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The Crimson Thorn Tree is a demonized plant. It stands about 10 meters tall and has a wide trunk covered in sharp spikes dripping with toxic crimson fluid.
This tree has the sentience of a child and is a predator; it feeds on any living thing that comes near it, not even its fellow demons. It could control sharp vines that could easily penetrate Tier 8 metals, and its toxic excretion contains a strong paralytic enzyme and makes its targets contagious.
For this thing to be in the middle of a ruined base wasn't good news for the team, obviously.
And then there's the puppeteer...
It would be a mistake to underestimate this one. In Acala's Demon Database, it's officially called 'Mind Flaying Puppeteer'. By itself, it's weak. Those who are at the same strength level could easily kill the puppeteer once it's exposed. But that's only if they could expose its whereabouts.
Mind-flaying puppeteers play to their strengths. They have excellent stealth capabilities and are able to hide from the senses of those who are way stronger than them. What makes them deadly is the way they could hijack the brains of their target.
The puppeteers didn't need to kill their target. They only need to be close enough to form a mental connection, and hijacking would commence. If the target's mental acquity was lower than that of the demon, they would be forcibly enslaved by the puppeteer, completely conscious of their actions. This is what made them terrifying.
Cedric read many stories of soldiers being forced to kill their comrades because they fell under the control of the mind-flaying puppeteers. It has traumatized many people; thus, puppeteers have gained a notorious reputation among humans.
Whistle!! Boom!!
The quiet ruins that's now occupied by the Crimson Thorn Tree were suddenly disturbed by a sharp whistle, followed by a large explosion.
Numerous thick vines erupted from the ground, forming a shield to protect the main body. It's a bit late for that since the attack came out of nowhere, but it did manage to lessen the damage dealt.
Before the tree could tell what was going on, another attack came. A pillar of bright flames erupted underneath itself. The scalding heat swiftly evaporated the crimson toxins on the tree and burned its sharp protrusions; even the vines were burned as well.
However, this state only lasted a few seconds. The tree recovered at a pace visible to the naked eye. This was due to the spare nourishment from the fresh corpses it stored, which was originally for later consumption. It was forced to consume its backup supply, which caused the tree to be extremely angry.
The Crimson Thorn Tree unleashed its fury by extending its vines as far as it could reach. The vines slithered like underground pythons seeking prey. Along the way, it's using siesmic sense to figure out the location of the enemy.
The radar caught something, but it was fleeting. However, that's enough for the tree to use all it has to hunt that elusive thing. Unfortunately, hunting the target like this was a fatal mistake for the tree.
Pshew!!
In addition to the paralysis and nerve rewiring, Chrissy could also use the toxins to locate her targets by following the path of contingency. She was hoping that, as the controller of these things, the toxins would spread to the puppeteer as well. Unfortunately, the main target was too far from the toxin's reach.
Elric, Floyd, and Darwin didn't mind. They attacked and eliminated the paralyzed targets within a minute. It would've been good if the puppeteer was also infected, but since it has hidden itself far away, they'd just continue guarding Cedric.
However, it would seem that they're a little too optimistic in their fantasies...
Roar!!
"Oh, for fuck's sake," Elric softly groaned as he saw more demons appearing.
One in particular was a large one. And judging by its looks, it's also controlled by the puppeteer. It was also accompanied by at least 30 more demons. The weakest is Tier 7 in human equivalent.
"Fuck it. Balls to the walls, then," Francis muttered. "We need to shave off as many as we can. Being swarmed by demons isn't within my bucket list."
"Agreed." Elric sighed as a strong pressure erupted from his body.
The strenth of a planar traveler exploded from him. He then flew like a comet and met the giant demon head-on.
Boom!!
The giant demon was a mammoth. Its truck clashed with Elric's shield, and their clash caused a large explosion that sent strong aftershocks around them.
Francis blended with the shadows, swimming along the current like a fish and appearing behind a demon to disembowel it with a single strike. Floyd pulled back his bowstring and condensed a flaming blue arrow. Strings of incantations buzzed from Darwin and Erica's lips while Chrissy threw handfuls of vials all over the place, leaving behind toxic puddles.
Erica's incantations finished earlier. A rainbow-colored light erupted from her body. When this light touched her teammates, they felt light and energized all of sudden.
Floyd released the arrow he's holding, and as soon as it flew, it multiplied into shards of heat-seeking projectiles that punched fist-sized holes in his targets.
Darwin's incantations were finished. He slammed the butt of his staff on the ground, and all of a sudden, the ground beneath them turned into a muddy swamp that started swallowing the marching demons. This slowed them down greatly. In addition, the puddles of poison Chrissy left behind mixed with the swamp, making it harmful to the demons who are out to get them.
As for Elric, once he saw that the weight of the mammoth turned against it, causing it to descend faster to the swamp, he immediately climbed to its back and began hammering away at its spine.
All of this was happening while Cedric continued rebuilding the base.