Eater Blade: Grinding in Apocalypse-Chapter 4: THE EATER’S NEST.

They moved forward, buildings tightening on both sides, the silence unsettling.

Lex sighed loudly. "This is boring. First time I’ve entered a nest zone and seen nothing. What, the Queen hit menopause or something? Not birthing Eaters today?"

Mars muttered, scanning the street. "Weird. Queens don’t need to eat. They just spawn. So where the hell are her kids?"

Lex yawning. "This is why I hate the Southland. Barely any nests. I wanna hit the Middlelands, nests everywhere. Feed count explodes. And yeah... I want you with me when I get there, love." She winked.

Randy chimed in, voice darker. "Me? I’m gunning for the Highlands. Some of the original Queens are still up there, those born during the Fall. They’ve evolved way past what the Guild expected."

"Yeah?" Lex gave a look. "What makes ’em different?"

"They birth monsters we don’t even have levels for. Stronger than anything we’ve seen. It’s not even about clearing nests up there. It’s about surviving long enough to run."

Lex laughed. "Bet their nests look like castles or something. Big-ass fortresses crawling with death."

Randy chuckled. "Maybe. Down here though? South’s weak. Just starter nests. F-tier, maybe E. D if we’re lucky. These are the baby zones."

Mars kept walking, eyes sharp. "Thousands of nests across the world. All ranked. E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, and SSS. The higher the tier, the nastier it gets."

Johnquis finally spoke. "How do they even start?"

Mars answered. "A Queen picks a place and starts birthing. Doesn’t need food. Just does it. But if she eats... a human, an animal, hell, even an Eater Blade—then it changes."

Randy nodded. "She levels up. Fast. And everything she births levels up with her. That’s why, leash-boy, you’re seeing Level 2s out here. That means she’s already fed on something... or someone."

A cold shiver crawled up Johnquis’s spine.

Lex whistled. "That’s when it gets bad. Some nests are the size of a house. Others stretch like cities. Depends how many she’s popped out."

"And every Eater?" Mars added. "Has a role. A level. But some of them go beyond that. Beyond what the system can track."

They neared a half-collapsed skyscraper when Mars suddenly raised his hand.

Everyone froze.

Silence.

Up ahead, the wide road was a graveyard of broken vehicles. Burnt-out trucks, shattered cars, flipped buses, and rusted armored vans clogged the street.

Mars squinted ahead.

"We’re close. Once we cross this road, we’ll be at the nest. But..." freewebnøvel.coɱ

A chorus of snarls cut him off.

"Grrrr... Grahhh... KRAAAAH!"

Dozens of Eaters stirred among the wreckage. Shadows shifting, eyes glowing, hunger in every breath.

"There they are... waiting for us. Guess they like their food delivered. Fine. Let’s give ’em something to choke on."

Randy cracked his neck, a savage grin spreading across his face.

"Finally, some action. My Eater blade’s been starving."

Lex rolled her shoulders, loosening up.

"Time to pop some skulls."

Mars turned to Johnquis,

"Listen. We don’t have time to babysit. You mess up, you die. Nobody’s covering your ass out there."

He pointed toward the nest.

"You either fight... or you’re food."

They all raised their hands.

"BLADECALL!"

All four stones lit up.

Violet veins surged across their arms; twitching, pulsing, alive. Flesh twisted with metal as their weapons materialized, one by one.

Mars’s massive bone-crushed hammer landed in his grip. Lex’s arm unfolded into a sharp nail-gun. Randy’s sword twitching like it was hungry.

And then there was Johnquis. Chains coiled around his right arm, swirling like snakes, then slithering down across the ground. Just chains. No blade.

He stood still. Watching. They all held weapons that could cut, break, pierce. Weapons built for power. Real weapons. He looked at his own hand. The cold weight of a chain... His Eater Blade. The one they all laughed at.

The Eaters came. Burst from under trucks, poured out of broken buses, and sprinted from alleyways. Their screeches cut sharp through the silence.

The Squad moved instantly.

Mars charged ahead, roaring as he swung his giant hammer. He crushed the first Eaters into the damaged roadway.

[Feed Count: +500]

[Feed Count: 52,600/ 70,000]

Lex leapt onto the flipped bus and opened fire, her nail gun sharp and fast. Each shot found a head.

[Feed Count: +300]

[Feed Count: 25,300 / 70,000]

Randy dashed between wrecked cars, slicing down every Eater that got close, his sword moved too fast to follow.

[Feed Count: +400]

[Feed Count: 27, 600/ 70,000]

Eaters flooded the street.

Mars slammed his hammer into the pavement again, sending a shockwave that hurled a dozen Eaters into the air. A second group lunged, he spun, the hammer arcing wide, bones crunching on impact.

[Feed Count: +600]

[Feed Count: 53,200/ 70,000]

He didn’t even breathe heavy.

"These are just Level 1s. Don’t waste blood if you don’t have to."

A huge Eater lunged for his throat but he dipped and drove his elbow into its ribs, then crushed its skull underfoot.

"Morons forgot who I am! I’m about to hit Steel Rank. You? Just Level 1 fodder. Waiting to get crushed like ants under my hammer."

[Feed Count: +100]

[Feed Count: 52,300/ 70,000]

Up on the bus, Lex reloaded.

"Oooh, this is gonna be fun. There are too many, so I’m using my skill!"

[Skill: Nailstorm—Blood Cost: 6%]

Activating...

She fired her skill.

"NAILSTORM!"

Her arms pulsed with red veins. The Nail gun shook violently, sending out a burst of twelve nail-rounds in all directions ricocheting off car doors, cracking windshields, and punching through skulls. Eaters dropped in droves.

PFFT—PFFT—PFFT!

[Feed Count: +500]

[Feed Count: 25,800 / 70,000]

Lex shrieked,

"Gosh, I love this skill!"

Randy dashed forward but then stopped.

"So you’re using your skill, huh? Let me show you mine."

[Skill: Bloodline Frenzy—Blood Cost: 2%]

Activating...

"BLOODLINE FRENZY!"

A red glow sparked and spread down his arms. He howled and moved even faster. Blurs of motion weaving between crushed trucks. His blade screamed as it tore through Eater flesh, and his laughter rose with the chaos.

[Feed Count: +500]

[Feed Count: 28,100 / 70,000]

He yelled, "YEAH! Keep coming! I’ll carve you all up!"

Johnquis’s eyes widened as he watched them battle the Eaters with ease. Their skills, their speed, their feed counts rising fast.

He clenched his fist.

"So, this is how the real fight should be..."

Suddenly, an Eater lunged at him.

Johnquis barely had time to react. The Eater came at him fast, claws reaching for his throat.

This content is taken from free web nov𝒆l.com