The group chased after the retreating creatures, cutting down several of them along the way.
Yet despite being attacked repeatedly, the crocodile-headed beasts never once turned around to fight. They simply ran. Every time one of them was struck from behind, it would stumble, recover, and continue moving desperately toward the same destination: a tall tree rising in the distance.
Ethan noticed it almost immediately. The behavior was completely unnatural.
These creatures weren’t retreating simply because they feared the Maqaue warriors—they were trying to reach something they believed would protect them.
"Don’t let them escape!" one of the Maqaue warriors shouted as the pursuit continued.
Another creature was struck from behind and collapsed into the swamp, but the others didn’t even stop to look back. They kept going, their movements growing increasingly frantic as the massive tree drew closer.
Finally, the leading crocodile-headed beast reached the base of the trunk and abruptly stopped.
The others quickly followed, clambering over the exposed roots and crowding tightly together beneath the canopy.
Then something even stranger happened.
They curled themselves into tight balls, pressing their massive bodies against one another as they cowered beneath the tree, almost as though they were trying to make themselves as small as possible.
"Hmm?" Davos frowned, immediately sensing that something was wrong.
The creatures weren’t behaving like cornered beasts. They were hiding.
His expression turned deadly serious. Throughout the chase, Davos had deliberately restrained his aura, allowing his warriors to handle the slaughter.
He knew that if a Demi-God beast was truly nearby, revealing his presence too early could cause it to flee into the deeper parts of the dungeon.
That was what he had been trying to prevent, but now... he realized they had walked straight into its territory.
"Shit!" Davos suddenly turned around, his voice thundering through the swamp. "Everyone, fall back!"
The Maqaue warriors immediately reacted. Some didn’t understand what was happening, but they trusted Davos enough to obey without hesitation and began retreating.
It was already too late.
The ground beneath them shifted—not slightly, but violently.
The entire swamp began shaking as water rushed away from the center, pushed back by an immense mass rising from beneath the surface.
Mud erupted, ancient roots snapped, and the surface of the swamp rolled outward in crushing waves.
Several warriors lost their footing.
"What the hell?!"
"Get back!"
"Move!"
Panic spread through the formation.
Ethan was positioned toward the rear of the group. The moment he saw the ground shifting, he pulled back several steps before leaping onto one of the thick vines hanging behind him.
He landed firmly, using the elevated perch to gain a complete view of the battlefield.
His eyes widened. "That’s..."
He immediately understood. The ground wasn’t simply shaking—it was rising.
The land they had been standing on wasn’t earth at all; it was a gigantic living mass that had been slumbering beneath the swamp.
The enormous shape continued to breach the surface, its sheer scale making the surrounding ancient trees look like toothpicks.
Ethan’s expression hardened. They had been standing on the back of a Demi-God beast the entire time without realizing it.
"Hmp!"
The moment the others understood what they were facing, the atmosphere changed completely.
There was no longer any need for orders. The stronger fighters created distance while the weaker members retreated even farther.
Those below Tier 6 understood their reality: against a Demi-God beast, approaching too closely made them nothing more than cannon fodder. Their only choice was to support the clash from afar.
The frontline combatants remained.
Davos stood at the forefront, his eyes locked onto the colossal creature as his whip hung loosely from his grip.
Ethan didn’t hesitate. He drew his Storm Crossbow, the frame humming as raw energy surged along its limbs.
He raised the weapon, aimed directly at the emerging beast, and pulled the trigger.
*BOOM!*
A bolt of lightning shot forward, striking the enormous creature dead center.
Arcs of electricity crackled violently across its hide, briefly locking its massive muscles in place. The beast’s body jerked, but that was all.
Ethan’s expression remained calm. One attack was never going to be enough.
"Keep pressing it!" Davos shouted, holding the frontline directly in the monster’s path. His whip tightened as he prepared to absorb the brunt of its fury.
"Got it," Ethan replied with a nod.
His summoning energy flared, and three figures materialized beside him: Morgana, Arthur, and Vlad. All three stood at Tier 6.
Ethan looked toward the other flank where the four chiefs of the Maqaue training grounds were also preparing their stances.
