Chapter 1454 – A Slippery Foe

The ball of mana is incredibly dense, and from this close, I can see the dark green energy twisting and spitting virulently. This venom mana is unlike anything I’ve seen before. Not quite like acid, not quite like the toxic poison of the fifth, it’s almost a blend of the two. I’ve no doubt that, should it touch me, it would begin to eat through my carapace and body like an acid, and spread throughout my carapace like the fifth’s toxic mana.

Nasty stuff.

Of course, I was more than ready for this eventuality! You aren’t taking me out by launching a surprise, short-range bomb! You can’t quote me the deep lore when I wrote it!

Shields snap into place, as dense and thick as I can make them, but of course they aren’t going to accomplish much. As expected, the bomb smashes straight through the shields, losing only a fraction of its momentum, but that’s fine, I had the mana ready, so it didn’t hurt to use it.

Of course, the best way to fight the spell launched in my face is to match it with another bomb, but from this close, that would be as good as sticking my head into a black hole. Unhealthy.

Alternate methods must be employed and the best method of all is to get the heck out of the way!

There is just enough energy inside the Altar to empower my dash, and I spring to the side with, quite literally, blinding speed. My vision blurs as I move so quickly that I basically teleport, my antennae slapping back onto my carapace almost painfully.

The sizzling ball of venom mana sears past me in my wake, and I laugh heartily within my heart. Did you really think I wasn’t ready? Gweheheheh! Now you will experience your doom, slug-snake!

However, I seem to have misjudged the distance when I engaged my dash… by rather a lot.

SMASH!

I plough headfirst into the wall, sending shards of rock flying everywhere and burying myself in stone.

Dammit!

This is hardly dignified! I bring up my six legs and try to yank myself out, but it isn’t easy. I really managed to bury myself rather deep. Behind me, I feel the venom bomb detonate, sending globs of mana flying all throughout the area. Stuck as I am, all I can do is throw up more shields and conjure stone, shaping it to cover my business district so it doesn’t experience a hostile takeover.

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My brains spin, and I quickly realise that manipulating the stone behind me isn’t the only option I have… there is stone in front of me as well. I flex my minds along with my mandibles and begin ripping into the rock, plunging myself into a state of ant zen as I chew my way deeper, keen to escape the venom that is melting through everything behind me as well.