Beastforged Bond

B4 Chapter 32

“Fuck.” I cursed, watching the remaining Spawns charge. The Fiend was yet another issue because it, too, sprinted in the same direction. But whether the Fiend was coming at me or the Spawns…did that really matter right now?Reaching out for my core’s reserves, I quickly realized they were empty. The weave was empty as well, the circulation system completely sucked dry.

I even had to terminate my Soulfusion with Volix since its duration was used up. Extending the regular duration was possible, but damaging the bond was the last thing I wanted.

The bond would be damaged one way or another.

The fiery armor disappeared alongside the phoenix wings, and I landed on the ground just as the first Spawn reached me. Siphoning ether from my first Gate, I triggered Blink and teleported to the side. Nullblade and Predator activated next as my blade descended, severing one of the Spawn’s legs.

Being a quadruplet, the Spawn faltered and smashed headfirst into the ground. I tried to attack once more, but the other Spawns were already upon me.

I shifted on my legs, which fortunately worked like they were supposed to again. A rectangular shield materialized before me, attached to my left arm. Not even a moment later, the next Spawn smashed into it. One of its heads lit up, and a ripple of ether rocketed through the point of impact. The next moment, I was hurled through the air and crashed straight into a young tree several meters behind me.

The tree snapped and didn’t even slow me as I slammed into the ground.

They noticed your soul. The Sacrifice should have affected you. It would have – if not for your World…or for me, though I do not believe the Devourer’s Spawns are intelligent enough to understand that.

Volix spoke as I got up with a groan.

The third Spawn charged at me but never reached its target because the Fiend intercepted it first. The humanoid beast snarled at the quadruplet Spawn, its massive claws coated in a dark, eerie hue as it tore into it.

The Spawn shrieked in pain, yet it continued its attempt to reach me. Or would have, if not for the Fiend attacking it relentlessly.

I asked my Soulkin while scrambling to my feet.

Even though it was foolish to siphon more ether than necessary from my Gates, I did it anyway. A sense of loss washed over me as the Gates’ ether surged into the weave and my World’s core, fueling them just enough to keep fighting. Yet as I regained the energy needed to activate my traits, my physical strength dropped sharply. That was the price I paid for draining my Gates.

Refilling them wouldn’t be pleasant either, but it was better than dying. That much was obvious.

The Spawn killed itself. It shattered its Source and released all the power it accumulated over its lifetime at once. It attacked your soul and your World, but you didn’t even realize it, did you? That only confirms what I always suspected. I chose well in binding to you.

Volix continued, the excitement in his bond confusing and horribly ill-timed.

Great…yeah, sure.

The knowledge that I could have died just like that stirred something deep within me. Fear surged through my chest, but it also hardened my resolve. I had to kill the Spawns. Now.

Two quadruplet Spawns charged at me. The first was the one I had injured earlier, but it shifted, replacing its severed leg with a griffon’s. Black-feathered wings burst from its back, yet something about them felt wrong. Faces emerged from the wing bones, their resemblance disturbingly familiar.

Hawk heads; beaks wide open, electricity gathering within them.

Predator screamed a warning, and I dove aside. A moment later, dozens of lightning bolts ripped through the air, each powerful enough to burn through flesh and bone. None of them struck me.

Instead, the second Spawn did.

I hadn’t even noticed it behind me until its claws raked across my back. Pain exploded through my spine, followed by something far worse. The claws dug deeper.

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Was it trying to rip out my spine? It could have been anything. Either way, it was bad.

I tried to trigger Blink, but the trait failed me. Instead, I caught a whiff of Daniel and the others rushing in.

They arrived just in time.

A massive axe cleaved down beside me, missing me by a hair’s breadth but not missing the Spawn. The pressure on my back didn’t vanish, but it lessened significantly. Lea burst past me, her expression deadly serious. Something behind me exploded a moment later, followed by a pained scream. The Spawn’s.

Scott and the divination beast stood off to the side, their eyes twinkling in similar yet distinctly different ways.

