### Chapter 338
Zaratan.
The Guardian of the Great Sea.
A ten-star erosion creature was barreling through the ocean at high speed.
He had a critical mission at hand, but…
Due to the pesky little critters causing chaos in the ocean, he lost his cool and couldn’t restrain his anger.
As the sentinel of the ocean, he absolutely wouldn’t tolerate bugs messing up his turf.
However, these bugs were tougher than expected.
At this rate, he couldn’t carry out his mission.
So Zaratan decided to ditch the fight and move on swiftly to fulfill his task.
No one could match his speed in the ocean.
Just as he confidently swam away…
Whoosh!
The sound of rushing water echoed around him.
Turning his head, Zaratan saw a human with bluish-black hair slicing through the waves.
His eyes widened in shock.
He never expected a human would be tailing him.
Fast.
The distance closed rapidly.
It was like the human was soaring through the water, igniting himself as he flew.
But Zaratan had no intention of being caught.
He could still increase his speed.
Zaratan’s body twisted.
As he contracted his gills, he prepared to shoot himself like a cannonball.
“Ugh!”
An unexpected roar pierced through the waters.
Even Zaratan was taken aback by the terrifying sound.
Just as he hesitated for a moment…
A shadow net wrapped around his body.
Startled, Zaratan bewilderedly realized he was caught in the shadow net.
In the blink of an eye, he saw a man zooming past him.
This guy was puffing out bubbles of air and clutching a shadow net in his hand.
His face twisted, clearly wishing he was in a different mess than this one.
The shadow net tightened around Zaratan.
He banged against it, thinking it was foolish to believe he could be caught like this.
But Zaratan didn’t realize…
The shadow net wasn’t his only problem.
Boom!
Suddenly, shadowy pillars erupted from below, yanking Zaratan upwards.
He spat out water forcefully.
Yet, the shadow pillars kept coming.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Pillars from all directions crashed down, pinning Zaratan.
He felt like he was being squished!
Then, in the midst of the chaos, a burst of white light shone through Zaratan’s eyes.
At the moment the white light stretched like a beam, fierce energy slammed into him.
Boom!
Shattered pillars exploded as Zaratan was launched through the water.
The shock of the white flame was beyond imagination, making his head spin.
Boom!
Just then, another shadow pillar came lunging at him.
Just like before, the shadow pillar sought to constrict Zaratan again.
He wasn’t going to take it lying down this time.
Zaratan swung his fist, smashing the pillar.
But just as he was about to take down the rest…
“Where are you looking?”
Kraush had already reached above his head.
Whack!
In an instant, Kraush’s blade struck Zaratan’s head.
With another harsh shock, his brain rattled as he plummeted into the depths.
“Damn, that’s tough.”
Watching Zaratan drop into the abyss, Kraush tightened his grip on his sword.
There wasn’t even time to cast a spell, and he had already landed a hit with the white flame.
To still be intact after taking two hits like that…
He was undoubtedly a ten-star erosion creature.
“Weak. Was your previous bravado just hot air?”
“If it weren’t for me, you couldn’t do any of this.”
Zaratan retorted, and Kraush gripped her sword tighter.
“It’s coming.”
Just as the words left his mouth.
“Gyaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
At the same moment, an enraged roar erupted from below.
It was a voice so loud it could make your ears ring.
Simultaneously, something began to surge upwards from below.
Glide quickly extended a shadow pillar downwards.
But the stretching shadow pillar collided with the spiraling whirlpools coming up, getting torn apart.
That was Zaratan’s Rising Flows.
However, this time it wasn’t just one!
Dozens of rising flows followed close behind.
“He’s really ticked off now.”
Kraush and Glide dodged the incoming tides.
“Glide, this time I’ll bind Zaratan.”
With that shout, Kraush concentrated the white flame at his feet.
Then he kicked off the water and shot forward like a bolt.
Glide sighed, draping himself in shadows as he followed Kraush.
As Kraush swiftly cut through the depths, he noticed he was surrounded by a sea of black goop.
He had summoned a dimension creature that squirted ink just like before.
The ink was flooding the deep sea.
In such dark waters, Kraush would become invisible in the muck.
But Kraush anticipated this and dove right into the ink.
He extinguished the white flames.
Simultaneously, he ignited some black flames.
“Aligning the world erosion with the black flames inside me.”
Kraush’ body began to dissolve within the ink.
From Zaratan’s viewpoint, it was probably quite a shocking turn of events.
There was no way he would have expected Kraush to just vanish on him.
But Kraush sensed Zaratan.
His instincts kicked in.
Whoosh!
From the depths of the ink, Kraush thrust his sword towards Zaratan.
Thanks to the black flames, Kraush was undetectable, and that made Zaratan’s reaction too slow.
Boom!
Zaratan was slammed by Kraush’s sword sheathed in black flames and was pushed back.
Seizing the opening, Kraush rushed in without hesitation.
Beyond the black goop.
