MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

Chapter 414: Poisonous Murky Plain

A subtle vibration rippled through the earth beneath them.

Then it came.

A thick, nauseating stench of rot and decay swiftly permeated the air, seeping into their lungs with every breath.

The odor was overpowering, a tangible weight that pressed down on their sense of smell.

As they stood, their boots, already sinking into the murky, sodden ground, suddenly felt something coil around them,a mist-like substance, almost alive, curling its way up their legs.

The small trees and plants around them trembled, their fragile forms distorting unnaturally, twisting and bending in grotesque, unnatural angles as though they were being pulled by some unseen force.

Above them, the sky shifted, warping into a mottled, sickly green that bathed the land in a ghastly pallor.

The atmosphere itself seemed to pulse with an unnatural malice.

Poison hung heavily in the air, an almost palpable force that gnawed at their skin and clawed at their lungs with a relentless, suffocating grip.

The very air seemed to writhe, as if alive, intent on crushing their will.

Yet, despite its ferocity, the team stood tall

Their bodies, honed and strengthened through cultivation, resisted the poisonʼs insidious assault.

But they did not face this oppressive force unprepared.

From their cores, energies surged, mana and Spiritual Energy coalescing in a swirling vortex.

It spiraled outward, enveloping them in an ethereal sheen of protection, a shimmering barrier that fended off the suffocating poison and the decaying miasma that sought to invade their bodies.

”Letʼs move”

Anthonyʼs voice was calm, commanding, and sharp.

Without waiting for a response, he took the first step.

His foot splashed into the murky ground, the sound of water distorting with the weight of his movement.

The team followed suit, their movements deliberate and measured, eyes constantly scanning the environment as they advanced.

Their senses were alert, every footfall calculated, every step taken with precision.

They moved in perfect synchronization, a fluid unity born from battles and a shared trust in one anotherʼs abilities.

Below them, the earth trembled slightly, unsettling the thick mud and murky terrain.

Faint shifts beneath their feet hinted at something unseen stirring beneath the surface.

But despite the creeping unease, they did not act.

”Donʼt make a move unless weʼre attacked first”

Anthonyʼs voice rang out, a quiet yet firm order to maintain discipline.

The words were laced with authority.

A sudden, sharp splash echoed from a distance, breaking the silence.

The teamʼs heads whipped toward the source of the sound, their senses on high alert.

But there was no immediate movement, no sign of danger.

They halted in place, poised and waiting for whatever had caused the disturbance.

Silence stretched, thick and tense, but nothing emerged from the depths below.

After a brief moment of stillness, Anthony gave a subtle nod, signaling the team to continue.

With practiced synchronization, they resumed their slow, deliberate pace, moving through the murky terrain with caution but without a clear destination.

Time seemed to stretch endlessly as minutes bled into each other, though the passage of time felt almost irrelevant in the oppressive atmosphere of the poisoned land.

Breaking the silence, Anthony spoke again, his voice steady but carrying an air of certainty.

”I think, for this floor, our task is to simply endure. Survive the poison long enough, and weʼll be allowed to move on to the next floor”

”Iʼve also arrived at the same conclusion”

Kingsleyʼs voice was calm, his tone devoid of worry, as he walked with his hands clasped behind his back.

Unlike Dale, Seraphim, and Reynold, he didnʼt need to create any defensive aura around himself.

His very presence seemed to resist the poison in the air, as if his body itself shredded any trace of decay or rot before it could touch him.

His head tilted slightly toward Anthony, noticing that, like him, Anthony had not bothered to summon any form of protection either.

The air thick with poison and decay seemed to have no effect on the man beside him.

Anthonyʼs body was a perfect countermeasure, immune to what the world could throw at him.

His poison body, paired with his regenerative abilities, rendered the noxious atmosphere entirely useless.

For him, there was no need for shields or barriers.

He simply was the defense.

Suddenly, Seraphim dropped to her knees, her body trembling as her eyes turned bloodshot.

Thick red blood flooded from her eyes, spilling down her face in a crimson cascade.

It wasnʼt just her eyes, her flawless skin began to blacken, creeping with dark veins and the unmistakable marks of decay.

She wasnʼt alone in her suffering.

Reynoldʼs legs buckled beneath him, and he collapsed to the ground, writhing in agony as he coughed up an unnerving amount of blood.

His insides churned violently, as if his organs were being set aflame, the poison coursing through his body in a way that felt almost... alive.

Dale, despite his innate regeneration as a vampire, was not spared.

The curse of decay, rot, and poison seeped into his being, and his healing abilities, usually so resilient, struggled to keep up.

Normally, his regeneration could counteract many poisons, but this?

This poison was too potent, its power far exceeding what his bloodline could handle.

Even his rapid healing couldnʼt stave off the creeping corruption gnawing at him.

The shimmering energy surrounding them had faltered, its protection useless against the relentless tide of poison that seeped through their skin, bypassing their defenses with ease.

