Volk prowled through the dense underbrush, his hulking frame obscured by shadows that clung to his radioactive aura.

The faint glow of his toxic power lit the area around him, casting an eerie green hue over the cracked earth and dead leaves.

He moved silently, each step calculated, each breath purposeful. His molten eyes scanned the canopy above, and his ears perked at every faint flutter of wings.

The harpies were close—he could feel their presence like a dagger pressing against his skin.

Suddenly, a piercing cry echoed above, slicing through the stillness of the forest inside this cave. Volk’s lips twisted into a grin as the first harpy dove from the sky, her talons gleaming like polished steel.

“Finally,” Volk growled, his voice reverberating like the grumble of an earthquake.

The harpy swooped toward him, her talons outstretched, aiming to tear into his flesh. But Volk didn’t flinch.

Instead, he stood his ground and clapped his massive hands together with such force that the air rippled in a deafening shockwave. BOOM!

The harpy screeched as the powerful blast struck her mid-air, sending her spiraling uncontrollably.

Her wings faltered, and she crashed into the trees, snapping branches as she plummeted to the ground in a crumpled heap.

Volk stepped forward, his radioactive form humming with raw energy, his grin widening as the forest inside this cave erupted with more cries.

The remaining harpies, enraged, descended in a coordinated attack. Two darted toward him from opposite sides, their sharp wings cutting through the air like scythes.

“Is that all you’ve got?” Volk sneered, clapping his hands again. BOOOOOM!

Another thunderous wave of compressed air shot outward, slamming into the harpies like a tidal wave. They were thrown back, their wings flailing as they struggled to regain control. One slammed into a tree trunk with a sickening crack, while the other managed to hover unsteadily, her sharp gaze locked onto Volk.

More harpies circled above, their glowing eyes narrowing as they observed his devastating power. One of them let out a shrill command, and a group of four dove simultaneously, their talons gleaming like daggers in the pale light.

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Volk snarled, his radioactive glow intensifying. His fists clenched as he raised one hand and slammed it into the ground. The earth quaked beneath him, sending jagged cracks racing outward. A plume of toxic green energy erupted from the ground, engulfing the diving harpies. Their cries turned to choking gasps as they were caught in the noxious fumes, their feathers burning and falling away like ash.

“You’re in my territory now!” Volk roared, his voice a thunderous bellow.

One particularly large harpy, her feathers shimmering with a golden hue, dove toward him with incredible speed.

Her talons, wreathed in wind magic, aimed directly for Volk’s head. He reacted with inhuman speed, leaping into the air to meet her.

BOOM! His clap sent another shockwave crashing into her mid-dive.

The harpy managed to twist her body just enough to avoid the full brunt of the attack, but the force still sent her spiraling off course.

Volk didn’t give her a chance to recover. He shot forward, his radioactive aura leaving a burning trail in the air, and grabbed her by the throat.

“You thought you could stop me?” Volk growled, his grip tightening as the harpy struggled, her talons clawing desperately at his arm.

With a flick of his wrist, Volk hurled her downward.

She crashed into the earth with an impact that shook the forest inside this cave floor, a crater forming around her limp body.

The remaining harpies hesitated, their circling patterns growing erratic.

Fear began to creep into their cries as they realized the full extent of Volk’s power.

But one of them, a male with black feathers streaked with crimson, screamed a rallying cry and dove toward Volk, leading the others in one final, desperate attack.

Volk laughed—a low, guttural sound that sent chills down their spines. He raised his arms wide as if inviting their assault.

“Come, then!” he roared, his radioactive form blazing brighter than ever. “Let’s see how long you can last!”

As the harpies closed in, Volk clapped his hands together with unprecedented force. BOOOOOOOOOM!

The shockwave this time was monumental, tearing through the air like a hurricane.

Trees were uprooted, the earth split, and the harpies were thrown like ragdolls.

Those that were closest to him were obliterated on impact, their bodies disintegrating into ash. The survivors flapped desperately, their wings battered and broken, as they fell to the ground in heaps.

Volk stood amidst the destruction, his radioactive glow flickering ominously.

The air around him was thick with the scent of burning feathers and scorched earth. His chest heaved with exertion, but his grin never faltered.

One last harpy, the male who had led the charge, crawled toward him, his wings torn and useless. He glared up at Volk with defiance even as blood dripped from his beak.

“You… won’t win,” the harpy rasped. “The skies… belong to us…”

Volk crouched down, his glowing eyes locking onto the harpy’s. “The skies might belong to you,” he said, his voice dripping with menace. “But the ground is where you’ll meet your end.”

