Synthesis-type adventurers

Chapter 66 The Deadly "Extra Meal"

The monster roared again and strode forward with its heavy, segmented limbs toward Avira.

It swung its giant metal tentacle and smashed it down on the female knight with unstoppable force.

Avira was forced to take a defensive stance. The barrage of heavy blows left her arms numb and sore, and she almost dropped the handle of her shield.

What's even more despairing is that the monster continues to eat while attacking.

Its secondary limbs, used to aid in hunting, scoop up scrap metal from the ground and greedily stuff it into its mouth.

The small wound that Avira had just made on the tentacle with her sword was completely healed in the blink of an eye.

"It's unkillable... as long as there's metal, it's immortal!" Chiba cried out in despair. "Boss, let's retreat! We can't handle this thing at all!"

Avira turned to look at Rhodes, her eyes filled with determination.

"Lord Rhodes, you all go quickly! I'll hold it off!"

"Shut up!"

Rhodes peeked out from behind the cover, his eyes behind the goggles revealing a calm demeanor.

Given the monster's speed, simply running away wouldn't be enough to escape, so the only option would be to sacrifice Avira.

Exploring this cruel world is not a game; the dead cannot be brought back to life. Therefore, at this critical juncture, Rhodes, as the captain, must make crucial decisions.

Taking advantage of the moment when Avira was distracting the monster's fierce attack, he focused his gaze on the giant maw that was constantly devouring metal.

Suppressing his instinctive resistance to the nauseating, inexplicable babbling he had once experienced, Rhodes activated [Analysis Vision] again.

The dreaded, bleak world has returned.

This time, Rod was not as unguarded as he had been when facing old Hansen.

He compressed his mental energy to the extreme, avoiding the polluted areas emitting distorted black energy as much as possible, and focusing only on the orbs of light on the monster's chest and abdomen.

[High-Pressure Steam Shield (Blue Excellent)]: Utilizes the high pressure at the core to form a dual physical and energy defense.

[Weakness - Core Overload (Gray Inferior)]: The furnace pressure is already at a critical value, and the only vent is located in the cavity. If high-energy explosive materials are introduced, it will trigger a chain reaction of sympathetic explosions.

"Buzz—"

As soon as the familiar ancient god's murmur began to play its first syllable, Rhodes decisively cut off his vision.

Even in that brief moment, cold sweat instantly soaked his temples, and his temples throbbed.

But that was enough; he had seen the thing's Achilles' heel.

As a glutton, its source of power is precisely its fatal weakness.

In order to maintain this ultra-high-speed regeneration, the more it consumes, the closer the pressure and heat accumulated inside the furnace will be to the critical point.

Just add one "ingredient" to it...

Rhodes quickly unpacked his tactical backpack and took out the bottle of unstable alchemical incendiary agent that he had always treasured.

This is one of Old Hansen's relics, containing astonishing destructive power, but it is also extremely volatile. Without special and stable handling, it is very easy for accidents to occur.

But this is not enough.

This dose would at most destroy its mouth, but not its core.

Rod's gaze fell on the side pocket of his backpack, where a spare resin torch was tucked in.

[Analysis View] was activated instantly, and he saw the white entry above the torch—[Flammable].

"Stripping".

The white orb of light was forcibly pulled out by Rhodes and condensed into a shape in his palm.

"synthesis."

He pressed the [Flammable] label into the dark red flammable liquid. The bottle suddenly became scalding hot, and the liquid inside began to surge and churn, its color changing from dark red to a dazzling bright orange.

【Special Incendiary Agent - Core Overload】: An extremely unstable alchemical explosive with a forced ignition effect, greatly increasing the explosive power.

A simple explosion may not be able to penetrate armor, but extreme combustion can instantly overload the furnace.

Rhodes grabbed a piece of scrap metal, pulled out a strap from the side of his backpack, and tightly bound the specially made bomb to it.

"Avira! Get out of the way!"

Rhodes burst out from behind cover and shouted with all his might.

