Chapter 28：Bone Devour

"The format for the naming of the sectors follows the same system as a clock. Sector 12 is positioned in the north while Sector 6 will be in the south. Sectors 3 and 9 will be at the east and the west respectively. We also level the terrain before creating a settlement. The only exception is the mountain, Nilgiri standing in Circle Zero." The middle-aged lady said.

She then pointed at the screen, highlighting the 10th Ring. "In the 10th Ring, Sectors 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, and 12 are completed, occupied by the military. They are filled with factories that manufacture weapons, hospitals for the wounded soldiers and warehouse to store all the terrifying defensive weapons. The supplies there are full of the carcasses of Frenzy Beasts that are dismantled to make weapons, used for research, etc. It is a chaotic place that maintains strict order to everything."

The middle-aged lady made the screen zoom beyond the walls, showcasing a desolate plain, "We name each habitat in the Wilds according to the dominant species of Frenzy Beasts living there. The areas surrounding the walls are generally named Wild Zone corresponding to the Sector it lies outside of. For example, the area outside the walls near Sector 1 is named Wild Zone 1. The military follows the rule of simplicity in their designations."

"Coming back to the layout of the city, we shall begin from Ring 1." The middle-aged lady continued with her lessons, making the students pay attention to her. They were ready to answer the questions she raised from time to time, in hopes of gaining free merit points.

…

Wild Zone 12, the team of Administrators walked in the behind while Henrietta and Jyovic walked at the front. They casually strode through the battlefield as if it was a park, except Henrietta. She had to stay vigilant of her surroundings and pay heed to any danger that might crop up.

Jyovic Bone watched the surroundings, relishing in his nostalgia. It had been decades since his retirement. He hadn't stepped out of the city ever since. Even the times he had to fight was done from within the wall during the Waves.

Their city followed two protocols in their nomenclature. The war organised by the humans against the Frenzy Beasts of a particular habitat was termed a 'Raid' while the ones organised by the Frenzy Beasts against their city was termed 'Wave'.

In normal times, many unintelligent beasts would approach the vicinity of their city due to the allure presented as baits by the military. They would then be finished off to be used as materials for research and development.

The period the team of Administrators and the two Bone family members decided to head to the Wild Zone 12 was one of the calmer times. There were not many Frenzy Beasts in their sight, just ranging within a couple thousand, mostly consisting of Tier 1 and Tier 2 beasts, with the occasional sighting of a Tier 3 Frenzy Beast.

To the fortified city, this was a free meal delivered to them. They didn't even need to bat an eye at them, calmly planning to finish them off. Hundred Warriors donned in full-body leather armour strode out, clutching spears in their hands. They marched uniformly towards the horde of Frenzy Beasts, ploughing through them like a meat grinder.

The hits and stabs from each of their spears sent the Frenzy Beasts to their deaths, finished off in a single blow. Without any sounds, showing zero excess movements, the Warriors faced the beasts, killing them without trouble. Suddenly, a worm drilled out of the ground, from under the feet of the Warriors.

Spanning 20 metres long and having a diameter of 1 metre, the worm opened its mouth, revealing five rows of teeth embedded within its mouth in a circular pattern. It bit into a Warrior, clamping its mouth shut, splashing blood into the surroundings.

There was a stir among the soldiers; the one who seemed to be the leader of the group bellowed, "It's a Tier 4 Ring Worm. Retreat!"

The Warriors immediately dispersed like sand that was thrown into the air, running away in various directions. After running a distance away, they rerouted towards the walls, pressing a button that sent out a distress signal back to the base.

After swallowing the first Warrior, the Ring Worm noticed its prey running away. It immediately burrowed into the soil, leaving the scene. The surroundings fell silent, making the Warriors suspect the arrival of the Ring Worm if not for the death of their comrade.

Wunris Marble placed his hand on the ground, eyes closed as he looked to be sensing for something. After a couple of seconds, he stood up and said with a slight scoff, "Aren't these worms tired of using the same trick? They had just used this method last week."

"How many of them are there?" Jyovic inquired. As a Transformer, although he had a powerful body, he didn't retain any of his Skills, having swallowed a Cleansement Fruit. This made it difficult for him to sense anything hidden from his vision.

"There are around a hundred Ring Worms buried into the ground, heading towards the walls, all Tier 4. Since their numbers are small, this cannot be qualified as a wave." Wunris Marble pointed at Henrietta, "This is a good opportunity. Showcase the might of Bone Devour on them."

Henrietta nodded, "Sir, if I may make a request. Can you point me to the position of a Ring Worm?"

