Is this really a Game?!

Chapter 802 Journey through the Jungle: Tier V Monsters and Tensions

Reign signaled for the group to proceed cautiously, leading them down the hill into the dense jungle. The towering trees cast eerie shadows, and the sounds of the jungle filled the air. It was a stark contrast to the urban environments they were accustomed to, a reminder of how the world had transformed into a dangerous and wild place.

The Ice Angels kept a close formation, their eyes darting in all directions, ever watchful for signs of danger. As they ventured further into the jungle, they began to encounter the creatures that inhabited this mysterious place. Enormous reptilian beasts, with scales as hard as steel and teeth like daggers, prowled through the undergrowth. These were Tier V monsters, and their presence was a clear indication of the region's dangerous nature.

Mia's group was the first to engage one of these fearsome creatures. A monstrous reptile lunged at them from behind a cluster of trees, its maw wide open. Mia and her team sprang into action, their years of combat experience enabling them to react swiftly. They met the beast's charge with coordinated strikes and spells, inflicting heavy damage and forcing the creature to retreat. It was a tough fight, but their teamwork and combat abilities proved formidable.

Reign and the others simply looked from the side as Mia had told them not to help them if the situation wasn't too dangerous. Even if they were to try and help them and stop the monster, however, it would have been difficult as the monster's speed and agility surprised all of them.

Reign's team soon encountered their own group of Tier V monsters. Three massive, ape-like creatures, their muscles rippling with power, emerged from the dense foliage. They bared their fangs and let out a guttural roar, a challenge to any who dared to intrude upon their territory.

Reign's eyes narrowed as he assessed the situation. These monsters were certainly more powerful than the ones they were used to facing, which was a given considering they were Tier V monsters. They had to be careful and work together to overcome this challenge.

Wolf and Shadow moved to the forefront, their weapons at the ready. Shadow, with his incredible speed, engaged one of the apes, darting in and out to land precise strikes. Wolf, on the other hand, used his destructive power against the ape, causing the monster to scream in pain multiple times as his flames burned its flesh.

Reign smirked at another ape before charging at it with Beast notching an arrow behind him. Reign's swords and Beast's wind arrow arrived in the exact same moment, causing the ape be hit by the arrow as it deemed Reign and his swords a larger threat.

Tank and Greenie were fighting against a third one, and Laura was simply overseeing the battles, patiently waiting to see if anyone needed healing or help.

Despite the daunting power of the creatures, Reign and his team managed to defeat them, albeit with some exertion. After all, they were still more powerful than an average Tier V being, and they were fighting 2 vs 1, making it relatively easy for them to defeat the monsters.

The battle, however, further reinforced the need for caution and strategy in this new area. They couldn't underestimate the Tier V monsters' strength, and Tier VI creatures, if present, would be even more formidable. They knew that compared to a Tier VI monster, they were simply far too weak to go up against as even one such monster could decimate the entire group.

Reign would have to transform in order to stop the monster for a short period of time and hope that the others would be able to get far enough before he tried fleeing as well.

That was also the reason why they weren't targeting the flood dragon yet.

It was a Tier V monster, but it wasn't a normal Tier V monster. Not only was it at least a high-grade Tier V monster, but it was a raid boss, which meant that if they wanted to defeat it, they would need to either be peak Tier V combatants or even Tier VI or gain the help of about 20 more Tier V combatants that were mid-grade Tier V at the very least.

Since their goal was not to kill the dragon but for Beast to tame it, they were planning on doing it themselves, which meant that time was still not right for them to attempt that.

After the skirmish, they continued their exploration, venturing deeper into the jungle. The landscape was a maze of enormous trees, twisted vines, and strange, alien plants. Every step felt like an intrusion into the territory of these deadly creatures.

The further they went, the more they realized the vastness of this jungle region. It seemed to stretch on endlessly, with no signs of weaker monsters in sight. The tension in the group rose as they knew that this area was entirely dominated by Tier V monsters. 

One wrong move, and they might cause tens of Tier V monsters to charge at them, doing their best to slaughter them.

Going through the jungle like this made Reign and the others remember their time back in the black forest. The first time they had gone there, they thought they were careful enough, only for them to later be attacked by hundreds of Wood Folk, which led to them fleeing for their lives.

The tension present was palpable and Mia and the angels were faring worse than they were. The angels were all Tier IV combatants after all, and together with Mia, they could face up to 3 Tier V monsters and come out victorious, but if more attacked them, they knew that they would be killed.

In all honesty, the angels shouldn't even be present in the jungle, and they knew that they knew very well that they were not powerful enough right now and that they wouldn't be able to do much against the immense strength the monsters here possessed. The main reason they were called over was because Reign and the others weren't planning on going too deep inside the jungle today.

For today, they want to understand the jungle a bit more, see what kinds of monsters are present, as well as where the monsters gather and what areas are safer than others.

The jungle was very large, there were multiple hills and some mountains in the region, making it the second-largest region that Reign and the others had seen so far. With a region so big, it was highly possible that there were also Tier VI monsters present, although Reign and the others actually hoped that that wasn't the case. If there truly were Tier VI monsters present, then the danger of this region would be much higher than they initially believed it to be.

It would be dangerous to them, not to mention the other teams of the territory. If there truly were Tier VI monsters present, Reign and the others were ready to find another area that had Tier V monsters for them and the other groups to go and hunt in.

They could still somewhat withstand a Tier VI monster if they went all out, but other teams would only find themselves annihilated if faced with such an enemy.

"Any injuries?" Reign asked the angels who had just finished fighting another Tier V monster, this time managing to kill it.

"We're fine, but I don't know how much longer they'll be able to last, it's not just the battles, the mere atmosphere here is different, the auras of Tier V monsters are present in the entire jungle, which makes those below the tier to feel immense pressure and tension," Mia said as she walked over to Reign.

"Yeah, luckily we are nearly finished and will be going back, I doubt their state will change a lot."

"For the next trip over here, we should have one more Tier V combatant, and with you going with us as well, that will mean that we will have a total of 9 Tier V combatants."

"We can also bring M'azgara's elites, but they have all reached the limit and won't be able to level up without M'azgara leveling up further, even though she will get some exp from the monsters they kill, it will take her a lot to level up, so I'm thinking of bringing her with us as well."

"Why do you look so troubled when talking about it?" Mia asked with slight confusion on her face as Reign blinked twice in quick succession before chuckling.

"Simple, if we bring them, then that will mean we will have over 20 Tier V combatants on our side, which seems great, but such a large group can easily make the more powerful monsters of the area come to investigate, which can lead us to danger."

"No matter which option we pick, there will be danger involved, that is just the reality of this world we live in, as well as the constant hunting that we have to do in order to become more and more powerful," Mia said before she turned around and walked over to the other angels, leaving Reign to shake his head with a slight smile present.