Kraush rained blows upon Zaratan.
Head, chest, waist, and legs.
In an instant, Kraush’s sword attacked Zaratan from every angle.
But they didn’t land effectively.
His outstretched sword failed to pierce through Zaratan’s tough exoskeleton.
Moreover, the black flames seemed to be losing their power in the ocean.
Being underwater meant he couldn’t capitalize on the flames’ advantages.
Realizing this, Kraush opted not to wrap the black flames around his sword but instead focused on condensing them.
The pitch-black blade cut through the ink with agility.
“Damn!”
Zaratan exclaimed, grumpy.
It was only natural given that the ink he had cast was blocking his view.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Zaratan began swinging his spear like a windmill.
The surrounding ink was swept away as it got caught up in his motions.
“Thanks a lot for that!”
However, that was of no concern to Kraush.
Because his black flames had reverted to white flames again.
With the heat surging through him, Zaratan ramped up his spear swinging aimed at Kraush.
Though he had seen it earlier, the spear moved with great speed and precision.
But that only mattered when Kraush was on the defensive.
Every swing of Zaratan’s spear was met with Kraush’s sword.
Kraush’s blade started drawing bizarre trajectories.
Zaratan grew more infuriated as his strikes were continuously blocked.
He was being toyed with by Kraush’s sword!
But not just that; Kraush wasn’t only on defense.
There were hints of azure energy permeating his sword, unnoticed by Zaratan.
Sword Light
A secret technique that Kraush had pilfered from Sigrid.
Sword Light gathers more power the more it absorbs incoming attacks.
This matched perfectly with Kraush’s blunt swordplay.
Zaratan’s furious rush clashed with Kraush’s blunt sword countless times.
During this process, Zaratan started feeling something was off.
Kraush’s sword was slowly consuming his space.
Zaratan was attacking, yet it was Kraush edging him back.
Zap!
Sparks erupted from Kraush’s body.
Kraush had awakened the Thunder Prime within him.
The fact that Kraush was starting to dominate the space meant the balance of their battle had shifted.
At the same time, the pressure surrounding his sword morphed.
From blunt sword to swift swordplay.
Kraush had started launching relentless attacks before Zaratan could even react.
The spear aimed at him might end up breaking thanks to Kraush’s relentless onslaught.
Gritting his teeth, Zaratan wailed in annoyance.
“Damn!”
At the same time, Kraush’s sword was growing heavier due to the effect of Sword Light.
Blunt sword, swift sword, and with crisp Sword Light; Kraush’s swordplay had become adept even in an extended combat.
Crack!
Finally, Zaratan allowed an opening, and Kraush’s blade pierced through his chest.
Unlike before, after exchanging countless blows, the accumulated Sword Light was sufficient to leave a mark on Zaratan’s tough exterior.
Had Kraush’s blade veered off even slightly, it would have sliced through the egg embedded in his chest.
Chill!
As Zaratan met Kraush’s eyes, he felt an overwhelming presence.
Kraush’s gaze was now tinted crimson.
The murderous intent gleaming in his eyes was enough to instill terror even in Zaratan.
This guy is dangerous.
Zaratan came to that realization.
In that split second, the octopus dimensional creature clinging to Zaratan’s arm squirted ink again.
Using that brief respite, Zaratan plunged his spear down toward the ground.
Boom!
As the spear slammed into the ocean floor, the swirling currents devastated the water around them.
Taking advantage of that moment, Zaratan propelled himself upward, making a speedy escape.
If he didn’t flee right now, he’d be dead alongside the egg!
Just as Zaratan zoomed to escape…
Thud!
His head suddenly collided with something.
“What the?!”
He had been swimming so fast that he bumped into whatever it was.
Taking a moment to register, he realized it was a fortified shadow net.
Seeing how tightly woven the shadows were, Zaratan grew enraged and swung his spear at it.
But the shadows stretched and absorbed his blows without showing any signs of breaking.
It was then that Zaratan belatedly recognized he was surrounded by Kraush’s shadow nets.
Glide had set this trap while Zaratan was too busy focusing on Kraush.
As Zaratan hurriedly searched for a way out…
He began to sense Kraush’s presence, which felt a lot larger than before.
Startled, he turned to see Kraush pressing down on the ocean floor, compressing the white flames.
Those white flames were now infused with the Sword Light he had garnered earlier from his clash with Zaratan.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Zaratan’s heart raced fiercely.
That was the sensation of his heart tightening as he recognized the crisis.
Sensing death imminent, Zaratan aimed his spear at Kraush.
The violent current conjured from his last-ditch effort surged toward his spear.
Yet, it was too late.
Zap!
Kraush’s blade was already complete.
With a burst of sparks, horns and scales erupted from Kraush.
Entering the state of Annihilation Flame Dragon, Kraush launched his strike without a moment’s hesitation.
Annihilation Erosion—
Eighth Style
Annihilation God of Flames
