Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix
Chapter 1270 - 1270: Skill Theft

If the doppelgangers were indeed tapping into corrupt power similar to the other enemies, Rain speculated that they might be utilizing the power of Envy. Drawing on his knowledge of the sins and their associated paths, Rain deduced that these creatures could likely replicate the skills of their adversaries.

However, there was a crucial limitation—they couldn't execute these skills at the same proficiency as the original users. The copied abilities would likely be less potent and refined, providing a potential opening for Rain and Sealyn to exploit in the upcoming encounter.

"That should be the limit of envy…" Rain said. "The desire to have what others have incessantly, only to obtain that, but without the same value."

"Anyway, we don't have time to waste, and we can't let the enemy decide the flow of the battle," Sealyn said. "We will advance and cover for you as planned, Dad."

"You don't have to freeze them completely, only for a single moment, and that should be enough," Rain said. "You guys should focus on covering for her and doing the same thing. Don't use the power of the sins unless things get messy."

The members of the squads nodded in unison. It almost felt like they weren't there since they had a weak presence, and they barely talked with each other.

In any case, the group began to approach the enemy's base and soon realized that the place was truly suspicious. Some round shadows were around all the trees, even though there was no source of light to make such shadows.

"Isn't this pretty obvious?" Rain thought.

When things are too obvious, most people would take them for granted, but Rain only found that suspicious. In any case, his Magic Eyes didn't find anything.

The group cautiously moved through the eerie darkness of the suspicious forest, their footsteps muffled by the thick layer of mud on the ground. The ominous trees loomed overhead, their branches forming a dense canopy that blocked out most of the ambient light. Rain's Magic Eyes continuously scanned their surroundings, searching for any hidden threats or signs of the doppelganger slimes.

Sealyn had her eyes focused and alert, ready to unleash her freezing abilities at a moment's notice. Rain followed closely, his senses heightened and ready to attack. The other members of the group maintained a defensive formation, each one prepared to respond to any sudden attacks.

As they ventured deeper into the forest, the shadows seemed to grow thicker, and the air became more oppressive. Yet, the monsters remained elusive, hiding within the darkness. The tension in the group increased, creating an atmosphere of anticipation mixed with unease.

From the outside, the forest appeared ordinary, with no discernible abnormalities. The trees stood silently, and there were no signs of movement or disturbance. It seemed that the monsters' leader was adept at concealing their presence, making it challenging for Rain and his allies to pinpoint their location.

"This is weird… why all the enemies so far have been so defensive?" Elisabetha asked. "Even if they were building their forces, this is weird considering the things we heard off… I wonder if this blood kin is the reason for that.

The blood kin was the group who had arrived twenty years ago, and they defeated a bunch of the other lords, even when coalitions were made to crush them. If they were that strong, it would make sense why people were so wary and cautious recently.

In any case, the group eventually lost the notion of the time they had been there, and they also had no idea of the distance that they had crossed… they couldn't see the other side of the area either, so it seemed that the territory of the enemies was quite large. Rain checked his parameters, but he didn't notice anything weird.

Suddenly, a low, guttural grunt echoed through the silent forest, breaking the eerie silence. In an instant, the entire group pivoted, weapons at the ready, their senses heightened. However, all they saw was one of the squad members holding his right side, his face contorted in pain. Tremors ran through his body, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

"What happened? Are you okay?" Rain asked while his eyes scanned the surroundings for any signs of an unseen assailant.

"I-I don't know... something hit me... but I couldn't see the enemy!"

The group remained on high alert, their gazes darting between the shadows, searching for the source of the unseen attack. Sealyn was ready to summon a frosty barrier around providing some protection while Rain continued to survey the area with his Magic Eyes.

"There's definitely something here," Rain muttered.

As the seconds ticked by, the tension escalated. The squad members tightened their grips on their weapons, ready for an unexpected assault. Despite their vigilance, the invisible assailant remained hidden, striking without warning.

Even with his magic senses, Rain was unable to find the enemy… his guess was that the enemy could hide within the shadows of the trees and completely hide in there. It was a very troublesome ability…

The same thing happened a few more times: random members of the groups were attacked, and only Rain and Sealyn were avoided; the reasons should be obvious: the enemies were pretty wary of them. They probably knew that those two would react in time… even though they never saw the attacks coming.

Regardless, the damage was minimal, so they proceeded until, eventually, some members of the group noticed what had happened.

"Captain… one of my skills… it disappeared… it isn't equipped anymore."

"... Check the path if the skill is still there," Rain said. "It might be a simple illusion, or a temporary trick to make us panic."

"The skill still is there, but I can't see any information about it, and I can't reequip it either!"

"All right, don't panic; this is something that we can solve by killing the monster that hit you," Rain said while looking at Sealyn, and then she nodded.