Chapter 406: Battle of Wills (1)

Chapter 406: Battle of Wills (1)

The two staff wielders and archers were shaken, thinking that the arrow was headed for them. Their hair stood on end. It was simply moving too fast, and the fog of the earlier blizzard hadn't quite dissipated.

But, the arrow simply landed on the barrier, causing it to shake violently. Though it held up, they nearly lost their footing on the top of it, further delaying them.

By this point, Sylas had already turned his back to them. Not only that... but his tail and scales vanished, returning him to his base form.

They had spent this entire time trying to force him back, and now he seemed to be forcing that distance himself.

Aerwyna's gaze flickered, then she held up a hand.

Sylas didn't look back, rushing toward the edge of the catacombs. It was only when he felt that they weren't rushing after him that he slowed.

A few arrows came from the distance, but nothing dangerous enough to harm him. Even without his fusion, the distance was too great and he had too much time to dodge. By this point, there was already over 200 hundred meters between Sylas and the ice wall.

The winds around them continued to howl, getting stronger and stronger. However, in a bold move, Sylas actually sat right by one of the holes of the catacombs despite the fact it was one of the locations where the wind was at its harshest.

Aerwyna watched this with confusion written all over her face. The only reason Sylas would do this would be if...

'No, it can't be...'

The rules of the team battle always followed the rules of the challenge that preceded it. Much like the last team battle that followed a Will challenge, points would be decided by how long you lasted. Team members would be transferred out when they reached their limits and points would be allocated based on how long you lasted.

Sylas' might ignored the world and entered an internal visualization, leaving only one of his minds to keep Rune Soul and <Maddened Enlightenment> active. In fact, because he wasn't moving at all, <Maddened Enlightenment> was several times stronger than he was on the move.

That was to say that not only was this challenge far weaker than the one he had already faced, but he likewise had even more powerful tools to deal with it.

His Aether was being replenished at a frightening pace, and he couldn't use Rune Soul fast enough to make a dent in his Wisdom because <Maddened Enlightenment> covered his bases too quickly.

And unfortunately for Aerwyna, because he was sitting right in front of a howling wind tunnel to the outside, it was impossible for her to sense any of this from so far away.

Sylas had already decided. Since he couldn't defeat them with strength, he would just have to choose another method.

As for what he was focused on, it was the barrier he had seen when he first entered this Dungeon. Back then, he had been the first to clear the stair challenge and had the opportunity to wait around for everyone else.

In the barrier he was stuck in, he found something interesting he believed would increase the strength of <Arctic Howl Mutant> by another 50%. If he was correct, it would be able to block up to 1500 Damage, and freeze an attack of up to 2000 for a brief instant.

Unfortunately, he hadn't had the time to finish his deductions...

Until now.

'Geometry... I should have considered this earlier. It's not as simple as some shapes being stronger than others, but rather that some Runes prefer specific three-dimensional geometries over another...'

Sylas' gaze flickered beneath his eyelids, his deductions coming faster and faster beneath his sharper Wisdom.

Hours later, his eyes flashed open with a sharp glint.