Transcendent Resurgence: Regressing on an abandoned Earth

Nuckelavee finally broke free under the players' anxious gazes. But unlike its eerie aura from before, it now looked as steady as the sky itself.

Zyrus didn’t stand on ceremony like others and immediately launched his attacks. Dozens of blue spears shot out with a thrust of his palm.

-0,-0,-1,-1,-1,-0,-0,-2…

Without making a single sound, Nuckelavee retaliated against his attack as well. It was neither stronger nor weaker than his attack.

“Like a mirror reflecting your actions, Nuckelavee will use the same strength to retaliate,”

It was certain that the one who placed Nuckelavee on this ocean didn’t want newbies to kill it. While its third form was less fatal compared to others, one can not kill it if they relied on this counterattack system.

It was hard to damage it with the Absolute defense trait. Even if someone went all out and dealt minor damage to it, they too would face an attack of the same magnitude.

‘Even if you go with a kamikaze tactic, it would require thousands of players as a sacrifice,’

Zyrus had to admit that Nuckelavee was the most annoying monster to fight in the second ring. Even if someone used wave tactics to fight it, it could escape into water anytime it wished.

“Attack it for a while and get used to its counterattack patterns. It won’t be easy to predict its attacks, but with Ria’s assistance you can at least put up a fight,”

“Yes, Your Majesty,”

Zyrus nodded at the players’ resolute faces and resumed his attacks. Since he was done with skills related to mana, it was time to work on his stamina.

Spear aura was the only skill that required stamina to use. Each activation consumed 20 stamina, and even if he used avatar, it wouldn’t recover his stamina.

‘It’s at times like these that having large numbers is important,’ Zyrus thought while retreating. While the players had to recover longer than himself, they outnumbered him by thousands.

Almost none of them managed to deal 1 damage. But thanks to the dark attribute given by the night’s blessing, there was a small chance that their attack could pierce through Nuckelavee’s defense.

“Did you plan this from the beginning?”

“Everything except for the effectiveness of night’s blessing.” Zyrus replied to Ria who was staring at him from Phorcys.

The players were more effective than him when it came to overall damage. Hundreds of players were attacking the monster at every moment. Even if just one of them was a successful hit, it far outpaced Zyrus’s damage.

“We’re sustaining damage as well,”

“Let it be. We’ll set sails once they’re used to it,”

“…?”

“What? Did you think that all our battles would end in one go? Even though I’m powerful, I have my limits as well. This fight can only be won with a protracted battle.”

Ria thought that he had other means to end the battle sooner, but he couldn’t just babysit them either. Having dealt with the first two phases on his own, what was the use of his troops if he had to deal with the last phase as well?

“Understood. I’m sure you’ve planned for it, but the boats won’t hold on even if the players do,”

“You can leave it to me,” Zyrus assured Ria and the others who were looking in his direction. After meeting his confident eyes, Kyle, Jacob, Lauren, and the rest no longer hesitated in their attacks.

Loud booms and crashes reverberated across the ocean. Once players got the hang of the rhythm, Zyrus used his rop- Ahem- Shackles of nihility to drag Nuckelavee along their journey.

Only someone with Absolute defense trait was worthy of such a luxurious treatment. Hours passed by as the fleet sailed towards their destination. The seemingly invincible Nuckelavee had lost 5% of its HP under players’ relentless assault.

It was a praiseworthy result considering their levels which were less than half of their enemy. A colony of ants might take down an elephant, but it was hard to say if their opponent was a mighty dinosaur.

The current scenario was much worse than that. The players suffered casualties that numbered in two digits.

Accounting for the injured and those who were unable to fight any longer, approximately 10% of their 8000 players were rendered useless.

Still, the biggest issue for them was the ships. They had the ability to repair themselves on the ocean, but this process required gallons of blood.

Nuckelavee didn’t attack the ships, but it did counterattack the players who were standing on them. It can be imagined what state they were in after enduring hundreds of thousands of aftershocks.

“I don’t see any changes in the papyrus plants and those nails”

“We’re somewhat unlucky, but it’s fine. The boats won’t sink no matter what,” Zyrus replied to Franken as he looked at the ocean ahead.

Things were going slightly off the track, but it was fine as long as the end results were better. There was no such thing as a perfect plan. Even with his vast knowledge he understood that flexibility was a very important factor.

‘And there it is,’

Zyrus let out a sigh of relief after spotting a school of fish. It was only a matter of time before their commotion attracted numerous fish living on the sea.

