Breaking the Deadlock

Remnants, the embodiment of natural forces, gradually emerge in the wilderness over time. Some theories suggest they arrived in this realm via the Conjunction of the Spheres.

This is the definition given in "General Knowledge of Monster Economics". Although it is somewhat vague, one thing is certain.

All the remnants are magical creatures with a powerful connection to nature.

Leshen, Harpie, Sharmar...

Many of the remnants are even worshipped as deities by the locals!

Reality differs from the game. In the game, ghouls, ghosts, remnants, and even hybrid beasts are only different in numerical value. Using a non-targeting approach will at most result in slightly less damage; as long as the level difference is small enough, no monster is invincible.

But the reality is different.

Monsters of various races have very distinct characteristics, so distinct that you simply cannot kill them unless you deal with them in a specific way.

The most prominent example is ghosts and spirits.

According to the Witcher's Handbook's Notes, the level of the demons is not high. Even though the silver sword can harm them, it will be a very long journey without using the Specter Oil.

Ailin had a very strong premonition.

Or perhaps it wasn't a premonition; the extremely low [Demon Hunter] stats, unlike anything I'd ever encountered before, clearly indicated...

Remnants might be a kind of demon even more difficult to deal with than ghosts.

But he had no Remnant Oil.

"What to do?" Ailin murmured, spinning and slashing downwards.

The red light flashed.

Elsa still cut through the leather like a dull knife.

The white marks on his tentacles seemed to mock him.

The system prompts from peripheral vision are also included.

[Demon Hunter] 2%

"Roar--"

A series of terrifying roars suddenly echoed throughout the Mahakam Mountains.

Ailin's sword-wielding motion suddenly froze, as if he were being watched by countless ferocious beasts lurking in the darkness, a chill seeping from his tailbone directly to his scalp.

He turned his head to the side.

It just so happened that its eyes met those of a huge, scarlet, vertical pupil.

And it wasn't just that one eye.

Countless crimson vertical pupils, supported by exposed, pale bones and intricately woven muscle fibers, were also watching him with icy eyes.

The Summoning Ritual recovered from the damage caused by Flash of Light.

"Roar~"

The "slow-moving" ghouls around them seemed to have been instantly injected with adrenaline.

After the four Spiked Fiend spread their arms and roared, they ignored the Greater Griffin that kept harassing them in the sky, and Vesemir was still amputating the limb of one of the Spiked Fiend.

With their eyes red, they roared and charged straight at Ailin.

In front of and behind the Spiked Fiend are the Giant Ghoul, the Rotfiend, and the Ghoul, who are still in the Summoning Ritual, seemingly to complete the ritual.

Although the number is not large, there are only twenty or thirty in total.

But their postures are all as crazy as the Spiked Fiend.

It smashed through boulders, flattened shrubs, and snapped giant trees...

When Ailin glanced over out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the black spikes on the Giant Ghoul's body had been broken off, and the already disfigured features of the Rotfiend were even flatter. The Ghoul was covered in small wounds, all of which were bleeding...

But this kind of reckless madness and ferocity is chilling.

"Don't even think about going there!"

With a loud shout, Vesemir bent his right middle finger and pushed forward sharply, causing the Spiked Fiend, which had just started its sprint, to lose its balance and crash to the ground.

Then, abandoning the spiked Spiked Fiend that were difficult to kill in the short term, he rushed into the horde of carnivorous creatures in a few steps.

With a flick of his right wrist, he sent the longsword slicing through a semicircle, severing the head of a Ghoul blocking his path.

Without pausing, he kicked the blindly charging Rotfiend away, sending it crashing into another Giant Ghoul while tripping the Spiked Fiend.

He spun gracefully in mid-air, switching the silver sword to his left hand and bending his right index finger.

Igni Sign.

The Cat Eyes reflected the distorted figure of the Rotfiend.

The scorching sparks touched his palm, igniting the Rotfiend he had kicked away, and then he swung it in the opposite direction, setting both Rotfiend on fire.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A series of explosions resounded loudly.

In a short time, Vesemir had repelled two Spiked Fiend, caused three Rotfiend to explode, killed five Ghoul, and one Giant Ghoul.

Even so, some still slipped through the net.

The other two Spiked Fiend, leading the remaining carnivorous creatures, were still charging toward Ailin.

at this time.

The Greater Griffin let out an angry cry, and a faint blue light flowed across its black wings.

She swooped down through the sky like a comet falling from the heavens, and suddenly spread her wings when she was less than three meters from the ground.

The wind howled.

