novelraw Chapter 607: True Form
Chapter 607: True Form
"Splash, splash, splash!"
In the mid-air above the Gate of Knowledge, as Barbatos opened the Portal leading to the Surface, the torrential rain of the Southern Continent instantly poured down from above. However, it quickly evaporated into water vapor amidst the high-temperature flames of the Dynasty, instantly transforming into a dream-like place akin to Yunmeng Marsh.
"Rumble!"
"Eliog!"
And within the vaporizing steam, a figure seemed to be whipped away by a massive force, violently piercing through the pitch-black reefs and magma, ultimately leaving behind an incomparably huge crater where it landed.
From out of that deep crater, Eliog's arrow-shaped tail protruded straight out and swayed slightly. Her body, however, struggled somewhat to rise. The fiery snake in her eyes continuously twisted as she looked towards Barbatos, who was about to strike again.
He wanted to directly beat her current self until she could no longer participate in the battle. But halfway through his flight, a terrifying suction force radiated from the side. Following closely, a piece of Dual-Circle Head Magic comprised of Destruction and Thunder surged over, interrupting Barbatos' path of advance through the air.
Subsequently, Barbatos ignored Eliog and turned back to join Agreas in besieging Fisher.
It hadn't even been half a minute since the battle commenced, yet the scales of victory had tipped unreservedly towards Agreas's side. And this was under the condition that the opposition hadn't even exerted their full power yet.
The reason why Agreas and Barbatos hadn't fully utilized their complete power and instead continued to entangle with Fisher was very simple: they seemingly still wanted to continuously stimulate the growth of the chaotic power within Fisher's body through combat.Gritting her teeth, Eliog watched Fisher struggling to deal with the two Demon Gods amidst the water vapor, and a feeling of vexation suddenly arose within her heart.
She knew that Whale-kin girl coming here seemed to be meant specifically to watch over Fisher, worried he would utilize dangerous power in moments of crisis. As a Demon God, Eliog knew that so-called "dangerous power" was precisely the Chaos hidden within Fisher's body.
But now, she could only watch helplessly as Fisher's control over that Chaos was eroded bit by bit during the battle, becoming increasingly evident, urgently awaiting to bloom.
They wanted to use that blossomed power to seize the Blessing borne by that Dragon-kin.
Gritting her teeth, Eliog once again clutched her body and charged over, transforming into a shooting star in an attempt to divide the battlefield. But the two Demon Gods wouldn't let her have her way. With a cold face, Barbatos drew his longbow and aimed it at Eliog, firing an arrow. The force was so immense and the speed so fast that even though her combat instincts had perceived it, and even if she fully urged her current power, she was still not fast enough to escape its trajectory. She could only watch helplessly as that arrow bit by bit rushed towards her skin.
"Whoosh!"
But exactly at this moment, from behind her, Fisher's powerful large hand abruptly grabbed her shoulder. As he pulled her back, his entire person instantly surpassed the retreating Eliog to face the incoming arrow in her stead.
"Clang! Clang!"
Fisher had merely raised his hand to repel the arrow enveloped in a violent gale when two chunks of flesh and blood instantly exploded on his neck, as if countless branches had grown out from within his body. Consequently, his head and chest were completely covered in plants. Yet Fisher's reaction was extremely swift. With life and death at stake at this moment, without any hesitation, he gritted his teeth, reached his hands into his own body, and with the force of thunder, forcefully uprooted those branches from his flesh and blood one by one.
"Drip, drip..."
His blood spurted all over the ground, and even half his face was occupied by broken flesh and blood. But the very next moment, he still raised the magic formed from Black Mud in his hand, intending to smash it towards the Portal in the sky to close the Portal that could pull Raphaela in.
"Fisher!"
"How truly interesting, this human! Being so cruel to oneself doesn't matter; no wonder Eliog fancied you. However, why not use the Chaos that has already grown restless within your body to show me a bit more of your new power? Who knows, maybe I'll show some mercy!!"
Not only did Agreas watch that fearsome combat stance and swift reaction with appreciation, but Eliog behind him was even more terrified, wanting to reach out to help him. But anyone with a discerning eye could see that her Fourteenth-Tier abilities were of absolutely no use on this battlefield right now.
