Chapter 183: Graduation Ceremony (7)

Northwest from the area of descent, a team of five were hiding within an artificially made cave inside a rock pillar. The remains from the dugout cave were piled up before the entrance, acting as a makeshift cover.

A psychic arm seeped into them, holding them in place, ensuring they looked similar to the background. Behind the cover of rock and mud, an Esper crouched on the ground, wiping the sweat on his face, slightly nervous.

"Just do as I instruct; the Frenzy Beasts have become more intelligent in recent times but they are still incomparable to our innate intelligence. The Tier 1 Skills of the Floating Spiders are primarily related to scent. This layer of dirt wall will give us sufficient cover for the moment." A boy, a head taller than the rest, sporting a hulking body said.

His arms were ripped, also possessing a streamlined semblance, a body that had been sculpted through fluid motions executed over and over, one trained for battles. He had short trimmed hair, except for a ponytail on the back, one that reached his shoulders.

His face had a squarish face, the contours curved, imbuing in him a bold but gentle appearance. He held a sword in his hand, his armour covering most of his body, save for the face. He was ranked second in the November Batch, Vishen Walta.

Vishen Walta relaxed his back against the wall, disregarding the soil falling on him due to the poorly dugout walls. "We will wait here for now."

"For how long?" The Esper, a Line Controller turned around, feeling the drain in his psychic energy upon maintaining the wall.

"For 20 hours." Vishen Walta smiled, shocking everyone else.

"We wouldn't be able to reach our goal by then." The sole girl in their team said, showcasing her worry, "There are plenty of Frenzy Beasts the closer we are to the goals. Even now, we had to hide from a horde."

"That is precisely why we must rest." Vishen Walta nodded, his calm expressed by his steadiness and composure, "We were dropped in the middle of the rectangular ground. If we consider it as the centre point, then the layout extends 200 metres to our north and south, and 500 metres to our east and west respectively."

"If I carry him and sprint while the rest of you follow me," Vishen Walta pointed at the Line Controller, "We will be able to reach our destination in the west in under 2 minutes, given we are not interrupted."

"But the terrain and the Frenzy Beasts…" The girl just retorted when she was interrupted by a raise of his hand.

"The terrain we will be treading is mostly flat." His eyes displayed his cunning, "Moreover, everyone will be heading towards the goals, which means the Frenzy Beasts will also be lured towards the goals."

"But, our battle strength is not even half of yours. We won't be able to keep up in such a scenario." Another Cadet bowed his head a little, feeling ashamed at his inferiority.

"You don't need to worry about that," Vishen Walta said, exuding a demeanour of absolute confidence, "There doesn't exist a Tier 2 Frenzy Beast stronger than me here. Also, it would be easier to charge with a single push using my Tier 2 Skill. While it is active, it would be easy for me to cover for you guys."

Vishen Walta motioned with his hands at the Line Controller, pointing at the dirt wall, "Let me scout the layout and the routes we can take for now. We may be hiding, but that doesn't mean we can stay ignorant of our surroundings."

The Line Controller nodded, seeping his psychic to the other side, and sensing for any Frenzy Beast presences in the vicinity. Seeing his action, the girl activated her Tier 1 Skill, glancing around, nodding once at Vishen Walta.

The remaining three too activated their Tier 1 Skills and nodded, informing him of the surroundings being clear. Vishen Walta said in a calm tone, "It is not difficult to reach our goal. But, it is hard defending it until the time limit. Conserve your energy, I'll return in 30 minutes."

The Line Controller opened a hole in the dirt wall, enough for Vishen Walta to crawl out. After exiting the mini cave, watching the dirt wall close behind him, Vishen Walta transmitted his voice, "Keep eating the energy biscuits to replenish your energy. Don't retract your psychic arm for even a single second."

"Yes."Hearing the reply a moment before the dirt wall fully closed, Vishen Walta turned around, gazing at the landscape before him. It was a narrow path, circular in shape, spanning 2 metres wide, with their cave located inside a big pillar, surrounded by pillars on all sides, leaving almost no gap beside them.

There was only a single path, one that was barely 40 centimetres wide. It made their location a good place to hide. Also, arranged around the rock pillars were spider webs of all sizes, trailing from the ground to the top.

Hanging around them were the carcasses of Floating Spiders, their dripping blood forming a small pool on the floor, seeping into the soil, painting it crimson-black. Vishen Walta squeezed through the gap, arriving outside, watching his footprints form a trail.