The intense wind pressure blew the Ghoul and Rotfiend away, forcing the Giant Ghoul to stop and grip the ground tightly with its claws.

The two Spiked Fiend, who were not very intelligent to begin with and had little control over their bodies, were blown down.

But that's not all.

After the Greater Griffin spread its wings, it hovered in mid-air for only a moment before extending its sharp talons, grabbing an unsteady Spiked Fiend, and flying into the sky.

By the time the Spiked Fiend thought of struggling, it had already flown two or three hundred meters into the air.

The claws that were embedded in flesh loosened their grip.

"Roar!"

The Spiked Fiend flailed its arms and legs wildly as it plummeted vertically.

Gravity from the earth is impartial; no matter how abundant the elemental blessings, when the altitude is high enough, everyone will suffer fatal damage.

"Bang!"

The ground was smashed open, creating a deep crater, and dust filled the air.

A moment later.

"Boom!"

A loud, explosive sound.

A green flame suddenly rose in the valley, and in the aftershocks of the explosion, bright red spikes shot out like arrows.

It pierced through all the Ghoul and Rotfiend that had just been blown away by the wind pressure, and finally shot down several oak trees growing on the edge of the valley, nailing them straight to the cliff face, corroding a large part of the cliff before landing.

"Good Girl!" Ailin couldn't help but exclaim.

After failing to leave a mark on the giant eyeball with his claw, he truly did not expect the Greater Griffin to perform so amazingly, actually killing the Spiked Fiend first with its strength.

It's even faster than Vesemir, who has Enhanced Necrophage Oil.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. The Greater Griffin was much stronger than Vesemir. The Greater Griffin they killed in Vengerberg was ultimately killed by the Witcher.

Flying monsters naturally have a huge advantage over ground monsters.

Moreover, the Spiked Fiend itself is not very intelligent; its danger lies in its enormous size, the explosion upon death, and its highly poisonous spikes.

Vesemir failed to kill the Spiked Fiend because he was restrained by his self-destruction.

The Greater Griffin and Vesemir's help gave Ailin a slight sense of relief.

But this brought with it immense pressure.

"Roar!"

The battle cries from Ianna's battlefield were deafening, clearly audible even in this distant valley.

But they were unable to stop all the ghouls.

"Rumble~"

The ground was trembling slightly, but the amplitude of the tremors was increasing.

A large wave of ghouls that were lured away are returning.

Such a massive monster tide is beyond the reach of Vesemir and the Greater Griffin.

"I'm the only one left." Ailin took a deep breath.

The countless pairs of beast eyes of the Summoning Ritual were still staring at him, but made no further move, as if its only ability was to command demons.

But no.

Leaving aside the fact that when he landed, he was startled by the [Demon Hunter] and unleashed a powerful mental attack that even made the divine wall he had built dizzy.

The wooden amulet that Lyra gave him swayed in front of his chest.

"Click~ Click~"

A faint, strange noise kept coming from the amulet, as if the fibers of a decaying staircase were breaking due to a heavy load.

This is not a good sign.

The vertical pupil that was fixed on his figure, along with countless vertical eyes, were attacking him at all times.

One terrifying question after another kept popping into his mind.

for example...

Will the horde of carnivorous creatures return first, or will the goddess's blessing fail first?

Or to put it another way...

How will he fail... or even die?

"Creak~"

[Demon Hunter] 4%

The shadow of defeat seemed to draw ever closer with each falling sword.

Elsa's spinning force seemed to have slowed down.

Just then.

"Buzz~"

A slight tremor ran through his chest, and a cool sensation rushed into Ailin's mind, clearing his head.

"A mirage pearl!" he exclaimed.

A cold sweat broke out all over my head.

"Damn it!" Ailin looked at the Summoning Ritual, which had never left her eyes, still shaken. "When did it affect me?"

The scarlet vertical pupils blinked, shrouded in a hazy, dangerous red mist.

"Click~ Click~"

The faint, unusual sound emanating from the amulet became even faster.

"This can't go on any longer!" Ailin stopped swinging his blade.

[Demon Hunter] 4%

Half a minute had already passed.

The Demon Hunter state only lasts for 450 seconds. If you keep attacking blindly like this, the Demon Hunter progress will only be 60% accumulated by the time the effect ends.

There's simply not enough time!

"But what should we do?"

He then felt Balmor behind him again.

The divine sword, still sheathed, remained motionless.

"Why?" Ailin didn't understand.

"Clang!"

He suddenly drew Balmor and slashed down with his sword.

This time, not even a white mark appeared on the tentacles of the Summoning Ritual.

