LoRG 3

He knew that Fates were tied to the Class of an individual Or at least heavily influenced by them A Class was perhaps the spiritual mother of the Fate if images were the father Now to see it move all of the worries that Randidly held about his Class suddenly made themselves apparent

Randidly hadnÆt thought about the process too deeply but his brow furrowed as his senses quickly examined his Class A Class that was divided into six sessions with five other interest groupsÆ adding to the original working that he had made There were a lot of dreams tied into Randidly Ghosthound A lot of names for the wishes that were embodied in his Class

Lord of the Baleful Wood

Loyal Benefactor of the Weak

Lighthouse of the Boundless Worlds

Lodestone of the Black Wanting

Lesson for those of Brittle Will

Longing of the Banished Wind

Will each of those influence how the Fate turns out Randidly wondered as he looked at the Class as it slowly began to float forward Although there was spaceÆ of a sort in the inner world as most of it was just densely bent Aether shapes that recorded the conduits by which Randidly could produce energy So it was without surprise that Randidly watched his Class ghost up through the pyramid and superimpose itself over the tight ball of Nether that caged the swirling power and meaning The humming soon turned into resonance

The three legs continued to dig deeply at the wells of power and meaning that Randidly had prepared he had quite a bit to mortgage for this Fate whatever it ended up being His inner world continued to rumble with the furious churning of energy The light in the apex seemed to reach the peak and began to dim darkening until Randidly could see that there was now a slowly tumbling cube of light floating in the bubble

Energy continued to pour upward The whole thing began to shake Randidly stabilized the Aether and wove an increasingly complex network of Nether through the machine to create his Fate More and more branches snaked outward springing from some deep insight that Randidly didnÆt have the time to dwell on

Congratulations Your Skill Aether Manipulation has grown to Level 206

Congratulations Your Skill Nether Ritual has grown to Level 116

Under RandidlyÆs constant ministrations the legs of the pyramid began to settle down Then suddenly Randidly blinked as he pulled his focus back from addressing problems and saw the whole of what he had made ThatÆs why itÆs getting more balanced IÆm making the Nether look like a vein network Like this is a living thing

And because of that itÆs coming alive

Congratulations Your Skill Nether Ritual has grown to Level 117

Congratulations Your Skill Nether Ritual has grown to Level 118

Slowly the noise shifted from the dangerous rumbling of a machine asked to do more than what it is capable of to the satisfying rumble of an engine falling into a rhythm Power light meaning images all of it was ripped upward drawn into the steady current of the creation Randidly could feel it now growing within him taking over It was almost like he didnÆt even need to constantly brush the edges and help with repairs the creation of his Fate had become its own beast

Time rushed forward Randidly could feel it slipping past his fingers More and more power swirled upward

Before RandidlyÆs eyes more and more lights burned through his inner world and then slowly dimmed to a shape The process repeated several times as he lost himself in the cycle First a cube but then a rectangle a sphere a hoop a fluttering sheet and finally a pyramid

Suddenly the machine began to hiss as the ambient energy present in RandidlyÆs inner world finally reached the apex and began to fall the process was done Then in a surge of burning light violet static electricity arched between the six objects present at the apex

There was a crack and then all six blasted outward smashing into the sphere of Nether that he had erected Almost immediately cracks raced across the surface and the secondary arrays he had made around the bubble tried to cope with the pressure Randidly could only watch as five of those glowing shapes shattered the stabilizing arrays and rip out of his inner space Only one was rebuffed and tumbled back into the shatter bubble at the apex

The rest vanished to nothing before he could even react to their sudden exodus

Then the rectangle that remained floated downward toward RandidlyÆs consciousness He opened his eyes His fingers of his right hand tightened around something solid When he saw the object in his hand the System notification arrived

Slowly the edges of the object in RandidlyÆs hand turned to dust and fell away until a relatively plain object cast in rose gold lay in his palm

Congratulations Error your Class did not undergo a reckoning but you have successful passed the Reckoning Error you Class did not change

Congratulations You have condensed your Fate Warning due to an unexpected error multiple pieces of your Fates were condensed However they spread out and settled with the individual who most influenced portions of your Class Warning Fates will only appear if certain circumstances are met

Congratulations You have obtained the Fateset Paradox of the Alchemist Lvl 1

Paradox of the Alchemist With tools forged of the EarthÆs bones an alchemist seeks to weave with the fabric of dreams to make this world a better place Their goals are many and diverse some seek eternal life and some seek to turn lead into gold But all wish dearly to transmute beyond the bindings of their mortal coils

Yet the paradox of the alchemist is eternal If they are flawed are not all dreams that they can conceive of made of that same flawed flesh Can their hands not ultimately only wring more imperfections from the substance of this plane Without waiting for an answer they reach for the impossible

You who would walk this Path know that the prayer you have is without hope The cycle of this world is written into grander bedrock that you can comprehend To it the substance of you is feeble and transient To escape such bindings is a fantasy to fight it would turn your life into a nightmare Yet none can deny what you have accomplished thus far So for now good luck

Congratulations You have condensed the first Fateset in the history of the Nexus Due to unusual circumstances the pieces of your Fate have been split into six pieces Currently only the first piece will be active When certain criteria are met the second piece will activate and you can seek it out and obtain its power

Each piece of your Fateset levels individually The qualifications for obtaining the next piece of your Fateset will be obtained when you reach a sufficient total Level of the Fateset The qualification for obtaining your next piece of your Fateset will be obtained at reaching a Level of 100

Congratulations You have obtained the first piece of your Fateset the PhilosopherÆs Key Lvl 1 The PhilosopherÆs Key is carved of a powerful catalyst made to transmute the plentiful here into the often craved there With it you can unlock doors that donÆt exist and bind shut the very sky By relying on karma you can bridge the gap between two locations which you are familiar with and open a passage Although some substances can serve to slow you down as the key grows more potent no threshold will serve as a barrier

In addition due to possessing the PhilosopherÆs Key +3 Intelligence Wisdom and Focus per Level of your Class

With light fingers Randidly raised the object he was holding up to get a better look at it Sure enough it was a golden key that had appeared amidst the disintegrating rectangle Smooth hoop long shaft two blocky teeth sticking down toward the end it was an old fashioned key Yet as he felt the key in his hand it was heavy beyond belief

His hand trembled with the strain of holding it Every time he edge of the key moved with those small tremors Randidly felt the threads of karma catch on the tip tantalizing him to thrust the key forward with the intent to open up a portal

Even with that encouragement Randidly didnÆt give in immediately Instead he closed his eyes and brought his attention to the feeling of the key There had been a lot in the notifications from the System and a lot that Randidly didnÆt understand yet He had poured two Fates and an entire worldÆs world of potential into this and it had been split off into so many pieces

So Randidly calmly focused on the key and tried to sense familiarity within it One step at a time

Very quickly Randidly found it Both the touch of Yggdrasil and Ignition Essence were present here From Ignition Essence Randidly could feel the sudden leap of genius that could connect two very distant points From Yggdrasil Randidly felt a strange stability to create a door that could be opened rather permanently

That made Randidly shiver A permanent door if he could connect distant places

In addition he found the heavy influence of ChulroonÆs Chisel in the construction of such a Fate So slightly reassured by the familiar influences Randidly thrust the key forward into the fabric of the universe with a focused intent He could clearly feel existence around him shudder as something grand within the key activated itself It was difficult to turn the key so difficult that Randidly had to bring his metallic arm over and heave on the flimsy looking golden hoop at the end Slowly the key turned

A portal opened Randidly looked calmly through the portal to his favorite vista from the mountain over Donnyton It was currently raining on Earth More notifications popped up as he felt the chilly air flow through the portal

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 2

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 3

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 4

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 36

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 37

I had heard that your Fate will grow quickly if you already possess powerful images but Randidly bared his teeth at the portal to Earth that hung in the air in front of him This is a good start no

Chapter 1174

Uh oh Uh oh Octavius Shrike hissed in growing alarm as he looked at the carefully calibrated instruments he had arrayed in front of him His mastery of Aether had been stretched to the limits to make all these methods to keep track of the slippery and paranoid Randidly Ghosthound And now those instruments were braying out alarms

Something had happened Something big

His fingers carefully wove a series of tight runic sigils in order to control the news but the few seconds edge Octavius had over the overlay System wasnÆt enough to allow him to suppress this news So Octavius frantically tried to delay while he parsed apart the same dense Aether communication that the overlay System was dealing with And it took Octavius several seconds to understand what he was looking at

Randidly Ghosthound had broken another mold he had created a Fateset Octavius honestly didnÆt even know what that meant but the Aether was very clear there was a Fate that was part of a set Octavius could look at this optimistically because this wasnÆt Randidly transgressing the rules of the System for an additional time but it was also so much worse than that Because this news was nowhere near as insignificant as some confusion and complaints from citizens of the Nexus who had been cheated out of their roles as Champions or Nemesai

This was an achievement Progress A possible Path for evolution in the System After Randidly had done it the Council of the Nexus would convene and discuss what led to it and how it could be encouraged in the future Especially if it was determined that there was power in creating a Fateset

Randidly would be rewarded for this And that reward would come with a lot of strings and attention

Very quickly Octavius Shrike implemented his contingency plan In his attempts to keep the details of what was going on within his Cohort quiet Octavius had prepared several distractionÆ events that would serve to delay the placement of addressing Randidly Ghosthound on the agenda for the Council Due to the magnitude of this achievement Octavius released all of them at once Because if he couldnÆt stop the meeting from being scheduled Randidly would be thrust into the spotlight

Now before he had finished growing And the monsters of the Nexus would devour him

You are more trouble than you are worth Octavius hissed as he frantically used shortcuts to input his information into the Grand Nexus Calendar But in his heart he didnÆt believe that statement He picked up a small wooden bowl of coffee for a fortifying sip and then continued to work After all Randidly had given him the first glimmer of hope he had for decades

How long had Octavius been a middle manager Struggling just for this chance to become Overseer of an entire Cohort It was a chance of a lifetime And besides the pittance the Nexus would reward him per soldier that rose from his Cohort the real benefit was the chance to make an amicable relationship with someone powerful while they were still growing into that power

That was the true opportunity that being an Overseer presented And Octavius was determined not to miss it especially because the whole reason he was having difficulty was how exceptional Randidly Ghosthound ended up being

Octavius had never seen anyone grow in such a unique way as Randidly Ghosthound Which was why despite the extra work it meant for him Octavius would do everything short of breaking a rule in order to protect him

Unfortunately it seemed that his tiny distractions werenÆt enough This achievement was one that that System took very seriously An emergency meeting was being scheduled despite the distractions Octavius had prepared The Aether streams converged and the schedule was immediately changed

OctaviusÆs heart trembled as he saw the ripple through the Grand Nexus Calendar the monolithic existence which determined all of the actions of the Nexus One week from today was the final date of the meeting

Discuss the situation of Randidly Ghosthound

Octavius grimaced Just from that name it was clear that someone else was manipulating the overlay System to investigate him Someone else wanted this investigation Which was problematic because

There was another ripple The event disappeared as though it had never been there

Very gradually a frozen Octavius began to thaw Too many events too quickly had rendered him jittery so he took another fortifying sip from his coffee bowl Removing an event from the Grand Nexus Calendar was something that could be done in three ways By a majority vote of the Council by executive power of a current or former chairperson of the Council or as an emergency measure by one of the many special Envoys that had performed extraordinary merit for the System and had existed in the Nexus for years

As it was the abrupt disappearance probably wouldnÆt even be noticed by many Not unless someone was watching Randidly Ghosthound as closely as Octavius had been And in this case there were two individuals who were closely watching the GhosthoundÆs growth Someone who wanted to bring him to the attention of the Council and someone who did not

Obviously a quorum hadnÆt been reached to cast a vote so it seemed to Octavius that the latter individual was likely more powerful than the former if they were able to knock the event off the calendar But still

Although the situation was delayed it was only a matter of time before Randidly endured the scrutiny of the Nexus Council One event could be removed but the System had made a note of RandidlyÆs achievement It couldnÆt be avoided forever

Well at least no one knows that IÆm watching too Octavius tried to comfort himself But the thought made him somewhat sad

Randidly frowned at the open portal in front of him that let him see down the slope toward Donnyton He could see the terraced living quarters along the mountain ridge and the bustling streets that sprawled out around the low hill that was the center of Donnyton South and East were brightly lit shops and processing facilities slowly fading into intermittent farms and orchards as you moved farther away from the city proper Up to the North and West the industrial district spewed smog up into the air steadily churning along The clang of hammers on metal echoed up even from this distance

If Randidly narrowed his eyes it was possible to see up even farther North and catch a fleeting glimpse of the sinkhole he had created in the challenge against Donnyton His Grim Intuition flooded out of the open portal and slowly settled down across all of Donnyton Even on a rainy day it was filled with business flowing in every direction A mild drizzle couldnÆt slow this place down

It was the original fort of Donnyton on the hill that drew RandidlyÆs eye next the seat of the Village Spirit and the place where they had resisted the hordes of monsters from that first week after the Village was founded It was somewhat nostalgic to see that they had left the original wooden palisade that he and Sam had worked on together It was a reminder of much simpler times

Times where Randidly had been positively naive Times when the System and the Creature were enemies that he thought he understood

Been almost six years now for me Randidly shook his head Then he refocused on the real point of interest the worn golden key that was hanging in the air turned 90 degrees counterclockwise

Chewing on his lip Randidly looked back up to the portal Having the capability to create this was certainly a boon but he was unsure whether it would be wise to use it in the short term After all Randidly wasnÆt sure what sort of method that the Nexus would use to make sure he served out his sentence on the frontlines Would it just be eventually be reported when he disappeared or was there a more direct observation on all of the soldiers present

Obviously going into his Soulskill was fine he left his body in the real world while he went within himself But if he went to Earth his body would be physically absent from the frontlines Was that something that they would notice

Shaking his head Randidly decided not to risk it Besides he had things to do quite soon here on the frontlines He checked Absolute Timing and was shocked to discover that there were only seventeen minutes until he was scheduled to meet at the Headquarters

Least I made it in time Randidly grinned at the air then looked down at the key That caused his smile to fade somewhat In terms of usefulness the key was definitely powerful As he continued to hold it Randidly could sense that it was possible to lock unlock or create a portal with it He wasnÆt exactly sure of the functions of the first two but the power to make the portal hinted that these abilities couldnÆt be simple

Still it was a slightly convoluted Fate And one that meant he had to gather several more pieces of it to unlock its full power

Also how am I supposed to find pieces of my Fate from individuals that are dead Randidly scratched his chin and sighed His hand tightened on the key and forced it to turn back to an upward position closing the portal to Earth

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 38

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 39

But if all I need to do is reach Level 100 it looks like it wonÆt be long until I get to the next piece of my Fate Randidly carefully brought his PhilosopherÆs Key to his waist as though to hang it from his SunÆs Teardrop Belt but his movements slowed as a thought occurred to him

With flashing eyes Randidly raised the key once more and thrust it forward into the air Threads of karma thrummed lightly as he moved it steadily forward but Randidly ignored them Calmly breathing Randidly went through the doors he could open one by one looking for the place he wanted It was only after Randidly had gone through dozens of threads of karma that he found it The key hummed to life and Randidly created a portal

Or tried to His breath hissed through his teeth as Randidly gripped the small golden loop and did his best to force the key to slowly turn opening a portal to Tellus

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 40

Yet after a small wiggle Randidly could push it no further He began to sweat as both arms strained against the resistance to bridging the gap His hands flexed and trembled Shaking his head Randidly released his grip on the key and simply held a finger against the end of the key this was never about brute strength the problem here was image

Now that Randidly focused on it he could feel how this key could act as a powerful catalyst to lend power to his image Ignition Essence and Yggdrasil became a heavy presence at his back as he activated his Willpower The key trembled again Yet it could only tick a few more degrees forward unable to completely bridge the distance

There was too much standing in the way between Randidly and Tellus

Before he tired himself out Randidly removed the key from the threads of karma and hung it carefully from his belt It seemed like it wasnÆt an omnipotent tool as Randidly could clear feel some sort of veil acting as a resistance to bridging the gap in this case Knowing that Tellus had made a special deal to skip the Third Calamity Randidly felt anxious for what was occurring there However whether it was the Calamity or the fact that a deal was made Randidly couldnÆt currently create a portal to check

But perhaps someday as I grow stronger Randidly looked down at the key Even only hanging from his waist it was incredibly heavy Yet as Randidly grew used to it it became apparent that this wasnÆt a physical weight but a mental one It weighed on anyone who looked at it The image contained within was dense and complex

But anyway I donÆt want to be late Randidly cracked his neck and carefully crawled out of the small alcove in the orange stone ground While he hurried toward headquarters his mind rapidly sifted through what he had learned from condensing his own Fate

And he began making plans to help Lady Iellaya remake her own

Chapter 1175

Lady Iellaya covered her smile with her hand as Lord Miln glared at the recently arrived Randidly Ghosthound Lord MilnÆs eyes were so cold that the temperature within the tent immediately dropped several degrees

You are late Do you have any idea the energy I had to expend in order to maintain the balance This is an incredibly delicate procedure boy Please donÆt make me regret inviting you to join us Lorn MilnÆs eyes were narrowed into slits as Randidly stood at attention in front of Lord MilnÆs traditional desk

As usual Lord Miln leaned against his heavy wooden desk looking down in annoyance at Randidly Ghosthound He had only been late by a few scant minutes but Lady Iellaya clearly knew that Lord Miln wouldnÆt miss this chance to bully this Heretic who had managed to somehow recover his body Due to the edge of genuine anger in Lord MilnÆs eyes Lady Iellaya mused that it must have really bothered their Supreme Commander that it had happened

Good Lady Iellaya flexed her feathers and banished the cold that had begun to coil around her It cheers me to see him so vexed It proves he has weaknesses

Lady Iellaya prepared herself for the need to intervene when the moment of pressure stretched into thirty seconds as Lord Miln silently regarding Randidly with cruel intent Some portion of his image swelled in the air constricting the surrounding space and freezing the weakness out of the area But Lady Iellaya was surprised to note that Randidly Ghosthound endured the pressure without comment His eyes were clear and placid as he regarded Lord MilnÆs ire not giving an inch

His clothes werenÆt touched at all by the growing frost that crept across the ground

It wasnÆt like this was even a fraction of Lord MIlnÆs true strength This was just the displeasure that he allowed himself as a Commander But still it proved that the GhosthoundÆs strength had grown once again Perhaps significantly And the more that Lady Iellaya watched the way that pressure flowed around Randidly the more she realized that he had finally done it he had condensed his Fate

About damn time Which means that soon I can finally make use of all of this strength that I have

It was Cail TweocsÆ dry cough that finally ended the moment of extended tension Snorting Lord Miln turned and scanned the room well I suppose there is no helping it And no point in delaying any longer Since all of us are present let us begin Gather around the central array

There were five people standing in the room Lord Miln was obviously behind his desk while Lady Iellaya and Randidly were before the desk Off to the side was Cail who had his arms folded and was weirdly sending smiles in RandidlyÆs direction whenever he could

