Chapter 647 A Moment of Clarity, A Pensive Thought

The shrill, twisted wail of the banshee spread like a translucent boundary centered on her floating body, sweeping in all directions at a terrifying speed that ordinary adventurers could not possibly react to.

To the bloodstained pebbles scattered across the ground and the broken Crude Wooden Clubs, this shriek was no different from the adventurers' angry roars or the goblins' shrieks during the preceding battle.

As the sound wave swept past, these lifeless objects simply lay quietly where they were, completely unaffected.

But the living creatures inside the cave faced a completely different fate.

Closest to the banshee was the Bugbear. Heavily wounded by the half-orc Gank's attacks, it lay weakly on the freezing ground. Its chest was caved in, blood poured uncontrollably from its mouth, and it gasped for breath on the brink of death.

When the banshee's wail pierced its ears, the death it had been waiting for arrived right on schedule.

Already critically injured, it had absolutely no chance of passing the Saving Throw. Even its dying struggles seemed pale and futile.

Its back arched violently like a shrimp. A short, agonized hiss escaped its blood-spurting mouth, and its murky eyes shrank before losing focus and dilating.

Then, as if its soul had been entirely ripped away by the wail, its heavy body slammed back onto the ground. Its head bounced twice against the stone, and all life left it.

Next were the goblins that had gathered around the Bugbear.

These scrawny, green-skinned goblins possessed a Constitution even worse than that of an ordinary human, and they certainly lacked any divine luck.

When the banshee's shriek swept over them, not a single one managed to pass the Saving Throw.

Their frantic, twisted shrieks cut off abruptly. Some clutched their ears tightly and fell to their knees in convulsions.

Others curled into balls with their eyes rolled back, or collapsed straight to the ground, falling into an eternal slumber.

In just two seconds, only hideous, lifeless corpses remained on the ground.

Gank's reaction was actually quite fast.

Warned by the rogue Treebrook, he realized the banshee was about to scream. The Deafness Potion he had just downed hadn't fully taken effect yet, and in that split second where he could still hear his surroundings, his survival instincts kicked in. He turned to flee, facing the bard Uriah on the other side of the cave.

However, what he saw was the translucent dome of [Silence]—a barrier that should have been cast to protect him, but was instead firmly shrouding the bard.

It was hard to imagine what the half-orc felt in that exact moment.

Anger? Resentment? Despair?

Unlike his usual brash nature where all his emotions showed on his face, Gank's expression was now filled with a stunned, bewildered daze, as if he had suffered a massive blow.

He didn't even say a word.

He just gritted his teeth and sprinted madly toward the spherical zone of Silence, hoping to reach the safe area before the banshee's shriek caught up to him.

But no matter how explosive and powerful his physical attributes were, he was still just an ordinary Class Level Lv3 half-orc Warrior.

How could pure flesh and blood possibly outrun the speed of sound?

There was no suspense. He had only lunged forward three steps, failing to cross even half the distance to the Silence barrier, before the banshee's [Withering Wail] swept over from behind and swallowed him.

The Constitution attribute was a half-orc Warrior's strong suit, but his luck was truly lacking.

Compared to the Bugbear and the goblins, Gank clearly struggled for a bit longer.

When the banshee's shriek surged past, churning the mist into ripples of sound, it was as if Gank had been brutally smashed in the back by his own Heavy Hammer. The momentum from his mad dash sent him pitching forward violently, burying half his face in the filthy mud of the cavern floor.

Not entirely sapped of strength, his hands scrambled blindly across the ground for support, as if trying to push himself back up. But his bones and muscles no longer obeyed his brain. Every time he managed to rise halfway, he crashed miserably back down.

Crimson blood continuously leaked from his ears and the corners of his eyes. The gloom of death gradually drowned out the world in his vision amidst the bloodred haze.

"Thud."

A final, muffled impact rang from the ground.

The half-orc's body lay face down in a sprawling posture, completely still.

Gank was dead.

On the other side of the cave, Xia Nan had a completely different experience.

He had originally intended to support the half-orc. Using [Fang Hunt], he had covered half the distance when his Perception suddenly alerted him to the fatal sense of danger radiating from the banshee right before she wailed.

Making a prompt decision, he instantly changed direction, leading Winter Wolf Fanny and the ranger Tal—who were right behind him—over to the bard Uriah, who was in the middle of casting [Silence].

