Tyler stared at the colossal white snake, its massive coils a terrifying testament to its power. Then he saw its level: 80. His heart pounded in his chest. To his side, Grone used his left hand to push himself into a sitting position, groaning in pain but still clutching his sword.
"Quickly kill them," Gary commanded his pet, his voice sharp and cruel. He pointed at Tyler and Grone. As his finger gestured towards Tyler, a sharp pain nced through his chest. Steven's eyes widened as he noticed something disturbing—bluish, dark veins were spreading across the wound inflicted by Tyler's axe, marring the leather of Gary's armor.
"Brother, are you alright?" Steven asked, his voice ced with concern.
Gary winced, clutching his chest. "Shut up, I'm fine," he hissed, his voice strained.
The enormous serpent, with terrifying speed, unched its head towards Tyler, its jaws opening wide, revealing rows of razor-sharp fangs.
The serpent lunged, its massive jaws snapping shut just inches from Tyler's face. He rolled, narrowly avoiding the attack, his eyes—a steady, thinking blue—tracking the creature's movements. *Level 80… that's insane,* he thought, his mind racing. *I need to be precise. Every strike counts.*
Grone, groaning, pushed himself to his feet, his sword held ready. He would support Tyler, but he knew he couldn't take on the beast alone.
Gary, his face pale, hissed at his pet, urging it to finish the fight. But Gary's control over his weapons seemed to falter. The daggers and pieces of his broken katana, still floating in the air, began to move erratically, sometimes veering towards Tyler, sometimes towards Grone, their movements unpredictable and distracting. Gary's energy visibly waned; his body trembled slightly, his breathing becoming ragged. *What's happening to me?* he wondered, the question unanswered. Steven watched, his face etched with worry, but unable to offer any assistance.
Tyler, his axe held high, braced for the serpent's next attack. The creature coiled, its massive body a wall of muscle and scales. Tyler saw his opportunity—a slight gap between the scales near the serpent's neck—but as he unched himself forward, the serpent reacted instantly. Its hide proved far tougher than he anticipated. His axe struck the scales with a dull thud, the impact barely registering on the monstrous creature. The serpent retaliated with a powerful tail swipe, sending Tyler sprawling.
He rolled, avoiding the worst of the blow, but the impact jarred him. *Damn, it's stronger than I thought,* he thought, pushing himself back to his feet. He saw Grone attempting to attack, but Gary's errant daggers deflected his blows, forcing him to constantly readjust his stance. Tyler knew he had to end this quickly, but the serpent's defenses were impenetrable. He tried again, aiming for the same gap, but the serpent anticipated his move, its scales shifting, closing the opening. He was outmatched. He couldn't harm it. The erratic movements of the floating weapons continued to disrupt Grone's attempts to assist.
Tyler gripped his axe with both hands, his knuckles white. He unched himself at the serpent, a desperate, reckless attack. The serpent's tail shed out, a blur of motion, but Tyler, with a powerful front flip, soared into the air, bringing his axe down in a mighty arc aimed at the serpent's head. The serpent, however, moved with impossible speed, dodging the blow with ease.
Tyler nded hard, rolling to absorb the impact, his eyes never leaving the serpent. But before he could react, the serpent moved with terrifying speed, circling him in a dizzying blur. A system message fshed before his eyes: White Fang has activated skill: Lock.
The serpent's body coiled around Tyler, its powerful muscles tightening, its scales pressing against his skin. The grip was crushing, inescapable. *Damn, I'm trapped,* Tyler thought, the realization hitting him with the force of a physical blow.
The serpent's hide seemed to harden, its scales gleaming with an unnatural intensity. The pressure intensified, squeezing the air from Tyler's lungs. He felt his ribs crack, his arms protesting under the immense strain.
Grone roared, "No!" He swung his sword upwards, unleashing his Ssh skill. The invisible bde of wind tore through the air, striking the serpent's coils wrapped around Tyler. The serpent hissed, a sound of pain and annoyance, but the attack had little effect; the scales deflected the blow.
The iron axe, lying beside Tyler, pressed painfully against his side, exacerbating the crushing pressure. He quickly moved it to his inventory. *What the hell is going on?* he thought, his vision blurring, his body screaming in protest. *How do I get out of this mess?*
Gary, watching the scene with a chilling satisfaction, directed his pet. "Crush him slowly," he commanded, his voice ced with cruel amusement. "Make sure he suffers. Poison him."
Grone, ignoring the danger, ran towards Tyler, his sword held high. As he moved, the floating daggers cttered to the ground. Gary gasped, blood suddenly spilling from his mouth. He crouched, clutching his mouth, his eyes wide with shock. "*What the hell is this? Am I actually poisoned?*" he thought, his voice barely a whisper.
Steven rushed to his brother's side. "What's wrong?" he asked, his voice filled with arm. He didn't need an answer. The dark, bluish veins spreading across Gary's chest were a horrifying testament to the poison coursing through his body.
"I think you're poisoned," Steven stated, his voice grim.
"How the hell did this happen?" Gary muttered, his mind racing. He remembered Tyler cutting his hand on the axe, coating the bde with his blood. "*Wait,*" he thought, a chilling realization dawning on him. "*Could that guy's blood actually be… poisonous?*"
Gary looked up just as the White Fang struck. Its massive jaws cmped down on Tyler's shoulder, its fangs sinking deep into his flesh, injecting its venom into his chest and back. Grone continued his charge, but a system message appeared before Tyler: White Fang has used skill: Bck Mist.