It was the fifth individual standing to the side of Lord MilnÆs desk that Lady Iellaya scrutinized as everyone began to slowly move He was tall and lightly muscled looking more like a dancer than a warrior of any sort At his waist were two ornate rapiers the hilts so studded with gems that Iellaya had to imagine that they were almost uncomfortable to grip He had short black hair a straight nose and dark green eyes

Almost in spite of herself another smile began pulling at the edges of Lady IellayaÆs mouth She cast a sidelong smirk toward Randidly who regarded the young man who had been standing at the edge of Lord MilnÆs desk with a frown

Because the other young man had more than a passing resemblance to Randidly Ghosthound Although their builds were somewhat different they were the same height and had a face that was close enough to confuse the two of them When the group shuffled together around the array the two young men were next to each other For a brief moment Randidly and this doppelganger made eye contact

The doppelganger looked away first seemingly without any interest in Randidly Then he closed his eyes apparently content to wait for Lord Miln to speak further instructions For his part RandidlyÆs mouth twisted into a frown

In an extremely rare move Lord Miln walked around his desk and joined the group in the center of the tent he glared at everyone in turn his gaze softening somewhat when he looked at Cail Tweocs who maintained some distance from the central four IÆve maintained this precarious balance for long enough so there isnÆt much time I assume you all have a passing familiarity with Nether Princes Trust your instincts

With a wave of his hand he activated the Aether array between the four of them and revealed the Nether Prince Lady Iellaya wasnÆt sure what she had been expecting but seeing an androgynous looking child with blue skin laying at the center of the array was somewhat disconcerting For a split second Lady Iellaya would have sworn that she saw its chest moving The thing was alive

Without giving anyone a chance for anyone to grow fond of the delicate features of this Nether Prince Lord Miln made a cutting motion with his hand and the entire body of the child was split in half Its version of blood seeped across the ground There was a terrible moan that seemed to echo through the air and then several things happened at once

A blue black fog floated upward out of the corpse cracking with bolts of cobalt electricity

Across the whole of the frontlines a terrible roar filled with grief and madness rumbled outward Lady Iellaya couldnÆt resist turned and looking toward the battle lines As if they had been waiting for that signal the Nether forces began to move

It was a huge assault with her initial scan putting the vanguard at almost one million Nether Beasts More than enough to wipe them off the map

The dense energy will warp time to our advantage so no need to rush within due to the attacks Lord Miln stated calmly while cleaning some ichor off the hand he used to split the Nether Prince Just reach out and touch the energy and you will enter into the dream It will end naturally after 3 days pass within that space or one of us reaches the core of the memory or emotion Of course there is a lot of ambient energy present that you can refine to add to your image Find something that seems valuable and stick to it DonÆt bite off more than you can chew

That last comment was accompanied by a sharp look at Randidly who seemed relatively unconcerned Lord Miln snorted and gestured sharply to the Randidly look alike who reached out and touched the energy Instantly his body was pulled into the fog of energy and disappeared from next to them

Lady Iellaya shared a glance with Randidly after Lord Miln followed his protege Unable to restrain herself she cleared her throat lightly as she reached for the fog of energy Does this perhaps mean that Lord MilnÆs fascination with your body extends beyond the professional sense

Keep your eyes on the prize Randidly said with amusement Then he tilted his head toward the energy Besides what makes you so sure that he canÆt hear what we are saying right now Or are you fine if Lord Miln hears your joke

Lady Iellaya felt a flash of panic as she remembered the presence of the grinning Cail Tweocs but mastered it quickly enough In front of RandidlyÆs eyes she simply shrugged ThatÆs the way things currently stand between us It makes this invasion that’s about to happen all the more interesting no

RandidlyÆs mouth twisted and he gave Lady Iellaya a slow nod that was laden with hidden meaning it seemed that he was ready to finally deliver on his promises From his expression he intended to do it here Lady IellayaÆs heartbeat quickened Inside the Nether Prince

Then he reached for the energy and then disappeared Lady Iellaya quickly followed Although she teased him both understood that the Nether KingÆs looming assault was extremely dangerous They would need all the power they could get Without the boost that Lady Iellaya hoped to leverage from her new Class it would be difficult to perform heroically enough to earn a promotion from this battle

Hell Lady Iellaya didnÆt even know if her strength would be enough to survive the experience of facing a Nether King as it was Even Lord Miln seemed profoundly mortal in comparison to the dark mass of energy that was slowly tumbling down to crush their bases That was how feared an existence the Nether King was Lady Iellaya had never even met anyone in the Nexus who boasted about meeting a Nether King and living

It seemed most poor souls that faced a Nether King died

Obviously the forces of Aether had the Xyrt Brigade but they were far beyond the experience of most people And the Xyrt Brigade hadnÆt yet shown itself on the frontlines Although they were technically relying on Lord Miln to report the problem

After touching the energy there was a moment of wrenching weightlessness and then Lady Iellaya followed the others into that strange world of energy Everything was blended watercolor and then slowly everything came spinning back into focus As Lady Iellaya steadied herself she looked around and saw that she was standing next to Randidly on a dirt path that led up a hill in front of them Tallgrass rustled invitingly on both sides of the path as the wind whispered around them

Lord Miln and his protege were already striding forward ascending toward the summit of the hill that seemed to be the central location of this place To Lady IellayaÆs shock she could clearly tell as she watched them that even Lord Miln was struggling to walk forward They had just started up the slope but their speed had slowed to a crawl As she narrowed her eyes it was possible for Lady Iellaya to make out thick waves of pressure that were radiating outward from the summit When she glanced at Randidly again she found him studying a small sign at the head of the dirt path

The path branched and the sign above that branching pointed in both directions the long path and the short path Lord MilnÆs duo had taken the short path on the right

thanks for this opportunity by the way I doubt Lord Miln would have let me in otherwise And it seems clear that this is every individual for themselves Lady Iellaya pursed her lips as she looked after Lord Miln DidnÆt even bother to give us information from his investigations

Randidly grinned at Lady Iellaya YouÆve done a lot for me ItÆs the least I could do And also I figured that this would be our best chance to make you your new Class I believe well getting either the time or the distraction sufficient to allow it to happen would be difficult otherwise This is our shot

The same thought occurred to me So now Lady Iellaya looked at the sign then up at the two figures clearly struggling on the short path

from what I understand Nether Princes generally contain either a powerful memory or emotion Lady Iellaya said lightly drew her finger across the sign The wood appeared completely mundane So often times individuals find themselves present in a battle or another sort of scenario with high tension Generally death is involved And that scenario will play on repeat allowing the people who travel within to experience it several times and incorporate some of the lessons or emotions therein to their own images But this it appears like it is the other big type of Nether Princes philosophical ones

Sometimes a being faced a choice that so obsessed the maker that it will persist beyond their death No matter which option they ultimately chose they were consumed by regret It haunted them and became a persistent metaphysical dichotomy Their continued obsession will linger and warp the world and in the end itÆs a relatively simple choice Just one that did not bring about the desired result for the original chooser Lady Iellaya gestured elaborately at the sign While the right path led up the hill it appeared the left path led down into a gully beside it So Mister Ghosthound when it comes down to it will you pick the long or the short path

Randidly Ghosthound glanced upward How about the path where we donÆt have to bother with those two

Long path it is Lady Iellaya said barely able to contain her cheer toward the thought of obtaining a new Class Together the two of them followed the dirt path down into the gully across a stream and then into a crack in the exposed rock of the hill Within the crack was a dimly lit tunnel which possessed a low enough roof that even Lady Iellaya had to hunch over slightly to proceed

But after a short while they saw light and hurried forward After the short time within the tunnel the air tasted clean and fresh to Lady IellayaÆs tongue Her feathers flexed in pleasure Yet when they looked around they found another dirt path in front of them leading up to a hill A larger hill but a hill nonetheless

As the approached the hill they came to another sign at a branch in the path the longer path or the shorter path

How long do you think it goes Lady Iellaya asked

Randidly chuckled Depends on which path we take Not that it really matters LetÆs take another long choice and then make it to the next branching point and there let me finally pay you back for protecting my images while I was away IÆm ready to make you a new Class

Chapter 1176

Randidly hummed softly to himself as he and Lady Iellaya walked forward along the longer path from the sigh It led them down a low slope and then around to a ridge that opened up to another tunnel Both paused to admire the waves of energy that were radiating off the hill above them before they walked down into the shadow of the hill The energy waves certainly were weaker than they had been around the first hill but Randidly still shook his head lightly as he looked up at them

Even now they were clearly beyond his ability to handle Not that he needed to force the issue but after seeing the two other figures struggle Randidly was slightly curious

Very quickly they were moving steadily through another tunnel this one at least with the decency to have placed the ceiling at a reasonable height Both could walk comfortably upright and side by side through the drawn out gloom

basically what IÆm going to do is like refinancing a loan Randidly thought to himself as they continued through the sparsely populated tunnel of uneven stone floor and uneven stone walls Add some additional karma to the process so that Lady Iellaya can mobilize a larger amount of force The only problem is how to do so within having to shatter her original Fate which feels quite dangerous considering how much karma is tied up in it

Of course Randidly also planned on shattering her original Class But that seemed like a much more manageable task if only because Randidly had seen it happen before and knew how to heal it into a serviceable state

That was a lesson he had learned with his own body Painful but manageable Meanwhile a Fate

RandidlyÆs right hand dropped down and pressed against the warm metal of his PhilosopherÆs Key Even now the world seemed warped around the key The weight of its image pressed against the surrounding meter or so of space so as Randidly examined his own person the narrow point of the focus was taken immediately to the key that held the most potent image

Even as Randidly struggled to incorporate all of the dense image that was present into himself there was simply so much that leaked out of his control and affected the surrounding world At least to his mind But neither Lady Iellaya or Lord Miln really reacted to it so it was possible that it was just a perception that Randidly hadnÆt yet grown used to

Perhaps its a good thing I only get one piece at a time Randidly sighed ItÆs going to be hard to manage so many Fates at once

You dodged the answer before so let me ask again Randidly looked up at Lady IellayaÆs words She walked a pace in front of him with her hands clasped behind her back In the dim tunnel Randidly could only see the general shape of her cheek In your life do you usually take the long path or the short path

Shrugging Randidly let his hand drop from the golden key on his belt and answered as honestly as he could ItÆs a question that misses the point But if I had to choose one I generally take the long path

Misses the point Lady Iellaya tilted her head to the side We seem to be stuck in a desolate place where that choice is the only thing present repeated ad nauseum The only valuable energy we have seen is destructive in nature coming from the summits of these hills If we have spare time after our project donÆt you want to see whatÆs up there And I think itÆs best if you know what your answer would be if we attempt to examine those energies

Our project Randidly grinned Still worried they can overhear us

Being interrupted during the process would be exceedingly bad Lady Iellaya replied lightly But anyway itÆs rather boring to simply walk WouldnÆt you rather discuss philosophy

Randidly opened his mouth and then closed it In truth that first reaction was his most honest one to ask long or short was to ask a question that missed the point And he had been about to insist that was the case again but something in the air gave Randidly pause He looked at Lady Iellaya again Although they had become much closer after Randidly had admitted to the possibility of remaking her Class she was still someone who was much more powerful and influential than he was Perhaps relying on that expectation to speak casually was not the best idea Even if he was about to fulfill that promise being a little more polite wasnÆt too difficult

Randidly rolled his eyes at himself The lengths that I will go to avoid a conversation I didnÆt have the idea of having are a bit unbelievable

So rather than harshly repeating his point Randidly stopped himself and crafted a more considered response I think it is a choice that is reductive to the point of removing all the motivations for making the choice from the equation In life you arenÆt choosing between the path being short or long you are choosing between preparation and action Or rest and training Or gambling now or waiting for a more sure result Or biding your time or seizing an opportunity Which could be reduced to that binary but what you are removing are all of the relevant details

Yet you said that you typically choose the longer path So even if you want to deny it is it possible that the whole of your past decisions reflect a philosophical choice you havenÆt yet acknowledged Perhaps it is your inherent risk aversion Lady Iellaya glanced back at Randidly

Again Randidly fell silent for several seconds as he mulled that over Perhaps that really was the case However he believed that his choices werenÆt because he was worried about the short or the long path But because taking the short path in his current life generally meant being subservient to a more powerful entity for a time

Either the Creature or Ileot Swacc would likely be glad to help Randidly accomplish some of what he desired against the System Yet it was the costs to the short path that made Randidly refuse to move forward down that road It wasnÆt wrong at all to say that Randidly refused the short path after being made aware of the associated costs Especially prior to being forced to face AzrielÆs point about the sort of world that a lack of compromise could build Randidly would refuse constantly to work with either of those two so he would remain pure

Being reminded of AzrielÆs lesson made Randidly consider his stance on Ileot Swacc much more seriously The point isnÆt that these costs to the short path arenÆt real threats itÆs to be open to the possibilities that IÆm ignoring by being inflexible Is there a way to work with Ileot without giving him access to an Alpha Cosmos of his own

That train of thought led Randidly quickly back to the slender man who looked so much like him and seemed human as if he had somehow wandered here to the frontlines from Earth And it wasnÆt like there werenÆt other humanoids on the frontlines but generally they possessed some variant traits Like additional fingers or the body shape was somewhat warped and not quite right

But this man looked like a normal human Completely average cast from the same types of colors as Randidly had been Also an almost identical height

Was this a duplicated version Although the man had seemed capable enough from their brief interaction Randidly hadnÆt detected any sort of familiar images from him It was difficult to feel very minute details of the image as Randidly had briefly watched the look alike walk up the hill under those heavy waves of pressure but the image had seemed decidedly water based Almost chilling

Do I win the game of philosophy then Lady Iellaya drawled lazily YouÆve been silent for quite a while

Randidly forced out a chuckle I suppose so YouÆve given me a lot to think about but I was also thinking about that man who looked like me Still if you want to talk I would like to ask some questions about Fates Although I now finally possess one IÆm curious about how their Level growth works

Twisting her mouth Lady Iellaya shook her head Yes quite weird that Lord MilnÆs subordinate so looked like you A bit much to believe it is just a coincidence and as for Fates I can give you a bit of background But most of the valuable knowledge of Fates is honestly personal knowledge What works for one Fate might not work for another ItÆs why there is a wide group of individuals who do not really bother to improve or level their Fates ItÆs enough to just have an image focus and for the Level up gains That or they wait for a Great Fate at Level 100

Some people donÆt use their Fates Randidly asked in surprise Then his mouth twisted Also whatÆs a Great Fate again

Lady Iellaya raised her hand and wiggled her fingers Fates Level up as you slowly understand and utilize their particular functions ItÆs only one of many Paths towards strength Many prefer to just refine their images or work on Skill Levels ItÆs a much more predictable way to grow Because Fates are ultimately about understanding Great Fates well they are more like the SystemÆs version of a Fate You obtain it when you complete your Great Path Like Classes normal Fates are capped at Level 100 Gathering those last tidbits of understanding that can be exceedingly difficult Meanwhile a Great Fate is essentially a Class plus itÆs honestly something of a misnomer

But more specifically talking about Fates I suspect you have sensed within your Fate several of these functions some of which you donÆt truly understand That is quite common And while a Fate is based upon your images and Class it is not entirely your images and Class

Because itÆs also your karma and the avatar of your wish Randidly thought silently The world is trying to provide the tools you need to accomplish that secret wish

Lady Iellaya continued to speak As you figure out how to leverage those functions your Fate Level will increase And obviously those functions will become more powerful Plus some of the frustrations come when people realize how peculiar the images preserved within are Your real images are living changing things after all Meanwhile the Fate is a snapshot taken at the moment your Fate was condensed They will not change So if your original wish ends up being flawed you are stuck with that So some abandon their Fate Especially since many of those individuals have an option so attractively named Great FateÆ sometimes I wonder if the System doesnÆt want individuals to focus on their Fates at all

For a while both were silent in the wake of Lady IellayaÆs explanation Especially the last statement made casually by Lady Iellaya hung in the air with all the discomfort as a set of clothes soaked by a cold rain There was a lot to unpack there but now was probably not the time Better to instead focus on the details of his own Fate

What Lady Iellaya said about the snapshot made sense to Randidly but it also brought him a great deal of anxiety His hand once more went to the warm golden metal at the PhilosopherÆs Key at his waist He had incorporated so many images and energies into his Fate to make it powerful but he never really considered the downsides of that

Oh Randidly had reflected that there were weaknesses in the images but he had always assumed that he could eventually correct them To learn that they were affixed rather permanently in their current shape was somewhat disconcerting Perhaps even more disturbing was the fact that it made a great deal of sense

That part of him had already been mortgaged There was no mulligans now

Eventually the two finally reached the end of the tunnel it seemed that the sign hadnÆt been kidding about the fact that this was the long path As Randidly had expected another hill was waiting for them as they emerged from the tunnel this one high enough that Randidly would tentatively call it a mountain

Both admired it for several seconds before Randidly spoke then I suppose we will do it here LetÆs walk to the sign and then weÆll get started

Chapter 1177

Hindsight on RandidlyÆs own process of crafting his Fate equipped him with a much more well honed series of tools with which to address this project Randidly started by wading into the tall grass adjacent to the longer path/shorter path sign and using Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil to clear out a large area of all the grass A clearing of dirt would be the site of this strange ritual Then he began steadily engraving sigils into the ground using both Aether and Nether to create a protective circle around a central area where Lady Iellaya would stand

Honestly RandidlyÆs primary goal was safety So he was extremely careful about making sure there wouldnÆt be any ambient energy that would reveal what they were attempting here Lady Iellaya watched him creating the safety array for a long time before she spoke that you are also Engraving with Nether

Randidly simply nodded and continued to Engrave what else could he say Lady Iellaya didnÆt comment anything further seemingly content to wait until he was finished But Randidly didnÆt miss how her eyes flicked over the whole of the working taking note of the key parts And from the accurate way her eyes went to the important bits it was clear that she had more than a passing knowledge of Engraving herself

Still Randidly didnÆt begrudge her this knowledge While the process was actually happening she would be too distracted by the sensations to notice the actual functions of these arrays Randidly was doubtful that she would be able to replicate it later by only experiencing it from the inside

There were costs to having to perform surgery on yourself but those costs brought with them hard earned benefits which is just me taking the long path

Randidly shook his head and focused on his work Runes for gathering energy focusing energy and containing energy flowed naturally from his fingers as he set up the base of the Aether mechanism within the safety arrays Then Randidly proceeded to carefully run pathways of Nether veins through it all in order to stabilize the energy flow Once he finished a sudden thought made Randidly wince and begin to draw elaborate containment runes for the Nether veins

After all his Nether was only keyed to his Aether And Randidly didnÆt want the presence of the Nether to corrode Lady IellayaÆs images that would invalidate all the efforts they had made to reach this point The containment runes would dial back the effect that the Nether could have but Randidly didnÆt have much choice He suspected Lady Iellaya would be very aghast to have her inner world exposed to raw Nether no matter how strong her image was

