Chapter 504

Three Hundred Eighty-One: Line Thunder

Southwest suburbs of Tivyán, on a desolate field.

Under the dark sky, the Spider Fang Priest, who had been flying at high speed, suffered an unexpected attack. For some unknown reason, his previously intact head suddenly shattered, his skull penetrated by an invisible force, and his brain matter was splattered. His entire body let out a scream in agony as it fell from the sky.

The bl**d demon with wings fell into the field, crashing heavily onto the barren winter ground, creating a pit in the mud upon impact.

The Spider Fang Priest was flying at an altitude of over seventy meters; had he landed on solid rock, it would likely have created a large bloody splash. Even in the mud, his bones could have shattered completely. Not to mention a normal person, even an ordinary extraordinary being would likely have lost their life in such a fall.

However, the Spider Fang Priest was different. He was a derivative created by a Red Tier extraordinary being using their own bl**d, possessing some characteristics of a Red Tier extraordinary being. Even with his head opened up and after such a heavy fall, he continued to move.

In the muddy pit, the Spider Fang Priest, whose limbs were twisted from the impact, slowly began to stir. A faint bl**d mist enveloped his entire body, and he started to rise from the pit.

Amidst the bl**d mist that spread across him, all the wounds on the Spider Fang Priest were rapidly healing. Not only the numerous abrasions and internal injuries sustained from the fall, but even the seemingly fatal gunshot wound to his head was quickly recovering.

“What… happened… this sudden injury!? Where did it come from!?”

With a serious expression, the Spider Fang Priest covered his now healed temples in disbelief, revealing a look of astonishment that he had never shown before.

Extraordinary beings with the “Shadow” ability possess exceptional agility and reflexes, allowing them to sense and respond calmly to various sudden attacks. Even the most concealed ambush will often be detected at the last moment, allowing them to react in time.

This was demonstrated when Vania ambushed Claudius and Berlit, two vampires. Even though Vania was under Dorothy’s enhancement and executed a nearly perfect concealment, the two vampires managed to evade the critical lethal blow at the last moment with astonishing reflexes.

Although the Spider Fang Priest here was merely a derivative and weaker than the true Red Tier body, he was still stronger than the chalky vampires and had superior reflexes. Yet even such formidable reflexes did not help him sense where the attack that caused him harm originated.

No bullets, no arrows, no wind blades, nothing visible flying toward him… there were no disturbances in the air; the only sound was the distant faint sound of gunfire. The Spider Fang Priest did not understand why he suddenly had a hole in his head without sensing any projectiles!

This inexplicable injury caused his heart to race, and he began to suspect that he was cursed!

The sudden injury made the Spider Fang Priest extremely alert. He started to look around, trying to find the enemy that had attacked him, but no matter how hard he searched, he found nothing.

At the moment the Spider Fang Priest was on high alert, an anomaly occurred again. Without any warning, a sudden dent appeared in his left chest, creating a bloody hole in an instant. His rib was broken, his heart exploded, and crimson bl**d gushed out.

“Ah!!”

Following the gunshot wound to his head, the Spider Fang Priest’s heart had been pierced, causing him to bend down, eyes wide and clutching his chest, violently coughing up bl**d. His face twisted in extreme pain.

“Again… this is… that thread…”

With bl**d in his mouth, the Spider Fang Priest spoke with a trembling voice. Even with his heart pierced, he did not fall. During this moment of vigilance, he discovered a clue about the sudden attack.

It was that thread, the spiritual thread connected to the flesh puppets he absorbed and their controller! Just before he was injured, the spiritual thread linking him to the other party suddenly exhibited strange spiritual movements!

‘That mastermind… can inflict damage on me through that spiritual thread using some method!’

Finally, the Spider Fang Priest identified the source of the anomaly and immediately planned to sever this connection to the spiritual thread, but after attempting to do so, he found that the thread could not be severed!

Suddenly, the Spider Fang Priest realized that he had caused a problem on his end of the spiritual thread due to his corrosive method, causing the thread to stick to him, making it impossible for the thread’s controller to actively cut it.

In fact, the authority to sever the thread always lay with the controller; even if he decided not to corrode anymore and let the thread return to a severable state, if the controller had changed their mind, he would still be unable to sever it.

Previously, Dorothy had wanted to cut the spiritual thread, but the Spider Fang Priest actively prevented it. Now the Spider Fang Priest wanted to sever the thread, but Dorothy indicated that it was no longer up to him.

‘That guy… clearly has a means to counteract the thread’s corrosion but pretends to flee, drawing me to this isolated place before suddenly attacking… is this a trap he set up?!

‘But if it’s just this level, it’s still far from enough to defeat me…’

Faced with the situation, the Spider Fang Priest angrily thought to himself. Then, a layer of bl**d mist rose around him once more, enveloping his entire being. Within this bl**d mist, the fatal injury on his heart was rapidly healing.

…

Three kilometers away, in a certain patch of mud by the roadside, Dorothy stood gazing into the distance, with Edric, whose heart gunshot wound had just healed, beside her.

Looking at the dark sky and sensing the situation in the distance, Dorothy furrowed her brow and spoke.

“Not dead from a headshot… not dead from a heart shot… this guy is becoming resilient, which feels troublesome.”

She mused while stroking her chin.

Due to continuous damage, the Spider Fang Priest’s vulnerability to Dorothy’s spiritual thread had decreased, allowing her greater mastery over the spiritual threads. Although she could no longer control the Spider Fang Priest with her threads, she was now able to receive his sensations.

Utilizing her newly enhanced ability as a spiritual thread manipulator, Dorothy transmitted the two fatal injuries to the Spider Fang Priest, but still could not k*ll him. Although he sustained injuries, he quickly recovered, which led Dorothy to speculate on the source of his formidable immortality.

‘The inability to k*ll him with fatal wounds… is it because he is merely a derivative? Just like my zombie puppets— as long as the main body isn’t harmed, the derivatives can heal from injuries no matter how severe.

‘In this current situation, his derivative form is essentially not human but rather bl**d mist. He can transform into bl**d mist, and any injury, including fatal wounds, can be restored through the mist from the wound. His humanoid form merely allows him to move more conveniently and fly quickly.’