2025-05-06 19:16:41The night air was cool as Ali walked home, his muscles still humming from the intense training session with Malik and Laith. The streets were quiet, the occasional flicker of a streetlight casting long shadows. He rolled his shoulders, replaying the drills in his mind, until a sharp, unfamiliar sensation prickled at the back of his neck. He sensed danger.
His screen showed before his eyes a silent alert flashing in his vision [Threat Detected, Proximity meters.] Ali froze, scanning the dimly lit alleyways. Was this part of the training? But no, this felt real. The system guided him, pulling his attention toward a narrow side street. Heart pounding, he moved silently, every sense heightened. Then he heard it, a muffled gasp, the sound of fabric tearing. Peering around the corner, he saw a woman leaning over a man pressed against the wall, her fingers curled possessively around his collar. The man’s eyes were wide with terror, his breath ragged. Wait… something’s wrong. He thought to himself. The woman’s face twisted unnaturally, her features melting like wax. Her limbs elongated, fingers sharpening into claws. The man whimpered as the creature’s mouth stretched into a grotesque grin, rows of jagged teeth glinting in the dim light. It was a shapeshifter. Ali’s instincts kicked in. He stepped forward, voice cutting through the darkness. "Hey!" The creature’s head snapped toward him, its hollow eyes locking onto his. The man took the chance to stumble back, gasping. The Ghoul hissed, its voice a guttural mockery of human speech. "Another snack?" Ali clenched his fists, adrenaline surging. The system flashed again. [Engage with caution. Target: Shapeshifter. Weakness: Strike before full transformation.] He didn’t hesitate. He immediately actived the armor "White armor Activate" he declared. As soon as he was in his armor he lunging forward, he waved his sword at the Ghoul’s half-formed face. It cut him but the Ghoul managed to step away and regenerate, regaining its original form. The man scrambled away, shouting, "What the hell is that thing?!" "Run!" Ali barked, dodging a swipe of the Ghoul’s claws. The creature snarled, now fully monstrous—spindly limbs, jagged bone protrusions, a mouth too wide for its face. Ali ducked another attack, countering with a sharp kick to its ribs. It staggered but recovered fast, slashing at him. Pain flared across his arm, but he gritted his teeth. He knew he must focus. Remembering his training, he feinted left, then drove his elbow into the Ghoul’s throat. It gagged, its movements faltering. Seizing the opening, Ali grabbed a nearby metal pipe and swung with all his strength. CRACK. The Ghoul crumpled, it fell down to his knees. Panting, Ali stared at the empty space where it had been. The system updated: [Threat Neutralized. Combat Experience +10.] The man was still trembling a few feet away. "You—you saved me. What was that?!" Ali exhaled, wiping his brow. "Something that shouldn’t exist." He pulled out his phone, quickly messaging Malik and Laith: "We have a problem. Ghouls in the city. Just fought one." The response was immediate. Malik: "Stay where you are. We’re coming." Ali looked back at the shaken man. "You okay?" The man nodded shakily. "Thanks to you." The black smoke from the defeated Ghoul began to swirl unnaturally, coiling back together like a sinister vortex. Ali’s eyes widened as the creature’s laughter rasping and cruel echoed through the alley. "You’re just a small fry," the Ghoul sneered, its voice guttural yet mocking. "But I’ll have fun with you." Before Ali could react, the creature’s body twisted, bones cracking as its form expanded. Scales erupted across its skin, wings tore from its back, and in seconds, a dragon-like monstrosity loomed over him, molten fire glowing in its throat. "Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!" Ali barely leapt aside as a jet of searing flames blasted where he’d stood, the heat singing his clothes. The dockyard crates behind him exploded into splinters and embers. Think. Adapt. Laith’s voice echoed in his mind. "Fear gets you killed. Strategy keeps you alive." Ali forced his breath steady. The Ghoul was stronger, yes, but it was arrogant. And arrogance could be exploited. Dashing behind a stack of cargo containers, Ali activated Stealth, his form blending into the shadows. The dragon-Ghoul snarled, its massive head whipping side to side. "Hiding won’t save you, little insect!" Ali didn’t answer. Instead, he moved silently toward the waterfront, leading the creature away from the city. The Ghoul took the bait, stomping after him, its massive tail smashing through lampposts. Then, just as Ali hoped, the creature’s form flickered. Maintaining such a powerful transformation was draining it. The dragon’s scales melted away, shrinking back into the slender, humanoid figure from before. Now was his chance. Ali lunged from the darkness, swinging a heavy chain he’d ripped from a nearby docked boat. The Ghoul hissed as the metal links wrapped around its torso, binding its arms. "Clever," it spat. "But not enough." Ali drove his knife straight into its chest. The Ghoul shrieked, its body convulsing as black ichor spilled from the wound. With a grunt, Ali heaved it off the pier and into the churning sea. The water hissed where the creature’s flesh touched it, bubbles erupting before the Ghoul dissolved into nothing. [Target Eliminated.] Panting, Ali collapsed to his knees as the system flared before him: [LEVEL UP!] [New Ability Unlocked: Light Sword] [+3 Strength] [+4 Stamina] [+5 Battle IQ] A grin tugged at his lips. He’d done it alone. Then his phone rang. Malik’s voice was uncharacteristically urgent. "Ali! Are you ok?" Ali tapped the device. "Yeah, Ghoul’s down. But we’ve got a bigger problem." "We’re tracking you now," Laith cut in. "Stay sharp. If one’s here, more are coming." Ali exhaled, flexing his fingers. The night was far from over. And now, he had a new weapon to test. The Light Sword hummed to life in his grip, a blade of pure energy, glowing like a sliver of the sun. And he was ready to test it.
