Jilenna charged toward the center of the battlefield, moving at a speed that completely belied her heavy armor.
Fang Zhen watched the High Mountain Female Knight and reassessed her strength.
According to what he knew, when a base attribute reached fifteen, it underwent a minor transformation. At twenty, it was a major transformation.
Jilenna hadn't been this formidable before. After leveling up, her perception must have reached at least fifteen, giving her a significant boost in that area. That was the only way she could have taken out so many Iron Armor Soldiers and aberrant test subjects.
If all went according to plan, once he cleared the "Bloody Lord" instance, Fang Zhen would likely unlock the ability to raise his own base attributes.
But first, he had to take out the Vampire Count, Ellick.
Brimming with motivation, Fang Zhen fixed his gaze on Ellick.
The other mbers of the Whig Society, however, were not nearly as optimistic.
Both Gwendolyn and Karen were tense.
Although Jilenna's arrival as a reinforcent added a high-level combatant to their side, Ellick, his personal guard, and his test subjects still held an overwhelming advantage in overall strength.
There were too many Iron Armor Soldiers—at least forty or fifty. Even if the Whig Society hadn't been fractured by betrayal and were all fighting together, they still might not have been able to win against such numbers.
And on top of that, there were all the aberrant test subjects.
The aberrant test subjects were clearly even more dangerous than the Iron Armor Guard.
Ellick and Tos were also waiting for an opportunity. The mont soone revealed an opening or showed signs of fatigue, they would strike like venomous snakes, aiming for a fatal blow.
Fang Zhen was strong, and Jilenna was a powerful reinforcent, but overall, their side was still undeniably outmatched.
Gwendolyn was experienced, and Karen had a sharp mind. Both of them understood the situation all too well.
The pressure on them was imnse, leaving them both incredibly tense.
Laura, however, wasn't thinking about any of that; she was simply ready to fight. Pat was even less concerned—in fact, he looked thrilled.
"Finally, a real fight!" Pat exclaid, cracking his knuckles.
"Are you all brawn and no brains?! Fight? What fight? We're the ones who are going to get beaten! They're in a completely different league than us!" Unable to take it anymore, Karen unleashed her stress on Pat.
"What's the use of overthinking it? We just have to fight!" Pat retorted, completely unbothered.
Karen was speechless.
For the first ti, Karen wondered, 'Could being a little simple-minded, a little stupid, actually be an advantage in so situations?'
At least when it ca to mindset, Pat was winning by a landslide.
Fang Zhen surveyed the surrounding Iron Armor Guards and aberrant test subjects. After a mont, he turned to Jilenna, who had reached his side, ready to fight shoulder-to-shoulder. "How many can you take out?" he asked.
"About ten, I think," Jilenna replied. "I've already been through one battle, so my stamina isn't fully recovered. Besides, it gets chaotic with this many enemies. It won't be an easy fight."
"How many can you take out?" Jilenna asked in return.
"If you give
ti and keep
safe, I can clear the field," Fang Zhen said. "But soone won't allow that."
As he spoke, he glanced at the nacingly watchful Ellick.
Jilenna looked skeptical at first, but then she rembered the gas canister on her shoulder. After a mont of thought, she said, "I suppose it's not impossible. You have a lot of alchemical gear."
"So, I'll protect you while you clear the field?"
"You won't get the chance," Ellick said coldly.
Fang Zhen had to admit it was a tricky situation.
He stood a chance against the Iron Armor Guards and aberrant test subjects alone, and he could probably win a one-on-one duel with Ellick, but he couldn't handle both at the sa ti.
The mont his focus slipped, he could easily fall prey to a sneak attack.
He couldn't be sure Jilenna could keep him safe from Ellick's attacks. The Vampire Count's abilities were devious and bizarre, and a pure Warrior like Jilenna could easily fall into one of his traps.
Just as Fang Zhen was trying to figure out how to solve the problem before him, a long sigh echoed from behind.
It was Jorent.
Jorent let out a long, theatrical sigh, a sound clearly intended to attract the attention of Fang Zhen, Gwendolyn, and the others. It worked.
Fang Zhen, Gwendolyn, and Karen all turned to look at Jorent.
Jorent said, "I have contributed nothing since we arrived. I thought I would just be a burden to you all, but I never expected this would be the perfect ti for
to make my move."
"In the end, it falls to
to shoulder this burden alone."
