Is this really a Game?!

The pillar rose up before crashing down, creating a cascading wall of water that rained down on the lake. Reign jumped on top of the surface of the lake, channeling a good portion of his mana into his legs and feet in order to stay on the surface of the water.

This was something that those who had reached the Power Realm could usually do, stand and walk atop of water with ease. Actually, it was possible for those in the Warrior Realm to do so with some practice, but most never even think of doing such a thing, which is why most just find themselves surprised that they could do it as naturally as breathing upon reaching the Power Realm.

Reign and the others have been told by Eldar and Jack to practice such a thing ever since they reached Tier V, and they had, which is why they could battle against the snake right now. Had they not done so, they would have had to rely on long-range attacks to try and deal damage to the beast that would not get out of the water, as that was its realm and where it was the strongest.

"Let's see how well you deal with this!" Wolf shouted as he hurled a giant ball of flame at the snake. The golden ball had a tinge of red inside of it, and it moved toward the snake with immense speed, quickly reaching the monster while causing the water nearby to evaporate thanks to the high heat.

The snake merely hissed and used the lake, creating four huge waves, each one over 20 meters tall, and making them crash down at the ball.

Steam immediately rose, the ball was being smothered by the water, but it was also causing uncountable gallons of water to evaporate each second, quickly shrouding half of the lake in dense steam that made it akin to fog.

The steam was warm, and it quickly caused the hair of Reign and the others to turn wet, but it also made it a bit easier for them now.

Previously, Reign could sense that the snake had locked on the bison and that it was going to try attack it while it was being taken back by Beast and Shadow, but now, with its visibility limited, it was fully focused on them.

But the problem Reign and the others now faced was the lake itself. The calm waters had disappeared, waves were present constantly, and it was not only because of the previous clash, but also because of the snake, which was controlling the lake.

Reign gritted his teeth. This creature wasn't just strong; it was clever. It was manipulating the water to defend itself, nullifying their ability to walk on top of the water's surface, making them expend more focus and energy in order to do so.

"I'll get it to stop." A voice echoed as Jin suddenly moved, running across the surface of the lake with ease, his eyes already glowing with determination.

"I've been waiting for this." With a burst of speed, Jin launched himself toward the serpent, his fists crackling with energy. His body shimmered as he moved, leaving behind afterimages as he zigzagged through the battlefield.

The serpent noticed Jin's approach and swung its massive tail toward him, but Jin was faster. He leaped into the air, avoiding the tail by mere inches, and came crashing down with a powerful punch aimed directly at the serpent's head. His fist connected with a loud crack, sending a shockwave through the serpent's skull.

The serpent roared in pain, its massive body thrashing in the water as it recoiled from Jin's strike. The impact had been strong, but not enough to seriously injure it. However, it did give the group a brief opening.

Aelrinder came next, his body enveloped in the powerful wind as he held his spear in a reverse grip, pulling back his arm and then throwing the spear with all of his might, aiming at the head of the snake.

The spear flew through the air like a bolt of lightning, cutting through the steam and crashing into the side of the serpent's head with a sharp impact. A burst of energy exploded from the spear, and for the first time, the serpent recoiled in genuine pain. The blow had been precise, aimed at a weak spot near its jaw, where the scales were slightly thinner.

The serpent let out an enraged bellow, its massive coils thrashing wildly in the water, sending towering waves rippling outward. The lake churned violently under the creature's fury, making it even harder for Reign and the others to keep their footing atop the surface. But despite the chaos, Aelrinder's attack had done its job—the serpent was momentarily stunned.

"Nice hit!" Reign shouted, taking advantage of the creature's disorientation. He darted forward, leaping over one of the waves and landing on the serpent's back, stabbing his swords into the thick, blue scales. Sparks flew as his blades grated against the serpent's hide, but he managed to hold his position, climbing further up the serpent's long, undulating body. He needed to reach its head.

"Keep it distracted!" Reign called out, his voice barely audible over the roar of the serpent and the crashing waves. "I'm going for its eyes!"

Mia, standing on the shore now for better stability, summoned a storm of ice spikes, hurling them at the serpent's thrashing body. The ice shards smashed against the water barriers the serpent conjured around itself, but a few managed to penetrate and strike its flesh. The serpent hissed in annoyance, its attention momentarily shifting toward Mia.

And then flames struck from the other side of its body, causing the massive serpent to cry out in rage as Wolf started attacking again. The serpent was a monster that lived in water and controlled water, thus, it hated fire, and Wolf's flames were not regular ones, but laced with chaos energy, which caused them to be even more destructive.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The serpent's white eyes flashed with fury as it slithered toward Wolf, its maw wide open to strike. But just before it could reach him, Shadow appeared in a blur of movement, slicing at the serpent's underbelly with his daggers, aiming for the soft spots between its scales.

He and Beast had left the Bison at the ranch, with the flood dragon which was now in its small form. Even though the dragon was tired, its aura was enough to keep the bison put, not daring do anything that could enrage the beast with a superior bloodline which was watching over it.

The serpent roared in pain and fury, whipping its tail toward Shadow, but the agile fighter dodged effortlessly, teleporting just out of range before disappearing into the steam-filled air again.

Arrows then rained down on the snake while its tail was stopped by the combined might of Tank and Greenie, who had worked together to block the attack and hold the tail in place briefly.

Wolf then grabbed his sword, and controlled his flames, causing them to coil around the sword, creating a much larger sword of flames with which he slashed down, making the snake scream in pain as the sword managed to cut deep in the tail, almost reaching halfway through it in one powerful slash.

Reign reached the base of the serpent's skull at this point. With a burst of energy, he leaped forward, swinging his swords in a wide arc, aiming for the serpent's glowing white eyes. His blades connected, sending a shower of sparks as they sliced into the serpent's head, grazing one of its eyes.

The serpent let out an ear-piercing screech, rearing up in agony. Its massive coils writhed violently, sending waves crashing against the shore and shaking the ground beneath the group's feet. Reign was thrown off the serpent's back by the force of the thrashing, but his attack had worked—the serpent's left eye was partially blinded, its vision now impaired.

"That should give us some breathing room!" Reign shouted as he landed back on the surface of the lake, barely managing to stay upright amid the chaos.

The serpent, now half-blind and disoriented, lashed out in desperation. Its movements were erratic, and it was clearly struggling to control the water around it as effectively as before. The group could sense the shift in its behavior—it was losing its grip on the battle.

"Keep the pressure on it, since we have worked this hard to wound it, let's kill this thing, I would feel annoyed if it actually ran away." Reign said with a smile as the others nodded, agreeing with him.

"How much longer?!" Wolf asked Laura, who was behind them, casting a spell.

She didn't reply, fully focused on casting the new spell she managed to learn while they were inside the training room, one that actually needed a long time ever for her in order to be cast. She started casting it from the start of the battle, and she was still not finished, in fact, there was not even a bit of undulation from her demonic energy or mana while casting, which perplexed them all.