Talent Awakening: Draconic Overlord Of The Apocalypse - Chapter 203

Chapter 203: Devourers Of Steel And Bone
Alister made his way through the ruined city, the red glow of the sky reflecting off the shattered buildings around him.

The air was thick with the stench of decay, and the distant booms of battle echoed through the hollow streets as his wyverns continued their attacks on the remaining monsters. A system notification flashed in his vision:

[Prestige Points: 4567]

He furrowed his brow, calculating. ‘The most we can get per kill is between 4 and 8 due to the fact that most of our opponents are low-grade monsters, despite having high stats…’

‘I have a feeling its somehow related to this red moon… but we’ve made some progress.’

He cracked his knuckles, feeling his mana rush through his veins, ready to strike again.

‘I should be able to hit seven thousand points before daybreak back at the megacity.’

‘But I must admit this turned out to be really fast; by my calculations, we should be done in an hour and a half.’

In the distance, a new wave of skeletons began to emerge from the shadows, their bones clattering as they moved toward him.

Alister’s eyes narrowed. With a swift, fluid motion, he raised his clawed hand and swung it through the air as he said…

“Void Rend.”

His claws shimmered with a golden aura as he swung them through the air. Instantly, beams of claw marks shot forward, cutting through the distance.

The beams of mana tore through the skeletons, slicing them apart before they even had a chance to react. Bones shattered and fell to the floor, disintegrating into dust, leaving behind small red gems.

[You have gained 6 Prestige Points]

[You have gained 8 Prestige Points]

[You have gained 4 Prestige Points]

Alister charged with a sudden burst of speed, darting through the ruins as more skeletons tried to close in.

His claws shone brightly as he unleashed Void Rend again, beams of energy slashing through the enemies before they could even raise their weapons.

The ground trembled beneath his feet as he moved, each step creating shockwaves that cracked the already fractured earth.

Just as he finished clearing the wave of skeletons, another group appeared—humanoid plant zombies, with vines and emitting strange glowing spores.

One zombie’s vines lashed out like whips, while another’s spores began to form a poisonous cloud around it.

Alister let out a sigh, then dived into the fray with a burst of speed. His claws gleamed as he slashed through the vine-laden zombie, severing its tendrils in a single stroke.

The spore-emitting zombie instantly released its toxic purple cloud toward Alister. For a moment, there was no sound. The monster looked around, suspecting Alister was still unharmed, ready to retaliate again.

Out of nowhere, a pair of yellow eyes shone in the purple mist behind the monster.

Alister was already upon it, his hand instantly reaching out and crushing its skull, causing the monster to fall to the ground, lifeless.

[You have gained 4 Prestige Points]

[You have gained 4 Prestige Points]

[You have gained 8 Prestige Points]

[Notice! You have been poisoned!]

[Blood Healing activated.]

As the last of the plant zombies fell, a bright system notification appeared:

[Devouring Value: 100%]

[Several Wyverns have obtained special attributes and titles!]

Alister swiped the air, opening the system window to view the updates for his wyverns. His eyes scanned the list of abilities they had gained:

[Ability: Poison Breath.]

[Ability: Steel Scales.]

[Ability: Denser Bones.]

[Title: Poison Eater.]

[Title: Bone Eater]

[Title: Steel Eater]

[Notice! Samples of Steel, Bone, and Poison have been added to the Dracotralysis Tree!]

[The player can combine different elements to obtain unique types of dragons!]

[Basic units have been formed!]

[The player can now give specific units specific instructions!]

‘Steel? Are there monsters made of steel around here? Don’t tell me the wyverns are eating metal instead of monsters.’

Sigh

Alister’s thoughts raced, ‘Those with Poison Breath can handle ranged assaults, the ones with stronger scales will be the defensive shield… and the wyverns with denser bones could be like frontline tanks.’

‘Looks like the formation of a basic raid team.’

He thought, pleased with the new titles. The Bone Eaters and Poison Eater would be especially useful in devouring any remaining enemies for additional power.

He quickly sorted the wyverns into their new groups. Once he was satisfied, he closed the system window and took a deep breath.

‘Alzuring.’

He called out mentally, reaching for the bond he shared with his Sky Dragon.

‘Take a look at the city from the sky and tell me how much of it we’ve cleared so far.’

‘Also notify me if you spot any particularly strong monster.’

A moment passed before Alzuring’s calm voice echoed in his thoughts. ‘Understood, young lord. I will survey the area and report back shortly.’