While they weren’t similar to moths charging at the flame, they could no longer hold back their greed towards the flag.

Even Nuckelavee’s suppressing pressure was losing its effect.

“Don’t get flustered even if the ships get destroyed. Focus on your connection with the ships and activate the healing formations. You can switch between different formations as the need arises, but no matter what, don’t deactivate the night’s blessing.”

The players were more or less used to Zyrus’s strange orders. Not to mention that none of them had the time to think about anything else except for the enemy in front of them.

*Guuugugugu*

*Splatter*

The fish launched their assault no different from the day before. It was the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

However, the ocean wasn’t a merciful place. The players would all parish if their boats broke down in the middle of nowhere.

“Try to build a connection with your ships,” Zyrus spoke in an unhurried manner and deactivated the Shackles of nihility.

As if on cue, Nuckelavee immediately dived down into the sea- or it tried to at least.

The mighty warden of the sea was turned into the punching bag of the sea, and as fate would have it, its dark days were far from over.

Like a pack of starving wolves charging at a white rabbit, the cursed iron nails shot off towards Nuckelavee.

*Neeeigh*

The monster let out a pained howl for the first time. Its absolute defense was rendered useless against the nails filled with dark aura. It looked even more horrid with numerous iron nails lodged into its flesh.

While it wasn’t considered an attack, Nuckelavee could still retaliate against inanimate objects. Countless shadows of black whips wrecked the remaining ships.

“It is useless,”

*Grrroaarrr*

Not sure if it understood Zyrus’s words or not, Nuckelavee’s single eye blazed against the surrounding players.

As strong as it might have been, it was bound by the sanctuary’s rules as well. Nuckelavee couldn’t harm the players unless they took the initiative.

The papyrus plants which were mixed with the logs also took effect. Ominous green lights flickered on the broken parts of the ships.

An uncountable number of fish were killed near this area. Apart from their blood, even their flesh and bones were sucked dry by the green lights. Papyrus plants' essence was emitting a vast suction force that sucked everything with the dark attribute.

*Neeeigh*

And the wounds on Nuckelavee’s flesh were no exceptions. Streams of blood were drawn out from the skinless monster.

“I have to admit it’s efficiency,” Zyrus stated as he too focused on his connection with the dragon of war.

Despite his regression, His will wasn’t inferior to anyone in the sanctuary. He directly connected with the seeds being born on all 50+ ships. If someone from the spirit clan saw this scene, then without a doubt the entire race would hunt down Zyrus.

The birth of artifact spirits was their closest guarded secret. Not to mention that even they didn’t know that a method like Yasha refinement could be used in such a manner.

Apart from Zyrus who had the bloodline of a Sylvarix, no one else can use such a method. While it only gave the ships a minuscule chance to evolve, that chance was all they needed. Nuckleavve’s flesh and blood were similar to the sun for these ships.

They would burst into molecules if they failed to harness this abundant power.

“Keep up the momentum. If we progress at this rate then we can conquer the island before the six-month ranking.”

“I think they’ll give their all even without your encouraging words,” Franken snorted at Zyrus’s somewhat hypocritical words.

With Nuckelavee constantly counterattacking against the ships, they were in a stalemate of being repaired and broken apart. It was a torturous process for the players as they could neither eat nor sleep peacefully as long as the monster wasn’t ‘refined.’

‘The ships aren’t the only ones that are being refined,’

The players too were in a similar process of creation and destruction. They could heal themselves with potion, magic, or the ship's formations. Still, the casualty rate wasn’t low.

It was expected that more than a thousand of them would die if things progressed in a similar manner.

Nonetheless, their survival and progress rate was dozens of times better compared to others who ascended from the first ring.

“By the way, how’s it going with the scroll?”

“Do you plan to leave before reaching the island?” Franked asked with a raised brow.

“While I planned to wait till they are accustomed to the sea, it looks like this is no longer necessary,”

He had considered the worst-case scenarios in preparing for his plans on earth. Thanks to Lauren and Kyle’s efforts there wasn’t any internal strife among players, and Ria and Shi kun were doing a good job in management as well.

Zyrus and Franken chatted for a bit and decided to leave Elsid and the abyssal warriors behind. He would lose some of his attack power, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

‘Besides, nothing can stop me from conquering the lands on earth.’

Zyrus had never repeated the same mistake twice. It was this trait that allowed him to reign supreme amongst all players.

And now, the Glemorax would realize the consequences of their failure.

Read Transcendent Resurgence: Regressing on an abandoned Earth - on Royal Road and Scribble Hub