His reaction was extraordinarily fast. Coupled with the unparalleled mobility granted by [Fang Hunt], Xia Nan actually managed to pull off this extreme maneuver in the few seconds before the [Withering Wail] was unleashed.

As a result, they gained the protection of [Silence]—a third layer of insurance following the Deafness Potion and the [Fate Glimmer] die.

The world around him was completely silent; no background noise could be heard at all.

Yet, from a visual standpoint, he could clearly see the sound wave surging past like a physical entity, rippling through the thick mist in the air.

Like a smooth pebble in a stream, the mist around them churned and tossed under the force of the shriek. Only the hemispherical area enveloped by [Silence] remained entirely undisturbed, keeping the terrifying, death-condensed sound firmly at bay.

It was worth noting that, purely in terms of physical distance from the banshee, the half-elf Treebrook was even closer than Gank.

However, because she had chugged her Deafness Potion early, the effects had already fully kicked in.

Thus, even though she looked panicked under the force of the sound wave—terrified of being dragged into a death roll—she ultimately weathered the banshee's fatal scream safely.

"Crack."

The shriek faded away. The threat from the banshee's [Withering Wail] was completely gone, and since it was limited to one use per day, they wouldn't have to worry about it for the next twenty-four hours.

The translucent dome symbolizing [Silence] warped twice before shattering with a faint crack, dissolving into scattered magical particles.

"Gank! Damn it!"

The first to speak out was the rogue Treebrook, who was closest to the banshee and had virtually witnessed the half-orc's death with her own eyes.

Due to their leader's disappearance, the members of Sulfur Dragon Breath had already been reduced to three. Now, facing another casualty, the usually aloof half-elf felt her emotions surge, unable to hold back her shout.

Her gaze instinctively swept across the cavern to the bard Uriah, whose expression was rigid and whose eyes were darting away, as if she were silently demanding why he hadn't cast [Silence] on Gank.

But they were still in the middle of a battle. Even though they had survived the most dangerous [Withering Wail], the banshee still possessed considerable combat strength.

Knowing what was most important right now, the half-elf merely shot him a glance before looking away. She then turned and lunged toward the banshee, blurring into a fleeting shadow.

Behind her, fully aware that his previous actions had been appallingly selfish, Uriah played his Vertical Flute again as if to compensate. The bodies of his allies instantly felt lighter, their speeds skyrocketing.

Shadow energy swirled beneath Treebrook's feet. Due to her extreme speed, the daggers in her hands—buffed with radiant damage—left bright yellow trails in the air.

Her two Short Daggers crossed into an 'X' shape as she charged straight at the enemy.

Having just been struck by a punch from the half-orc Gank, the banshee knew full well that these adventurers had the power to deal real damage to her. Reacting swiftly, she let out a shriek. With a sway of her skirt, she used her ethereal body to phase completely into the stone ceiling above, causing the half-elf's slash to hit empty air.

"Awoo!"

A long, haunting wolf howl flashed past from behind.

No longer needing to worry about the banshee's death scream, Xia Nan was able to sprint forward at full speed to help, arriving in a flash as a black wolf phantom.

Just as he witnessed the banshee phasing her body into the rock ceiling, his mind raced.

His sharp Perception suddenly triggered. Pushing off the ground, he shifted and made a sudden, short leap.

As a result, the translucent arm plunging down from the cavern ceiling—the very same attack that had heavily wounded Gank at the start of the battle—grabbed nothing but air.

Clearly possessing some special ability to move through solid matter, the banshee had briefly traveled through the rock layer right after dodging the half-elf's attack. She had repositioned directly above Xia Nan, attempting to replicate her sneak attack on the half-orc.

"Snikt!"

Without any hesitation, his wooden sword—coated in bright yellow light and wreathed in blazing flames—carved through the distorted air, sweeping upward in a perfect, sharp arc.

[Spinning Slash] + [Heavy Tide], further stacked with radiant damage and the [Azure Pine] wooden sword's own scorching sun damage.

With just one strike, the banshee was cleaved so hard she let out a piercing wail, her entire body knocked out of the rock layer and back into the cavern.

"Arooo!"

An icy white silhouette pounced past from the side.

Possessing an incredible synergy with Xia Nan, Winter Wolf Fanny had quickly adapted to the dead silence of the Deafness Potion, her combat prowess entirely undiminished.

