These two punches sent the tentacle monster flying bodily toward the adjacent hard rock face! Its head smashed against the sharp ice-rock edges with a sickening crack! Fluids mixed with brain matter sprayed everywhere; the sight was akin to a rotten orange being brutally stepped upon. Under such grievous injury, survival was impossible. But Fang Senyan was simultaneously struck by the furious attack of two half-orcs from behind. His vision darkened, and blood immediately began to trickle from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto the snow in a way that was indescribably desolate.

But just then, snow exploded outwards, and even small stones began to roll wildly. An invisible wave of terrifying force roared in from the side, instantly hurling all nearby half-orcs into a state of slowed movement! This was Reef’s signature ability: "Heart-Rending Roar" (lvm). Fang Senyan utilized the momentum of the attack from behind, lunging forward abruptly to rapidly increase the distance between himself and the beasts trailing him. The two half-orcs behind roared in fury and tried to give chase, but they suffered the sorrow of a 60% speed reduction, their wills far exceeding their capability.

It turned out that mere seconds after Fang Senyan made his move, Reef had also broken free! While he lacked Fang Senyan's sheer brute force, he possessed a formidable weapon—a lightsaber from the future! This black lightsaber required charging to use; without power, it was merely a hilt. Contract Holders inherently possessed the ability to conceal equipment, and Reef jammed the lightsaber's hilt into the black vine binding him, then activated the blade. Naturally, he sliced through the damned vines with shocking ease.

Reef was certainly no novice either. He waited until everyone’s attention was fixed on the suddenly active Fang Senyan before launching his own ferocious assault. He first thrust the lightsaber deep into the head of the nearby tentacle monster! This strike was vicious and brutal; not only did it score a critical hit, but the lightsaber’s intense heat immediately began to sizzle the pierced area, effectively turning the creature into raw material for a barbecue!

Next, Reef activated the ability of his grotesque and strange alien-head shield. A horrifying tongue shot out from its mouth, striking the tentacle monster, causing fluids to splash everywhere while simultaneously inducing a state of stun. Reef followed up with several more fierce slashes from the lightsaber. Leveraging the high attack speed granted by the weapon, he cleanly severed several of the creature’s twitching tentacles, which coiled and spasmed on the ground like squid appendages.

The tentacle monster relied entirely on these appendages to support its body. Losing one or two was not fatal, but severing five or six at once naturally caused it to lose balance and crash down. At this point, Reef unleashed a "Heart-Rending Roar," the powerful shockwave annihilating the monster while providing the most timely support to Fang Senyan. This tentacle monster was a classic example of high offense but weak defense; it could exhibit terrifying power with half-orc cover in front, but its utility in close combat was near zero.

The direction Fang Senyan had lunged towards earlier was also meticulously chosen. After lunging forward, he executed a roll on the ground and arrived before the elven maiden, MistSong. He grabbed the black vine binding her body and pulled with all his might. This single tear, while failing to completely break the tough and malicious rope, managed to loosen it significantly, allowing MistSong limited movement in her arms. After all, the force Fang Senyan could exert while bound could never compare to the explosive power he unleashed during this full-force exertion; thus, tearing at MistSong’s bonds was instantly effective.

However, just as Fang Senyan was about to put renewed force into the tear, he let out a muffled groan! Stumbling back two or three steps, the stout executioner half-orc was no easy mark. Being close to the elven maiden, he was still affected by the Heart-Rending Roar's slowdown, but after just one step, he managed to draw his flaying knife and viciously stab towards Fang Senyan!

This half-orc was clearly adept with blades. Shouting in rage, the cold light flashed in his hands as he delivered three rapid stabs to Fang Senyan’s waist. Blood erupted, and Fang Senyan’s health plummeted instantly! Fortunately, the Hichimuga Mucus he had consumed earlier proved invaluable. Fang Senyan felt a surge of warmth welling up from within, enveloping the wounds and rapidly staunching the bleeding. But he dared not keep his back to this cruel half-orc any longer. He spun around, shielding the elven maiden behind him.

Simultaneously, upon witnessing Fang Senyan wounded, a flicker of green light flashed in MistSong’s eyes. She took a deep breath, rapidly moving her hands within the limited space afforded by the loosened bindings. With nimble gestures, she quickly formed various spell signs. In almost an instant, a serpentine stream of faintly green fire rose up, burning away the vine rope binding her!

