A gust of icy wind swept through the cave. The ground trembled beneath their feet, and a disturbing presence filled the air. A presentiment weighed on them when they looked towards the dark tunnel.
Emerging from the icy mist was another Ice Cloud Lion, bigger and more menacing than the ones they had just defeated.
An ice mane adorned its body, giving it an air of authority, unlike other Ice Cloud Lions. A horn of ice curved like a sword and frozen arrow-like stalagmites had grown on its body.
It looked like the other Ice Cloud Lions but was also entirely different from them. This Ice Cloud Lion exudes an aura of raw power that makes anyone who meets its gaze feel pressure.
'What is this thing?' Kieran thought while deploying his crystal sense to try to estimate its strength.
The crystal essence he sensed from the lion confused Kieran.
'His crystal essence is lower than the other Ice Cloud Lions, it's about 2000, yet the pressure escaping from its body is scarier than any other Ice Cloud Lion we've faced so far.'
"It's a mutated crystal beast," Runihoril's voice echoed in Kieran's mind.
"A mutated crystal beast? What is this?"
"You can consider them as the equivalent of double awakened for crystal beasts. They are considered superior races, just like the Earth Drake and the Elepharak you have encountered before. Don't judge it just by its crystal essence level. You have to be careful. It's dangerous."
Runihoril's serious voice told Kieran that he couldn't trust what he was feeling with his crystal sense. The exchange between the two was quick through Kieran's mind. Not even a second had passed since the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion appeared in front of them.
The Ice Cloud Lion, with eyes shining like frozen sapphires, gazed at the entire team with a mixture of curiosity and hostility. The element of ice crackled and danced around its massive structure. Without warning, it unleashed a roar that echoed through the cave, causing a whirlwind of sharp frost.
Kieran's face grew serious as he rushed to stand in front of the team, forming a wall of earth around himself and the team to protect them from the frost whirlwind, leaving only an opening in front for the others to reach the Ice Cloud Lion.
Holden quickly followed Kieran action. An illusory woman who seemed to be sculpted from ice appeared floating behind him, and a blue aura spread from her, reducing the power of the attack.
The devastating power of the Ice Cloud Lion's frost whirlwind crashed down violently on the protective earthen wall erected by Kieran.
Shards of ice and gusts of icy wind crashed against it, making it tremble.
'It's strength is incredible. My crystal essence is quickly consumed under its attack. I can't even afford to move. Otherwise, the earthen wall will collapse.'
While Kieran did his best to hold down the earth wall around the team, the other team members moved to counter the beast's onslaught.
Anna displayed extraordinary agility, moving with grace and precision to dodge the shards of ice. She threw flying ice spears at the Ice Cloud Lion, seeking to distract it and disrupt its momentum.
Alexei, Caitlyn, and Theo used their abilities to restrict the beast's movements. Alexei created flying water daggers, deftly throwing them to hinder the lion's attacks. Meanwhile, Caitlyn summoned her ice sword, wielding it forcefully to block the Ice Cloud Lion's movements. Theo fires ice bullets at the Ice Cloud Lion's eyes to restrict its vision.
Amber, from her position in the rear, summoned her Ice Mist Hawk to try to provide tactical support. The Ice Hawk had flown to create a thick mist to disrupt the lion senses. Although her Ice Mist Hawk's abilities worked against the other Ice Cloud Lions, thanks to Holden's help, it seemed ineffective against the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion.
The fight raged, with the team members striving to overcome the lion's superior strength. Gaheris transformed into his white bear form, taking a stand in front of his comrades to protect them.
His claws of ice met the huge paws of the Ice Cloud Lion, which was almost as tall as him. With each contact, his body was pushed back several meters with wounds that accumulated on his body, but he got up each time before returning in front of the others to protect them.
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Bubbles of water flew from behind, surrounding the wounds on Gaheris's body, slowly healing them.
Danaë was doing her best in the rear to heal the wounds that appeared on all the team members with each passing second, the cold air that was being expelled from the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion's body slowly froze their skin, making them feel a burning sensation all over their bodies.
The whirlwind of sharp frost that fell on the earthen wall finally faded, leaving Kieran free to move again.
'I must not hold back against it.'
Kieran's eyes sharpened as he rushed forward with Shard of a Broken World in his hands. The crystal essence in his body was quickly consumed as he leaped through the air to reach the Ice Cloud Lion's head.
The giant's transformation shifted into both his arms as a strong killing intent escaped from his body, and the blades of Shard of a Broken World were coated in a dense golden blue crystal essence.
"Earth Shattering!"