"Gwendolyn, Fang Zhen, go take care of Ellick without any worries. And capture that traitor, Tos. As for the rest of these minions, leave them to ," Jorent declared.
"You? You can barely stand straight. What do you think you're going to do?" Karen said, her face a mask of disbelief. "Have you been scared so witless that you've lost your mind?"
"Hmph. Karen, you are still too naive," Jorent snorted. "Did you really think that I, an Alchemist, would co here completely unprepared?"
"Behold! This is the preparation I have made for this very mont!"
As he spoke, Jorent dramatically flung open his gray cloak.
Just as Tos always wore a black stealth suit, Jorent was often dressed in gray linen clothes. Regardless of the temperature, he always wore a gray cloak, keeping his body tightly wrapped within it.
Fang Zhen had sotis wondered if the poison Alchemist would suddenly throw open his cloak to reveal nothing underneath, like so kind of exhibitionist.
Now, Jorent had opened his gray cloak.
Lining the inside of the cloak were nurous bottles of reddish-looking Alchemy Potions.
In that instant, Fang Zhen suddenly recalled Gwendolyn ntioning that Jorent had used her alchemy workshop to concoct many Alchemy Potions with unknown ingredients.
He had originally assud Jorent was the traitor, concocting poisons for the mbers of the Whig Society and for him. But then Tos had revealed himself, which ant Jorent likely wasn't a traitor after all.
'So what kind of potions had Jorent been making?'
Jorent was visibly excited, his face flushed red.
Jorent pulled an Alchemy Potion from an inner pocket of his cloak. Gripping it tightly, he let out a great shout. A white light flashed from his hand as he hurled the potion forward using the Power Mountain Seal.
Boosted by the Power Mountain Seal, Jorent's arm strength was greatly enhanced. The Alchemy Potion flew a great distance, landing right in the densest cluster of Iron Armor Guards and a line of test subjects.
The glass vial of the Alchemy Potion shattered on impact. The contents reacted violently, instantly erupting in a cloud of blood-red smoke.
The smoke billowed outward, engulfing a large area and enveloping the Iron Armor Guards and aberrant test subjects within it.
At the edge of the smoke, an Iron Armor Guard who inhaled the red mist suddenly contorted in extre pain. He staggered, dropping his warhamr to the ground. He clutched his neck as if unable to breathe, then grabbed at his head as if struck by a violent headache, struggling to rip his helt off.
Removing the iron helt, however, did nothing to stop the agony. On the contrary, freed from the helt's restraint, his head and neck began to expand uncontrollably, swelling like a balloon to two or three tis their normal size.
Finally, the Iron Armor Soldier's body could take no more.
"BOOM!"
Like a balloon popping, or a bomb detonating, the Iron Armor Soldier exploded!
Within the red mist, a chain reaction of explosions began. The dying screams of Iron Armor Soldiers and aberrations were cut short one by one, each followed by the wet, explosive sound of rupturing flesh and blood.
The explosions echoed one after another.
Fang Zhen watched, thoroughly surprised.
He looked over at Jorent.
"Explode! Explode! Explode! All of you, just explode!"
"This is an atomized explosive potion mixed with Blood Burst Secret dicine, and I have more!"
"Hahaha, you didn't expect this, did you? I had a stroke of genius! I mixed the powder from the Blood Burst Secret dicine with other alchemical products to create my Blood Burst Powder! Hahaha, this is an enclosed space! You monsters are dood!"
Jorent was in a state of extre agitation. Laughing maniacally, he pulled more of his new concoctions—laced with Blood Burst Secret dicine—from his cloak and hurled them at the Iron Armor Guards and aberrant test subjects.
'Damn, that's impressive!' A look of pleasant surprise appeared in Fang Zhen's eyes.
'So Jorent wasn't making poisons for a betrayal after all. He was creating a new Alchemy Secret dicine that was highly lethal to these aberrations.'
'And who knew that underneath Jorent's quiet, ticulous personality, there beat the heart of a showman.'
After throwing two vials of the atomized blood-burst potion, Jorent realized his arm strength wasn't enough. He took out several more vials and handed them to Fang Zhen.
Fang Zhen took the potions. Activating Precision Throw, he began hurling them toward the surrounding Iron Armor Guards and aberrant test subjects.
And he didn't forget to lob one in Ellick's direction, too.
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