With three high-tier summons and four seasoned Demi-human warriors, they finally had enough dispersed firepower to harass the beast from multiple angles.
Ethan gave the command, and his summons scattered instantly. Morgana struck from the left, Arthur flanked from the right, and Vlad took to the air, while the Maqaue chiefs moved in to surround the monster.
Davos held the center, ready to take the heaviest blows.
The Demi-God beast finally reacted, its enormous body shifting as a deafening roar tore through the swamp.
"Filthy humans!" Its voice shook the very foundation of the forest. "You think you can tame me?!"
Its massive, ancient eyes burned with fury as it surveyed the battlefield.
"I’ve ruled this forest for a hundred years! This is my domain!"
The creature’s rage erupted. It had endured the barrage of incoming arrows, blades, spells, lightning, and summoned beasts, but none had left a lasting wound.
To the beast, they were nothing more than annoying pests.
It had been in control of this place ever since it ascended, these few weren’t the first to come here and start shit with it and they wouldn’t be the last.
It lashed out with its massive tail, but Davos moved instantly to intercept the blow.
*BOOM!*
The collision sent a violent shockwave rolling through the murky water, cracking the stone beneath and rattling the surrounding trees.
Davos was forced backward several paces, but he quickly dug his boots into the mud.
"Call of the Wilderness!" Davos’s voice cut through the chaos.
Every Maqaue warrior understood the warning immediately.
"Spread out!"
"Watch the surroundings!"
Davos wasn’t simply issuing an order—he was warning them of the greatest danger.
Demi-God beasts inside their own territory could fine-tune the environment to their will, turning the land itself into an extension of their body.
Trees, vines, water, and earth all became lethal weapons, which was why fighting a Demi-God beast in its home was usually considered suicidal.
Unfortunately, the Maqaue clan couldn’t retreat. They needed this beast, and they had to survive long enough to subdue it.
A split second later, the forest moved.
The hanging vines throughout the canopy suddenly detached, dozens of thick tendrils whipping through the air like living blades.
"Watch out!"
A Maqaue warrior barely raised his guard before a vine snapped around his waist, while another struck a fighter from the side, crushing him instantly.
The forest itself had turned on them.
"Get them off!"
"Cut the vines!"
"Help him!"
Screams erupted across the clearing as vines dragged warriors from their positions, slamming them into tree trunks.
The weaker fighters stood no chance, and panic began to spread as the casualty count climbed.
Davos’s face grew increasingly grim, but neither he nor Ethan could afford to stop.
Despite the chaos tearing through the battlefield, Ethan remained utterly focused.
His Storm Crossbow fired repeatedly—again, and again, and again.
Each bolt struck true, sending waves of lightning skittering across the beast’s thick armor. At first, the impacts seemed negligible, but then the atmosphere began to shift.
A dense, dark cloud slowly coalesced directly above the canopy.
The sky darkened, the air grew heavy with ozone, and jagged sparks began dancing between the clouds.
Ethan’s eyes narrowed. He could feel the threshold approaching.
His repeated shots weren’t merely dealing surface damage—they were stacking charge.
The cloud expanded rapidly as thunder rolled across the swamp.
*CRACK!*
Another bolt of true lightning descended from the heavens. Ethan fired again, his crossbow discharging another violent blast that drew the storm closer to the earth breaking off the branch of a distant tree causing it to drop into the water with its flamed edge.
The cloud grew so dense that even the Demi-God beast finally took notice. Its massive eyes snapped toward Ethan, its expression shifting from arrogance to alarm.
The attacks that had felt like mere pinpricks were suddenly burning deep into its flesh.
*BOOM!*
A concentrated lightning strike slammed down, drawing a pained roar from the beast that shook the entire swamp.
Ethan calmly slotted another bolt into the Storm Crossbow.
Above him, the storm cloud continued to churn, webbed with violent arcs of electricity that grew stronger with every trigger pull.
The Demi-God beast finally realized the truth: the human standing at the edge of the clearing wasn’t just shooting a weapon—he was building a calamity.
Its eyes burned with murderous intent as it glared at him.
And Ethan... simply aimed again.
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