They even held their breaths, thinking it might protect them from the toxic air, but it was futile.

The poison infiltrated them no matter how much they tried to resist.

Yet, despite the torment, none of them panicked.

Their faces were devoid of fear, their expressions calm and collected.

This wasnʼt the first time theyʼd faced something like this.

They had been through worse.

In an almost synchronized motion, each one reached for their space rings, pulling out antidotes and regeneration potions.

They downed the vials quickly, feeling the briefest wave of relief wash over them as the antidotes began to work.

But the relief was fleeting.

As soon as they felt their bodies responding, the poison struck again.

It crawled through their veins, relentless and unstopping, nullifying the effects of their potions as if it had learned to adapt to their attempts at healing.

Anthony observed as their hands, trembling with uncertainty, extracted more potions from their space rings.

With a calm yet calm voice, he spoke.

”There is no need to squander such resources”

Raising his hand, a surge of light magic erupted from his palm, enveloping their bodies in an ethereal glow.

A dome of radiant energy expanded outward, purging the poison and decay that had marred their forms.

In an instant, their skin and tissues began to weave back together, restoring them to their former state as though no affliction had ever occurred.

As they regained their footing, an expression of gratitude adorned their faces.

With a deep sigh, Reynold muttered, his voice laced with relief.

”I thought my end had come. Thank you”

”I will maintain the dome”

Anthony spoke with measured certainty.

”Should anything stand in our way, you are to strike from within it. This means you will rely solely on ranged attacks from this point onward. If you leave the protection of the dome, be sure to return swiftly, lest you succumb to the decay”

His words seemed to manifest their own ominous truth, for no sooner had he spoken than a chilling shriek cleaved the mist, a sound that no human throat could produce.

From the suffocating gloom, a monstrous silhouette emerged.

It was a grotesque fusion of decayed flesh and jagged bone, its limbs unnaturally elongated and dripping with viscous slime.

Its movements were erratic, twitching and unnatural, yet frighteningly swift.

But it was not alone.

At the sound of its terrible cry, the others stirred, rising from their slumber like creatures awakened from the depths of a nightmare.

”It appears that using light magic was a mistake”

Anthony remarked with a touch of self-mockery, his voice laced with irony.

And then, the carnage began.

While Anthony remained still, the rest of the team sprang into action.

Dale, however, was the first to respond, his voice calm but tinged with authority.

”Your screams are too loud for my ears”

As his eyes glowed and every creature charging toward him came to an abrupt halt, as if bound by some unseen force.

Indeed, they were frozen, motionless, as though they had lost all dominion over their own bodies.

Daleʼs mastery over their blood had ensnared them, freezing them in place with the sheer force of his control.

With a single snap of his fingers, the creatures detonated like overfilled balloons, their flesh and blood bursting violently into the air.

Yet the crimson rain never touched the tainted earth.

Instead, the blood remained suspended, swirling unnaturally under Daleʼs command.

Without missing a beat, he shaped the floating blood into deadly projectiles, continuing his ruthless rampage with an almost effortless grace.

Another creature lunged toward Seraphim, but she merely smiled, unshaken.

With a delicate motion, she tapped the empty space before her, her spiritual energy stirring in perfect response to her will.

In an instant, the charging monster faltered mid-stride, its eyes glazing over before it abruptly turned on its nearest companion, striking without hesitation.

And it was not alone.

Across the battlefield, more creatures succumbed to her influence, turning on one another in a frenzy of violence and confusion.

Seraphimʼs illusions had woven themselves into their minds, twisting their perception until they saw only enemies where allies once stood.

As for Reynold, flames wreathed his rapier, surging into the sky before cascading down with searing heat and overwhelming force.

Explosions ripped through the murky lands, shaking the earth with their ferocity.

Minutes blurred into hours, and by the time three hours had passed, the battle showed no signs of waning, until, quite suddenly, it did.

Without warning, the monsters ceased their assault.

One by one, they turned away, retreating into the mist to return to their lairs, as though summoned by an unseen command.

A heavy silence fell over the battlefield.

The group exchanged uneasy glances, frowns etching their faces.

They had held their ground for hours without retreat, yet now their enemies had simply… withdrawn.

Without warning, the earth beneath their feet rippled and bent, warping together with the very fabric of space.

The team swiftly propelled themselves upward, suspended in the air as they gazed down upon the shifting landscape.

From the distorted earth, two massive doors slowly materialized, forming from the twisted convergence of matter and magic.

They stood tall and imposing, their surfaces marked with unreadable runes.

With a low, resonant creak, the doors parted outward, revealing a spiraling staircase that seemed to descend endlessly into the unknown.

Anthony and the others observed the phenomenon with unreadable expressions, their faces carved in stone.

”It seems we have cleared the first floor… simply by surviving for three hours”

Reynold remarked, his voice calm but edged with fatigue.

”That must be the passage to the next floor”

Seraphim added, a glimmer of curiosity lighting her eyes.

”I wonder what lies ahead…”