Affinity: Chaos

Chapter 2201: Entering The Magical Beasts’ Forest Again

”Since you’re already here, why not show yourself?”

Grey’s question hung in the clearing for a few seconds. Then an eerie chuckle drifted out of the empty air.

”Kikiki... Grey Dawson. Looks like you really are worth the trouble.”

Four figures stepped out of swirling black smoke. All of them wore dark clothes and masks that completely covered their faces. Their auras settled at the Ninth stage of the Sovereign Plane.

Grey’s eyes narrowed when he saw they were human.

”So you’ve sold yourselves to the Gnomes,” he said, voice cold with open disdain. ”I expected Necromancers or Gnomes. Seeing humans fulfilling their tasks is just pathetic.”

One of the masked men gave a light shrug. ”We work for whoever pays well. Offer us a better contract and we might even switch sides.”

Grey snorted. ”You’ll die the same way your masters will. I only want to know who sent you.”

None of them answered. The black smoke around their bodies thickened and swallowed them again.

A heartbeat later a bolt of lightning tore out of one of the smoke clouds and shot straight at Reynolds.

”The one with the Elemental Warrior is mine,” the attacker called out.

”We know,” the other three replied in unison.

Reynolds did not hesitate. Lightning exploded around him as he fully merged with his Elemental Warrior and met the incoming strike head-on. The force of their collision pushed both of them toward the far side of the clearing, leaving Grey alone with the remaining three.

Grey did not even glance after his friend. He already knew Reynolds could handle a single Ninth-stage opponent. His attention stayed on the three figures still hidden in the black smoke.

”I thought the Gnomes would at least send their own,” Grey said calmly. ”Sending humans after me is almost insulting.”

”We already told you,” one of the men answered. ”Payment is payment.”

The smoke finally split apart. Three men stood in a loose triangle around Grey.

The one on the left carried a heavy earth aura. The one on the right moved with the light, sharp presence of a Wind Elementalist. The man in the center felt denser and more dangerous. Darkness and fire twisted together around his arms. A Dual Elementalist.

None of the three looked afraid. Although they’ve heard of Grey’s feats and even witnessed a few while following him, and unlike those Gnomes and Necromancers he killed, they don’t have puppets he could use against them. They felt the only reason Grey could kill those Gnomes and Necromancers was purely thanks to him incapacitating them. They didn’t really witness his fights with these experts since they had to keep a clear distance, but they still got to find out how Grey’s timely intervention changed the battle. He didn’t really have to fight a Peak Sovereign one on one, so it was natural people would take it that he wasn’t on their level.

Grey’s expression stayed flat. ”Then you have no reason to keep living.”

The Dual Elementalist struck first. A wave of black-red fire roared across the clearing, the darkness inside it making the flames twist and cling like living things. At the same moment the Wind Elementalist vanished, leaving only a faint ripple in the air, while the Earth Elementalist slammed both hands down. Thick stone spikes shot up from the ground, trying to pin Grey in place.

Grey’s figure blurred. He slipped between the rising spikes with short spatial shifts, the black-red fire passing through an afterimage. A three-colored fusion orb formed in his right hand and shot toward the Dual Elementalist. The man crossed his arms and wrapped himself in layered darkness and fire. The orb exploded against the defense, forcing him back several steps but failing to break through completely.

The Wind Elementalist appeared behind Grey, a blade of compressed air aimed at his neck. Grey tilted his head slightly, and the wind blade cut only empty space. At the same time he flicked his left hand and a spatial blade slashed toward the Wind Elementalist’s chest. The man twisted away, a thin line of blood appearing on his shoulder.

The Earth Elementalist did not give Grey time to follow up. The ground beneath Grey’s feet suddenly turned soft, trying to swallow his legs, while heavy stone fists punched up from every direction. Grey clicked his tongue and released a pulse of repulsive spatial force. The stone fists cracked and the softened ground hardened again. As soon as his legs were free he kicked off and rose into the air.

The three assassins adjusted at once. The Dual Elementalist sent another wave of dark fire upward. The Wind Elementalist created a tornado of cutting wind around Grey, trying to limit his movement. The Earth Elementalist raised thick walls on all sides. Sealing Grey within what could be described as a killing space.

Grey’s expression remained the same, looking at the shrinking tornado, he clapped both hands together. A much stronger spatial fluctuation spread outward. The wind cage distorted and tore open and the stone walls cracked under the sudden pressure creating an opening.

Grey shot through the opening and appeared directly in front of the Earth Elementalist. A spear of compressed earth and lightning formed in his hand and thrust forward.

The Earth Elementalist’s pupils shrank. He crossed his arms and poured everything into a defensive wall. The spear punched through the first layer and forced him to slide back more than ten meters, boots digging deep furrows in the ground. Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth.

The Dual Elementalist quickly understood they had underestimated what Grey was capable of at this moment. There was nothing he could do but watch Grey follow up on his attack to end him.

Luckily for the Dual Elementalist, before Grey could press the advantage, the Earth and the Wind Elementalist attacked together. Chains of wind wrapped toward Grey’s limbs while dozens of earth arrows rained down from every angle, giving him no space to evade the attack.