Master of Dominion

Chapter 85: Come get me

Rael lunged, bearing the axe with both hands and sliding below the swinging claws of Arzuk. He bashed the axe against the creature’s bone-spiked waist, crushing through its boney carapace and digging into its rotten flesh, though the weapon became stuck between its thick, rigid muscles.

Arzuk shrieked as it ignored its roaring instincts and glared down at Rael. It gulped in a large vacuum of air as greenish veins began to glow from its torso up to its chest, converging at its throat. Then, with a gurgle, it spat out a massive amount of greenish acidic bile toward Rael’s position.

But Rael had already abandoned the axe and slid beneath the creature, clasping his hands around its scorpion-like tail. The acid sizzled through the earth, casting green fumes that were immediately pierced by a white sword. The sword thrust right into the creature’s chest, causing it to snap its mouth shut and turn its gaze toward Iyvre.

It roared in fury as a fragment of a memory resurfaced within its fractured mind,one that carried that stoic face that glared at it coldly. It wanted her dead, yet its hunger tugged at it to focus on Rael. All the while, its roaring instincts warned that the primal pressure it was feeling originated from the man.

Caught in a deadly dilemma, the creature left Rael the perfect opening to climb onto its back and summon any weapon from his magic pouch.

A spear appeared in his right hand. Clamping down on the creature’s bony protrusions and ignoring the maddening flailing of its tentacles, Rael anchored himself and thrust the spear deep into its exposed neck.

Arzuk whipped its head back in agony, trying desperately to claw at its own back. Suddenly, a shadow materialized from its flank and cut into its hind leg, making the creature stumble.

With that motion, Rael thrust further, causing the spear to burst out the other side of the creature’s throat. A guttural shriek erupted, followed by gulps of rotten bile. Arzuk’s frame went into heavy spasms before halting and releasing countless bone spikes from its entire body, especially its back.

Rael released his hold on the spear and leaped from the creature’s back, carrying many puncture wounds with him. He landed and stumbled into a roll, feeling an invading chill creeping deeper into his veins from the wounds.

"Shit," he cursed, spotting the greenish tips of the spikes. The creature grabbed the spear still embedded in its throat and yanked it free. As the visible hole began closing up, Arzuk turned its head toward Rael, who lay on the ground, clearly weakened by the poison.

Delight rippled through the monster’s body, only for a blue bolt of lightning to slam into its flank, causing it to shriek in pain. Simultaneously, a white beam slashed across its clawed arm, digging through the tendons and ripping out from behind its back, drawing its attention away from Rael.

It growled as its almost severed arm began to knit back into place. Yet, Ayobe materialized once more and slashed across the remaining connecting flesh, severing the clawed arm entirely. Arzuk whipped its tail around, but Yasmin summoned what little aether she had gathered and sent forth a fireball which collided with the creature, giving Ayobe enough time to slip back into the shadows.

Rael struggled to his knees, watching the sisters and Xaphxan struggle with the creature; the latter had resorted to throwing stones since he’d spent all his aether reserves.

Rael took a hot breath, staring at his countless injuries and the black blood that oozed from the openings. He was desperately trying to force out as much blood as he could, but his mastery of blood control through aether thanks to the Blood Rend technique was proving useless against the poison. Black veins were already spreading from the points where he’d been pierced by the poisoned spikes.

Rael groaned as he rose to his feet, glaring at the creature that was fending off Iyvre’s attacks easily, no longer even budging against the others.

"What are you exactly?" he muttered, fully taking in the creature for what it was. Although it was a Withered, his dominion senses made him feel that even for a Withered, this thing was an abomination. It seemed to possess several evolving abilities.

"It’s growing," he dreaded. He summoned a short sword from his magic pouch and gripped it with both hands, ignoring the stifling dizziness from the blood loss. He poured in all the aether he had left, causing the sword to glow red, though without the shimmer of the Blood Rend technique.

"Hey, ugly fucker!" Rael roared, catching the attention of Arzuk. The creature deflected the attack of the white sword with its newly green-glowing scorpion tail, shattering the weapon. Arzuk turned its serpentine gaze toward the man; its instincts warned it about the prize he held, causing it to focus entirely on Rael.

"It’s me you want, isn’t it?" Rael yelled with a smile. "You want all this tender flesh and succulent meat, huh?" he challenged, beating his chest with his left hand.

"What are you doing?" Yasmin screamed, while Iyvre squinted her eyes. Ayobe looked up from the figure of Xaphxan, whom she held in her grasp after he had clearly passed out.

Rael smirked even more at the time that was left, plastering a maddening grin on his bloodied face.

[Tier 4 Quest Activated]

Survive the Withered Nights

Status: Active

Objective: Endure the Withered Nights, a time when corrupted essence floods the land and sanity rots.

Completion: Five seconds left

[Reward: ???]

"Well, come on then! Come get me!" he bellowed. As if responding to his challenge, Arzuk roared in a cacophony of voices ranging from terrifying shrieks to a man’s roar before charging forward.

Completion: Four seconds left

Rael forced his stiff body forward, darting toward the incoming creature that bulldozed through the House of Alchemy in its path.

Completion: Three seconds left

With the last of his strength, Rael leapt upward, roaring as he rose to Arzuk’s head level.

Completion: Two seconds left

A golden glow erupted from the horizon, chasing away the red glow and cleansing the setting moon of its crimson hue.

Completion: One second left

With the roar still in his mouth, he slashed the short sword toward the creature’s neck.

PLIRCH!