So then he made several more sigils that would organize the energy in predictable ways and combine those energy sources smoothly Which meant that Randidly needed several larger containment arrays to handle the larger area

All told Randidly spent about a half hour efficiently scribbling across the cleared ground the pointer finger of his right hand The ground glowed in a steady pulse as he left the arrays dormant until he needed them By the end of it Lady Iellaya was looking profoundly confused

Is all this really necessary She said after a brief hesitation

Randidly also hesitated before his answer it honestly shouldnÆt be But I rather wouldnÆt risk it otherwise I suspect that the way your energy potential will manifest is different from the way mine did but I thought it was best to be thorough

Which was enough of a satisfactory answer for Lady Iellaya to nod and proceed to sit in the center of the formation After cracking his knuckles Randidly took several deep breaths With his right hand he raised his PhilosopherÆs Key IÆm not positive this will work but it likely wonÆt hurt if it fails And if it causes some damage we have time to recover before attempting it again might be a bit awkward though Reduce some of her trust if the first attempt fails best not to think about it

Ready Randidly asked

Lady Iellaya nodded And so it began

Randidly moved his hand and the PhilosopherÆs Key flowed forward Although Randidly stood outside of the array fully fifteen meters from Lady Iellaya it wasnÆt a physical distance that the key needed to cross It was a bridge of karma

As the touch of the key slid cleanly forward through the gleaming connections between them Randidly felt the threads of karma in the air that he passed Instead of looking for locations to open a portal he instead felt the karma of the surrounding area Immediately Randidly could feel the fabric of this dream as insubstantial Yet the karma of it burned exceedingly brightly to his senses

He felt the karma of the grass around him the rocks the dim grey sky the reassuring breeze that rustled the grass and the mountain that rose above them Randidly could even clearly feel the powerful karma that waited upon the peak for one to risk to the challenge of reaching it More than that though Randidly felt the flow of karma from the tight knot at the core of this dream tied to the two paths that would eventually lead to one of three places

One destination for those that followed the purely short path one for the purely long path and another for those who picked any combination of the two choices And on the way to those three destinations there was a tiered stacking of karmic enchantments that would warp the time around them to match their path The longer the path that was chosen the longer the time they would have

The way it was organized was fascinating Randidly only had a fleeting glance as the key brushed against the strange structures of karma but he made a mental note to spend some time studying them before they left One thing was for sure they were significant For the first time since he had heard of the Nether Prince Randidly had an inkling why they were so valuable

Which at least makes it that much more unlikely that Lord Miln would stumble in on us

The PhilosopherÆs Key touched the karma of the sky and then the karma of the elaborate runes Randidly had drawn It passed cleanly through the tight weave of Aether and Nether rapidly arriving before Lady Iellaya Just as he was about to touch her Randidly felt Lady Iellaya tense up in a flash of suspicion Her gaze was narrowed at the key he held in his hands instinctively paranoid

It seemed like now finally the dense image waiting within that key was made clear to her

Yet Randidly felt as Lady Iellaya forced that suspicion down The powerful image she had been gathering to protect herself faltered and then parted The path toward her inner Aether world was now open to him Not bothering to be polite at this point RandidlyÆs Fate raced forward into the provided opening

Lady IellayaÆs current Class was called Raven Winged Vanguard It had been pushed to Level 99 and then crossed that boundary to Level 100 with a Great Path As Randidly arrived at her innermost core of who Lady Iellaya was in the System he could see it all The tower of her Class raised to the peak of what a Class could be capped by a powerful Great Path that really did seem like another Class added on top of the first

Looming beyond that was a Fate one that followed the dreams and images of the Raven Winged Vanguard A huge midnight black crystalline claw

His perception spread out around Lady IellayaÆs inner world to understand the situation Randidly could also sense the vast sea of energy that lapped up against the base of the tower of her Class this was what he was looking for It wasnÆt concentrated at all but all of the potential that Lady Iellaya had gathered swirled around the tower Which was probably why Lady Iellaya was so frustrated by the amount of power she had gained Unlike a steady and organized construction all this potential spread out In the end it could barely buoy her current ability higher

Her inner world was filled with the watery and relatively light potential but she had no way of turning that into power

It was quite unlike the problem that Randidly experienced where the concentrated power of his prepared foundation overwhelmed the process No Lady IellayaÆs current problem was much more like trying to use sand as a foundation to build a home Certainly she had a lot of it present and it could easily raise her goal Yet it was extremely difficult to create a base that would remain steady with sand

With his emerald eyes glowing Randidly rapidly began to repurpose the arrays that he had drawn for Lady Iellaya even as his PhilosopherÆs Key remained poised and inert outside of the core of her Instead of coolant the veins of Nether became structure The containment fields of Aether functioned more like a bowl that would control the potential Lady Iellaya had taken from her followers and would gather it in one place

Although the original drawing took quite a while the repurposing was actually quick and relatively painless Using an extremely useful application of Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil Randidly rapidly carved out a whole slew of changes to the sigils with plants in a matter of minutes Of course the only reason he could do so was because of the time he took to make the original array by hand but that didnÆt mean Randidly wasnÆt glad to have a shortcut

See I can use the short path too

Lady Iellaya would likely be similarly pleased that he had made the adjustments relatively quickly She seemed profoundly uncomfortable with RandidlyÆs Fate hanging in her chest like that She continually glanced down at it then over toward Randidly himself with a grimace

ItÆs only going to get worse from here

The PhilosopherÆs Key finally slid forward making contact with the karma that ran through all of Lady IellayaÆs Class Fate Great Path and the resulting Great Fate that she had created All of it shivered as RandidlyÆs Fate began to thrum with power Lady IellayaÆs face went white

Randidly looked down at the key in his hand in wonder Perhaps its a little niche And not combat oriented But I can see it now See how this was my dream A key to open up all of the System A key to allow my world to escape the dominance of the System and the key to unlocking the secrets that are waiting within So I can take everything apart and rebuild it

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 41

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 42

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 43

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 44

The understanding of its role blossomed in RandidlyÆs chest and he could feel the power that he held in his hand grow more influential The image within the golden key became more dense coiled like a spring But it also felt like it slowly spread outward into a recognizable shape as he understood it becoming less inscrutable It was a tool that was a part of him and an important method for achieving the impossible

Unlock Randidly said lightly His hand turned the key he held but that wasnÆt the important part It was the weight of his Willpower and that dense image shifting sending shivers up and down through all that formed the base of Lady IellayaÆs power Her mouth opened and her eyes widened but she didnÆt make a sound

The key slowly turned

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 45

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 46

Congratulations The Level of your Fate the Philosopher’s Key has grown to Level 56

As all that Lady Iellaya built was rapidly disassembled into the hopes and dreams and images she had created on her own The component parts hung lazily for a second then began to tumble downward RandidlyÆs grand array surged to life With a whirling roar it gathered up all of the spread out potential and began to rapidly condense it into a much smaller area All the while RandidlyÆs Grim Intuition surged through the tumbling pieces of Lady Iellaya identifying and sorting them for the reconstruction

There were no plants present but an image of Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil was enough to catch the falling component parts and keep them safe

Congratulations Your Skill Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil has grown to Level 276

The potential was pulled forward into a tiny spot and another array surged upward hemming it in now that it had been gathered Then a smaller array activated and stirred it up further spinning it around and around until it could be gathered into an extremely tight disc and compressed further Randidly began to sweat as he rapidly refined that sea of potential further and further bringing it down to a solid state

Not that he needed to hurry but Randidly wasnÆt sure about the long term consequences of leaving Lady Iellaya without anything So he pushed himself His fingers danced as he reshaped the arrays to their new purpose The Nether veins became the internal structure and the refined and condensed potential was the concrete that Randidly poured down over it And as it began to rapidly harden into something solid RandidlyÆs eyes went to the glimmering pieces of karma that had fallen from the unlocked System creations

Time to build a tower Randidly whispered Then he got to work

Chapter 1178

At that moment where all of her carefully assembled accomplishments fell to pieces Lady Iellaya felt fear A hopeless fear like she hadnÆt known since the first days when she learned how powerless she truly was from the Nexus when she struggled to gather enough energy to survive As one who grew up while her world was enduring the last of the Third Calamity every day was a struggle

Every dawn was another success And it came at the cost of another sacrifice

Just for her to be born Lady IellayaÆs parents had to give up everything they had managed to gather in their lifetimes The tribe that they had led for decades was sacrificed to give Lady Iellaya the strength to grow And those villagers had given up their lives and energy willingly all to create a future for one of their own

A future where they were no longer weak Because there was no greater sin than being weak

Lady Iellaya would not forget that lesson And it was also the reason that she eventually discovered how to consume the potential of her subordinates That would always be her role to rise to the top so that she could bring glory to the people who had been sacrificed for her to reach these heights And yet now against all odds she was reduced to nothing but an empty husk all of her assembled power somehow undone by the act of Randidly Ghosthound

Randidly Ghosthound Impotent rage whirled in her heart kept tightly under lock and key

She might have not missed it before but how could she miss the terrible image that he possessed now as it ripped all of her carefully managed accomplishments asunder The mental shape the key took was extremely abstract one of deconstruction and ownership The subtle cover of an unadorned key that hid a power that was entirely unsubtle in its simplicity and brutality A key designed to subvert the System

Up to the point as she saw him working to remake her Class Lady Iellaya had assumed that this young man was just extraordinarily talented with runes With that weapon he had endured without a body and had slowly gathered strength And by watching him prepare her thoughts were confirmed he certainly had a great deal of experience Engraving

Plus the fact that he had been able to work with Nether had opened Lady IellayaÆs eyes and given her a detail that she could hold onto tightly This was the reason that he was able to accomplish so much even as an image He also had familiarity working with Nether Which should be impossible And yet here it was It was also obvious that it was a critical component in the work he was doing on her Class

But that wasnÆt the main thing There was also that heavy image and the key That key that filled Lady Iellaya with helplessness Because as he wielded it Randidly Ghosthound became inscrutable This wasnÆt about skill with Engraving or understanding Nether This was an otherness that Lady Iellaya couldnÆt understand What sort of image was this How could he so casually unmake everything she had struggled to create

It took her assistance yes but everything had been unmade in a second

But Lady Iellaya mastered that bubbling fear stuffing it into the hidden corners of her heart She kept her chin high and endured the feeling of helplessness without complaint She would endure All the while she kept her attention away from the furious activity that was occurring within her being It felt exceedingly strange And honestly the speed with which she could feel things changing within herself was disturbing Almost like she was going through the System version of puberty where the body was being flooded with new hormones faster than she could cope with the changes

All this is supposed to equate to a lifetime of work on my part Lady Iellaya wondered

Then notifications began to pop up in front of Lady Iellaya in swift succession

Congratulations Errors have normalized

Congratulations You have gained the Class Cult of the Raven Winged Darkness +7 Stats distributed between Agility Reaction Wisdom and Willpower +14 Free Stats +25 Health +35 Mana +20 Stamina Error Skills already present You have gained the Skill Descent of the Raven God Lvl 1

Congratulations You have gained the Fate The Cold Beak of the Blood Drinker Lvl 1

Some of the pressure within Lady IellayaÆs chest immediately eased as things began to settle once more Her Class surged forward steadily growing up from nothing then past Level 50 then it continued further toward 99 Even now Lady Iellaya could feel that Randidly was using the same sort of materials she had used before to create the substance and images of her Class but she could also clearly feel a difference There was something

The potential Lady IellayaÆs eyes flashed That must be what this is

Now the potential she had taken from others was inexorably being woven through the fabric of who she was At the bottom it was subtle but as the Class grew it became increasingly dominant The cold energy of it was unfamiliar but somehow reassuring It was part of her Class it was part of her Fate And somehow its presence made a marked difference

Descent of the Raven God huh Lady Iellaya forced her jaw to unclench and looked at this new addition from her changed Class IÆll need to experiment with it to see if it is worth improving But just from the fact that it is a new Legendary Skill

Then Lady Iellaya froze up again as she felt her Class reach its apex the 99th Level There was a moment of hesitation where she worried that Randidly Ghosthound was stumped by what to do but then she felt that same deft touch moving within her

But what shocked Lady Iellaya was how she felt her Great Path change Originally she had taken the Great Path Raven who Wore a Cloak of BloodÆ As far as Lady Iellaya was concerned it was a Path that did a good job of encapsulating who she was She was the Raven Winged Vanguard that had to sacrifice countless lives to get to this level of strength

How often had Lady Iellaya been forced to swim through rivers of blood and fear in order to grow and survive And because she always knew that fear that stunk like coppery blood was lapping at her heels she never dared slow down in her quest for power She thrust herself forward finding more and more individuals with potential to plunder She couldnÆt hesitate or everything she had worked for to get here would become lost

She would be drowned in it She would be consumed by all the things that followed her The things that had followed her for years waiting for an opportunity just like

A tremor ran through Lady IellayaÆs body Her hands instinctively came to her chest as though to rip the foreign image that was currently remaking her System presences but her fingers just pressed helplessly against the steel front of her armor Her feathers flexed and her back arched as the feeling intensified Everything was finally coming to an end and it felt so

But then the potential that had been woven through her Class surged upward It seemed to liberate her from the hesitation bringing her to an emotional completion that Lady Iellaya hadnÆt known she needed

Congratulations You have completed the Great Path Ritual of the Final Darkness You have reached Level 100

Due to your accomplishments you have obtained a Great Fate You have obtained the Great Fate Avatar of Apep the Peregrine Serpent Lvl 1

All at once Lady Iellaya collapsed breathing heavily That strange presence in her chest withdrew lightly as if it was never there And her first response was to feel a flash of rage that this man had seen her while she was so weak That he had held her at his mercy Even though Lady Iellaya knew it was for her own benefit she felt such a horrible need to erase proof of that part of herself

Yet Lady Iellaya mastered that childish impulse Resting on her hands and knees she took the time to slowly breathe and calm herself Once she had full control of her body once more Lady Iellaya turned her focus inward The name Apep was unfamiliar but as for the rest of her Great Fate

And there she found a pure darkness unlike anything she had ever known A darkness that was so complete and hungry that it would slowly consume the sun until the daytime hours were hollowed out and dim In its wake the night would rule for eternity covering every aspect of existence

And in that darkness she found power

Hahah haha hahahahahahahahah Lady Iellaya began to laugh almost uncontrollably Although she still felt extraordinarily strange inside of this remade body she could feel the weight of what she had gained from this process She could feel all of the potential from her subordinates part of every move she made

In comparison to the influence she exerted with her image before Lady Iellaya now felt like a giant Compared to her everything was small Suddenly all of the control that Lady Iellaya had regained disappeared Her hand was trembling as she held up a hand and darkness pulsed from her pointer finger The air around it shook

Still trembling Lady Iellaya dropped her hand and pressed that finger of darkness into the ground It instantly began to corrode with thin veins of darkness slithering outward from the point where Lady Iellaya touched Within a few seconds the ground in the surrounding area began to disintegrate into nothing The darkness devoured it And it was still hungry

It was the beautiful thing Lady Iellaya had ever seen She raised her finger and looked at the darkness pulsing there in wonder

satisfied

Lady Iellaya looked up sharply Then she straightened and brushed herself off while she cursed herself for forgetting that Randidly Ghosthound was still there At least he had the decency to look thoroughly exhausted standing arms akimbo and panting

Yes thank you Lady Iellaya favored him with a little bow Then she turned and looked upward However perhaps its time we part ways I wish to test the changes to myself And there is no better way than this mountain ahead of us

Randidly just nodded watching her go with a curiously blank expression

Still Lady Iellaya couldnÆt be bothered with his expression As she felt the tantalizing darkness within her all she felt was excitement With a rapidly beating heart she rushed upward toward the hill

Chapter 1179

Randidly watched Lady Iellaya rush up the hill without comment for three reasons Then he sighed shook his head and began to walk in the direction of the longer path leaving Lady Iellaya alone in this area of karma He left the burned out grass and the fading arrays behind him creating some space between the two of them

The first reason he didnÆt bother to try and stop her was because of the Philosopher’s Key During the process of remaking Lady IellayaÆs Class and Fate he had gained a few more Levels in the Fate so that he was now Level 64 But he also felt completely drained after utilizing the Fate So much so that Randidly simply didnÆt have the energy to comment at all on the changes that he had sensed within either of their images after working with them with the key

Looming on the horizon was the distant sensation of how difficult getting the last third of his Fate Levels might be Because his Fate was capped at 100 So he would need to have a near perfect understanding of the image within the key in order to reach it It was a daunting project

At least the image wonÆt change Randidly shook his head as he reached the low valley along the dirt path Randidly saw that he saw there was quite a bit of winding path down through the valley before he would reach the tunnel to the next area Yet what could Randidly do but continue to walk forward If Lady Iellaya wanted time alone to refamiliarize herself with her capabilities Randidly was going to inspect the tiered karma of this memory

The second reason that he didnÆt attempt to stop Lady Iellaya was that Randidly had once more gained quite a bit of knowledge about the System and how it worked With this knowledge another attempt like this would be even more smooth Other more daring attempts were possible Even now Randidly was curious about examining some of the other mechanisms of the System and theorizing how he could unlock them

Would the unlocking fail without the consent of the System It was possible But it might just be a matter of mental strength

Eventually Randidly found the tunnel and began to proceed forward Now that he had started this road he saw no reason why he should waver from the long path It was now just a matter of walking forward while Randidly slowly unpacked what he had learned from assisting Lady Iellaya

As for the third reason that Randidly didnÆt stop her it was the one that overshadowed the others It could be said that it was the true reason It was because he was afraid he had made a terrible mistake Because Randidly had added something to Lady IellayaÆs new inner bouquet of images that hadnÆt been there before Of course Randidly had distantly known this was likely but he hadnÆt worried overmuch about it occurring After all Lady IellayaÆs images had much more time to develop than his own So anything he could add would just be suppressed by the images that had been originally present

That was what he had assumed anyway Yet as Randidly shaped the potential he had the strange sensation that something had slithered out of him and into her burying itself in that potential At the time the sensation was fleeting and Randidly almost doubted himself Plus his attention was focused on so many places that he gave up when he didnÆt sense any of his images present in her

A weird blip but this was a weird and messy project

While it turned out to be the case that none of RandidlyÆs own images had snuck into Lady Iellaya during that remaking process by the time that he had noticed this shadow of an image coming to fruition it was already too late

Staring down the long dark tunnel Randidly could only shrug and accelerate to a light jog Once it had time to grow within that base of potential that Randidly had condensed within Lady Iellaya Randidly had recognized it Or at least he thought he did

The weird thing was it wasnÆt even a real image that had slipped into Lady Iellaya It was a memory of an imagined image It was the shadow of greed and need that Randidly had seen in the strange dream he had imagined as Ileot explained who the original Vualla was It was that vast darkness that would steal away otherÆs lights in order to be more powerful It was a black rose that was now deeply rooted in Lady IellayaÆs chest

Or at least that was Randidly thought it was It was definitely similar but it wasnÆt possible to say for sure if it was exactly the same After all it was an image that Randidly had imagined once It had been powerful sure but he didnÆt have a deep impression of it