"Sure," Wunris Marble nodded as he pointed towards his feet, "There is one hiding 20 metres beneath us. It is probably trying to get a scope of our strength before taking action."

"Thank you," Henrietta performed a curt bow, kneeling on the ground as she placed her hands on it. Followed by crunching sounds, the muscles in her arms wriggled like a cluster of fishes in a scramble of food. Starting from her shoulder muscles, the muscles parted, revealing her shoulder bone from beneath.

A faint orange hue permeated through the bones as something seemed to be developing in her arms. The team of Administrators watched with rapt attention as something seemed to have shot into the ground through Henrietta's palms. Immediately, the ground beneath them rumbled as some areas caved in. A Ring Worm drilled out, letting out a shriek.

Lodged in the middle were two long spears, white in shade, and shinning with a pale orange hue. They had the indentations along its shaft, resembling a human's arm while the portion that pierced into its flesh looked similar to her hands, held straight to act as a spear.

The Ring Worm struggled in pain as something seemed to escape into the air through the two bone spears, weakening it. It lunged towards Henrietta, spotting her to be the culprit that had attacked it. The moment it neared her, the Ring Worm immediately turned its head downwards, entering the ground, it used its frightening speeds to burrow into the hardened soil.

Henrietta rushed forward, her hands clenched into a fist as she jumped into the air. The muscles in her arm wriggled, tearing open as the bones underneath revealed themselves. The bone of her forefinger detached itself from her hand, wrapped in a pale orange hue, shooting towards the Ring Worm burrowing into the ground.

It immediately elongated, forming a metre long bone spear, lodging into the tail of the Ring Worm, a bare centimetre of it peaking out. Through it, some type of energy leaked into the air. The forefinger bone she had snapped out had regrown, allowing her to pull it again. This time, she pulled everything from above her right wrist, turning it into a long spear, 2 metres long that she held in her left.

The severed part regrew, wrapped in a pale orange hue. There was a small trace of sweat on her forehead as the muscles on her arms wriggled to reform, looking like the hands of a normal person. Henrietta closed her eyes as the muscles on her toes squirmed, scraping away as the bones beneath deformed, shooting into the ground in thin lines.

The ground near her parted open as the Ring Worm emerged, opening its mouth and clamping on Henrietta. Stabbing her long spear into the mouth of the Ring Worm, Henrietta was lifted off from the ground, sent reeling away as the Ring Worm twisted its top half. Clamming its mouth shut, the Ring Worm broke the long spear lodged into its mouth into numerous pieces.

The broken splinters lodged themselves in various places within its mouth, leaking something into the air. Feeling a sense of danger, the Ring Worm rushed towards Henrietta, the wounds on its body healing at a rapid pace. Using its head as a whip, it swatted Henrietta, sending her reeling tens of metres to the air, performing a long arc that roused a dust cloud.

Feeling the bones in her limbs broken from the impact, Henrietta struggled to get up, hurriedly activating her Unranked Skill. The bones in her limbs dissolved like liquid, arranging themselves in the appropriate places, reforming her skeletal frame. Feeling perfectly fine, Henrietta stood up, aiming her hand towards the approaching Ring Worm.

The skin on her hands peeled out, revealing the bones. All ten of her fingers shone with a pale orange hue, shooting towards the Ring Worm, each elongating into a metre long spear mid-air. The Ring Worm swerved its head, dodging most of the spears. Four of the ten spears pierced into various places across its body.

Suddenly, the body of the Ring Worm turned sluggish. Henrietta used this change to close in on her foe, jumping on its tail. Immediately, the skin and muscles over her legs parted as the two leg bones pierced into its body, morphing its shape as it spread all across the worm's body in a zig-zag manner like the branches of a tree foliage.

The Ring Worm screamed in pain as its body turned limp while Henrietta seemed to gain a boost in power. The muscles on her body rearranged themselves back as Henrietta lifted her right leg. The bone of her right leg that had pierced into the Ring Worm's body revealed itself, having a black lustre, showing signs of corrosions.

Henrietta severed the black part, making the remainder of her leg morph into liquid form, regrowing into a complete whole. The muscles, nerves, and skin converged over it. Henrietta repeated the same process for her left leg, gazing at the other spears she had lodged into its body.

Most of the initially white bone spears were now a shade of black, showing signs of melting at the corners. Seeing the Ring Worm on the verge of death, its musculature body having sagged as if on old age, Henrietta morphed her index finger into a long bone spear, piercing it into the head of the worm.

Her eyes lit up in satisfaction as Henrietta seemed stronger than before while the Ring Worm looked a husk of its former self. The scene of battle made Wunris Marble applaud while Ankrakhen Light nodded in approval.