Witch, I Swear I’m Not a Deep Sea Ancient God!

Chapter 80: The Headless Skeleton

Creak... creak...

New cracks continuously appeared on the headless skeleton's bones as it charged forward, driven by the tendril-covered armor, moving like a battle-hardened hunter.

Whether it was its gait, sword-holding posture, or slashing motions, everything reminded the crowd of the legendary Deep Sea Hunters.

A chilling sensation permeated the area.

The group had already paid too heavy a price in their fierce battle against the wyvern.

The skeleton's appearance was utterly terrifying, causing many to flee down the mountain like startled birds at the sound of gunfire.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Unnoticed during the continuous fighting, only Chen Qi and some mangled corpses remained at the scene.

"This isn't a Deep Sea Hunter, just a suit... a Flesh Armor..."

Chen Qi repeatedly reminded himself as he chugged a potent healing potion.[You temporarily gain enhanced stamina and strength.]

In the black market, there were three famous types of equipment: mechanical armor, blood-tech armor, and Flesh Armor.

Among these, Flesh Armor typically referred to equipment crafted from supernatural monster materials.

Unlike ordinary equipment, Flesh Armor retained most of its supernatural properties during manufacturing.

This greatly enhanced the equipment's supernatural power.

But as a trade-off, the wearer's mind would be severely affected by these supernatural traits. Prolonged use could cause serious mental deterioration or even mutations.

If mechanical armor heavily impacted the body, then Flesh Armor devastated the mind.

Some Flesh Armor also possessed autonomous combat capabilities.

The Deep Sea Hunters' equipment shared this function.

The current situation likely involved the Flesh Armor's automatic combat mode.

Though this wasn't an actual Deep Sea Hunter—merely a mindless suit—it remained a formidable opponent.

"Can I win?"

Two drops of cold sweat rolled down Chen Qi's face as he activated Hunter's Eye's dynamic vision.

Stationary objects grew blurry while fast-moving ones became clearer.

The headless skeleton gripped its blood-stained greatsword, took a step forward, and unleashed a downward slash toward him.

Visible!

Pivoting on his left foot, Chen Qi sidestepped the attack.

The enemy moved swiftly, but Hunter's Eye could still track the sword's trajectory.

After absorbing Hunter Ember, he had mastered many combat techniques of the Deep Sea Hunters.

The skeleton's swordplay closely resembled knowledge from Ember's memories.

Every move was predictable.

Moreover, his speed could barely keep up.

"Deepsea Water Spirits! Water Explosive Bomb!"

Chen Qi commanded.

The seven trembling Deepsea Water Spirits around him wore expressions of grim determination as they charged recklessly at the headless skeleton.

Boom! Boom!

The Deepsea Water Spirits detonated themselves, creating massive explosions around the skeleton.

Bang!

With no room to dodge, the explosive impact sent the headless skeleton reeling, its body shaking violently while emitting creaking sounds like a jammed, rusted gear.

"Super effective..."

Chen Qi swallowed hard, his tense mood easing slightly.

After the explosion, cracking sounds came from the skeleton's arm as its attacks grew noticeably sluggish.

This monster wasn't as powerful as he'd imagined.

Like mechanical armor's automatic mode, it was merely a mindless entity with limited, repetitive attack patterns.

Once he discerned its rhythm, he could completely counter its assaults.

Had an ordinary person worn this armor, it would've been far more troublesome.

But now, this decaying skeleton could no longer bear the armor's power.

Chen Qi regulated his breathing, preparing to counterattack as he channeled energy into his black blade.

Tendrils tightly coiled around the skeleton's bony hand as it unleashed another furious greatsword combo.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Heavy metallic clashes reverberated through the air.

Predictable!

Chen Qi activated his burst mode, parrying continuously with his black blade.

With each successful block, more cracks spread across the skeleton's arm, its attacks growing progressively weaker.

During the exchanges, Chen Qi's dynamic vision caught sight of a dim blue diamond-shaped gem embedded deep within the armor's core.

This might be the equipment's nucleus—striking it could possibly deactivate the tendril armor.

Parry!

Following a deafening metallic clang, Chen Qi seized the opportunity to expertly deflect the headless skeleton's greatsword with his black blade.

Clank!

The greatsword fell to the ground.

The skeleton's sword-wielding hand bone shattered like a broken toy, its balance failing as it nearly collapsed.

Perfect opening!

Without hesitation, Chen Qi gripped his black blade with both hands and stepped forward for a decisive slash aimed at the blue gem inside the armor.

Yet the instant before his strike landed, eight translucent blue tendrils suddenly sprouted from the armor's interior.

These tendrils immediately ignited with blue flames, transforming into a blossoming fireflower-like formation.

The eight burning translucent tendrils struck like eight devastating punches, hammering toward him.

The attack came too suddenly—all he could do was channel energy and raise his arms in defense.

Boom!

The impact sent Chen Qi skidding backward in a straight line.

Pain!

The sound of cracking bones accompanied intense nausea and dizziness.

Can't collapse... Chen Qi instinctively gritted his teeth, dropping his black blade to draw the twin pistols at his waist.

The eight nearly two-meter-thick translucent tendrils lasted only momentarily.

Now's my chance while it can't dodge... Fighting through excruciating pain and dizziness, Chen Qi aimed at the skeleton's core and pulled the trigger.

Bang! Bang!

Two fresh bullet holes appeared in the rotting skeleton amid the gunshots' sharp reports.

Finally unable to endure further damage, it collapsed with a thunderous crash.

Staggering forward, Chen Qi fired three more rounds directly into the armor's gemstone core.

With the final shot, the tendril armor finally ceased moving as the entire skeleton collapsed backward, disintegrating into white powder.

"Huff... huff... huff..."

Chen Qi panted heavily, keeping his gun trained like a trained police officer.

Only after three minutes of confirming the armor wouldn't reactivate did he finally sit down, grabbing his canteen for a drink.

Fortunately, the headless skeleton's frail constitution couldn't fully harness the armor's power.

Otherwise, this battle might have cost him his life.

"Haaah... haaah..."

Gasping for air, Chen Qi felt the potion's effects gradually spreading through his body.

Severe internal injuries, but his energy defense had prevented fatal damage.

This'll cost a fortune in medical bills... Chen Qi scanned his surroundings dazedly.

Scattered embers, spent bullet casings, charred earth, several burnt corpses, and a slumbering female wyvern.

"Safe for now..."

Looking around, Chen Qi realized he stood alone in what had once been a bustling location.

Everyone else had either fled or died.

With the wyvern asleep and the tendril armor deactivated, Chen Qi finally relaxed.

Using his black blade, he poked at the blue gemstone embedded in the tendril armor's core.

The tendril armor rapidly shriveled, as if sucked by tremendous force, retracting completely into the blue gemstone which now contained a miniature version of itself.

"So this is its normal form..."

Chen Qi carefully picked up the gemstone as a special notification appeared before his eyes.