BXBX NOVEL Chapter 242 241: Gate Of Hades
This was my first kill with Breeze Fang, and the curved dagger did its job perfectly.
Shrouded in a silent gale of wind, which split at the tip, I managed to punch the dagger deep into the Fire Salamander\'s side, slipping it under a ribcage and shattering the monsters core.
This Fang of mine seemed to be a useful blades so far, but I\'ll need to test it out again...
Retrieving my Protective Fang, I began to harvest the materials from the monster, getting a venom sac and a giant red chunk of crystal, which was a piece of the Fire Salamanders core.
Storing those away, I watched as Jahi and Leone jumped down to join Anput and I, the two women\'s pouches also filled with various monster materials.
Bones, organs, meat, hides, fangs, claws, and so much more was littered inside our packs, and each one was worth quite a hefty amount a money.
We had traveled to the Lava Lake before continuing past it, bringing us into the slightly harsher, hotter, lethal area called The Gate of Hades.
This led down into the depths of Zhu\'Rong Caverns, and while we wouldn\'t be going down that far, we would be hunting along the outskirts of what was labeled \'Unending Gehenna\'.
Deep inside this Unending Gehenna laid dormant hydras, titanic dragonoid creatures with a dozen or more heads, as well as Cryptaldean, a species of monsters that apparently lived off of raw Fire Mana.
There were dozens upon hundreds of powerful, dangerous monsters waiting for us in those depths, but they would have to wait; we were not only not strong enough for them, but a venture down into Unending Gehenna was a multi day affair, and we didn\'t have time for that.
Not with Nirina, the Marquess\'s Squire so close to coming to pick us up and thrust us into the skirmishes of the Western Border.
With that in mind, Jahi wanted to continue honing our skills, so that when we did eventually step foot onto a warfront, we were prepared to protect ourselves and one another.
So we ventured to the Gate of Hades, where we would face stronger, more dangerous monsters to test our mettle.
This Fire Salamander was just one of many hunted monsters, and we had already set our sights on something else, something larger.
Obsidian Herculean Spartoi.
Like the name suggests, an Obsidian Herculean Spartoi is a towering, thick skeleton made from black bones, which shimmered in the low light of the Gate of Hades.
The skeleton was humanoid in appearance, but they were spikier and far larger then even Jahi, who was well into the seven foot range.
They stood at around twelve feet tall, and each one of them shuffled around with jagged, chipped blades; some swords, some axes, some polearms...
Inside the blackened skeleton was a mass of swirling darkness, creating a humanoid figure inside the exoskeleton.
Currently, a group of three of these Spartoi stood a distance away from us, their horned heads swiveling around as they searched for their own targets.
Exchanging a swift glance with one another we all nodded, Jahi drawing her great sword and leading the charge, Anput and I a few steps behind her while Leone was between and behind us, ready to provide support with her magics.
Hearing us running towards them, the three Spartoi turned and readied their own blades; two axes and a long, curved scimitar.
Stepping towards us, the two axe wielders hefted their heavy black blades above their heads and slammed them down towards the ground, whilst the scimitar wielder flicked its sword towards Jahi\'s throat, the movement minimal but lethal.
Jahi easily blocked the thrust before striking back with a swift riposte, her multi metal sword chipping the Spartoi\'s black ribcage.
Focussing on my own enemy, I summoned a thick ice shield above me, letting the Spartoi slam its axe into the sheet of hardened ice before tilting it, sliding the blade off.
With my left hand I slashed upwards, an arc of ethereal blue ice cutting into the Spartoi\'s chest, a thin sheen of frost growing along the ribs.
The spiked Spartoi slammed its axe down into the shield again, this time cracking off a large chunk of the ice, but I responded by unleashing a flurry of arcs, each one coating the black bones in more and more frost.
Dropping the shield, I slipped under the Spartoi\'s attack and slammed the broad dagger into its ribcage, the heavier blade shattering the accumulated frost and sending splintering cracks along the bones.