By the time that Randidly finished working with Lady Iellaya it was already too late to remove it It had used all the gathered potential as fertile soil and bloomed Perhaps the most confusing this was how naturally it seemed to fit into Lady Iellaya It was like she had been made for such an image Perhaps her image was cut from a similar cloth but still

RandidlyÆs thoughts swirled in circles as he continued to jog forward down the long tunnel Had he imagined it Was it really just a part of Lady IellayaÆs image that he had given the opportunity to grow That was certainly the more likely option After all Randidly might have a connection with the duplicated Vualla but that was from a Nether Ritual He hadnÆt directly given her Aether yet although he acknowledged he probably would soon in a controlled way to try and see if Ileot had been honest about her sensitivity to other forms of Aether

He had only imagined the image How could it have been present in Randidly

although I only know the duplicated VuallaÆs Aether RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed I donÆt know enough about karma But a duplicated version would definitely be connected to the original wouldnÆt they

Also was it something that Randidly should let distract himself If it really was a problem wouldnÆt Lady Iellaya have noticed And she seemed immensely pleased as she hurried up toward the shorter path albeit with a deep suspicion toward Randidly It was clear by the end that she was not quite comfortable with the experience but content with the result

Not that Randidly blamed her This Fate was his own and he still wasnÆt super comfortable with what it could do

At some point Randidly had been jogging for such a long time that he was thoroughly sick of repeatedly scrutinizing this imagined life path for the original Vualla versus the strange darkness that he saw in Lady Iellaya The sound of his feet against the stone was his only company in the lonely darkness of the tunnel And honestly it was a rather poor travel buddy

As though it had sensed RandidlyÆs thoughts Acri slithered down around his arm and cooed from attention Chuckling Randidly settled Acri back against his arm Yea I know IÆm not alone here But this place

His words didnÆt even echo in the darkness Around him Randidly could feel the strange construction of karma being spun as he moved forward Yet his senses couldnÆt detect much He would need to use the PhilosopherÆs Key to feel the finer points of the karma but he was still too mentally exhausted to attempt to wield that tool

So Randidly continued to jog After what felt like six hours he emerged from the tunnel and looked up at a mountain proper He followed the winding path to the sign and then took the longer path route This time he had to walk down the gentle slope of the valley and the wade across a sluggish river before he found the tunnel

This tunnel was suitably large more like one million great halls lined up in a row than a tunnel proper There were vaulted ceilings that Randidly could only barely witness and high stone pillars that led him continually deeper through the bowels of the mountain

So Randidly pondered the image in his PhilosopherÆs Key and jogged At some point he became somewhat fed up and accelerated into a dash but that didnÆt last very long Or at least in the space of this place it didnÆt last long Perhaps he ended up dashing for six hours but it really didnÆt feel like his speed affected his traveling speed Which obviously was impossible

But it felt like it was the case

So he returned to a jog

At the mouth of this tunnel with his Absolute TIming informing him that he had spent two days jogging to traverse the distance Randidly looked up at a mountain that ripped upward through the clouds like the spine of the largest dragon in the world It was a ruggedly beautiful mountain all jagged peaks and tantalizing mists It was the sort of mountain that stirred up a deep urge to climb upward and witness the world above the sky

Probably a bitch to scale though Randidly muttered to himself So he turned away from the mountain and took the left path again Yet as he did so he paused

This time the sign was different This time the left was labeled the longest pathÆ

About damn time Randidly sighed Then he broke out into a jog once more and followed the meandering slope of the mountain around until he reached a ravine There he had to walk directly up the dried riverbed clambering over boulders until he found a dusty mountain trail That trail led around the side of the mountain to a tunnel

So Randidly entered the darkness once more

This darkness was so complete and vast that Randidly felt like it would be extremely easy to get lost in here He couldnÆt see or sense the walls roof or the original entrance he used to arrive at this darkness Very soon it was just him and the sound of his footfalls once more

Those noises kept Randidly focused Time dragged but he wasnÆt impatient It had been a while but Randidly had abundant experience with forcing himself to perform tiresome tasks long past when he wanted to stop If something like this was enough to exhaust him into giving up Randidly would not have gotten near where he had Not by a longshot

Shal would be so proud Randidly thought sourly as he continued to jog

A week passed jogging in the darkness There were times that Randidly felt like he should alter his strategy but he kept himself calm If nothing else this place would eventually collapse on its own eventually Hard to know with karma interfering in time when that would be but it would be a hard escape So for now Randidly ran

Besides Randidly felt like it was never about finding the right path It was about making the choice and then following through As long as he kept moving his feet were on the right path

It was a week and 22 hours before Randidly opened up from the tunnel to underneath a stormy sky Low clouds seemed positively looming as he walked down the path toward the familiar sign But this time there was no split There was just the affirmation once more

The longest path

Randidly looked up toward a mountain so large that it was difficult for him to see the sides of it Its stony face filled up his whole vision like a granite wall along the horizon It was honestly difficult to imagine how far up into the sky the peak was And the air around the mountain was heavy with an incredible pressure One that was even more powerful than the pressure around the hill that Lord Miln and his protege had chosen to ascend Acri raised his hand and tilted his blade in askance toward Randidly

Twisting his mouth Randidly shook his head slightly Honestly this isnÆt my image at all I still think itÆs pointless You too This is not your path But you know Randidly reached down and lightly tapped Sulfur How about you All you do is wait and endure Do you think you can inherit some of this power

Sulfur shivered in anticipation as Randidly began to steadily walk up the mountain path

Chapter 1180

As Vualla slowly slipped her numb hands into her heavy iron gauntlets she had to suppress the ball of panic that was running through her chest like a rabid rodent For each time since the strange dreams started Vualla would have her something drained and then that weight would rip to pieces like a wax paper when she woke up But not today not now It hung over her like a steel chain cold and relentless against her skin even as she moved in the waking world

Ready to take from Vualla To devour her emotions

It was there now as the huge army of the Nether King began to march downward toward the bristling bases of the Aether forces Vualla felt nothing as she looked on at the tide of Nether Beasts rushing down toward the comparatively minuscule fortifications An army of over one million with likely at least one thousand Nether Gatekeepers waiting to strike With worse foes waiting beyond them as the Nether King itself began to move downward

The wild fury of the Nether King was like a weather pattern lapping lightly down from the sky and soaking them all to the skin In the face of that they were

There was a knock at the front of VuallaÆs tent In the next moment her wish that the knocker be Randidly Ghosthound was so strong and sudden that she swayed lightly Even the weight across Vualla wasnÆt enough to handle that emotion and was pushed back by its vibrancy But the emotion passed and the lack of heat on her back meant that this individual was not Randidly Still her face broke out into a smile as she opened her tent flap and saw her visitor

Elliot What are you doing here Even as the thirsty darkness continued to sip at her emotions Vualla threw her arms around her brother and pulled him in for a hug You should get out of here I donÆt want to be pessimistic but the fighting might reach this area And the supply division should be retreating Having you here wonÆt make much of a difference

Bah my worry wort of a baby sister Elliot said fondly as he patted her hair Then he favored her with a rakish grin as they separated from each other Come I have a surprise A good one Maybe not enough to turn the tide but Aether will not be cowed by the evil beasts that lurk in the darkness May it always be so

The darkness that was sipping on VuallaÆs emotions seemed amused at ElliotÆs words Which was somewhat shocking as it was the first time she ever had the impression of emotions from the weighty darkness But she allowed herself to be led outside the tent by Elliot And what she saw there truly shocked Vualla to her core where did they all come from

They are the forces at the front lines gathered together Elliot said proudly They might have been stationed in other areas but they are here now And they will bleed this Nether army dry before they give up this base

Huge columns of forces were hurrying forward through the gaps in the fortifications that each of the Commanders had set up bolstering the defenses immensely with just their numbers And the sheer mass of bodies was what left Vualla floored It was like someone had snapped their fingers and doubled the number of forces that the Aether possessed Thousands of troops were marching forward to join the front lines with long lines waiting for their turn to move forward and settle into formation

How many Vualla whispered Despite her own struggles seeing all these forces did a lot to inject confidence into her that they could live through this Even the weight on her shoulders couldnÆt suck that away

My Path is the right one We can win this without relying on other methods

Almost two hundred thousand Elliot bragged shamelessly as though he was responsible for gathering them all He gestured elaborately and bowed to Vualla My princess your knights are here to rescue you

You always were the bravest in imaginary games as children and the first to tattle when we broke the rules

Shaking her head Vualla just stared at the troops in wonder But the longer she looked the more her brief respite from depression departed It might have been the darkness continually walking with her but it was also more than that As Vualla looked at the army that was coming forward she saw the details of them

The soldiers that marched forward almost looked like beggars And while there were some powerful images in the group none were even close to RandidlyÆs tier of strength They looked untrained and ragged to her eyes Their armor was mismatched and ill fitting Rather than a true force this looked more like a group of hastily raised levies

which is probably exactly what they are Vualla clenched her fists so tightly that her wrist popped The System throwing innocent bodies at a problem that it cannot solve on its own ThatÆs why thatÆs why

We are going to win this Elliot said as he looked up toward the shifting Nether army

Vualla wished she could share some of his enthusiasm but it was devoured as soon as she tried to feel it The darkness would not let it linger long Above them the heavy nodes of blue veins shifted and drifted toward the Aether camps Huge groups of powerful Nether Beasts began to flash into existence and then fall down to land on the no manÆs land between the two forces It started with just a few groups but Vualla stood and watched almost one hundred squads appear and land

It was a staccato of drumbeats announcing the approaching battle The vanguard was coming Vualla tightened the buckles on her gauntlets and prepared to kill

As the Nether Prince finally faded from existence four individuals were once more standing in a tight square at the center of the array in Lord MilnÆs tent Three of them were slightly surprised and bewildered at the sudden change of scenery Despite their obvious power and perception it took them a few seconds to grasp what had happened Or what it meant that the dream had cut out so early

Soon enough Randidly would see the realization dawning in their eyes Someone had seized the core energy that was within that place It was the only explanation for why the dream had ended so suddenly

However Randidly used that moment of confusion to glance sideways at his doppelganger Honestly he didnÆt think the other three would end up suspecting the truth especially after feeling the changes in Lady Iellaya and RandidlyÆs look alike And obviously Randidly knew why Lady Iellaya suddenly felt much more potent albeit even though even he was surprised by the degree of the change so he focused on the change in Lord MilnÆs companion

Their eyes met Just like last time it gave Randidly a physical jolt They truly looked very very similar And the aura around the look alike it had shifted slightly More than slightly although the effect wasnÆt overt RandidlyÆs hand twitched as he suppressed an impulse to reach for the PhilosopherÆs Key so he could get a better understanding of the change

This man absorbed some of the image too Randidly reflected lightly did they succeed at taking the shortest path IÆm just surprised Lord Miln didnÆt take the strength for himself

The confusion in the surrounding eyes turned toward suspicion Lord MilnÆs eyes were on Lady Iellaya while Lady Iellaya narrowed her eyes and looked at the look alike

Everyone was brought back to the actual moment by Ileot Swacc walking forward and chuckling I see that it was a very fruitful journey How interesting But I donÆt believe we have time to gossip about our gains do we

no of course not Lord Miln shook his head and took a few steps back from the group while continually staring at Lady Iellaya Then he turned and smiled up toward the Great Rift that loomed above them Everyone is dismissed back to their posts It looks like todayÆs work isnÆt done

Thank you for the opportunity Lady Iellaya said frostily as she bowed Then she spared Randidly a glance Randidly nodded and followed her out toward the entrance of the tent

To his annoyance Ileot also came behind the two of them Ah Mister Ghosthound a brief word if you please

Meet me back at the camp Lady Iellaya said bluntly Then there was the sound of a ravenÆs wings and she vanished leaving Randidly alone outside of Lord MilnÆs tent with Ileot

Could have at least waited around to make sure I wasnÆt about to get kidnapped Randidly thought with a sigh but he still turned around toward Ileot Is something wrong

Oh yes Ileot said with a giggle IÆm afraid I must confess that ah this is quite awkward Well some of what I told you previously turns out to not be true You wonÆt have much time to make the decision about Vualla basically you must choose now Due to the circumstances of the Nether King attacking my energy will be depleted much more quickly than I had expected It was an honest mistake I can assure you

RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed WerenÆt we friends Strong arming me moments before a battle is about to break out is hardly a friendly move

We both know that you never intended to be my friend despite my genuine efforts Ileot had the nerve to sound reproving as he spoke to Randidly You are a cold and calculating creature I should never have expected you to act against your own interests So let me stress that the ritual will take no time at all and will not affect you in any way And once we are working together this Vualla that you have developed feelings for will continue to live Is that not what you want

At what cost Randidly glared at Ileot but he didnÆt answer out loud What would be the point He could only grit his teeth and allow his mind to whirr into action trying to decide how to proceed

Do you have the time to think about this Randidly Ghosthound Ileot asked sweetly

Randidly didnÆt need to look to feel huge masses of Nether forces dropping down toward the frontlines Within ten minutes the battle would erupt into a chaotic mess At that point lives would be extinguished by the hundreds as the fighting began His chest trembled with tightly controlled anxiety If he was present perhaps

Randidly pressed his eyes closed Vualla I I donÆt want you to die I donÆt want to fight against the System alone

And yet Randidly opened his mouth and said No

It should have been a difficult decision But it turned out to be extremely easy to say that word Then Randidly turned and hurried away Heading not toward Lady IellayaÆs camp but to move before Ileot Swacc could do anything else Behind him Ileot Swacc just laughed as Randidly rushed outward across the preparing battlefront

Chapter 1181

RandidlyÆs Grim Intuition was ominously pulsing during the entire journey to find Vualla amongst the numerous forces on the frontlines Not the least of which was because there was suddenly a whole slew of reinforcements on the Aether side that made it extremely difficult to locate her Too much unfamiliar Aether and for whatever reason he kept confusing some of the new arrivals for Vualla But the difficulty was probably also because more and more powerful Nether Beasts were descending from the sky and marching toward their fortifications

They fell like asteroids crashing into the ground and then throwing themselves forward to kill the beings of Aether The visual distortions in the area grew increasingly frantic as Nether polluted the space and destabilized it Forces assembled and began charging toward the front of the Aether lines

Randidly could sense the edge of in this moment the eternal conflict between the two energies Like two lovers jaded by distance and betrayal they wanted nothing more than to rip each other to shreds no matter the cost to themselves Although Randidly could align his own Aether and Nether it was such a small thing before the whole of history

And this was a history of bloodshed The rapidly assembling Nether sung with the memory of it The Aether crafted weapons of substance and image to make sure it was ever to be so Both were committed to ending each other

It was funny but this was exactly the scenario that Randidly had feared with his new Stat Grim Intuition where there was simply so much information flooding in that it was difficult for him to process it Thankfully his Stats had been largely boosted as he had spent his PP or it would be difficult to continue while being bombarded with so many signals

As it was Randidly pushed all that superfluous information away He only followed the heat in his chest leading him unerringly to Vualla

When he landed she was standing there with her azure hair being blown by the wind staring up at the Great Rift above them She wore her armor and gauntlets her skin path against the darkness of the Great Rift above them Weirdly Randidly felt a whiff of a familiar image for a few fleeting seconds before it vanished

Perhaps Randidly would not even have noticed the feeling had not its sudden disappearance coincided with a wide smile blooming across VuallaÆs face It gave him pause as he struggled to place why that feeling was so familiar

Then Vualla turned and looked at Randidly with that smile and all of those thoughts melted away like the last snow of spring

I could have bought us more time Randidly thought furiously I could have taken a safer path But I gambled Not because I refuse to consider it but because I couldnÆt trust Ileot Swacc

Yet that was something that Randidly would never say to Vualla She would understand if he explained himself She would probably agree completely with the decision that he had made And it was exactly for that reason that Randidly could never tell her

So without talking Randidly practically ran up to Vualla and put his arms around her He spun her around and then kissed her once lightly on the lips

At that moment he established an Aether connection careful to restrict the flow and watch the effect that a small thread of his Aether would have on VuallaÆs being Even without the Philosopher’s Key his senses were now sharp enough that he could see the incubator of Aether that surrounded Vualla At least in that respect Ileot hadnÆt lied

What was the most worrying was how thin the incubator had grown Randidly could generally feel how worn the mechanisms had become although he had no idea what that meant So he continued to press Vualla to him watching as that thread of Aether wandered forward

The Aether brushed against Vualla And nothing happened

ahem Vualla I think that itÆs quite appropriate to at least introduce us before you subject me to such a hideous display donÆt you think

Randidly pulled back in shock and blinked at the man with light blue hair who had been standing next to Vualla He had been so intent on checking to make sure she was okay in the wake of IleotÆs words that Randidly hadnÆt even been paying attention to the surroundings Everything else but her was pushed to the side

Vualla blushed deeply and offered Randidly a guilty smile before turning to the man Ah well itÆs a battlefield We are about to go to war Getting caught up in a passionate moment is normal

The man continued to glare at Randidly like he was a bug that he had found crawling across his kitchen counter so that was his passion that he was sticking into your mouth

We didnÆt use tongue Vualla snapped Then she stamped her foot and huffed Okay okay Eliot this is Randidly Ghosthound HeÆs well

IÆve already witnessed Eliot said icily He folded his arms across his chest

and Randidly this is Eliot My brother Vualla shrugged her shoulders helplessly Like all brothers heÆs someone who shoves his nose into places where it doesnÆt belong

I was literally already standing here when he started kissing you Eliot countered He shook his head in obvious disgust Then he extended a hand for a shake toward Randidly with an expression of deep shame If I would have been somehow able to keep my nose clean of the slobber you two exchanged believe me I would have

you are her brother Randidly asked His mind seized that detail Because it didnÆt make any sense Vualla was a duplicated version of someone who existed thousands of years ago The architect of the grand array for absorbing Nether one of the luminaries that allowed the overlay System to be invented If this was actually her brother

But no this man looked older maybe in his thirties but he certainly wasnÆt that old And his glare carried an edge of an image A powerful one but one that RandidlyÆs instincts assured him that he could defeat if he needed to So it wasnÆt a matter of simply seeming young he truly appeared to be quite young

I never really had the time to think about it before RandidlyÆs face transformed into the visage of a beast His teeth were bared and his eyes burned But how could VuallaÆs father be here if she truly was duplicated

has Ileot been playing me for a fool the entire time Was the real goal getting closer to me so they could make that look alike Or is that just a coincidence as well God damnit

Not a handshaker huh Not that I blame you If anything Eliot didnÆt seem insulted His expression was smug In my family my grip strength is famous

Randidly VuallaÆs voice turned serious WhatÆs wrong

if you are really a duplicated version of someone from the past why is your brother here Randidly said softly Perhaps it wasnÆt the most eloquent way of getting to the point but Randidly was largely bewildered So he simply said the question he kept banging his head against fruitlessly

For a second Vualla was simply confused But then her eyes widened in shock

Very quickly a frown returned to her face Are you saying IÆm not But IÆm sure you also felt what Cail said felt right Sometimes there is this

