Online Game: Starting with an SSS-Level Plundering Talent - Chapter 223

Chapter 223: Chapter 223: Frenzied Slaughter, Hunter Leader
Both Thunder and the Death Demon General were lower-tier gods, possessing immense power. For a short period, holding off these Hunters was not a problem for them at all.

Elsa, Tony, and the Undead Lord had also ascended to demigod status, allowing them to fend off the ninth-tier Hunters effectively.

Only Sini and Tracy were relatively weaker, being at the seventh tier, making them less of a threat to the Hunters.

The two of them stayed close to John, ensuring his safety.

John, having withdrawn from the battlefield, could no longer hold on mentally. Leaning against Sini, he closed his eyes, and soon, the sound of his steady breathing filled the air.

Sini’s heart ached as she looked at him. Gently, she adjusted his position, letting him rest his head on her lap so he could sleep more comfortably.

Boom! Boom!

Thunder roared and dark forces surged all around. The Death Demon General and Thunder managed to repel most of the Hunters’ attacks.

Occasionally, a few lone Hunters would break into the gorge, only to be effortlessly dispatched by Elsa and the others.

Though the Death Demon General and Thunder were lower-tier gods with formidable strength, they struggled to keep up with the endless onslaught of Hunters.

In just half a day, their magic energy was completely drained, forcing them into close-quarters combat. With the relentless swarm of enemies, their health points continued to plummet.

Although Sini had healing capabilities, it was impossible to keep up with the sustained damage caused by so many ninth-tier Hunters.

“Wake up the Godslayer. If this continues, we’re all dead,” Tony panted as he cut down a Hunter that had broken through.

“Alright!” Sini nodded and gently roused John.

John opened his eyes. Although he had only rested for half a day, his mental strength had already recovered significantly, and his physical stamina was fully restored.

“You two step back and rest now. Leave the rest to me,” he instructed Thunder and the Death Demon General. Gripping the Sword of Divinity and Demons in his hand, he summoned the Three-Foot Black Dragon Sword, which split into three, and began yet another frenzied slaughter against the approaching Hunters.

All the Hunters around were ninth-tier.

Tony had mentioned before that Hunters could only cultivate up to the demigod level.

However, John had yet to see any demigod-level Hunters appear.

Even so, the ninth-tier Hunters posed a significant challenge to everyone.

Surrounded by the immense power of light and darkness, John unleashed a barrage of relentless attacks on the Hunters swarming the gorge.

In an instant, the Hunters within the gorge were completely eradicated.

Elsa, Tony, and the others couldn’t contribute much to the battle, so they took the opportunity to rest, preparing to replace John when the time came.

John continued fighting for another day.

The Death Demon General and Thunder had fully recovered and took over from him, allowing him to step back and rest.

John hadn’t reached his limit yet—he could easily keep fighting for another two days and nights.

However, Sini and the others wouldn’t allow it, fearing for his safety if he pushed himself too far.

Left with no choice, John reluctantly agreed to rest.

Thus, the group took turns resting and attacking, relentlessly slaughtering the Hunters.

John had lost count of how many ninth-tier Hunters he had killed.

He only knew that both he and the two women had ascended to the eighth tier, and his Plundered Shadow Power had accumulated to ten thousand points, increasing his percentage-based health damage to 0.1%.

His strength had significantly improved once again.

The group’s coordination became increasingly refined, and the constant influx of Hunters no longer posed a threat.

And so, they continued like this for an entire month.

By now, they had all become numb to the endless combat, and despite the unrelenting waves of Hunters, the number of enemies hadn’t decreased at all. Instead, demigod-level Hunters began appearing.

This sudden escalation increased the pressure on them once more.

Only John and the two lower-tier gods, Thunder and the Death Demon General, could handle demigod-level Hunters with relative ease.

Even so, the duration of John’s rest periods grew shorter and shorter.

The extended battles meant that Thunder and the Death Demon General couldn’t recover fully during their rest intervals.

John had attempted to use his soul skills, but they barely affected these Hunters and only resulted in severe backlash.

The Hunters gave him a strange feeling, as if they were all connected to a shared soul!

It was as if these Hunters weren’t separate entities at all.

“Roar!” Suddenly, a deep and resonant roar echoed through the canyon, causing all the surrounding Hunters to cease their attacks. They turned toward the source of the sound and, one by one, kneeled down in reverence.

“What’s going on?” Thunder frowned, his expression tense. He had never witnessed such a bizarre scene before.

“It seems like someone even stronger has shown up,” the Death Demon General murmured, swallowing nervously.

Whoosh!

In the sky above, a fierce wind howled as an enormous Hunter, significantly larger than the others, descended slowly into the gorge.

It was a Hunter leader, with strength at the demigod level.

John felt confident that he could easily take down this creature but chose not to attack.

He wanted to see what this beast intended to do.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve encountered someone as strong as you,” it croaked, its raspy voice echoing as its gaze swept over John with a curious glint. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re a warrior of The Immortals, aren’t you?”

John nodded, not bothering to deny it.

The Hunter leader didn’t seem surprised. Instead, its eyes showed a hint of admiration. “Only an Immortal could be a worthy opponent to us. The rest—just a bunch of weaklings,” it said with disdain.

