Free Web NovelChapter 136: Battling The Homo Erectus General (I)
The Homo erectus general felt his spear rattle violently in his hand, followed quickly by massive vibrations spreading through his entire arm, shifting the weapon backward.
He had somehow moved his neck out of the way very slightly, but in that moment of impact, Uhtred’s battle-axe still nicked him regardless.
Uhtred used his metal magic to reshape the length of the blade side of his axe, extending it the moment he saw the Homo erectus general leaning out of the way to dodge the strike.
The tip of the extended blade left a thin line across the general’s neck, spilling red blood in an instant.
Uhtred cursed under his breath, his eyes wild at the miss, as he brought back the battle-axe for another rapid strike.
He twisted the momentum of his swing immediately, bringing the axe crashing down at the Homo erectus general’s head.
The whole time, the ancient general had a wide look of surprise on his face at how vicious Uhtred’s strength was. His free hand went straight to his neck, feeling where a shallow gash had just appeared.
It wasn’t deep enough to cut any vitals, as the Homo erectus general’s skin was already especially tough, but the encounter had been way too close. Uhtred’s might was not something to scoff at, even despite the general’s Level 24 physical attributes.
He moved back immediately, leaping out of the way as Uhtred’s axe came down for the follow-up strike.
However, Uhtred wasn’t simply using brute strength alone. His sub-core was already in action.
The exact moment the Homo erectus general moved to leap backward, the ground reshaped around his feet, forming earth traps that held him firmly in place.
This time, though, the general’s reaction was more calm. The end of his spear was already moving toward his legs to break the earth traps, as if he had fully expected it.
It was highly likely he already knew Uhtred possessed earth magic, which wouldn’t be surprising since, by now, Uhtred’s core abilities were no longer news to the ancient variant generals.
However, the brief moment the general spent shattering those earth traps gave Uhtred the exact window he needed.
His axe came crashing down, striking at the center of the Homo erectus general’s head. Yet, the ancient general was somehow still able to parry the blow, much to Uhtred’s surprise.
However, Uhtred remained relentless. He continued to bring his axe down at the Homo erectus general repeatedly, striking in several more rapid exchanges.
He continued this aggressive attack in tandem with his earth magic. But when he finally saw that the general was not only keeping up, but was beginning to predict the trajectory of the strikes, he instantly changed his tactics.
"Winter Court!"
Uhtred immediately activated the snow blizzard spell that he had created, drawing inspiration from the Frost Daemon back in his dungeon.
The natural cosmic essence in the desert air wasn’t nearly enough to supplement a spell of this nature, but Uhtred used his own reserves to birth the spell effects out of nothing.
His internal energy reserves drained significantly, as Winter Court was an exceptionally taxing spell to maintain under these environmental conditions.
However, he activated it nonetheless.
Within a five-meter radius, a violent snow blizzard that made it entirely impossible to see immediately materialized, completely encompassing the Homo erectus general within its frosty domain.
The look of surprise on the Homo erectus general’s face widened even more at Uhtred’s sudden spell. However, he possessed a wealth of combat experience and immediately leaped backward to get out of the spell’s range.
He had instantly deciphered that even for a powerful domain spell like this, there had to be a strict limit to its range, and it wasn’t something that was especially large.
He knew, with in-depth knowledge, the limits of a Mortal realm cultivator when it came to casting spells. Even for Uhtred, who looked remarkably talented, his range was still going to be something small.
Of course, there was the possibility of Uhtred being able to move this five-meter radius according to the general’s movements, keeping him firmly trapped within the blizzard.
But the barren, essence-dry environment here made the Homo erectus general confident that such a feat was impossible.
Uhtred would drain his essence reserves drastically if he wanted to keep up such an effect over a moving distance. The only logical option was that Uhtred was using this as a means to limit his view for just a brief moment alone.
And just as the Homo erectus general had deduced, this was exactly what Uhtred had intended. The moment the general leaped out of the five-meter radius, Uhtred deactivated the spell.
But what was even more surprising to the general was that Uhtred wasn’t even within the radius of the blizzard himself. Somehow, he had cast the Winter Court domain spell at a distance, without being inside it.
It was his own unique twist on the spell compared to how the Frost Daemon used it.
By the time the Homo erectus general was entirely free of the small frosty domain, Uhtred was already only a few steps away from him, his battle-axe already in a dangerous position, whistling directly toward the general’s midsection.
And this time, he scored a deadly hit.
Even though the Homo erectus general tried to desperately dodge and parry with his long spear, Uhtred was way too close, and his metal manipulation was able to show its full, devastating effects.
The gash this time was significantly deeper and more deadly, slicing a clean, thin section right through the side of the general’s stomach.
It had been aimed directly for the rib section where more vital organs lay beneath the bone. But seeing that he couldn’t dodge fully and that Uhtred’s strike packed terrifying strength, the general had instead chosen to twist his torso to take the damage in a less vital area.
A grimace crossed his face as fresh blood spilled, and a small chunk of his flesh splattered into the air from the impact.
In the same instant, a searing pain shot up the general’s body as he realized Uhtred had not just struck with physical strength alone. The battle-axe had been coated with a dense layer of heat magic that aggressively seared the open wound.
The blood gushing out of the gash was flash-drying rapidly. More fresh blood poured out from the wound, but Uhtred’s thermal magic had completely sizzled the ends of the cut, sending biting jolts of pain through the general’s body.
Despite the grimace crossing his face, the Homo erectus general didn’t dwell on the pain for long. He launched himself forward, flashing toward Uhtred for a counter-attack.
His spear whistled through the air, targeting Uhtred’s chest, dead center.
Uhtred, in turn, had no choice but to be the one to dodge. He leaped back with his battle-axe, widening the space between them to reset his stance.
They both skidded across the hard-packed desert sand, assessing each other for a few seconds in silence, catching their breath and reorienting their postures.
Uhtred had successfully scored a vital hit in the opening exchange. He turned his head from side to side, cracking his neck, his eyes remaining fixed on the Homo erectus general in dead focus.
The Homo erectus general, on the other hand, panted deeply at first with an unreadable look in his eyes, before a slow smile cracked across his face.
"Hmm, you’re talented, I’ll give you that," he said, nodding slowly as he placed a hand over his gushing wound, seemingly to stem the blood loss.
"But elemental magic? It seems that’s all you’ve got. I would say I’m disappointed, but I didn’t expect much of you anyway... You who haven’t seen the true breadth and depth of what cosmic essence is capable of!"
He charged straight at Uhtred, and Uhtred immediately moved into action without wasting a single beat. But before their weapons could clash, the Homo erectus general suddenly pulled back, halting his momentum entirely and taking Uhtred by surprise.
Uhtred rapidly moved to adapt to the sudden stop, adjusting his weight to extend the reach of his battle-axe. But suddenly, the Homo erectus general, who had been leading entirely with the spear in his right arm, shot his left hand forward in a flashing motion.
Uhtred spread his perception as much as he could, trying to take in more of the immediate battlefield to account for any sudden variables. But even with his high attributes, he was completely unprepared for what happened next.
