SSS-Rank Talent: Super Upgrade System
Chapter 82: The Guardian’s Gambit!

Chapter 82: The Guardian’s Gambit!

The air on the high plateau crackled with an almost tangible tension, the shrieking wind carrying the enraged howls of the Silverback Blue Apes and the defiant roar of Ayra Sand in her Tyrant’s Mantle.

The ground trembled continuously as dozens of A-Grade, Level 18 simian sentinels, their silver backs gleaming under the ghostly Yin light, closed in on Daniel’s small team.

Ayra, a crimson meteor of berserker fury, met the first wave head-on. Her great-axe, a blur of polished steel, whistled through the air with terrifying force.

"BOOM! KRA-SHUNK!"

Her first strike, aimed at the chest of a charging Ape, connected with a sound like a falling mountain.

The Ape, despite its A-Grade resilience, was sent tumbling backwards, roaring in pain and surprise, a deep gash weeping dark blood on its silver-blue fur.

The wind from the impact alone flattened the nearby shadow-slicked ferns.

Daniel, his B-Grade [Savage Might] amplifying his already monstrous Strength and Vitality, moved like a thunderbolt.

He didn’t engage with his S-Grade [Solar Flare Fist Art] immediately; he needed to assess the Apes’ tactics, their durability, and most importantly, protect Lia.

His fists, clad in A-Grade Kinetic Void Gauntlets, became blurs of contained kinetic fury.

"Boom! Thwack! CRUNCH!"

He intercepted two Apes that were trying to flank Lia, his blows landing with the force of battering rams.

One Ape, attempting a [Crushing Grip], found its massive hands meeting Daniel’s gauntleted fist.

The resulting shockwave sent shivers up Daniel’s arm, but the Ape yelped, its knuckles audibly cracking.

The ground beneath them fractured further with each exchange.

Ayra, seeing Daniel’s explosive power, let out a surprised but appreciative roar.

"Not bad, Vance! For someone who usually just shoots sparkly arrows or hides in the shadows! You actually hit like you mean it!"

The wind shrieked around her as she cleaved through another Ape’s clumsy guard, sending it staggering.

But the Silverback Blue Apes were not mindless beasts.

They were A-Grade Sentinels, intelligent and coordinated. Realizing that Daniel and Ayra were formidable close-combat threats, a group of five, their movements impossibly fast and fluid, bypassed the two powerhouses.

They used their [Sentinel’s Leap] ability, bounding over the fray with astonishing agility, their target clear: Lia.

"Lia! Behind you!" Daniel roared, his [Aura Sense+] screaming a warning.

He saw the Apes arcing through the air, their massive forms silhouetted against the dim sky, claws extended, ready to tear apart the seemingly vulnerable healer.

Lia, though her A-Grade Staff of the World Ash pulsed with defensive energy, knew she couldn’t withstand a coordinated assault from five A-Grade, Level 18 beasts alone.

Her role was support, not tanking. Panic flickered in her usually calm grey eyes.

Daniel moved. He didn’t even think. He activated his S-Grade [Twilight Phantom Step].

"BOOM-WHOOSH!"

The sound of his launch was almost instantly swallowed by the utter silence of his passage.

He wasn’t just fast; he was a flicker, a distortion in reality, moving at speeds that left the shrieking wind far behind.

He appeared beside Lia, a near-invisible phantom, just as the first Ape landed, its [Crushing Grip] aimed at her head.

Daniel didn’t have time for a full-power [Solar Flare Fist]. He lashed out with a lightning-fast kick, imbued with the raw kinetic force of his [Savage Might].

"THWUMP!"

His A-Grade Phantom Edge Striking Wrap-clad boot connected squarely with the Ape’s descending arm.

The Ape howled in pain as its arm was knocked aside, the force of Daniel’s kick sending it stumbling.

But he couldn’t stop all five. Two more landed, their claws raking at Lia.

Lia cried out as sharp pain lanced through her shoulder, her protective aura shattering under the assault.

Daniel whirled, his gauntlets a blur, deflecting blows, landing quick, powerful jabs that sent the Apes reeling but didn’t kill them instantly.

He was a whirlwind of defensive fury, but protecting Lia against so many agile, powerful attackers in close quarters was taxing even his incredible abilities.

He couldn’t unleash his full S-Grade offensive power without risking hitting Lia in the chaos.

Ayra, seeing Lia in peril, roared with renewed fury and tried to break free from the Apes engaging her.

"Get away from her, you overgrown blue baboons!" she bellowed, her axe carving a bloody swathe.

But she was pinned down, overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Lia, despite her A-Grade staff’s healing, was taking more hits, her emerald aura dimming.

"We need to fall back! Get out of their territory!" Daniel yelled, deflecting another claw swipe aimed at Lia’s face.

He unleashed a localized [Kinetic Hammer] shockwave from his fist, blasting two Apes away from Lia, giving her a precious moment to heal herself.

The ground trembled, and the wind shrieked as the kinetic force dispersed.

"Retreat! Now!"

They fought a desperate, retreating battle, Daniel a flickering shadow of defensive strikes around Lia, Ayra a crimson whirlwind carving a path of bloody escape.

The Silverback Blue Apes pressed their advantage, their howls echoing through the foothills, their coordinated attacks relentless.

Finally, with a last, desperate surge, they broke free from the main pack, tumbling down a steep, rocky incline that marked the edge of the Apes’ plateau territory.

As they reached the bottom, bruised, bleeding, and exhausted, the Apes abruptly stopped their pursuit.

They stood at the edge of the plateau, roaring their defiance and territorial claims, but made no move to follow them further down into the gloomier Yin forest.

Daniel, panting heavily, helped Lia to her feet. Her shoulder was bleeding freely, and her face was pale.

Ayra collapsed against a boulder, her breath coming in ragged gasps, her Tyrant’s Mantle fading.

"They... they didn’t follow," Lia managed, clutching her injured shoulder.

Daniel nodded, watching the distant, silver-backed figures. "Guardians," he said, a new understanding dawning.

"They weren’t trying to kill us, not primarily. They were driving us away. Protecting their territory. That pass... it’s clearly under their watch."

He remembered the Ape he’d kicked; it had winced in pain but hadn’t pressed a killing blow when it could have.

Their intent was different from the raw malice of the Gloomfang Devourer or the vengeful fury of the Umbral Lynx.

Ayra spat out a mouthful of blood. "Well, their idea of ’driving away’ involves a lot of property damage and unsolicited claw massages.

My ribs feel like they’ve been used as a xylophone by a particularly enthusiastic ogre."

"We can’t fight that many A-Grade, Level 18s head-on, not while protecting Lia," Daniel admitted, looking at his own torn and battered A-Grade Striking Wraps.

"Even my speed has its limits against a coordinated swarm that agile, especially when I can’t go all out without risking friendly fire."

He was fast, S-Grade fast, but moving and attacking simultaneously to protect someone else against multiple high-level threats was a different challenge altogether.

"So, what now, Captain Vulture?" Ayra asked, wincing as Lia began to mend her deeper wounds with her staff.

"That long, boring scenic route starting to look more appealing?"

Daniel looked back up at the plateau, a thoughtful, almost predatory gleam in his eyes. "Not necessarily. We just need a different approach."

He remembered his Tier 2 [Soul Assimilation]’s ability to extract Genetic Essence from samples.

"They’re guardians, not mindless killers. And they’re very protective of their silver fur."

He flexed his fingers, his A-Grade gauntlets thrumming softly.

"Ayra, how do you feel about being bait again? Just for a little while. Lia, keep her alive.

I have an idea that might just give us the edge we need. We’re going fur collecting."