Chapter 165: VOLK, STRATEGY
Volk's angry laughter thundered through the smog-drenched battlefield, "GRUAHHAHAHAHA!" rolling through the ruins and broken streets like an unholy drumbeat.
His eyes gleamed with a twisted, feral satisfaction as he tracked his target.
The two women—Bong Me-Eon and her master—dashed through the debris, casting occasional glances over their shoulders as they wove through crumbling alleys and deserted buildings.
But Volk didn't lose sight of them.
His towering form barreled forward, his heavy footfalls smashing the cracked earth beneath him, each stride sending shockwaves through the ground.
He was relentless, a predator locked onto his prey, and every monstrous fiber in his being was fixed on catching up to them.
Behind him, the undead abomination still loomed. Its empty eye sockets remained locked onto him, emitting an eerie greenish glow that seethed with decaying magic.
As Volk surged after the women, the creature began to move, its limbs creaking and groaning as though they were about to snap.
It lifted a skeletal, clawed arm, and the air around its hand began to shimmer with condensed, sickly green energy.
The monster aimed and unleashed a torrent of magical death beams, one after another, the blasts ripping through the ruined cityscape, tearing apart stone walls and sending waves of rubble crashing down.
FWOOOOOSH! KA-BOOOM! ZAAAAP!
Each beam was a concentrated lance of decaying energy, a weapon that could have obliterated any lesser being.
Volk felt the searing heat of the blasts as he narrowly evaded them, his attention still locked on the two fleeing figures.
Bong Me-Eon and her master raced through a narrow alley, their breaths coming in short, desperate gasps.
They shared a silent glance, both realizing their situation was dire. But as they turned another corner, the undead creature suddenly ceased its assault on Volk, halting its barrage of deadly beams.
Its hollow gaze shifted, narrowing in a gesture that was almost contemplative.
It was waiting.
Volk's bloodlust flared even hotter as he skidded to a halt.
His eyes locked onto the creature, a dark grin twisting his lips.
He had finally closed the distance.
No more obstacles—just him and the abomination that dared to challenge him.
With a bestial roar, "GRAAAAAAHH!!!" Volk launched himself at the undead monstrosity, his massive fists raised.
He swung with all his might, his hand crashing into the creature's side with the force of a boulder.
BOOOOM!
The impact was earth-shattering, and the ground beneath them cracked and trembled, sending spider-web fractures sprawling outward.
The creature staggered, its decayed body shuddering under the force of Volk's blow. But as it regained its footing, it unleashed a guttural, hollow hiss, its mouth opening in an unnatural, yawning gape.
A fresh surge of death energy erupted from its maw, barreling toward Volk like a tidal wave of decay.
FWOOOOOSH!
The blast enveloped Volk, wrapping around him in an acidic storm of corrosive energy.
His skin blistered, and chunks of flesh melted away, but within moments, his body began to heal, the torn skin and exposed muscle knitting back together in an agonizing process.
Undeterred, Volk charged through the blast, emerging from the deadly haze with an enraged bellow.
He swung his fists, striking the creature in the ribs with a thunderous blow that sent it reeling back.
THUD! CRACK!
Bones splintered under his assault, and chunks of rotting flesh sloughed off, revealing patches of exposed bone beneath.
The creature retaliated, lifting both of its elongated, skeletal arms and bringing them down in a vicious arc.
WHAM!
The impact was like a battering ram, slamming into Volk's shoulders and forcing him to his knees. But he grit his teeth, his muscles bulging as he pushed back against the creature's weight, slowly rising to his feet even as the undead abomination pressed down with all its might.
With a feral snarl, Volk twisted to the side, grabbing hold of one of the creature's bony arms.
He gave a mighty heave, ripping the arm clean off with a sickening CRUNCH.
Black ichor spurted from the torn limb, spraying across Volk's face as he swung the detached arm like a club, battering the creature with its own appendage.
SMASH! CRACK!
The blows landed with brutal precision, each strike further tearing away at the abomination's decayed form.
But the creature was relentless. It opened its maw wide, and an orb of concentrated death energy began to form, swirling with sickly green and black hues.
The orb grew larger, pulsating with raw malice, and with a violent FWOOSH, it shot forward, a condensed missile of necrotic energy aimed straight at Volk's chest.
The blast hit him head-on, the impact sending him flying backward as the searing energy ate away at his flesh.
He landed in a heap, his body smoking and scorched, but even as he struggled to rise, his regenerative abilities kicked in, knitting his wounds back together with painful, unnatural speed.
Volk pushed himself to his feet, his vision blurring with rage.
He could feel his own heartbeat pounding in his skull, a primal rhythm that fueled his anger.
With another roar, he charged again, his fists swinging in a brutal flurry of blows.
WHAM! BAM! THUD!
Each strike was like a hammer, smashing into the creature's twisted form with relentless force.
Chunks of flesh and bone flew with each impact, littering the ground around them.
Volk's strikes grew faster, more frenzied, his muscles straining as he poured every ounce of his strength into the assault.
However, no matter how much he tore away, the creature seemed unyielding, its form shifting and reassembling with each blow, as though it were nothing more than a puppet held together by pure malice.
The two combatants were locked in a gruesome dance of destruction, each blow they traded sending shockwaves through the ruined cityscape.
Buildings crumbled under the impact, debris raining down around them as they clashed in a storm of death and fury.
The ground trembled beneath their feet, fissures spreading outward from the sheer force of their battle.
And then, as Volk landed a particularly vicious uppercut, the creature staggered back, its twisted form faltering.
Its empty gaze flickered, a faint hint of desperation seeping into its hollow eyes. It let out a low, guttural growl, a sound that seemed to resonate with a primal malice.
Its maw stretched wide, wider than before, until its entire body seemed to contort, reshaping itself in a horrifying transformation.
In a split second, the creature lunged, its mouth gaping as it descended upon Bong Me-Eon and her master.
The two women had barely a moment to react, their eyes widening in horror as the creature's jaws closed around them, swallowing them whole in a single, grotesque motion. GLUUUURP!
Volk froze, his fists still raised mid-swing.
His eyes narrowed as he watched the creature, a low, furious growl rumbling from deep within his chest.
The realization sank in, a fresh wave of anger coursing through him as he stared at the abomination that had dared to consume his prey.
"GRAAAAAAHH!!"