Pandora Unchained - B1C44: Slaying the Two-Star Cyclops

"There's not much time until the sacrificial ritual is over, so I'll make this quick," said Stephan as everyone gathered around him. "By all rights, we shouldn't be fighting an oversized creature like this. We don't have the toughness of bone forging cultivators, nor do we have the right spells or the right weapons." He pointed to Collin. "You can't fight this thing directly. It'll kill you in three blows."

"That doesn't mean I can't try," Collin, who rarely spoke, said. "I should be able to take a few hits."

"I'm not saying you can't take a few hits; I'm saying you can't be the main tank," said Stephan. "I need you to stay in reserve until you're needed. Maybe you'll be able to save one or two of us or let us land a direct hit or something. Unless you've got an enchanted sword stashed somewhere on your body?"

His gaze then settled on Gareth. "You archers don't need to be told what to do, right?"

"We'll hit it in the eye with everything we have," said Gareth, giving him a thumbs up. "We'll use poison. Our normal attacks might not be able to hurt it much, but our powered-up shots should be able to since our bows are enchanted."

"Lawrence? Warren?" said Stephan.

"We'll keep stabbing him till he drops," said Lawrence. "Unless you're partial to cutting?"

"I'm a fan of stabbing," said Warren. "Just don't get in my way."

"Then that leaves Sorin," said Stephan. "Try your best to pierce its defenses and poison it. You'll find two-star creatures are very resistant to one-star poison, and large creatures are extra difficult to deal with. In truth, you have the best damage potential on the entire team against this thing, assuming you can land enough hits. Our main job will be distracting it so that you can hit it."

"What about me?" asked Nale. "Any advise for a swordman?"

"As if you'd take it," said Stephan, rolling his eyes. "Just try to cut pieces out of it, Nale; it's not complicated. Don't get hit. There's only one person here tough enough to take hits from that thing, and it's me." Finally, he turned to Hellen. "I hope our rocky start won't hurt our collaboration because this time, my little life really does depend on you."

Hellen smile. "So you do need a life mage. I'll keep regeneration spells on you at all times, but if you want more healing, either chug a potion or retreat from combat. That thing will smash me in a single hit."

"I'm… I'm awake!" Daphne, who'd been sitting down to recover, finally stood up. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she couldn't even stand properly. "I have a spell, and it's a good one!"

Stephan shook his head. "Don't bother. You can barely stand, and this thing is magic-resistant. You're far better off drinking a mana potion and conserving your strength." His eyes narrowed as the bloody ritual circle began to shrink and retreated into the altar, which then broke as the cyclops opened its single eye. A wave of paralysis washed over them, dulling their senses. "It's got an eye technique, so watch out for that. Everyone, stick with the plan. Go!"

Gareth and Lise immediately began firing arrows at the creature as it walked toward their group with the steady certainty of an apex predator. The arrows struck its eye without an issue, only to clank off harmlessly as they struck a thin shield of mana that seemed to cover every inch of its body.

"Kill!" shouted Stephan as he morphed back into bear form. He was only ten feet tall to the cyclops' 16 feet, but his powerful claws met the cyclops' large hands and even caused it to stumble backward.

Sensing an opportunity, Sorin used Adder Rush to close the gap and Viper Strike to attack the creature's knee. To his surprise, the cyclops moved its leg slightly at the last minute such that his dagger hit its knee cap. Sparks flew as his mana blade and the cyclops' hard bones collided.

"Dodge!" yelled Stephan, but too late. The cyclops' leg whipped out at Sorin and caught him in the chest, sending him flying twenty feet before he struck a piece of half-burnt timber. Three of Sorin's ribs cracked, and his internal organs were wrenched out of place. His vision blackened for three whole seconds before he picked himself up off the ground, groaning in pain.

Sorin winced as he popped his shoulder back into place and surveyed the situation. His regeneration powers were already quite strong, but given the severity of his injuries, he had no choice but to gulp down half a healing potion.

His body kicked into overbear and began healing his ligaments first, followed by his muscles. He watched as Lawrence and Warren launched sneak attacks that barely penetrated the creature's skin through its mana shield. Stephan had clearly underestimated the creature.

Though new to its powers, the cyclops quickly adapted to its body and began to overpower Stephan, pushing him back. The bloodthirsty cyclops then began hammering onto Stephan's armored bear hide with its fists, with no regard for the sharp bear teeth biting into its torso.

"What are you all waiting for?" shouted Stephan, blood pouring out of his mouth. "Deal damage to the damn thing! It's not easy taking a beating!"

Sorin was still reeling from getting smashed by the creature's leg, but he gritted his teeth and prepared for another attempt. That thing is huge and shouldn't have been able to dodge in time to avoid my knife, thought Sorin. Something must have caused me to miss it.

"Cover me!" shouted Sorin as he rushed in. Stephan immediately grabbed the cyclops's arm and bit down with his sharp bear teeth. It howled with rage and redoubled its hammering, giving Sorin yet another opening. This time, he stabbed its thigh where a human acupuncture point would normally be located.

One. Poison broke through the creature's mana shield, directly attacking the muscle. Two. The second strike got a nerve, and Sorin got a better feel for the creature's anatomy. Three. Sorin could feel the poison melting away at the creature's tough muscles. Its bones were unimaginably hard, but its flesh, not so much. Four. The moment he landed the fourth strike, a heart-palpitating feeling gripped Sorin. The creature flung Stephan into a burning building and moved to kill Sorin with a single blow.

Sorin tried to dodge but discovered, to his horror, that he was paralyzed. What's… what's going on? And that's when he saw it – the glowing mana signature in the cyclops's single eye, freezing him in place. The same technique it had used at the beginning of the battle.

