Chapter 184: The Hunting Game.
She was trying to keep the audience entertained regardless of the cost, and she was succeeding in that.
As more viewers tuned in, the race devolved into an absolute shitshow... a chaotic hunting game where everyone became the prey and no limits applied!
’That fiendish b*tch... She is making it use signature moves, which we ordered it not to... fortunately, its spiritual aura was sealed by Sire Nocturn.’
Gamemaster Biscuits cursed inwardly at the sight of tens of Rifters speeding on the opposite side of the Tsunami; none dared to keep going in a straight line to reach the finish line.
She knew that the Sandscale Leviathan’s strength was on a different stratosphere... if its spiritual aura wasn’t sealed, a single glance was enough to pop everyone’s souls instantly!
While everyone was fighting for their lives, Shadebite, Red Gale, and Glassfang were at the frontline... away from hell.
They glanced at each other in silence... none dared to assault the other for fear of being slowed down and getting caught up.
It was like they had a mutual understanding to keep racing at the same pace to avoid conflict until they got near safety.
Meanwhile, Levi and a few Rifters were the only ones speeding in the direction of the sand tsunami, resembling ants attempting to climb a mountain!
He told everyone to follow him if they wanted to live, but only a few trusted him.
No, scratch that, they trusted their instinct to listen to Levi, knowing that he was the only one with sight of the Leviathan.
If he went in the direction of the tsunami, it only meant... The Sandscale Leviathan was never there.
Aaaaaaaaa!!! Noooo!!! Spare me!!... Mercy!!
As expected... The tens of Rifters running away from the tsunami found themselves trapped in the center of Sandscale Leviathan!
It was buried under the sand in a circle while using its insane camouflage abilities to make it disappear out of sight.
Once the Rifters went inside the circle... It showed itself while tightening its body, resembling a gigantic snake wanting to crush insects!
Harrowing cries filled the skies as more than thirty Rifters were buried in the sand under the crushing weight of Leviathan!
-Dear lord... I just tuned in and witnessed a massacre...-
-Same... Isn’t this game’s Leviathan supposed to chase only one player and not use area of effect abilities?-
-I thought so too... but Sandwitch has changed the narrative on its head.-
-A Soul Harvester on top of a Leviathan... This group is doomed!-
The viewers felt chills course down their spines at the silent stillness that followed after the Leviathan’s appearance.
They knew some Rifters must have used a Resignation Coupon to save themselves, but such a coupon was a luxury not many could afford in every game.
"Tsk... He didn’t fall for it."
Meanwhile, Sandwitch clicked her tongue in annoyance as she watched Levi continue climbing the sand tsunami with a few others.
’Time for games is over... I have to kill him before the mark’s duration ends.’
Sandwitch decided to go all out now, understanding that the moment the mark expired, she wasn’t getting her pet back.
If Levi and the others were still alive, they wouldn’t hesitate to make her pay for these many panic attacks.
Only three minutes remained... Yet, it was all she needed.
’Sandy... Unleash your rage.’ She uttered coldly.
...
Meanwhile, Levi and the remaining Rifters were still gliding across the tsunami, breaking it in half, akin to real surfers!
Levi was leading the way, chased closely by his peers... who were constantly asking him about the Leviathan’s location.
Yet, Levi turned a deaf ear to their woes.
Each second the Leviathan hadn’t shown itself, it increased their heartbeats... fearing that it might pop up at any moment from underneath them.
’Why is it moving like that...’ Levi murmured.
His echolocation ability showed him the Leviathan’s peculiar new movement... It was rushing in their direction from underground, while its tail and body kept twisting weirdly.
Levi locked in and created the sound string between them... He sprang it once, and his expression turned for the worse instantly.
"We have to get aw..."
Before Levi could finish his warning, a sudden rumble resounded across the desert, resembling a powerful earthquake...
That’s where it happened... The Desert’s floor around Levi started sinking at the depths, the sand pouring inside a gigantic, wide-open hole!
It looked like a bathtub rapidly draining, the water swirling down in a spinning vortex.
The tsunami was the first to start collapsing over its own weight, losing balance as most of its foundation was pouring into the abyss!
"Holy shit!"
"This is too much! God damn it!"
