Six-Armed Serpent Demon

Page 125

A deafening roar came from behind.

The magical explosion sent water spraying several meters high, instantly turning the sea a yellowish-green color with the strong acid that had hit it—the spell was originally a "Fireball," but the caster had somehow replaced the fire element with strong acid. If Sink hadn't turned in time and continued flying straight, he would have been corroded to the bone by now!

As Sink ran for his life, he quickly looked up and glanced around.

He saw three giant ravens circling slowly in the sky to his side and behind him. The three knights riding on their backs were none other than three dragon-born wizards!

Chapter 161 Stirring Up the Storm

“Finally caught it,” Zacharsa said with utter disgust, “that damned rat.”

This is the central peak of the largest island in the rocky atoll, and also the naval base of the Invincible Fleet.

The admiral stood atop the mountain, watching with smug satisfaction as the damned flying rat gradually met its end, feeling a sense of relief that he had finally gotten his revenge.

He turned to Joko Widodo, who was standing behind him, and said, "Thank you for your help."

Fleet intelligence officer and flagship captain Joko bowed to the general.

The Invincible Armada suffered a night attack by a bomber squadron and lost its leader. How to defend against and counterattack the enemy in the air became Zachasa's top priority.

Zachara's idea was robust and simple: to build his own air force and fight air force against air force.

Therefore, this task was naturally assigned to the newly appointed flagship captain, Joko.

Joko spent an entire day carefully reviewing the battle that night.

He judged that the enemy was fast-moving and possessed powerful firepower, but it seemed that most of them did not have the ability to cast spells.

The day after the night raid, Joko Widodo submitted his report.

He suggested recruiting followers of the Red Dragon Lord as knights and procuring flying mounts from other city-states. In particular, the recruited followers must be skilled spellcasters; if priests of the Red Dragon Lord could not be recruited, at least members of the most loyal dragon-sorcerer families of Hesrati should be chosen.

Zacharsa approved it.

At that time, the Invincible Fleet was still on its way to the coastal city-state of Kyogo.

However, both recruiting and training flying knights and procuring flying mounts would take time. Before Zachasa could establish an air force, they discovered traces of Ivy-Beate and her group in the coastal city-state.

The world of Abel lacks Sun Tzu's Art of War, and the fiery temperament of the Red Dragon's blood makes it impossible for Zachasa, who lost his eldest son, to understand the meaning of "a lord should not wage war in anger, nor a general in resentment." Thus, the invincible fleet first confronted the silver dragon Georgrosia, crashing headlong into the silver dragon's earthly kingdom, suffering heavy losses and returning in defeat.

However, when Zachara retreated to the atoll base at sea, he received good news: the first batch of air force was assembled and rushed to the atoll base to join the Invincible Fleet.

Because it was in its early stages, the flying mounts hastily procured were of varying quality: three giant crows, a griffin, a giant owl, a giant eagle, and a wyvern. However, the recruited spellcaster knights were quite strong, with a total of eight dragons, including two priests and six warlocks, all of whom were mid- to high-level spellcasters.

That's enough.

Because the mounts' flight speeds were inconsistent and they couldn't coordinate effectively, Zoko initially grouped the three giant raven riders into a combat team. The others would be used as skirmishers for the time being, to be dealt with later when more flying riders were recruited.

Just then, they unexpectedly discovered Sink, who was lowering his altitude to gather intelligence.

Thus, this operation to capture Sink became a tactical exercise for the newly established air force of the Invincible Fleet.

At this point, Sink felt he was about to be finished.

He had initially been determined to break free of the fleet's encirclement and retreat back into the clouds. However, upon seeing the three giant raven riders overhead who could cast spells, he immediately realized that it was a death wish.

The spellcasters on the backs of the three giant crows were using magic to drive him toward the outer edge of the fleet.

Just as they were about to break through the fleet's encirclement, a vast expanse of blue stretched out before them.

Sink suddenly turned around, ignoring the rain of arrows and magic flying around, and flew back to the warships.

The three spellcasters in the sky are currently hesitant to act rashly, fearing they might harm their own people. That's why he can barely hide using the warship as cover. But if he breaks out, they won't hold back. At that point, whether at sea, on land, or high in the sky, as long as he enters open space, they will definitely unleash a massive attack to kill him!

