bookbashuk Page 184
Page 184
"careful!"
Just as Yuuki Asuna was about to launch an attack, the flames on the fanatic's body suddenly expanded, as if possessing a self-awareness, and lunged at her. Although Yuuki Asuna's mental strength was not high enough to see the opponent's true appearance, she heard Iwanaga Kotoko's reminder and immediately stopped the preparatory movement of her sword technique, quickly retreating.
"Click..."
Under the scorching heat of the flames, the hard marble tiles first cracked, and then began to melt like soil.
While Asuna Yuuki, Megumi Kato, and Kotoko Iwanaga were leading the other players in battle, the situation on the other side of the hall was even more dire.
"boom!!!"
Asagiri dodged a punch from a fanatic, and the next second, as flames on the fanatic's arm tore towards him, he used Castling to exchange positions with Shura on the other side.
[Your Persona, Shura, has been destroyed. The trait "Rebirth of the End" has been activated, increasing fire resistance.]
As the human Shura was destroyed, the morning mist that had moved to the other side had already condensed a frost spear. As she threw it with her right hand, the black gun-shaped summoner in her left hand was already pressed against her temple.
"Persona, Human Asura!"
The fanatic conjured a shield of flames in front of him, blocking the frost spear of the morning mist, but his body was still pushed back several meters by the force of the impact.
He slowly raised his face, which was almost entirely devoid of skin, with flames burning on its surface. He looked at Asagiri and the human demon standing there, and without saying a word, launched another attack.
In less than a minute, including the last time, the Human Asura has been destroyed three times. And when it was destroyed last time, its Holy Resistance did not increase. This is because the Human Asura's resistance has grown to the point that it is completely immune to the Holy attribute damage of fire.
After several rounds of fighting, the fanatics began to feel restless and uneasy.
He originally thought that he could easily kill the "Blackwatch Commander" in front of him, or at the very least, have the upper hand, but the reality was different from what he thought.
Possessing the skill "castling the king", and with reflexes, explosive power, and speed far exceeding those of ordinary people, Asagiri's mobility is so high that even the flames manipulated by the fanatics cannot keep up. Even if an opening is finally found, Asagiri will instantly switch positions with Shura and take advantage of the gap when the fanatics concentrate their fire power on the attack to launch an attack.
and……
The fanatic wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the black humanoid creature being controlled by the other party seemed to be growing.
At first, his flames could melt the humanoid creature, but just now, it took all his strength to break through it.
"What, are you wavering?"
Seeing that the fanatics had stopped attacking and instead become more cautious, Asagiri chuckled.
"Is this all the faith you have in your so-called deity?"
"You guy..."
As a fanatical believer, he naturally could not accept such an insult from Asagiri. The fanatical believer, who had sensed that something was wrong, lost his mind. His body was engulfed in flames, and he raised his hands, condensing a huge fireball, and said in a twisted and insane tone.
"Die, you heretic, die..."
However, to the fanatics' surprise, the human Asura directly crashed through the fireball this time. Although his black body melted rapidly due to the high temperature, it created a passage.
Only when the pain shot through his chest did he belatedly look down at himself.
An arm pierced through his chest, and his beating heart was gripped tightly by that hand.
The fanatic raised his head, the flames in the patterns on his face dimming considerably. Looking blankly at the emotionless black eyes beneath the dark gray mask, he said in a daze.
"How can it be……"
"Didn't I say that?"
Asagiri crushed the other's heart with a single squeeze, and watched as the fanatic's body slowly fell to the ground, she said softly.
"You are weak."
40
Chapter 40: The Weaknesses of the Believer.
The fanatic on the other side of the hall paled when he saw his companion killed. In that instant of his loss of composure, a pair of dark purple eyes stared directly at his fiery eye sockets, launching an attack on his mental defenses.
"The Cursed Gaze".
The other two players, who possessed mental attack skills, joined Kotoko Iwanaga in targeting the "fireball" they saw and launching mental attacks.
"Mental shock!"
"Illusion!"
Although the mental attacks of those two players were basic skills and wouldn't have a great effect, the fact that Asagiri killed the fanatic affected the enemy's mental stability, and that Iwanaga Kotoko had already broken through the opponent's psychological defenses meant that the mental attacks of these two players could still be effective in striking a fallen dog.
In that instant, the fanatic felt as if a string that had been taut in his head had snapped completely.
"Ouch!!! It hurts so much...it hurts so much!!!"