Keenly seizing the window to attack, her claws—empowered with radiant energy thanks to the bard's buff—swiped through the air. They left several scorch marks on the banshee's translucent, ethereal body before she immediately retreated, not giving the enemy any chance to counterattack.

"Swish!" From even further behind Uriah, the short and sturdy bald ranger Tal aimed at the banshee and loosed an arrow.

The arrow was similarly coated in radiant damage. Backed by the powerful armor-piercing capabilities of a professional-grade archer, it blasted right through the banshee's shoulder and left a gaping hole in her ethereal form, even though she had reacted and dodged slightly.

"Eeeee!!!"

This was a monster heavily skewed in one direction, relying purely on her absurdly comprehensive resistances and special mechanics to earn her Challenge Rating, unlike purely stat-heavy beasts like the Shark Beast or Owlbear.

Under the continuous barrage of the adventurers' attacks, the banshee had clearly sustained severe injuries. Her ear-piercing shrieks echoed through the cave.

Perhaps the agony wracking her body had incited her ferocity, because she showed absolutely no intention of fleeing.

With a howl, she floated in midair and lunged straight at Xia Nan. Negative energy could be seen coiling around her sharp claws.

The brief clash had already given Xia Nan a rough estimate of the monster's strength. Instead of retreating or dodging, he advanced proactively, raising his [Azure Pine] wooden sword that glowed with flaming light.

And right at this moment.

Beneath the banshee's hollow eye sockets, two clumps of flickering ghost-fire suddenly locked onto Xia Nan's pitch-black eyes. The magical particles in the air immediately descended into chaos.

[Terrifying Visage]!

One of the banshee's special abilities. Any non-undead creature that dared to look directly at her face was forced to make a Saving Throw. If they passed, nothing happened; if they failed, they would fall into a state of fear.

Well—the attribute that governed this Saving Throw was Perception.

Hum. The [Gaze into the Abyss] Feat quietly triggered, pushing his already outstanding Perception to its absolute limit for the check.

He didn't even need to use the special effect of the [Fate Glimmer] die, completely resisting the attack in a split second.

Then, the backlash!

Thanks to her inherent resistances, the banshee wasn't stunned by the countermeasure from the [Gaze into the Abyss] Feat, but the resulting psychic damage was unavoidable.

Sensing the Feat take effect, Xia Nan fluidly shifted his combat stance. An ochre-red glow representing force-field energy surfaced over his Snake-Scale Arm Shield on his left side to directly meet the banshee's negative-energy-wreathed claws, while his right hand slightly lowered and tilted the [Azure Pine] wooden sword. A perfectly smooth defensive counterattack was prepped in an instant.

Because he was so close to her—she was practically right in his face—Xia Nan could see the changes in the banshee's expression incredibly clearly in the split second of combat.

The psychic backlash must have dealt substantial damage to her, as a look of sheer agony appeared on her delicate, elf-like face.

But bizarrely enough—perhaps due to the impact of the psychic damage he inflicted—her agonized expression morphed into an indescribable daze a moment later.

The ghost-fire in her eye sockets went from chaotic, violent flickering to a steady burn, like a candle flame in a sealed room.

Thanks to his keen Perception, Xia Nan could sense it clearly.

The thick hostility radiating from the banshee in front of him completely vanished in that instant.

Then, the banshee—who had regained a slight bit of her sanity amid the pain—spotted something resting below the Arm Shield guarding Xia Nan's front: the Ice Crystal Flower Bracelet given to him by Sarah from Ice Tree Village.

In an instant, the ghost-fire burning in the monster's eye sockets flickered once again. A trace of human emotion actually surfaced on her exquisite face, a face that had long grown indescribably stiff since she became an undead creature.

"Eeeee!"

The banshee suddenly let out a shriek, halting her pounce toward Xia Nan in midair.

Her heavily scarred, translucent body jerked upward, disappearing completely into the rock ceiling in the blink of an eye.

"Don't let her get away, after her!"

"Damn it, why didn't you cast [Silence] on Gank?! Uriah, what the hell were you thinking?!"

The loud bickering of his teammates rang in his ears.

Xia Nan stood where he was, dispelling the force-field energy over his Arm Shield.

He raised his head slightly. His dark eyes stared at the bare rock ceiling where the banshee had disappeared, recalling the shift in her expression from just a moment ago.

A pensive gleam flashed in his eyes.