With one final clap, BOOOOOM! the harpy’s life was extinguished, his body reduced to dust.

Volk straightened, his radioactive glow dimming slightly as he surveyed the battlefield.

The once-proud harpies lay defeated, their bodies strewn across the cave. He exhaled deeply, his grin fading into a satisfied smirk.

“This,” Volk muttered to himself, “is what happens when you cross me.”

As the harpy people scattered to escape, panic rippled through their ranks like an earthquake tearing apart a fragile structure.

The leader shouted commands, but chaos consumed them.

Wings beat frantically against the air, the sounds of feathers slicing through the wind mixing with cries of alarm and fear.

Suddenly—snap!

One harpy darted too low and triggered a concealed trap.

A massive spiked net whipped upward from the forest inside this cave floor, ensnaring the unfortunate harpy mid-flight.

She screeched, flapping wildly, but the sharpened edges of the net tore at her wings, leaving her trapped and bleeding.

Another harpy swooped high, attempting to climb into the sky and call for reinforcements.

Wham!

A hidden catapult released from the ground, launching a weighted boulder that smashed into his torso.

He spiraled downward, colliding with the earth in a lifeless heap.

The remaining harpies paused mid-flight, their frantic movements faltering as they scanned the terrain with terror-filled eyes.

Boom!

A firebomb ignited behind them, setting the treetops ablaze and forcing them into a more confined path.

“This can’t be happening!” one of the younger harpies cried, her voice trembling.

She darted left, only to trigger another trap—a line of poisoned barbs launched from the shadows, embedding into her delicate wings.

With a scream, she plummeted to the forest inside this cave floor, writhing as the venom began to take hold.

The leader gritted his teeth, his sharp eyes narrowing as he tried to assess the situation.

“Hold your positions! Form into defensive flocks!” he bellowed, but the harpies were beyond reasoning.

Their panic drove them blindly into the air, into the ground, into traps that Volk had meticulously prepared.

One harpy zigzagged through the forest inside this cave, thinking she’d found an escape route.

Suddenly, the ground beneath her gave way, and she plunged into a pit filled with sharpened stakes.

Her body landed with a sickening crunch.

Another harpy, trying to pull her free, flapped desperately near the edge of the pit but was struck by a hidden dart that pierced her throat.

Blood bubbled up as she collapsed beside her fallen comrade.

The leader’s frustration boiled over. “Cowards! Fly higher! Stay above the treetops!” But as the surviving harpies ascended, a massive net fired from the canopy, wrapping around three of them and dragging them down with a series of ear-piercing cries.

The remaining harpies hesitated, wings beating furiously as they hovered in place, unsure whether to retreat or press on.

Thunk! Another trap activated—a volley of flaming arrows arced through the sky, forcing the hovering harpies to scatter again.

The leader swore under his breath, clutching his spear tightly.

“Regroup! We need to—” His words were cut off as the ground erupted beneath him. Volk’s cunning traps had included hidden pressure plates, and now, the harpy leader found himself blasted backward by an explosion of shrapnel and smoke.

The harpies that remained attempted to dive back into the trees to evade the relentless assault. But here too, Volk had anticipated their every move.

Concealed nooses of reinforced vines snapped tight around their legs and wings, yanking them violently into the air.

They thrashed and screamed, dangling helplessly above the forest inside this cave floor.

Everywhere they turned, there was another trap, another death waiting for them.

They tried to regroup, but the confusion was too great.

Harpies collided mid-flight, some crashing to the ground in a heap of broken wings and limbs.

Others tried to ascend higher but were relentlessly pursued by flaming projectiles, explosions, and smoke that choked their lungs and stung their eyes.

The harpy leader, now battered and bloodied, stared around in disbelief. His proud flock, once so untouchable in the skies, was being systematically obliterated.

“This… this can’t be happening,” he muttered, clutching his weapon. His sharp eyes searched the shadows, and then he saw him—Volk.

Emerging from the darkness like a shadow given form, Volk stood tall amidst the carnage, his radioactive glow barely illuminating his twisted grin.

His voice cut through the cacophony of screams and flames, cold and mocking. “Run if you want. Fly if you can. But this forest inside this cave will be your tomb. You brought this upon yourselves.”

The harpies, seeing Volk, let out cries of fury and desperation, but their numbers were too diminished to mount a proper counterattack.

One by one, they fell into the traps, their bodies littering the battlefield.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep