Chapter 756: Embracing Death Part Four

Chapter 756: Embracing Death Part Four

756. Embracing Death Part Four

I felt the numbing pain erupt from my stomach. It wasn’t a fatal strike to say the least. In fact, it wasn’t even a direct attack to my abdomen. It was angled slightly to the left— towards the edge of my waist, so it wasn’t a full-on strike that could have severely injured me.

That was why my [Angelic Premonition] didn’t warn me that the attack was coming. That was why I hadn’t been able to react in time. I gritted my teeth as I moved to pull myself out the spear. But a warning flashed in my mind, and I wasn’t able to react as Chordus slashed out to the side, ripping the side of my waist open as I yelped in pain.

I stumbled back away from her as she laughed— her voice partially distorted because of the flames burning at her face. Her other self flanked me from the side, grinning and raising an axe.

I cursed as I took a step back.

And Chordus’s attack missed me, striking the ground and splitting the earth of my world open. Both her selves standing there just blinked, before the gazes snapped to the side. I was now suddenly standing next to Naro as he stared up at me in confusion.

“How…?”

“[Title Skill: Rapid Disengage].”

I said simply as the two Chordus clones that had been pressing the [Hellprince] paused for a moment to stare at my abrupt appearance right before them. Then the two of them hissed and charged at me, but I just raised a hand to the sky.

“This ability of yours…”

One of the Chordus’s spoke in frustration, and another one continued.

“...is annoying!”

And as she spoke, her four forms flickered. All the while, I continued to ascend to the sky.

“Alright, we’re changing plans.”

I said as I shook my head at Naro.

“We need to get Manos’s help—”

And right as the words left my mouth, I watched as the dozens of spades that had been in the air rapidly shot down straight at me. I tried to dodge the array of attacks as they descended upon me. For a moment, I managed to avoid them, along with Naro’s help.

I blasted them out of the way with my fire, while Naro sent out blades of ice, knocking them to the side. But as I ascended past the spades, the final one that was in the way came to a sudden halt. It turned its flat side towards me, and its crystalline surface rippled as I blinked.

My [Angelic Premonition] blared, warning me of something dangerous that was coming. More dangerous than even Chordus had been. But how was that possible?

I didn’t know, all I knew was that a shadowed figure emerged from the spade, moving faster than I could avoid the attack. It was a broadsword. The very same broadsword that one of the Chordus clones had been swinging around. It just about reached my neck as my eyes grew wide.

And I reacted with another Skill.

[The Devil’s Grace].

Immediately, time went in reverse. The attack swung back, and I flew back to where I was ten seconds ago. Now, as the spade turned to face its flat surface to me, I moved out of the way, circling around it. All the while, I watched the same figure from before emerge.

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But this was no [Queen Of Diamonds]. This was a different figure entirely. It was the same size as me, and it had only a pair of arms, rather than multiple, like the clones before. Its body was still crystalline, however the shape it took was more masculine. And it wore a crown on its head, although it still wore a smiling face, but it wasn’t a mask anymore.

[King Of The Wild - Lvl. 205]

The Chordus clones were gone, and only this single figure remained.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me—”

The newly transformed Chordus bared her teeth at me. Her face was still burning from my [Sacred Hellfire], but it barely even bothered her. She flew straight at me as I opened my mouth and unleashed a torrent of flames her way.

But she just cut through it as she laughed.

“I will kill you even if it’s the death of me!”

The [King Of The Wild] screamed as I continued pouring out my flames at her. I struggled to muster up more power to keep her back as my voice strained.

“Get… ̸̧͇͙̣̱̣̼̈́̔̑̑͂̆͂̈́͐̕͝B̶̨̥̣̩̟̩͙͍̣̖̭͖̯̠̄̅́́̎̅͗́̽̌͛͊͜͜ͅÁ̴̧̫͙̩̤̖̫̦̝̏̄̂̍̔̍̅͆͂̍̽͒̚̕ͅC̴̛̬̗̲̼̟̺͉͈͚͎͈̙̐͂́̓̕K̷̡͚̟̗̲̬̱̝̬̘̹̟͕̜̞̞̒́͐̃͊̒̍͛̋̂̃͘͝!̷̬̩͓̲̠̺̩͎͇̻͉̣͔̹̓̽̈́̌̀͛̈́̔̓̆̃̀́͜͠͝͝͠”̸̘̲̳̲̪͔̲͈̂͛̋̈́̄̐̾̀̆̈́͠͝͝

I screamed, and a blast of corruption shot out of my mouth. It was divinity, magic, and corruption all combined into a single attack. It shot out in a wide cone, engulfing Chordus’s entire being.

And she shot through it, reaching me anyway as I tried to fly back. But the [King Of The Wild] struck out with the broadsword, slicing off my left arm. I screamed in pain, letting go of Naro as the [Hellprince] tumbled out of the air.

I clutched at my left shoulder. This wasn’t the first time I lost a hand. But it was definitely the first time I had completely lost an arm.

A searing pain erupted from the wound as Chordus raised her broadsword for a follow-up strike. And I just pointed at her.

“Stay!”

[Intimidation] caused her to pause for a fraction of a second, and I dove out of the way in time to avoid a slash coming for my neck. I crashed into the ground, black blood dripping onto the soil beneath me. Looking up, I watched as Chordus cast her gaze my way.

And then a box of ice suddenly engulfed her.

“[The Decay Of Heat Death]”

Naro called out as he flew above her, pointing down her way. The [Hellprince] brought his sword to his chest, despite his broken body, and he began to mutter another Skill.

“[Bequeath, Bestow, Grant Me Your Power—”

But the ice box shattered, and Chordus shot up. She reached him in an instant, cutting him off as she stabbed him through the chest. His eyes widened as I raised a hand, calling out to him in shock.

“Naro!”

And Chordus swung out with her sword, sending his limp body flying into the distance. All the while, I could only watch as my only ally in [The World Of My Mind] was tossed aside, leaving me alone to face a Primordial Demon.

“Your little premonition Skill can only keep you alive for so long.”

The [King Of The Wild] said as she cast her gaze back down towards me. Her heart beat even faster than before. At least three beats a second, hammering away in her chest faster than ever.

“And with each passing moment, I grow stronger. Tell me, do you truly think you can win this battle?”

And I just gritted my teeth as I took a step forward. The ground beneath my feet began to melt away into motes of corruption, trickling up onto the wounds I had sustained. My waist began to seal shut as little pieces of earth formed over the missing skin. Meanwhile, chunks of rubble and dirt formed the shape of an arm, being held together by the distortion that shone with a dim iridescent light.

It was a brand new arm made of corruption.

This is [Corrupted Regeneration], huh? I thought as I flexed the corrupted arm. Then I pointed at Chordus as she tilted her head at me.

“I’m not going to lose as long as I—”

I started, but both our attentions were drawn to the side as an explosion of ice erupted from where Naro had fallen. The [Hellprince] was now wreathed in an armor made of ice, almost in the shape of scales. He also had a pair of frost wings and an ice tail protruding from his back, as he raised his sword which had expanded in size.

“Just how are you still alive?”

The [King Of The Wild] asked, looking at him with wide eyes.

But I knew how— that this was the effect of his second Grand Skill. That it had managed to save him from the fatal injury she had inflicted upon him. And he simply hovered there, glaring at Chordus as he whispered to himself.

“[Rakintash, I Ask For Your Strength: Bones Of The Ice Dragon].”