Chapter 342: Chapter 342: Speeding Up to Prevent the Worst-Case Scenario
Intense tremors spread swiftly throughout the entire Lost Realm instance. Deep within the heart of the instance, Jeremy's companions bore the brunt of this violent quake.
Already weakened by the Lost Realm instance boss's earlier attacks, each of them now found themselves nearly incapable of fighting. Ritchie was forced to retreat into the shadows, distancing himself as much as possible from the boss. Bonnie, barely managing to hold her stance, lifted her staff, conjuring a shield of ice around herself for protection.
Though Claire and Emma were farther from the boss, their relative lack of strength left them unable to take any action at all. In other parts of the instance, Liam, General Howard, and their subordinates felt the tremor's impact too, though much less severely due to their distance from the Lost Realm boss. However, this disturbance heightened both Liam's and General Howard's anxiety.
"This seems likely to be the boss's doing! Could this mean Jeremy's already encountered the boss? Do you think he stands any chance against it?" Liam asked General Howard, his voice edged with concern.
Earlier, Liam and General Howard had managed to regroup. The combined strength of their reunion gave them a measure of security in the face of this perilous realm. Still, when questioned, General Howard didn't respond right away. He merely frowned, staring in the direction of the tremors' origin.
After several tense seconds, General Howard finally spoke. "I sincerely hope Jeremy can prevail in this fight. If he fails, there's no chance of us escaping this instance. The longer we remain here, the greater the threats we'll face. The boss's power is undoubtedly far greater than ours. If Jeremy can't defeat it, we won't stand a chance either."
Howard's words drew a reluctant sigh from Liam. Both men knew they could now only pin their hopes on Jeremy. And there was nothing more they could do to aid him.
Keeping themselves safe was no easy task for Liam and General Howard, who felt fortunate just to maintain their safety amidst the chaos. As the two of them discussed the violent tremors shaking the realm, within the unique, high-stakes dimension of Mortal Combat, Jeremy was frantically working to destroy the glowing white orb as quickly as possible.
Jeremy understood all too well that he needed to speed up. He had to prevent an irreversible outcome, one that could lead to disaster. His encounter with the Lost Realm instance boss had left him acutely aware of its immense strength. He also realized that as soon as he disappeared, the instance boss would likely redirect its full force against his companions.
Even if Ritchie and Bonnie poured every last bit of their strength into resisting the boss, they wouldn't be able to hold out for long. Jeremy had to finish his mission within this special space of Mortal Combat and get out swiftly to ensure the safety of Bonnie, Ritchie, and the others.
In this unique Mortal Combat dimension, Jeremy was free from distractions. He focused on continually activating his King of Time and Space talent, creating portal after portal within the special space. He darted through these portals, one after another, using them to weaken the power of the white orb continuously.
Although this orb was made up of countless mysterious sub-spaces, it was practically defenseless against Jeremy's relentless assault. This was because the white orb had been summoned by the Lost Realm instance boss and lacked any self-awareness. Without the boss actively controlling it, the orb posed little threat to Jeremy.
In this way, Jeremy gradually wore down the power of the white orb. Throughout this process, he even managed to convert some of the orb's spatial power into his own, enhancing his King of Time and Space ability. Jeremy sensed his capacity to summon portals growing stronger with each moment.
He even began to feel that he might be able to create a portal large enough to transport himself directly from Mortal Combat to the instance boss's location in the Lost Realm.
However, despite this idea, Jeremy resisted the urge to act on it, knowing that doing so would drain far too much of his energy. As he absorbed the last vestiges of power from the white orb, the Lost Realm instance boss finally redirected its attention toward Jeremy's companions.
A worm radiating white light rose out of the inky depths of the lake, its gaze fixated on Bonnie and Ritchie. Almost immediately, Bonnie felt the space around her compressing rapidly. Though she had created an icy shield around herself earlier, it was shattered in an instant under the force of the tightening space.
Despite her weakened condition, Bonnie knew she had to act quickly. She struck her staff against the ground with force, and from the staff's point of impact, a blue ring of frost rapidly spread outward. As the ring expanded, the temperature plummeted in every place it touched, conjuring frost spells that appeared out of thin air.
These spells effectively slowed the spatial compression, buying Bonnie a precious few moments to escape further from the Lost Realm instance boss.
While her quick thinking and actions had a certain impact, it was clear the Lost Realm instance boss had no intention of giving up so easily. In no time, it conjured multiple strange, twisted spaces around Bonnie, which proceeded to engulf every one of her frost spells. She suddenly realized that she had no room left for escape; her surroundings were completely enclosed within these bizarre spaces.
Panic surged within Bonnie as she struggled to keep herself calm. "Don't let fear overtake you! There has to be a way out! The more I panic, the worse this situation will become!" she reminded herself, forcing herself to breathe and focus. Successfully regaining her composure, she scanned her surroundings and, raising her staff, unleashed a powerful blizzard spell.
While it couldn't destroy the twisted spaces around her, Bonnie hoped it might give her just enough of an opening to escape.
In a flash of blue light, she propelled herself toward the only possible direction that offered even a slim chance of freedom.
Just when Bonnie thought she had managed to evade the Lost Realm instance boss's relentless attacks, she was shocked to discover that the last escape route in the distance had also been sealed off by the strange, warped space. A sudden wave of despair washed over her as the reality set in—this time, she felt certain she wouldn't make it out alive.
Every instinct told her that no action could save her now. As Bonnie's hope ebbed away, she was jolted by a familiar voice—Ritchie's voice, calling out from somewhere nearby.
"Stop standing there in a daze! Head towards me, now! I can hide you in the shadows!"
Following the direction of Ritchie's voice, Bonnie's eyes found a faint, blurry shadow not too far away. Without a second's hesitation, she dashed towards it, her every step pursued by the twisting spatial distortions that closed in like an insidious trap behind her. Had she hesitated even a moment, she would have been caught and likely obliterated by the warped space.
Reaching the shadowy form, Bonnie extended her hand, touching the faint, blurred darkness. In an instant, a wave of chilling sensation engulfed her as she felt herself swallowed into the depths of darkness.
As Bonnie found herself engulfed in utter darkness, with no trace of light around her, Ritchie's voice once again echoed in her ear.
"We need to focus all our strength on sustaining this shadow! The surrounding space is still compressing, and our shadow might not hold for very long," he said, his tone edged with urgency. Though Ritchie had managed to help Bonnie at a critical moment, he knew all too well that this didn't mean they were truly safe.
In fact, Ritchie saw their current situation as merely buying time in the desperate hope that Jeremy would return soon.
Even though Ritchie didn't know exactly where Jeremy was, he held a firm belief that Jeremy wouldn't abandon them. Hearing Ritchie's words, Bonnie nodded, drawing her staff and preparing herself.
Together, she and Ritchie poured every ounce of their energy into fortifying the shadow around them, fighting against the crushing spatial force closing in, determined to keep the fragile shadow from disintegrating.
Outside the shadow, the worm—radiating a menacing white glow—hovered not far away. As the Lost Realm instance boss, it was relentless in its mission to destroy every human that dared to enter its domain. Since it couldn't locate Jeremy, it had turned its full attention to eliminating the others.
Under the force of the instance boss's relentless attack, the shadow surrounding Ritchie and Bonnie began to flicker and fade, becoming dangerously thin. The fragile darkness around them was on the verge of collapsing entirely, and both Bonnie and Ritchie felt despair creeping in as they sensed how precarious their situation had become. Read latest chapters on M-V-L