We just donÆt have enough information Randidly shook his head I felt so too That what he said felt correct Yet how can this man be here if this is the case

Eliot looked back and forth between the two of them for several seconds Then he sighed Not that I want to interrupt your conspiracy theory session but we do have larger problems The Nether forces are about to arrive Can this wait

It probably shouldnÆt Randidly thought in frustration But what choice do we have

When Randidly spoke again he injected some positivity into his expression Which to his surprise wasnÆt difficult DonÆt leave me too far behind alright And be careful

Ha YouÆre one to talk DonÆt think you can hide how much stronger you got in the few days What am I supposed to do with you This time Vualla got up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips quickly to his Then she dropped back down And you be careful too That metal arm of yours doesnÆt look so good

Ha DonÆt worry Randidly rapped lightly on his chest I think IÆve got a short term fix prepared

Right as Randidly was leaving his Grim Intuition drifted back to Vualla to check on the state of Aether His senses rapidly scanned through her searching for the thread of Aether that he allowed into her She wasnÆt unraveling at the seams as Ileot had originally warned but also Randidly couldnÆt find the Aether he had put into her

I suppose that means it was successfully incorporated into her being But why do I have this bad feeling

Randidly glanced over his shoulder one more time Vualla was enthusiastically waving both her gauntlets above her head while Eliot was flexing his hand and looking down at it approvingly There was a roar from the sky as the Nether King made its presence known distracting Randidly further

Unsure of what to do Randidly opened up the Aether connection between them the tiniest bit allowing energy to flow As he watched the energy really did get steadily absorbed into VuallaÆs being without any trouble

Am I worrying for nothing

The screams of fighting began to waft up from the front With gritted teeth Randidly forced himself to turn away and head toward Lady IellayaÆs camp

Chapter 1182

When Randidly removed the mental blinders he had carefully erected during his interaction with Vualla the sea of information that Grim Intuition provided him crashed against his senses For several seconds Randidly had to stop his mad dash back toward Lady IellayaÆs camp and simply process everything that was happening around the battlefront But just as quickly the inherent comprehension that was present in Grim Intuition started to take over and ease the process

Gradually Randidly could sense the surroundings The madness of the battlefront slowly settled into the horrific slow moving tragedy that it truly was The cries of the wounded and dying filtered to RandidlyÆs ears He could see the shredded flesh and terrible corrosion on both sides that resulted from their contact Sweat and grunts became a low rhythm of conflict

The Aether lines were currently doing very well against the bull rush of the Nether BeastÆs assault but it was mostly because the scattered early groups of Nether Beasts were the only ones who had reached their fortifications Behind them the Nether forces were flooding forward in an absolute torrent of bodies Even if the Aether forces had been bolstered by some modest defensive fortifications and these fresh recruits they still only possessed one tenth of the numbers

That was a hard hurdle to overcome

When Randidly reached Lady IellayaÆs camp he didnÆt bother going through the gates he simply flexed his legs and leapt up over the back wall to land on the battlements Even though the rear of the fort was lightly guarded several individuals looked at him in panic before they recognized him as an ally and quickly relaxed

Blurring into motion Randidly rushed along the battlements to the front of the fort to look out with his eyes at what was happening Perhaps because he could feel the visceral violence of the Aether and Nether smashing against each other but he desperately needed to view the fighting directly To witness it in its entirety

Or maybe I simply want to distract myself from the feeling that IÆm missing something about VuallaÆs situation

Shaking his head Randidly blew past several more guard posts landed at his normal position Both Salazar and Zauna were waiting for him and hurried over to his side as he leaned up against the walls It was a testament to how serious the situation was that even Salazar kept his mouth shut

Randidly released a breath and witnessed the greatest conflict that had occurred between Nether and Aether in their generation And this was just the beginning

With the additional forces they had received Aether had set up a series of low trenches fill with pitfalls to slow down the Nether advance Currently the Nether BeastÆs bodies flailed and struggled to break through this impediment but the Nether Beasts that followed the initial surge were crawling over the hissing corpses of their allies in order to make it through safely A road of bodies was being paved

The area around the trenches looked like an amorphous and flailing blob It was a little easier to make out the Aether soldiers standing in formation at the edges of the trenches with some low walls and stakes to slow the opposition’s advance But they were a small grouping of bodies compared to the horde rushing forward toward them

And beyond the next wave of Nether Beasts were more monsters of hungry violence ready to fight to avenge their Nether Prince

Plus Randidly couldnÆt help but notice how mediocre the images were that the new recruits possessed Not that he was in a position to be critical of the weakness of new arrivals but there wasnÆt much refinement present in the images they were extremely raw Of course raw was a relevant sign to indicate potential but these people needed power now as a Nether Beast attempted to rip out their larynx And it just wasnÆt present

Randidly flexed his hands At least around Lady IellayaÆs camp he would not allow the Nether Beasts to casually approach Because Randidly didnÆt miss how none of the Commanders or other powerful fighters had appeared on the battlefield yet They were waiting for their moment

It might be better to wait Randidly admitted to himself Both Salazar and Zauna looked at him in confusion Randidly shook his head No itÆs definitely better to wait To appear now will definitely draw more attention to our position Lady IellayaÆs camp is already targeted enough as the leftmost base

Randidly lowered his head and chewed on his lip And to his surprise Zauna spoke in a small voice

If you do not act can the rest of us handle the spare attention you wonÆt be drawing

Not without a lot of people dying Randidly admitted Then he cracked his neck His abilities were too well suited to the battle to wait The effects he could have on a large area were certainly attention grabbing but that was because they needed to be addressed It was only with someone like Randidly that it was possible to live through vastly uneven odds like this

But still he looked up toward the central keep of their small fort He could feel the shape of Lady IellayaÆs image within Present but patient And Randidly definitely believed that she could understand his hesitation

When no orders manifested after a few seconds Randidly turned back to the battlefield and barred his teeth Then he glanced toward the headquarters Lord Miln wasnÆt exactly silent but all that had changed was Lord Miln set up a grand barrier that prevented the Nether Beasts from landing very close to the bases

Which ultimately wasnÆt much help at all The Nether Beasts were perfectly willing to walk Randidly looked back toward the Great Rift above them Drawing attention it is

Just as a particularly dense group of Nether Beasts was hurrying forward over their companionÆs bodies the trench erupted and a towering emerald and gold root reared up into the air There was a split second of hesitation as forces on both sides froze at its sudden appearance but then three more huge roots ripped up out of the ground along the long trench in front of Lady IellayaÆs base They were evenly spaced and formed an intimidating barricade

Congratulations Your Skill Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil has grown to Level 277

The roots were as thick as a tree trunk and dozens of meters long By the time that the Nether Beasts realized the threat that they represented the roots began smashing around physically concussing and rupturing the bodies of the living Nether Beasts and scooping out the corpses of the deceased Nether Beasts so they didnÆt corrode away the trenches The roots moved so quickly that the hummed at the violence of their passage

There was a lull in the nearby assault as everyone focused on these new threats then Nether Beasts started throwing themselves forward to end these abrupt foes Of course the roots never stopped moving

Randidly lined the trenches with sharp and thorny vines and allowed his four giant roots to continued their brutal work Although the Nether Beasts didnÆt possess exactly physical bodies the glowing and empowered Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil could use brute force to destroy their substance Very quickly those trenches turned into a horrifying meat blender The roots tenderized them and the thorny vines waiting below eviscerated them

Congratulations You have reached Level 51 +8 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +35 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +2 Control +36 Health +45 Mana +40 Stamina +3 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration

Due to your Fate Philosopher’s Key +3 Intelligence Wisdom and Focus

Experience rapidly flowed into Randidly as he murdered the Nether Beasts pushing him up to Level 51 Of course the Nether Beasts were also able to inflict significant damage on the golden roots during that time Even if Randidly possessed a Skill that made him largely immune to the antagonistic properties of Nether his Skills didnÆt share that protection

Yet just as one of the roots was being scratched and mauled to the point that it was wavering a towering phantom of Yggdrasil flickered to life over their corner of the battlefield For a split second the sound of rustling leaves filled the air Vitality began to rapidly pump back through the roots healing most of their superficial wounds within a few seconds The image of the World Tree wrapped around them like a suit of armor

This nurturing energy that suffused through the roots only drew additional ire from the forces of Nether As he looked up at the sky Randidly saw how more and more masses of Nether smashed down from the blue veins above and resolved themselves into groups of Nether Beasts Grinning he looked around and noted with amusement that they were probably drawing about double as much attention from the enemy

Perfect Now letÆs begin the show The Inscrutable Mien of Genesis

The golden light around the towering four roots rippled Then it shifted to a white light reaching a lumen level that was almost blinding Wielding that light like a bludgeon Randidly smashed back the next wave of Nether forces that attempted to crawl forward Some Nether Beasts at the four star tier quickly made themselves known to limit the damage but Randidly still had a slight edge over them

The image was too powerful the Skill had more punch than normal Nether Beasts could handle That light was something precious and almost holy The Nether Beasts could only do their best to corral it but they couldnÆt rival it In the short term it would continue to overpower them

Congratulations Your Skill Inscrutable Mien of Genesis has grown to Level 251

What they couldnÆt rival in potency they attempted to drown in numbers More and more Nether comets crashed to the ground and fueled the rush toward Lady IellayaÆs camp As it was not his own Nether even Randidly could prevent the brilliant light from the Skill slowly being worn down

But it had accomplished the goal Lady IellayaÆs forces had used the break to recover and catch their breath They were ready enough to rejoin the fight and Randidly could feel how the grand array was sucking away at the ambient Nether he created by blending the Nether Beasts and using it to empower the defenses across their lines further

An added benefit that it brings more power to old VuallaÆs array now letÆs see if I can lure them in to cut to the bone

The phantom of the World Tree filled up the sky above them standing starkly opposed to the almost treelike blue veins of the Nether Enemies surged forward gradually fighting through and pushing back RandidlyÆs Skills He killed but he didnÆt put all of his Willpower behind the images Because this was a trap

And he would need his strength to make them pay for rushing forward so boldly

Chapter 1183

Congratulations You have reached Level 52 +8 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +35 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +2 Control +36 Health +45 Mana +40 Stamina +3 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration

With the most recent burst of Stats that Randidly obtained he pushed himself over 1000 with Intelligence The first feeling Randidly felt was a feeling of disorientation but then his powerful Control began to weave itself back across the battlefield Intelligence Grim Intuition and Control that he deftly weaved the trap that he wanted to spring His capability surged upward allowing him a completely ridiculous level of multitasking across the front

Obviously he didnÆt weaken his images or Skills but he simply allowed his roots and vines to be slowly undercut as more and more Nether Beasts surged forward and threw their bodies forward One strike at a time those attacks reached the towering roots emanating that brilliant white light His roots would smash and weep back and forth in furious retribution but several powerful Nether Beasts would group together and barely repulse RandidlyÆs moves Nether Beasts began to slip through the space between the towering roots reaching the frontlines of Lady IellayaÆs camp once more

Congratulations Your Skill Inscrutable Mien of Genesis has grown to Level 252

Of course Randidly bled these carefully allowed enemy forces with thorny roots Small wounds nothing fatal but enough to make them easy pickings for the fresh recruits More ambient Nether was created that the array began to steal and repurpose The visual variations in the area intensified making the point of contact between the two forces even more chaotic

ah shit Randidly winced Even though he intended for it to happen it still hurt when one of his roots was felled Both Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil and Inscrutable Mien of Genesis trembled with the failure forced to endure the backlash as the tall root swayed and then collapsed to the ground Its light went dark and Nether Beasts surged forward with gleeful roars Yet Randidly gritted his teeth and did nothing

His eyes burned emerald as he watched more and more Nether Beasts rush greedily forward

Once the first root had fallen the other three had to face attacks from more directions In three huge crashes those roots fell too rapidly withering to nothing and leaving behind a relatively undefended ditch that the trenches had become Nether Beasts filled it rushing madly forward as their success gave them confidence

Randidly released a breath and winced Fuck that hurt more than I thought it would Not anything serious but

There was a hand on his shoulder that brought Randidly abruptly back Salazar flicked his tongue out of his mouth uneasily as he considered Randidly Are a are you a a alright If y you arenÆt

No IÆm fine Randidly shook his head IÆll recover quickly But itÆs too late for them

A monster with nothing but hunger opened its mouth and tasted the air

Salazar looked confused but Randidly didnÆt bother to answer Even now it was out there among them It crawled gleefully across the slain roots of the World Tree skittering from slaughtered branch to branch It licked its lips as it moved amongst the Nether Beasts its energy similar enough to them that the phantom went unnoticed It was almost welcomed amongst these strange beings of instinct It had many legs and a mouth wide enough to swallow the sky

This will teach you to assume you have the market on images of darkness cornered Randidly thought grimly Implacable Price of Exodus

The dark thing with too many legs and a mouth wide enough to swallow the sky paused in its made journey through the surging forces of Nether Even as Nether Beasts rushed forward around it the thing looked upward toward Randidly Then it smiled Its tongue tasted the air again shivering in anticipation

There was a moment of suspended time as the image moved and the whole of the trench dug in front of Lady IellayaÆs camp could feel the change Randidly noticed the Nether Beasts realize something was wrong and struggle to escape but the image was already among them There was only the phantom of jaws that materialized around the Nether Beasts and the darkness of the hunger lurking beyond that

Those jaws covered the entire ditch

Congratulations Your Skill Implacable Price of Exodus has grown to Level 203

Congratulations Your Skill Implacable Price of Exodus has grown to Level 204

Congratulations Your Skill Implacable Price of Exodus has grown to Level 205

Even the Nether advance turned sluggish as all of the Nether Beasts that had charged into the trench vanished in a flicker of curved teeth and the sound of all of those Nether bubbles and cores being smashed to a pulp at once Randidly brought his hand to his chest and winced as he endured something akin to heartburn as that foreign Nether lashed out at him for being consumed so quickly

Unable to withstand the pressure Randidly burped lightly and blew out a stream of dense Nether energy Both Zauna and Salazar looked at him with obvious shock and alarm but Randidly could only shake his head helplessly

DonÆt worry about it this isnÆt more than I can handle Randidly said with a grin But he couldnÆt help but notice how more Nether energy leaked out of the corners of his mouth like smoke as he smiled Which greatly increased the alarm in SalazarÆs eyes as his two assistants considered Randidly Ghosthound

Shaking his head Randidly turned back to the battlefield and allowed the headache he suddenly possessed to slowly ease itself away That was even more powerful than expected but the word priceÆ is important that strength only comes from giving something up In this case defending within that trench with any Yggdrasil Skills now after using that image would greatly weaken it

better to keep it as a last resort moving forward

Although the Nether Beasts paused for a little while after visibly losing so many more reinforcements surged forward to fill the now expanded trench In addition to annihilating the Nether Beasts Implacable Price of Exodus had also largely gotten rid of the small defensive fortifications that had been spaced throughout the trench which allowed the Nether Beasts to surge forward without any real resistance besides the shallow slopes at the edges

Those slopes were enough to give Lady IellayaÆs camp an advantage but it was now clear that they firmly had the attention of the Nether forces and with each comet that dropped down to the ground the quality of troops was slowly rising It was gradual but there were no longer any Nether Beasts at the two star tier of strength They were gradually rising toward three

For a relatively shaky group like these recruits that would be enough to overcome any small advantage But Randidly planned to give them one more edge Especially as he saw how most of the Nether comets that were impacting the ground were making landfall in front of their base

Ruinous Drive Randidly thought silently and his energy began to radiate out from him like a halo of destruction Unlike the Skill Flowing Momentum that this Skill had evolved from Randidly no longer had to be literally leading a charge forward in order to provide the benefits to the surrounding individuals They didnÆt need to be part of his momentumÆ any longer Now Randidly could simply act as a powerplant that supplied a little extra damage to attacks all across the frontlines

It was really a small thing likely even smaller than the advantage given to them by the height advantage from the trench A minuscule percentage of the damage these desperate soldiers inflicted with their images and weapons A small edge to a sword slash a fingerÆs worth of pressure to a blast of fire a hint of chill to a whirlwind of ice shards

But it was across a whole portion of the battlefield

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 36

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 37

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 38

The area Randidly could affect grew slowly along with the Skill Levels but it was only really enough to benefit Lady IellayaÆs camp Which was still bolstered to almost fifty thousand people utilizing the pretty modest bonus that Randidly provided Which in the aggregate became enough for the current forces to deal with the rising strength of the Nether Beasts

The ground of the ditch soon got soaked in ichor and blood of the Aether and Nether forces until it was a muddy hellscape of broken bodies and fizzling grey putty Hooves and feet and chitinous legs churned the broken substances strewn across the ground until it was a grey/black paste Ignoring their losses the Nether Beasts continued to throw themselves forward

Slowly but surely the slight edges were enabling the brave defenders at the edge of the ditch to smash back wave after wave of Nether Beasts leaving the failed attackers broken and trampled underneath their own

Yet each wave would rip down one or two of the Aether soldiers Small losses but more and more Nether Beasts were surging behind their black glassy eyes filled with hatred They were the river of carnage the flowed out of the beating heart of rage that was the Nether King in the sky

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 39

They would not stop until that emotion had run its course And even from here Randidly could feel the demand for blood

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 40

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 41

Slowly but surely the extent of the assistance that Randidly could provide was growing Even now RandidlyÆs over one thousand Intelligence pointed out that it wouldnÆt be enough He would not grow quickly enough to keep the soldiers of Lady IellayaÆs camp safe so long as he only acted from afar Yet even so

Randidly looked sharply upward as the sky above him cracked A black comet of Nether raced downward piercing through the barrier that Lord Miln had set up that kept the Nether Beasts from being able to drop anywhere across the battlefield Before Randidly could react it had raced down and smashed into the edge of the trench directly in front of Lady IellayaÆs camp obliterating the bodies of defenders in the surrounding area in a wave of gore

The soldiers that had been slowly stabilizing were instantly killed Visual reverberations rippled out over the surrounding area as the dense Nether began to spread

Lightning fast Randidly flooded the area with the attacks from Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil Now that the opponent had gotten out of the area he had affected with the Implacable Cost of Exodus Randidly could utilize his World Tree Skills again

Yet as soon as he unleashed the attacks RandidlyÆs Grim Intuition told him that these wouldnÆt be effective this foe hovered just below the Nether Gatekeeper tier of power It was squat and humanoid with six muscular arms that seemed to be constantly rolling at the shoulder joints When it flexed its muscles rippled and reformed around the small scratches that RandidlyÆs root attacks had made

The surrounding Aether forces regrouped and rushed toward this foe but it whipped its arm to the side and ripped apart the nearby resistance Randidly watched as a severed torso of an Aether soldier tumbled sideways through the air and roll across the ground Then the powerful Nether Beast raised its head and roared its defiance

The sea of Nether Beasts behind it roared enthusiastically at the show of power Their roar was a promise They were coming for blood

