The magic beasts' charge didn't falter. Shelley flung scrolls as if they cost nothing, far more than she'd previously shown.
But the beast tide's front was too vast, and with only Thorne and Shelley to hold it back, Thorne had abandoned any hope of fully stopping this wave the moment he saw its scale. Instead, he adopted a kill-as-many-as-possible mindset.
The priority was dealing with the Transcendent Tier beasts hidden within the tide. Only they possessed significant intelligence and posed the greatest risk of occupying and exposing Thorne.
Thorne spread his perception, trying to locate these hidden threats. Though he detected a few, their cunning kept them out of reach—he couldn't bypass the countless low-tier beasts to strike them directly.
"Only by throwing the beasts into chaos can I force those Transcendent ones to act."
An idea formed in Thorne's mind.
"Shelley, use Soul Storm."
Shelley nodded, pulling out the scroll and tearing it open.
An invisible hurricane roared through. The beasts caught in its path howled in agony, and a large swath plunged into disarray.
"Ghost Thorn Tree, your turn."
At Thorne's command, the Ghost Thorn Tree unleashed its ghost thorns and bloodlust.
Though not an area attack, it targeted several large beasts. The soul-devouring thorns drove them mad, while the bloodlust caused unstoppable bleeding.
In moments, a dozen massive beasts began attacking their kin. The assaulted beasts fought back, igniting chaos that spread like a contagion across the tide.
"No way the Transcendent beasts can stay hidden now."
Thorne, confident as the tide's advance slowed, focused intently on tracking the Transcendent beasts.
Finally, a three-headed Cerberus emerged, killing several frenzied low-tier beasts around it. All three heads roared skyward, stunning a wide swath of beasts into clarity.
Thorne struck instantly, deploying Water Bind and Water Arrow.
Caught off guard, the Cerberus's limbs were ensnared, and one head shattered.
Its remaining heads thrashed, spewing black gas that corroded and evaporated Thorne's water ropes in an instant.
But Thorne hadn't expected to kill it outright. As the ropes dissolved, seven or eight more water arrows reached the Cerberus.
Though formidable at Transcendent Tier Level 4, it couldn't counter the system's instant-cast skills. Dodging one or two arrows, it took the rest head-on.
Its two heads spat black flames, holding off the ice arrows for three or four seconds. Overwhelmed by their numbers, its body exploded.
Killing one Transcendent beast didn't ease Thorne's tension—he sensed at least five more in the tide.
During his fight with the Cerberus, these five had grouped up, stealthily closing in on Shelley.
Since Thorne fought as the lake itself, they hadn't pinpointed him, opting to eliminate Shelley—the human whose scrolls wreaked havoc—first.
Shelley seemed oblivious to the approaching Transcendent beasts, nearly surrounded by low-tier ones.
With her severe injuries and energy drained from scroll use, she couldn't wipe out so many beasts at once, even with scrolls.
Thorne had to save her—she was still vital for what lay ahead.
Luckily, she was at the lake's center. Though the beasts could cross water, they were land-based and poor swimmers, giving her room to maneuver.
Seeing the danger, Thorne used his recently mastered water-to-ice skill, freezing half the lake around Shelley.
The snarling, clawing beasts charging her froze into ice blocks in an instant. Shelley, standing on the only unfrozen patch, patted her chest in relief.
But with hundreds of beasts, Thorne couldn't freeze them all—just slow them enough for her to escape.
Cracks already spiderwebbed the ice, some beasts on the verge of breaking free.
"Trouble!"
Thorne exclaimed, sensing the five stealthy Transcendent beasts seize the moment. With the lake frozen, they charged across the ice at blinding speed.
"Ice Cage!"
Thorne cast three Ice Cages in succession. Thanks to the system's no-cast-time feature, he barely trapped all five charging beasts.
Yet the cages trembled under their assault. Thorne felt the innermost layer shatter.
Seeing Shelley still reeling, he shouted, "Hide underwater, now!"
Snapping out of it, Shelley didn't obey.
Hiding underwater might buy time, but Transcendent beasts weren't hindered by water. They'd find her, and she'd be less mobile, unable to use many scrolls.
"Human, I'll tear you apart! And that sneaky thing in the water—I'll feed you to my pack for dinner!"
A gruff voice boomed from the cages—Thorne's first time hearing a beast speak.
No time for curiosity. Thorne watched Shelley anxiously, layering more Ice Cages as the beasts inside gathered power, radiating intense energy fluctuations.
Shelley drew a massive sword, nearly as tall as her, shielding her entirely.
"Is that a shield?" Thorne quipped inwardly, conjuring ice arrows to fend off low-tier beasts breaking free toward her.
Chanting, Shelley's sword blazed with blinding white light, turning night into day. Swap the sword for a staff, and she'd look like a Holy Light Temple saintess.
A "bang" erupted from the cages. Thorne's seven or eight Ice Cages shattered instantly, and five figures lunged at Shelley.
Thorne prepared to intervene, but Shelley stopped chanting, shouting sternly, "Holy Sword Judgment!"
A deafening boom silenced even the beasts' roars.
Thorne felt pain—impossible without a physical body!
Looking at the lake again, no beasts remained—just chunks of flesh floating on the surface.