BXBX NOVEL Chapter 83: Black Locusts
Chapter 83: Black Locusts
Adam smashed his pickaxe against a wall of rocks.
The wall broke and showed a shimmering crystal hidden behind it. It was a crystal of Magick Energy.
"Whew..." Adam wiped the sweat off his brows and turned to his surroundings.
The other members of the party were having a break and drinking and eating to rejuvenate themselves.
They were at a popular mining location that wasn't too far from the spawn point. It had been used for many years by countless players who left behind caverns and passageways.
"I found one." Adam said with a voice that was loud enough for others to hear.
Knoxx put away his food and came to Adam to check it out.
"Oh, not bad." He said while scratching his cheek. "A decent size, but the light is a bit dull. The duller the crystal is, the less energy it can provide."
Adam's muscles tightened as he grabbed the pickaxe hard. He then slammed it against the crystal, causing many pieces to break off.
"What are you doing?!" Knoxx cried out angrily. "You'll need to be gentle with the crystal!"
"Why?" Adam asked and smashed the pickaxe again at the crystal. "They'll work nonetheless."
"You fool!" Knoxx snatched the pickaxe from his hands and shouted, "These crystals are so ugly now! Those highborns want crystals that look nice and tidy, not these rough-edged ones!"
"That's extra work." Adam said in annoyance. "It would take ten times as long. The merchants and the guild will still purchase these at the same price, rough-edged or not; it does not matter."
"Who do you think you are?" Knoxx asked angrily. "I am the leader! Do you think you know better than me?"
Adam sighed heavily, trying to stop himself from cursing in frustration.
Knoxx approached him and puffed his chest.
"You think you should be the leader, don't you? S-rankers and their world-sized egos...
"I am the leader; the Guild Master himself appointed me as one! Know your place!"
"If you need to remind me constantly, are you really the leader?" Adam said and snatched the pickaxe back. "I won't play your games. If you care so much, do it by yourself."
He pushed the pickaxe into Knoxx's hands and walked away, leaving Knoxx seething with anger.
"You really want to disobey me?!" Knoxx walked after Adam and shouted loud enough for everyone to hear. "Want to fight, huh? If you win, you're the leader. Come on, S-ranker!"
Everyone else stopped eating and drinking. They watched silently as the two's argument echoed throughout the tenth floor.
Adam pulled out his steel shortsword, then flipped over to Knoxx and started hammering down on his defenses.
Knoxx, taken aback, quickly retrieved his weapon and started defending with all his might.
Adam's relentlessly pushed onward. The two swords continued clashing, sending fiery sparks flying across the air.
"Oh, shit!" Others exclaimed and realized this wasn't a joke anymore. It was very serious. Knoxx gritted his teeth as he continued backing off as Adam's powerful blows pushed him further and further towards the rocky wall.
'He is such an aggressive fighter!' Knoxx thought while desperately moving his sword in an attempt to defend himself.
However, it was clear that Knoxx's speed and strength were superior. He was always late to react to the sword swings, but his speed allowed him to defend just barely in time.
At that moment, Knoxx's sword's blade turned white, as if it were covered by a snow blanket. He activated his Kraft!
As soon as Adam's sword landed on the Kraft-covered sword, the attack stopped completely, as if it had hit a solid wall.
That wasn't all.
Adam's arms started trembling.
"Heh." Knoxx smirked confidently and whipped his sword towards Adam's neck.
Adam dove underneath the sword and backed off just in time.
His steel shortsword's durability decreased by 10% after a single exchange. It wasn't only because of Knoxx's Kraft. His sword was also of much higher quality.
The steel shortsword was now at 88% durability. With just another nine of these exchanges, his sword would break.
It was a very tough situation.
Luckily, he visited a blacksmith to increase his sword's and shield's durability before the raid. He expected that it would be difficult for his weak weapons to hold out for the entire duration
of the raid.
In the end, basic weapons were trash.
They were useful in the tutorial, but he wasn't in the tutorial anymore.
"Sigh..." Adam sheathed his weapon and said, "I concede."
"Hahaha!" Knoxx laughed in triumph. "You realized the vastness of our strength? Now, do you know your place?"
"Yeah, whatever." Adam rolled his eyes and went to sit down on a log.
Knoxx scoffed and cockily crossed his arms, reveling in his victory.
He was over the moon, as he had just "defeated" an S-ranker. A feat not many could replicate.
His friends came to congratulate him for the victory; however, a select few didn't. They had a hunch that Adam didn't concede because he didn't believe in his victory.
'After I receive my payment, I'll have to abandon these basic weapons. They are worthless.'
Adam thought to himself.
Buzz, buzz.
At that moment, everyone turned quiet as they heard loud buzzing, as if there was a mosquito right beside their ears.
They turned their heads towards the sky and saw a swarm of black flying insects descending
towards them.
"It's Black Locusts!" Knoxx shouted and pulled out his weapon once again.
Everyone immediately took their weapons and stood their ground.
Black Locusts were a breed of Chaosbeings that were very weak alone. However, in swarms,
they were rather deadly.
Adam bashed his shield at the incoming swarm and killed several of them before they could get too close. However, the locusts then surrounded him like a blanket of night.
Buzz, buzz. It was so loud that it was impossible to hear others shouting.
Knoxx and others were screaming at Adam to try and find a way out, but the locusts were
closing in fast.
At that moment, Adam's eyes glowed with a green hint for a moment, and every Black Locust
stopped as if they were frozen in time.
He used Little God's illusion ability! Adam quickly smashed out of the encirclement and retreated towards others.
The Black Locusts soon shook off the illusion and rushed after others with a terrifying speed.
"Magicians, burn them to a crisp!" Knoxx screamed.
"They are too quick!" The magicians cried out as they couldn't chant their incantations in
time.
At that instant, Adam stepped forward and again used his illusion ability. This time, he attracted all the Black Locusts towards him.
"I'll attract them and keep them in one spot. You have five seconds!" Adam shouted towards
the magicians and then protected himself behind the shield.
At that moment, all Black Locusts smashed at the shield.
In fact, he didn't attract the Black Locusts to him. Instead, he attracted them to the shield.
The illusion made the shield seem like a delicious target for them.
In the eyes of Black Locusts, the shield looked like one big crystal of Magick Energy.
Black Locusts, after all, were attracted to that energy. Which is why they often attack these
mining locations.
Adam, of course, knew all about it. It wasn't his first time dealing with them.
Quickly, the magicians finished their incantations and sent a wave of burning fire in the direction of the Black Locusts. The creatures screeched in pain as they tried to escape the flames but couldn't, and soon they all turned to ash.
"Whew..." Adam breathed out and strapped his slightly damaged shield to his back. Others let out sighs of relief. They were lucky to get out of this predicament without a scratch
on them.
"Good job~"A magician came and patted Adam on the shoulder with a smile. "You had previous experience as a Tank? You attracted their aggro perfectly."
"Some." Adam replied with a short but mysterious answer.
The magicians touched her cheek curiously. She expected the S-rankers to be impressive, but
she had strange chills running down her spine as she saw him fight.
Knoxx slowly sheathed his weapon and looked at Adam deeply. He didn't want to say it out loud, but he had to agree that he also underestimated his tanking abilities.
At least, in his own mind, he was better than their previous tanker, who wouldn't have been able to do what Adam just did.