The current situation was virtually equivalent to Fisher fighting alone against two Eighteenth-Tier Demon Gods.
"..."
Yet just as he raised his hand, Barbatos drew his bow towards Fisher and Eliog. Countless arrows carrying a violent gale arrived in an instant, knocking Eliog back and instantly piercing through Fisher's four limbs—
"Puchi!"
Fisher's pupils contracted slightly, and his entire person was uncontrollably blasted away by the immense force, falling to his knees. He had just wanted to rise and continue destroying the Portal in the sky, only to discover that the arrows had already pierced through his two calves and inserted into the ground, locking him in place.
But...
That Portal...
Raphaela!
Only at this moment did the pain caused by these severe injuries abruptly shoot into his soul. He coughed violently, and a mouthful of fresh blood splattered onto the ground, squirming as if it possessed life.
Amidst the countless smoke and dust ahead, the shadows of the two Demon Gods followed like shadows, much like Grim Reapers sealed here, approaching Fisher.
Half of Fisher's face was completely covered in fresh blood. Looking behind him with his only remaining eye—which could also barely open and was therefore hidden within a patch of blood-red—he saw Eliog locked down by the array of arrows holding her four limbs.
It was just that Eliog was different from him. The arrows fired at her did not sink into her body; they only materialized as a cage, pinning her to the ground, unable to move.
Those two had no ill intentions towards Eliog, and moreover had past ties with her. They only wanted to target Fisher.
"That's about enough. Take him to the Surface, Agreas."
"Not yet, just a little bit more..."
Behind them, Agreas and Barbatos' thoughts were obvious at a glance, nor did they show any intention of hiding them from Fisher. But seeing Eliog looking at him with wide open eyes from behind, unharmed, Fisher still unconsciously let out a sigh of relief.
Subsequently, his head drooped down a little, and the fresh blood on his body dripped down bit by bit. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but it seemed that in his increasingly groggy gaze, the blood also began to turn pitch-black.
Was time still not enough?
Had the seal of that Base still not been destroyed?
Gritting her teeth, Eliog wanted to remove the arrows blanketing her body, but currently lacking a Mythic-tier rank, she simply couldn't break free.
The disparity between Mythic and non-Mythic was too great; it was akin to a dimensional strike, much less that they were two Eighteenth-Tier beings. Escaping was literally an incredible story.
But under her incredulous and anxious gaze, Fisher merely cast her a glance. Following that, he inhaled deeply, suddenly reached out and grabbed Barbatos' arrows piercing through his calves, and forcefully yanked them out. Having done so, he stood back up, standing in front of Eliog.
However, at this moment, in Eliog's eyes, the fresh blood flowing out of Fisher's body was no longer bright red. Instead, it was drops of viscous, unnamed black mud, pitch-black like petroleum. It brimmed with dense Chaos, seemingly dragging the souls of all existences around closer to it.
Even so, Fisher still wished to approach the Portal above to destroy that sole passage that could lead to the world above.
He wanted to destroy that passage leading directly to Raphaela on the Surface. That way, even if he couldn't control the Chaos within his body and perished, the Chaos still wouldn't endanger Raphaela. However, Eliog knew that once a Portal was opened, it could not be closed until the being opening it finished entering or gave up on entering...
In other words, if Barbatos was unwilling, no matter how much futile effort Fisher put in, he couldn't close that door.
Yet seeing Fisher perform futile efforts time and again to sever the potential crisis that Dragon-kin might face, the ground-bound Eliog only felt increasingly enraged. It was as if a cluster of flames was dancing within her, becoming increasingly fierce.
She suddenly thought of things from a very, very long time ago, thought of those living beings who fought each other and died uncontrollably under the influence of her own nature.
She had watched helplessly as her attendants killed their own children and husbands merely to prove their sole devotion to her, worried they would seize the blessing Demon God Eliog had bestowed upon them...
She had watched helplessly as warriors she appreciated fought their brothers to steal their parents' property, using poison and sneak attacks to kill their brother's entire family, and then laughing as they proclaimed their victory to Demon God Eliog...
Perhaps Eliog hadn't thought about avoidance back then. After all, how could a competitive existence like her tolerate a "nature" opponent she couldn't defeat?
But why had she ultimately adopted the evasive method of hiding away to sleep in response?
