Emery had heard the name 'Lodos' from Silva before. That was the name of the acolyte known to be a maniac. Apparently she thought he was also the strongest of the elite acolytes participating in this game. Emery finally understood why the two elites stood still like a statue the moment this creepy looking acolyte arrived.
Lodos casted a spell and the 6 acolytes there dropped in a kneeling position to the ground. Gravity spells were a rare form of darkness element magic, just like space magic, and not all acolytes were able to perform them. Meanwhile, this maniac was able to perform it easily towards multiple targets, showing he was not just crazy, but also very much gifted.
With the six acolytes now at his mercy, Lodos cast another spell. Six dark needles appeared in the air and ready to pierce those poor helpless acolytes. There really was nothing Emery could do about it. In fact, it would be much safer for him to leave the scene. It was far too early in the game for him to risk everything and face three elites at the same time.
However, before he could leave, Emery heard shouting from one of the elite acolytes.
"Lodos… Can you at least share some of those acolytes with us too? We… We did find them first, didn't we?"
Lodos stopped his attack and stared at the lightning acolyte who talked just now.
"Oh, is that so… Tell me, how many acolytes do you think I should share with you?"
"Well, there are six of them, so each of us can get two… Doesn't that sound fair?" Lodos frowned upon hearing the statement, and the lightning acolyte stammered in a hurry. "Oh, wait, no, no. What I meant is, you can just give each of us one… That would be enough as our compensation for finding them, at least."
Lodos closed his eyes, and all the floating black spears flew towards the grounded, helpless acolytes. Six long black needles flew towards the unmoving six acolytes.
All the six acolytes screamed in pain, however, none of them died. Lodos decided to only stab their legs and arms on purpose. The poor acolytes ended up being pinned down, their limbs stabbed to the ground and weighed down by the large needles. As if he did not see the blood flowing out and staining the ground beneath, Lodos walked closer towards one of the poor acolytes and asked him.
"This virtual reality is very interesting… Hey, tell me… How do you feel? Does the pain feel real?" Lodos asked, his ecstasy dripping from every word. His lips were curled into an unsettling grin that seems just a little too wide to be natural.
The tier 7 acolyte was still able to stand up. He readied himself to fight even as the large black needle piercing his shoulders and legs made his wounds bleed and widen each time he moved even slightly.
"You crazy fucker." All of a sudden, the acolyte's entire body turned to stone. It was a form of higher stage earth magic. The spell was able to give maximum defense to the acolyte who used it.
However, to his surprise, instantly several black needles formed all around him and quickly pierced him. With his heavy stone body and the increased downward pull due to the gravity spell, he was rendered unable to move even an inch. A dozen large needles pierced his entire body, making him look like a pincushion of black needles.
The acolyte screamed in agony. His thick skin and increased defense caused the needles to only be able to pierce bit by bit, prolonging the pain he felt all around his entire body. Oddly, even though the needles looked sharp enough to kill if it just plunged a little bit deeper, none of them grazed, let alone stabbed, any vital organs.
Lodos turned towards the other two acolytes and said, his gaze wide in excitement. "Do you want points from these guys? If you do… I can share, but please wait a while. I have yet to play with them... you don't mind waiting, right?"
The elite acolytes shook their heads in a hurry. It was clear the display of power affected them more than they would like to admit. "No, no. Never mind that, Lodos. You can have all of them, and we can look for another target."
"Well, that doesn't sound fair, does it… You know what?" Lodos created two more black needles and said. "You can have the one watching us right now."
"!!"
To Emery's surprise, Lodos looked straight at him and tossed the two black needles towards him. Emery jumped to the side and dodged the attack. The two needles barely missed him and lodged itself straight into one of the trees.
Emery didn't even need a moment to think what he should do. Without wasting an instant, Emery casted [Dark Smoke] to cover his tracks and ran as quick as he could. He jumped towards the top of the trees and moved quickly, while still using his [Nature Sense]. The last thing he wanted was encountering another problem on top of his current one and ending up having to fight against two sides.
Emery kept on jumping, while running as fast as his legs could carry him. However, the sensations he felt from [Nature Sense] told him the two elites were still busy chasing him.
"Damn, they are gaining on me." Emery gritted his teeth. He was beginning to regret his decision to stay and watch the fight unfold.
Both of his pursuers were rank 7 acolytes, and Emery knew it would not be easy to escape. However, if he had to deal with the two of them, at least he should ensure the creepy one would not add to his problem if he put on some distance between him and the place of the battle. The further away the better.
Emery kept jumping around the trees and ran at full speed. However, even though he put all his effort into running, the two acolytes were still gaining on him. Now the acolytes were just less than fifty meters away from him.
"You can't get away from us, you bastard! Come and fight!"
Thanks to his [Nature Sense], Emery was able to hear the distinct sounds of splashing water, which gave him an idea. He ran towards the noise, and stopped at an open lake with a small waterfall on one side and a river stream on the other side. "This is perfect" he thought
Emery stopped next to the lake and turned around, intently watching the two acolytes coming towards him. The two acolytes stopped in front of him and one of them exclaimed in anger. "Hah! Just surrender yourself, Stop wasting our time!" it appears they wish to vent their anger from what that Lodos guy did to them. Two angry elites acolyte against him, this is unfortunate for him, if he don't do it right he will not survive this.