Death's Disciple [Sys Apoc, OP Villain MC, LitRPG] Chapter 44: 1.44 Tauntaun

Read chapter 44 of Death's Disciple [Sys Apoc, OP Villain MC, LitRPG] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

1.44 Tauntaun Chapter 44 A blood bullet whistled from over my shoulder and punched through the Tikkari guard to my left, I think his name was Bek. That might have mattered, if I cared. If he wasn’t trying to stab me with a spear, if he wasn’t trying to stop me from killing the massive desert beast standing between me and sweet gamer loot. Bek’s chest—or maybe it was Birk—exploded inward on itself, as the blood bullet pierced out the other side, and then into the neck of the guard behind him. The second guard’s neck was pulverized, and his head fell listless to the side, freed of his body. A shocked expression was on his face as his head—no, this one was named Birk, I remember now—thudded softly on the sands. [You Have Slain Tikkari Guard - Lvl 5] [You Have Slain Tikkari Guard - Lvl 6] “Fennir, Kezir!” Tiklik shouted in sadness as he watched the two guards die. Kezir? Fennir? Wow, I was way off. I spun around, my sword hand lashing outward and releasing a sudden surge of mana from the blade just as the Karlac’s claw barreled toward me. My mana brought the beast’s attack to a stop and threw its limb back despite the hulking monster’s superior strength. Two new blood bullets were spun up and launched right after, each piercing into the Karlac’s meaty face. With a roar, the monster swung again, and I dodged the blow by jumping back, saving the mana that I would have needed to block. The beast’s attack went wide, and I slipped back in to cut along its forearm for the tenth time, creating yet another bleeding line in its limb. The back swing had me jumping back once again, making me feel far more like a pinball in a machine than a Hunter. Another Tikkari guard tried closing in on me from behind. They jabbed at me with their spear, and I sidestepped the weapon in a flash of movement. My foot cracked open their skull a split second later. [You Have Slain Tikkari Guard - Lvl 6] “Bek!” Kliktik shouted. Oooh, that was Bek. The pounding shake of the ground warned me of the Karlac charging at me once more and I leapt away to avoid it. Truly, my pinball combat strategy wasn’t as effective as I’d like, but I knew that any direct hit by the massive creature would probably spell my doom. Maybe it wouldn’t kill me outright, but leave me injured enough that death would be coming soon after. I landed lightly on the sands while a building was pulverised by the monster’s charge. “Hold him, all of you!” Five of the guards appeared at once and jumped at me. Their weapons had been cast aside, each of them reaching out as if to literally grab on and hold me in place. It was a bizarre tactic, and it caught me by surprise just enough that two managed to grab hold of my legs, one wrapping their arms around my waist. That’s when I heard the Boom! Followed by the whistle. I looked up, my eyes widening as I saw the red hot metal ball careening down towards me. I raised my hands and flooded my mana through my arms into the air. [Mana Shaping] activated, forming a sheet above my head. I knew it wasn’t enough, not even close. I formed another sheet, and then another on top of that. Then I pulled at the edges, forming a sloped dome from the flat constructs. [ Skill Progress, Mana Shaping -> Lvl 10 Beginner Skill threshold me—] I swiped away the screen. Not enough! I injected more mana into the barriers using the influx to interlace smaller panels in between the three layers, effectively stitching them together like a honeycomb. I added a fourth layer over it all, before sloping that panel along with the others. I didn’t have anymore time, the ball struck my defenses, and light flashed across my vision. The noise was deafening, a sudden explosive bang sounded and then silence, followed by a high pitched keening that left me dazed. Dust filled the air once the flash died away, making it still impossible to see what had happened. I didn’t feel any pain, and I felt like I was still standing. Looking down, I could still see the Tikkari holding onto my waist and legs.