He spent some time, preventing himself from being detected while creating a false trail that led the Floating Spiders to another location, should they come to investigate. Once it was done, holding his sword in a declined position to the ground, Vishen Walta walked forward, his body slightly crouched.

He inched his way forward, covering his body with the mud that had soaked the blood of the Floating Spiders. Using the web on the ground he pulled out, he tied the intact parts of the Floating Spiders on him, turning his appearance to partly resemble that of a Floating Spider, one that was many times bigger and humanoid.

A Tier 1 Floating Spider ranged between 20-30 centimetres in size, with a Tier 2 Floating Spider almost double in size. Among the various Frenzy Beasts, the Floating Spiders were one of the races with smaller bodies.

Vishen Walta treaded his way west, quickly killing any Floating Spider he came across. As long as they weren't a Tier 2 Floating Spider, he didn't even require a second to dispatch them to the afterlife.

Arriving at a place where the rock pillars were separated by at least three metres, Vishen Walta focused, his demeanour becoming one akin to a predator. He sheathed his sword, relaxing his arms. Followed by a spike in aura, he activated both his Tier 1 and Tier 2 Skills.

Tier 1 Skill—Dynamic Acuity!

Tier 2 Skill—Body Burst!

Dynamic Acuity slightly accelerated his thinking speed while enhancing his motor senses. Body Burst allowed him to amplify the abilities of his body as a whole for intervals of less than a second upon activation, with the area of effect focused solely based on his discretion.

He focused the effect of the Tier 2 Skill on his legs, keeping it constantly activated. His body disappeared from the spot, flickering between the two rock pillars as he treaded up, appearing at the top within a minute.

The moment he arrived at the top, before he could regain his bearings, a River Whale lunged at him, the water trail behind it quite short, with the column of water flowing less than 10 metres away.

Vishen Walta changed his posture, bringing his body's centre of gravity to one side, causing him to fall, barely avoiding the jaws of the River Whale. A film of water brushed past his armour, causing a long tear to form. But, it wasn't deep to the extent of revealing his skin.

He focused the powers of his Tier 2 Skill to the tips of his fingers, digging into the rock pillar for support, cranking his body as he lifted his legs. His body spun, falling back into the gap between the pillars as he let go of his hold.

The River Whale chased after him for 10 metres before giving up its pursuit, retreating to the column of water. Vishen Walta lodged his fingers into the sides of the rock pillar, a place that also had grooves along the walls, serving as his foothold.

Vishen Walta regained his breath after a couple of seconds, heaving a sigh of relief. "If I hadn't retreated, a battle would have ensued between me and the River Whales. The more I kill them, the greater the risk it poses to me."

He looked at the volume of water contained within the column of water, watching the number of River Whales swimming within. He dared not imagine the catastrophe that would befall them should the column of water fall. At that time, the impacted rock pillars might tumble and collapse, causing a chain reaction akin to the domino effect.

The River Whales sported indigo coloured skin, their body spanning between 1-2 metres at Tier 1 and 2-4 metres at Tier 2. They had patches of white around the base of their face and the bottom of their tails. They sported fins of water, long and sharp, their sizes variable to control their traversal in water.

Using their control over the water, they were capable of propelling themselves at greater speeds, surpassing any marine creature. Once the River Whale that had attacked him entered the column of water, Vishen Walta arrived at the top of the rock pillar, hurriedly jumping on one rock pillar after another, travelling west.

He suddenly paused, quickly jumping between the gaps in the rock pillars, grabbing hold of a side after activating his Tier 2 Skill, lodging himself to the wall. He peaked over the surface, looking at seven large spherical silk structures congregated around one region, hovering atop a rock pillar situated 30 metres from him.

Six of the spherical silk structures ranged between 3-5 metres in radius, the number of Tier 2 beings inside unknown at present. But, it was the final spherical silk structure that sent a chill through his spine. It wasn't a regular structure weaved through spider silk but a manifestation of an Unranked Skill. Also, its radius spanned almost 10 metres, a hulking stricture the most of which was hidden between the rock pillars.

'A Developer, from the Web Family.' Vishen Walta concluded, feeling a chill in his spine, the fear originating from the Wisdom Parasite in him, giving him the confirmation needed.

"Didn't they say only Tier 2 Frenzy Beasts were here?" He cursed, relaxing the hold in his hands, causing his body to drop.