OLD-WORLD EXTRA-Chapter 117: Unexpected Hazards

The colossal monster continued to hurtle towards Emir, each thunderous footfall

reverberating through the ground. Its jaws dripped with venomous saliva, while its very skin exuded a toxic aura, permeating the air.

Its savage intentions were evident, poised to engulf him in a nightmare of poison.

But he remained unfazed by its towering size and stood resolute, his muscles taut with anticipation, his gaze locked on the advancing Fiend.

In complete focus, his time began to stretch as he activated his Temporal Perception ability.

Every second he perceived as hundreds, the world itself slowed and narrowed down to this singular clash between predator and prey.

Emir, being the predator, unknowingly to the monster.

Not wasting any time, he began dissecting the Noxspire's weakness and planning his next moves.

'End its methods of attack first...'

Noticing the muscles on the monster being flexed, he expected its attack to be a simple charge and bite, so with that in mind, he changed his stance as he shifted his body slightly to the right and chanted:

"Aetheric Blades."

With his TP still active, he sidestepped the monster's bite with a quick leap to the side.

And just as his foot touched the ground, he pivoted on his right leg, turning to face the monster.

With barely a pause, he lunged upward, utilizing his body's momentum to execute a front flip.

This added force propelled him back towards the monster, his target now its rapidly approaching tail.

Swift and precise, his daggers sliced through the Noxspire's massive tail as if it were butter, splashing his augmented suit's force shield with its poison.

The monster roared in pain as it rushed to distance itself from Emir.

But not giving the Noxspire a moment to counterattack or even compose itself, Emir quickly retrieved his Aetherstorm Launcher and charged it.

The weapon hummed with Aether as it unleashed a searing blast aimed directly at the monster's eyes.

Now with no tail to defend itself, the shot hit the monster cleanly, as its head was pushed to the right due to the sheer force of the blast.

The monster roared in agony once more, but Emir remained on the attack as he discarded his weapon, and rushed towards it, taking advantage of its current state.

The shine of his daggers intensified, radiating a darker hue as he absorbed an influx of Aether during the ongoing battle, this surge only heightening their potency.

Emir reached just below the monster, but in its late hurrah, it spewed out poisonous blood, which he promptly dodged by jumping backwards.

Said blood was so corrosive that it sizzled the very earth it touched.

Stretching his arms behind him, he applied all of his Aether into his daggers and threw them at the Noxspire's neck.

A whooshing sound danced through the air as the daggers found themselves cutting through the monster from one side to the next.

Its blood gushed out causing the very air around it to begin to increase in toxicity.

Emir quickly stepped away, knowing that even his augmented suit would struggle to hold off that much poison from going through and reaching him.

He waited until it dissipated and simply grabbed his daggers after the whole ordeal was over, sheathing them once more.

Casting one final glance at the defeated monster, he sprinted back towards the mountains, not happy nor sad with his win as he reflected:

'I've gotten stronger, huh, or rather, my equipment is better, but it's all the same, Fiend- ranked monsters can't even bring me a challenge now...'

While Emir continued to run, he soon began noticing that the sun equivalent of whatever planet he was on was growing closer and closer by the second.

The temperature was slowly rising, threatening to cook even him, a Celestial, alive.

With every step, he felt the earth beneath him begin to scorch even more; he also noticed the air's toxicity increase further, and light fumes of poison began to release themselves from the ground.

'This sure is something.'

Emir thought as he picked up his pace, running faster than he ever had.

Focusing all his Aether and the augmented suit's energy into his lower body, he felt waves of ridiculously hot air hitting his face, his force shield struggling to contain the heat.

But he remained focused and soon reached close to the mountains, his steps never slowing as he looked around for a cave to hide in.

He scanned the surroundings, desperately seeking a sanctuary amidst the hell he found

himself in.

Although desperate, he was calm, even when the gravity of the situation weighed heavily on his mind, as it only fueled his sense of urgency and sharpened his focus.

Finally, in a minute or so, his eyes locked onto a cave nestled amidst the terrain.

It beckoned to him, offering the promise of respite from the mounting perils.

'It's my only choice!'

Without hesitation, he veered towards it, his steps never faltering, drawn by the flickering hope of safety it represented him, even if it housed a monster within its depths.

And as he neared the cave's entrance, the reality of his race against time and nature's wrath became ever more tangible.

The scorching heat seemed to intensify even more with each passing moment, threatening to engulf him entirely.

The toxic atmosphere, now suffused with swirling fumes of poison, clawed at his senses, at his lungs that had not breathed for however long he ran, urging him to reach refuge.

Emir's heart pounded in his chest as he reached the mouth of the cave...

His final sanctuary against the merciless elements.

Without a second thought, he crossed the threshold, and a rush of coolness embraced him, offering temporary solace from the relentless world outside.

In the dim light that filtered through the cave's entrance, his breaths came in ragged gasps, evidence of the strenuous sprint that had brought him here.

The echoes of his own panting reverberated, filling the cavern with a sound of weakness.

But amidst this symphony of sound, there was an additional note that sent a chill down his

spine.

One that appeared to have capitalized on his current state.

A low growl, deep and menacing, gradually weaved its way into his ears, disrupting the

relative calm.

The air grew heavy as if the very cave they were in held its breath.

The presence of another creature, hidden within the shadows, had been unveiled, shattering

any hope he had of recuperating.

"Fuck..."

Emir couldn't help but mumble as he braced himself for yet another harrowing encounter in

this treacherous realm...

In this poisonous hellscape.