The cultist's fiery cloak suddenly began to tremble. Then, the flames forming the cloak and the flames on his body suddenly began to penetrate his body through his eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and other parts. In this truly excruciating pain, the cultist let out a scream so terrible that it was inhuman.
However, this process did not last long before he collapsed to his knees. The flames on his body and in his blood vessels dissipated, leaving behind only a gruesome corpse with its mouth wide open and its eye sockets empty.
"Knew it……"
Kotoko Iwanaga glanced at the corpse on the ground, then gave Asuna Yuuki a look. Asuna understood immediately and stepped forward, swiftly slashing several times with her sword, cutting the fanatic's body into pieces. Only after confirming that the person was completely dead did Kotoko Iwanaga speak softly.
“They are not using their own power. Under normal circumstances, they can barely control it, but once their mind is impacted, they will be devoured by the flames.”
After saying this, Kotoko Iwanaga glanced at Asagiri, who was still standing dozens of meters away and had not walked towards them. A hint of worry appeared in her eyes. However, when she looked at Mr. Ichikawa, she smiled with perfect acting skills.
"Mr. Ichikawa, could you please take the rest of the players upstairs and inform the guy in the white suit what happened here?"
"Oh...oh, okay!"
After Mr. Ichikawa led the surviving players away from the first floor, Kotoko Iwanaga, Asuna Yuuki, and Megumi Kato all rushed to Asagiri's side and anxiously asked her questions.
"Are you ok?"
"not good."
Asagiri, who had been standing, sat down on the ground and removed his dark gray mask. Blood was seeping from his nose and eye sockets, and his eyes were bloodshot, clearly indicating that his mental and physical strength were nearing their limit.
Even so, Asagiri's tone was still smiling, and she even seemed to want more.
"That guy may not be the brightest, but I must say, he's actually quite strong. He gave me a bit of pleasure; he's kind of interesting."
"You really are incorrigible..."
Hearing that Asagiri was still pretending, Asuna Yuuki smiled helplessly, then asked softly.
How are you feeling right now? Are you still able to move around?
"It's a bit of a stretch."
Asagiri wiped the blood from her eyes with her sleeve before replying in a calm tone.
"In just a few minutes, the Human Asura was destroyed four times in a row. This is my limit. If the Persona is destroyed again, I may die from severe exhaustion of mental and physical strength."
After saying this, before the three women in front of her could express their concern, Asagiri added.
"But because the fire resistance has been increased four times, it won't be as dangerous if we encounter those believers again."
Kotoko Iwanaga frowned slightly upon hearing this, as if deep in thought.
"But you need to recover your physical and mental strength first, right? You'll need at least a few hours of rest, or..."
At this point, Kotoko Iwanaga paused, and Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato both looked puzzled, but Asagiri already understood what Kotoko Iwanaga meant.
"Kill those cannon fodder players to replenish my stamina, and then use the Ring of Conversion to replenish my mental energy... Hmm, that's one way."
Asagiri's "Cursed Rope Dart" not only destroys spirits, but also has the special effect of replenishing the enemy's spirit or stamina after dealing damage, depending on the enemy's type.
If the enemies are the ghostly or eerie types found in the Giant Mountain Mental Hospital, then it replenishes mental energy. If the enemies are biological types, such as players, then it replenishes physical energy. With the "Ring of Conversion," Asagiri can convert and replenish either type of energy on its own.
Upon hearing Kotoko Iwanaga and Asagiri's ideas, Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato exchanged a glance, their expressions somewhat complicated, but they didn't say anything more.
Judging from the battle just now, the players who played the role of "cannon fodder" were indeed of little help. Those enemies who called themselves "believers" were simply not something ordinary players could handle. Even if they had equipment and defense that could withstand the flames, if their mental strength was not up to par, they could only see the illusion of "fireballs" and could not see the enemy's movements clearly at all.
If Asagiri hadn't killed one "believer" at the beginning and then quickly killed another "believer" afterward, causing the last enemy's mind to waver and allowing Kotoko Iwanaga to successfully interfere with his mind, the outcome would have been uncertain.
If the morning mist hasn't fully cleared by the time the enemy arrives again...
All players in this instance will die.
Just then, Asagiri spoke.
"From a practical standpoint, this plan is not problematic, but from the perspective of the system's usual practices, it is very strange. After all, the system knows that I possess the Ring of Conversion and the Cursed Rope Dart, and it must also realize that I can replenish my physical and mental strength by killing other players. But there are still more than 30 hours left before the dungeon ends, which exceeds the 24-hour time limit."