‘Good.’

Alister exhaled slowly, watching the horizon as he made his way through the ruined city.

His mind was focused as he looked around for any remaining threats.

Suddenly, a massive BOOM echoed through the streets, the ground trembling beneath his feet as a massive figure emerged from a collapsed building ahead. Dust billowed out like a cloud, swirling around the figure as it slowly stepped forward.

The dust settled, revealing a hulking body made of iron and stone. Its eyes glowed deep crimson, and every step it took shook the ground with the weight of its heavy, metallic body. A gray talent window materialized in front of Alister’s vision:

「Monster: Iron Golem (B – Rank)

Size Class: Large

Class: None

Total Combat Power: 64,070.(A – Rank)」

Before Alister could make a move, the golem let out a low, massive roar, the sound like metal scraping against rock.

Just as Alister prepared to attack, two of his wyverns slowly approached from the sky, their shadows darkening the ground beneath them as they landed with loud thuds. Creating creaters beneath them.

They attacked the iron golem, their claws and teeth tearing into its metallic body. The golem roared in agony as one of the wyverns bit down on its arm, pulling with such force that the limb was ripped clean off, sparks flying from the jagged metal edges.

Alister stood back, watching the scene unfold with a slightly surprised look. “I guess that’s where the steel came from,” he mumbled to himself as he watched his wyverns tear apart the golem with ease.

The wyverns continued their assault, one biting down on the golem’s leg, while the other sank its teeth into the remaining arm. Metal groaned as the giant struggled, its body convulsing under the attacks.

It tried to slam its remaining arm down on one of the wyverns, but the creature was too fast, dodging and countering with a bite to the golem’s exposed torso.

Alister observed the battle closely, his claws twitching slightly, wanting to get in on the fight, but he knew his wyverns had it under control. Besides, he was curious to see how they would devour such a monster.

The iron golem was indeed strong, but because it was in pain, it seemed to focus on trying to escape rather than fight back, or perhaps it was intimidated by their aura. Either way, the monster was trying to save itself.

But the wyverns didn’t let it run, another swiftly bit it by the side. As the final blow was delivered, the Iron Golem let out a final, metallic roar before collapsing to the ground in a heap of shattered metal and stone.

[You have gained 8 Prestige Points]

Alister’s wyverns stood over the fallen monster, their eyes gleaming with mana, with bits of iron still clenched between their teeth.

They let out massive roars before proceeding to eat the remaining metal, their teeth bending the iron with ease. Turning it into smaller bits and swallowing, they looked around, their eyes landing on Alister.

They then decided to return to his side, their wings folding as they waited for his command.

“Well done,” Alister said, patting one of the wyverns on the side as it closed its eyes. “Let’s keep moving. There’s still more ground to cover.” With that, they roared, leaping off the ground as they took to the skies.

Alister simply watched them go, as he glanced up at the crimzon sky, sensing Alzuring high above, surveying the battlefield as requested.

The city was slowly being cleared, and with each passing moment, Alister’s prestige points increased. Things were moving at a nice steady pace.

[Notice! Healing ineffective!]

[The player is still poisoned!]

[Notice! The player’s hunger is rising.]

‘Hunger?’

Alister’s steps slowed, and a sudden wave of dizziness washed over him. His vision blurred slightly as he felt a sharp pain in his chest.

He coughed violently, his hand coming up to his mouth instinctively. When he pulled it away, his fingers were smeared with blood—some of it tinged purple.

He furrowed his brow, his breathing heavy as he stared at the strange color mixed with his blood.

“What the…?” he muttered, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.

He took a shaky step forward, trying to clear his head. “I’ve never been poisoned before… I always thought I had some kind of resistance.”

‘But my wyverns ate something poisonous and are alright…’

‘Maybe it’s due to the effects of the Draconic Hunger skill…’

‘Will I have to ease a plant zombie to gain immunity as well?’

But before he could dwell on it further, his instincts screamed. His eyes widened, and in one swift motion, he jerked his head to the left.

SWISH!

A projectile shot past him, barely grazing his cheek, leaving a thin, stinging cut on his cheek.

Alister’s eyes shone brightly, narrowing as he slowly raised his head to look at the attacker. Before he could confirm a visual, Alzuring’s voice echoed in his head, ‘My lord, I would say we are 76% done clearing this entire city.’

‘And as for powerful monsters—’

Alister suddenly interrupted him, saying, ‘No need to worry… I may have already found a few…’