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Chapter 311 The Final Feast
A roar of pure fury erupted from Yajij, a sound that seemed to tear the very fabric of reality. The shock of the Black Knight's blade piercing his hide was not just physical; it was a profound insult to his millennia of invincibility. As the dark sword withdrew, Yajij spun with a speed that defied his grievous wound, his claws slashing through the air where the Knight's head had been a fraction of a second earlier. The Black Knight had already leaped back, landing in a defensive crouch.But he had not retreated out of fear. It was part of the plan."Now, Hazim!" the Black Knight's voice boomed, a rare, raw urgency in its metallic tone.As Yajij turned, he found himself not facing his attacker, but trapped. A circle of brilliant, white light had erupted on the ground around him, lines of ancient, glowing runes forming a constricting prison. And standing at its edge, directly before him, was Hazim. His comrade's face was a mask of determination, his hands clutching the activated sealin
Chapter 310 A Faith Of Steel
The smell of blood and metal filled Ali’s nostrils as he pushed himself onto his knees, the world swimming back into focus. The shame of his defeat was a cold stone in his gut, but the sight of the three titans clashin the Old Man, Hazim, and the Black Knight against a furious Yajij ignited a different, more stubborn fire within him. Despair was a luxury they couldn't afford. Giving up was not an option.With a grunt of effort, he ripped the ruined, smoldering helmet from his head and tossed it aside, the shattered visor reflecting the chaos around him. The cool air on his face was a shock, but a clarifying one. He began to crawl, then stumble, towards a nearby pile of wreckage where the armor of fallen knights lay discarded and broken.Haitham, leaning heavily on a sword he found on the battlefield watched him with weary concern. "Ali? What are you doing? You need to fall back to the medical tents."Ali didn't look up, his fingers frantically sifting through a mangled chest plate. "I
Chapter 309 The Unnatural Order
The air in the heart of the battlefield grew still and heavy, charged with a primordial intensity that made the very light seem to dim. The lesser clashes, the skirmishes of knights and Ghouls, faded into a distant murmur, forgotten by all as the two true titans faced each other. The Old Man, now fully transformed into a bestial engine of destruction, and Yajij, the ancient source of all their suffering, stood as the final, opposing poles of existence.For the first time, the mocking, perpetual smile had vanished from Yajij’s face. In its place was a raw, bestial snarl of focused rage and, for the first time in millennia, a flicker of genuine apprehension. The creature before him was an abomination, a violation of the natural order he embodied.The Old Man’s voice, a guttural rumble that was more felt than heard, echoed in the minds of Hazim and the Black Knight. “Stay back. Do not intervene. This one… is mine.”There was a finality in the command that brooked no argument. This was no
Chapter 308 Illusions
The tide of battle had seemingly turned. The ground was littered with the still forms of fallen Ghouls, and the knights fought with the weary determination of those who could see a path to victory. Yet, in the command center, Hadi’s brow was furrowed, his eyes scanning the tactical holograms with growing unease. Something was wrong.“The numbers don’t make sense,” he muttered, more to himself than to Hasan, who stood beside him, his own arm bandaged from a recent wound. “We’ve cut them down by the score, but the pressure on our lines hasn’t diminished. It’s as if… as if they aren’t truly falling.”Hasan nodded grimly, his sharp eyes having caught the same discrepancy. “I’ve seen it too. On the western flank, we dropped a dozen with rocket fire. They fell and did not move. But minutes later, when I looked back, the same dozen were still there, unmoving. They are not dissolving into ash. They are just… lying there. If we don’t understand why, our men will be struck down by sheer exhaust
Chapter 307 The Arrival of A New Hope
The command center was a cacophony of controlled panic, but for Hanin, the world had narrowed to a single, silent video feed. Her knuckles were white as she gripped the edge of the console, her eyes fixed on the drone's-eye view of the battlefield."He's not responding," she whispered, her voice tight with fear. "Professor, his vital signs are offline. The communication system in his helmet is completely dead." She could see Ali's body, slumped and motionless, his iconic golden armor now scarred and dulled. His head was hung low, obscuring his face from the drone's camera, a posture of utter defeat that terrified her more than any battle cry.Professor Riyad placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "The armor took the brunt of the corrosive blast. The systems are fried, but the structural integrity seems to have held. He is alive, Hanin."But Hanin wasn't listening to the technical analysis. Her heart ached for the man on the screen. She watched as Haitham knelt beside him, speaking wor
Chapter 306 Shattered Pride
The air crackled with power as Ali, defying Hazim’s roared command to withdraw, became a golden comet of suicidal bravery. His pride, stung by Yajij’s threat and his own desperate need to prove himself, overrode all sense of self-preservation. Instead of evading, he poured every ounce of his energy into a final, decisive thrust aimed at the deep gash he had already carved into Yajij’s neck.He never reached his target.A contemptuous, guttural sound erupted from Yajij, not a roar, but a focused expulsion of breath. It was a cloud of corrosive, green-tinged vapor that hit Ali head-on. The advanced metal of his helmet sizzled and melted on contact. The concussive force behind the blast was like a physical wall, slamming into him and hurling him backward as if he were a discarded leaf. He crashed to the earth with a sickening thud, his Sword of Light skittering from his grasp. His helmet, now a half-molten wreck, sparked and died, its internal systems overloading and failing into total
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