Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] Chapter 184: Book 3: Chapter 36: Big Crikey! (Pt 2)

Read chapter 184 of Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

Book 3: Chapter 36: Big Crikey! (Pt 2) Book 3: Chapter 36: Big Crikey! (Pt 2) It clicked in Alex's mind as he watched the fight. The beast wasn’t using the water barrier to just lessen the impact of their blows. The barrier around it absorbing the kinetic energy of their strikes, then redirecting it to enhance its own attacks. It was similar to the fighting style that Beithin had used. But instead of directing it into the ground, the chimera was using it to power-up its strikes. Like Alex did with [Flare] spell and his punches, it was transferring force from their own strike or spell and adding to its own. Every blow they landed was fueling the next counter attack, making it even stronger. Before he could fully process the realization of this thing’s ability, Henry was slammed into the cavern wall by a tail slap, the impact amplified by multiple wind slashes Holly had sent at it just a second before. The sound of a halberd meeting stone echoed through the cavern, and Alex’s stomach twisted in alarm as Henry slumped to the ground. “Stop!” He shouted. “Pull back! It can redirect force from our attacks. We’re making it stronger!” Garret staggered back with his shield still held high, his eyes widened as he realized the truth in Alex’s words. Water sloshed as the chimera shifted to follow them, its massive muscles tensing under its protective layer. Its dark eyes glimmered, as if it understood their fear. Alex’s pulse hammered in his ears as he tried to think of a strategy to overcome this. They had the brute strength to fight it, the skill, but now they couldn’t throw everything at it blindly. Every attack had to be timed and calculated. Too much force and they’d fuel the beast’s own attacks; too little and it would simply shrug off the hits and continue its rampage. Alex shouted out commands to adjust their formation, signaling to everyone with sharp gestures as the team shifted in response. “Holly, get Henry,” Alex said. She was already rushing towards him before he even finished the sentence. She picked up his large form, and his weapon, with surprising ease and reappeared behind Alex just as quickly. Allie moved to Henry’s side without having to be asked. With a flash of yellow aether already jumping from her hand and into his body. “Test blows?” Eric asked? He nodded in response. Eric gave the command, and everyone followed. Instead of landing full-force strikes, they started to probe the beast carefully, hitting just enough to force the chimera to move and react, but not enough to give it a massive reserve of redirected power. Holly’s wind slashes skimmed its sides while Garret’s shield nudged claws away without full commitment. Peter and Lance sliced at angles that minimized the force behind their weapons. Even Tom-Tom took their lead, his rock-encased ladles found glancing strikes rather than direct hits. For a moment, it seemed to work. The chimera swung and missed a claw, leaving it spinning briefly as the team pulled back to get ready to strike again, but the beast adapted faster than they’d hoped. The creature settled its center of gravity, its muscles tensing and the water around its body rippling faster and faster. It undulated in synchronized waves. Now it wasn’t attacking immediately. Instead, it stayed in place with the shimmering liquid layer vibrating with potential energy. Obby spoke up in his mind, “ Look, meatboy! It’s keeping its water moving. The orbiting the water builds up momentum around itself and charges it up! ” Alex groaned internally as his eyes followed the pattern. Obby was right. As it turned out the boss didn’t need their attacks to generate force, it was doing that all its own. “It’s just storing up energy and holding it,” he yelled over the momentary din. “It’s getting ready for a large attack!” The team froze for a fraction of a second, understanding dawning on them. Every cycle the water orbited around the beast’s body built the reservoir of destructive force it was holding. Soon it would l