Although MistSong had not awakened for long, she was undeniably a powerful Dawn Elf at this moment! The spell she cast was quite potent! Having regained her freedom, MistSong’s face was frighteningly pale. Casting this Elven Divine Art was currently taxing her severely, almost at the cost of her own life force. Normally, such a divine art would never be used, but facing the immediacy of the crisis, MistSong hesitated not at all. She pointed a finger, and a stream of pale green fire coiled and shot directly outwards.

Even in the sub-zero environment of the ice and snow, MistSong’s divine spell could not draw upon the ambient spiritual energy of nature and plants, inevitably causing some degree of attenuation. However, her target was not something with high resistance—it was the half-orc who had just attacked Fang Senyan.

That short, stout fellow skilled in flaying!

The pale green flame wound around like a snake before attempting to burrow directly into the stout half-orc’s mouth! At this moment, the other, free tentacle monster displayed terrifying offensive power. From its eyes, seven or eight laser-like rays shot out frantically—simultaneously targeting Fang Senyan, Reef, and MistSong!

Furthermore, several rays aimed at MistSong focused directly along the trajectory of her pale green flame, appearing as if they were attempting to counter her divine art head-on to save someone. However, MistSong's flame had an acceleration phase mid-flight, making the tentacle monster's rays feel somewhat belated. They grazed past the air, striking the hard rock beside her with a fizzing sound, ultimately melting three deep little holes.

MistSong naturally understood the severity of the situation, so her attack was a desperate, final effort. She unleashed the strongest divine art she could manage at that moment: Flame of Life, igniting the fire with her own life essence. Only the enemy's life force could extinguish this flame. Therefore, this fire would continue to burn even underwater. Once it penetrated the stout half-orc’s mouth, it blazed fiercely, burning him to a bloody pulp and death in a short span.

Having killed the stout half-orc, MistSong felt the world spin and her body feel nearly dismantled, yet she breathed a sigh of relief: Although everything happening now exuded an extreme strangeness, she still couldn't grasp the beasts' true intentions. But one thing was certain: whatever the enemy desired must be what they needed to destroy.

This stout half-orc, seemingly unremarkable, performed a task requiring extremely high technical skill—quickly stripping the skin from a living person without causing a fatal wound. This demanded not only audacity and meticulousness but also a heart inherently cruel and detached. Therefore, at this moment, among this group of half-orcs, a replacement for this specific role would likely be hard to find quickly.

Consequently, for MistSong and the remaining captives, the worst possible outcome after killing him was a final, glorious death in battle. At the very least, they had temporarily escaped the horrific fate of being flayed alive and then cast off a cliff.

MistSong, having unleashed the Flame of Life, felt overwhelmingly exhausted. She covered her mouth and coughed lightly, finally collapsing onto the ground. But after taking a deep breath, she was unexpectedly invigorated: the blue liquid she had drunk earlier slowly dissipated within her body, steadily injecting new vitality. Yet, for some unknown reason, that bone-deep weariness refused to dissipate like a clinging curse. It seemed that after unleashing that divine art, something inside her had awakened and was rapidly devouring her energy. Soon, MistSong slipped into a semi-conscious state, wilting onto the ground like a parched blade of grass.

The situation for the captives remained perilous. Surrounded by the ten-thousand-foot icy valley, they faced not only the remaining few berserk and enraged half-orcs but also one furiously enraged tentacle monster! At that moment, Fang Senyan shouted, suddenly bending over and surging to the left at high speed. This area was a flat clearing on a mountaintop, accessible only by a winding mountain path. Fang Senyan charged towards the entrance of that path.

This was the most predictable reaction for a sane person—regaining freedom and immediately fleeing the way out!

However, the remaining tentacle monster seemed to have anticipated Fang Senyan’s move. It had already directed the savage half-orcs to block the entrance to the mountain path ahead of time. Moreover, waves of arcane ripples were generating from the monstrous eyes circling the tentacle monster’s head, clearly preparing to launch paralysis rays again! If Fang Senyan fled without reservation, the predictable outcome was: he would run straight into the half-orcs, be hit in succession by paralysis rays, and collapse paralyzed with multiple debilitating status effects layered upon him.