Chapter 1184

From their vantage point on top of the fort the sounds of the battlefield were almost distant It was easy to feel separated from the suffering happening below Vualla clenched her fists tightly making her metal gauntlets shake The interim Commander shook his head sadly as he looked down from the walls “This young fool This is exactly why you don’t show off early in a serious battlefield Did he truly think that the Nether Beasts were foes that were possible antagonize without incurring these sort of consequences He deserves this comeuppance “

Even through that emotionless void that she carried in her chest Vualla felt a tremor run through her body It was a righteous fury that was backed by disbelief at the interim CommanderÆs response Both survive the hungry drain of the void in VuallaÆs chest

Of course Randidly knew there would be consequences That was the entire point Because he could endure while others could not Because Randidly Ghosthound was willing to personally pay that price in order to protect some of the common soldiers from needing to pay with their own lives You spineless cretin

Outloud Vualla kept her voice light when she spoke “Luckily that one that crashed to the ground is barely at the Nether Gatekeeper tier I can finish it off quickly if I head out now before more come “

“You will stay put and that’s an order ” The Interim Commander tutted while looking at Vualla with an ugly glare “This could be a ploy to get us to overcommit our forces Until we understand how the Nether Beasts intend to overwhelm our base we will not move Don’t tell me that you want to participate in this young man’s folly “

Offering my body to protect others Of course I want to participate Vualla thought But she hesitated to push the issue

The rather large truth hanging between her and the interim Commander was the fact that the Interim Commander was even weaker than this first Nether Gatekeeper that showed up on the battlefield The position had been awarded to him based on seniority and because there were no other suitable candidates If Vualla were to move now this camp had no one who could reliably repulse a Nether Gatekeeper on its own

It is another issue entirely why I wasnÆt considered a suitable candidate

Yet even if she knew she should not Vualla’s eyes kept being drawn to the roaring Nether Gatekeeper It’s cries were swiftly spurring on its fellows into violent activity across the lines Perhaps even more dangerous than the foe itself was the huge gash that it opened up in the defensive fortifications around Lady Iellaya’s camp Nether Beasts finally had space to swarm up toward the Aether soldiers resulting in growing casualties

“Besides Lady Iellaya is more than capable of handling a threat of this tier Even her second is powerful enough for a foe like this ” The interim Commander said dismissively He folded his arms and nodded for an aide to refill his coffee cup “Let’s not stick our noses into other people’s affairs shall we “

Yet second ticked past and Vualla didn’t move her gaze By the second the gash in the defensive fortifications in front of Lady IellayaÆs camp was growing larger

Even the interim Commander began to frown as the damage to the defenses grew greater and greater His glances over toward Lady Iellaya’s camp became increasingly frequent The area around the Nether Gatekeeper had been cleared of soldiers and now a halo of Nether Beasts had formed up around it The Aether forces were continually forced to give ground underneath the frenzied assault allowing the opponents to gain several footholds along the edge of the ditch

This only was ever going to end one way Vualla kept her eyes opened and waited for the inevitable She could feel the cold darkness pressing against the skin of her shoulders to her like a cloak equally as transfixed by what was occurring on the battlefield The small spark of worry in Vualla’s chest endured its constant draining Everyone on the battlefield is unwilling to play their hands too early Randidly This will be a long battle None are as brave as you are

None shine as brightly Look you even have the attention of this weird ass emotionless darkness

“I say there are quite a number of Nether Beasts over attacking Lady Iellaya’s camp If they fall we “

Yet just as the interim Commander was realizing the strategic value in their neighbor successfully drawing the ire of the Nether there was a change The slowly growing footholds across the ditch were abruptly popped like a balloon by waves of thorny roots Nether Beasts were swept away with all the casual professionalism as a homeowner dealing with red and orange leaves in fall Then a single figure eviscerated a dozen Nether Beasts with his spear and manifested in front of the Nether Gatekeeper

Almost subconsciously Vualla’s mouth slightly opened A warm flame that her heavy darkness could not snuff out steadily burned in her chest It was defiant and playful and filled her with hope And this flame suddenly felt ever so familiar Even from here Vualla could feel that Randidly was not relying on the image of the tree any longer

No this was the Randidly that Vualla knew most intimately The heavy and violent image of the Grim Chimera was present suffusing him with a virulent energy The being that had been hunted its entire existence and had grown strong on survival

The nearby Nether Beasts struck at him trying to reestablish their beachhead below Lady Iellaya’s camp Yet Randidly’s form flickered and he slipped between the blows He moved more quickly than any one man had a right to somehow completely avoiding the attacks and inflicting deep gashes on the offending foes

They keened their pain and tried to recover but Randidly raised his head and sucked in a long breath of air Even from the next camp over Vualla could sense that something strange occurred as Randidly took that breath Instantly all the surrounding Nether Beasts seemed to grow dim and sluggish Narrowing her eyes Vualla tried to figure out what he had done

Yet the Nether Gatekeeper had endured RandidlyÆs actions silently for long enough The six armed monster focused its furious gaze on Randidly and roared at a volume that seemed to punch the surrounding air The ferocity and violence of its call continued forward and smashed into Randidly Even from here Vualla could see how the raw oppression of a Nether Gatekeeper was still enough to slow Randidly down

The Grim Chimera still isnÆt strong enough for this

Just as Vualla was about to assume that it was still too early for Randidly to fight against a Nether Gatekeeper he blurred forward into motion Like a loosed arrow he practically glided forward and smashed into the chest of the Nether Gatekeeper before it could react The powerful image of the Grim Chimera clashed directly against the fury of the Nether Gatekeeper

definitely looks like the image is still a bit short from being enough Vualla shook her head But damn how high are Randidly’s Stats that he can move like that even while surrounded by Nether

Again Randidly took a deep breath and the surrounding Nether Beasts wavered slightly Even the Nether Gatekeeper paused for a short amount of time as RandidlyÆs action somehow pulled at the surrounding space But then the Nether GatekeeperÆs fury came roaring back with enough violence to blast away any feeble hold Randidly have over it It exerted a concentrated pressure on the surrounding area shot that caused the visual variations to flicker and dance madly across one another

Two of its arms shot outward to smash back Randidly but Randidly simply wove his torso between the thundering blows with a shocking about of grace Which only served to infuriate the Nether Gatekeeper further It growled lightly but once again tried to suppress the surrounding area with the raw density of the Nether at its disposal

Once more Randidly took a deep breath This time Vualla finally saw how it took the edge off of the surrounding Nether density In terms of energy manipulation it was a flawless and almost instinctual sabotage Randidly then followed up with a vicious series of short stabs with his spear that cut open a few more gashes across the Nether Gatekeeper

But even if Randidly could handle the Nether the punches were proving to be the real problem This time when the Nether Gatekeeper attacked it came with every intention of smashing Randidly into a pulp All six shoulders rolled and a rain of blows began to fall toward Randidly

For the first three strikes Randidly was able to take a step to the side and weave through a slight gap in the attacks He even swept the spear downward and inflicted a deep wound on the Nether Gatekeeper’s thigh But that gave the Nether Gatekeeper enough time to bring a rumbling hook across horizontally that was right on target Vualla’s heartbeat stopped for a split second as Randidly stepped backward but not quickly enough to avoid the punch skidding off the front of his armor The attack was so powerful that flakes of his chest piece were physically sheered off

Handling the Nether is good but that’s just the beginning You cannot forget about the raw power that Nether Gatekeepers have It’s that power that makes them so difficult to put down

Being hit by the punch sent Randidly stumbling and the Nether Gatekeeper surged forward to capitalize Two more punches shot out Randidly was able to contort his body to avoid the first strike but the second one smashed directly into Randidly’s side

He took all the force directly Vualla decided that she didn’t care very much for what the interim Commander thought and was going to go help Randidly before he was killed in this meaningless waiting game

But within a second the worry Vualla felt was sucked away from her The darkness seemed to tell Vualla to wait and see

Because Randidly skidded backward and his face twisted into a scowl but that was all He seemed none the worse for wear from enduring the direct strike It looked like there were more cracks that opened up on his strange ash grey armor but other than that he was fine

Although the armor had cracked the core had held

You need to back off Vualla whispered When the interim Commander gave her a strange look she didnÆt continue to speak But she continued to will her wishes to Randidly through the palpable connection that she felt for him Use your Skills Keep your distance If itÆs you there should be no problem running around it So why are you

The Nether Gatekeeper didn’t waste any time being surprised by RandidlyÆs tenacity It simply surged forward and continued its flurry of blows with clear intent to put this threat down Randidly dodged the first one endured a glancing strike to his shoulder to inflict a deep cut to the Nether Gatekeeper on the second and then dodged the third blow entirely as he once more surged forward and pierced the Nether Gatekeeper’s chest with a thrust too abrupt to follow with the naked eye

This time the Nether Gatekeeper stumbled backward before regaining its feet Both took a few seconds to study each other

Are Randidly Ghosthound’s Stats high enough that he can meet a Nether Gatekeeper head on And I know he has some proficiency with Nether but really His image is barely being corroded by the density of the surrounding energy How

The darkness over Vualla sucked those emotions away Watch him

Perhaps Vualla really would begrudgingly allow the emptiness she carried with her to devour her worries if she had not noticed that even larger chunks of the armor wrapped around his torso began to crack and flake off after the contact Partially disintegrating plates couldn’t hold on any longer and fell away revealing a much darker shade of inner armor something that was closer to black

Yet it seemed that the Nether Gatekeeper noticed the same thing that Vualla saw because it rushed forward and aimed its blows to exploit the growing cracks in Randidly’s armor Again most of these were effortlessly dodged by Randidly while exhibiting an impossible level of speed grace and flexibility But sometimes blows was glance off the armor Sometimes Randidly would choose to endure a strike directly to inflict a wound of his own

Over and over again large chunks were broken off of the armor leaving Randidly

Vualla frowned

Why did it seem like the armor he was wearing was growing as pieces fell away

Chapter 1185

Randidly narrowed his eyes and tried to handle the tasks of both distracting the Nether Gatekeeper and assisting against the surrounding Nether Beasts His attention was stretched to his limit Chimeric Avoidance

Congratulations Your Skill Chimeric Avoidance has grown to Level 230

The strike from the Nether GatekeeperÆs middle right arm whistled past RandidlyÆs shoulder as he leaned to the side Acri twisted its own shaft to urge Randidly to attack but Randidly held back and retreated another two steps His ribs groan piteously from an earlier strike they had taken from the Nether Gatekeeper but at least they werenÆt broken Yet launching an attack with his ribs in this condition was asking for trouble

So Randidly had to open a little more space Which in turn allowed the Nether Beasts that were following behind the Nether Gatekeeper to explode outward and launch more attacks on the Aether soldiers that were standing nervously behind RandidlyÆs back

But what choice do I have Randidly thought grimly Vines struck like vipers from the ground limiting the damage that the spreading Nether Beasts could do Yet very quickly RandidlyÆs attention was yanked back to the foe in front of him

Gathering up its strength the Nether Gatekeeper raised its head and released another pulse of dense Nether into the surrounding area Instantly Randidly activated Cursed Appetite of a Wraith to pull a portion of that dense Nether away Which eased up the pressure on the normal soldiers but it reliably brought the Nether GatekeeperÆs ire back right toward Randidly And at the moment it was very difficult for Randidly to resist the Nether Gatekeeper directly

Even if this was a relatively weaker specimen Nether Beasts that had become Nether Gatekeepers had three main strengths First they were incredibly resistant to images With the images Randidly had expending his Willpower barely added enough to be worth it against them Second they could manipulate large quantities of dense Nether making them an absolute nightmare for the average Aether individual And third they possessed overwhelming physical bodies

This is what I get for waiting so long to start pouring Stat points into Strength Randidly thought rather sourly as he eyed up his opponent an attack was coming soon

The Nether Gatekeeper charged forward cracking the ground with the force of his acceleration Randidly couldnÆt afford to give up more ground so he had no choice but to use the Skill Man is Proud but the Chimera Takes and catapult himself forward to slow the opponentÆs advance

Congratulations Your Skill Man is Proud but the Chimera Takes has grown to Level 189

The two bodies smashed together and produced a concussive blast that knocked several nearby Nether Beasts off balance Several more chunks of Sulfur flaked away in the collision With a wiggle the living central portion of Sulfur pushed more of is old body away and rapidly began secreting more armor Armor that was empowered by the memory of endurance Randidly had found in the Nether Prince and was becoming much more capable of defending against strikes like this

which was the positive result but the huge blow that Randidly took to his torso wasnÆt without costs The process of helping Sulfur shed its old skin meant that Randidly had to physically bear the brunt of the powerful Nether Gatekeeper while Sulfur struggled to evolve There was only so much his Endurance could handle and so much his Vitality could heal on such short notice

Congratulations Your Skill MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality has grown to Level 240

Congratulations Your Skill Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil has grown to Level 216

With his Vitality up over one thousand Randidly had quite a few tools to make the rapid recovery much easier even while he attempted to continue fighting the Nether Gatekeeper while healing But the larger problem was a whole slew of minor injuries that were slowly popping up as wave after wave of force spread across his body

Randidly clenched his fist and the manifestation of the Grim Chimera condensed around him like a dark cloud drifting suddenly across the sun on a summer day MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality was the more useful of the two passive physical Skills here as it continued to allow Randidly to move adroitly around the Nether GatekeeperÆs attacks Because after smashing into each other the Nether Gatekeeper was only slowed for a split second before its six arms were raised

The Grim ChimeraÆs two tails one on its neck and another growing from the tailbone flicked side to side It hissed provocatively Three fists blurred outward from the Nether Gatekeeper to smash this impudent image Grim Intuition and Intelligence picked apart the attack patterns he had seen so far and he could only grimace this was going to hurt

Randidly ducked under the first punch and allowed the second one to deflect off of his side The wave of force that was transferred through the fist was enough to cause him to waver and unable to dodge the approaching third punch even with Chimeric Avoidance roaring to its full potential

The strike took Randidly in the left shoulder directly Randidly felt a huge chunk of SulfurÆs armor crack and shatter and RandidlyÆs face was sprayed with debris Unfortunately that wasnÆt the end of the trouble the strike also directly damaged RandidlyÆs metallic left arm

It was quite a weird sensation to feel a dep crack emerge in the limb but even worse to feel the short circuiting of the Aether Engravings that Randidly had used to connect the metal to his body Aether hissed rather wastefully up into the air escaping the broken runes and bleeding into the surroundings

One of the Nether GatekeeperÆs lower two arms which had been largely kept back in reserve during the fight so far twisted back and viciously forward for an uppercut But Randidly raised his two hands and activated one of the Three Wishes in his SunÆs Teardrop Belt and blasted the Nether Gatekeeper directly in its center of mass with an Ignition Bolt The emerald/gold blast of energy punched against the Nether GatekeeperÆs chest with enough sizzle to burn its resilient physique and force it back almost ten meters

Congratulations Your Skill Ignition Bolt « has grown to Level 135

Congratulations Your Skill Ignition Bolt « has grown to Level 136

But eventually even that energy fizzled out leaving a glaring Nether Gatekeeper looking at Randidly like he was a bug that had crawled across the turkey dinner

Still that ten meters of space was exactly what Randidly needed right now Even as his body continued to throb painfully from the beating that he had endured thus far Randidly was able to hastily adjust the Aether runes on his shoulder and arm to keep the limb working However Randidly couldnÆt get around the fact that the fissure in the scale mail of the limb would only grow worse as time dragged on

In addition Randidly took that opportunity to sweep away some nearby Nether Beasts with Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil The Aether soldiers saw the chance and began to launch attacks to push the foes back to the edge of the trench and uncomplicate the defensive formation Meanwhile Randidly also had the spare attention to commune lightly with Sulfur

I donÆt have much more in me buddy I need you to step up

There was a brief hesitation but then Sulfur acquiesced it believed that it had absorbed enough kinetic force from RandidlyÆs brief stint as a punching bag to turn this whole thing around On cue Randidly felt SulfurÆs actual body heat up as it quickly got to work

To oversimplify Sulfur RandidlyÆs pet armor was essentially a weirdly shaped snake made out of minerals and plant cells Just like a snake these plant cells periodically shed their skinÆ and created the rigid exterior that Randidly used as armor During their time in the Nether Prince Sulfur had absorbed something that had given it the inspiration to completely revolutionize its plant cells

A tireless image of the long path The epitome of a lifestyle with no other options but enduring

So RandidlyÆs past several minutes were him frantically gathering the energy by directly absorbing force to complete those renovations while doing his best not to end up broken in the process And now Sulfur was pumping out darker more imposing armor to more effectively absorb the force But that wasnÆt all that this new and improved Sulfur could accomplish

SulfurÆs body temperature spiked even further upward making him burn against RandidlyÆs torso Randidly leaned his body forward so the thick liquid that Sulfur was creating oozed down to cover his left arm It forced itself out through the cracks in SulfurÆs almost completely shattered grey exterior and had gotten down to RandidlyÆs elbow before he had to readjust his position for the arrival of the attack

With another ground shattering step the Nether Gatekeeper accelerated forward so quickly that even RandidlyÆs Grim Intuition struggled to pin him down This strike Randidly took directly in the chest Randidly reflexively sucked in a breath and activated Cursed Appetite of a Wraith to give him a slight buffer to handle the attack

Congratulations Your Skill Cursed Appetite of a Wraith has grown to Level 265

Congratulations Your Skill MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality has grown to Level 241

God that hurts Randidly hissed through his teeth as the remaining grey portions of Sulfur were blasted away Randidly endured as much as he could with the elasticity of his muscles and then took a single step backward His whole torso was now covered in the new gleaming black armor that Sulfur produced And as the hardening excretion from Sulfur covered RandidlyÆs left arm Sulfur itself moved

It spiraled around up to the left shoulder and then down the interior of the arm Slowly the physical body of Sulfur was growing The burning productive plant cells at its core were multiplying

Unfortunately Randidly still had five more fists to deal with after he physically gritted his teeth through the first punch And it had seemed that the Nether Gatekeeper had realized that something was up with RandidlyÆs ability to endure its blows because it no longer wasted any time in trying to overwhelm him

The first two punches Randidly coped with by relying heavily on MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality and Chimeric Avoidance but the following two were coming at the same time to hit RandidlyÆs ribs from both sides at once like Randidly was a nut to be cracked open Tsking lightly Randidly activated another one of his three wishes and used the Skill Chimera Weeps But Man Mourns to unleash a half dozen burning golden thrusts in short succession

That knocked away two more of the follow up punches and for the last one Randidly stepped sharply forward and unleashed a Molten Fang of the Pariah and skewered the final arm right through the bicep Barring his teeth Randidly twisted Acri and absolutely mulched the muscle to nothing

With a scream the Nether Gatekeeper swung down with the same fist that had thrown the first punch this time aiming for Acri Because the spear still skewered the Nether GatekeeperÆs arm Randidly had to release the shaft of Acri and allow the weapon to be flung away rather than trying to resist such a powerful strike directly

Of course a normal spear would have been rendered useless by such a happening but not Acri Even as it tumbled through the air and into the ditch packed with Nether forces Randidly didnÆt worry After it landed Acri just began to slither back toward unsuspecting Nether BeastÆs back and harvest their experience But it did mean that Randidly had lost his weapon for the moment

SulfurÆs presence flared to an almost feverish heat at RandidlyÆs left shoulder signaling that it was ready within the metal arm So when the Nether Gatekeeper threw his next punch Randidly raised his left arm and met it with a left straight of his own

Randidly staggered backward as the hastily created covering on his metal left arm shattered and revealed the deeply flawed scale mail within The collision had widened the flaws in the arm once more But Sulfur was furiously producing more excretions acting a furnace that smelted an entire limb fueled by all the energy that it had absorbed by directly meeting the Nether GatekeeperÆs strike Very quickly RandidlyÆs left arm became more of a giant blob y cudgel than a real arm as more and more of SulfurÆs cells seeped outward

Still the Nether Gatekeeper didnÆt slow down The next punch Randidly could dodge but the punch after that Randidly had to chop down with his right hand to deflect away from his body The third punch Randidly begrudgingly endured on his right arm and clenched his teeth until his jaw ached And finally the fourth was another angle that Randidly could meet so he raised his hardened arm and smashed it against the punch

The two strikes met A shiver ran through both of their bodies but neither stepped backward The misshapen exterior of RandidlyÆs left arm cracked and fell away revealing a sleek if oversized fist waiting within One that was very noticeably reminiscent of VuallaÆs heavy gauntlets

IÆm not as strong as you Randidly said lightly to the likely uncaring Nether Gatekeeper But IÆm not alone And honestly IÆm your worst fucking nightmare It must be frustrating to have us counter you so directly Your Nether is useless And I donÆt need an image to handle your physical strength

And if you want to get into a slugging match heh well be my guest IÆll bury you within the hour

Chapter 1186

HeÆs sucking in Nether Lord Miln wrapped his knuckles against his desk And am I the only one who is noticing that his Skills have notes of Nether embedded in them True it boosts the power yet

Ileot Swacc shook his head sorrowfully You just pointed out that Randidly Ghosthound is absorbing Nether What would he do if he didnÆt produce Nether in his attacks Eat it

Complaining to you is a waste of time A vein throbbed in his temple but just as quickly he let the issue go after all Ileot Swacc and he were tied too closely together now to let a small matter like this come between them Especially when the points that Ileot were making were so annoyingly reasonable

Instead Lord Miln focused his attention once more on the actions of Randidly Ghosthound Lord Miln was torn between annoyance and amusement as he watched the two lashing out and dodging while both holding their ground How long will this pathetic battle last

Ileot chuckled lightly and tucked his hands behind his back Both stood on the very peak of the rocky outcropping and surveyed a vista that allowed them to see the entirety of the chaotic battlefield The Great Rift pulsed above them and the blue veins continually threw down fistfuls of Nether Beasts toward the ground With the dense Nether energy released by those impacts the visual distortions were growing tiresome even for individuals as powerful as these two individuals

But both of their gazes were focused to their left where Randidly Ghosthound had been drawn into a brutal and bone crunching fistfight with the most pathetic excuse for a Nether Gatekeeper that Lord Miln had either seen It was an affront to all the value that Lord Miln had placed on the boyÆs body that he hadnÆt even been able to overcome this insignificant foe

It was a continuing affront to Lord MilnÆs pride that a boy who was an insubstantial image only a short while ago was also managing to possess immense strategic value

Aether and Nether surged against each other across the whole of the front and slapped against each other in a cacophony built from thousands of straining bodies Many died in the churning impact between the two forces but even Lord Miln could see how this remained a reserved engagement Aside from the two foes fighting in front of Lady IellayaÆs camp no other real powerful individuals had yet entered into the fray

What Lord Miln was currently forced to watch was thousands of worms squirming their way against each other

If Randidly died or was wounded in this fight Lady Iellaya would likely be forced send her second Abiodun to deal with the threat and the Nether forces would bring the hammer down to eliminate that camp that had played its hand If the Nether Gatekeeper was overcome the Nether would send a much more capable job to finish the job that its first minion had failed

In both situations the Nether forces would seize the initiative after the battle had ended And there was nothing Lord Miln could or would do about these hypothetical scenarios The numerical difference between the two sidesÆ number of Nether Gatekeeper power and above individuals was too vast The Aether forces could only endure

Lord Miln gritted his teeth as he focused on those two distant figures who were taking a small break in their furious exchange of blows The slugs were clearly gassed from their extended exercise Yet even if Randidly Ghosthound might be bleeding and panting in a disgraceful manner the Nether Gatekeeper was just as bruised and exhausted Both had pushed themselves physically to the limits of their bodies Somehow the boy completely ignored the sea of dense Nether being thrown at him and just transformed the confrontation to a fistfight

And that had already been going on for twenty minutes

Ileot Swacc giggled You are only annoyed because you cannot be annoyed based on the current situation Although it appears like a stall we are gaining quite a bit of momentum from the current state of affairs are we not

Lord Miln grunted noncommittally Yet his eyes hadnÆt missed the strange aura that Randidly Ghosthound was producing to strengthen the soldiers around him It had started by only affecting Lady IellayaÆs group but the edges of it were slowly spreading outward to the next door camp Even more importantly the Nether GatekeeperÆs Nether pulses might be neutralized by Randidly but Randidly continued to reap the lives of the surrounding Nether Beasts with his roots

For godÆs sake his leafy spear is crawling around and killing hundreds of Nether Beasts too Lord Miln was stretched by the glee he felt at the predicament the furious Nether King must currently find himself in and sympathy for said KingÆs experience also being frustrated endlessly by Randidly Ghosthound Because as soon as Randidly became too injured to continue Lord Miln fully intended to intervene and protectÆ such a valuable asset for his own safety

Just as Lord Miln had done with Commander Terith Hopefully while avoiding the same tragic fate that had taken consciousness away from Commander Terith But it was impossible to predict such things

Accidents happened in war

And on your side You could not convince him to allow you to duplicate his valuable body Lord Miln said as he turned back to Ileot Swacc the mysterious benefactor that Lord Miln had gambled so much to appease

Ileot shrugged seemingly unruffled Surprisingly no It appears he does not value the life of Vualla as much as I anticipated Not that I blame him this version of Vualla is extremely uninteresting

Both froze at the same moment For a second a weird sense of pressure had descended across the battlefield And from the expression on IleotÆs face he was just as surprised by the sudden pressure as Lord Miln had been Even the visual variations around the Nether Beasts were cowed by that pressure

Then it passed likely mastered by the furious individual who released it Lord Miln allowed himself a tight smile and tried to calm his beating heart He always knew the power of the foe he was aiming for but to feel that pressure It seems that the Nether King is being suitably annoyed by our problematic subordinate as well Good

Perhaps For the first time since Lord Miln had met Ileot Swacc his face was extremely serious He squinted upward as if searching for something Then he shook his head At any rate convincing him the old fashioned was always the safer but it is a more inconvenient method He even called my bluff by providing Vualla energy Better still to use your suggestion

The mention of that caused Lord MilnÆs mouth to twitch He glanced to the side where the 90% copy of Randidly provided by Ileot stood waiting for orders Will it be enough It appears that Lady Iellaya obtained the valuable energy before he could absorb more of the essence of the Nether Prince

It will be enough Ileot nodded sharply In fact making sure the image is attached to that face might be unnecessary in the wake of the Nether PrinceÆs demise the Nether King will want to kill us all That little toy is just insurance to make sure that the Nether King will aim to kill Randidly Ghosthound first

Again IleotÆs face turned extremely serious His eyes went back to the continuing brawl that held the entire battlefield transfixed But we must hurry One thing that Randidly providing energy to Vualla will do is accelerate the breakdown of the incubation buffer

That caused Lord Miln to freeze Will the duplication disappear early If my forces arenÆt poised

Waving a hand Ileot Swacc gave Lord Miln an aggrieved look Of course not Am I some two bit charlatan No I am Ileot Swacc the Duplicator No but the buffer provides a very important metaphysical function of plausible deniability There is a alleviation of pressure It integrates with the world and prevents other individuals from realizing the duplication is present With a chaotic battlefield like this the point is likely moot But after that

ThatÆs fine Lord Miln looked up at the Great Rift and unleashed a fraction of his image His Perception pierced upward prickling the Nether KingÆs sphere of influence Instantly Lord Miln felt that hatred and rage fixate on him Everything is to strike a blow at this foe After today none of it will matter

Abiodun looked troubled after the messenger from Headquarter departed Is this a trick Some sort of trap

A chance to shoot myself in the foot perhaps Lady Iellaya lightly stroked a serpent of fuzzy darkness that twined itself through her fingers But giving me free rein to launch a counteroffensive at any time I wish I too do not like it It feels like Lord Miln has a better read of my intentions than I thought

Abiodun remained silent Because he knew what his mistress would say next

Yet I suspect the depth of my new strength will leave him quite surprised Lady Iellaya smiled like a satisfied cat Then she shook her head But you see how he so effortlessly dodged the question of the involvement of the Xyrt Brigade Them being unwilling to intervene on our behalf seems unrealistic considering the size of the army in front of us

Nether Kings are worthy targets as well Abiodun hummed in agreement But this isnÆt just Lord Miln earning the ire of his subordinates failure to provide this intel could get him brought before the Council of the Nexus

Lady Iellaya drew her tongue slowly across her upper lip before speaking It wonÆt end up mattering if he earns merits by wounding a Nether King But just where does his confidence come from

Which unfortunately enough put a finger directly on AbiodunÆs current anxiety about Lady Iellaya

After a brief hesitation Abiodun could not prevent himself from asking And your new Class and Fate Are you fully integrated with the changes I feel much has changed within you The solidified potential fills you with possibilities true but it is a risk to discover your own limits on such an important battlefield

It is understandable to be nervous dearest Abiodun we have finally reached our goal Lady Iellaya reached up and drew a finger across AbiodunÆs stone cheek We have looked for this chance our entire lives WeÆve grown so much waiting for it But it is finally here I know that our connection has changed somewhat by the workings of the Ghosthound but the costs come with benefits When I fill the sky with darkness you will see that it has all been worth it

Abiodun bowed his head Truly whatever Randidly had done had changed the relationship between Lady Iellaya and her followers Or rather than that the sensitivity that Abiodun had grown reliant on during their long years of partnership with Lady Iellaya had been numbed Rather than serving as a connection between them the potential that Abiodun had donated now had been transformed into Lady IellayaÆs strength

This was always our goal Abiodun reprimanded himself Am I truly thinking of my own needs over hers I should be ashamed of myself

Yet with his bowed head AbiodunÆs eyes focused on that serpent of fuzzy darkness that slowly twined across Lady IellayaÆs fingers even now Strangely It paused in its sinuous motion and looked up at him Their eyes met like there was a spark of intelligence present in that small and feeble image

For a split second Abiodun could have sworn that strange and unexplained snake of darkness smiled up at him

How long have they been fighting Lady Iellaya abruptly asked

Almost twenty five minutes Abiodun shook his head and looked away from the dark snake

Lady Iellaya clicked her jaw Be ready The Nether King wonÆt allow this game to go on much longer And as Randidly starts to struggle thatÆs when we make our move

Chapter 1187

Sulfur hummed pleasantly even as Randidly flexed his right hand and popped a finger back into place It was great that one of them was enjoying the experience but Randidly felt rather exasperated that his armor now made right arm wasnÆt more concerned with the current state of affairs of RandidlyÆs body Honestly Randidly was stunned that Sulfur was able to so blithely ignore the effects of Nether and continually create more armor

I suppose while so much available kinetic energy the slow corrosion by Nether isnÆt much of a problem but still

The Nether Gatekeeper raised a pair of arms and drummed its fists against its chest in an obvious attempt to raise its own spirits Which enabled Randidly to spare slightly more attention to the surrounding battle Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil slashed out at exposed limbs and underbellies easing the pressure on Lady IellayaÆs soldiers

Congratulations Your Skill Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil has grown to Level 283

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 61

Although the fact Randidly switched to a largely aiding role meant he wasnÆt receiving any experience for killing the monsters his Skill Levels continued to climb rapidly upward as the fight against the Nether Gatekeeper continued Part of it was the battlefield but also a significant portion of it came from the extra attention Randidly could spare for each individual task since his Intelligence had reached one thousand That extra emphasis seemed to have a multiplicative effect on his growth that could really shine on such a chaotic battlefield

Very quickly Randidly hurriedly let the surroundings fade away as the Nether Gatekeeper rumbled forward again Grim Intuition narrowed to this one figure in front of him The Nether Gatekeeper struck out with a half dozen short jabs with its own left arms forcing Randidly to either endure them with his right arm or open himself up to a cross counter punch from the Nether Gatekeeper when he mobilized his empowered Sulfur arm to handle the powerful punches

It was an annoyingly effective strategy but one that Randidly was able to use his annoyingly wide stable of Skills to render much less effective

Emerald fire danced across RandidlyÆs right hand as he called on Ignition Essence It answered his call but the specter of Illym was also present in the fire in its erratic streaks of orange Part of that was that the fire now also burned Randidly but it compensated for its self damage by becoming incredibly destructive in its own right

Congratulations Your Skill Ignition of the Emerald Essence has grown to Level 159

Congratulations Your Skill Fire Resistance has grown to Level 192

Some of the Nether GatekeeperÆs jabs slammed into the torso armor that Sulfur provided but others Randidly deftly deflected with his hand wreathed in emerald fire leaving painful looking distortions across the pseudo flesh of the Nether Beast They wouldnÆt restrain its movements much but they certainly looked painful

Hopefully more painful than having to get jabbed in the side repeatedly Randidly thought sourly as he stepped to the side but still received a jarring punch for his trouble Because of the constant threat of the Nether forces getting a foothold the two foes stayed very close to one another Randidly dared not retreat much further

Congratulations Your Skill MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality has grown to Level 246

RandidlyÆs wounds tightened painfully as he hopped slightly to the side to avoid another punch Honestly if this continues for much longer

Yet before Randidly could finish that thought a huge roar echoed across the battlefield All eyes were drawn upward to a huge pitch black claw that rapidly appeared above the blue veins Rather than an image or a Skill this thing seemed to be a manifestation of raw emotion sent directly from the Nether King After flexing its long fingers the enormous claw shot downward and rapidly began to shrink as it descended It soon became a rumbling pinprick of black light that shot downward toward the battlefield

Randidly didnÆt overlook the fact that the claw was heading directly for him But at least he had some time to address that threat

Because even if he wanted to move backward or prepare the Nether Gatekeeper surged forward to pin Randidly down with a tenacious string of attacks It dropped its strategy of trying to suppress RandidlyÆs left arm and simply wanted to suppress him All of the energy that it had been conserving it released in an explosion where punches were blasted outward like shrapnel

Sulfur was immensely pleased with all the orbiting sources of kinetic energy but Randidly was not He smashed forward with his left arm with a straight that knocked aside an uppercut and a jab to impact the Nether Gatekeeper but earned himself a punch to the gut and the chest for his troubles

Competing against these six arms was extremely tiresome

The Nether Gatekeeper leaned forward as though he expected Randidly to retreat from his repeated blows but RandidlyÆs eyes blazed You think you I donÆt have some reserves remaining too Ignition of the Emerald Essence Molten Fang of the Pariah Man is Proud But the Chimera Takes

Randidly was only a short distance away from the Nether Gatekeeper but his movements were sure and sharp as he prepared to make this foe pay for underestimating him He raised his hand and brought IllymÆs terrible willingness to inflict damage burning emerald and orange across his hand Then his hand became a spear burning with the horrible vengeance of the Grim Chimera

Then his body shot forward piercing through the bubble of the Nether Gatekeeper with the abruptly manifesting momentum

Congratulations Your Skill Man Is Proud But the Chimera Takes has grown to Level 191

For the first time since the fight began Randidly and the Nether GatekeeperÆs faces were only a few inches apart Although they had consistently been only meters apart the whole fight this new proximity was the sort that only enemies at the end of a confrontation would achieve And in the Nether GatekeeperÆs eyes Randidly saw fear It knew how this duel would finally end

Randidly grinned as his hand dug deeper into the Nether GatekeeperÆs chest and throbbed painfully from enduring his own vicious flames Did you think I was in as much of a hurry to finish this fight as you were No we had plenty of time Tiresome sure But worth it

Ignoring the pain RandidlyÆs hand groped forward until he felt the dense Nether core at the heart of the Nether Gatekeeper His fingers tightened Above the dense claw smashed a hole in Lord MilnÆs barrier and zipped rapidly downward Instantly the ambient Nether in the surrounding area began to skyrocket

Still wearing a manic grin Randidly sucked in a deep breath that was backed by the hunger of Cursed Appetite of a Wraith

Congratulations Your Skill Cursed Appetite of a Wraith has grown to Level 268

Congratulations Your Skill Cursed Appetite of a Wraith has grown to Level 269

It was difficult to manage both but Randidly kept the ambient Nether in the area from rising too high while also directly draining the resistance out of the foe in front of him His eyes glinted like a wolf stalking through the underbrush as he considered the Nether GatekeeperÆs struggles Energy flooded out through the punctured bubble swirling in RandidlyÆs chest

The Nether Gatekeeper attempted to push Randidly away with its free arms but Randidly used the heavy and clumsy fingers of SulfurÆs arm to seize the topmost of its shoulder joints Those fingers joined RandidlyÆs real fingers in rapidly tightening Unlike the flame wreathed fingers in the Nether GatekeeperÆs chest Randidly rapidly ground the shoulder joint to a pulp with SulfurÆs power almost instantly

Yet Randidly could feel the edges of exhaustion circling around his mind Struggling for so long had a cost And even as he drained Nether out of the surrounding air and restored some of his vigor the claw attack approached from above He flexed his right hand straining to the point that earlier reset finger once more popped out of place The Nether core trembled but it did not give out

Cursing under his breath Randidly released his grip on the Nether Gatekeeper pushed it backward then smashed it directly in the face with an overhand haymaker with Sulfur who immediately hummed in pleasure Even as the Nether Gatekeeper tumbled backward into the ditch and blew away all the Nether Beasts in the way Randidly leapt backward

The claw attack struck the ground at the point where Randidly had been standing only a second prior and cracked the surrounding ground A wave of Nether that was too much for even Randidly to disperse impacted his chest and threw him back an additional several meters

The surrounding soldiers didnÆt even fair that well Their skin and images simply began to hiss and sizzle as the dense Nether ate away at their bodies in seconds Randidly looked on rather helplessly as their flesh deteriorated Even after he steadied himself it was too late to save most of the nearby soldiers They melted like wax in a furnace Their blood dried and evaporated and flaked away as their bones cracked and failed

Randidly pressed his eyes shut as a wave of furious emotion threatened to overwhelm him It took a great deal of control not to let his rage surge upward Instead Randidly almost numbly popped his finger back into place and surveyed the surrounding damage

At the very least the attack had opened up some space between the two sides But it once more destroyed a large portion of the defensive fortifications toward the front Unless they fell back to Lady IellayaÆs fort which didnÆt have the space to house all the individuals present the reinforcements would effectively be fighting the sea of Nether Beasts straight up