Landing another heavy blow on the bone, I snapped it in two, revealing a large swathe of void black mist.
Thrusting the dagger deep into the Spartoi\'s \'flesh\', I twisted the blade and sent a pulse of wind mana into the monsters body, dispersing some of the wispy black smoke.
An eery growl reverberated from where the monsters mouth would be, and the two blood red orbs that took place of its eyes flared, pain and hate filling them equally.
Slicing the dagger down as far as I could, I yanked the blade out and rolled away, just in time to avoid not only its bone crushing embrace as it wrapped its arms close to its chest, but also the solid lance of searing flames that embedded itself into the opening I had created.
Howling in unnerving agony, the Spartoi clawed desperately at its impaled chest, trying to grab the spear, but the fiery lance exploded in a burst of bright, harsh light and singing heat.
The black bones dropped to the ground as the wispy void inside the exoskeleton evaporated, the monster now dead.
Peeking over my shoulder, I saw Leone smirking at me as she readied another lance, the Vampire pivoting as she stepped into her throw, spearing the scimitar wielding Spartoi in the throat.
Jahi growled in annoyance as she glanced back at the Vampire, before she shrugged as she slipped over to Anput, who just finished her own Spartoi off, her metal spear lodged deep into its chest while her sword split the monsters skull.
With each one now dead, we all stared at one another before chuckling, knowing that we had improved compared to before.
Just a year or so ago we barely managed to kill a Fire Salamander, needing the Marquess to bail us out of that fight lest we be terribly injured, and yet now we were hunting them with ease.
Not only that, but the Spartoi that we just killed was leagues above the one that crashed the ball a year or so ago as well, meaning we were much, much stronger then before.
Grabbing what we could, we turned and left the Gate of Hades behind us, traversing the well trodden path that many adventurers used to go deeper or exit the Zhu\'Rong Caverns.
Of course, such a well known path had troubles aplenty, one of which was...
"Hand over your spoils!"
A group of eight bandits jumped out onto the path, their Golden Tags glittering in the lava\'s light as they flourished their worn blades.
Each bandit was draped in black or gray clothes, with just a singular green sash wrapped tightly around their right arm.
Seeing that, we all narrowed our eyes at the bandits, before Jahi sighed as she watched me flash forwards, my Protective and First Fangs in hand.
Appearing before the group, I flicked the lighter First Fang towards a Bullkin\'s throat, impaling it and severing his neck, killing him instantly.
Activating the shield enchantment, I blocked a sword thrust and an arrow, before sending a pulse through the shield to stagger the swordsman.
Dashing to the Elf, I slit his throat before using his body as a shield, three arrows thunking into the mans chest.
Shoving the Elf into the charging Orcs, I glanced at the archer and flicked my First Fang towards the two men, four rapid arcs of wind hurtling into their stomachs and chests, eviscerating them.
With that, half of the bandits were dead, whilst two were trying to charge around me to flank me.
The two orcs ahead of me stomped over the Elf\'s corpse, mangling it in their metal boots, before lifting their large clubs and swinging them down towards my head.
Sadly, the two\'s physical strenght wasn\'t that great, as a shield of thick ice blocked their blows.
Another pulse of mana later, and the Orcs were grunting in pain as they stared down at their twisted and shattered wrists, the flesh swelling instantly.
Spinning, I reversed my grip on the two daggers and started swinging them as fast as I could, whilst retaining my accuracy.
Staring low, I severed their calves, knees, thighs, slit open their stomachs, chopped off their arms, and then stabbed them in their eyes, leaving behind a cluster of body parts and a puddle of blood.
Before I could turn and finish off the Orcs, Jahi stopped me and began to interrogate them, trying to learn what she could from the bandits.
That green cloth on their arms made each of us wary, but for now...
I grinned maniacally as I stared at the carnage around me, reveling in the damage I could deal in just a few seconds.
This was euphoric.