Deep in Thunder Valley, Mike, wielding the Force of Nature, slightly lifted his head to gaze at the massive figure before him.
The Minotaur Battle General, his body ensnared by chains, emitted towering demonic flames. He wasn't a creature born of the first layer but had been forcibly sent here by a demon god using special means.
During the teleportation, the Minotaur Battle General had sustained severe injuries, causing both his level and strength to plummet significantly. However, the [Inhibition Orb] he carried was well-protected.
This orb was crucial for restraining [Thor] and was the Minotaur Battle General's greatest reliance on this mission!
Upon entering the first layer, he immediately fell into a deep slumber to recover his strength as much as possible in preparation for the impending battle.
Mike's arrival startled the Minotaur Battle General awake.
"Weakling, you have disturbed my rest, and for that, you will pay in blood!" the Minotaur Battle General roared, struggling violently.
As he struggled, chains fell off, clanging onto the ground and kicking up clouds of dust.
"Wow, you sure talk a lot," Mike quipped, standing at a safe distance.
Some of the chains on the Minotaur Battle General were illusions created by the rules of the Tower of Truth. If Mike attacked now, most of the damage would be absorbed by the chains, inadvertently helping the Minotaur Battle General break his seals.
While waiting for more chains to fall off, Mike sized up the Minotaur Battle General, his gaze sweeping over him. "Beef legs, brisket, steak, beef burgers..."
"Man, I'm getting hungry. Maybe barbeque for breakfast tomorrow," Mike muttered to himself, clearly audible to the Minotaur Battle General, whose rage was reignited by Mike's words.
"Scoundrel, what do you take me for?!" the Minotaur bellowed.
"Chill, man. How about you hold off, and I'll treat you to a barbecue steak?" Mike offered casually.
The Minotaur Battle General was momentarily speechless.
With a furious roar, he flexed his arms outward, snapping the chains on his wrists as his aura surged, startling countless birds into flight!
As the Minotaur Battle General fully awoke, the entire Thunder Valley trembled!
"I am the second vice-commander of the Bloodstained Legion under the sixth demon god, a mighty being whose level surpasses 200, and I have even personally slain a human Battle General!" the Minotaur Battle General boasted, his eyes filled with mockery as he looked down at Mike.
"How about that? Scared speechless, are you?" he taunted.
In the Tower of Truth's first layer, only human participants of level 10 were allowed, posing no threat to him!
Under the Minotaur Battle General's scornful gaze, Mike suddenly spoke up, breaking his silence. "Originally, I planned to leave you in one piece, but now I'm thinking a whole roasted cow might not be too bad. Your head, I'll take it now."
"Oh? You're quite the cocky one!" After hearing Mike's words, the Minotaur Battle General was momentarily stunned, then burst into a series of arrogant laughs.
"If it were the human legions here, I might have some reservations. But you? Are you perhaps Thor himself?" When he mentioned Thor, even the arrogant Minotaur Battle General showed a flicker of fear in his eyes.
He was well aware that his true mission here was to gather as much information about Thor as possible and report back. Thinking he could stop Thor himself was a fool's dream!
Humans, they cannot give rise to a fourth supreme being!
Facing the Minotaur Battle General's provocation, Mike slowly said, "Whether I'm Thor or not doesn't matter."
Mike raised his staff, pointing it forward. "All you need to know is that today marks your doom."
"Annihilation!"
As their conversation continued, the chains on the Minotaur Battle General kept falling off, almost as if they were merely for show. Mike had been chatting with his opponent merely to bide his time!
"I'm waiting for the rules of truth to fail, what are you waiting for? Death?"
"Lightning Arrow!"
Charged up with 30 layers, despite the restrictions on Mike's level, he still gained a massive boost. The Minotaur Battle General was stunned.
You call this mountain-sized thing a Lightning Arrow?! Do you have some misunderstanding about arrows?
In just an instant, the immense Lightning Arrow engulfed the Minotaur Battle General's body, the terrifying strike instantly spreading throughout his body, destroying everything it touched!
"No—" His cry of utter despair didn't even have time to escape his throat.
Time seemed to slow down immensely around the Minotaur Battle General, making him acutely aware and pained, feeling every bit of his demise!
"This can't be happening! This is impossible!" he roared. "Why didn't the Inhibition Orb work? How could I die at the hands of a nobody? What in the world is this terrifying damage?"
Too many questions piled up in the Minotaur Battle General's chest, with no answers in sight. His gaze at Mike was filled with a complex mix of emotions—resentment, anger, confusion, bewilderment, fear...
His eyes widened as if he had realized something. But alas, it was too late. He was already dead.
In his final moments, the Minotaur Battle General thought of the only possibility that could explain everything happening before him. "You... are... Thor..."
The horrific damage, along with the obliteration of his soul, prevented him from passing on any message.
Mike kept his promise, controlling the damage of the Lightning Arrow to destroy most of the Minotaur Battle General's body, leaving only some torso and a head.
Boom—
After the devastating Lightning Arrow struck down the Minotaur Battle General, it crashed into the valley floor, creating a huge crater with continuous explosions.
Boom—
A wave of heat surged upwards, accompanied by the choking smell of sulfur, and magma even began to emerge from the ground!
"Ah, this doesn't count as damaging public property, right?" Mike mused, surprised by the immense power of the Lightning Arrow that struck the ground.
"This place is no longer safe."
Mike rushed to the remains of the Minotaur Battle General, first stowing the massive head into his spatial backpack. The Minotaur Battle General was enormous, his pupils alone as tall as Mike!
The head, laid flat on the ground, looked more imposing than a three-story mansion!
After securing the head, Mike rummaged through the debris and grabbed a blue-glowing orb in his hand. "Inhibition Orb!"
His eyes lit up, surprised that this item had survived. It looked relatively undamaged—an SS-grade special item. Best to pocket it for now.
Mike scanned the battlefield, noting that the remaining items weren't of much value. Magma continued to surge from the ground, and the noise from the earlier fight was bound to attract attention.
"Time to skedaddle!" he muttered.
Having slain the Minotaur Battle General and dealt some seriously high damage, Mike had essentially achieved his goal. His Force of Nature had also upgraded. There was no point in sticking around this hotspot of trouble.
"When in doubt, bail out!" he thought, recalling an old saying.
Just then, a bird flew overhead, attempting to escape Thunder Valley.
"Windstride Slash!" Mike instantly appeared on the bird's back, his toes barely touching before he leapt off, soaring away.
...
From waking the Minotaur Battle General to their conversation, and finally to Mike's lethal strike, the entire sequence, though complex, took less than a minute!
After Mike left the battlefield, the magma continued to rise, swallowing any trace of the recent combat.
Ten minutes later, two disheveled figures appeared at the edge of the battlefield, visibly shaken.
Cain, covering his nose and mouth, looked pale and coughed as he asked, "Jessica, did you lead us to a volcano?"
"Aren't we in Thunder Valley?" he added, the high temperature and the pungent smell making Jessica's beautiful face turn red as if she were drunk.
She coughed twice, her eyes filled with confusion. "No, we are definitely in Thunder Valley!"
"Hold on, let me check our position." Jessica tore open a scroll, and coordinates appeared before them.
Jessica's face turned ashen, pale as a freshly painted wall. Cain, rubbing his eyes, unable to see the coordinates clearly, asked, "What's wrong?"
Jessica's voice trembled with disbelief, "We... we are right in the deepest part of Thunder Valley!"
"That means... this is where Battle General-level monsters descend!"
"What?!"