[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-solflare-the-painter-s-secret":3,"chapter-solflare-the-painter-s-secret-solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-97":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Solflare: The Painter's Secret",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1322925,1757,"Chapter 97: Use Your Fist","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-97",97,"\u003Cp>\"You’re lucky I saw its shadow on the wall early,\" Prince said, dropping the stone and breathing heavily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s anger vanished and was replaced by a cold wash of shame while he kept his gaze locked on the ichor splayed at the side of the smashed claw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could form a word, the comms unit flared to life again after twitching for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mr. Lee’s hologram appeared, shattering the lingering dread. \"New Objective,\" it glitched, then stabilized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A critical supply drop for forward operation is scheduled. The only viable landing zone is Pass Sigma-Nine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Pass Sigma-Nine, what place is that?’ Leon thought as he turned a sharp gaze at Lieutenant Prince, then back at the hologram.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Satellite scans indicate it is currently occupied by a Howler nest. You have six hours to clear the zone to secure the drop. The coordinates have been transmitted to your wristbands.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hologram vanished, leaving the new coordinates burning on their wristbands and the echo of the unspoken words hanging in the air: Failure is not an option.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Maybe this will be straightforward.’ Leon’s expression shifted from weary to focused as he stared at the coordinates glowing on his wristband.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they stepped out of the bunker, a wet, clinging air slammed into them and soaked through their suits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lieutenant Prince inhaled it deeply, as if it were a favorable perfume, then broke into a sprint without a word. His form quickly turned into a dark blur against the gray rock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon groaned inwardly and pushed forward, his boots slipping slightly on the damp stone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After every ten minutes, Leon’s lungs burned, forcing him to stop. He bent over, his hands on his knees, and gasped for air before shoving himself forward again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The landscape remained like a nightmare of jagged rock and deep fissures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time they reached the mouth of Pass Sigma-Nine, the very air turned hostile. A subsonic hum vibrated up from the ground, through the soles of his boots, and into his bones, making his teeth ache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A loud roar echoed as the first Howler emerged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It peeled itself from a shadowed crevice. The howler was a grotesque parody bat whose size was like that of a large dog. Its rubbery wings were fused to a bloated, pulsating sac that took up most of its torso.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sac glowed with a sickly internal light that dissolved the world when it opened its maw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A wave of concussive force hit Leon like a physical blow that caused his vision to fracture into double images.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stumbled sideways, boots scraping for purchase. He clutched his head, fingers digging into his temples.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s foot kicked a loose stone forward. The stone streaked past the creature, crashed against the canyon wall, and created a shower of sparks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"STOP!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lieutenant Prince screamed when he saw the howler’s vocal sac glowing and pulsing. He raised one arm and cut the air in a swift downward arc.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Howler’s scream choked into a gurgling silence. It spasmed violently, its wings flapping uselessly, and then crashed to the canyon floor, twitching.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Control your actions!\" Prince snapped. \"They are converters, not targets for brute force!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, more howlers stirred. At first, it was a dozen, then hundreds, then thousands peeled out of the blasted rock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their vocal sacs glowed like malevolent lanterns. The collective subsonic hum rose to a deafening roar as they descended.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lieutenant Prince threw precise strikes against the swarm. Leon stood there, panic flooding him and making him feel useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the faces of his mother, his sisters, Zoe, Mr. Lee, and his final message, and the words he saw in the black book: Use your fist struck his mind, he lowered his gaze to his fists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He closed his eyes, picturing himself training with his father when he was little.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Watch out!\" Prince shouted as a howler dove for him. Even as the warning cut through the air, Leon remained still, eyes shut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beast threw its claws at Leon’s head. The moment the claw reached Leon, he clenched his knuckles and slammed his fist into the beast’s shoulder with a brutal punch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>CRUNCH.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A shockwave traveled through his fist and into the beast’s body. The howler’s vocal sac ruptured violently and collapsed in on itself with a wet final gasp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The creature fell silent and was broken instantly. Leon weaved through the chaotic screams like a whirlwind of controlled violence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each punch he threw was a precise, concussive detonation that ruptured the howler’s vocal sacs without a hint of wasted energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lieutenant Prince, who had been preparing to create a wide-area destruction, paused. His head tilted in analytical surprise as he watched Leon’s brutal movements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the last howler fell from the sky, a heavy, ringing silence descended upon the canyon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon stood there panting, his knuckles smeared with ichor, and his body thrumming from exhausted depletion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The distant hum of the automated supply drone above grew louder as it flew through the now-clear pass. As they watched the supply drone, a soft chime from their wristbands confirmed their success.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[OBJECTIVE: CLEAR CANYON PASS – COMPLETED]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[RATION CREDITS: +50]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon let out a breath he had held tightly. ’Fifty credits.’ He became so excited as his mind flashed a picture of his mother and sister.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he caught sight of the last howler, which had been wounded and half-crushed under a fallen rock, its vocal sac deflated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon grabbed a stone and threw it at the creature. A wave shot past the twitching howler, striking the unstable cliff face directly above the creature’s body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a fleeting second, nothing happened. Then a deep, groaning crack echoed through the canyon, louder than any howler’s scream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A web of fractures spiderwebbed across the rock face with terrifying speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lieutenant Prince’s head snapped up from checking his wristband. His eyes widened as his clinical composure shattered into alarm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He froze, staring at the crumbling wall of stone now poised directly above them.\u003C\u002Fp>",1009,"2026-06-05T19:15:29.583Z",1,"novelbin.me","6194038d66a3ee7cf16d80354a54a01e9e048dfc5dace6acaaeb883dd00d823b","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-98","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-96",272,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsolflare-the-painter-s-secret-cover.jpg"]