"You returned, Strongest." Psychic Ancestor Marble sighed in relief.

Rhachis Ancestor Strongest nodded, placing his hand on the back of Rhachis Ancestor Light, emitting a pale blue light. Immediately, Rhachis Ancestor Light's condition improved, now able to maintain the beam of light for longer durations.

'I still have a long way to go before I am qualified to participate in a fight of this level,' Rhachis Ancestor Strongest sighed, gazing at the phenomenon in the sky.

A miniature sun had appeared, emitting tongues of flames that seeped into the pillar of light, strengthening it while adding the property of heat into it. This raised its destructiveness to a higher level, pressuring Rhachis Ancestor Parasite.

A voice echoed from within, almost a murmur, transmitting the contents to Rhachis Ancestor Parasite, "The Skep Primogenitor is nearby, watching us."

Rhachis Ancestor Parasite snorted once, pushing its palms forward, expanding the forcefield, pushing away the miniature sun and the beam of light. It launched a kick towards the miniature sun, sending it reeling away towards the ocean.

Water vaporised, forming mist. Faint explosions resounded amidst it, the sign a chain reaction had been induced. It then aimed a punch towards Rhachis Ancestor Light, annihilating most of the beam of light that came in the way.

Freeing itself from all the attacks, Rhachis Ancestor Parasite snorted, sending a kick towards the ocean. Massive columns of water rose, as a result, splashing back only after a long time had passed, turning into something other than water when they fell. The power behind its punch even displaced the molecular structure of the affected water, changing its inherent nature.

Its gaze bore into the ocean, failing to find the traces of the target it sought. It rained down a couple more punches before it kicked the air and moved south-east, heading towards its base. Along the way, Psychic Ancestor Crash arrived and picked it up, disappearing from the horizon.

The beam of light reduced in intensity, dissipating after a couple of seconds as Rhachis Ancestor Light kneeled on the ground, wheezing in exhaustion. Blood oozed out from his orifices, pulled back a second later under his influence.

Rhachis Ancestor Strongest increased the intensity of the pale blue light, healing his damage. But, the effect of his ability was only Tier 5, unable to swiftly heal him for the time being. Rhachis Ancestor Light waved his hand, prompting him to stop, "That's enough. I can heal myself later."

"Alright," Rhachis Ancestor Strongest didn't question his decision, stopping his ability. He then noticed the miniature sun fly towards them, decreasing in size as it arrived, soon becoming a human that landed beside them, "It was a dangerous situation."

"Indeed," Rhachis Ancestor Light looked at the shredded skin on his arm, "If you were a minute late, I probably would have had to go all out and self-destruct."

"The crisis has been averted for the time being." Psychic Ancestor Marble looked at the broiling aura that was slowly dissipating, returning to normalcy, "Stay for a couple of days here, Dawn. The Swarm won't resume its attacks for at least 2 more days."

"Thanks," Rhachis Ancestor Dawn nodded, wincing in pain as he clenched his fist, "I need to rest too. Its final attack contained too much power than usual."

"Parasite is getting stronger with the passing of each day," Rhachis Ancestor Light said, "As the Skep Primogenitor had implied, Parasite would soon achieve the peak of its path. When that time comes, our situation would worsen."

…

Tier 2 Skill—Leap Burst!

Dalna Doppler flashed before the Frenzy Parasite, swiping with her knife, making a laceration, "It cannot use any Skills. Aim at its burn marks."

The skin of the Frenzy Parasite was peeling off at many places, suffering from third-degree burns. Its power further reduced, as a result, making it susceptible to Dalna Doppler's attacks. George, Ashten, and Esina took turns to attack it, diverting its attention continuously, only making small attacks.

It was in fear that a stronger attack would cause the Frenzy Parasite to solely target the individual, ignoring the rest. The Espers only used their auras to hinder its movements, barely able to affect it.

The first four segments of the Frenzy Parasite were different from the remaining, sporting numerous outgrowths. The base structure of the four varied, showcasing the Skills the Shifter had possessed before.

Of them, only the fourth segment was tough, followed by the second. The third segment oozed out faint green liquid when cut by her knife, while the first slightly trembled, sensing stuff through the vibrations.

The fifth and sixth segments were white, similar to the Wisdom Parasite in the Induction Ceremony. The two segments were morphing into their Frenzy Parasite counterpart but were the weakest in its body.

