Jake and the others were about to charge into the fray as they had been doing until now, but they unexpectedly wavered when they saw the small contingent of parasites protecting the Purgatory Artifact.
The twelve Hunters were the largest they had encountered so far, approaching 10 meters in height, and their bodies were now covered with a metallic shimmering chitin forming a natural armor.
This chitin and their entire limbs could extend, retract, and sharpen as they pleased, coming very close to the characteristics of the original Digestors, of which they were but a pale copy.
Yet Jake and his group didn't give them more than a passing glance. As big and beefy as they were, they were just small fry. What fully captured their attention this time were the three Controllers in the background.
For the question of when the Ordeal ends. In about ten chapters. Maybe two or three more if I add some details, but it shouldn't change much.
Edit non priv readers:
Sorry for this weekend, it's a huge failure as I partied hard with my friends and didn't do much.I didn't think I would have so much fun, so the weekend was really messed up. After the all-nighter on Friday, Saturday was already ruined and I wasn't much more efficient today.
I have one more day off tomorrow and I'll try to do as much as I can to make up for it. Even if it's not much consolation for you, I had a good time.