Sharp, hooked claws swept swiftly overhead like venomous serpents striking.
Had Ruboo not reacted swiftly, scooping up Zoe and Madison and rolling them to safety, their skulls would likely have been split cleanly in two.
When the trio scrambled back to their feet, a massive black shadow loomed before them.
Ruboo frowned as he looked up.
Bathed in moonlight, a humanoid crocodile creature—with a massive crocodile head, scaled hide, and a thick, long tail—glared at them, its gaping maw full of razor-sharp teeth twisted into a savage grin.
"So crocodile men really do exist," Zoe murmured, staring in disbelief.
"Where's its fuck organ?" Madison's immediate concern was this.
Noticing the Containment Log in his mind emitting a crimson glow, signalling a new arrival, Ruboo's face showed no sign of delight.
Dozens more guns were still to come.
He barked, "Madison, mind control!"
"Got it!"
Madison immediately fixed her gaze upon the crocodilian.
Instantly, its perception was briefly altered. The crocodile man, now compelled to stand motionless, faltered.
Seizing the moment, Ruboo drew his Glock and fired a shot straight into the crocodile man's head.
Bang!
Scales shattered, and dark green blood flowed out.
One piece of good news, one piece of bad news.
The good news was that, judging by the crocodile man's reaction, the bullet posed a threat to him, unlike the previous wraiths and minotaurs who had completely ignored the firearm.
The bad news was that the crocodile man had broken free from the mind control early, raising his arm just in time to take the shot instead of his head.
"Its mental resistance is far stronger than that of a normal human," Madison frowned, explaining swiftly.
"Again!"
Every second of control counts.
Ruboo attempted the same tactic again, preparing to coordinate with Madison once more.
The crocodile man shot them a wary glance before vanishing into the darkness in a flash.
The recent skirmish had startled it.
Yet it did not stray far.
Realising these sacrifices were unusual and that confronting them alone posed significant danger, it lingered near Ruboo and the others for the time being, constantly harassing them to allow the followers behind to catch up and subdue them together.
"Cunning beast!"
Though Ruboo understood the crocodile man's intentions, on its home turf and with poor visibility, he found himself momentarily unable to act.
Fortunately, after such a long chase, the cultists trailing behind had become scattered due to exhaustion, stretching into a long, drawn-out line.
He would no longer face dozens of guns at once.
"Time to finish them off!"
Realising that continuing to flee in this desolate wilderness without any supplies would lead to no good end, Ruboo halted his steps. Seizing the moment while the cultists had become a disorganised mess, he prepared to take them down one by one.
"It's about time!"
Madison gave a cold smile, turned back, and flicked a finger towards the nearest cultist, who was shouting excitedly.
In an instant!
With utter bewilderment and terror etched across his face, the cultist hurtled towards her, utterly beyond his control.
"Devil... devil!"
Staring at the stunningly beautiful Madison before him, the once fervent cultist turned deathly pale, his voice trembling as he stammered.
"A cultist accusing others of being devils? Quite amusing."
Madison swept her hand through the air.
Snap!
The man's neck snapped a full 360 degrees, dead as a doornail.
"You know how to use a gun, don't you?"
Madison nonchalantly retrieved the shotgun from the corpse's hand and handed it to Zoe.
"Of course."
Zoe glanced at the gruesomely killed man before deftly handling the shotgun.
Don't be fooled by her delicate appearance—she was quite capable of playing human jigsaw puzzles in the morgue.
Killing or being killed was simply a matter requiring no hesitation whatsoever.
Ruboo and the young witches launched their counterattack.
Facing bullets, psychic blasts, flames, and mind-control harassment, the fastest cultists didn't even get a chance to gasp before being swiftly dispatched.
Before the stragglers could react, Ruboo and her two companions charged forward. Amidst the bewildered expressions of those who'd foolishly baited themselves, they swiftly overwhelmed the cultists.
Before long, a terrified survivor finally cried out, "Witches! They're witches with devilish powers!"
"Quite right,"
Madison turned to the speaker.
The latter's face paled. He hastily dropped his shotgun, clutching his suddenly convulsing neck with both hands to prevent it from jerking backwards.
But it was useless.
Snap.
A breath later, his cervical vertebrae snapped, dead as a doornail.
"But you got one thing wrong. A witch is a witch—there's no devilish element to it."
Now, taste the wrath of the witch, you scum!
The relentless slaughter unleashed Madison's heart, long suppressed by society's rules, into a raging fury.
Her eyes swept across the scene before her.
In an instant!
Licking flames coalesced into a long, fiery dragon, surging forward and spreading rapidly.
But that was not all.
Beside her, Zoe seemed stirred and inspired by Madison's actions.
Her gaze flickered, and identical flames were summoned by her as well.
Under the combined spellcasting of the two witches, agonised screams erupted from the cultists who couldn't dodge in time.
"Ahh... ahh... ahh..."
Their bodies engulfed in flames, transformed into human torches, their frantic struggles proved futile. One by one, they collapsed to the ground, reduced to charred husks.
Further back, the other cultists who had narrowly escaped this ordeal watched the sea of flames ahead and their comrades wailing in agony within it with utter terror.
Old John, who had once recounted the legend of the crocodile men to Zoe at the petrol station, stared dumbstruck at the towering flames. "Good heavens!" he stammered. "What manner of enemy have we provoked?"
It was as if a bucket of cold water had been thrown over them.
No one had ever imagined they would encounter the legendary witch this time.
And one so powerful!
Though many remained, their hearts were frozen with fear. Gone was their earlier fervour; thoughts of flight now filled their minds.
ROAR!!!
Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed through the air.
The cultists' expressions changed abruptly, halting their retreating bodies in their tracks.
"The gods are wrathful! They condemn our cowardice!"
Jonah, the petrol station owner and leader of this cult group, promptly shouted angrily,
"Where is your devotion to the divine! Do you seek to defy His will?"
The crowd frantically shook their heads in unison.
Jonah bellowed: "No retreat! Raise your guns! For God! For our glorious future! Take down those witches—they'll make the finest sacrifices!"
"Blood is blood!"
"Blood is blood!!!"
Years of faith ultimately overcame their fear.
Amidst fervent prayers, the remaining cultists, faces set in resolve, charged once more under Jonah's leadership.
At the same moment, the crocodile-man who had issued the command to the cultists also sprang into action.