Chapter Seventy-Six: Stone Poison

“The world’s repulsive force, huh… Does the world itself have a form of consciousness? Or is it merely self-operating according to certain specific rules?”

Miss Vilyric actually has a puzzling question that arose back when she encountered that worm-like Abyss Beast, and even earlier.

How exactly is one determined to be an invader from another world?

Both she and her pet are entities that crossed over from a game, so logically speaking, they shouldn’t belong to this world. According to the saying, “the stronger you are, the more fierce the repulsion,” they should be even less accepted in this realm. Yet, in reality, there hasn’t been any such reaction until now.

Vilyric can truly sense the disruption and damage caused by high-level beings in this world.

Whether it’s the Priestess herself or the level 100 Holy Crystal Dragon, Xiao Guang, they both possess overwhelming strength in this world. Even a large national organization like the United Kingdom, if Vilyric truly wanted to target it, there are myriad ways to cause its complete annihilation.

The sheer individual strength poses a significant threat to the normal operations of the world, making it very reasonable for the world itself to exhibit repulsion towards such existence.

Just like those gods, members of the so-called “Twilight Council,” demons, and even those powerful mythological beings that vanish, Vilyric believes these may all be related to this sort of reason.

Of course, it could also be that the survival of individual beings or even certain races is trivial to the overall world, and these are just misguided thoughts from the Priestess, while the repulsion actually has other causes.

But this doesn’t stop her from thinking and making deductions.

As they neared the high altitude where the Abyss Worm resided, the dozen or so figures of white-feathered warriors locked in a fierce battle became clearly visible.

Just like the scene she saw through the soul network, Sigrid was wielding a spear, using her open white wings to constantly maneuver in front of the Abyss Worm, dodging the massive pincers aimed at her head while occasionally counterattacking in a manner similar to what Leila would do with her illusory spear.

She was the main force against the enemy.

Aside from the toughest armored head, the shells of the other parts of the massive worm’s body were as fragile as paper to the illusory spears thrown by Sigrid.

Though it seemed that even if the spears penetrated the outer shell, entering the Abyss Worm’s interior would not cause much harm, it appeared that the creature consistently avoided being directly hit on its foremost head constructed from hundreds of body segments.

The other white-feathered warriors scattered around the giant worm, attacking from multiple angles with magic or weaponry were also working hard, but their main role was to provide cover and create opportunities for Sigrid.

Relative to the Abyss Worm, which stretched nearly a kilometer in length, these mere dozen white-feathered girls seemed extraordinarily tiny. Yet it was their presence that just barely held this most powerful creature back, preventing it from joining the battle at the center of the island.

One could easily guess what sort of tragic scene would unfold if such a nearly invulnerable behemoth were to charge directly into the lines composed of magical beasts, magical creatures, and most of the Winged People warriors.

The trees near the battlefield had long since been destroyed by the Abyss Worm’s terrifying power, complete devastation all around. Though Vilyric managed to erect a small Radiant Protection to block the dust and smoke that came rushing in, she did not directly intervene.

The white-feathered warriors who followed Sigrid to obstruct the Abyss Worm were members of her own team; they not only coordinated seamlessly but also possessed skill levels close to or reaching the sky level, and the effects of their earlier falls were minimal.

This could be seen from the way they continued to fly and skillfully evade the giant worm’s blade-like appendages as they swept through the air.

For now, while Sigrid and her companions couldn’t defeat the Abyss Worm, it was also unrealistic for the enemy to quickly deal with these elite white-feathered warriors.

It ought not to be this way.

From Sigrid’s prior cautious demeanor, it was clear this creature known as the Abyss Worm shouldn’t be at just this level.

Now that they had arrived, the situation was conveniently within their grasp, so there was no harm in observing for a bit longer.

Vilyric and her companion were positioned high up above the battlefield, far away, and with the dust and smoke billowing from the rampaging giant worm, the attention of the Winged People was entirely fixated on the enemy before them. For a moment, even Sigrid didn’t realize that a Priestess and her pet were hiding above.

After about ten more minutes of intense yet stable combat, under Sigrid’s full restraint, bearing most of the pressure alone, the white-feathered warriors still maintained their complete formation.

This Omoland itself wasn’t large, and based on the speed at which Philena and her group were rushing, they should have begun battling the Abyss Beast from another direction by now.

The suggestion to have Philena and the others ambush the enemy from behind was not made lightly; based on her earlier observations through the soul network, though these Abyss Beasts looked as bizarre and menacing as could be, they still possessed battle roles.

Some excelled in close combat, some were suited for long-range attacks, and there were even entities resembling mages, akin to a well-organized and equipped alien army.

Though according to human or Winged People standards—even if the latter possessed formidable melee combat abilities and regeneration—ultimately, they weren’t on par with those close-combat-oriented Abyss Beasts.

The bizarre insects Vilyric had seen within the Nobos Ironblood Empire should serve as warriors or vanguards; among the creatures on this island, there were individuals quite similar, just noticeably weaker in presence.

Thus, although Vilyric found no sign of a Commander or anything of the sort among them, these entities, which needed no verbal communication, managed to autonomously form a lineup of warriors up front and mages behind, enhancing their battle efficiency.

However, every benefit comes with a downside, and this often led Philena and the others’ ambushes to disrupt the enemy the most, sometimes even turning the tide of battle.

Vilyric harbored a conjecture.

If those Abyss Beasts really were all hatched by this Abyss Worm, perhaps they shared some form of communication circuit that was difficult for ordinary folks to detect and comprehend.

Then, would the changes on another battlefield also reflect here?

The answer, without a doubt, was yes.

Though it wasn’t immediately visible, from the increasingly restless and savage aura, the Priestess had already sensed the Abyss Worm’s change.

In a certain moment.

The giant worm suddenly swept its two menacing pincers, forcing Sigrid to momentarily retreat while rapidly coiling its body, resembling a snake that curled into a conical shape as tall as a small hill, its mouth at the top suddenly bursting open.

A massive plume of sickly green liquid shot forward!

“This is… Get away!!!”

As if she had seen this thing before, Sigrid let out a sharply pitched warning before dashing away without hesitation, “bang,” crashing into one of her companions who was closest to the giant worm’s head, too late to evade.

Both of them tumbled through the air, though in quite a messy manner, they narrowly escaped the range of the poisonous liquid.

The other white-feathered warriors, prompted by their leader’s loud warning, hurriedly dodged the incoming deluge of toxic liquid.

But due to the sudden change, some individuals whose reactions and speeds were relatively slow weren’t able to completely avoid it, getting a significant splatter of the airborne green liquid on one part of their body.

“Ahhhhhhhh!!!”

In just a few seconds, the white-feathered girl clutching a staff, on the portion of her body that had been splashed with the toxin, wings included, visibly turned into gray stone at an alarming pace, screaming as she plummeted downward like a bird with a broken wing.

Everyone knew… she probably wouldn’t have a chance to fly again.

   

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