Because in the struggle against her nature, she realized that moving towards victory required a price. The more competitively she wished to conquer her nature, the stronger her nature became due to that competitiveness, thereby provoking wars, provoking slaughter...
Therefore, for an extended period, she had always set aside any conflicts, taking lightly any reasons that might trigger conflicts. Even if it was prayers directed at her, even if it was humiliation leveled at her, even if she was forgotten by her... she could take it all lightly.
Because of the detriments of strife, she forgot she needed to strive, yet she abruptly beheld here and now the reason why she formerly loved strife so much.
She loved seeing the appearance of warriors rising in righteous anger to protect their homes and families, stopping foreign enemies regardless of all else; she loved seeing the appearance of people enduring humiliation for a greater purpose, never giving up as they fought for their dreams; she loved seeing the appearance of the weak not retreating before strong enemies, issuing challenges time and again...
Eliog clenched the prison of arrows built like a steel cage. Gritting her teeth, she panted urgently, and rumbling sounds echoing the explosion of magma resounded incessantly from her chest cavity.
"Buzz! Roar!"
"Agreas!!! Barbatos!!!"
"Rip!"
Right at this moment, precisely when Fisher's battle was growing increasingly difficult, precisely when his body was becoming increasingly riddled with holes, a bizarre pulse abruptly transmitted from the direction of the Gate of Knowledge, sounding like something collapsing into nothingness.
It was the barrier containing Baimon's Base below that was destroyed!
Covered in wounds and seemingly soaked in blood, Fisher fell to one knee. There was a hint of elation on his face, but the very next second, that feeling of elation came to an abrupt end. Because he sensed the power of the Base, yet the two mighty entities before him still stood perfectly intact in place.
Could it be that Jasmine and the others were unable to utilize that Base to seal them back?
Or perhaps...
But the next second, he incredulously sensed that Base's power pulse outwards, sweeping across the entire Demon Dynasty. Which meant the Base had already fallen under the control of Jasmine and the others below. And before him, the ridicule on Agreas' face grew increasingly obvious,
"How is it, I wasn't lying to you, Fisher, right? Your plan has fallen through. Remember to seek more rigorous verification before acting next time. Oh... though indeed, you have already tried your best. Facing us and the Demon Dynasty about which you knew nothing alone, had it genuinely been like this, we would have fallen by your hands. Furthermore, there is no next time..."
Fisher gasped for a moment. He had no choice but to accept the reality of the worst possible scenario.
His entire body was covered in blood that seemingly had been dyed black. He half-knelt on the ground, seemingly not having a single shred of strength to stand up anymore.
He raised his head to look at the Portal continuously dropping curtains of rain above. Through it, he glimpsed the foggy sky of the Southern Continent and a corner of a war where war cries pierced the heavens.
It was just unknown whether it was an illusion or not, but at this moment, the sounds of battle above seemed to grow increasingly fierce. The shouts and roars of countless living beings became traceable, morphing into a rhythm amid Fisher's increasingly murky consciousness, as well as the booming murmurs and tinnitus in his ears...
A rhythm of strife roared out from above, bringing a chill down the spine of everyone present.
"Whoosh!"
Within the Gate of Expression, a wave of heat abruptly blew in from afar, seemingly trying to either dry up the blood flowing on Fisher or ignite it.
"Rumble!!!"
The next moment, a pillar of fire shooting into the heavens instantly exploded behind Fisher. Spiraling and swaying from beneath the ground, it broke through the floor's confinement, igniting the atmosphere of the entire Gate of Expression like a sun.
Amidst the scorching atmosphere, a terrifying overbearing pressure poured out from within. Merely sensing the potential presence was enough to instill fear, provoking one to take up weapons for self-defense.
"Agreas!!! Barbatos!!!"
That roar of anger akin to emanating from the Avici Hell transmitted from within the pillar of fire, causing Agreas and Barbatos' subsequent movements to come to an abrupt end. The next moment, a human silhouette grew increasingly distinct within that heaven-piercing pillar of fire.
Looking up, two palms abruptly extended from within that pillar of fire. Tearing it apart, it revealed the true form residing within that pillar of fire.
"Ding-a-ling!"
