realization. A quick glance around confirmed his suspicion. Several soldiers had their hands out as they quickly chanted their long-range soul techniques.

It was a trap! The soldiers deliberately lured Rao Wu in with the intent to finish off with close-range bombardment!

Despair consumed the child as death clawed at his neck.

“Rao Wu! Get Down!” Suddenly, light blasted through the darkness, keeping the grim reaper at bay just a little longer.

Rao Wu instinctively crouched, his eyes opened wide as a hail of light arrows zipped past, blasted into the humans, and disrupted their casting. Once the hail passed, a massive scorpion charged into the humans, pushing them aside until it came to a stop in front of Rao Wu.

Rao Wu recognized the unique monster. His eyes lit up as he looked at Denuchi, Ramy, Olek, and the rest of the gang who stood atop the scorpion’s back. “You came!”

Denuchi grinned as he jumped down from the scorpion. “You didn’t think we would let you fight alone, did you?” The wolf-hybrid chuckled and then pointed at the humans, “Go wild, guys! Today, we earn our freedom!”

“Hoo-AH!” Olek and the rest shouted as they summoned their soul pets, jumped down, and then attacked the soldiers.

In the blink of an eye, the soldiers found themselves on the backfoot as Ramy and co pressurized them with unrelenting attacks. The sudden ambush forced the soldiers to recall some of their soul pets to occupy the hybrids’ pets. In turn, this move relieved pressure on the beastkin, who began asserting themselves on the remaining soul monsters.

Amid the chaos, one man, in particular, was furious! Captain Pilate Yeshua clenched his fists as he glared at Denuchi with hatred. “Denuchi!”

Denuchi, in turn, chuckled as he casually drew his sword and walked toward the captain. “What’s the matter, Yeshua? Only one soul pet? Did something happen?”

Yeshua’s eyes nearly exploded as he glared at Rao Wu, who walked next to Denuchi. It was all that youth’s fault! As a Soul Soldier, he should have three soul pets on the field, but he only had one due to Rao Wu and Denuchi.

Whenever a soul monster died, it destroyed a soul realm, limiting the number of monsters its former master could summon. Some items could heal injured soul realms, but they were costly and weren’t affordable for a captain like Yeshua. His only option was to wait out the average six-month period required to heal an injured soul-realm naturally.

In Denuchi’s case, Yeshua could not recall the wolf-hybrid after activating Death-Bound. So, Denuchi occupied the captain’s last soul realm until he died.

Yeshua was pissed! If he had known this would happen, he would have broken Denuchi’s contract instead of using Death-Bound. Unfortunately, time only flowed in one direction. No amount of regret would turn back the clock.

“Whoo~” Surprisingly, Yeshua slowly breathed out and calmed himself. “Fine. If I must do this myself…” The captain drew his sword and then walked toward Denuchi with his Ravager Bear.

Denuchi’s eyes narrowed when he saw Yeshua’s gait. He stretched his hand and said, “Come out, Lock, Stop, and Shock.”

Rao Wu watched as three Boneclaw Hyenas emerged from summoning circles. The dirty creatures’ growled with rage as they glared at Yeshua and the Ravager Bear. Rao Wu didn’t know why, but he sensed danger equal to when he saw the Ravager Bear from these three dingy mutts.

Denuchi, meanwhile, glanced at Rao Wu. “Summon your soul pet, Rao Wu. Have it help my boys hold off that Bear.”

“Wait. Did you say hold off?” Rao Wu did not believe his ears. “You don’t mean kill?”

Denuchi shook his head and revealed a bitter smile. “Do not underestimate Yeshua. There’s a reason he’s the captain of a hybrid squadron. If we’re not careful, we might all die here.”

Rao Wu looked around. The beastkin and hybrids held solid advantages in their respective battles. At most, it would take a while before they emerged victorious. Denuchi’s warning thus meant that Yeshua alone was enough to turn the tide.

Wasn’t that too ridiculous?

As if sensing Rao Wu’s disbelief, Denuchi stated, “Humans are weak. When you compare humans to beastkin, soul monsters, and hybrids, they are undoubtedly the weakest amongst us. Yet. Right now, they stake a claim for the strongest species in the world. If you want to live long enough to figure out why, treat this battle like your life depends on it. Because…”

“Are you done with your pep talk?” Yeshua questioned once the distance closed to a mere ten meters. “If so, I’ll be coming now.” As he spoke, an apocalyptic pressure burst out of him. The earth trembled as a terrible silhouette resembling a crushed skull appeared behind the captain.

Rao Wu’s heart leaped to his throat as he the pressure bore heavy on his shoulders. What was this!? Yeshua wasn’t this strong in the tunnels! Was the captain holding back then?

Unbeknownst to Rao Wu, Yeshua was indeed holding back. The captain couldn’t risk his real strength collapsing the tunnels on him and his men. Only now, on the vast open plains, could he unleash his full potential.

Feeling a sense of dread envelop him, Rao Wu drew his dagger and then said, “Xian Da, support the hyenas. Let the hyenas take the lead. You focus on cheap shots. You can’t take a hit from that monster.”

“Understood,” replied Xian Da as it emerged from Rao Wu’s shadow. The Dusklight Wolf walked up to the Boneclaw Hyenas and readied to attack.

Yeshua looked at Rao Wu and Denuchi’s soul pets with contempt. He ignored the beasts as he muttered, “Clean up that trash.”

“ROAR!” The Ravager Bear growled and then charged at the four soul pets, the earth cracking beneath its’ powerful paws.

Yeshua, meanwhile, pointed his sword at Denuchi. “Here I come, dog.”

Whoosh!

Rao Wu nearly missed the movement as Yeshua zipped across the ten meters in a single burst and then swung down at Denuchi.

Clang! Boom!

Denuchi, fortunately, blocked the strike in time, but the impact pushed him to his knee as he buckled under the tremendous pressure. Despite holding his sword with two hands, Yeshua easily overpowered him with a single arm.

Yeshua glared at Denuchi through his helmet as he spat, “You should learn your place, mutt. A master doesn’t need a dog that bites his hand.”

“Shut up! Don’t talk about Denuchi that way!” Rao Wu shouted as he jumped and drove his dagger at Yeshua’s throat.

“Unruly mutts attract their kind.” Yeshua briefly glanced at Rao Wu. Without warning, he raised his left hand and slapped Rao Wu’s arm. The impact caused Rao Wu to spin in place, and Yeshua promptly dealt a punishing blow to the youth’s exposed stomach.

“Puah—” Rao Wu coughed up blood as the punch sent him flying several meters back.

Denuchi took advantage of Yeshua’s distraction to push to his feet, sending the captain’s blade skyward. He then swung down, hoping to catch the captain off-guard.

“Is that the best you can do?” Yeshua, however, raised his left hand and pointed it at Denuchi’s chest. “Pulse.”

Boom!

A small forcefield blasted out of Yeshua’s palm and crashed into Denuchi, sending him sliding back across the ground.

Yeshua calmly gazed at Denuchi and Rao Wu. “Do not mistake me for those medal-seeking, glory-hunting, coliseum competitors.” As he returned the sword to his side, Yeshua said, “I’ve fought on the frontlines against beastkin and soul monsters all my life. If you think I’m an easy target because I don’t have soul pets—"

Boom!

The cracked skull reappeared behind Yeshua, only this time, it lay in the palm of a bony death god wielding a giant scythe.

Cold rage burned in Yeshua’s eyes as he finished, “—I am afraid you are sorely mistaken.”