SSS Awakening: Creating Primordial Beasts To Be My Summons-Chapter 13: Nebula Rams vs Ashfield Zone Three

The third zone resembled the second.

The difference was that ash fell heavily here, dimming one’s sight, and both Ashbound Hounds and Cinderhorn Rams roamed the area.

As one would expect from a Level 1 Dungeon’s Third Zone, there were monsters of level 10-14 present.

Where most people would be worried, Cohen had Perception of Gray to bypass the blinding ash fog and the agility to move through the ash sea.

He also had a group of monsters whose race had evolved from creatures already built to survive here.

These monsters were also Rare Tier, allowing them to stand against higher-leveled Common Tier monsters.

Not to mention the Level 15 Rift Split Slime supporting them from range.

[Level: 9 (2,656/8,100 EXP)]

"I should be able to level up if we all go wild together."

Cohen flexed his fingers around his daggers as movement stirred through the ash.

Fifteen enemy monsters, a mix of Level 10-14 Ashbound Hounds and Cinderhorn Rams, fixed their dull eyes on Cohen’s twenty newly Baptised Primordial beasts.

Cohen moved, his will passing through the bonds of The Priest and The Baptised.

The Ashen Nebula Rams—their bodies shimmering in shades of violet and indigo—responded instantly.

With a synchronized stomp, they launched forward, their attack commands running through the mental link Cohen had with the collective.

Instead of kicking up grey ash, they charged, leaving a glowing trail of purple-blue nebula energy, turning their path into a series of dangerous, delayed explosions that forced the enemy horde to split and flank.

As efficient as it was, the Rams had one to three usage of it within a small period.

Cohen met the charge.

A Cinderhorn Ram, its ash-fused horns aimed for his chest, came first. He pivoted on a dime, his boosted Agility a blur through the thick ash.

The ram’s attack sailed past, but before it could recover, one of the Level 9 Nebula Rams burst through the lingering nebula trail.

The Nebular Hide shimmered, causing the Level 14 Ram’s retaliatory headbutt to feel sluggish, the force passing partially through the cosmic matter of its coat.

The Nebula Ram’s own charge slammed into the older Ram’s side, the nebula trail behind it erupting into a crackle of raw energy that staggered the enemy.

Simultaneously, a pack of three Ashbound Hounds lunged at the flank of Cohen’s formation.

But a sturdy Level 8 Nebula Ram veered to intercept.

It didn’t charge, but used its newly acquired bulk to block the Hounds.

When one Level 12 Hound leaped for its throat, it lowered its head and allowed the attack to phase slightly through its Nebular Hide, dealing little damage.

It then snapped its head up, delivering a precise blow with its black, hollow horn that sent the Hound spinning into the ash.

Cohen was everywhere at once.

He sliced deep into the haunch of an Ashbound Hound and, as a Ram charged, he met it with a Null Aura-reinforced elbow to the temple.

The ram stumbled, but the blow was not fatal.

His side was holding the line—his Nebula Rams were fast, hard to hit cleanly, and their Nebula Charges turned the battlefield into a minefield.

But the sheer tenacity and higher base level of the Zone Three monsters meant every kill was a hard-won trade.

They were constantly surrounded, and his Mana was steadily dropping as his Null Aura reacted to the sustained threat.

A Hound managed to tear through the Nebula Ram line and targeted Cohen.

Before Cohen could bring his daggers to bear, the Hound was struck from the side by the explosion of the previous Level 9 Nebula Ram’s trail, sending it tumbling.

The Nebula Ram, with a silent, confident twitch of its head, returned to the main fight.

The fight had settled into a brutal stalemate. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Cohen’s tactical superiority and his Rams’ Rare-Tier traits were battling the superior raw stats and numbers of the Zone Three horde.

They were hurting the enemy, but the enemy was not breaking.

The battle had slowed.

Neither side was breaking. It would take time.

Seeing the fight drag on, Cohen’s silent guardian Bobby, perched in the distance, made its decision.

Without a word from Cohen, the violet slime’s pseudopod eyes narrowed.

A miniature black rift opened directly above a Level 12 Cinderhorn Ram.

It wasn’t a stone this time.

A common, armor-piercing arrow—one of the dozens Bobby had absorbed—emerged.

Accelerated by Bobby’s control, the arrow hit the Ram’s neck with the impact of a high-caliber round, punching through its hardened wool and sending it into a lifeless heap.

The tide turned instantly.

The sound of the arrow’s impact was a sharp crack, immediately followed by the silent, lethal efficiency of Bobby’s attack pattern.

A volley of spatial gates opened—one, two, then three—all appearing in an instant.

Above the Ashbound Hounds, behind the Cinderhorn Rams, and even emerging from the swirling ash at the monsters’ feet.

The arrows, powered by a Level 15 Epic-Tier creature, bypassed the enemy’s high defense and raw strength, striking vital points with unerring accuracy.

A Level 14 Hound, locked in a fierce exchange, suddenly collapsed mid-snarl as an arrow pierced its temple.

Another Ram, stunned by a nearby Nebula explosion, was finished when an arrow emerged from a spatial tear just inches from its heart.

Cohen, recognizing the overwhelming advantage, roared and threw himself back into the fray, his daggers now seeking the exposed, stunned targets Bobby’s projectiles had created.

The subtle defensive pull of his Null Aura instantly sharpened into an aggressive edge, channeling all its energy into his blades.

The final Ashbound Hound, a Level 13, tried to retreat, but the familiar Level 9 Ram cut off its escape with a heavy slam.

As the Hound turned to face its new threat, Cohen was already upon it, delivering a final, clean cut with his dagger that ended the fight.

Silence returned to the thick, grey air of Zone Three.

In under thirty seconds, Bobby had converted a balanced, grueling fight into a decisive, rapid slaughter.

The Nebula Rams stood among the ash, their cosmic trails slowly fading.

Cohen planted his dagger in the ash, breathing heavily as the system notifications began to chime.

[You have gained Experience Points!]

[Level: 9 (6,193/8,100)]

Cohen looked up at Bobby, who bounced once in the distance.

"Well, that was... comprehensive."

- - - - -

Cohen moved to the next dungeon after drinking a total of four more potions.

He entered it, his main targets this time being the Zone Two monsters.

- - - - -

Dungeon Name: Ironvein Mine

Level: 1

Description: An old mine that became something else. The cart tracks are still there, the tools still rusted in their alcoves—but whatever worked here is long gone and what moved in after doesn’t belong. The air smells like iron and something older.

Monster Level: Level 3-14

Monster Rank: Common

- - - - -

The tunnels were wide enough here, the cart tracks running straight ahead into the dark.

Before Cohen perceived any being, he heard them.

A dry, skittering mass of sound moving through the walls.

The walls trembled slightly.

The Rustfur Rats of this dungeon don’t wait. They come from everywhere at once.

"Rats. I always hated handling their corpses.

"That’s why you all will be facing them this time!"

Cohen hadn’t moved from where he spawned.

Instead, the Baptised were arranged in front of him, ready to face their enemies in this narrow tunnel.

Pioneering the group was Bobby, then a Level 8 and Level 9 Nebula Ram flanking the slime.

"Those two behind Bobby, they seem to really want a name," he joked.

The next moment, a wave of rats descended into the narrow tunnel, flooding Cohen’s perception.