Unyielding in her stance, Freya used her shield to repel the harpies with unwavering determination. Her mace shattered their bones with each strike. She moved with the grace of a seasoned warrior, her eyes ablaze with the fury of battle as she defended the old viking.
Jormungandr, under Vlad’s cover, continued to control the lightning ravens with surgical precision. The ravens darted through the air, striking down harpies with pinpoint accuracy. Each hit triggered electric blasts into the creatures, which convulsed before crashing to the ground.
Grey Hawk unleashed his ice stakes in rapid succession. The frozen projectiles pierced through the harpies, leaving trails of blood and frost in their wake. His eyes never left the sky, tracking the movements of their enemies with unwavering focus.
The battle raged on, each warrior showcasing their exceptional skills and battle awareness. Inevitably, injuries were sustained, but the group’s coordinated efforts began to dominate the battlefield. The ground was littered with more and more harpy corpses, their once-menacing screeches silenced by the overwhelming power of the Depravitas and vikings.
As the last of the Harpy Screechers fell, Vlad and Freya stood amidst the carnage, their breaths heavy and bodies aching. The fight had pushed their physical limits, as they had to face the full barrage of the monster in order to protect the spellcasters.
Jormungandr and Grey Hawk were not faring well either, as the duo consumed nearly all their energy during this clash. The focus they needed to unleash their spells while resisting the shrieks of the monsters was so intense that their eyes were bloodshot, and trails of blood leaked from their noses.
Despite their exhaustion, none wasted time as they began collecting the corpses. Unlike the necrotic wolves, the Harpy Screechers had adapted better to the demonic energy that flooded the Nagan Mountain, growing stronger without tumors or diseases corrupting their bodies.
Vlad and Jormungandr had Arasbus and Ion’s space rings, which, while of excellent quality, could not hold over fifty bodies of giant harpies. They used their A.I. Chip to detect the most valuable parts of the carcasses and store them, incinerating the useless parts.
Freya was much more frugal, taking a small pyramid from her space ring and sending the entire corpses of the Harpy Screechers inside. Her dimensional storage artifact was much better than the space rings the young man and the little cat had.
After finishing with their spoils of battle, the group once again took some time to rest and eat before marching forward. They encountered more flocks of Harpy Screechers, but none as numerous as the first, and the Depravitas and the vikings easily dispatched them.
Once the group passed the two-thousand-meter mark, they found no more Harpy Screechers. Well, that wasn’t entirely true; they did find some harpies, but they were only corpses, drained of every drop of blood.
The group didn’t take long to find the reason for these corpses: a massive swarm of demonic bats flying through a dark, stormy sky.
These bats were not very large, less than a third the size of the harpies, with none more than a meter tall. However, their true power did not seem to lie in their individual power but in their number, as there were thousands of them!
The monsters had leathery wings with tattered edges, sharper than blades. Their fur was dark and ragged, and sharp fangs were visible in their open mouths.
Vlad’s focus heightened as the A.I. Chip analyzed the bats that were beginning to surround them.
[Beep! Analyzing targets.
A new mutated species classified as Demonic Thunder Bats: Low-level monsters affected by demonic blood radiation. They are drawn to blood and lightning. A special organ is detected inside their chest, gathering thunder energy. They can emit ultrasonic electric waves to disorient and stun their prey. Paralyzing toxins are detected in their fangs.
Note: Attack patterns rely on group attacks. Avoid being surrounded as they could trigger a massive barrage of ultrasonic waves capable of severe internal damage and paralyzing power.]
Vlad adopted a solemn expression as he glanced at the information provided by the A.I. Chip. Those bats were individually weak, but there were too many, and their sonic electric waves could cause severe damage.
"They use ultrasonic electric waves to disorient and stun us. Advance while we fight, and do not let them surround you!" Vlad shouted to the vikings before making a second sword appear, adopting a two-sword stance. The bats were weak but numerous, so it was a matter of attacking quickly, not strongly. The group understood the importance of speed and agility in this battle and adjusted their tactics accordingly.
By this point, Freya and Grey Hawk had already accepted Vlad’s analysis as the infallible truth and adapted their battle styles accordingly.
Another massive fight ensued, with the group constantly in motion to avoid being surrounded by the Demonic Thunder Bats.
Vlad cut down all the monsters approaching him and Jormungandr with his swords, the sound of metal against flesh and bone filling the air. Freya sent compacted waves of air and force with her mace, the impact of each strike reverberating through her body. The spellcasters unleashed massive spells with wide ranges to kill as many bats as possible, and the bright flashes of lightning and frost flooded the sky.
The battle with the Demonic Thunder Bats was extremely harsh. More than once, the group was subjected to barrages of ultrasonic blasts that made their ears and noses bleed. Vlad could resist thanks to his Thunder Lord Bloodline’s endurance to lightning and thunder, but even he felt the strain. Freya, relying on her bulging vitality and endurance, could continue fighting.
Jormungandr and Grey Hawk were under the protection of the warriors, but that did not mean they had an easy time. There were too many bats, and sometimes they needed to defend themselves. The small yellow cat’s reflexes and reaction speed were enough to handle those beasts, while the old viking simply blasted them with his punches, all the while unleashing blasts of lightning and frost, killing dozens of bats with every strike.