CHAPTER 348: CHAPTER 348: BELGROD’S INSURANCE

Kael’s golden glowing eyes as he saw Belgrod relentlessly scratching the metal gate with all his might.

At the same time, he was suffering. Constantyne had him pressed to the ground with his jaws clamping on his neck.

Kael could feel the heat coming from Constantyne’s throat as well as the long fangs that pinched deeper and deeper into his skin.

Luckily, his neck had a thick mane around it as well as dense muscles, if not Constantyne might have been able to seriously injure Kael.

Constantyne was frustrated, how could Kael’s neck be so hard to bite? It was supposed to be the softest part of his body.

Instead of bare flesh, all he could taste was the strands of thick mane hair and a little bit of blood.

Kael’s expression was fierce.

Now in his Conqueror Mode, his mind was focused on the issue at hand. It was no longer about defending the entrance, it was about conquering.

That was what the Conquering Mode was for.

To subjugate all things and eliminate all who resist.

His paws pushed against the ground, and his body slowly rose from the ground with the flaming tiger still on top of him.

Constantyne bit down harder and clawed at Kael’s shoulder, causing injuries and blood to flow.

But Kael didn’t stop rising.

Suddenly, vines shot out of the ground from Kael’s right and left. The vines wrapped around Constantyne’s neck and limbs, trying to pull him away.

Naturally, it would be hard for any vine to match up with Constantyne’s physical might, let alone pull him away from a bite.

As expected, the vines began to burn to ashes as they touched Constantyne’s body. The thicker vines lasted longer, wrapping around his neck and pulling him but it still didn’t do much.

That was when the greenish-brown vines lit up with faint lines of gold. It was as if they had been infused with a chemical that hardened them and increased their vitality.

Once again, they whipped out like ghostly snakes, hitting and wrapping around Constantyne’s body. This time, Constantyne was shocked to find his body unwillingly moving under their influence.

His claws which were embedded into Kael’s shoulder were forcefully pulled away and his head was lifted slightly.

It was for a brief moment during which Constantyne was sure to increase his power output soon.

Kael took the opportunity and the inch of space he got, teleporting out of the way.

Constantyne fell to the ground the moment his body exploded with flames, seeking to consume Kael. But Kael was gone.

He sank into the ground as it quickly melted into lava.

Belgrod pressed his head on the metal gate, his eyes closed in anguish. Nothing was more painful to someone of his intelligence than to see all his plans and preparations go up in smoke.

It was so annoying that he wanted to tear his brain out. The anger he felt, he was sure that nothing could alleviate it. Even if he killed Kael, he was sure that it wouldn’t make him feel better.

The magic stripes on his body glowed erratically, reflecting his unstable emotions. He was supposed to remain calm and limit his emotional self, but he couldn’t do that now, not without time to calm down.

"No, wait..." Belgrod’s eyes snapped wide open as another simple plan formed in his head.

He could feel the arkship faintly vibrating, like a titan about to wake up from its years of slumber.

He began to think carefully, breaking down all the elements of what was happening down to the most fundamental aspect.

First principle thinking.

He ignored the loud bangs and booms as well as the rising smell of blood.

Constantyne burst out of the ground, turning into a fiery stream that chased after Kael’s golden form.

Kael’s body also turned into a fiery stream of golden power, clashing with Constantyne and destroying the land in the process.

Within a few seconds, they had already exchanged blows and claw strikes numerous times. They moved around at insane speeds, leaving burning trenches and minute vacuums behind.

Gold and red flashed as the world got darker due to the clouds above.

The aura of a supreme king, conflicting with the aura of an indomitable fighter. It was catastrophic.

It wasn’t clear who had the advantage or disadvantage, not yet.

Meanwhile, Katari weaved through the bodies of the tier 4 tigers, using her stealth and unpredictable mobility as an advantage as well as the magic enhancements.

She was stronger than all of them, however, killing them was a different matter.

