The Glorious Evolution Chapter 435: The Nightmare of the Id. II

"Argh..."

’Madness... Even though I’m not a complete Psych Specialist, dropping like this... his spiritual power has to be nearing top-tier Solarbound level!’

The team had braced for beasts that would challenge their spiritual strength, but nothing like this onslaught. Several still held full capacity, yet one strike shattered their mental defenses into surrender. Without Jojo’s fractured constellation clinging on by a thread, the whole group would have succumbed to the Nightmare of the Id’s grip.

True, Erasure methods could in theory wipe out any force, but the toll was immense. It demanded energy proportional to the target’s intricacy and raw might; the stronger or more complex the foe’s power, the heavier the drain on the user to banish it entirely.

After Gamemaster Envy’s dire words, supporters of the Raiders’ Faction fell silent. Given all the chaos in this match, they’d label anyone crazy who claimed Levi’s team would fail... not with just a mere Hired Blade mercenary surviving from a whole faction.

Worry gripped them, since Rain looked far from happy having one of his top skills countered by both foes simultaneously... particularly by kids. But right as he prepared to amp up the ability by channeling the fear he’d devoured from his comrades, a soft, flat voice echoed in his head.

Stunned by his typically mute companion’s input, Rain shifted focus to the action at his rear. The sight sent a shiver through his spirit. Levi pursued the unseen chameleon the full span of the rope, gripping a staff wreathed in emerald fire!

Absent the beast’s absurd velocity and its robust subconscious shield, Levi would have already spelled its end.

Rain’s face grew grave, grasping that Levi hid depths beyond expectation. He accepted the youth’s spiritual might as real and wouldn’t blink if Levi detected his ally in stealth mode.

Despite countless battles under his belt, scarcely one or two enemies had ever glimpsed his partner... even sans camouflage efforts.

There he remained, latched to its shadow, deploying every trick to trap the monster and scorch it with his aetheric blaze!

Shock and awe hit him hard upon learning his spiritual sight failed utterly against the Hexgaze Lurker. Relying solely on that, he’d share the doom of Rain’s prey... battling a pair of invisible, intangible phantoms that wove illusions and gorged on dread.

Yet Levi defied the ordinary.

Whenever the chameleon sought to merge, it trailed a subtle, vibrant distortion in the surrounding spectra... a telltale mark snared by silver threads like flies in a web, vividly mapping in Levi’s thoughts.

With time ticking down, Rain ditched any intent to drag out the agony for Levi’s allies as Bishop commanded; now, only their quick demise mattered.

"How horrific..."

The horror proved too much, leaving a few to collapse unconscious from the glimpse alone, alarming their comrades. Nor were they alone; numerous spectators couldn’t stomach gazing at such a grotesque terror for long.

A creature evolved to devour fear knew precisely the shape to assume, igniting that dread in prey with mere visuals.

Though her effort had rallied their feelings and focus, it proved futile—the true assault loomed still.

Beneath the Daywalkers’ rigid, stone-like stares, the Hexgaze Lurker’s eyeless orb in its maw expanded to engulf the whole throat.

No mere trick of the mind, it unleashed a raging flood of wailing, see-through specters, every visage twisting with the internalized horror of devoured souls.

Arthur, Shia, Nurah, Tyrese, Evangeline, and Jojo too... primal urges howled for flight, concealment, any escape from the onslaught.

’Not on my watch...’

With no delay, she poured all her spiritual essence into bolstering the Prayer Ward Constellation.

Everyone sensed her strain to the brink. Panic drained from the Daywalkers’ gazes, yielding to serenity as soft, pristine glow seeped from Jojo’s flesh and the small horn atop her brow.

"Jojo..."

’Banish your fear... for I stand with you, and while Dharma’s light endures in me, it shall endure in you.’ Jojo’s words thrummed in their psyches, laced with the profound, harmonious chime of a sacred bell. ’Namaste...’