The Ice Cloud Lion sensed danger as its world was covered in golden blue. The sword-like horn on its forehead emitted a sharp blue aura that clashed with the Earth Shattering, not losing strength at all against it.
The cave began to shake, and deep cracks appeared all over the floor from the pressure emitted by the two attacks. Some parts collapsed, revealing a void under the thick layer of ice that formed the floor of the cave as well as shadows that moved without anyone noticing them.
The eyes of the team members filled with shock as they felt their bodies being pushed back by the winds created from the clash between the two attacks.
Kieran was thrown back with an incredulous look on his face as the Ice Cloud Lion took several steps back, a white spear suddenly pierced the flank of the Ice Cloud Lion, but before it could penetrate its flesh, stalagmites of ice grew on its body, forcing Anna to jump back to dodge them.
*roars*
Pillars of ice rose all around the Ice Cloud Lion, forcing the entire team to retreat.
The lion's eyes were fixed on Kieran, a blue aura began to cover its body, causing a thick layer of ice to appear on its skin. The team members thought they were standing in front of a fortress of ice rather than a simple Silver rank beast. The aura that the lion emitted at this moment overwhelmed them, making some of them tremble.
"It... it's a monster!" Caitlyn’s trembling voice was heard, but the others didn’t have time to think about it.
In front of their eyes, the Ice Cloud Lion's horn grew bigger and bigger, appearing like a long sword of ice.
'How can I kill such a thing?'
Kieran tried to think of all the possibilities that could allow him to kill the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion, but none came to mind.
"You have to manage to contain its attacks. This girl with her ice spear will be able to break through its defense if you force it to concentrate everything in its attack against you," said Runihoril in his mind.
Kieran tightened his grip on Shard of a Broken World as he heard Runihoril's words, glancing in Anna's direction. As if sensing his gaze, her eyes met his before she nodded slightly in his direction.
A determined look appeared on his face. No longer making any effort to hold the crystal essence inside his body to reduce its consumption, he let it flow freely through him until it escaped his body, surrounding him with a golden-blue aura that was quickly swallowed greedily by the two blades of Shard of a Broken World.
The lion's eyes remained fixed on him, sensing a danger upon seeing that golden blue aura again. It concentrated all the icy aura that flowed around its body into its horn.
Kieran's eyes grew sharper with each passing second as all of his crystal essence was transmitted within the two blades, a slight pallor appeared on his face, but his eyes lost none of their sparkle.
Finally, the lion couldn't stand still, feeling the aura emanating from Kieran, and rushed at him without paying attention to any other team members with its ice horn on its forehead pointing forward.
Kieran stared at it without averting his gaze. The golden blue aura around Shard of a Broken World blades glowed intensely. His grip tightened, and his figure disappeared into a black blur.
"Earth Shattering!"
*boom*
The sound of an explosion rang out before the others could figure out what had happened.
The blades of shard of a broken world and the ice horn of the lion clashed without showing the slightest sign of weakening, making the cave ceaselessly tremble under the power of the two attacks.
Yet the crystal essence inside Kieran was quickly consumed as the thick ice that covered the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion's skin to protect it grew thinner as the two attacks tried to overwhelm the other.
*crack*
Suddenly, a cracking noise sounded. Deep cracks appeared on the blades of Shard of a broken world and on the lion's ice horn.
A twinge of pain filled Kieran's heart as he saw the cracks appearing on his weapon. He gritted his teeth and used every last drop of crystal essence he could find in his spiritual world.
It was then that Anna appeared next to the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion with her white spear in her hands.
As she concentrated her crystal essence, the white spear in her hands began to glow dazzling. The elemental particles of ice surrounding her seemed to concentrate on the tip of the spear, creating an icy and murderous aura.
The Ice Cloud Lion, preoccupied with the clash with Kieran, did not immediately notice Anna preparing to attack it.
She took a deep breath and launched herself at the beast with amazing speed and precision.
The lion realized too late the danger before it. In a final effort, he violently pushed Kieran away, fracturing its ice horn in half in the process.
But Anna was already on movement. Her spear pointed straight at the lion's heart.
Brilliant light erupted from the remnants of its horn on its forehead before it shattered entirely, causing a shockwave of crystal essence that repelled Kieran and Anna several meters back as the cave floor began to shake uncontrollably.
The cracks already there suddenly widened, spreading like veins of ice in every direction, with the Mutated Ice Cloud Lion looking half dead after breaking its horn in the middle of them.
The team members' feet became unstable from the tremors. Everyone was trying to maintain their balance when the ground under their feet crumbled.
The entire cave floor collapsed instantly, revealing a void beneath this huge layer of ice that engulfed all of the team members.