"Trapped, captured, this is just like that time." The Boar King muttered as he was crushed by the pressure at the centre of mass formed by the gravitational collapse of two Empyrean Tusks. And when it initiated a fusion reaction, he died.
As the red-hot ball of iron fell to the ground, the Boar King's figure appeared next to it. He lost his second life, causing his cultivation to fall to the minimum.
It could also be expressed as the peak of the Body Stage. Now that he had fallen to such a state, the moment he gets killed, he'll truly die. "But, it doesn't matter. I'll kill them all."
'Gannala is a descendant of the Clan that annihilated my race.' He gritted, 'And these Empyrean Tusks are birthed by her. That makes them my priority target.'
From his spot to the Empyrean Tusk herd, there was a large canyon, forming a straight line. This was created by the 43rd Empyrean Tusk when it fled after swallowing him to commit suicide.
Lava covered the area around the Boar King due to the miniature sun that flashed for a second. The heat it emitted in that short duration melted everything within a twenty-kilometre range. The Zingers beyond that sustained fourth-degree burns, with the weaker ones dying horrid deaths.
"I'm at my last life, but the lot of you are on your last leg." He said and began to sprint towards the Empyrean Tusk herd. Indeed, he was right.
All the Empyrean Tusks barely had enough Prana to not collapse under their weight. The Mammoth Clan masters were exhausted, with a good fraction of them losing enough lives that they regressed to the Body Stage.
In this situation, they didn't have the strength to fight the Boar King. They would merely be sitting ducks before him. Therefore, even though he might sustain a bit of injury from the fight, the Boar King was confident in annihilating everyone, 'It's a waste, but I'll activate a third Internal Inertial Gravity when necessary.'
Right as he was halfway towards reaching his opponents, all 42 surviving Empyrean Tusks suddenly raised their trunks and trumped in unison, "What…"
He was stunned, able to clearly hear their voice.
[Our enemy is here too!]
The Boar King paused and climbed over a mountain before leaping high into the air. With his current strength, he couldn't even move at the speed of sound, not to mention the hypersonic speeds he moved at the start.
He was slow as his figure arrived at a high enough altitude for him to notice a dust cloud charging at him from far away. Upon staring at the dust cloud, his expression twisted in fury, "You…DAMN…TUSKS!"
62 Empyrean Tusks were charging towards him as a pocket of air accelerated from their position. They had already launched an attack in his direction, having detected his position accurately through the fear they felt.
"Shit!" The Boar King stomped on the mountain, causing cracks to form on it as he leaped down and ran away. His full-powered stomp merely cracked the mountain, a clear indication of his reduced strength when at the start, he could casually destroy them.
In such a state, adding 62 more Empyrean Tusks into the fray would guarantee his death. Compressed chunks of earth rained down from the sky like meteors, targeting him as the Boar King dodged them.
"I'll deal with you, soon." He glared in the direction of the dust cloud from which meteors were being shot at him nonstop. The Boar King masked his presence and stealthily ran away, using the maze-like Dieng Canyon's terrain to his advantage.
Soon, the Empyrean Tusks were unable to detect his presence anymore.
As the herd of 62 Empyrean Tusks arrived at the scene, their Mammoth Clan Chief got down and rushed to their rescue. The master closest to him was Bora Tusk as he asked, "How's the damage?"
"Horrible," Bora Tusk seethed in rage, "Two of our Deities were killed. The rest barely have enough Prana to stand. All Mammoth Clan masters lost at least two lives. Some regressed to the Body Stage and the unfortunate few died."
"We've been hit severely." Boar Tusk sighed, "I'm afraid we'll be sitting ducks for the Boar King once he makes a recovery. Him being a cultivator was beyond our expectations."
"We know that information since we faced his attacks plenty of times in recent years." The Chief spoke.
"But we did manage to kill him twice." Bora Tusk gritted his teeth, "He's at his last life. If only we were a little stronger, we could have put an end to him once and for all."
"You killed him…twice?" The Chief was stunned. He turned around to stare at his Empyrean Tusk, surprised to receive confirmation from the latter. It allowed him to observe the group in a new light, "Honestly, I've only heard rumours of there being another herd. I'm pleasantly surprised to witness it myself."
"Same here," Bora Tusk nodded, "We too only heard rumours of there being another herd. I suppose we haven't come across each other due to our non-overlapping routes. Things have become less worrying now."
"You're right about that." The Chief nodded and stopped speaking suddenly, conversing with his Empyrean Tusk. His eyes lit up as he looked around, "Our Deity is saying she's sensing Gannala's presence here."
"Gannala…" Bora Tusk recalled Grehha's words as he said dejectedly, "She's our 44th Empyrean Tusk. She was one of the two Deities that died."
"I see," The Chief nodded, saying, "Originally, when the Boar King appeared, it seems the herd split into three."
"One portion entered the Sandy-Grey Void and left Sumara Continent. The remainder became the current herd I'm a part of." He then stared at Bora Tusk and his group of Settlement Leaders, "The last was formed by Gannala who escaped alone. I truly wonder how she raised so many Empyrean Tusks. That's something even we're struggling to do."
"After many years of effort, we finally had a child. But," He teared up, "the Boar King got to her."
"Still," He sensed Bora Tusk's presence and released killing intent, "It was your people that stole her in the first place. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been possible for the Boar King to kill her."
"If my lowly head could satisfy you, please sate your anger with it." Boar Tusk kneeled, "My Deity was dying. I was desperate. I wasn't even sure if there existed another Empyrean Tusk in the wild. I was grasping at straws."
"Wait, are you saying you don't know how an Empyrean Tusk is born?" The Chief frowned.
"I didn't back then." Bora Tusk said and pointed at Grehha, "But before they sacrificed themselves, our 44th and 43rd Empyrean Tusks left behind their successors."
"Tell me everything from the start," The Chief commanded as he stared at Bora Tusk, "Including your fight with the Boar King."