{Chapter: 172 Ice and Rock}
A massive, nightmarish entity loomed before them. It had the general structure of an octopus—but calling it an octopus would be an insult to the sheer terror it evoked. No octopus was this grotesquely enormous, nor did they inspire such an instinctual dread. The creature's colossal head, which took up most of its bulk, was dominated by a gaping maw filled with rows of razor-sharp, jagged teeth that gleamed with unnatural hunger.
It had seven—no, eight—immense tentacles, each as thick as an ancient tree trunk. But these were no ordinary appendages; each one ended in a grotesque secondary mouth, brimming with serrated fangs, twitching hungrily as if eager to latch onto prey.
Ada's voice trembled slightly as she took a step back. "What... what is this thing?"
William's gaze remained locked on the monstrosity. "A sea monster," he answered, his voice steady. A memory surfaced in his mind—an old movie, Deep Freeze, where a similarly monstrous creature terrorized its victims. But even that paled in comparison to the horror before him.
The sea monster let out a guttural, echoing roar that vibrated through the frozen landscape, rattling Ada's bones. Without warning, one of its enormous tentacles lashed out, whipping through the air with terrifying speed, aiming directly at William.
In the blink of an eye, William vanished.
The tentacle struck empty ice, the impact sending a violent tremor across the surface, causing fissures to spread outward.
William reappeared a few meters away, eyes narrowing. He turned to Ada. "There's no avoiding this fight. I wanted to get you to safety, but that doesn't seem possible here."
Ada hesitated for a split second, then shook her head, frustration and concern flickering across her face. "William, are you serious? That thing is massive. I know you're strong, but this is insane! Let's get out of here while we still can!"
William exhaled slowly, his lips curling into a smirk. "It would be a shame to just leave. No… I think I'll kill it."
Ada stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "You're crazy."
"Crazy?" William chuckled, his expression turning cold. "You'll see soon enough."
A sudden snap—then another—signaled the cracking of the ice beneath them as the sea monster moved, its immense bulk shifting effortlessly through the water. A massive tentacle lashed out again, aiming for William's position.
Once more, he vanished, sidestepping the attack with supernatural agility.
Ada's heart pounded as she clenched her fists. "Put me down," she demanded, her voice now calm but firm. "If you're going to fight, don't worry about me."
William nodded and dropped down, gently placing her on a solid patch of ice. She looked up at him, searching his face. "I want to see how exactly you plan to fight that thing."
His smirk widened. "Then watch closely."
He took a deep breath, then raised his arms. "Transformers—One State!"
A brilliant red light erupted from his body as seven deforemd-element particles shot into the air. They swirled and fused, creating an intricate, glowing pattern. Seven reddish particles of the Transformer element burst out from William's body, rising into the air and fusing freely.
Ada's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. "Wait… is that… a robot? No way…"
The transformation completed in mere seconds. A towering, ten-meter-tall metallic figure stood where William once was, the ice beneath his feet groaning under the sudden increase in weight. His new form gleamed under the dim light, exuding raw power.
William turned to her. "So? Do you think I can fight it now?"
Ada blinked rapidly, still trying to process what she was seeing. "You're William?"
"Of course," he replied casually.
She glanced nervously at the approaching sea monster. Even in this massive form, William still looked small compared to it. "Even now, you're still not big enough," she pointed out.
"Then let's go bigger."
A surge of blue light surrounded him. "Transformer—Doublet!"
A powerful particle storm erupted around him, enveloping his form. The energy crackled violently, whipping across the icy surface.
Inside the swirling storm, William's body grew larger, absorbing countless Transformium-element particles. The light intensified—then suddenly vanished.
The ice groaned in protest as an eighty-meter-tall Transformer Doublet landed upon it. Cracks spiderwebbed beneath his feet, the sheer weight threatening to shatter the surface entirely.
Ada gawked, completely stunned. "T-This… this is insane." "This..." Ada was completely stunned, "It's so big."
William's voice rumbled from above. "I'll lure it away. Stay put."
With every step, the ice shattered beneath him. He charged forward, his colossal black greatsword materializing in his hands. The sea monster screeched in defiance, and as if in response, a thirty-meter-long ice spear formed above its head—then shot toward William at breakneck speed.
William, still airborne, swung his greatsword. A flash of cold steel—CRACK!
The ice spear split in half, the fragments falling harmlessly to the sides.
The moment he landed, another attack followed—a massive, forty-meter-wide ice boulder hurtled toward him.
William's sword instantly morphed into an enormous shield. He braced himself.
BOOM!
The impact sent ice shards flying in all directions. Despite blocking it, the sheer force forced him back several steps. Before he could regain his stance, one of the sea monster's enormous tentacles whipped toward him again.
William's shield shifted back into his greatsword. "Alpaca!"
With a powerful swing—SLASH!
A gruesome crack echoed through the battlefield.
The severed tentacle fell onto the ice, black blood gushing like a fountain.
The sea monster let out a deafening, agonized roar, its remaining limbs thrashing wildly. Then, without warning, it disappeared—sinking beneath the icy waters.
William's eyes narrowed. "Trying to hide?"
He stepped forward, scanning the frozen surface. He could feel it down there, lurking.
A sudden boom! The ice beneath him exploded outward.
Several enormous tentacles burst through the surface, lunging toward him.
William reacted instantly. His left arm shifted, revealing an ion cannon. It hummed with energy before launching a concentrated energy blast directly at the monster.
The force of the explosion sent shockwaves rippling across the ice. A towering rock wall formed in an instant, blocking the attack.
William's eyes gleamed. "Rock and ice?" he mused aloud. "So, this thing has two corpse beads. Interesting."
A sudden, sharp crack!
The ice beneath his feet shattered completely. A jagged rock mountain burst forth, nearly impaling him.
In a split second, William's entire body broke apart into the Transformium-element particles. He reformed several meters away, landing smoothly. The place where he had just stood was now occupied by a towering spire of stone.
He exhaled sharply. "Tired of playing hide-and-seek yet?"
Lifting his greatsword, he slashed downward—SLASH!
A deep, jagged rift split the ice apart, revealing the dark waters beneath.
Without hesitation, William leapt into the freezing depths.
From a distance, Ada watched in stunned silence. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. "This is ridiculous… absolutely insane…"
Beneath the surface, the sea monster bared its monstrous teeth, its many tentacles flaring outward in challenge.
William rushed forward. His black greatsword slashed through the water—only to meet an enormous, conjured rock barrier.
A tentacle slammed into him, sending him backward.
William steadied himself. A slow, confident grin spread across his face.
"You're the strongest mutant monster I've faced in this world," he admitted. "But that won't change your fate."
His greatsword thinned, its form shifting. The blade grew longer—three hundred meters long.
William surged forward, his voice booming through the abyss.
William rushed forward, roared, and slashed with the slender sword in his hand. ..
"Time to end this!"
His sword arced downward—
*****
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