Flora, the second female member of the team, glared at Zayen venomously from the side, her eyes sharp and dangerous. "Wave, why waste words with him? Let's all attack him together. I want him dead!"
Hearing Flora's shriek, Zayen snorted coldly, his gaze sweeping over the group. "Alright," he said, voice calm but carrying an edge of menace. "Did you hear what that woman said? Come at me together… and I'll send you on your way!"
"Damn it! This guy is simply too arrogant!"
The teammate wielding the long sword finally snapped. He gritted his teeth, gripping his weapon tightly, and lunged toward Zayen.
The moment he moved, sword energy surged outward like a blade of winter itself, freezing the air around him. The surrounding temperature dropped sharply, frost forming along the edges of nearby leaves.
It was clear. To have reached the Advanced Magic Beast Area, this swordsman's skill was far from ordinary.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Zayen, sword raised high. "Die, kid!" he roared, swinging with deadly intent.
Seeing the long sword about to slash at Zayen's head, this person's face showed a hint of excitement.
"Crack!" "Whoosh!"
Zayen's lips curled into a faint, almost mocking smile. In an instant, a golden shield materialized beside him, shimmering with an otherworldly light.
The long sword crashed against it with a deafening clang, the force reverberating through the clearing. Sparks flew as the metal edge struck the unyielding shield.
The player's eyes widened in sheer terror as he realized his attack had been effortlessly blocked. His pupils contracted as he instinctively tried to retreat.
But Zayen didn't allow even a fraction of escape. With a single, precise motion, he delivered a powerful kick that sent the player hurtling backwards through the air.
Not stopping there, Zayen effortlessly swung Terra, still in his grip, and propelled her toward the staggering player with brutal force. The two collided with a tree in a sickening crash, the impact shaking the surrounding branches.
Before either could recover or hit the ground, a golden sword shot through the air like lightning, piercing both Terra and the player, nailing them firmly against the tree trunk.
Everything happened so fast that the others didn't even have time to react. Their mouths opened in shock, but no sound came out.
The third strongest person in the team couldn't even withstand one move from Zayen and was directly nailed to a tree together with Terra.
Powerful.
Bloody.
At this moment Flora couldn't help but swallow; she suddenly felt that opposing Zayen seemed a bit unwise.
If even their third strongest teammate couldn't even withstand one move from Zayen, then what about her, who was the weakness in the team?
"Damn it! All of you, attack together! This guy is too powerful. He has even killed Wild and Terra."
Wave waved his hand, signaling everyone to attack together. He stared at Zayen with extremely sinister eyes, his killing intent towards Zayen completely undisguised.
Seeing this stance, Zayen shrugged and looked at Wave and the others with cold eyes.
"I'm to chop you to death."
His form began to shift violently. Muscles expanded, bones stretched, and his stature grew taller and more imposing. Long white hair sprouted across his body, flowing like a silken mane, while a long, powerful tail whipped behind him.
Within mere seconds, Wave had transformed completely—his human form replaced by a towering white werewolf, radiating raw, feral power.
"Kid! You killed two of my teammates. Today, you will surely die!"
As Wave finished speaking, his entire being, carrying endless terror, shot towards Zayen.
His speed was extremely fast; in just an instant, he appeared before Zayen.
"Moonshadow Claw!"
Murong Aotian roared, and a massive claw, crackling with white-hot energy, slashed through the air toward him, leaving a faint trail of silver light in its wake.
"Kid, you've completely enraged me. Die for me!"
Wave's enraged strike; its power was self-evident.
Zayen was a little surprised. He hadn't expected Wave to play like this. He immediately said, "Do you think turning into a beast can defeat me?"
He held the Blacksteel Katana, his clothes flapping in the wind. Looking at the massive claw, he snorted coldly and instantly mobilized the spirit energy within his body.
"Divine Manipulation!"
In an instant, a golden shield materialized, intercepting Wave's attack with a resounding clang. The shockwave rippled through the surrounding trees, shaking leaves and scattering birds in all directions.
"Wave! I will boost your power!"
Seeing that Wave's attack had been blocked so effortlessly, the others did not remain idle either. The shock from earlier had already turned into desperate resolve. If they didn't go all out now, they would die here.
Flora was the first to react. Her eyes flashed with determination as she clasped her hands together, green light beginning to radiate from her body.
"Love of Mother!"
A gentle yet powerful aura burst outward from her figure, spreading like a warm spring breeze. Soft emerald light wrapped around Wave's massive werewolf body, seeping into his muscles, bones, and blood.
This was one of the skills she had gained from her talent—a C-grade support ability that increased all stats by twenty points.
Wave threw his head back and roared as the power surged through him. His already towering body swelled further, veins bulging beneath thick white fur. The golden light around him intensified, becoming sharper and more violent.
The ground beneath his claws cracked.
His crimson eyes burned as he locked onto Zayen once more.
"You won't block this one."
With a deafening growl, Wave lowered his body like a true predator preparing to hunt—then vanished in a burst of speed, faster and more ferocious than before.
The long-haired teammate had already begun moving.
His figure blurred—then split into three identical bodies.
Each one gripped a sword, surrounding Zayen from different angles as they attacked simultaneously. Sword light flashed in three directions, cutting off every possible escape route.
At the same time, the remaining two didn't hesitate.
One roared as lightning gathered violently around his body. Arcs of electricity crackled across his arms, illuminating the forest in flashing blue-white bursts. The smell of ozone filled the air as he thrust his palm forward.
"Thunderfall Strike!"
A bolt of condensed lightning shot toward Zayen like a descending spear of judgment.
The last teammate extended both hands, eyes glowing faintly azure. Water from the nearby stream trembled—then surged into the air, twisting into sharp spirals.
With a sweeping motion, he condensed it into spinning water blades.
"Riptide Sever!"
The water blades shot forward, slicing through the air with terrifying speed.
In an instant, attacks from every direction closed in—
Facing the overwhelming assault of five empowered opponents at once, Zayen simply stood there—calm.
Zayen calmly pulled the Blacksteel Katana into his hand.
Then—
With a sudden, explosive kick, he struck the flat of the blade with terrifying force.
The katana shot forward like a black comet.
It moved even faster than Wave's charge—faster than the lightning spear and the water blades tearing through the air.
The sword flashed past Wave so quickly that even in his werewolf form, he only caught a glimpse of a dark shadow slicing through his vision.
"What?!"
The water controller's expression changed instantly when he saw the blade flying toward him.
He hurriedly twisted his body, forcibly shifting his center of gravity and barely dodging the strike. The katana whistled past his shoulder, slicing a strand of hair and embedding itself deep into a distant tree trunk.
He exhaled in relief—
But in the very next second, everyone's expression changed.
Because Zayen—who had been trapped in the center of their combined attack range—had vanished.
Completely.
The lightning spear struck empty air.
The three sword phantoms sliced through nothing.
Wave's claws tore through afterimages.
The water controller suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Cold.
Deadly.
Instinct screamed.
He hurriedly turned around—
And under his horrified gaze, a figure was already standing behind him.
Zayen.
With the Blacksteel Katana in his hand.
The blade passed directly before his eyes—so close he could see his own reflection in its dark surface.
For a fraction of a second, everything seemed still.
Then—
His vision tilted.
The world spun.
A head rolled onto the forest floor, eyes still wide with disbelief.
A headless body remained standing for a heartbeat…
Before collapsing heavily to the ground.
Silence.
Broken only by the soft thud of the severed head rolling to the side.