Chapter 103: The Counterattack Begins!
“Good thing this is only an Eagle-Headed Golem. If it were the ‘Sky-Patrol Golem’ powered by wind elements instead, we’d probably all be dead today.”
Even while battling the construct, Nolan still had the spare attention to mock the situation inwardly.
The Sky-Patrol Golem was the evolved form created when an Omnipotence Core absorbed wind elements. Though it lacked the raw strength and defense of the Eagle-Headed Golem, it possessed flight capabilities and vastly superior mobility. More importantly, its attacks were bizarre and unpredictable, every move branching into dozens of variations, each variation spawning even more derivatives. Trying to memorize its patterns was impossible. With their current team composition, only Romina would even be capable of threatening something like that. The others probably would not even be able to touch it. They would simply become helpless targets. That was the true nightmare for melee fighters. At that point, forget dismantling nodes. Surviving at all would already be a blessing.
The thought flashed briefly through Nolan’s mind, but his movements never slowed for even an instant. While maneuvering around the golem, he also launched several counterattacks to test its defenses.
Once again, he evaded a crushing downward strike before seizing the opening. His greatsword swept upward violently and slammed into the golem’s chest.
Clang! The sharp metallic impact sent vibrations through his hands as powerful recoil surged back into his arms.
A layer of icy blue magical shielding suddenly materialized over the golem’s chest, effortlessly blocking the strike. The attack only produced ripples across the shield without leaving so much as a scratch behind.
“Tch. Tough as hell.”
Even Nolan could not help grimacing.
Though the construct had been severely weakened, its defensive capabilities remained absurdly high. That strike had not been his full strength, but he had still used seventy or eighty percent of his power. Yet he could not even break through its defenses without using one of his true trump cards.
Ridiculous.
Nolan immediately abandoned any further attempts at direct damage and focused entirely on evasion instead, firmly keeping the golem’s aggro centered on himself while creating the safest possible environment for Renee’s investigation.
Time passed second by second. Within the hall, only the howling of the giant axe cutting through the air and the thunderous clashes between stone and steel remained.
Renee sat with her eyes tightly closed, her small face tense as beads of sweat slowly formed across her forehead. Her spiritual power spread outward like countless invisible tendrils, carefully following the directions Nolan had provided as it probed deep into the golem’s immense and violent energy circulation system. It was a raging ocean composed entirely of pure earth elements. Violent torrents of energy surged through the magitech circuits like rivers of molten force. Every pulse sent sharp pain through Renee’s spiritual senses.
Within those turbulent currents, she needed to locate the densest and most concentrated “whirlpools” of energy.
Those were the magitech nodes.
For an elementalist who had only recently stepped into Silver rank, this was an incredibly difficult challenge. But Renee refused to give up. She thought of Brother Nolan’s dependable back. She thought of Little Donnie charging forward without fear. She thought of the trust in Sister Vivi’s and Captain Romina’s eyes.
She could not become a burden to everyone else. Clenching her teeth tightly, she pushed her spiritual power to its absolute limit.
One node.
Then two.
Then three…
Under Nolan’s guidance and constant suppression of the golem, the hidden nodes buried within the raging energy currents gradually became clearer and clearer within Renee’s perception.
Finally, just after Nolan executed an extreme backward bridge to narrowly evade another diagonal slash, Renee’s voice rang out from behind him, filled with both relief and excitement, “My lord! I found them! I found all the nodes!”
That fast?!
Nolan was both shocked and delighted.
Based on his experience from his previous life, an ordinary Silver-rank mage would need at least half an hour to reverse-engineer every magitech node within such a complicated energy network.
Originally, he had estimated that if Renee managed it within twenty minutes, it would already count as extraordinary talent.
But now, less than ten minutes had passed since the battle began.
This girl’s talent was even more terrifying than he had imagined. He had truly struck gold.
“There are eleven nodes… no, twelve!” Renee’s voice sounded weak from the immense concentration and spiritual exhaustion, but her words remained remarkably clear. “They’re located at the right elbow joint, directly above the eye socket of the eagle head, three inches below the center of the torso, the inner side of the left hind knee…” She spoke rapidly, accurately listing the positions of all twelve nodes without missing a single one.
Only after finishing did she finally exhale deeply, feeling as though her entire mind had been hollowed out. Her body swayed weakly, the back of her robe completely soaked with sweat.
Vivi, who had remained by her side the entire time, reacted instantly and caught her before she could collapse.
“Well done, Renee!” Nolan praised her loudly without hesitation.
He raised his greatsword horizontally and forcefully blocked yet another attack from the golem, his body sliding several meters backward from the impact.
“Vivi! Captain Romina! It’s your turn now!” Stabilizing himself, Nolan shouted toward the corridor entrance. “Next, I’ll go on the offensive and create as many shield downtime windows as possible. Take the opportunity when it appears!”
The moment those words left his mouth, Nolan’s entire presence transformed.
If he had previously resembled a steady reef enduring endless waves…
Now he became a sword drawn from its sheath, sharp enough to pierce the heavens.
Aura of Conviction!
A golden halo erupted outward from Nolan, instantly enveloping every ally present. Warm and powerful energy flowed into their bodies, invigorating their minds and spirits.
Divine Infusion!
Blazing holy energy flooded Nolan’s body. A faint layer of golden flames ignited along the surface of the greatsword Mountain’s Resonance.
“Come on, big guy!” Nolan roared furiously.
This time, he no longer dodged. Instead, he charged directly into the Eagle-Headed Golem’s attacks and unleashed a storm-like barrage of savage assaults.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Greatsword and battle axe collided again and again. Every impact exploded through the empty hall with deafening echoes and showers of dazzling sparks.
The Eagle-Headed Golem was forced to directly confront the tiny human who had suddenly become overwhelmingly aggressive. Its core output intensified. Its attacks grew faster. Heavier. More violent. Each collision left Nolan’s hands numb as the muscles in his arms bulged violently, veins protruding beneath his skin.
Yet he never retreated even a single step. If anything, he grew fiercer with every exchange.
While firmly resisting the golem’s offensive, Nolan also watched Vivi’s movements from the corner of his eye. He deliberately coordinated every clash to guide the golem toward positions favorable for Vivi’s infiltration.
Vivi understood immediately. Without disappointing his expectations, she moved like a silent leopard, slipping through the gaps between the golem’s attacks and quietly circling behind it.
Her movements were astonishingly agile. Using the protruding stone ridges along the construct’s body, she climbed rapidly upward and reached the broad shoulder of the golem in only a few swift motions before concealing herself there.
An opportunity!
The instant Nolan saw Vivi in position, a sharp light flashed through his eyes. He abandoned all evasive maneuvers and poured every ounce of strength into his greatsword. Then, facing the giant axe descending straight toward him, he launched the fiercest frontal clash yet.