[Name: Balmor]

[Type: Curious Item]

[Functions: Sever steel, slay demons, break armor, exorcise evil, destroy fate]

[Note: This sword's history is even more legendary than that of its owner, Zatrete Volta. And here's a little secret: Zatrete Volta was also Child of Miracle.]

"Why?" Ailin asked again, still puzzled, as he looked at the ancient longsword in his hand. "What about slaying demons? What about dispelling evil?"

In the middle of the day, he caught a glimpse of the Summoning Ritual from afar, and Balmor excitedly pounded his back until it ached.

Why is there no movement at such a close distance?

The longsword remained silent, making him seem even more like a fool.

"Boom!"

Trees fell and branches snapped, dust filled the air, and flying pebbles rained down on the ground.

The Greater Griffin and Vesemir were locked in fierce combat, buying him time.

Under the watchful eyes of countless eyes during the Summoning Ritual, he felt utterly powerless and even somewhat desperate.

"Etc!"

Ailin frowned.

He felt as if he had grasped something crucial.

"Clang!"

Balmor sheathed his sword.

"The Summoning Ritual was performed under the watchful eyes of countless pairs of eyes... the gaze of countless eyes... eyes!!!"

He muttered a few words, then suddenly widened his eyes to look at the Summoning Ritual, but not at the giant eyeball clinging to the elven tower.

Below, amidst the pale bones and crimson flesh, are nearly a thousand eerie vertical pupils.

"Just because Greater Griffin can't break a big eyeball doesn't mean those small eyeballs are just as tough!" Ailin's eyes lit up.

He didn't know whether it was the momentum from the failed attack by the Greater Griffin or the effect of the Summoning Ritual that prevented him from thinking of this.

But he remembers it very clearly.

During the day, carnivorous creatures emerge from outside the valley, only to be crushed and decomposed by tentacles without any resistance.

Then the eyeballs were swallowed up and grew on the mountain of flesh.

Those nearly a thousand eyeballs all seemed to come from Ghoul, Giant Ghoul, and Spiked Fiend.

"Roar!"

Ailin's burning gaze seemed to stimulate the Summoning Ritual.

From the dark mountains and forests in the distance came a series of roars.

The ghouls, lured away, are getting closer.

"Call!"

Ailin let out a long breath and gripped Elsa tightly.

Let's give it a shot!

He shouted in his heart. He charged toward the elven tower covered in hideous flesh and blood.

Tentacles that form the ritualistic patterns are on the sides, beside, and beneath the body.

The closer he got to the tower, the denser the intestine-like, writhing tentacles became. Once he was within twenty meters, he had to step on the strangely soft flesh and blood as he charged forward.

Both sides were pools of dark red, uncongealed blood.

The indescribable stench of amniotic fluid, blood, and rotting flesh grew increasingly intense.

"Click~ Click~ Click~"

When he was only ten meters away from the towering flesh mountain covered in eyes, the sound of the wooden amulet cracking was almost continuous, as if it might explode at any moment.

However, he didn't care. His azure Cat Eyes narrowed into slits as he stared intently at the nearly one thousand eyes.

[Demon Hunter] Canceled.

Three portions of the Drowner Heart Essence Fluid restore stamina.

Immediately following.

[Demon Hunter], stepping to a halt, spinning to gather momentum...

The adrenal medulla is stimulated.

After a surge of adrenaline, the Witcher's breathing quickened noticeably, and his heart and blood flowed as fast as if a river were rushing through his veins.

Then.

Prick!

"Bang!"

The tip of the silver blade pierced the air with a sonic boom, and turbulent air currents swirled around the blade.

Look into the past.

The bright red blades seemed to be twisted by the immense force.

"Puff!"

The pleasant sound of flesh being pierced.

Elsa's sword tip pierced directly into her vertical pupil.

A murky, translucent liquid, mixed with fresh blood, spurted out.

"Roar!"

The horrified roar of a ghoul came from behind.

Judging from the footsteps, many ghouls seem to have returned to this valley.

[Demon Hunter] 3%

"It works!" Ailin's eyes suddenly lit up.

Although the progress accumulated is not much, it is 3% per sword strike. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, it will be more than enough to be fully charged before the Demon Hunter state ends.

"Pfft!"

He drew his sword.

Then, aiming at the wide, crimson vertical pupils in front of him, he thrust his sword three times in succession.

[Demon Hunter] 6%

[Demon Hunter] 9%

[Demon Hunter] 12%

Just as Ailin was excitedly drawing his sword and about to stab again, his movements suddenly froze.

An accident has occurred!

"Click~"

A loud cracking sound came from his chest.