The surviving Rifters bellowed in despair and anger as they tried their best to avoid sinking with the tsunami.
They didn’t know if they would survive getting swallowed by underground, and they didn’t want to find out.
As for Levi? He knew better than they and had already accepted his fate.
There was no escaping from sinking underground... Levi couldn’t afford to use the same acceleration from before since the Glider had a speed limit.
Although the core could push more fuel and power, the Glider could overheat if pushed to its limit, its materials melting off.
Thus, instead of wasting his energy trying to escape from the drag, Levi used his echolocation to find a way that wasn’t as deadly as the sinking giant hole.
In no time, he found a hidden underground entrance just like the one Shadebite located at the start... they were spread out all over the place, acting as shortcuts, and an entrance to the massive underground tunneling network left behind by the Leviathan.
Levi sped towards it, and when the others noticed this, they swiftly gave chase... taking in Levi as their Lord and Savior in this game.
It wasn’t like they couldn’t hold their own weight... but it’s a Leviathan, and he was the only one with sight of it.
Thus, even if they knew that the Sandwitch was chasing after Levi, they couldn’t separate from him... at least, not until they see the Leviathan with their own eyes, and choose a safe path to escape from.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!...
Levi and the others pierced through the waterfall of sand and sped through a narrow, short tunnel, leading them to the depths of the underground.
In no time, they emerged from the other side, sending them flying into a different world... The underground was a massive open space, with thousands of rugged, rocky, brown pillars holding the desert from crushing under its weight.
Inside, there were tens of similar large circular, smooth tunnels... some were interconnected, and some led to dead ends.
Sand was spilling from everywhere, creating a mesmerizing scene of sandy waterfalls all over the place.
Light was somewhat dim, and the air smelled of rain on dry soil... earthy and refreshing.
Before Levi was thrown out, he had already scanned the best survival path for him... it wasn’t the tunnel, the hidden entrance was throwing them into... He summoned his staff and whipped out a crown in the direction of a small, broken pillar-like boulder, one of many decorating the place.
The chained crown rolled a few times around it, and once Levi felt it tightening, he pulled himself in a completely different direction, juking the Rifters and the viewers!
Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t keep up anymore... their paths had split up!
"Motherf*c..."
"Celestiaaa..."
"Asshoole!!"
The Rifters’ curses echoed in Levi’s ear from the other tunnel, but he ignored them... The only reason Levi wanted to help them survive, not out of the goodness of his heart but to help him increase his odds of survival.
This was a Death Game, and everyone was for himself.
Now, with more than five Rifters spread out across the underground’s network, it would be harder for Sandscale Leviathan to distinguish Levi from the others.
Its heat vision was powerful, but it wasn’t as detailed... It showed the heat signals of lifeforms, but that was it.
It was even worse now after Sandwitch enforced it to enter its berserk mode... her control over it was weakened, but the Leviathan’s prowess and speed were enhanced immensely!
If it hadn’t entered this state, it wouldn’t have been able to break the pillars surrounding Levi so quickly.
However, Levi was still not in the clear... Sandscale Leviathan wasn’t the only one with heat vision.
Sandwitch showed an irritated expression, her vision reflecting somewhat of a colorless world with six humanoid infrared auras.
Most of them had split up from the other, each taking their own path to increase the odds of survival.
Sandwitch’s heat vision was slightly more detailed than the Leviathan’s, but still, it showed her only humanoid crimson auras.
She eliminated the least possible targets to a mere three... She chose one of them and gave the order.
"Chase him!!"
The Sandscale Leviathan stopped its berserk thrashing of the gigantic tough pillars and swiftly turned its head on the chosen target.
Then, with a frightening roar, it slithered with insane speed inside the tunnel, its golden scales skimming above the sandy floor.
-Run!! Stay alive, no matter what!-
-Survive this and you will be crowned as legends!!-
-Celestial! Don’t you dare die on me!-
The crowd was going absolutely wild, their eyes reflecting an untold amount of nervousness and excitement... Not in their wildest dreams did they expect a regular racing death game to have such a twist.
Although they knew shit wasn’t fair, most of them had already buried that thought away... The entertainment provided in this game was simply too much to complain about!