The female knight, acting on her fighting instincts, rolled to the side, clearing a path for him to attack from the front.

Just as the monster was about to deliver a fatal blow to Avira, it was drawn by the roar, and its row of compound eyes turned towards her.

It saw the object that Rod had thrown.

It was a piece of scrap iron bound with alchemical potion, its entire body glowing crimson due to the potion's violent reaction, radiating astonishing energy fluctuations.

For this monster that desperately needed heat to keep its furnace running, this ball of extremely high-energy fuel was like a lighthouse in the dark, and the urge to devour the high-energy substance instantly overwhelmed its attack instincts.

It opened its enormous mouth, spewing black smoke, and let out a greedy hiss, creating a powerful suction force out of nowhere.

The metal plate strapped with the bomb traced an arc through the air before plunging straight into the burning abyss.

"Gulp."

The sound of swallowing was exceptionally clear.

The monster closed its massive jaws, preparing to melt the food with the high temperature of the furnace, as was its custom.

Rhodes swiftly sidestepped behind a concrete pillar, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Enjoy yourself..."

The monster froze in mid-air.

The red light on its abdomen suddenly surged, and a small sun rose inside its body.

Immediately afterwards, an extremely suppressed loud noise erupted from within it.

"Thump—!"

The monster's abdomen suddenly bulged outward into a perfect sphere.

The high-temperature steam shield surrounding him instantly failed under the impact of the internal explosion. The originally high-pressure condensed white gas wall was completely torn apart and turned into invisible waves of scalding gas that scattered and fled.

Countless red-hot rivets transformed into deadly shrapnel, bursting out from the seams of its armor and striking the wall, creating dense sparks.

Dark red flames, mixed with molten slag and black smoke, spewed out from its eye sockets, its massive mouth, and even from every gap in its armor.

It didn't even manage a single groan; its heavy metal body shuddered violently before collapsing heavily backward.

"Boom!"

The enormous creation crashed to the ground, causing the entire underground cavity to tremble.

Its once intimidating metal limbs twitched helplessly, the furnace chamber completely blown open, revealing the twisted core still burning inside.

A scorching wave of air rushed past the bunker, making Rhodes' trench coat flutter loudly.

Once the explosions subsided, he emerged from the smoke and dust, clapped his hands, and said, "Done."

Chiba poked her head out from the pipe, her mouth agape in surprise, her gaze shifting back and forth between the billowing wreckage and the calm-faced Rod.

"That's...it's over?"

The monster, which was fierce and indestructible just moments before, died from an upset stomach?

Avira pushed herself up from the ground, gazing at Rhodes's retreating figure with a deeper sense of awe in her eyes.

He relied not on brute force, but on his wisdom in understanding the battle situation and his absolute control.

This is the lord she swore allegiance to.

Ignoring their astonishment, Rhodes walked straight toward the still-heating wreckage.

The explosion destroyed most of the structure, but the things he needed should still be intact.

Braving the heatwave, he walked to the core of the mass of charred biological tissue intertwined with scrap metal.

[Analysis of Vision] Carefully activated, amidst a charred ruin, a dazzling purple light pierced the corner of his eye.

[Living Metal Core (Rare Purple, Fragmented)]

Rhodes reached out, and with the blessing of [Dragon Vein Physique], he ignored the temperature that could burn an ordinary person and pulled it out of the wreckage.

Although it is somewhat damaged, it is still a truly high-grade material.

And then there's the Titan Core in my backpack...

His "powered armor project" has now completed another crucial piece of the puzzle.

"We can call it a day now." Rod turned around, took out a clean cloth, and wiped the blackened lenses of his goggles. "Chiba, don't just stand there like an idiot. Go check if there are any intact parts left on this big guy. Those copper pipes are top-quality materials."

"Oh? I'm here, boss!"

As long as there's money to be made, this little bit of residual energy can't dampen Chiba's enthusiasm at all.

She wrapped her hand in the corner of her clothes, pulled out the knife, and rushed forward.