The Devil’s Cage

Kieran landed two consecutive shots on Gilfren Hatch’s head.

His head, which had become incomparably solid after his reincarnation into a half-dead, was deformed from the repeated shots. That wasn’t enough to kill him, though.

[Shooting, Blessed Bullets: Inflict 50 Damage to Target HP, Target is Immune to Lethal Attacks, Moderate Death Skin Skill, Resists 30 Damage; Blessed Bullets, Inflict Extra 100 Damage to Target HP, Authentication deemed as Lethal, Inflicts 120 Damage to Target...]

[Shooting, Blessed Bullets: Inflict 50 Damage to Target HP, Target is Immune to Lethal Attacks, Moderate Death Skin Skill, Resists 30 Damage; Blessed Bullets, Inflict Extra 100 Damage to Target HP, Authentication deemed as Lethal, Inflicts 120 Damage to Target...]

...

The three shots Kieran had fired dealt a total of 350 damage to the half-dead’s HP, but it was only enough to force it into a Moderate Wounded Status.

Such a debuff would not affect Gilfren Hatch.

On the contrary, the half-dead before Kieran seemed to have entered a special mode. It became even more furious, the bloody patterns on its face burning bright as it roared loudly. The punch that landed on Kieran’s chest was infused with even more strength, blasting Kieran with immense power.

Boom!

As the extremely strong barrier of [Primus Scale] was crushed to bits by the punch, Kieran was forced to back off a couple meters.

Gilfren Hatch followed up with an even stronger punch than the previous one.

Kieran could feel the pressure before the punch had even landed on him, the wind hurting his face like a knife cut.

The punch was both powerful and fast. It was actually so fast that before Kieran could even dodge, it had already reached his chest.

Kieran dared not underestimate the damage that such a punch could inflict.

The previous one had already broken through the [Primus Scale]’s defensive barrier, and the incoming punch was far stronger. Despite his 350 HP, Kieran would not be able to survive the hit.

He had no way to dodge it, though. The punch was already in front of him.

He just clenched his teeth and tried to take it.

”Die!” Gilfren Hatch shouted as he watched Kieran’s final struggle.

The infuriated half-dead could not wait to taste the blood of his enemy. He had been assaulted by Kieran earlier after all.

Hatch’s powerful punch landed hard on Kieran, as if he wanted to punch him through the chest.

Boom!

The heavy blow landed on him, blood spilling out of Kieran mouth.

An item fell off in mid-air as he was punched.

It was his [M1905], its shape completely deformed and broken.

Kieran was not able to dodge. He had chosen to just take the punch, but that did not mean that he wanted it to land on his chest.

Even the [T1 Bulletproof Vest] would not do him any good. He had already experienced the powerful blow of Gilfren Hatch’s punches and he knew it would be suicidal if he took one on his chest.

If one piece of equipment was not enough though, what about two? Or even three?

Kieran had more than three pieces of equipment on his body.

As Kieran’s thoughts flashed like lightning, he felt the [M1905] in his right hand and the [Primus Arm] on his left.

The system had stated that the [M1905] was only an offensive weapon, but it had not stated that he could not use its metal body for defense.

If the [M1905] could not be used for defense though, [Primus Arm] would no doubt be the strongest defensive equipment that he had.

[Primus Arm] was already legendary equipment, so its defensive power was incredibly strong.

As Kieran had to withstand an immensely strong punch from the half-dead though, he made the effort to move [Primus Arm] onto his chest and put the [M1905] on top of [Primus Arm], forming a special line of defense.

The result proved him right. Although the [M1905] and the [T1 Bulletproof Vest] were completely destroyed, he managed to survive the punch.

[Punching: Target inflicts 450 Damage to your HP, Defensive equipment blocked 300 Damage, 150 True Damage inflicted to HP, Moderately Wounded Status...]

[Moderately Wounded Status: Strength, Agility, Intuition down by one rank]

[T1 Bulletproof Vest destroyed]

[M1905 destroyed]

...

After all the guessing about the damage that the punch could inflict, the system battlelog notified Kieran that it was capable of a 450 damage.

Kieran would have really kicked the bucket if it were not for the triple line of defense of the [M1905], the [T1 Bulletproof Vest] and [Primus Arm].

