Chapter 85: Hunting The Advanced Rank-1s
After using his innate talent, Frans’ face visibly paled as he gasped for breath. However, this didn't hinder his next actions. Alongside Hugo and Paula, he called his spirit pet to his side and retreated from the battlefield, following the final stage of their plan.
Ain, who had dispatched several Intermediate and Beginner Rank-1 Thornwood Treants, finally arrived next to the injured Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treant and ruthlessly slashed it.
Boom! Crack!
This Thornwood Treant followed the fate of the previous one and shattered into pieces. Ain didn't linger to admire his handiwork or target another Thornwood Treant. Instead, he immediately stepped against the falling tree trunk and bolted toward his teammates. To his right, a few glowing Thornwood Treants were preparing to unleash Thorn Barrage.
As previously stated, Ain had identified three Advanced Rank-1s in his plan, isolating them as his battleground. However, this didn't mean there weren't any more Thornwood Treants outside this section.
They remained mainly in the middle of the planned-out region to avoid triggering more than three Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants. But now, Ain had approached the one on the right to deliver the finishing blow. Simultaneously, he triggered the Advanced Rank-1 and a few weaker ones to its right, outside his planned region.
At this moment, Premonition was sending constant warnings about incoming danger. Ain wasted no time and sprinted at his maximum speed, attempting to leave the range of the Thornwood Treants.
"Ain, run!" Hugo glanced back and shouted when he saw the Thornwood Treants with glowing branches.
Ain didn’t spare any time to check behind him and kept running. The familiar sound, like a sandstorm, once again tore through the air behind him as his shadow elongated from the dense green lights.
"I should be out of range for the others. Only the Advanced Rank-1 is left!" Calculating the distance accurately, Ain pointed over his left shoulder with his right clawed hand and mobilized his spirit energy.
Under his teammates' gazes, just as the Thorn Barrage was about to engulf Ain, a Shield suddenly manifested behind him. Using this small opportunity, Ain left the attack's range as faint cracks began to cover the Shield.
When the three seconds finally elapsed, the attacks immediately ceased, returning silence to the battlefield.
Ain's Shield wasn’t destroyed and had barely survived the onslaught, riddled with holes. This was a reasonable outcome since only the Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treant's attack struck the Shield. Ain's spells were stronger than those of ordinary Intermediate Rank-1 Spirit Tamers, as Frans had noted during their previous battle.
Although Ain realized he was safe, he only halted his sprint upon arriving near his teammates, whose expressions relaxed upon seeing him safe and sound. They didn't speak at first, allowing everyone to catch their breath. Ain undid the possession state as Nox appeared beside him, still full of vigor.
Soon, the group recovered and turned back to look at the aftermath of their battle.
"That was so exciting! We killed two Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants!" Hugo was the first to speak, expressing his joy at the success of their plan.
"Yes, everything worked out as planned," Frans agreed with a smile, his pale face having recovered a little.
"Are we going to continue?" Paula asked.
Ain pondered for a second as he observed his teammates. "Let's take a break. We've already cleared out a path. We can take it slow from here."
Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement.
Ain's plan wasn't to hunt ten Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants at once. In this attack, his motive was to clear a region for them to safely continue attacking the Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants one at a time. Originally, if they attacked an Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treant, there would be two more on its left and right to consider. But after eliminating two of them right beside each other, a region was cleared for them to mount an attack on the adjacent Advanced Rank-1s without a threat from other Advanced Rank-1s.
Of course, there were still many Intermediate and Beginner Rank-1 Thornwood Treants remaining in that area, but they could be easily dealt with. Hex: Cursed Lullaby was more effective on them, resulting in a longer period of control compared to the Advanced Rank-1s, who were only affected for a few seconds.
Ace took to the skies once more as the group rested and prepared for their next battle.
"Ain, you've become stronger since out battle," Frans commented as he recalled Ain's attacks.
Paula nodded in agreement as she said, "I thought your spear attack was ferocious, but those claws are even stronger."
Hearing the compliments, Ain smiled slightly and replied, "I learned Invigoration recently, which increased my attack power a little."
"Is Invigoration that powerful? Should I learn it?" Hugo asked suspiciously. Frans and Paula laughed as Ain added, "The new meditation technique helped too."
