"Even if you look down on him, you should know his worth. And how capable are you? Hmph, humans, you think too highly of yourselves," said the Radiation Victims.
"If you want to challenge us, you'll need to find someone else first. You can't do it," replied the Stink Bug.
"Is that so? Then you must be afraid of me," Russell sneered.
"Ridiculous. We've never been afraid of anyone, and we certainly won't be afraid of you," the Stink Bug retorted.
"Of course, if you've made that decision, you'll likely regret it," the Radiation Victims interjected with a laugh.
"I don't know what regret means, but you will pay for killing someone here today."
Russell appeared calm on the surface, but his words were sharp and cutting.
"Humans, you bring trouble upon yourselves. Don't blame others for the path you've chosen," warned the Radiation Victims.
With a dull thud, the Stink Bug closed in, suddenly entering Russell's line of sight.
Russell did not underestimate his opponent; he quickly drew his Black Military Dagger and unleashed a fierce thrust with the curved blade.
A sound of metal clashing echoed as the dagger failed to penetrate even slightly, instead being blocked by the Stink Bug's tough skin.
Only a white mark was left on the hardened surface, and despite Russell exerting all his strength, he had not inflicted any significant damage.
"Hehehe, and you want to take on two of us? One of me is already too much for you. Now it's time for you to die!" The Stink Bug roared as it lunged forward once more.
"This may not be the case~"
The sticky Aura began to envelop his entire body, naturally spreading over the Black Military Dagger as well.
With a swift motion, he drew a graceful arc, this time using even less force than before. The Stink Bug smirked, dismissing the threat entirely, preferring to take it head-on and end it all.
The sharp sound of the blade slicing through the air mixed with the harsh scrape of hardened skin as they once again clashed.
"Ouch~" Suddenly, the Stink Bug clutched his abdomen, letting out a pained cry.
He had actually sustained an injury there, enough for the Stink Bug to vocalize his discomfort.
"Hey, what happened? That little bit of force shouldn't be anything to you. Stop pretending," shouted Radiation Victims.
"You don't know anything! I'm really hurt this time; it's different from our first encounter. Look at my abdomen—will I have a scar?" The Stink Bug hurriedly moved his hand away, revealing a gaping wound on his belly.
It was cracked open; although not life-threatening, it seemed to have bruised the skin beneath.
Blood trickled from within, and the Stink Bug's pale face made it clear he wasn't faking.
"I believe you now. You never lie; I can see that," nodded Radiation Victims. "It seems serious. How about we join forces?"
"Hmph, that's exactly what I was thinking," replied the Stink Bug with a grin, striking a fierce pose. "Since you've come this far, let's do it."
Silence enveloped the scene as the eye on a short antenna on the forehead blinked rapidly.
The folds of the head wriggled swiftly, resembling countless insects crawling across its surface, clearly visible through the creases, their numbers frightening.
"I can scare even myself when I get serious," the Radiation Victim said fiercely.
The two sides moved, one advancing while the other followed. The Radiation Victim charged ahead, with the Stink Bug trailing behind.
"Hey!"
In a flash, the sharp Black Military Dagger was drawn again, slicing through the air with a blur.
This time, it struck nothing but air. At the moment the Radiation Victim vanished, Russell felt an ominous chill creeping up his back.
From the folds of the Radiation Victim's head, four or five white worms emerged, each sporting sharp fangs.
They emitted a faint green glow and writhed like soft silkworms, each about the length of a finger.
Five beams of green light shot out from different entry points, piercing directly into Russell's skin.
"Wow~~"
It was precisely because the Military Dagger had missed that Russell soon felt something strange in his shoulder. He let out a muffled groan of pain but managed to keep silent.
"Hey, does it hurt? You don't look so good. It's my little bugs," the Radiation Victim chuckled. "You've realized it too late. They will invade your bone marrow, starting to destroy your support from deep within your bones. By then, your whole body will fall apart. Even if you survive, you won't be able to move a single finger for the rest of your life."
"Good job, now taste my iron fist."
The Stink Bug's figure approached, raising a fist with brute force and sending Russell flying.
"Ugh~"
"Meat projectile~"
The Stink Bug crouched down and leaped into the air with tremendous weight, crashing back down in the opposite direction of where Russell had floated away.
"Bang~"
Russell's body flew across the ground, leaving a deep scratch behind.
"Yay, a hundred points!" the Stink Bug shouted excitedly.
"Is it really that funny, Stink Bug?"
In an instant, Russell, dragging his sickly body, managed to get back up, supporting himself on his knees to stand firm.
Gradually, the aura emanating from him grew stronger.
"It’s impossible! My bugs should have already destroyed the support of your bones," exclaimed Radiation Victims in shock.
"Surprised?" Russell laughed. "There's even more to astonish you."
As Aura intensified, a tearing scream suddenly echoed through the air.
Then, five spots on Russell's back slowly erupted, revealing blood-sated worms.
The hair follicles of the worms were dark red, and they had doubled in size from their original form.
Now they were as thick as a thumb.
As the area for movement became increasingly restricted, these worms soon found it impossible to burrow any deeper.
Moreover, the air hidden within the bone marrow was gradually being siphoned away.
Before long, they all emerged.
The worms fell to the ground and began to wriggle slowly.
Russell immediately stomped down, crushing the five worms into a puddle of blood and mud.
Radiation Victims' forehead twitched in anger, and his muscles quivered slightly.
But it had no way to counter this; such a tactic was hardly worth mentioning compared to its signature attack.
Indeed, it was hardly worth mentioning.
The Stink Bug did not understand what was happening. It certainly did not think that the series of attacks just now were merely a result of its own cleverness.
"This is impossible, impossible! They wouldn't come out on their own. What did you do?" the Radiation Victims cried out in agony, clutching their head as if the dead bugs had some effect on them too.
"Why should I tell you?" Russell replied with a smile.
Though only he knew the reason, he still didn’t want to share it.
Because he wanted the Radiation Victims to leave this world with regrets; that seemed rather amusing to him.
"Heh heh, don’t get too cocky. That last attack was just a warning; the real challenge is yet to come," the Stink Bug giggled, seemingly unaware of the situation, and suddenly lunged forward.
"Don't!" the Radiation Victims tried to stop it but failed.
The Stink Bug moved far too quickly, and despite straining their eyes, they could not halt the Stink Bug's speed.
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