Riven was covered in blood. Small and large bruises could be seen all over his body.

Even with his Bronze Grade shield, he still could never avoid the deadly strikes from the Horn Lizard Men. Every impact sent painful vibrations through his arms, while the wounds across his body continued to increase.

Worse, his mana was running low.

He had lost count of how many mana recovery potions he had consumed.

He had not only taken mana recovery potions but other potions as well, just to boost his chances of survival. Strength enhancing potions, endurance potions, and blood recovery potions had all been taken.

Yet, his situation was as grim as ever.

He was battling three Horn Lizard Soldiers.

Two were Level 36, while the last one was Level 35.

The three Horn Lizard Soldiers worked in perfect sync, targeting the weaknesses in his defense while also capitalizing on his low mana.

Without enough mana, he could only defend to keep himself alive.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

He stumbled backward as he deflected three powerful strikes with his shield, blood leaking from the corner of his lips.

His muscles strained, having been pushed to their limits countless times. All the nerves in his arms were screaming in pain.

His palms had long since gone numb from repeatedly blocking attacks far stronger than himself.

Yet, he did not dare relax. The slightest opening would cost him his life. Suddenly, his instincts screamed of impending danger from behind.

Without thinking, he jumped to his left and rolled a couple of times. Before he could get to his feet a deadly axe strike was already upon him.

"Shit!" he cursed as he raised his shield to defend himself.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Strike after strike slammed against his shield.

Each impact forced him farther into the sand, while his already exhausted arms trembled violently under the overwhelming force.

His situation was grim.

’I need to get out of here...’ He cried inwardly.

However, no matter how he tried to escape from their encirclement, the three Horn Lizard Soldiers did not give him the opportunity.

Every retreat was immediately cut off.

Every opening he found disappeared in the next instant. It was as though the three had rehearsed this formation countless times before.

"Ahhhhh"

Just as he deflected another deadly attack targeting his head, his legs were left exposed. The spear-wielding Horn Lizard Soldier immediately struck.

The sharp spear pierced into his thigh, ripping apart his robe along with a chunk of flesh.

Fresh blood instantly gushed from the wound.

For a brief moment Riven’s world blanked out. The blinding pain nearly caused him to lose consciousness, and the grip on his shield almost loosened.

But at that critical moment he bit his tongue hard. The metallic taste of blood instantly filled his mouth, forcing his mind back to reality.

Just in time he raised his shield and deflected an axe strike targeting his legs.

Bang!

Before he could even steady himself the spear-wielding Horn Lizard Soldier charged once more. The other two followed immediately behind him.

Not giving him even the slightest chance to catch his breath.

Riven clenched his teeth.

His breathing became heavier and his vision had begun to blur from blood loss and exhaustion.

Yet, the determination within his eyes never faded.

With one of his legs rendered useless, his situation had turned from bad to worse.

Now, he did not only need to protect his head and chest, he also had to make sure his injured leg was not exposed again.

"Ahhh! Ahhhh!"

Even though he desperately tried to cover his weakness and fight his way out of his deadly situation.

It was nothing but a pipe dream.

An axe struck his shoulder, shattering the bones, tearing away flesh, while blood gushed out continuously. The tremendous force almost knocked him to the ground.

He did not have the chance to scream when another attack closed in from the left, targeting his eyes.

Instinctively, he reacted, moving his head to the side by barely an inch.

Bang!

Sand flew into the air, and some washed over him.

That was close.

Too close.

Inwardly, he knew that if this continued, it was only a matter of time before he was killed. He gritted his teeth, unwilling to die just like this.

He looked around frantically, hoping someone would save him. But to his shock The others were in even more precarious situations than he was.

Some had already lost parts of their bodies.

He watched as his friends were slaughtered one after another.

Some were pierced through the chest.

Some lost their heads.

Others continued fighting despite missing an arm.

Instantly, the cry for help vanished from his mouth. Subconsciously, a heavy, unwilling sigh escaped from his lips.

’If this is the end...’

’So be it.’

The unwillingness in his eyes gradually vanished as he began to defend with all his might.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Even when he was injured, he did not cry.

He merely gritted his teeth, pushing himself beyond his limits for even the slightest chance of survival.

But with every passing second, his strength dwindled, and his reactions became slower.

His vision grew blurry.

His breathing became heavier.

His arms gradually lost their strength.

He knew what was happening.

His body was shutting down from overexertion.

Death was slowly approaching.

Just as he expected everything had come to an end He saw something that left him dumbfounded.

Flying through the air was a raging inferno, blazing with ferocious power as if it were going to destroy the world.

The blazing flames tore across the sky like a falling sun, radiating an overwhelming heat that instantly drew everyone’s attention.

Before anyone could understand what was happening...

The raging inferno crashed into the center of the battlefield.

Boom!

A deafening explosion echoed across the battlefield. A sea of fire erupted in every direction, accompanied by a terrifying shockwave.

Horn Lizard or not.

Everyone in its path was sent flying.

Those unfortunate Horn Lizard Soldiers caught within the flames were instantly burned to death.

Their miserable screams echoed for only a brief moment before being completely swallowed by the raging inferno.

The overwhelming heat forced everyone nearby to retreat several steps. Even Riven instinctively raised his shield to block the scorching wave of heat.

For a brief second, the entire battlefield fell silent.

Every pair of eyes stared toward the center of the burning flames. Even the Horn Lizard Soldiers unconsciously stopped attacking.

"Kill!"

Just then, a furious shout erupted from behind.