Plus that Nether Gatekeeper is clearly wounded Randidly reassured himself If I have more time to help

But again life wasnÆt that easy Two more comets of Nether struck downward slipping through the hole the claw had opened up before Lord MilnÆs barrier could heal itself The smashed into the ditch throwing up clouds of dirt and scattered pebbles

Randidly regarded the new arrivals coldly as they straightened One was a giant dog while the other was a being that walked on two enormous arms and had two rather deft legs hanging below its torso Neither were quite as strong as the individual Randidly had been fighting but both were close

Heh seems like you donÆt want this continuing for much longer Randidly released a humorless chuckle as he glanced up toward the Great Rift But did you think I was stalling just to bleed your footsoldiers Hey Acri have you been enjoying your meal

Chapter 1188

At RandidlyÆs echoing words Acri trilled happily With its elastic body Acri quickly coiled into a spring and launched itself up through the chest of a surprised Nether Beast before the unfortunate thing could react Within a second of speaking Randidly looked up and saw Acri sailing rather gracefully through the air back toward its master But the point that held RandidlyÆs attention was the fact that Acri began to change midair

When Randidly had led his Riders out against some of the early Nether Beast attacks after he had recovered his body he had already sensed that Acri was getting so much experience that a transformation would be forthcoming Ever since his Soulseeds had taken responsibility for their own growth Randidly hadnÆt been too clear on how or why they would evolve But he still retained an accurate sense for when such changes would occur

Perhaps itÆs karma still tying us together Randidly thought as he considered his spear

A tremor ran through AcriÆs rather slender and sparsely leafed shaft As Randidly watched the wooden core of Acri began to rapidly swell outward The sapling rapidly expanded as the smooth bark of the shaft became thick and rugged The increase in size was the greatest at the butt of the spear the shaft thickened there to almost three times its previous size clearly to a width that would be difficult to grip with only a single hand As if that wasnÆt enough several small growths stretched and twisted a small distance outward giving the impression of a rather stubby root system poking off of the edge

The rest of the shaft also grew lengthening to almost five meters and slowly thickening from the sharp point down do the middle portion of the shaft were wide and dark leaves stretched outward in a small halo Then RandidlyÆs eyes caught on the area largely hidden by those wide leaves where there was a half meter long portion that did not thicken at all and maintained its previous width

The changes occurred over the course of only a few seconds as Acri shot through the air As Acri arrived in front of Randidly the weapon twisted itself destroying its deadly forward momentum and drifting midair for a second Randidly reached out and snatched that familiar portion with his right hand appreciating the familiar heat and smoothness of the grip Then Randidly raised Acri and shook it slightly familiarizing himself with the weight

Rather than a spear it was more accurate to describe the new Acri as a lance There was a sharp point that widened out into a leafy guard before the portion that Randidly could grip And beyond the spot where Randidly could grip was the heavy butt with the spreading roots

Just as Randidly believed the changes had stopped at the shift in size AcriÆs huge spearhead began slowly ripping itself apart Then it cracked again as it split once more Very quickly three dancing spearheads about the same size as the old Acri were weaving amongst each other like playful serpents Plus the added length gave them a much larger amount of mobility in their independent movements And when Randidly shook the long lance Acri lightly those three spearheads twined back together and formed the three sides of a pyramid shaped drill

Randidly hefted Acri and studied the tapering point Not a spearhead any longer This isnÆt designed for sweeps or slashes The only thing this weapon can do is pierce Powerfully enough that nothing can stop it Is this the choice you made after being by my side so long Acri

As if sensing RandidlyÆs thoughts Acri cooed softly Randidly couldnÆt help but laugh and lift Acri once more to admire the way light reflected off the glossy leaves or the rich brown of the expended shaft The new lanceÆs weight was probably ten times what it had been previously but even if RandidlyÆs Strength was one of his lower Stats it wasnÆt so low that weight like this would be a problem Honestly Randidly believed he must look strange to now have such an oversized weapon

Even describing it as a lance was somewhat generous If anything it most closely resembled a leafy nail that would be used in a house for giants Which made it a much more difficult tool to utilize but Randidly just had to feel the warm concern from the spear to intuit AcriÆs logic

Randidly already had so interchangeable Skills that made him a nightmare to predict even for foes who knew him well Yet while flexibility had always been his strength what he lacked was an overwhelming power that could destroy an opponentÆs defense even when they were prepared His Skills were all about whittling an opponent down enduring and then using timing and momentum to strike deeply at an opponentÆs weakness

Since Acri had been at RandidlyÆs side so long how could it not understand that Randidly didnÆt need it in order to take advantage of such opportunities So it had chosen a different path Rather than being one of many similar tools Randidly possessed Acri had evolved into a unique if blunt instrument for him

Thanks buddy Randidly said lightly The huge lance wiggled in pleasure at the praise

In the ditch RandidlyÆs few moments of inspection had given the three almost Nether Gatekeepers enough time to gather themselves The six armed foe Randidly had been fighting the entire time was still panting in agony from the strikes Randidly had landed on its core but it had at least managed to stand on its own after a few seconds of recuperation The dog raised its head and released an ominous howl The Nether Gatekeeper that ran on its arms began to lope rapidly toward Randidly

Little did they know I needed this break too Randidly winced internally as his Vitality rapidly knitted together the half dozen micro fractures that enduring the Nether GatekeeperÆs blows during that frantic attempt to kill it had earned him Even with a new and improved Acri there was no getting around the fact that RandidlyÆs body was being pushed beyond its comfort zone

Better finish this as quickly as possible I cannot afford just to stall any longer

Obviously that difficult was exactly why he earned so many Skill Levels so quickly But it also meant that Randidly had been toeing a dangerous line as he didnÆt attempt to finish the fighting quickly Nothing he had endured was so destructive that Randidly hadnÆt been able to recover from it yet but all it would take was one shard from a broken rib going into one of his internal organs and he would have a serious problem As he concentrated energy flowed up from the ground into RandidlyÆs body accelerating the healing process

Congratulations Your Skill Golden Roots of Yggdrasil has grown to Level 225

Better heal now because otherwise Randidly glanced around with pursed lips as he surveyed the surrounding areas Aether soldiers were slowly reforming their ranks behind him but they were rapidly falling under assault by the Nether Beasts across the whole of the front The only reason why they had any breathing room at all was because the area where the claw had descended had pushed back both forces

Yet now Randidly had to rapidly make a decision He could rush forward and meet the three foes in the ditch but the costÆ of his earlier trap was still present LIkely it would linger there forever a bit of the world indelibly scarred with the jaws of that strange thing that wandered the boughs of Yggdrasil Once Randidly moved into the ditch all the assistance he could provide with Absolute Grasp of Yggdrasil would need to cease or he would risk injuring his own image in the process

On the other hand if Randidly allowed his foes to come to him he could help the Aether soldiers But he would also need to defend this larger bulge of a foothold again once he allowed the Nether Beasts once more out of the ditch

Congratulations Your Skill Ruinous Drive has grown to Level 62

Slowly the fighting once more resumed around them as the chaos of the falling claw died down Lord MilnÆs barrier above them slowly healed The huge armed monster continued to lope toward the edge of the ditch and the large dog began to move to join it in a charge toward RandidlyÆs position

Still Randidly hesitated He could feel the nervous eyes of the Aether soldiers at his back Grim Intuition made Randidly extremely aware of every time they looked at him their eyes following the slow rise and fall of his shoulders as Randidly struggled to control his breathing and allow himself to heal Yet their images were fuzzy raw things It had previously been extremely hard to get a read on their behavior

Yet somehow it was becoming increasingly clear to Randidly They waited watching his back unsure of whether they would live in the face of the sea of Nether Beasts After watching his back for so long enjoying the slight benefit of his Ruinous Drive they needed him Their willingness to fight was now inexorably tied to RandidlyÆs actions By protecting them he had become their spine that supported them through this trial

Yet how could a body be willing to see a spine let itself be destroyed to protect the rest of the flesh No this body wanted to see the spine stand straight Regardless of what cost it had for them That was their pride as soldiers Clearer and clearer Randidly could feel that resolve radiating off of them

That was the proof of their sincere respect for this stranger who had stood tall to lessen their own burdens

Congratulations Your Skill Lantern of Harsh Truths « has grown to Level 49

Congratulations Your Skill Lantern of Harsh Truths « has grown to Level 50

Again I donÆt think IÆm the one who was supposed to be affected by this Skill Randidly could only shake his head But his resolve rapidly formed as he felt the spirits of the soldiers behind him rapidly lifting With vicious intent Randidly raised Acri again Molten Fang of the Pariah

Randidly said the words lightly but Acri seemed to shiver with pleasure as Randidly activated the Skill But even Randidly wasnÆt prepared for the whole of Acri to so readily absorb the image of his Skill The leafy guard began to smoke and then smolder The color of the wooden shafted darkened and greyed as Acri began to burn As the temperature of AcriÆs shaft continued to rise ash drifted downward in a delicate wake of orange fireflies below the intimidating weapon

Congratulations Your Skill Molten Fang of the Pariah has grown to Level 200

Yet the core of Acri continued to brighten until the stinger like tip of Acri was glowing cherry red Certainly eye catching but it was the small markings on the root system on AcriÆs butt that really left Randidly floored

You little shit Randidly laughed in disbelief When did you learn to Engraving

AcriÆs coo of a response seemed to say how else but watching you Æ

Shaking his head again Randidly looked forward and wasted no more time with a burning Molten Fang of the Pariah that was almost five meters long Randidly tightened his grip on AcriÆs shaft That was all the sign that the weapon that had grown up with RandidlyÆs touch needed to activate the mysterious runes that glimmered at the end of AcriÆs shaft

There was a spark and then a subsequent explosion of momentum so forceful that even Randidly was surprised To his body that was still struggling to catch up with the damage that the first Nether Gatekeeper had inflicted upon him the jarring unexpected acceleration was more than a little painful

Congratulations Your Skill Pain Resistance has grown to Level 154

Even though Randidly was already stunned by Acri being able to figure out how to use Engraving his senses traced the budding images that Acri used to create the explosive acceleration The shape was Yggdrasil the fuel was the Grim Chimera and the power came from Ignition Essence

Just how closely have you been watching me this whole time Randidly wondered Obviously he was aware that Acri was intelligent but most of their interactions made Randidly feel like he was a parent dealing with a precocious and playful child But this to combine all the images together with Engraving to envision the shape of this evolution

Burning emerald roots of fire snaked outward from the butt of Acri as the Engravings flared to life The loping Nether Gatekeeper had just about reached the edge of the ditch but then Randidly was there like a ballista bolt all vicious point and terrible purpose Although this Nether Gatekeeper had a powerful body even it couldnÆt react to the strange acceleration that Acri provided

The Nether Gatekeeper hardly had time to jerk backward before Acri punctured directly through the heavy muscles of its shoulders In fact its flinch was probably all that saved it from Randidly ramming Acri into its heart Before the pyramidal tip the skin of the Nether Beast was nothing but paper Yet even as the first Nether Beast absorbed some of RandidlyÆs forward momentum his emerald eyes narrowed

As Randidly pierced through the foeÆs shoulder and forced the Nether Beast back into the ditch both figures shot forward away from the lines of Aether shoulders Randidly could feel the sudden and abrupt suppression of his World Tree image as he crossed that line but he didnÆt let himself be distracted by that

Because from RandidlyÆs left the large dog arrived on an intercepting vector its jaws aiming to rip into RandidlyÆs throat

Chapter 1189

As the attack flashed in from the side Randidly almost chuckled with the relish taught to him by Shal Even without the benefit of any of his Yggdrasil images there was something so pure about fighting another being When Randidly had stood before the Aether soldiers and hesitated over what to do his mind was stuck inside repeating loops of strategy Responsibility and the understanding that his actions had consequences pressed heavily against his shoulders

Not that Randidly could ignore those things any longer but it was certainly a nice change of pace to let it all drop away and simply fight His body burned with the explosive energy of motion

As Randidly continued to accelerate forward Acri was pushed further and further into the shoulder of the Nether Beast in front of him rapidly widening the wound to the size of a bowling ball Yet it had all happened so quickly that the Nether Gatekeeper hadnÆt been able to do anything but scream It was a testament to the dog Nether GatekeeperÆs reaction speed that it had so rapidly moved to intercept them

Snorting Randidly planted his right foot into the ground with authority His body tensed again as he foot cracked the ground and drew a trench of cracked stone as he decelerated The forward momentum of the pierced Nether Gatekeeper continued so that it ungracefully slid off the end of Acri in a deluge of ichor and sizzling grey matter

Congratulations Your Skill MonstrosityÆs Appalling Physicality has grown to Level 247

The dog Nether Gatekeeper rapidly realized its mistake but it was already midair to aim for RandidlyÆs throat in the spot it would be in another half second After rapidly stopping the Nether Gatekeeper blurred forward to pass right in front of Randidly

RandidlyÆs grin was manic as he raised his Sulfur empowered left arm Do you really think you can compete with me when it comes to chaotic fighting

With a crushing overhand blow Randidly used Sulfur to smash the Nether Gatekeeper down into the ground But just as he did so Grim Intuition seized his attention and pulled his gaze upward While Randidly was focused on the other two the six armed Nether Gatekeeper had recovered enough to leap into the air and was descending rapidly toward Randidly from above with its arms cocked back to punch

RandidlyÆs eyes tightened Acri inflicted a serious amount of damage to the bastard that walks on its arms but a single punch from Sulfur wonÆt be enough to even keep the other one down If I donÆt have time to inflict another serious wound on at least one of them right now

Because the truth was that most of this early success against three opponents was due to the element of surprise Once they were aware of what he could accomplish Randidly would be much more limited in what results he could expect With their superior numbers they would slowly wear him down With how much damage he had taken already

Still IÆll skewer you right now RandidlyÆs eyes burned emerald as he heaved on Acri and brought the tip of the long lance upward to trust toward the six armed Nether Gatekeeper Yet as Randidly did so his right arm strained with the effort but was unable to shift AcriÆs tip up to the target RandidlyÆs eyes flicked downward

With a vicious snarl on its face the Nether Gatekeeper that walked on its arms had used its scrawny legs to reach out and grab AcriÆs pyramidal tip It spat out a fat glob of Nether phlegm that spattered across AcriÆs shaft clearly pleased with its actions Of course in the split second that followed Acri unwound itself from a spike and once more became a three headed spear Those spear heads bit deeply into the flesh of the Nether Gatekeeper severing one of its leg hands and cutting into the flesh of its torso

Yet that second was enough that there were now six punches rushing down toward Randidly from the Nether Gatekeeper above him RandidlyÆs eyes flicked upward and scanned this foe Wounded as it was it was still a Nether Gatekeeper Its brute force power was significant

Necessity tightened around Randidly His Grim Intuition fed him a clear picture of the state of his body taking these punches directly was a very bad idea Too many of the hits he had taken earlier were freshly healed or still recovering Even with RandidlyÆs ability to recover the hits were coming too quickly for him to stabilize

Randidly released a light breath For all that this was a difficult spot it was also a chance All Else Succumbs Yet Time Whirls the Earth

Even at the best of times the ultimate move of the Grim Chimera was a costly choice Without practicing the specific evolution that Randidly desired using it could be extremely draining Yet what Randidly wanted right now was simply a decisive strike that he could use Three Nether Gatekeepers even ones who seemed to barely qualify for that moniker was too much for Randidly to fight to a standstill with

But if he could eliminate this wounded one now

Both arms were out of the picture from the prior two strikes but the Grim ChimeraÆs image immediately condensed around Randidly and provided to him two tails Randidly hadnÆt developed any use for the tails but the obvious advantage to this Skill was that Randidly didnÆt have to develop a use he could simply search for a timeline where he did

Congratulations Your Skill All Else Succumbs Yet Time Whirls the Earth has grown to Level 153

The already strained edges of RandidlyÆs Willpower were tested again as RandidlyÆs reality spread outward and was split in two And then into four And then into eight as a convoluted series of Paths that Randidly might have taken became apparent possibilities

Yet as RandidlyÆs existence fractured his mind couldnÆt help taking a step back and examining the Skill Does it use karma to connect me to these possibilities or

A terrible spike of pain ripped through RandidlyÆs forehead hastily putting a stop to his meta examination of the Skill With the combination of his physical and mental exhaustion and the very particular ask Randidly had in mind the difficulty had increased geometrically as his mind wandered to the functional components Which made continuing to keep the Skill active extremely difficult

Evolution is best viewed with a healthy dose of faith huh

Gritting his teeth Randidly ignored the dull throbs of pain and persevered He split into thirty two and then found it His lower tail was instantly the tail of this other Randidly a thing of rapacious hunger and violence It was a powerful thing of segmented bone that stretched several meters out from his back With a foe so obviously hanging in the air without any recourse it gleefully shot rapidly forward and pierced quickly forward like the tail of a scorpion

Congratulations Your Skill All Else Succumbs Yet Time Whirls the Earth has grown to Level 154

Congratulations Your Skill All Else Succumbs Yet Time Whirls the Earth has grown to Level 155

The blow ripped into the heavy muscles of the six armed Nether Gatekeeper and impacted the Nether core within it Randidly quickly grinned as he felt the core crack yet his cheer evaporated as the crack did not spread he had certainly damaged the Nether core but he wasnÆt able to destroy it

The Skill passed and the deadly tail that Randidly briefly possessed faded away to nothing leaving the gaping hole in the Nether GatekeeperÆs chest Luckily the strike had also disturbed the trajectory of its jump enabling Randidly to quickly sidestep out of the way

The Nether Gatekeeper crashed to the ground in a mass of flailing limbs but no matter how much Randidly wanted to he didnÆt dare follow up Because his own body began to spasm rapidly due to the after effects of using the Skill His body trembled as he stood quite still and watched the surrounding Nether Beasts slowly force themselves back up to their feet

Congratulations Your Skill MonstrosityÆs Appealing Physicality has grown to Level 248

Congratulations Your Skill Chimeric Avoidance has grown to Level 231

Of the three Nether Gatekeepers both the arm walker and the dog quickly recovered from the strikes they received Randidly had ripped apart the arm walkerÆs body but without any damage to the core the bubble would rapidly heal And although Randidly had punched the dog it was quickly back and ready to fight once more

It was the six armed Nether Gatekeeper that was the most seriously damaged yet even it could get back up without assistance Randidly had created a flaw in its core but that flaw would take a while to transform into something extremely debilitating Considering the fact that Randidly had to endure painful tremors through his body in order to achieve just this he felt incredibly frustrated

Yet Randidly still found himself smiling Because that was the simplicity of battle Everything else could be forgotten there was only the thrill of conflict driving them always further

Very soon all three Nether Gatekeepers were back on their feet Yet they didnÆt approach they simply watched Randidly Rather amused at their hesitation Randidly raised both of his arms In his right hand he held the newly evolved form of Acri a massive leafy lance His left arm was covered in the dark charcoal armor the Sulfur now produced its size giving the impression of massive power A similar sleek dark grey armor covered RandidlyÆs chest