"64," After some seconds of observation, Laila Commented. Everyone immediately nodded, erupting with stronger attacks, mostly targeting the first and third segments. Based on the damage the Frenzy Parasite had sustained, it meant its Sync Rate had been 64 percent when it was within the Shifter.

Large parts of its body lacked substance, judging by the way it moved. Unless it had a 100 percent Sync Rate, the body of a Wisdom/Frenzy Parasite was incomplete, in an injured state.

Jyorta targeted its fifth and sixth segments, converging his aura personification into it, making the Frenzy Parasite hallucinate a fiery pit underneath it. The fourth segment resisted his aura the most, easily negating it, followed by the third that could negate most of it.

The second segment could only resist part of it while the first, fifth, and sixth segments were helpless. Jyorta selectively targeted them, making the Frenzy Parasite behave in response, the actions of three of its segments colliding with the rest.

This broke its flow, preventing it from landing any attacks on the Amplifiers. He didn't know how she achieved it but, Laila was able to reinforce his aura personifications, enriching its effects.

"Humph, die!" George bellowed, bringing down his sword as he cleaved at the end of the third segment, cutting the Frenzy Parasite into two. The two halves still moved, trying to retaliate against him but Jyorta controlled the bigger half, manipulating it through the fifth and sixth segments.

It prevented the fourth segment from retaliating, constricting itself. Seeing that it was hindering its attacks, the fourth segment tore off the fifth and sixth segments, coiling on the road as it reshaped itself.

The fourth segment thinned, taking on a serpentine form optimal to attack. In the meantime, Dalna Doppler and Esina diced the other half, jumping back simultaneously as green fluid spewed forth.

The fourth segment finished morphing its body, becoming a three-metre-long serpent. It targeted Dalna Doppler, intending to finish off the troublesome foe first. When it neared her, launching a whip attack using its tail, Laila arrived behind her, shielding the two with her psychic arms.

Her psychic arms formed a contraption, its internal structure similar to a sponge, seemingly containing a lot of compressed air. When the tail landed on it, the air was gushed out with tremendous pressure, decreasing the momentum of the impact, and blowing the dust while confusing the Frenzy Parasite's senses.

The attack easily broke her barrier, causing a backlash to her as Laila kneeled on the ground, her eyes reddening. Dalna Doppler defended against the remainder of the attack, using her knife to lodge into its muscles, twisting it while she tugged, preventing it from retracting it.

The serpent saw the situation as it constricted its body, moving its head towards Dalna Doppler to coil around her. A pair of hands timely clamped on it, infusing the aura generated from his Tier 2 Skill into it. It was Ashten Coorg.

The aura flux caused it to involuntarily flinch; Dalna Doppler moved back, distancing herself from Ashten while pulling the serpent. George and Esina hacked with their swords, using all their strength. They barely managed to cut a quarter into its flesh before their swords were stuck.

The serpent coiled its body, pulling forth Ashten and Dalna Doppler. Jyorta seeped his two psychic arms into its wounds, beginning to pull out its blood. Laila too followed suit, using the convenience of the psychic arms to make a move even while the serpent was resisting.

Tier 2 Skill—Strength Burst!

"Argh," George grunted, using his enhanced strength to pull the sword sideways, causing a long tear on the serpent, making it easy for the Espers to pull out its blood. Mixed within was Essence of Frenzy that spilled out on the others.

Laila swiftly created a barrier that shielded them from the Essence of Frenzy while the remainder pulled, hacked, tore, and stomped on the serpent, killing it after a minute of struggle. To top it off, George and Dalna Doppler diced it into more than twenty pieces, ensuring that it would stay dead.

"Phew," Dalna Doppler wiped her sweat, "Thankfully, it was turning into a Frenzy Parasite and wasn't in the right state of mind to use the full extent of its physical powers. Otherwise, it would have been as strong as a Developer in his peak."

"It is good that the Parasites can't use their Skills while alone," George heaved a sigh of relief as he looked at the boy that had been running before, "What happened here?"

The boy looked at the rest, feeling as if he was in a dream, witnessing the superhuman abilities they displayed. Seeing that he wasn't replying, Haesha looked at the first aid kit he held dearly, "Is your friend injured?"

The boy immediately remembered his goal, speaking in a hurry, pointing at an apartment nearby, "My friend was injured by one of these. Somehow, we managed to push it off the window. Since I was the fastest among us, I volunteered to bring a first aid kit from the hospital."

His eyes turned dark, "Who knew, there would be more of them here."