Although he had just escaped death’s grasp, things were still not looking good for him.

The [Moderately Wounded Status] debuff took effect, lowering his stats by one.

Kieran, who had been punched in mid-air, was still in mortal danger. Gilfren Hatch had already thrown himself towards Kieran with a loud roar, like a vicious beast hunting its prey.

Even Kieran’s original stats had been no match for Hatch, let alone his lowered ones. Still hanging in mid-air, and without any way to block or dodge the incoming attack, Kieran had to face it head on again.

This time he didn’t have the aid of the [M1905] or the [T1 Bulletproof Vest] though, and [Primus Arm] alone could not prevent him from suffering a huge amount of damage.

To add insult to injury, Gilfren Hatch did not just unleash a single punch. He used both his hands as he leapt towards Kieran, wanting to tear him apart with his bare hands.

When Hatch was within two or three meters, Kieran waved his right hand and instantly brought up a thin, light metal wire, throwing it towards one of the metal chains on the coffin.

It was the [Deceiver’s Key].

The magical item allowed Kieran to alter his course in mid-air, the wire latching onto the metal chain. Kieran swung towards the coffin, dodging Gilfren Hatch’s attack.

Kieran managed to avoid the attack, the strength of his hand pulling his body as if he was flying towards the coffin. After a mid-air flip, Kieran landed on the metal chain.

As he was flipping in the air, he pulled out two grenades and removed the pins, throwing them towards Gilfren Hatch with all his might.

”Return!” Gilfren Hatch shouted as he saw the two grenades flying towards him.

The fiery red pattern on his face glowed even brighter, and with a loud shout, a shockwave sent the two grenades back to Kieran, who was standing on the metal chain.

Kieran leapt off the chain without a second thought as the grenades flew towards him. He did not possess the skills of the half-dead.

Boom! Boom!

Both grenades exploded on the metal chain, causing a series of loud bangs as the chains hit against each other.

The chain was dazzling with red sparkles, lighting up after the explosion and turning a fiery red color.

The chain reaction caused the heartbeat inside the bronze coffin to beat louder and stronger.

As the sound reached Kieran’s ears, he suddenly felt an extremely painful, suffocating feeling on his chest.

It felt like his heart was being squeezed out.

Kieran spit a mouthful of fresh blood, but the blood did not fall on the floor. It flew right on the bronze coffin instead, lacing over its surface.

The coffin absorbed Kieran’s blood at an incredible speed.

[Fear: You are within range of your Target’s Fear, Your Spirit did not pass the authentication, and a concussion was caused to your body, 100 damage inflicted to your HP…]

[Tribute: Your blood has activated a special magical spell within the coffin...]

[While the spell is active, your HP will decrease by 1 point per second…]

[HP lower than 30%, Heavily Wounded Status…]

[Heavily Wounded Status: Strength, Agility, and Intuition decreasing by three ranks]

A series of notifications popped up in Kieran’s vision, but he had no time to care about any of them.

He knew that his HP was depleting every second. If he did not leave the area fast, he would die. He did not have much time left.

[HP: 97]

Kieran glanced over his depleting HP as he ran quickly towards the exit. He didn’t even give a damn about Gilfren Hatch, who had also collapsed.

Suddenly, Kieran had to stop. Hatch, who had also been induced by the unusual Fear coming from the coffin, had stood up again and was blocking Kieran’s exit.

He looked even worse than Kieran. Maybe the Fear had dealt a significant damage to his body, or his special trance had worn off and he’d entered a weaker status.

Kieran could not confirm any of those theories, but he noticed that the bloody pattern on Hatch’s face had lost its fiery glow. Without the red lustrous color on his face, Hatch looked like a rotting corpse.

His body looked exhausted, yet his manner and expression had gotten even more frenzied.

”This is a gift from our ancient ancestors! It is you who will perish!” Hatch shouted.

Kieran looked at the half-dead with a bitter expression. He could not determine what form he was in, but one thing was for sure. The half-dead would not rest until he had killed Kieran.

What options did Kieran have left?

The [Primus Arm] shined on his left wrist.

Activate [Primus Crush]!

Activate [Primus Greed]!