Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix
Chapter 1259 - 1259: Territory

The creature soon saw Rain approaching and then tightened its guard for when Rain approached… despite the size of the beast, the creature still swung its sword with inane speed and almost killed Rain in a single strike.

The sword made of bones hit the ground and made it sink, creating a massive line that was over five hundred meters… the entire area shook, but Rain didn't feel that since he jumped to the side and then kicked the air.

Using wind magic, Rain began to fly around the beast and soon saw some grey magic swords hitting the monster that was glaring at him with its empty eyes… the magic sword that hit the rib cage of the monster made cracks appear on it and also force the beast to raise its sword and block the attacks.

"Was this an automatic response?" Rain thought. "Anyway, controlling ten monsters of this size… it is quite insane," Rain thought.

The monster tried to block the mana swords while keeping an eye on Rain, but his squad soon began to attack several parts of the monster's body, mainly the joints. They were smart; one didn't have to be a genius to know that they would fall apart if their joints became too damaged…

Still, things weren't that simple… While Rain was waiting for his chance to attack, he saw the beast repairing itself. If the undead king could create bones, it made sense that he could do that, too…

"We have to hurry up, so it is time to take my chances," Rain thought and then changed his path to Wrath.

Rain's aura changed, and soon, he summoned giant ice arms on himself. They immediately turned dark in color, and then he charged toward the beast… using earth magic with Wrath would make it harder, and that would be the best option, but Rain had a plan of his own.

With an unwavering resolve, Rain charged towards the colossal creature, his newly summoned darkened ice arms ready for a powerful strike. The monster, sensing the imminent threat, swung its massive bone sword with incredible speed, aiming to kill Rain with a single devastating blow.

Contrary to expectations, Rain did not attempt to evade the impending strike. Instead, he focused his Wrath-enhanced strength and, with unparalleled determination, delivered a resounding punch directly to the bone sword. The collision unleashed a deafening impact that reverberated through the air, causing the very atmosphere to shake in response.

The force of the clash was monumental, sending shockwaves through the surroundings. Despite the sheer power behind Rain's punch, the monstrous sword held its ground. Its bone structure resisted against the onslaught. However, the exchange was not without consequences for Rain.

The impact sent him hurtling through the air in the opposite direction, his body spinning in a chaotic dance. The sheer force of the blow had launched him with incredible velocity, a testament to both the immense power the enemy wielded…

"Ugh…" Rain grunted as he stopped spinning in the air.

Rain's bones were shaking and cracking, but soon, he used Full Heal to repair the damage a bit, and then he looked at the enemy. The creature wasn't moving; it was probably very surprised that Rain was still very much alive.

In the next moment, Rain looked around, and the groups were having a hard time fighting the other monsters. Reca had arrived, but while she was trying to cover for Jori, both of them could only do their best to avoid the enemy hits.

At the same time, Seadrei was blocking the bone swords with his giant water arms that could now corrode the bones of the beasts thanks to the power of Wrath, but he was being pushed backward every single moment.

"Seadrei should be strong enough to defeat the demon king, but he fell for a trap…" Rain thought. "If he can't defeat one of those guys, does that mean that each one of them is stronger than the demon king?"

Rain found it hard to believe that the giant death knights, despite being each a formidable opponent, could surpass the demon king in strength. If the undead king had possessed the power to control such massive creatures, he should have easily decimated the other enemies and utilized them as additional sources of strength.

Rain couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to these giant death knights than just their sheer size and power.

As he observed the ongoing battle, Rain pondered the efficiency of the undead king's method to increase strength. It seemed logical — creating an army of colossal creatures to serve as an extension of one's power. Yet, Rain couldn't dismiss the nagging suspicion that there must be a weakness in this approach.

Such an overwhelming force should come with vulnerabilities, and Rain was determined to uncover them.

"... Move away from each other," Rain said via telepathy.

Rain didn't know if that idea would work, but it was the only thing that came to his mind at the moment. Everyone silently began to retreat in the opposite directions, and the giant death knights tried to follow them. It seemed that they got angry since they began to pierce the ground with their swords and tried to hit the squads with debris from the rocks.

Rain kept looking over his shoulder as he analyzed the monsters. Their steps could cross one kilometer with ease, but each step would take five seconds… that was more than long enough for the squads to escape from them.

Regardless, after taking only twenty or so steps away from the territory of their city, the giant death knights stopped moving, but they still kept looking at Rain and the others…

"It looks like the undead king has some sort of territory as well… to control all those things, he needs the right terrain," Rain thought and then touched the ground while using his earth magic. "I can feel it… there is a network of bones below us."