Chapter 400 – Curse

Anyone would feel helpless when encountering an obstinate madman, and Punk was no exception.

Now facing the aggressively stubborn old Minotaur Shaman, Punk desperately wanted to remind him:

“Can’t you see that clumsy knight? If you cast a few curses on him now, you might actually win this battle. But instead you’re fixated on me… What gives you the confidence to fight two opponents alone? Do I look weak and easy to bully?”

Though inwardly cursing vehemently, Punk maintained a calm and composed exterior. He had realized this Minotaur Shaman was completely convinced he could defeat him. Unless the shaman clearly recognized he couldn’t overcome his current opponent, he would never retreat.

Facing such an obstinate enemy, Punk saw no point in further discussion—if you’re determined to seek death, then I’ll oblige. With Kane temporarily occupied dealing with the demonic insects and enraged ancestral spirits, even someone like Kane wouldn’t be able to launch a sneak attack right now. Seizing this opportunity, Punk decided to teach this overconfident shaman a lesson.

Without further hesitation, Punk immediately began spellcasting.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell—Kinetic Missile!Considering the energy flowing through the shaman’s strange runes, Punk concluded this nearly-naked old shaman wasn’t completely defenseless. A “Kinetic Blast” might prove ineffective, but the highly concentrated “Kinetic Missile” with its superior armor-penetrating capability would certainly inflict significant damage.

“Kinetic Missile” was one of Punk’s most familiar spells. Within milliseconds, it could generate dozens of bullet-sized projectiles to attack enemies, though their power and penetration far exceeded ordinary bullets. Terrifying kinetic energy endowed these small missiles with extraordinary speed and destructiveness, their passage through the air distorting light within purple kinetic fields.

Most frighteningly, Punk managed to cast this spell over ten times consecutively within seconds!

The rapidly successive “Kinetic Missiles”—emerging every few milliseconds—formed continuous streams in the air like machine gun fire. Each projectile then flew with pinpoint accuracy toward the Minotaur Shaman’s head.

Witnessing dozens of space-rending “Kinetic Missiles” hurtling toward him without warning, the Minotaur Shaman finally showed signs of panic. Emitting a sharp, strange cry, he simultaneously drew a small knife from his waist while performing improbably agile evasive maneuvers.Punk’s spellcasting was continuous and seamless. Perhaps without metamagic enhancements, the “Kinetic Missile” could only be considered “barely usable” in terms of offensive power compared to other Master-Level spells of the same tier. However, while its attack power was low, it possessed an unparalleled advantage in quantity. A single casting could produce forty-three small missiles, significantly increasing the spell’s density. Moreover, the spell’s consumption was astonishingly low. If Punk kept casting it continuously, he was confident he could fire “Kinetic Missiles” all day without even catching his breath.

Recognizing the Minotaur Shaman’s relatively weak defense, Punk—like wielding a machine gun with unlimited ammunition—ceased casting other spells and relentlessly pursued the old shaman with a torrent of “Kinetic Missiles.” This approach might seem rigid, but when targeting an enemy’s fatal weakness, such focused, repetitive attacks proved most effective.

As expected, under the hail of “Kinetic Missiles,” the old Minotaur Shaman was sent scrambling in all directions. Fortunately, the old shaman knew a witchcraft that compressed space over short distances, or he would have been riddled with holes by Punk’s attacks.

However… though appearing somewhat disheveled, the Minotaur Shaman was not entirely without means to retaliate. After enduring several dozen “Kinetic Missiles,” accompanied by the shaman’s eerie cries, the glowing, sinister patterns on his body began to spread and multiply as if coming to life. As the crimson patterns significantly enhanced the Minotaur’s defense, the effectiveness of the “Kinetic Missiles” was greatly diminished.

“You vile mage, did you think you could chase old Kulong around forever? Now taste old Kulong’s most powerful curse!”

Standing amid the purple kinetic barrage, the Minotaur Shaman roared in fury. He began slicing wounds into his flesh with a small knife, from which dark red blood flowed. This blood, wriggling like worms, coalesced in the shaman’s hand into a small, pulsating orb.

Reality was not a storybook; enemies didn’t dramatically announce their flashy techniques. The Minotaur Shaman’s attack was silent and subtle. When the old shaman activated the curse, the only immediate changes Punk could observe were the shaman’s terrifying grin and the sudden disappearance of the blood orb in his hand.

“What’s happening? A shaman’s curse witchcraft? Or a spell-like ability granted by that Abyss Sub-Lord? What’s the curse’s effect? Restricting movement or interfering with spellcasting?”

The moment the dark red blood orb vanished from the shaman’s hand, Punk immediately halted his “Kinetic Missile” barrage and went on high alert. Unlike the typically straightforward, coordinated attacks of mage spells, shaman curses were renowned across the Multiverse for their bizarre and unpredictable nature. Even the same witchcraft could yield vastly different effects in the hands of different shamans. Now that the opposing shaman had suddenly unleashed a clearly potent curse, Punk—despite having seven layers of protective magic active—dared not let his guard down for an instant.At this moment, looking at the Minotaur Shaman still laughing heartily in place, Punk even tightened his grip on “Haitzita’s Magic Box”. After all, the enemy had a Sub-Lord of the Abyss as backing. Although an Abyssal Sub-Lord would find it difficult to interfere with the Faerûn Plane, and although demon lords generally lacked the “advanced” common sense to reward their servants, Punk didn’t dare let his guard down in the slightest. No matter how chaotic or insane a Sub-Lord might be, it was still a Legendary-level existence.

Maintaining constant vigilance was undoubtedly necessary—a cautious mind might very well save one’s life at some critical moment.

However… it was clear that such caution wasn’t needed right now. In fact, Punk’s vigilance served no purpose at this moment because…

The Minotaur Shaman’s attack wasn’t aimed at Punk at all.

Just as the blood sphere suddenly vanished, Kane—who had been dodging the insect swarm while locked in fierce combat with the ancestral spirits—suddenly froze mid-air as if bound by some invisible force. On his golden armor and Lance, eerie runes resembling squirming worms rapidly began to spread.

(End of Chapter)