1novels Chapter 12 is ready, it's about to start.
Chapter 12 is ready, it's about to start.
The Rock Armored Scorpion possesses above-average individual strength among first-tier Void Beasts. Its carapace provides excellent defense, while its poisonous stinger attacks are insidious and difficult to deal with.
What's more troublesome is their highly socialized gregarious nature.
Once they reach a certain scale, it means that at least one "leader" of rank two or above must have emerged among them to unite so many unruly individuals.
As if to confirm everyone's guess, the rock-armored scorpion, which was originally lying on the ground and was a size larger than its kind, slowly stood up in the very center of the open space.
"Glala..."
The shells rub together, producing a teeth-grinding sound.
When it stood up completely, the sheer size of it created an overwhelming sense of pressure that made many trainees gasp.
It was more than four times larger than a regular rock scorpion, resembling a moving, rock-armored hill!
Its carapace is a darker color, with a faint metallic sheen, and its tail stinger is as thick as a short spear, with an ominous, dark purple tip.
Not a typical second-order...
It was actually a second-tier leader that had reached the upper level!
In addition, there were two slightly larger, darker-colored Tier 2 lower-level scorpions, and sixteen ordinary Tier 1 scorpions...
Everyone's expression changed.
I never expected to run into this kind of situation in my first battle.
A herd of beasts with a leader is exceptionally united; if one is attacked, the rest will swarm in.
Tactics like pulling monsters together or taking them down one by one simply won't work.
Once you decide to confront them, you can only fight them all at once.
There are 20 students in Class 8.
Those who can enter Echo Academy all have the strength to defeat a Tier 1 Void Beast on their own.
However, facing a second-tier void beast head-on requires the combined strength of several people—
Moreover, the "second order" mentioned here specifically refers to the lower level.
If it's intermediate or even advanced level...
Everyone's eyes turned to Saki.
Sensing the gazes of the crowd, Qi Ji shrugged indifferently and stepped out from the crowd.
"I'll take the biggest one; the rest, you guys handle them."
The recording devices worn by everyone transmitted the images and sounds back to the academy in real time.
Several teachers responsible for grading couldn't help but frown as they looked at the multi-angle images transmitted back simultaneously.
"The detection report only indicated a small Class D rift, right? But the density and strength of this Void Beast in the West District... are already approaching the edge of a Class C rift!"
"And a second-tier superior Void Beast leader has appeared..."
"It's possible that the recent unusual emotional fluctuations in the surrounding area have accelerated the accumulation of 'stains'."
"These are all promising talents. What if there are serious injuries or deaths during the assessment..."
"Should we order a halt?"
"Let's wait and see. If that kid named Saki is really as strong as the rumors say... then maybe he's worth believing."
……
Hearing that Qi Ji had taken on the most difficult task of leading, the members of Class 8 felt relieved and the pressure was greatly reduced.
Soon, under the organization of several stronger students, the remaining virtual beasts were quickly "claimed".
Everyone drew their guns and entered combat mode.
Before awakening an aggressive response, trainees can generally only rely on firearms to effectively kill Void Beasts.
However, second-tier Void Beasts have strong resistance to firearms, so students who have not awakened Echo are at a great disadvantage when facing second-tier Void Beasts.
The sixteen Tier 1 Rock Armor Poison Scorpions quickly found opponents, but two Tier 2 Lower-level Poison Scorpions remained unassigned.
"I... can probably hold one off."
After a moment of silence, a girl with a high ponytail and a neat demeanor stepped forward and spoke first.
In that instant, besides Ruri, she became the only student in Class 8 to awaken and respond.
"Ten minutes is enough." Saki loosened his muscles and did some warm-up exercises, his tone relaxed.
"Ten minutes... I'll try my best." She took a deep breath, her expression serious.
"There's also a second-tier void beast..."
Qi Ji's gaze swept across the crowd, and when he looked at Liu Li, he deliberately paused for half a second.
The smile on Liuli's face immediately froze.
If she were to use [Mind Echo], she could indeed handle a low-level second-tier Void Beast on her own, but that would inevitably expose her identity.
Fortunately, Saki was just teasing her.
The next moment, he shifted his gaze away and turned to Huomu.
"Huomu, that's up to you."
"Huh? Me?" Huo Mu pointed to himself, thinking he had misheard.
As the only "F" grade talent in the class, his strength is generally considered to be at the bottom.
Give him a second-tier void beast?
real or fake?
"Don't worry, you can do it."
He was grateful that Saki trusted him so much.
But Huo Mu himself knew his own limitations.
He wasn't afraid, but he was worried that if he lost too quickly, it would create a gap in the defense and affect the entire battle.
"That scorpion has an old wound on its left leg; attack there."
Huo Mu was stunned: "How did you know?"
"Look closely, the carapace color at the joint of its left hind leg is abnormal, and the point of impact when it landed was also biased to the right. See the claw marks on the ground? The left one is lighter than the right one. Attack there, and you will win."
After saying that, Qi Ji patted Huo Mu on the shoulder: "Alright, time to go."
The moment the words left his mouth, Saki moved.
Without a running start or any preparation, he simply took a single step, and his figure instantly blurred.
Like a ghost, it crashed into the center of the scorpion swarm with astonishing speed, its target the largest scorpion king!
"roar--!"
Enraged by this blatant provocation, the Scorpion King let out a piercing screech and brought its massive pincers crashing down with a fierce gust of wind!
At the same time, the dark purple venomous stinger at the tail shot out from the side like lightning, blocking all of Qi Ji's evasive maneuvers.
The battle erupted instantly!
The other members of Class 8 dared not slack off and immediately charged toward their assigned targets, shouting as they did so.
Gunshots, the clash of weapons, and the roars of the virtual beasts suddenly filled the air.
The most pathetic were undoubtedly the two who faced off alone against the second-tier scorpion, Kana and Huomu.
She immediately abandoned her offensive, and her Echo [Flash Shadow] has only been developed to enhance speed.
She poured all her inner energy into the circuits she had built within her body, her figure moving so fast that it left afterimages in the air as she swam and dodged around the second-tier venomous scorpion.
The scorpion's attacks always missed their target, and the screeching sound of its carapace and stinger scraping the ground was terrifying.
Her face turned pale instantly. The high-intensity burst of speed put an enormous strain on her body. She was dancing on the edge of a knife, just to buy time.
On the other side, Huomu faced an even more perilous situation.
He doesn't have absolute speed like a flash; he can only rely on basic tactical rolls and sudden changes of direction to evade attacks.
The scorpion's pincers grazed his scalp, and its stinger narrowly pierced the ground beside him, corroding small pits.
He rolled around on the ground, covered in dirt, looking like he could be hit at any moment.
But gradually, under the pressure of life and death, Huomu's inherent resilience was brought to the fore.
He forced himself to calm down and began to observe the scorpion's attack rhythm, especially the weak point on its left hind leg.
Firearms handling was the subject that Huo Mu excelled at and practiced most diligently during his preparatory phase.
Finally, after a thrilling side roll, he caught the scorpion's slight stiffness caused by its inability to exert force with its left hind leg!
Without hesitation, he knelt on one knee, raised his hand, aimed, and pulled the trigger.
The movements were executed in one smooth motion!
"Bang!"
……
……