Chapter Twenty: The Thunder Beast

At that moment, a creature loomed above me—its entire body a deep brown, its features twisted and menacing. It stood nearly thirty meters tall, with massive, muscular limbs and four enormous, hooked claws. Its cold eyes gazed down from on high, staring indifferently at the tiny human before it.

A sudden, thunderous roar shattered the stillness, reverberating throughout the entire region. Whether it was the distant, surviving players or the countless swarms of insects, all were startled by the tremendous sound—an overwhelming, commanding voice that seemed to be the embodiment of power and authority.

I stood before this colossal beast, fists clenched, staring up at it in silence as waves of oppressive force crashed down upon me. I had to admit, confronted with this creature, I was starting to lose my nerve. It felt as though a venomous serpent had fixed its gaze on me, ready to strike the moment I made a single careless move.

The pressure intensified with each passing second. I feared that before the beast even attacked, I might collapse under the weight of its presence alone.

A clear chime sounded in my mind: “Thunder Beast—evolved from the docile, lumbering Brute, yet bearing almost no resemblance to it. This is the most powerful ground unit among the alien insects. They are the backbone of the swarm's army, as threatening as any armored war vehicle. These giant monsters function as living battering rams, and their scythe-like limbs can pierce most known materials with ease. This fearsome creature boasts 3500 points of destructive power, 6000 points of defense, and 500,000 health points. Adventurer, you stand no chance of defeating it in your current state. However, as this is only a trial, its stats have been reduced to 350 attack, 600 defense, and 5000 health. Good luck!”

Three hundred and fifty attack? Six hundred defense? It was no wonder this thing was considered the strongest melee unit among the alien insects.

With no alternatives left, I had to fight. I took the initiative, darting forward in a sudden burst of speed. At the same time, the Thunder Beast’s massive foot came crashing down. I narrowly dodged, leaping into the air and striking down with a burst of explosive energy that landed squarely on the monster’s body.

Smoke billowed from the explosion, swirling through the air. I quickly retreated, waiting for my cooldown, then leapt again, another energy blast pounding the same spot.

The Thunder Beast roared furiously. To my shock, my powerful attack had only managed to carve a fissure a few centimeters deep into its hide. The sheer durability of this creature was terrifying. Its massive scythe swung at me with brutal force.

I dodged desperately, but couldn’t avoid its next strike. With a muffled crack, my armor shattered as if made of paper. Blood spattered, and I was flung through the air like a broken kite, crashing heavily to the ground and gouging a deep pit into the earth. I tumbled seven or eight times before coming to a stop. But the Thunder Beast was relentless, charging at me with its great scythes raised, giving me no chance to recover.

I rolled over and over, barely regaining my footing before the next scythe swept in and sent me flying once more. This time, I crashed down and couldn’t get up immediately. My health plummeted to a critical low. Gritting my teeth, I swallowed a healing bun and forced myself upright, but the Thunder Beast’s scythe was already descending again.

I managed to dodge at the last second and halted my movement. After this brief exchange, I realized I had underestimated the Thunder Beast’s defenses. My attacks barely scratched it, while I was left battered and bloodied. The creature had the clear advantage—the situation could not be worse.

The Thunder Beast was even stronger than I had imagined. There was no choice now but to fight with everything I had.

It stomped the ground with its four massive legs, raised its head, and let out an ear-splitting cry. In a blur, its thirty-meter form lunged forward, four scythes whirling like lightning.

I twisted aside, weaving and dodging without pause, sprinting eight steps in quick succession. Behind me, the sound of scythes smashing into the earth thundered relentlessly. I managed to leap dozens of meters away, putting distance between us as my black-haired hound snarled and barked.

With a furious growl, the hound opened its jaws and launched a barrage of shadow spheres at the Thunder Beast. A single sphere might not harm it, but ten, a hundred, even a thousand—an unceasing onslaught of shadow balls rained upon the monster. Yet the Thunder Beast didn’t bother to evade; it simply relied on its impenetrable armor to withstand the unprecedented assault.

Angered by the shadow spheres’ interference, the Thunder Beast surged with a strange, crimson energy, shaking off the attacks. Enveloped in a red aura, it charged, scythes swinging wildly.

I dodged again, but the beast had gone berserk, shrieking and rampaging with terrifying might and arrogance.

After a period of madness, the Thunder Beast finally quieted. Sensing my chance, I scrambled onto its head, gathering explosive energy in my fist, and drove a heavy punch into one of its blood-red eyes.

The impact forced a pained groan from the Thunder Beast, its eye caving in beneath my bloody fist. But distracted by my success, I failed to evade its reprisal—its scythe lashed out, striking me hard.

The blow was brutal. I grunted, blood spraying from my mouth as I was sent hurtling through the air, crashing heavily to the ground. My black-haired hound rushed to my side, supporting me as I staggered up. In the distance, the Thunder Beast was already charging at us, its four giant scythes slashing, accompanied by another thunderous roar.

Even as my hound’s shadow spheres pelted it, the Thunder Beast’s rigid body and powerful muscles withstood the assault. It swept its scythe at me, striking with immense force.

Sensing danger, the Thunder Beast tried to fling me off, but I clung tightly to its scythe, refusing to let go. At the same time, I unleashed another explosive energy blast.

With a deafening crash, the Thunder Beast roared in agony, its body shuddering violently and slamming the ground. The earth split open with seven or eight massive craters, and the Thunder Beast actually collapsed.

While it struggled to rise, I attacked its belly with all my might. Every five seconds, I hammered its armored abdomen with another energy blast. Yet its carapace was so tough that each strike barely did twenty points of damage. Enraged, the Thunder Beast reared up, mouth wide, roaring furiously as its scythes swept the ground in a wild frenzy.

Driven to the brink of madness, the Thunder Beast’s thrashing sent me flying again. I retreated quickly, while my hound did its best to hold the creature at bay. Together, we waited patiently for it to exhaust itself.

A minute passed. Two, three, five, ten... The Thunder Beast rampaged for more than ten minutes without pause. I dared not approach. Only after half an hour did it finally calm down. Sensing opportunity, my hound and I pounced.

The hound’s forepaws morphed into sharp black claws and raked at the Thunder Beast’s hide, but its six hundred points of defense were no joke—the attack barely left a mark. Suddenly, the Thunder Beast sat up and swung its scythe. The hound was too slow to evade and was sliced in two, vanishing instantly. The Thunder Beast then charged at me with murderous intent.

I dodged its first rush, but before I could steady myself, its scythe swept across again, sending me flying once more. My body slammed into the ground, wracked with excruciating pain. My health was down to less than three hundred. As I choked down another bun, the Thunder Beast was already upon me, raising its massive foot and bringing it down with deadly force. My pupils contracted in terror—I tried to dodge, but it was impossible. My body was half-buried in the earth, unable to move. There was nothing left but to be crushed beneath the Thunder Beast’s merciless stomp.