A thick, bck smoke erupted from the serpent's scales, instantly engulfing the clearing in a suffocating cloud. Grone stumbled, his eyes stinging, his vision obscured. He covered his eyes, his charge halted. The smoke spread, blinding Steven and Gary as well.
Tyler's eyes widened in agony as the White Fang's fangs tore into his organs, injecting the venom deep into his body. The pain was excruciating, a searing fire that consumed him. He struggled to free himself, but the serpent's grip was unyielding, crushing and inescapable.
A series of system messages fshed before Tyler's eyes:
Venom is being currently resisted.
User has been infected with too much Venom. Blood poison is weakening.
Blood Poison has adapted to the White Fang's Venom.
A final message, stark red, filled him with dread:
User has received too much Venom. The White Fang Venom and the Blood Poison are merging within the user's body. A skill will be forcefully created from this fusion.
The White Fang, hissing in pain, released its grip on Tyler, its body recoiling as if burned. It struck him with its tail, sending him flying through the air like a ragdoll. Tyler nded hard, his body hitting the ground repeatedly, groaning in agony. Despite the searing pain, he pushed himself to his feet, his hands trembling.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He checked his HP: 94. He gnced at the White Fang, which was writhing in pain, steam rising from its mouth. One of its fangs had completely melted, a portion of its jaw simirly corrupted.
A new system message appeared: A new skill has been created: Acid Blood.
Tyler's eyes, no longer glowing blue, were wide with pain and confusion. He muttered, "Acid Blood," a groan escaping his lips. He pushed himself fully upright as the bck mist finally dissipated. Grone, Steven, and Gary stared at him in stunned silence, their faces a mixture of shock and disbelief. Tyler stood, feet away from Grone, his body battered and bleeding, his earlier calm repced by raw pain and exhaustion.
Grone saw his opportunity. With impossible speed, he swept his sword upwards, then downwards, unleashing two devastating sshes in a swift X-pattern. The White Fang, still reeling from the venom, didn't see the attack coming. Grone's strikes found their mark, tearing through the serpent's scales, creating a gaping wound.
Tyler's axe materialized in his hand. He saw his blood dripping down the axe's hilt, the iron beginning to melt and smoke slightly. Without hesitation, he charged, his movements a blur.
Gary could only watch in disbelief. "*No, no, this can't be happening,*" he muttered, his voice filled with despair.
Tyler activated his *Rush* skill, his eyes glowing a faint blue as his speed dramatically increased. He unched himself at the wounded serpent, his axe aimed at the opening Grone had created. The axe bit deep into the creature's flesh, eliciting a pained hiss. The White Fang shed out with its tail, attempting to dislodge the axe, but Tyler, with a powerful leap, soared over the sweeping blow.
In mid-air, a venom bloom materialized in his hand—a soft, purple fruit steaming slightly, coated in his blood. He hurled the poisonous fruit into the White Fang's open maw. Landing, he leaped back as the serpent instinctively swallowed the pnt.
The White Fang shrieked, its body convulsing violently. Blood welled from its eyes, its scales darkening. Gary, his face contorted with horror, stumbled to his feet. "No, no," he cried, his voice filled with anguish and disbelief.
The axe reappeared in Tyler's hand. The iron was still faintly smoking and melting where he'd cut his hand, the blood causing a small sizzling sound as it dripped onto the bde. He didn't hesitate. He cut his already wounded hand again, deepening the gash, letting his blood flow more freely, the melting of the axe accelerating slightly. His *Rush* skill was already active; his speed exploded, his eyes bzing with a bright blue light.
The White Fang, still writhing in agony, presented a final opportunity. Tyler saw the gaping wound Grone had created. With a burst of speed, he unched his blood-soaked hand into the serpent's open wound. The serpent reacted with a final, desperate convulsion, but its movements quickly faltered. Smoke and steam curled from the wound as the creature's flesh was rapidly corroded by the acidic blood. The creature stilled, finally succumbing to the combined effects of the venom and Tyler's attack.
System messages flooded Tyler's vision: Level up. Level up. Level up. Level up. Level up. Level up, Level up. A faint green light enveloped his body as his wounds vanished, his strength renewed.
Steven watched, his voice filled with disbelief. "Wait… a regeneration skill? No, no, this just isn't fair." He turned and fled into the woods, his hand already summoning bandages as he ran, wrapping them around his injured fingers.
Grone turned to Gary, who was muttering, "No, this is fucking impossible…" But he was cut short by a fresh torrent of blood, spurting from his mouth. A system message appeared before Tyler: Gary has used skill: Gap.
Gary appeared before Tyler with impossible speed, but his momentum faltered. He stumbled, colpsing to the ground. Blood flowed freely from his eyes and ears, a horrifying testament to the poison finally overwhelming him. His *Gap* skill, used in a desperate attempt to reach Tyler, had been insufficient to overcome the debilitating effects of the poison.
Grone walked over to Gary, standing before him. He began to speak, "Gary, you shouldn't have—"
"Shut up," Gary interrupted, his voice strained and ragged. He continued, his words a desperate plea, "This isn't the end. There's no way this is happening to me. This is all a dream, right? A freaking stupid nightmare. There's no way Grone's about to kill me. There's no way I'm about to die at that punk's… hands."
His words trailed off as his head slumped to the ground, his life ebbing away. Grone, his face grim, let out a long sigh. "You know what I have to do," he murmured, before turning and rushing after Steven.
Tyler watched Gary's lifeless body. The system responded with three consecutive messages: Level up. Level up. Level up. Another panel followed: Achievement Unlocked: Commit Murder. +10 points to each stat.