Chapter 895: …TO KNOCK EM DOWN!(1)
So…we’re gonna be resolving the four encounters happening prior to this one in reverse order…with a twist at the end.
Enjoy.
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Illusionary Double Tap
‘Fuck! No wonder illusionary arts is a discipline unto itself. This is draining as hell!’
High above a battlefield in the form of a giant shallow hot spring, Zhen Jin had been using aether to trick the Steel-Plated Macaque Kong and the Raging Storm Yeti into fighting illusions of each other and various other creatures and warriors, in order to have them drain themselves of their aether reserves.
Every missed attack, every meaningless retaliation caused the two beasts to exhaust their aether further and further.
Now, such a straightforward trick would normally get caught on and the tricked would eventually stop due to how pointless their actions proved to be.
However, Zhen Jin had figured out a rather clever way to make sure the two kept fighting…have them literally fight each other!
‘Okay…now let them hit each other just once…’
*BAM!*
“OOKIE?!”
“GROA?!”
‘Now back to illusions.’
Occasionally, Zhen Jin would lift the fog just long enough for the two aether beast leaders to land a blow on one another to get them to think that their opponent had been using the fog to their advantage in order to sneakily take out the other through underhanded means.
This little trick has actually proven so effective in screwing with the two aether beast pack leaders that Zhen Ye had managed to reach the [Grand Oasis Teapot] and secure the damn thing without any of the aforementioned beasts being none the wiser.
As Zhen Jin continued to watch this battle of his own design unfold, while his brother made his return with the teapot, his son and nephew still circling the dueling beasts so as to maintain the fog cover, a thought came to mind.
A very simple thought that was simply this realization, that the only way for the Zhen Clan to win this situation, was to make sure nobody won this war for territory.
In other words, it was time for this fight to end with a double knock-out.
Which was actually much easier done than said, since he had been running the two beasts ragged at this point. All they needed was one last push.
‘Just got to manipulate the fog like so and…’
…
“Ook…ook…”
“Grr…”
One hundred and thirty-two times.
The Steel-Plated Macaque Kong and the Raging Storm Yeti had each defeated illusionary versions of one another, one hundred and thirty-two times at this point.
The two aether beasts had released all manner of attacks ranging from life-threatening to mortal over one hundred and thirty-two times, with only a few actually doing any form of damage on the other due to the strangeness of this fog surrounding them.
Sometimes they’d be able to land a hit on the other, other times it would ultimately lead to nothing, but the amount of times they had managed to injure each other had encouraged them to keep trying and keep fighting with each other until the very end.
It had actually gotten so bad that both sides had rendered themselves breathless, aether less and essentially running on nothing more than angry feelings and fumes.
And it was in this state where a strong breeze would be able to knock over either of them, that something strange occurred.
The fog that had ensnared their senses, that had made them fight illusions of one another Roger and over and over again, suddenly lifted ever so slightly.
Not enough for them to see the sky or their surroundings, but just enough for them to see the battered, beaten and exhausted forms of one another.
Most people and beasts, when seeing another in a state as bad as theirs, would normally take this opportunity to pause, re-evaluate their choices.
However, the Steel-Plated Macaque Kong and the Raging Storm Yeti were mentally and physically exhausted to the point that they would rather see the other dead in the ground than give them any chance to recuperate.
As such, with basically zero prompting or even a battle cry at this point, the two monstrous beasts rushed towards one another in order to deliver one last punch to the other’s face.
*POW! POW!*
The sickening sound of bone and cartilage being crushed into oblivion filled the air as the two primate-like aether beasts simultaneously punched each other in the face, resulting in a double knock-out.
Neither side could even let out a cry of pain, as they both fell to the ground, the for surrounding them lifting at the same time.
…
[Well…that was dramatic.]
‘Yup.’
[Going to practice illusions from here on out?]
‘In a sense. Gonna teach my son to better use it than I ever could.’
[Neat…are you gonna pass out?]
‘Yup…that was…too exhausting.’
[Fair.]
…
Quest: Secure the [Grand Oasis Teapot]
Result: Success!
Casualties: Zero
Additional Objectives: None(?)
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Loud as Thunder
‘Improvise? The fuck you mean by improvise?’
[Oh come on, girl! That scream just happens to work as the perfect opener for a song that can really entrance someone, anyone’s senses. All you need to do is figure out how to go along with it.]
‘I…you’re in my head, you should know that while I can sing to an extent, my ability to reach high notes or anything that could be considered entrancing is completely and utterly shit. I can dance just fine, and can play an instrument, but please doesn’t expect me to-‘
[Girl, please! Practically everyone in existence is able to sing. The trick of the matter is choosing the right genre in order to do so.]
‘Dafuq does that mean?’
[Just…feel this next part with your soul, moon girl.]
…
“OOK?”
“Grr?”
“Hmmm?”
The sound of a Copper-Furred Howler Monkey was incredibly distinct to both man and beast alike. But to the primates under the command of the Drunken Frenzy Ape, it was usually an indicator, an alert, for one of two things.
It was either a cry for meal time, as the loud ringing sound of the Copper-Furred Howler Monkey served as a very effective means of getting everyone to drop whatever they were doing and eat for a couple of moments. Or, the less likely scenario, there was an intruder in their midst that had to be dealt with an incredibly violent and brutal manner.
Unfortunately, the only way to determine which of these two alerts it were was for the partying primates to stop enjoying this unusual performance happening before them in order to go and-
“URRRAAAAAAAAAAAA!”
“Huh?!”
Before the primates could go and investigate that yell, another even more powerful one suddenly ripped through the air alongside the sound of something that was akin to the sound of a snarling beast made of metal and fury.
The source of this ferocious sound was none other than that mysterious performing woman from earlier, who had undergone a rather dramatic visual change, alongside her stage.
Before she looked a lot like a dancing priestess of some kind, complete with a stylized monkey mask that gave her this air of mystique and beauty.
But now, she looked like the complete opposite of that clean and mysterious look.
Her clothes were now tight, torn and dark, the mask on her face looked even more colorful and violent like the patterns of a toxic plant or insect that warned all who saw her that she would be the first and last thing they would ever be able to touch in their lifetimes.
Gone as well were the flowing banners depicting stylized totemic beasts, replaced with monuments of metal and crystal that gave one the feeling that they seemed to hum with the power of a thunderstorm.
And in the woman’s hand was a strange looking tool, with strings that shone like metallic beetle shells and glowed with the colors of a starry night aurora.
That scream from before had captured their attention, but it was the sounds that happened after that kept it.
As the primates continued to stare, the performer began to play that strange instrument in her hands and sang a song unlike anything they had heard before.
It wasn’t sweet, it was angry.
It wasn’t melodic and measured, it was wild and free.
It was as if someone took the feelings associated with primal thought and savagery, and put them into song.
A song so entrancing, that the primates present forgot all about the howler monkey from before.
…
[Haha! Told you you could sing. We just had to find the right genre for your voice.]
‘Okay, I will capitulate to that…but what the hell kind of music am I singing right now?’
[It’s called rock and roll, baby. Surprisingly, both you and shark boy seem to have a preference for the stuff. Albeit, his is more…heavy metal while yours is punk.]
‘Heavy metal? Punk?’
[Tell you all about it later. But for now, be sure to keep things nice and loud. Your family’s gonna have a hell of a time escaping otherwise.]
‘You mean they-‘
[Yup. And are running for the hills as we speak.]
‘FUCKING BANGER! Wait…where did that come from?’
…
Quest: Secure the [Eternal Spring Calabash Tree]
Result: Success!
Casualties: Zero
Additional Objectives: One captured Copper-Furred Howler Monkey.