Zachasa saw it from the top of the reef island; the dragon's face, covered in scales, showed no expression.

"He does have a bit of cleverness," he commented.

In this way, the five flying skirmishers assigned to patrol the perimeter would be unnecessary.

Joko said calmly, "General, I request permission to deploy our main air force force."

Zacharsa nodded.

Zoko took a magic whistle from his jacket pocket, put it to his lips, and blew it. A silent sound wave spread through the air.

Water splashes.

Sink skimmed the surface of the sea once again, almost touching the warship's hull.

There were far fewer flying arrows and magic spells in front of and behind him.

Sink breathed a slight sigh of relief.

This distance made it too easy for the warships to be affected, so the enemies on the opposing ship were difficult to attack, while the enemies on the warship he was close to couldn't attack him either. The three giant raven riders also found it difficult to make a move.

He had a slim chance of survival, but still didn't know how to escape danger.

Just then, he heard a strange sound.

It was like a song, indescribably beautiful, captivating and mesmerizing…

Sink forgot everything, his brain felt tingly, and he subconsciously flew towards the direction from which the singing was coming.

However, the next second, a sharp pain in his chest and abdomen brought him back to his senses.

Sink, regaining his senses, was horrified to see an arrow lodged in his left side. Not only that, but a dense rain of arrows was flying from both sides of the warships—he had unknowingly climbed to the same height as the deck.

He dared not draw the arrow and turned back to dive.

However, that strange voice rang in his ears again.

Just as his mind was about to fade away again, Sink gripped the arrow shaft stuck in his wound and spun it hard!

He screamed and regained consciousness.

The half-red dragon Grandal's regenerative abilities are comparable to those of a troll. If Sinker were to pull out the arrow, the wound would heal quickly. That's why he left the arrow inside his body.

The excruciating pain made Sink resist the strange sound. He continued to skim along the surface of the sea and the sides of the warships while looking up at the source of the sound.

Before anyone knew it, the three giant raven riders had flown even higher.

Instead, dozens of winged figures appeared in the air behind them. They chased after them, flapping their feathered wings and emitting strange cries.

“Harpy,” Sink gritted his teeth, continuing his rapid flight without looking back, “Damn it, it’s a harpy!”

Arrows rained down from behind. The harpies had caught up, each armed with a crossbow, short swords, and javelins.

Sink was caught off guard and was hit by two arrows in the back, and then by a harpy javelin on his left flank.

He dodged attacks from his pursuers while desperately flapping his wings to keep himself from falling into the water. He feared that the high-ranking raven rider would cast an "ice-freezing spell" and freeze him alive in the sea.

For the first time, he hated how weak his spellcasting ability was: if only he could teleport instantly like his mistress.

But he no longer had time to think about anything else.

A harpy behind him suddenly unleashed a net that slammed into Sink's head, instantly ensnaring his membranous wings. Entangled in the net, he plunged headfirst into the sea.

At the summit, Joko Widodo lowered the whistle to summon the harpies.

“It’s over,” he said.

Zacharsa nodded.

He was very satisfied with the result.

The flying knights capable of casting spells are only part of Zoko's plan, representing the high-end combat force of the Invincible Fleet's air force. He also recruited a large number of harpies as ordinary flying soldiers. While these winged races lack the powerful magical firepower of the flying knights, they are more agile and can chant "bewitching songs," making them highly effective at disrupting the enemy.

Judging from the results, this tactical rehearsal was very successful.

"Well done, it's yours now."

"Do whatever you want with him," Zacharsa said. "I need to get everything he knows out of this rat."

"As ordered."

A look of hatred flashed in Joko's eyes.

Clingondo, my brother.

Joko looked up at the sky and silently thought: You wait, watch me collect some interest for you first... Hmm?

He suddenly realized that the clouds above his head had changed at some point.

Cumulus clouds were gathering from all directions at an unimaginable speed. The cloud layers continued to pile up and thicken, their color rapidly changing from white to black. They swirled above the rocky atoll, forming a massive vortex. The clouds intertwined and rubbed against each other, and flashes of lightning could be faintly seen in the clouds.

Joko's pupils contracted to two lines.

