Chapter 111: Jake’s Full State and Power!
Chapter 110
While the others were practically facing against weaklings that were still quite strong, Jake was facing the boss of them all. Lenny—Zach’s brother who carried the overwhelming strength of a double A ranker.
TWICHK!
The pincers sliced through his abdomen and dug in deep, causing Jake’s eyes to widen as blood immediately filled his mouth. He stared at Lenny, who was grinning with malicious satisfaction, enjoying every second of Jake’s torment.
"Never should you have threatened me. I gave you a choice, but you decided to spit in my face instead. All I ever wanted was to avenge my brother’s humiliation and take that bastard over there. But you decided to play the hero, huh?" Lenny’s grin widened as his pincers remained buried inside the hybrid’s abdomen.
"The one you call a bastard... is my brother!" Jake shouted back, but his words were cut short as he choked on his blood, coughing violently.
’Brother?’ Lenny thought, raising a brow as his gaze flicked between Jake and Max. For a moment, he tried to search for a resemblance, but he found none and immediately dismissed it with disdain.
"Are you trying to fool me?!" Lenny roared in fury. His pincers twisted sharply, tearing deeper, and Jake let out a guttural scream of pain that echoed through the battlefield.
"Kek! Fuck you." Jake spat out defiantly and, with trembling strength, flipped his middle finger up at Lenny.
A thick vein bulged across Lenny’s forehead as rage boiled over. He viciously dragged his pincers downward, ripping open a massive gash across Jake’s stomach. Blood poured out in torrents, spilling like a gruesome waterfall that soaked the ground beneath them.
"Rest in peace!" Lenny cackled darkly as he leaped into the air and, with every ounce of his monstrous strength, drove his feet straight into Jake’s abdomen.
BOOOOM!
The impact created a deafening, bone-rattling explosion that shook the ground. Jake’s body was launched backward with terrifying force. His eyes rolled behind his head, his hybrid form breaking apart.
The extra pair of arms he had manifested vanished, shrinking back to two, his hulking body reverting to its frailer state as though his power had been ripped away. He slammed into the ground and tumbled violently across the dirt before finally crashing to a halt, lying motionless.
The thunderous bang caught someone’s attention. Max.
His eyes went wide with horror as he saw Jake’s broken form flying across the field before crumpling on the ground, still and unmoving.
Something inside Max snapped.
His vision blurred red as rage boiled over. His teeth clenched hard, grinding together while his hands clawed into the dirt until his nails tore against the ground. With a guttural growl, he began forcing his battered body upward.
Every muscle trembled under the strain, veins bulging across his arms and neck as he struggled to rise. His breaths came out ragged, each one laced with blood, but still he refused to stop.
{-5 HP}
{HP: 60/100}
The pain didn’t matter anymore. Nothing mattered except standing.
Max’s eyes, bloodshot and wild, locked onto Lenny, who was already making his way toward Jake’s unmoving figure.
’I don’t know what reasons Jake has for helping me,’ Max thought as he pushed his battered body to move. His knees wobbled, but he managed to raise one foot, kneeling on the broken ground. He gasped heavily, his chest heaving, yet the fire in his eyes only burned brighter.
’But one thing I can’t deny is that he never gave me a reason to doubt him. He was genuine... a good guy who treated me like his brother. His brother.’ Max’s thoughts sharpened as a memory burned through him. ’Yes! Maybe that’s why I’m so pissed at him, because he reminds me too much of Joe. My best friend from my past life, who was also my brother in every way that mattered.’
Summoning strength he didn’t know he still had, Max pushed his other foot down and rose higher. His body screamed in agony, but his spirit howled louder.
’I didn’t want him to take Joe’s place. Never! But... but...’ Max clenched his fists as his entire frame shook with fury.
Through grit teeth and sheer defiance, Max stood upright. His bloodshot eyes glared straight at Lenny with murderous intent, his body trembling but his will unshakable.
The hybrid was now upon Jake and he didn’t hesitate as he lifted his pincers above his head, a cruel smile twisting his lips as though victory was already in his grasp.
Max’s muscles tensed hard, veins bulging as he thrust his palm forward. A trail of flames immediately began circling the air around his hand, spiraling faster and faster as the heat intensified.
