Wu Jingying and her squad were locked in a desperate, brutal struggle.
Despite its towering height, the Swallower was not slow or clumsy in the slightest. Its speed was even faster than that of a standard Level 3 ability user!
The ability users kept circling and bombarding the monster from every angle, but their efforts produced negligible results.
The Swallower's defensive layer was simply absurd.
Its massive, bulging muscles looked like they were forged from solid steel.
Attacks from the ability users hit the giant like mere tickles.
Yet a single strike from the Swallower could instantly crush an ability user into a meat paste.
This meant the Swallower could afford infinite mistakes, while the defenders couldn't afford a single one.
Their margin for error was non-existent.
It was like walking a tightrope over a abyss, licking blood off the edge of a blade.
A single misstep meant falling into a bottomless pit with no burial ground.
Even if they tried to wear down its health using wave tactics, they would fail. Long before the Swallower's strength was drained, every last one of them would be wiped out.
Cold sweat beaded on the foreheads of the defenders as raw panic took root in their chests.
Meanwhile, atop the distant building, Liu Yang had caught sight of the behemoth.
He had seen large Moulters before.
It was true that Moulters continuously devouring their own kind would grow larger, gain strength, develop explosive muscle mass, and look increasingly formidable. But he had never seen one reach a height of six meters.
Even Liu Yang remarked in surprise, "What is that thing? Normal Moulters have raw, bright red muscles exposed to the air that look utterly revolting.
"This one hasn't just grown to six meters; its muscles are turning pitch-black. It looks brimming with raw power.
"Its strength, speed, and defense are all far beyond average-easily exceeding the baseline stats of a Level 3 ability user...
"With that sheer mass, its defense has multiplied several times over. I doubt standard small-arms fire could even pierce its hide."
Liu Yang shook his head and concluded, "Those ability users stand no chance."
Sure enough, right as his words fell, a figure was sent flying through the air by the Swallower's fist.
Lin Wan'er shrieked, "Lao San!"
The burly man launched into the air was her loyal follower, Lao San-the same man Liu Yang had threatened earlier.
The Swallower's speed and strength vastly outclassed theirs. Even if they managed to weave around it using their abilities for a moment, they were bound to be caught eventually.
Exhausting his mental energy and physical stamina, Lao San had finally lagged behind and was struck head-on.
That single punch shattered his organs and caused blood to burst from his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth. He flew dozens of meters before slamming into the ground, completely motionless.
The Swallower bounded over in a few heavy leaps, grabbed Lao San's corpse, and shoved it straight into its maw.
"ROAR!"
Having consumed another ability user, the Swallower seemed reinvigorated, its excitement reaching a fever pitch.
Seeing Lao San killed and devoured without even a corpse left behind, Lin Wan'er was driven mad with rage.
"Lao San! Damn you monsters! I'll slaughter all of you! I'll kill you all!"
While she held no romantic feelings for Lao San, they were comrades who had bled together.
Watching a companion get eaten alive right before her eyes was more than anyone could bear.
Attracted by her hysterical screams, the Swallower pivoted its massive frame and charged straight toward Lin Wan'er!
Wu Jingying's eyes widened. "Wan'er, watch out!"
She immediately lunged forward, intending to throw herself between the monster and Lin Wan'er.
The massive Swallower rushed over like a moving mountain. The kinetic force alone was terrifying-forget a punch, simply being struck by its charging body would feel like getting hit by a runaway train!
Even though Wu Jingying was a ranked ability user on the Yellow Ranking, there was no way she could survive such impact.
"Boss! Look out!"
A young ability user leapt in front of Wu Jingying.
He was her ardent follower and admirer-the only ability user who had jumped down the wall to follow her into battle.
"BOOM!"
A deafening crash echoed out as the young man took the full force of the blow for Wu Jingying and was knocked flying.
Wu Jingying screamed in despair, "Xiao Fei!"
"Vile monster! I'll kill you!"
Driven by fury, she charged the Swallower and slashed her blade across its body. Yet the monster casually flicked its arm, swatting Wu Jingying away like a fly.
"BOOM!"
She slammed heavily into the ground, vomiting a mouthful of blood. Wounded and in agonizing pain, she couldn't stand back up.
Immediately after, Lin Wan'er was also struck by a stray impact and sent tumbling.
Both women lay collapsed on the ground, coughing up blood and unable to move.
The Swallower tossed the corpse of the young ability user into its mouth first, then stalked toward the defenseless women on the ground.
Seeing this, the few remaining ability users rushed over, placing themselves in front of the two.
"Sister Wan'er, Sister Jingying, run! We'll hold it off!"
"This thing is too strong, we're no match for it! We can only buy you a few seconds!"
"Hurry back to the ba-AAAAHHH!"
"CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!"
Before the man could finish his sentence, the Swallower grabbed him in its massive fist. As its fingers tightened, his bones shattered and crumbled in a sickening crunch.
Blood erupted from his mouth and nostrils.
The Swallower lifted him high overhead, tilted its head back, opened its gaping maw, and squeezed hard.
"SPLAT!"
Torrents of fresh blood squirted through the monster's fingers, pouring directly into its massive open mouth.
It was literally juicing an ability user alive!
As the fresh blood flooded down its throat, a look of pure ecstasy lit up the Swallower's twisted face.
"ROAR! ROAR!"
It bellowed in triumph, its ugly features contorting further.
Only after gulping down every last drop of blood did the monster toss the crushed remains in its hand into its mouth, refusing to waste a single scrap.
No wonder this Swallower grew so fast. If every child ate like this monster-neither picky nor wasteful-they'd all grow into absolute titans.
Watching the horrifying spectacle, absolute despair settled over the survivors.
At this moment, even Wu Jingying was consumed by regret.
Perhaps the moment she laid eyes on the Swallower, she should have ordered a retreat rather than trying to stand and fight.
She had once seen Earth Ranking powerhouses engage a ten-meter-class Swallower from a distance.
At the time, her tier had been too low to comprehend the true disparity in power.
Even with five Earth Ranking experts present, two had been slaughtered by that monster. How could low-tier Yellow Ranking users like them ever hope to stand a chance?
She had naively assumed a five-meter-class Swallower was weak enough to beat. Now she realized how absurdly delusional she had been.
With Xuantie Base's current strength, mobilizing every single ability user would barely suffice to take down a three-meter Swallower!
Regret, despair-it felt like hell on earth.
In under ten minutes of combat, three ability users had already been eaten.
Wu Jingying and Lin Wan'er were severely injured and completely stripped of their combat capability.
The only three ability users left unharmed-two men and one woman-were notably weak.
Against the Swallower, they were completely hopeless.
Wu Jingying had lost all hope, and the survivors around her trembled violently, their spirit to fight completely crushed.