What chimed first were two crisp sounds of small bells, akin to the opening curtains, illuminating that approximately two-meter-tall human silhouette.
That entity's face was no different from Eliog's, only those canine teeth originally concealed within the lips had grown increasingly prominent. Her wheat-colored, heroic and valiant face was moreover covered in mysterious blood-colored patterns. Merely looking at those patterns for a moment made one's head feverish.
On her forehead, those originally irregular black horns had presently surged in size considerably. They had become more twisted, exhibiting a hint of blood-red crimson from within akin to high-temperature magma.
The crimson long hair had completely boiled and ignited at this moment, becoming uncontrollably blown backward. Behind the back of her head, they formed a reverse crimson waterfall, as well as two sharp triangular shapes standing erect atop her head. From afar, it looked like the glowing ears atop the head of a very, very large cat of unknown breed...
But she indeed possessed genuine ears as well. Just alongside her cheeks, on her long, elf-like ears, hung two tiny bronze bells. The crisp sound just now had been made by those two bells ringing.
On her back, specifically extending from above and below her shoulder blades, were two pairs of robust arms. Baring fangs and brandishing claws, they grasped that erupting pillar of fire and terrifying power. And on her body, bronze armor protecting only key areas was fully equipped, revealing the wheat-colored, robust muscles holding terrifying destructive power on the remaining parts.
And amidst the softness enveloped by the bronze armor protruding from her chest, it felt as if an engine continuously emitting a booming roar like thunder existed within Eliog's chest cavity. The bronze armor also alternated between bright and dark with her inhalations and exhalations.
"Hiss!!"
"Rumble!!"
As that thunderous voice swept by, Fisher also incredulously turned his head to look behind him. That terrifying, six-armed Demon God also instantly entered his vision.
This... was Eliog's True Form?
Fisher was slightly stunned. In contrast, Agreas' expression involuntarily stiffened, and his fingers squeezed shut little by little. Beside him, Barbatos sighed and murmured,
"This is troublesome..."
"Rumble!"
But before Barbatos could finish speaking, Eliog's punch instantly appeared before his face. It directly warped his handsome face, smashing it deep into the ground, raising violent terrain undulations akin to waves on the ground.
"You two bastards who don't understand words!! Die for me!!"
Amidst the overflowing magma, Barbatos' mangled body rolled incessantly. Following that, his original body that was no different from a human's also began to fracture bit by bit. The hurricane held within continuously expanded, seeming to morph into a deep green robe. Countless jade-green, slender feathers akin to a peacock fanning its tail sprouted from within.
Like the wind, he continuously twisted about in this expansive area, constantly resisting Eliog's sprawling power. At the same time, his voice directed at Agreas also traveled through the wind,
"Don't hold back, Agreas. Hurry up, she has already been enraged! Is that Chaos done yet or what?!"
"..."
Barbatos' body also abruptly shot upward, and the power of the Eighteenth Tier unreservedly bloomed forth. The skin on his forehead split apart bit by bit, rapidly revealing a bizarre vertical pupil.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
"It should be a very long time since we've fought with full force like this in this era. Fine, let those entities standing at the bottom of the living beings' ladder above see what a war between 'Mythics' truly is."
The gale arrows shooting out from the countless peacock feathers draped akin to a cape behind him exploded within the Dynasty like heaven and earth splitting. Akin to wind sweeping away clouds, they swept up all the magma and rocks within the Gate of Expression, as if that were the very shape of wind resembling blades.
Yet Eliog ignored this attack altogether. With a flick of her wrists, her weapons simultaneously materialized in her upper, middle, and lower arms. An incomparably massive giant hammer lay in the uppermost arm. The middle arm tightly gripped that slender, pitch-black longspear. And the bottommost arm nimbly held that slender curved blade...
"Boom!"
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Despite looking so bloated from the outside, when those weapons simultaneously materialized in Eliog's hands, her terrifying aspects were also on full display.
As the lowermost long blade continuously hacked, the storm ahead was cleft with substantial gaps. Agreas beside him had just intended to come assist when a single hammer strike from the giant hammer above smashed against his forehead. It smashed him straight from the Gate of Expression, breaking through and plunging into the magma. And even though Barbatos wished to dodge, the longspear right in the middle was even faster than sound. Carrying a massive sonic boom, it went straight for Barbatos' head.