She had already killed fifteen in total, but more tigers had come to surround her. She contemplated running away, not to abandon Kael, but to recuperate.

It was getting too much, even for her. Without the magic enhancements and runes, she would have probably been dealt with.

Escaping this place was not beyond her capabilities. If she could travel from the wild plains to the peach valley in such a short amount of time, it would be easy.

And yet, she didn’t leave.

She was aware that Agatha had begun attacking the magic shuttle and Constantyne was fighting Kael.

Belgrod was unknown for now.

With the magic shuttle being kept busy by Agatha, Kael had no one to assist him.

She knew that once she left, the remaining tigers would all charge at Kael to take him down.

That was what she was worried about.

Kael.

These tigers alone might not be Kael’s match but all together, they could cause serious damage, they could even assist Constantyne in killing him.

Even as she dodged so many attacks and fought back, her mind was on Kael.

She didn’t want to escape for fear of what could happen.

She didn’t want to take the risk.

So she kept on fighting, keeping the tigers busy and giving Kael and Chloe more time.

If she got the chance, she would kill.

Every second that passed, her Conquering Essence pool was being drained, her life was in danger.

Yet, her killing intent grew stronger.

...

"Yes..." Belgrod nodded his large tiger head as he became calm again. All the fighting happening in the background didn’t seem to concern him at all.

He smiled as he quickly understood some things.

Ten tigers had rushed in before him to chase after Chloe. Even if she got to the command chamber, she still had to fight off the ten tigers.

Although it wasn’t certain that they would succeed, Belgrod made a mental note of it.

And just in case they didn’t succeed, if Chloe actually succeeded in taking control of the Arkship, something else could be used.

Belgrod turned around with a devilish glint in his green rune-filled eyes.

Kael.

Kael was still outside.

And he also happened to be her leader.

"Yes, Kael could be our bargaining chip," Belgrod muttered as he thought of the possibilities.

So what if Chloe controlled the arkship, could she allow the tigers to kill Kael?

"If we held him hostage or threatened to kill him, Chloe might be forced to hand over the arkship to us..." Belgrod reasoned with himself.

The chances of that happening were uncertain. He didn’t know what kind of person Chloe was and whether she would be willing to pay ransom with a literal arkship.

After weighing the pros and cons, Belgrod decided that they would have nothing to lose.

It would be better if the tigers stopped Chloe in time. But just in case, he would use Kael as insurance.

After coming to this conclusion and making a decision, Belgrod locked his eyes on Kael’s fast-moving form.

*BOOM!*

Another boom resounded as Constantyne was driven into the ground by Kael who followed up with a downward smack.

Space compressed and folded as the paw hit Constantyne, sending him deeper into the ground.

Two tails burned brightly behind Kael, one had the Original Flame, the other burned with the Soul Flame.

He hovered above the crater with his mouth open, preparing to unleash a beam of golden flames and electricity.

Then, Belgrod moved.

...

Another booming sound reverberated through the air particles from the magic shuttle.

The magic shuttle trembled vigorously like a wounded beast.

Cannon beams flew everywhere from different angles, all aimed at the white being that streaked over the body of the magic shuttle.

The white being with back stripes was obviously Agatha who gradually ripped the shuttle piece by piece with every movement she made.

By now, Agatha had stopped holding back.

The whole magic shuttle, one kilometer long, was completely covered in ice and coldness was gradually penetrating deep into the vessel.

Ice spikes and blades danced effortlessly around her, stabbing and cutting into the metal fabric with precision and ferocity.

Even the cannons were starting to malfunction because of the creeping ice.

Agatha’s power and fury was so great that the climate changed around her. Hundreds of kilometers around the magic shuttle had snow falling profusely, covering the peach valley in a layer of white.

The only place exempt from this pseudo-winter was the curved metal structure and the region around it.

The ice and death of the shuttle’s pilots were now unknown.

"Agatha, finish with them and come help us handle Kael," Belgrod’s telepathic voice echoed into Agatha’s mind, snapping her out of her furious state of mind.