"Wake up, sleepy head!" Sorin snapped out of his trance thanks to Lawrence's voice and kicked back just in time to avoid the creature's fist. Wind and mana pelted Sorin's body, stunning him just long enough for the cyclops to swat him with its offhand.

Sorin's head spun as he tumbled down a small hill. Serious crush injuries and bruising, he calmly analyzed. Unable to mobilize 20% of strength. Blood clotting. Recommendation: clear out clot before continuing the battle.

Sorin picked himself up, inserted crystal needles in seven different acupoints, and used his poison mana to dissolve the clot that formed. He then stabbed needles in twelve different points and unstiffened the bruised and crushed muscles inhibiting his movements as what remained of the healing potion he'd drunk worked its magic.

With Stephan and Sorin down, Collin jumped in and confronted the cyclops. The battle was completely one-sided, but he bought ten precious seconds for Hellen to cast all the healing spells she could on the wounded bear before it jumped back into battle.

Holding back such a large creature was difficult for Collin, but fortunately, Nale, Lawrence, and Warren were doing a good job chipping away at the creature's defenses. Most of their attacks were absorbed by the cyclops's mana shields, but some managed to sneak through and draw blood. Sorin noted a conspicuous black trail leaking out of the creature's leg.

It's working, Sorin realized. Unlike his companions, he could penetrate the creature's mana shields and directly poison it. It was clear now why Stephan had so much confidence in his damage potential. He ignored the stinging in his eyes from the clash with the cyclops and coldly analyzed the situation. The key to this fight will be taking out its weak leg. It's trying to hide it, but the leg I struck has weakened significantly.

By now, Stephan had thrown himself back into combat, and Gareth and Lise were attacking with special arrows imbued with wind and lightning, bruising the creature's singular eye. Each of his companions was dealing limited damage to the creature, though not without a hefty price being paid by Stephan and Collin.

Sorin used Adder Rush as an opening revealed itself, only to pull back at the last second as the Cyclops's body twisted. He circled around it and attempted another rapid strike, only to find himself confronted by the creature's wary eye.

Another wave of paralysis struck Sorin, but this time, the serpent within him awakened and fought back. A phantom cobra appeared behind Sorin and dispelled the creature's paralysis spell and even sent a wave of spiritual energy back at it.

"Keep it up!" shouted Gareth from the back. "You're drawing all its attention, Sorin!"

Thanks to Gareth's reminder, Sorin realized the crux of the matter: he didn't need to deal extra damage to it. He'd already poisoned it, and the poison was gradually taking effect. His threatening presence was enough to conserve their formation.

He, therefore, picked up his speed and focused on dodging and avoiding, all the while remaining in the cyclops' threat zone. Adder Rush was a versatile technique that incorporated a serpent's weaving and the explosive might of a serpent's bite. It allowed Sorin to pop in and out of the creature's threat range.

Enraged at the provocation, the cyclops gave up on facing the other party members and tried to engage Sorin directly. But Sorin refused and repeatedly dodged, slipping back just in time to avoid getting crushed by the creature's fists.

It's getting faster, thought Sorin as he fought. Its entire body is turning red. Its heart is speeding up, and its strength is up by 20%. What's going on?

"It's going berserk!" shouted Gareth suddenly. "Sorin, run!" The cyclops suddenly exploded with power and attempted to grab Sorin. Sorin didn't even think. His footwork changed in reaction to the threat, and he directly squeezed between the creature's legs.

One. Two. Three. Sorin stabbed it three times between the legs as he passed. The cyclops whirled around to face him, only to discover that Sorin had already slipped around the other side. So this is the essence of Adder Rush, Sorin realized. It's not about just weaving and darting but also circling around one's prey.

"Its leg is critically weak!" shouted Sorin as he dodged and struck again. "A high-impact attack will make it give out!"

"Got it!" shouted Stephan. "Lunisolar Paw!"

"Silverblade Cleave!" shouted Nale.

Both Lise and Gareth drew back their arrows and poured wind and lightning into their shots, blasting the creature's shielded leg just before Stephan and Nale struck it.

A bone forging cultivator's mana shields were difficult to pierce by blood-thickening cultivators, but with their combined efforts, they finally managed to shatter the protective covering and directly attack its flesh. Nale's sword cut apart its thigh and dug into the bone, while Stephan's paw smashed apart what remained and caused the creature to collapse to one side.

"Retreat!" Gareth called, and everyone, including Stephan, pulled back.

"Is it over?" asked Sorin as he observed the cyclops. "Can it recover?"

"Its regeneration is strong but not strong enough to overcome the residual poison," said Stephan, shaking his head. "You're the physician. With one leg down interrupting its blood flow, even a demon won't last long in this state."

The creature struggled on death's door for another two minutes before the last of its life left it. Its mana shields dimmed, and its surroundings distorted. They found themselves inside a hallway filled with cyclops corpses.

"Everyone, rest up while you can," said Stephan, reverting to human form. He was covered in bruises from head to toe, and Sorin didn't dare imagine what kind of pain he was in.

"I'll go get its core," said Lawrence, hopping up on the creature's corpse. He cut into its eye and retrieved a large crystal. "Nice! It's a big one."

"I suggest you drop that core and leave the rest of this battlefield to us," a voice suddenly sounded. Footsteps clanked in the hallway, revealing a group of ten adventurers led by none other than Orpheus.

"What's the meaning of this, Orpheus?" asked Stephan warily.

"It means what you think it means," said Orpheus. "You're all wounded and won't be able to put up much of a fight. I therefore suggest that you retreat while we clear up the battlefield. Don't worry; we'll give you a fair share of the spoils after we exit the ruins."