As it spoke, it glanced at the others with a predatory gleam in its eyes, its gaze lingering on the Death Demon General and Thunder for a moment longer, before it licked its crimson lips hungrily.

It seemed that divine beings held a tremendous allure for these creatures.

The Hunter leader withdrew its gaze and turned back to John, continuing, “Human, I have no desire to become enemies with The Immortals. You didn’t come here just to slaughter us, did you?”

John nodded and replied, “We’re here to destroy the seal.”

“What?” Its eyes lit up with excitement, a look of joy spreading across its face. “Why didn’t you say so earlier? If I’d known you were here to destroy the seal, do you think I’d have made things difficult for you?”

John was taken aback for a moment. This creature clearly wanted to help them. He responded calmly, “Well, you never asked.”

“Damn, we’ve been fighting for nothing—it’s all been a misunderstanding.” All hostility vanished from the Hunter leader as it turned to the surrounding Hunters and snapped, “You useless fools, get out of here. All of you!”

In an instant, the Hunters receded like a tide, leaving the canyon eerily silent, with only the enormous Hunter leader remaining.

John couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Aren’t you afraid that, by sending your minions away, I’ll seize the chance to kill you?”

The creature casually shrugged its wings. “You players can resurrect, right? We Hunters can do the same. The cost is a bit steep, sure, but it’s nothing a bit of re-training can’t fix. Besides, if you kill me, you’ll have to face the wrath of every single Hunter here. I don’t think you’d be that foolish.”

John frowned; he didn’t like this creature at all.

But it did have a point. He couldn’t kill it so easily.

The Hunter leader continued, “You probably don’t know where the core of the seal is, do you? Follow me.”

It spread its wings wide and shot out of the canyon, flying deep into the Ancient Battlefield Ruins.

“My lord, I don’t trust that thing!” Thunder said warily, his voice tinged with unease. He feared the creature might lure them out only to spring an ambush.

“Relax. That thing has no ill intentions—at least for now,” John replied, his expression thoughtful. He didn’t trust the Hunter leader either.

But it clearly wanted them to destroy the seal so it could escape this place.

At least until that goal was achieved, it wouldn’t dare make a move against them.

And if the seal were destroyed, they could escape too—beyond these ruins, it would be easier to shake off these creatures.

Avis followed the Hunter as it flew over the vast expanse of the Ancient Battlefield Ruins. Everywhere they passed, the ground teemed with countless Hunters.

Over the past month, they had slaughtered nearly a hundred million of these creatures, yet their numbers didn’t seem to have diminished at all.

Perhaps what the Hunter leader said was true—their deaths weren’t final. They could be resurrected.

The Ancient Battlefield Ruins stretched far and wide. After two hours of flight, they finally reached the edge of the ruins and landed near an altar.

“Human, this is the place,” the Hunter leader gestured at the altar before them, then asked curiously, “So, how do you plan to destroy the seal?”

John looked over at Tony.

Tony took out the crystal sphere.

“Huh? The Undying Flame!” the Hunter leader exclaimed in shock, its face filled with terror.

John was intrigued and asked, “What’s the matter? Can this thing really annihilate all of you?”

“Heh heh…” The creature forced an awkward smile but didn’t say much. It only took a few steps back involuntarily.

John sneered. He had guessed correctly—the Undying Flame could completely obliterate the Hunters.

“Tony, let me handle this,” Ben stepped forward, reaching out to take the Undying Flame.

But Tony dodged his grasp, remaining calm. “You can’t do it.”

He glanced at the people around John, sighed helplessly, and decided to activate it himself.

“Wait, isn’t it possible to detonate it remotely?” John stopped him, curious.

If using the Undying Flame meant sacrificing Tony, John would never agree to it.

Tony sighed and explained, “The Undying Flame has a blast radius of a hundred thousand meters. Only upper-tier gods’ spiritual power can cover such a distance.”

A hundred thousand meters?

John was taken aback. Even though his Soul Technique had advanced to over twenty thousand points and he had mastered soul perception, his mental strength still couldn’t reach that far.

Tony continued, “Don’t worry. My defenses are strong. I might get out of this unscathed.”

“Not happening.” John didn’t buy it. He snatched the Undying Flame from Tony.

“Hey, kid, don’t do anything reckless!” Tony was startled.

“Godslayer, why not let this guy detonate it?” Undead Lord suggested, pointing at the Hunter leader.

The creature was so frightened it immediately shook its head. “No, not me! That thing can destroy me completely!”

John sneered, “Look at you, such a coward. Why not command one of your Hunters to do it?”

“Hmm, that could work.” Its eyes lit up. It beckoned to one of the elite seventh-tier Hunters nearby.

It had initially wanted to use an ordinary Hunter, but those were too dim-witted and unreliable.

Taking the Undying Flame from John, it handed it to the selected Hunter and meticulously instructed, “Use your spiritual power to detonate this crystal sphere and destroy the altar. Remember, only detonate it after we’re far away—when you can’t see us anymore. Got it?”

The Hunter’s gaze was dull. After a moment, it nodded seriously.

“Remember, don’t detonate it until you can no longer see us.” It repeated the instruction several times, then ordered the surrounding Hunters to disperse.

John and the others quickly climbed onto Avis’s back and fled the scene as fast as they could.