The fact that Alexia took on the second part of the battle gave Adam some time to analyze the situation and understand what was happening here.
The only thing he understood for sure about the Primal Lands at the moment was how resilient and enduring the monsters here were. No matter how serious the wound was, as long as their bodies were not destroyed and they had enough energy, they could continue to fight under almost any conditions.
He was convinced of this after Alexiaâs ice spear pierced the wormâs head. However, even after a direct wound to the head, the worm was able to recover and was ready to attack Alexia.
Adam didnât know if this was true for every monster in the Primal Lands or if the ice worm that attacked them was one of the monsters Beth had warned them about. Monsters that possessed a large amount of ancient energy.
He didnât know much about ancient energy, what it was, or how ancient monsters differed from all others, but he was gradually beginning to understand.
However, he didnât have time for that now, as he had to help Alexia. If he didnât do anything, the ice worm would devour her just as it had done to him earlier, and he wasnât sure Alexia would be able to escape from the ice wormâs jaws so easily.
"Alright... We have to do this," Adam exhaled, extending one hand forward. Without hesitation, Silvana appeared next to him as the spectral scissors soared in front of them.
The ice worm and Alexia were several hundred meters ahead. When such a large monster was involved in the battle, even a distance of several kilometers could change in seconds.
Click.
The scissors closed as the imaginary cut rushed forward, slicing through the wind until it reached the ice worm, which was already about to devour Alexia.
For Alexia, everything happened too quickly for her to react.
Well, the ice worm was in the same situation, as its head was cut off from its body.
Thump!
The giant head and body crashed to the ground, rolling down the mountain slope to the very bottom. Alexia, who had fallen to the edge, watched with wide eyes as the severed head and long body left a thick trail of blood in the snow, smashing any rocks and long-frozen bones of other monsters that had died here on their way.
Pierced by an icy spear and decapitated, the head continued to show signs of life for a while, but even for the worm, it was too much.
However, the wormâs body continued to twitch from side to side, desperately trying to regain control despite the absence of its head and active bleeding.
"Shit... Are you serious?" Alexia gulped.
If there were a few small houses in front of the ice worm right now, the blood flowing from the wound would be enough to sweep them away like a powerful river.
Step. Step. Step.
Adam approached from the side, causing Alexia to turn around.
"Looks like we won, right?" Adam smiled bitterly.
Alexia shuddered as the battle filled her mind.
"Brrrrh! What was that? Damn! Itâs still alive!"
Adam glanced at the wormâs body, but his gaze remained calm. He could see that with each passing moment, the body twitched less and less. Even such a powerful monster from the Primal Lands couldnât stay alive without its head.
"No, it wonât bother us anymore. I wanted to ask you something."
"Hmm?"
"When we were in the forest. Did you feel like someone was watching us? Iâm not talking about ravens and simple beasts, but a strange aura coming from below, straight from the ground."
Strangely enough, Alexia nodded. She had thought the same thing, but she decided it was just her imagination, especially after they had been climbing mountains for a long time and no one had attacked them.
"But..." Adam frowned. "Was it that worm? Maybe it attacked us as soon as we reached the top of the mountain and wasnât following us from the forest?"
Alexia narrowed her eyes as her gaze turned toward the abyss.
"I understand what youâre saying, but I donât think it matters now. I mean, whether we like it or not, we have to go to the abyss anyway. Our energy is leading us there. If it wasnât that worm, then whoever was following us is waiting for us at the abyss. Thereâs no doubt about it."
He agreed with her. The Blood of God and Ancient Frost awaited them in the deepest depths of the Frost Ridge. At least thatâs what the Winding Fragments had shown them.
"Hey, Silvana, Louis, what do you think about this?" Adam asked.
Tremble.
In a heartbeat, Silvana and Louis appeared next to them.
Louisâ spectral form was slightly different from Silvanaâs. If Silvanaâs silhouette was woven from purple and gray energy, then in Louisâs case, it was predominantly blue and snow-white tones.
Every Operator who reached a certain level could use the spectral form, but the appearance was unique to each. It depended on both the Operator themselves and their Phantoms.
"That..." Louis stared at the ice worm. "It was an impressive battle. Except for the regenerative monsters, I havenât seen a monster as resilient as this one. But the regenerative monsters sacrifice a large part of their power for survival, while this worm was overwhelmingly strong."
Silvana nodded in agreement with Louis.
"Had you been here earlier, or had weaker Phantoms been in your place, this worm would have easily defeated the entire group of K4-Phantoms. Moreover, what is its level anyway?"
It was obvious to everyone that it was a Black Threat Level monster, but no one could tell for sure if it was an Elder or a High Elder.
Adam frowned.
"Tsk. This power rating is nonsense. In the Tarnished Lands, Iâve encountered many Elder Level monsters, but none of them could even scratch this giant!"
While the three of them were discussing and arguing, Alexia looked up at the spine towering above them.
One rib of this spine was the size of the ice worm, and that thought terrified Alexia.