All three of his pupils contracted simultaneously, and he managed to dodge this spear with difficulty. But the curved blade below abruptly spun again, slicing through his peacock cape tail and the muscles of his lower abdomen, sinking into his body.
"Puchi!"
"Hiss!"
Green blood bearing a corrosive aura splattered onto the ground, yet the divine weapon in Eliog's hand remained completely undamaged. Barbatos also painfully raised his arm to press down on that long blade, wanting to advance further, but the giant hammer above also arrived in the blink of an eye...
"Barbatos, I am going to smash your head into a pulp, awooo!!"
"Urg!"
But just as she was about to strike, the cat ears formed by the flaming long hair on Eliog's head, along with the long ears on either side of her cheeks, twitched simultaneously. Turning her head, the petite human exterior of Agreas had crumbled in half, and she covered the silver-white single horn on her head. Raising her hand, she was about to tear Fisher to shreds.
Eliog was just about to fall back to help when the peacock feathers on Barbatos behind her suddenly swept out. Breaking free from the wound caused by the curved blade, he headed towards the Portal.
"Go, Barbatos, go bring that Dragon-kin back!"
Fisher abruptly raised his hand and grabbed the flesh-and-blood tentacles Agreas extended. Even as his arm was pierced through by those tentacles, he also continuously oozed Black Mud, absorbing her soul.
But he didn't even look at the wounds on his own body, merely raising his head to stare at the sky. Looking at Barbatos rapidly crossing the Portal to head to the Surface, his pupils felt as if they were splitting. Turning his head towards Eliog, he yelled at her,
"Eliog, stop Barbatos! You absolutely must not let him bring Raphaela over!!"
"But..."
Holding her blades and swords, Eliog turned her head towards the heavily battered Fisher, just intending to say something. But Fisher's even more intense, practically distorted and cracked voice had already roared out,
"Go save her!! I beg you!! I can deal with Agreas, but whatever you do, you must not let Raphaela cross over. Just let everyone else leave!!"
Before he even finished his sentence, black filth surged out from his seven orifices, seemingly seeking to devour him.
Eliog looked at the Black Mud continuously oozing from within his body, sensing his rationality crumbling bit by bit, sensing that the Chaos had already begun to swallow him. Yet he still stared blankly at Eliog, begging her to go save that Dragon-kin above...
"..."
He knew clearly what he was fighting for, and she, too, ought to know what she had to fight for at this moment when returning to her true nature.
Eliog fell silent for a moment. Thereafter, clenching her teeth, she fiercely stomped the ground. Enveloped in flames and magma, she transformed into an incomparably huge shooting star heading towards the Portal in the sky, chasing after that wind-like silhouette wrapped in azure feathers...
At the sight of Eliog and Barbatos both vanishing from sight, Fisher also clenched his teeth tight, swallowing the Black Mud continuously surging from his throat. Subsequently, he stared deadly at Agreas caught in the grasp of his Black Mud before him.
Her glasses shattered bit by bit, along with her human disguise crumbling into smoke bit by bit, revealing the massive silver single horn on her forehead.
She possessed long, deep purple hair, and the pupils of her eyes fragmented bit by bit, observing Fisher, who was still struggling to hold on, akin to a kaleidoscope.
"...It seems Baimon was right; you truly will pay your all for that Dragon-kin. Is only she special, or are all the females related to you like this?"
The battle above was the key. Whether Agreas and Barbatos could succeed totally depended on whether Raphaela could be brought back. And at this moment, sensing the Chaos continuously erupting within his body, Agreas had already abandoned hope of bringing him out...
He could no longer completely control the Chaos within his body; he was about to morph into a source of calamity like Caleb Uz...
Fisher panted, and everything before his eyes seemed to be swallowed by darkness. However, looking down, he still gritted his teeth, recalling Raphaela's appearance.
"..."
"Not talking anymore? I see; you are also on the verge of turning into pure Chaos..."
Agreas reached out and pierced through his chest. Afterwards, she wanted to retract her left hand which he had bound using his final ounce of strength, yet no matter what, the Black Mud morphed from those arms refused to let go, seemingly intent on devouring her utterly.
"Raphaela..."
"...Tsk, you lunatic."