{Draconic Ability: Fire}
{Skill Selected: Fireball}
"But who says you can’t have two brothers?" Max muttered under his breath, his eyes gleaming red as fire surged violently. His palm erupted in bright orange light and then...
BANG!
The explosion-like sound ripped through the air and drew Lenny’s attention, but it was already too late. A blazing fireball, the size of a soccer ball, shot forth at an alarming speed. Instinctively, Lenny crossed his pincers in an X-shape to block, but the sheer force still sent him skidding across the ground, away from Jake.
SIZZLE!
Smoke rose from his arms as the heat seared into his skin. His face twisted in pain and rage as he gritted his teeth, finally forcing himself to dig into the ground and halt his momentum. He came to a screeching stop, chest heaving as flames licked at his body.
"Ack!" Max coughed up a mouthful of blood as his body gave out, collapsing to his knees with a loud thud.
The deafening bang from earlier managed to stir Jake. His eyes fluttered open weakly, his abdomen still gushing blood in frightening amounts, yet he didn’t care. Summoning every ounce of willpower, he staggered to his feet.
His teeth ground violently as his claws raked across his own skin, blood dripping down. The erratic motion made Lenny raise a brow in confusion.
’Huh? What’s wrong with him? Ack!’ Lenny groaned inwardly as the burn from his abdomen caught up, forcing him to clutch at it with a grimace.
’What the fuck?! Didn’t Zach say that bastard was just a human? How the hell did he suddenly shoot flames from his palms?
Is he really just a human, or is he a hybrid? No... no, screw it, he is a hybrid! And I will kill both him and every last one of his pathetic friends!’ Lenny roared in his thoughts, fury igniting across his face as his gaze snapped back to Jake.
"Remember when I told you I was only using fifty percent of my strength?" Jake asked with a savage grin spreading across his face. He slowly lifted his arm and pointed directly at Lenny, his head tilting as his eyes gleamed with bloodlust. "Well, lucky you. Looks like you’ll be the first to witness a hundred percent of my power."
’I need to help them all somehow,’ Max thought desperately from where he knelt, his body trembling but his eyes sharp. He turned his head, taking in the battlefield.
His allies were being battered, one by one, collapsing under the overwhelming might of their enemies. Helplessness clawed at his chest like a knife carving into him.
But then, something clicked in his mind. His system.
Flicking through the translucent screens with his thoughts, he sifted through his list of skills until one caught his attention. His eyes widened.
’I hope this works.’
{Skill: Dragon Roar activated}
{Description: This skill allows host to emit a roar that will paralyze or disorient foes for ten seconds. At the same time, allies considered by the host will receive a buff in strength and speed.}
Almost immediately, Max’s insides churned violently. It felt like molten lava bubbling inside his chest, boiling hotter with every passing second. His throat burned, his jaw clenched, and despite his efforts to contain it, the force surged upward uncontrollably.
Knowing what it was, Max surrendered and let it out.
ROARRRRRRRRRR!
The earth trembled as an ear-piercing roar split the battlefield like a thunderclap. Shockwaves rippled outward, rattling weapons, shattering rocks, and shaking the very air. The sound crashed into every living being nearby, friend and foe alike.
Instantly, Max’s allies felt something awaken within them. A strange energy surged through their veins, their bodies trembling not in weakness, but in sudden, newfound strength. None of them could see it, but glowing marks had appeared faintly across their backs, shimmering like dragon scales. The buff was real.
The air around Jake and Lenny grew unbearably dense. Jake’s breathing shifted, heavy and ragged, his pupils narrowing into thin slits. Steam hissed from his mouth with each exhale as his body began to grow, bones cracking and muscles stretching.
In seconds, his hybrid form re-emerged. But this time, it was different. His presence was heavier, darker, more monstrous. Where he once had four arms, he now bore eight, each one bulging with terrifying strength. His body towered higher, now standing over seven feet tall, shadowing everything around him.
He glared down at Lenny, steam curling from his nostrils, his aura thick with primal power.
"My hybrid state... one hundred percent." Jake announced, his voice rumbling like thunder, a grin curling across his transformed face.