The divination beast neighed loudly and activated its trait once more, boosting my ether’s potency. It met my gaze, and I found myself wondering again just how intelligent it truly was.

My back erupted in fierce pain as I used Pond of Life to tend to my wounds. Yet something was wrong. Blood continued to pour from the injury, refusing to slow. I tried cauterizing it when the Pond of Life’s nectar failed to help, but that didn’t work either. Something was blocking the effect. Something was still lodged in my back.

Let me!

Nox shouted as he materialized beside me. His bloodlust flooded the area, saturating the space around us, and I was almost certain the Ferronox Mantis would leap at the Spawns in the next moment. Instead, he slashed across my back with Nullblade and removed the embedded claws clumsily, urgency overriding precision.

Me too~

Sapsie exclaimed joyfully, trying and failing to emerge from the World. I restrained her once more.

I called out before rejoining the battle, Pond of Life’s nectar finally beginning to take effect.

Scott and the divination beast charged simultaneously at one of the Spawns. However, they faced the Spawn already engaged with the Fiend rather than the others. Daniel and Lea bombarded the second Spawn, while the third vanished into the shadows after its claws had been severed.

“Did it flee?” I muttered aloud, my heart skipping a beat. That would be bad. I still had no idea who the Devourer was or how strong he was, but if he was a threat to the Spirits, I would do best to avoid him. Stay off his radar.

Then I recalled Lifesight and activated the trait.

Life flooded my perception. It was everywhere, except in three places. One void lay before the Fiend, another was being pummeled by the siblings, and the third was…right below me.

I blinked away as far as I could. The move saved me as a massive, worm-like creature adorned with hundreds of monster faces burst from the ground where I had stood a moment earlier.

Conjuring several fireballs and earthen spikes coated with Nullblade, I struck out. A barrier materialized out of nowhere and blocked the fireballs, while the earthen spikes pierced through it and into the heads they targeted. Yet the spikes barely dealt any damage. If anything, I lost the clash. The spikes consumed several times more ether the instant they made contact with the Spawn.

I let the spikes crumble as soon as I realized what was happening, but the damage was already done. As a result, both weave and core were empty once more, forcing me to increase the amount of ether siphoned from my Gates…further weakening my physique.

A few more minutes and my Gates would be drained as well.

I think it’s time.

Aureus called out, which only made me grimace further.

Alas, I didn’t have much of a choice. An overwhelming amount of ether crashed down on me, rooting me in place as the massive Spawn descended.

Finally!

The Elemental Phoenix called out as I gave in.

A moment later, my World turned into a dazzling sun. Golden particles of soul energy ignited and transformed into a wildfire that spread across every corner of my World. My unoccupied soul energy–everything I had accumulated over the last few years–was sacrificed and fed to the Elemental Phoenix. Only a meager safety reserve remained untouched. The rest surged forward, unsealing more of its power.

Even if it wasn’t, empowering Volix was the fastest way to gain strength. The Mind and Soul empowerment were instantaneous. My thoughts sharpened, clarity washing over me. My movements felt more precise, as though I had unlocked a deeper layer of Predator. A layer capable of processing details that my mind had previously failed to grasp in time.

The soul empowerment was…different.

Something had been bothering me for a while. A sensation of being watched, even when no one was around. Now it intensified. I reached out toward it, and it slipped away.

The Elemental Phoenix transformed my World into a sun. His power surged through the lower levels of the Guardian Rank with ease and burst through the Mid levels just as effortlessly. I felt more attuned to the Major Fire Aspect, as though something new was on the verge of forming, yet it didn’t.

No new trait manifested, but I wasn’t sure that even mattered.

This should be enough to show you how it’s done.

Volix called out and manifested in the open world for the first time.

The Elemental Phoenix appeared before me, his massive wings unfurling in the midst of the battlefield.

The undergrowth caught fire even though Volix never touched it. And when he did, plants didn’t burn. They crumbled, collapsing into ash instead.

A mighty screech tore through the valley. Then Volix shot forward even faster than a skytrain at top speed.