Upon hearing this, Kato Megumi's eyes flickered, and she seemed to be deep in thought.
"The time limit has expired... which means that, just like before, we cannot bring the phone back to the real world to transfer the player's registration rights. We can only draw lots within the instance. If killing other players to replenish the Leader's status is the only solution... then it will lead to a significant decrease in the number of players. If the system is capable of avoiding this situation, it will definitely take some countermeasures."
Just as Kato Megumi finished speaking, Asagiri's phone suddenly beeped. After opening his phone, he found a new special notification popping up in the eye icon app.
[Because you killed two "believers" in the first "battle", you will receive an additional level bonus and a dungeon-limited one-time item: Recovery Potion.]
[Recovery Potion: A single-use item for this instance only. Consuming it will greatly accelerate the recovery of stamina and mental energy.]
[Note: This item can only be used outside of combat. Using any ability will interrupt its effect.]
Seeing the notification message popped up by the eye icon app, and the "Recovery Agent" that appeared in their inventory, Asagiri and the others next to her, Yuuki Asuna, did not feel any joy or relief.
A reagent to restore physical and mental strength?
Given the system's usual practices, how could it possibly provide players, even high-level players like Asagiri, with such overpowered items on short notice?
This only further illustrates the seriousness of the situation, indicating that the upcoming test has become so difficult that the system determined that if Asagiri were not allowed to recover her physical and mental strength, all players in this instance would die. That's why this special convenience was provided.
……
Ten minutes later, the man in the white suit and the woman in the fox demon mask arrived on the first floor, while their two teammates stayed upstairs to continue guarding the fire escape on the 24th floor.
Are those so-called 'believers' really that terrifying?
Upon hearing the question from the man in the white suit, who had already used the recovery potion and whose mental and physical strength had recovered considerably, Asagiri, sitting on the sofa in the lobby, shrugged and replied in a relaxed tone.
"If the three of them team up, even I would be in danger. What do you think?"
"hiss……"
The man in the white suit and the woman in the fox demon mask didn't find Asagiri's words too arrogant. After all, they had witnessed Asagiri's strength firsthand. How could the three "believers" in the first wave pose a threat to such a monster-level player? If it were an ordinary player... no, even their own team...
"But they are not without weaknesses; on the contrary, their weaknesses are quite obvious."
Seeing the somber expressions on the faces of the two people opposite him, Chaowu smiled and spoke.
"Their power does not belong to themselves, but comes from that evil god. If it exceeds the limits of control, or if their minds are disturbed and shaken, they will be consumed by flames."
"Evil God?"
The woman in the fox demon mask looked somewhat puzzled upon hearing this.
How do you know it's an evil god?
Upon hearing this, Asagiri and Kotoko Iwanaga behind him both looked at the woman in the fox demon mask as if she were an idiot.
"The way to join the religion is to be burned alive. If you survive, you become a believer; if you die, you become a sacrifice. Even those who have become believers can be devoured by the power. How can that thing be a good god?"
"That's true..."
The woman in the fox demon mask nodded noncommittally, then hesitated for a moment before suddenly speaking.
"You just said that their power doesn't belong to them? If that's true, combined with the hints the system gave to our two teams, I have a hypothesis."
41
Chapter 41 Everything has a health bar.
After the woman in the fox demon mask said those words, Kotoko Iwanaga immediately understood and replied.
"You mean since their power comes from 'gods,' we can defeat them without any problem simply by severing their connection with 'gods'? That's a plan worth trying, but none of the four of us have that kind of ability. Since you've brought up this possibility, you should possess a similar ability, right?"
"Correct."
After going through so much, the two teams had clearly reached a basic level of cooperation and trust. The woman in the fox demon mask didn't try to hide anything and spoke directly.
“I can use my unique talent to set up a barrier. The barrier will never be destroyed before I die. However, there are limitations. For example, if I am inside the barrier, nothing inside can get out, but things outside can get in. The reverse is also true. Therefore, it is impossible to use the barrier as a trap to trap the enemy.”
"A barrier..."
After thinking carefully for a while, Kotoko Iwanaga looked at Asagiri beside her.
“Leader, even if her abilities cannot sever the connection between those believers and the gods, she can still play a crucial role if she can divide the battlefield.”
The question is how to divide it.
Upon hearing Kotoko Iwanaga's thoughts, Asagiri replied calmly.