"Defense!" Bang roared, retreating immediately and drawing arcs with his palms, creating an invisible barrier of energy to block the incoming venom.
Atomic Samurai's sword light danced impenetrably, slicing and evaporating the venom.
Flash's figure flickered rapidly, avoiding the venom's coverage area.
Superalloy Darkshine, relying on his indestructible body, withstood the attack head-on. The venom splashed on him with a "hissing" sound but could not truly corrode his defenses.
But other heroes were not so lucky.
Some heroes who couldn't dodge in time were hit by the venom, immediately screaming as their armor and skin were rapidly corroded.
Automatic turrets and heavy weapons, covered in venom, also malfunctioned and smoked.
The heroes' offensive stalled.
Gouketsu seized the opportunity to catch his breath, roaring as he lunged at Superalloy Darkshine again. The two collided like giant beasts, exchanging bone-jarring blows with dull thuds.
Centipede Elder, taking advantage of this brief chaos, rapidly burrowed into the ground, attempting to escape the battlefield.
"Don't even think about running!" Tatsumaki snapped, unleashing her Telekinesis at full power, forcibly grabbing Centipede Elder's tail and trying to pull it out of the ground!
Centipede Elder struggled wildly, its tail carapace emitting a grating cracking sound under the immense force, but it still sank deeper into the ground little by little.
Bang, Atomic Samurai, and Flash wanted to help but were entangled by Gouketsu and the resurging Monster army.
Gouketsu, ignoring Superalloy Darkshine's fierce attacks, endured the damage and frantically blocked the three heroes.
The battle once again fell into a stalemate.
Inside the command center, Sitch nervously stared at the screen: "Drive Knight! Is there any way to stop it from burrowing?"
Drive Knight analyzed, "Unless Tatsumaki can completely restrain it, or there's a burrowing unit of comparable scale to intercept it."
Sitch abruptly looked towards Muzan in the corner but ultimately gritted his teeth and refrained from requesting his help again.
On the left wing's bridge pier, Muzan calmly watched everything unfold, with no ripples in the depths of his crimson eyes.
Akaza couldn't help but step forward: "Lord Muzan, can we not go yet?"
"Wait," Muzan interrupted him indifferently, "Our mission is not this."
Just as most of Centipede Elder's body had burrowed underground and Tatsumaki's Telekinesis was about to lose its full grip, a dazzling golden beam of light suddenly descended from the sky, precisely striking the exposed wound on Centipede Elder's tail!
Boom!
The violent explosion blew Centipede Elder's tail into a bloody mess, forcing its burrowing movement to stop.
It was Genos's high-output Incineration Cannon!
"Teacher! Please buy me some time!" Genos shouted to Saitama, the energy indicator on his mechanical arm lighting up again.
"Oh." Saitama casually punched away several flying Monster trying to approach Genos, standing in front of him.
Tatsumaki seized the opportunity, her Telekinesis erupting again. Combined with Genos's attack, she finally managed to forcibly drag a large section of Centipede Elder out of the ground again!
Seeing this, Atomic Samurai and Flash simultaneously broke free from their entanglement and rushed towards Centipede Elder's exposed body again. Sword light and stabs precisely landed on the previous wounds, further expanding their advantage.
Bang fully engaged Gouketsu, preventing him from having a chance to assist.
Superalloy Darkshine also roared, trading blows with Gouketsu, his heavy fists continuously smashing into his opponent.
Under the combined assault of the heroes, Centipede Elder and Gouketsu were completely put on the defensive, only able to rely on their powerful defense and regeneration to struggle, with signs of defeat already showing.
Centipede Elder's screams echoed across the battlefield. Its massive body was tightly bound by Tatsumaki's Telekinesis, and each struggle was accompanied by the grating sound of its carapace cracking.
Gouketsu's situation was equally dire. Under the siege of Bang, Atomic Samurai, Flash, and Superalloy Darkshine, new wounds constantly appeared on his massive body. Despite his powerful regeneration, he gradually couldn't keep up with the rate of injury.
"Lord Allen, what exactly are you waiting for?" Gouketsu gritted his teeth, enduring a heavy punch from Superalloy Darkshine, a dull thud of bone fracturing coming from his chest.
His four eyes anxiously scanned the battlefield, but he still couldn't see that figure.
Centipede Elder's compound eyes were also filled with anxiety.
It had originally thought that with the newly appeared Monster King, they could easily destroy the Hero Association's defenses, but it hadn't expected to be caught in such a bitter struggle.
Tatsumaki's Telekinesis tightened like invisible giant pincers, almost suffocating it.
"Damn it, if this continues…" Centipede Elder twisted its body with difficulty, trying to burrow underground and escape, but Tatsumaki's Telekinesis firmly locked onto it. Every attempt only caused its carapace to crack further.
On the other side of the battlefield, countless small heads split from Black Sperm were whispering in the underground passage.
"It seems to be a fierce fight up there~"
"Gouketsu and Centipede Elder seem to be in a tough battle~"
"Why hasn't Master Allen ordered us to attack yet?"
"If we wait any longer, those two idiots might get beaten down~"
Black Sperm's main body leaned lazily against the passage wall, countless small heads simultaneously showing helpless expressions: "Seriously, what exactly is Master Allen planning? Making us wait here."
On the surface, the Monster army's offensive noticeably weakened. Low-level Monster, seeing their leaders in a tough fight, began to waver. Some Monster even started to retreat, no longer daring to charge forward.
"Hold the line! No retreating!" Hellfire Flame roared, flames erupting around him, burning several attempting-to-escape Monster to ashes. "Lord Allen must have his plan!"
Gale Wind used air currents to sweep several retreating Monster back to the front line, his voice cold: "Those who desert in battle die."
But under the increasingly fierce attacks of the heroes, the Monster army's front line continued to retreat.
Inside the command center, Sitch nervously stared at the screen, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
"Strange, why hasn't Allen appeared yet?" He muttered to himself, his fingers unconsciously tapping the control panel, "Does he have some other plan?"
Bang, while maneuvering with Gouketsu, said in a low voice through the communicator: "Don't let your guard down, that child Allen must be observing in the dark, waiting for the best moment."
Atomic Samurai slashed Gouketsu's arm, sending sparks flying: "Hmph, playing mind games! If you're capable, come out and fight head-on!"
Flash moved like a phantom around Gouketsu, constantly attacking his joints and old wounds, silently but efficiently.
Superalloy Darkshine, meanwhile, took Gouketsu's heavy punches head-on, each collision producing a deafening roar: "No matter what his plan is, let's deal with the enemy in front of us first!"
On the left wing's overpass pier, Muzan quietly watched the battlefield, with no ripples in his crimson eyes.
Akaza couldn't help but step forward again: "Lord Muzan, Gouketsu and Centipede Elder are almost unable to hold on, are we really not going to intervene?"
Kokushibou's six eyes rotated simultaneously, his hand gripping his sword hilt tightly, clearly also somewhat impatient.
Muzan gently shook his head, his voice calm: "Wait for the Ancestor's command."
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Greyhounds
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"