Abyssal Awakening

Chapter 416: Uncanny Beast

Kneeling in front of the crater, she could still see sparks of lightning crackling across the ground.

She didn't know how to describe this feeling except that it was simply uncanny. Like seeing a beast mimic the look of a human but failing.

A human that won't blink, smiles unnaturally wide or their voice and lip movements don't match up.

A creeping dread inside the chest and the feeling of rejection from your own perception.

That was what Alice was feeling.

She saw what the beast was like, she felt its attacks. Yet now that she was looking at this crater… She wasn't so sure anymore.

But the very thought contradicted itself.

Clearly, the being was a beast. It flew in the air, spewed fire and summoned lightning. It cracked open the Void and commanded the lesser beasts. But she wasn't sure if it was a beast or not?

Scratching her hair, Alice frowned in frustration.

"Something wrong?" Selen asked, walking up to Alice.

"A little. Come here and look at this crater for me. Tell me what you think." Alice gestured.

Even though she found it weird, Selen didn't reject and kneeled down next to her.

"Seems pretty normal to me. Just some residual lightning in the ground no?" Selen tilted her head.

"That's what I thought as well at first. Get a better look at it, try to sense what kind of beast released this attack. Once you've done that, tell me what you think." Alice clarified.

Furrowing her brows, Selen let out a sigh and nodded her head.

She knew that Alice wasn't someone who jokes around for something like this. So her asking for this meant there's something to be found.

Closing her eyes, Selen sensed the crater carefully.

Just as she was about to give the same answer, her expression faltered as her eyes snapped open. Her face paled with confusion and rejection.

"What the f*ck…"

"Seems like you finally noticed it." Alice nodded her head before standing up.

"What the hell is that?" Selen asked, glancing between Alice and the crater.

"No clue. But I have a sneaking suspicion that it's a Zenia family product. The only other possible group is the Eclipse but I don't see them doing this kind of experiment. So there are two choices… no three.

"First, the Zenia family. Second, an unknown group who are doing similar things as the Zenias. And lastly, it could just be an abnormal natural evolution of the beast." Alice shrugged.

The unknown group was Nyer.

If he was able to create her, then it wouldn't be a surprise if he had his hand in 'creating' this strange beast of multiple elements and even the power of the Void.

"Three options huh… Tsk, everywhere we go there's always a sign of the Zenia family." Selen scratched her hair in annoyance.

"That's just how big of a family they are now. Which is to be expected when they created an empire using my body as a foundation for the Abyss Blood they find." Alice shrugged.

She was the perfect subject to act as a foundation. A subject that would always return to a neutral state once time passed. And when paired with her current regeneration, when it worked, she wouldn't even need the collar to keep herself alive.

"If the Zenia's are involved, I'm guessing we might find some at the port stronghold then." Selen narrowed her eyes as killing intent seeped out but she controlled it after a short moment.

"Possibly. We'll have to see when we get there." Alice shrugged.

She would like it if there were indeed Zenias there but even if there is, she still wasn't sure if her poisonous blood worked right now.

Noticing Bo approaching with a frown on his face, both Alice and Selen turned towards him.

"Selen, I'll need you for a moment. We're going to be forming a new group in case that beast shows up again." Bo called out as Selen paused for a moment. She'd rather not leave Alice's side if she could help it since she still needs to repay her debt.

"As expected, we're not retreating huh?" Alice asked, glancing around them.

"As expected?"

"It doesn't look like people are cleaning up to make a retreat. Rather, it looks like we're salvaging what we can and then continuing to the port." Alice shrugged, gesturing at her surroundings.

Since Alice had already deducted that, Bo had no reason to hide things.

"Yeah, we're continuing with what we have left. We'll be forming three groups from the remnants. A stalling group, stealth group and the vanguard."

Explaining the new plan and what Olivr had decided on, Bo also explained the potential identity of the beast that attacked.

Upon hearing about the beast, Alice's suspicions were confirmed as there was a very high chance that both beasts had been fused together to form this unnatural chimaera.

'How the hell did the Zenias even fuse the two together?' Alyss asked in disbelief. With the nature of each beast, high elemental and energy resistance as well as their aggression, it sounded almost impossible to mix the two together without losing a lot of manpower.

And even if they succeed, was it truly worth it?

'I… Might have an idea of how they did it based on everything I've learned so far.' Alice frowned.

'Based on what I know about Selen and the Arachne we killed at the re

To properly hold off the beast, the stalling group will need to be filled with people that have high defences and abilities that can interrupt the beast.

Out of the 55 Warriors left, Bo wasn't even sure if he could find 5 that matched the description.