As a psychic, his most frequently used psychic ability is "danger perception." This ability, which enhances intuition, allows Joko to sense danger before he even encounters it.

Joko stood there, stunned.

At that moment, a word clearly came to mind.

This term is "catastrophic disaster".

Chapter 162 Sweeping Away the Tunnel

The seventh-level spell "Weather Manipulation" is a spell with mediocre practical effects because of its extremely long casting animation.

This spell takes a full ten minutes from chanting the incantation to successfully casting it. But it's not over yet; after successfully casting the spell, you still have to wait another ten minutes for it to take effect.

During these twenty minutes, you could be discovered, interrupted, or have your spell countered at any time.

However, there's a distance between detecting magical fluctuations and recognizing magic, and there's also a distance between countering or dispelling that magic. If you can't even see the caster, there's no way you can recognize or dispel the magic.

The spell's range is unusually large, extending to a spherical area with a radius of two miles centered on the caster—that is, a radius of [missing information - likely kilometers].

Therefore, someone like Ivy Beate, using the "mortal form" skill to transform into the half-red dragon Grandal, could quietly fly above the clouds, kilometers above the sea, and perform "weather manipulation" without being noticed by the ships and people on the reef islands below, not even by the knights riding the giant raven.

No one's line of sight can penetrate hundreds of meters of cloud cover.

So by the time Joko noticed the unusual changes in the celestial phenomena, she had not only completed the spell, but the magic had also begun to take effect.

At this point, everyone realized something was wrong.

The sunlight disappeared.

The wind grew stronger, and the waves in the bay within the atoll rose higher and higher. Even large warships with four or five masts began to rock with the waves.

In just a few seconds, the gloomy sky turned into complete darkness. This was because countless clouds and water vapor, under the influence of the cyclone, gathered into larger cloud clusters, forming dark clouds that blotted out the sun.

"Damn it! It's weather manipulation!"

Admiral Zachasa leaned close to Zoko and roared, "Tell our flying knights to dispel this damned magic!"

Joko shouted back, "We can't undo the spell because we can't find the caster!"

This isn't about being rude; it's just that at this point, even speaking face-to-face is useless. Unless you shout right into the other person's ear, they simply won't hear what they're saying.

The range and area of ​​"dispelling magic" are very limited; it's useless if the caster can't be found. Other spells that can alter wind force have too small a range, making them negligible against such a large-scale storm.

The only solution is to use "weather manipulation" again to turn the storm into a gentle breeze and drizzle.

So when the mind mage Zoko noticed the weather was off, he immediately used telepathy to communicate with the flying knights, instructing them to cast spells to "control the weather." He also told them to use any magic scrolls they had, as this would save ten minutes of casting time.

The flying knight did as instructed and successfully used the magic scroll that "manipulated the weather".

But this damn magic still needs to wait ten minutes to take effect!

Accompanied by intense lightning and thunder, the hurricane unleashed a torrential downpour, blinding everyone. The raven riders and harpies flying in the air were instantly swept away by the storm and flung to who-knows-where. One of the raven riders crashed to the foot of the hill where Zachasa and his companions stood, a mangled mess of flesh stuck to the rocks.

"We're out of time!"

Joko's voice, now trembling with despair, cried out, "Teleport and retreat immediately, General!"

"Get out of here my ass!"

Zachasa's eyes were bloodshot, and he wished he could slap the flagship captain to death.

He and a few spellcasters could teleport to another city, but could the entire Invincible Fleet teleport away?

Without the fleet, am I still a navy admiral?!

But he was helpless; he had already exhausted his more powerful magical items when facing the silver dragon, such as the magic ring he secretly kept to store "wish spells." There was simply no way to replenish such rare items in the short term.

At that moment, the air began to swirl rapidly at an ever-increasing speed. The air in the bay was filled with surging waves and wispy water vapor.

The swirling storm whipped up waves several meters high, and it was getting even stronger.

Zachasa watched with utter horror as two massive battleships, having come too close, collided with each other, emitting a piercing groan. The other warships tossed about on the waves, equally in grave danger.

Joko shouted, "General, look!"

His voice was no longer just filled with despair, but with terror.

Zachara looked up and followed the direction Joko was pointing.