CLEAVER OF SIN

Chapter 790: Lizardfolks-1

Asher could be seen running between the trees, jumping from one branch to another. Occasionally, a serpentine-type monster would lunge at him, only to be immediately ended with a single swing of his weapon. One attack, one life taken, more points earned.At this moment, Asher was already sitting in first place with three thousand five hundred (3500) points, as his point balance had increased by a whole thousand (1000), causing Finch to fall to second place.

But Asher knew these points were only temporary. Once he paid four thousand points to unlock his Astra Energy, he would immediately plummet back to zero. His name would not even remain on the rankings, since one needed at least a single point to appear there in the first place.

However, Asher was not bothered by that fact. Since this was a swamp forest, there was no shortage of monsters. Although only snake-type creatures had attacked him so far, Asher assumed that this was simply their territory. Once he crossed it, he would likely encounter entirely different species that dominated other regions of the swamp.

As Asher moved, his Omni Perception immediately picked up what seemed to be a hidden cave roughly a kilometre away. He thought about it for a brief moment before immediately changing direction and shooting towards it, although he did not know whether anything valuable was hidden inside, he was naturally curious and adventurous, after all, he was expected to spend four entire days exploring various battlefields.

HHHHIIISSS!!!

More snakes lunged at him, but Asher simply allowed Virelass to deal with them at this point, as he could not be bothered to swing his arm every single time. The weapon moved with eerie precision, ending the lives of the approaching monsters before they could even get close.

Within a few seconds, he arrived near the cave, however, he did not immediately enter it. Instead, he stood atop a branch and gazed downward. The area surrounding the cave appeared to belong to yet another species of monster.

Unlike the snakes, these creatures seemed far more intelligent, they were Lizardfolks. They walked on their hind limbs while their forelimbs wielded various types of weapons, their bodies were also covered in crude but functional armour. Though the armour itself was weak, their natural scales more than compensated for that weakness.

Asher arched an eyebrow, wondering how this group had managed to acquire such weapons, however, after considering it for a few seconds, he simply chose to dismiss the matter.

He assessed their strength, each of them was at least Viel-class, while a few had already reached the Mark-class. Beyond that, Asher could also sense a hidden Grave-class Lizardfolk whose presence lingered deeper within the area. Judging by the way the others subtly positioned themselves, it was most likely the ruler of this territory.

Truly, the competition was wicked.

Normally, hardly any student could simply dive into such a situation. After all, most third-year students could not even handle Grave-class monsters alone. Grave-class ranked sixth among the ten ranks, making it anything but easy to deal with, such creatures were calamities in their own right.

Furthermore, one still had to fight through the Grave-class monster’s subordinates before even reaching it. Taking everything into account, most students would simply abandon such a zone altogether, as the battlefield heavily favoured the monsters through sheer numbers, strength, terrain advantage, and even the poisonous atmosphere that lingered throughout the swamp.

Although Asher had previously stated that the Basilisk from earlier could contend against a Grave-class monster despite only being Mark-class, that advantage stemmed entirely from its petrification ability and its capability to teleport to locations affected by its petrification.

’It seems my luck isn’t really that bad,’ Asher mused to himself as he stared at the scene before him.

Initially, he had thought that he possessed some form of terrible luck for being dropped into such a waterlogged location. Yet now, it seemed to be the exact opposite. This place was practically overflowing with monsters, and every monster represented points. Leaving such a region now felt more like a mistake than a wise decision.

As for the strategy Asher intended to employ, the answer was simple; walk through the front door.

With that thought in mind, he jumped down from the branch he was standing on, landing on the ground with loud splashing sounds as the earth below was little more than murky mud and stagnant water.

Instantly, the Lizardfolks snapped their heads towards him as they heard the unmistakable sound of water splashing from Asher’s far-from-subtle landing. They stared at him with their reptilian eyes for a few moments as though assessing him. However, after sensing no Astra Energy from him, four of them stepped forward with low growls that clearly indicated their readiness for battle.

’Thirty Viel-class, five Mark-class, and one Grave-class monster,’ Asher assessed calmly as he drew Virelass from its scabbard.

The moment Asher unsheathed his blade, the four Lizardfolks immediately rushed forward. Their movements were swift and deadly as they thrust their spears towards him without hesitation.

Seeing the incoming attacks, Asher simply deflected the first spear to the side with effortless ease before decapitating the Lizardfolk in the same motion. The second one closed in from behind, thrusting towards Asher’s waist, tet Asher merely shifted his body slightly to the side, dodging with flawless precision as the spearhead stabbed through empty air.

Without missing a beat, he swung his rapier upward from below. A silver gleam flashed through the air as the blade sliced cleanly through the Lizardfolk’s arm at the elbow. Before the severed limb could even fall into the murky water, Asher’s left hand shot outward and slammed into the butt of the second Lizardfolk’s spear.

A sharp whistling sound rang out as the spear tore through the air, it plunged directly into the eyes of the third approaching Lizardfolk, then burst through the back of the creature’s skull with terrifying force as green blood splattered outward, the corpse collapsed heavily into the swamp water.

The second Lizardfolk was still alive, since Asher had only severed its arm, however, its survival lasted only a moment longer. Virelass blurred vertically, metal tore through scaled flesh, the Lizardfolk’s head spun into the air before eventually splashing into the water below.

The final Lizardfolk moved.

Despite witnessing the deaths of its companions, it did not retreat. However, instead of immediately attacking with its spear, it activated its ability. After all, every one of them possessed abilities, yet none of the previous three had been granted the opportunity to use theirs before Asher ended their lives.

Asher immediately felt the mud beneath his feet surge upward. It wrapped around his boots and legs as though attempting to seal him in place, his purple eyes shifted downward toward the moving mud.

At that exact moment, the Lizardfolk attacked. Since it believed Asher’s movements had been restricted, now was the perfect opportunity to kill him. The spear sliced through the air, aiming directly for Asher’s neck.

Yet Asher merely tilted his head slightly to the side, the attack missed completely, at the same time, his rapier pierced straight through the Lizardfolk’s chest. The monster remained impaled upon the blade for a brief moment, staring at him with disbelief visible in its reptilian eyes. Then Asher casually flicked the weapon to the side, sending the corpse crashing into the water with a splash.

Asher took a step forward and the mud that supposedly restrained him immediately burst apart. He had never truly been trapped to begin with, after all, he did not need to move a single step to kill monsters of this level.

His eyes shifted toward the remaining Lizardfolks, the creatures now stared at him with wary gazes, their reptilian eyes filled with undisguised killing intent. Moments ago, they had thought nothing of him. To them, he had appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary human.

Yet within less than three seconds, four of their comrades had died.

The atmosphere grew noticeably heavier as the remaining Lizardfolks tightened their grips on their weapons. The earlier confidence that had filled their eyes had vanished completely, replaced by caution and hostility. Even the hidden Grave-class presence deeper within the territory seemed to shift slightly, as though it had finally begun paying attention to the intruder.

Meanwhile, Asher simply stood there calmly, Virelass resting loosely in his hand. His expression remained as indifferent as ever, and judging by the number of enemies before him, his point balance was about to rise even further.