"Ah, that makes sense," Hugo said, finding this reason to be more believable.
Just like that, they continued chatting for a few minutes while consuming medicinal pills. They had exhausted their spirit energy to varying extents, and Spirit Recovery Pills were an essential item in such cases.
Although dangerous, no one was injured during the last battle, allowing them to continue after this short break.
"Should we clear out the weaker Thornwood Treants in this region first?" Paula asked, staring at the remaining Thornwood Treants beside the two dead Advanced Rank-1s.
"Right, that'll make it easier to attack the adjacent sides," Hugo added.
Ain thought about it and shook his head. "Let's focus on the Advanced Rank-1 on the right first. Once we have a large clearing without any Advanced Rank-1s nearby, we can hunt the remaining ones."
Naturally, it was better to have more loot, but their hunting mission only required them to hunt ten Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants. Their purpose in hunting the weaker ones was to harvest the spirit plants nearby for their gathering missions.
In fact, with no Advanced Rank-1s nearby, it was possible to use Hex: Cursed Lullaby and harvest the spirit plants stealthily, although it would take more time. Ain preferred to just kill the weaker ones, since it only required one attack from him. Moreover, the extra Thornwood Hearts could still be sold.
With their background, Frans and Paula were only here to gain experience. With Ain's recent income, he didn't care much for the loot either, but Hugo's situation was different. The income from this trip was his lifeline as a spirit tamer.
Hence, Ain decided to hunt the weaker Thornwood Treants all at once later and harvest their Thornwood Hearts, along with the surrounding spirit plants. It could count as extra combat training.
Seeing no objections, Ain signaled the others to continue.
The following battles were much simpler than the first. With Hex: Cursed Lullaby, Nox targeted two Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants. Without having to worry about a third one on the left, the group easily blocked the storm of Thorn Barrages, which were much weaker than before, and continued bombarding the Advanced Rank-1 closest to them.
Then, Ain took the opportunity to close in and deliver the finishing blow. Since the Thornwood Treants next to it were asleep, and the ones out of Hex: Cursed Lullaby's range had just used Thorn Barrage, his attack and retreat were unimpeded.
During this time, Frans and the others took the opportunity to attack a few weaker Thornwood Treants nearby, making the clean-up later much easier.
By the time the Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treant on the side woke up, the group had already retreated out of its range.
"Haha, it's so easy," Hugo laughed happily after retreating.
"Now, it's just rinse and repeat," Paula added as she glanced at the large batch of Thornwood Treants extending beyond her vision.
Ain and Frans nodded as the group rested briefly.
Just like that, this cycle continued until the group killed a total of twelve Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treants. Although their goal was only ten, they had to clear an extra one on each side to allow them to safely harvest the Thornwood Hearts and spirit plants while hunting the remaining weaker Thornwood Treants.
With their initial task completed, the group returned to where they had battled the first Advanced Rank-1 Thornwood Treant.
"The real fun should begin now," Frans smiled, anticipating the upcoming fight.
A smile adorned Ain's face as well as he said, "Next, just be careful and target the ones affected by Hex: Cursed Lullaby. If you grasp your positions well, you won't be targeted by any Thornwood Treants that aren't asleep."
Paula and Hugo listened attentively and nodded. To the two of them, the next part wasn't as breezy as it was to Ain and Frans.
In the cleared region, only Intermediate and Beginner Rank-1 Thornwood Treants remained. Although they had hunted a few in the previous battles, a vast majority of them still remained, numbering over two hundred.
For Ain and Frans, attacking controlled targets indiscriminately, like hitting wooden dummies, held a unique kind of thrill, igniting their passion for battle. This was especially true for Ain, who experienced ripping the Thornwood Treants apart in close combat. There was blood-boiling intent and a sense of exhilaration hidden within.
"Ready?" Ain asked.
The rest glanced at their spirit pets, then at each other, and nodded.
"Okay, let's begin." Nox understood Ain's words and immediately used Possession. Its innocent mind was also filled with anticipation of the upcoming carnage.
In his possession state, Ain was stronger than an Advanced Rank-1 Spirit Beast. Although his physique received the greatest boost, his spells and Nox's skills were also augmented.
As the rest remained where they were, Ain broke away from the group and dashed toward the sea of Thornwood Treants.
Ptm· Nov 25, 2023
