The greatest reason why the Machine Gods led by the Great Sage gave up on subjugating the Tsuchimikuchi a thousand years ago was its Super Regeneration.
That near-immortal ability, which couldn’t be stopped even by severing its head, greatly troubled the Great Sage and his companions.
“(Seriously, what a troublesome ability.)”
A regenerating serpent… it reminds me of the Hydra I fought before.
Actually, maybe its heads were originally capable of regeneration too. I didn’t know back then because I used a spear with recovery nullification.
However, I can’t use that spear this time. It’s too weak to face a 〖Calamity Beast〗.
It’s a human weapon, so it’s small, and more importantly, it’s made of 〖Dire Beast〗 material.
“(Well, even without recovery nullification, it’ll die if I cut off all its heads at once, and even if it doesn’t, it’ll be a sandbag if it loses its thinking head. Besides, just in case… Whoa, is this ‘Suppression’?)”
As I was contemplating our next move and reviewing the plan, the weight of the Tsuchimikuchi’s 〖Zone Control〗 suddenly increased.
It’s probably an additional effect, the power of ‘Suppression’.
Until now, probably because of the sudden start of the battle, it had left the additional effects as they were, but it must have realized that it couldn’t defeat me easily and decided to get serious.
“(That’s a problem if it does that.)”
Compared to my 〖Koushou〗, which envelops the entire cavern, the Tsuchimikuchi’s 〖Zone Control〗 was a small thing around it.
But now, it’s gradually expanding its range, and then it stopped expanding.
““Shasha…?””
“(That’s why I’ve come prepared.)”
The weakness of Barrier Magic is interference with space, that is, 〖Zone Control〗.
This battlefield is isolated by 〖Area Isolation〗, but if it’s exposed to the Tsuchimikuchi’s 〖Zone Control〗 for a long time, the effect will be nullified.
That’s why I need to win while keeping the Tsuchimikuchi inside my 〖Koushou〗, and for that, I had Paula cast 〖Area Edit: Reinforce〗 before the battle.
This is a buff-type magic, and its effect is to strengthen control, just like ‘Suppression’.
Thanks to that, I have an overwhelming advantage in the 〖Zone Control〗 battle.
““Gishashaa!””
“(If you’re coming closer, that’s helpful. 〖S(Sparkle) U(Aproot)〗.)”
Perhaps judging that it couldn’t win with 〖Zone Control〗, the Tsuchimikuchi suddenly dashed forward.
I fired countless magic bullets at it. The Tsuchimikuchi once again countered by throwing rocks, but it must have learned that this alone wouldn’t be enough.
Just before the first shot landed, it dove into the Mana Crystal ground.
The magic bullets leading the charge missed their target due to the sudden descent of the target.
The following shots managed to correct their trajectory, but they couldn’t catch the Tsuchimikuchi swimming freely through the sea of crystals.
“(If there’s no need to hide, it’ll use earth-penetration to the fullest, huh? It’s good enough that it didn’t escape.)”
〖Area Isolation〗 is deployed in a spherical shape, so it can’t easily escape even from underground, but I want to avoid being touched by its 〖Zone Control〗.
The reason I haven’t stored the Mana Crystals on the ground is for that reason.
I floated into the air as if to avoid a surprise attack from underground, and seeing this, the Tsuchimikuchi rose to near the ground.
““Shiaaa!””
“(Oh, it’s cautious.)”
But it didn’t jump directly at me. Instead, it crushed the crystals into hundreds of pebbles, sharpened their tips, made them spin at high speed like bullets, and shot them out at the speed of a gale.
At the same time, gravity increased.
It seems to be a tactic to increase the number of projectiles to extend the time it takes to store them, and then to add a finishing blow with the 〖Omoishi Serpent’s Evil Eye〗.
“(And all of this is a feint, the real attack is a tail strike. It’s pretty well thought out.)”
I ignored the incoming attacks and carefully observed its movements.
The crystal pebbles hit my body, but they didn’t even leave a scratch. They slid off as if they were repelled.
Then, the Tsuchimikuchi’s long tail swung. The tip of the tail had a blade like a polished stone tool, and it was probably trying to cut me in half with it.
It was a blow that maximized the centrifugal force of its long body. The speed of the tip easily exceeded the speed of sound.
““Jaaa!!””
It would be a bit tiring to dodge this under the influence of supergravity. I also need to prepare for a counterattack, so I’ll dare to take it.
The tail blade caught me as I made that decision—
““Shaa…?””
—but it didn’t catch me, it just slid across my surface.
It’s a simple principle. My body, which is close to a perfect sphere, is extremely smooth, and unless the blade hits it perfectly perpendicularly, it will just slide off.
It’s not a perfect sphere, and the friction isn’t zero, so I do receive some impact upon collision, but that level can be shut out with my 〖Toughness〗.
And the Tsuchimikuchi, having missed its big move, momentarily exposed a large opening.
This is the perfect chance.
“(Activate—)”
I mobilized all the 〖Mana〗 I could handle at once and poured it into one point on my body, a certain Artifact.
It was a weapon that I had shaped by processing my body (the highest-grade Mana Crystal) with 〖U(Update)〗 while being showered with crystal pebbles.
“(—Blade Extend, 〖Compact Thrust〗!)”
A pillar of light appeared.
The pillar pierced the Tsuchimikuchi’s exposed torso.
The basic structure of this Artifact is roughly the same as the ‘extending sword’ that Thanasis made for me before.
However, the shape of the blade is more like a spear than a sword, or rather, a harpoon.
I eliminated the blade and concentrated the sharpness on the tip.
If the 〖Storm Strike〗 modifier is added to that, even the Tsuchimikuchi’s rock scales can be pierced like paper.
““Gii, shua.””
“(〖Super Leap〗, 〖Brinkmanship〗, here I go!)”
I braced myself in the air with my 〖Skill〗 and swung the harpoon with all my might. The crystal ground cracked with a grating sound, and the Tsuchimikuchi was lifted up.
The tip of the harpoon also has a barb, so there’s no need to worry about it slipping out halfway.
I maintained the momentum, and when the Tsuchimikuchi reached the same height as me, I dispelled the harpoon.
The Tsuchimikuchi, freed from the harpoon, flew through the air according to its inertia.
Perhaps it couldn’t keep up with me in its spinning vision, the gravity enhancement was canceled.
“(I’ve finally managed to get it this far.)”
One of the winning strategies that scholars found against the Tsuchimikuchi was aerial combat.
This way, I can ignore the troublesome earth-penetration, and the Tsuchimikuchi’s mobility is also greatly reduced.
The biggest hurdle was how to launch the massive 〖Calamity Beast〗 into the air, but… now that I’ve overcome that challenge, all that’s left is to finish it off.
“(Defeating it while it’s in the air is also quite a difficult task… but I have to do it. 〖Replicant Form〗.)”
Manipulating my body with 〖U(Update)〗 is highly flexible, but it’s difficult to add special effects because I can’t reproduce other minerals.
If I can prepare a mineral composite Artifact beforehand, it’s more efficient to imitate it with 〖Replicant Form〗.
For that reason, I imitated a dazzling vermilion Artifact.
I arranged three pairs, six in total, on the left and right, like the wings of a Seraphim.
“〖S(Sparkle) U(Aproot)〗, plus, 〖Heavy Shot〗, sixfold!”
I activated one of my trump cards.