In short, with all early preparations complete, it was finally time to eradicate the source of pollution here!
Charles took a deep breath, steadied his mind, then walked up to the stele. Placing a hand on its surface, he silently intoned, "Purified!"
A purifying white light flared atop the stele, and the blood-red Abyssal inscriptions dissolved at rapid speed.
He had no idea if this thing would still yield him some Purification Points, but it was worth a try, no matter what.
As the blood inscriptions faded from the stele, the earth beneath his feet began to tremble. At first it was just a faint vibration, but soon the entire cavern started to shake. Stalactites hanging from the ceiling shuddered as if ready to shatter and fall at any moment.
The suspicion was confirmed. There truly was a Chthonian here!
Willo’s expression shifted dramatically, and she cried in alarm, "Careful! The Chthonian is coming!"
Charles’s face hardened, but at these words he stood his ground, neither fearful nor retreating, channeling the force of purification into the stele— This update is available on N0velFire.ɴet
As the last blood rune disappeared, an even more terrifying quake erupted below. An intense sense of crisis gripped his chest, and almost instinctively, he incanted the Shield spell: "Shield!"
An unseen barrier of magic instantly enveloped him. In the very next instant, a monstrous entity—two meters thick, its surface radiating scorching heat, crowned with countless tentacles—burst from the rock beneath his feet!
Caught off guard, Charles was hurled upward despite the magical Shield, the titanic impact slamming him into the air!
At the same time, the creature’s tentacles lashed toward him. Though these physical strikes were stopped by the shield, the intense heat at such close range nearly seared through his clothing, and he was consumed by agony.
He spun through the air amidst flying debris, crashing heavily to the ground and feeling the world spin, barely able to stand back up.
As the Chthonian revealed itself, Anno, despite the monstrous foe and falling rocks, cried out in panic and darted to his side. She dropped to one knee and pressed her hand to him, "Lay on Hands!"
Golden holy light surged into his body. The battered and dizzy Charles felt relief at once and croaked, "Cough—I’m all right!"
He struggled to his feet; Shield had blocked most of the shock, debris, and fall damage, but the lava-like heat of the Chthonian had badly burned him. Fortunately, the healing light was strong enough, and he hadn’t lost the ability to move.
The others rushed over, gathering not precisely around him but around Anno, to benefit from the Aura of Protection.
By then, the gigantic worm, briefly frozen by Armor of Agathys, squirmed its colossal body uneasily instead of launching another assault.
For the first time, Charles had a moment to observe a true Chthonian in the real world. Its body was like an unimaginably enormous worm—over two meters thick and as much as ten, even nearly twenty meters long; its head bristled with squid-like tentacles used for burrowing through the earth and as deadly weapons in battle.
Because it perpetually moved through subterranean stone, its flesh radiated deadly volcanic heat. The heat was at least as fatal as the brute force of the monster.
Confronted by this Chthonian, everyone was shaken. Only Hattie and Theresa retained composure. Hattie drew a deep breath and called out, "Don’t panic! Its weakness is obvious—use the water we prepared—"
She didn’t finish her sentence before a stabbing headache struck, battered by an urge to lash out wildly at those beside her.
She wasn’t alone—everyone nearby was affected. The middle-aged half-orc of Danche’s tribe dropped to his knees, roaring in pain with his hands clutching his head.
It was the Chthonian’s psychic magic, trying to seize control of them all!
"Hold fast! Don’t let it enslave you!"
Suddenly golden radiance burst from Anno, enveloping everyone in light and causing her silver armor to blaze gold.
In that moment, her voice seemed like a blessing from the heavens, instantly driving the stabbing pain and uncontrollable aggression from the minds of all. Seeing Charles wounded, she took command without hesitation: "Follow our plan—douse it with water!"
Beside her, regaining his senses, Danche growled through clenched teeth, "Monster—just die!"
He hoisted the everflowing water bottle and shouted the activation word: "Geyser!"
A blasting pillar of water shot forth like an unstoppable high-pressure jet, drenching the burrowing worm!
Simultaneously, the middle-aged half-orc hurled a bucket of water; the male satyr and elder half-orc cast cantrips for minor damage; Hattie, Nidalee, and Willo each unleashed a 1st-level Create Water spell, summoning a total of three hundred liters of ice water above the Chthonian from thirty meters away!
The water rained down, catching the spellcasting Chthonian off guard—it clearly hadn’t expected them to withstand its psychic assault and respond with such focused water attacks. Sheets of icy water cascaded down, clouds of steam erupting instantly from its body as it writhed in agony—
Its berserk spasms made the cave tremble violently, stalactites smashing down. Charles, readying another spell, was forced to raise another Shield for protection, and the others all ducked to shield themselves from the falling rocks.
The Chthonian, seizing this chance, spun and retreated down the tunnel at high speed.
The shaking subsided and quiet returned to the cave. Charles looked around—the party was battered but alive.
He breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "At least we’re safe... Anno, is the demon pollution purified? Can you still feel any lingering madness?"
Willo turned her gaze as well, and Anno immediately nodded, "It’s completely purified; we should withdraw!"
Fighting a creature capable of causing earthquakes underground was surely madness. Charles naturally agreed and gestured, "Let’s go—everyone outside!"
Without protest, the group hurried to retrace their steps. But after only a few strides, the earth rumbled again, more strongly with every pulse!
Charles’s face blanched. "Is this thing insane? It knows we have water—why keep attacking ?"
Though Chthonians were spawned through cosmic loopholes, they weren’t idiots. They never sought death needlessly and would always avoid water underground. Having resisted its psychic power and doused it with water, it should have fled!
And yet it hadn’t—perhaps because...
At his side, Willo looked grim. "It’s possible—it truly has lost its mind!"
No sooner had she spoken than a brutal tremor shook the ground. Charles’s face fell and he bellowed, "Scatter!"
As he did, he lunged forward, tackling Anno—the most encumbered in her plate armor—out of harm’s way: "Shield!"
Magic energy enveloped him. The Chthonian burst from the rock once more.
By luck, he wasn’t struck head-on—he was barely clipped by a tentacle, tumbling with Anno to the side.
The rest scattered. Hattie and Theresa soared into the air; Nidalee transformed into a leopard and leapt clear. Willo and the remaining satyrs and half-orcs were less fortunate—while they tried to use magic for protection, the Chthonian’s strength and searing heat left them badly hurt in an instant!
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