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Chapter 151- Reality Breaking 101
🕑 Added 2024-05-07 22:59:00 +0000 UTCThe Hydra's revenge was suspended in mid-air, held in place by what Arthur suspected was gravity magic, as its body was repeatedly crushed and destroyed, parts of its flesh rapidly decaying whilst others were covered with tumorous lumps that leaked necrotic puss. Arthur didn't know how exactly this situation had come about- though he suspected Iris had something to do with it- but he'd be damned if he didn't make the most out of it.
Arthur quickly identified the monster to see how much damage his initial salvo had done. It was more than he'd hoped but less than he'd expected.
Ascended blood-beast: The Hydra's Revenge level 275
Health: 270,000/ 560,000 (750,000)
Highest stat: Vitality
Time till detonation: 5 minutes 32 seconds.
Arthur quickly ran the numbers through his head. They didn't add up. Sure, his initial attacks had been quite deadly, but no way had he dealt over three million damage in just thirty seconds, because that was what Homunculi's eye was telling him. 190,000 points of true damage translated to exactly that, considering only 6% of his attacks counted for it.
Nonetheless, Arthur wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. They needed all the advantages they could get right now, case in point the power his greaves had absorbed. He'd honestly forgotten about the secondary effect and it came as a welcome surprise. 103,041 points of damage wasn't a small amount and he had a stationary target right now. The greaves were very easy to use, which he welcomed right now. He could feel an added source of energy that he could access, much like his ether pool, though it was situated near his calves. Arthur focused on the energy and drew it forth at the tip of his spear. That's where the energy deviated from the usual sources he used. He'd thought he would have to gradually draw it forth, that it would be difficult to control. He was completely wrong.
He'd forgotten one important detail. The absorbed damage could enhance only a single attack. There was no need for any fine control, just a little direction and it leapt to fulfil his whims. The violent energy concentrated at his spear point and he changed his strongest attack skill, The poisoned fang of the Hydra. He only let it charge for three seconds, not knowing how long the bloodbeast would remain immobile. It was his second time using it and he was able to pour seven thousand health into it, this time without Iris' ritual holding his hand along the way.
The two attacks mixed, violet and green merging to form a deep black Arthur was certain didn't usually come about from the two colours. His spear was vibrating in his hands and it had grown heavy enough that he struggled to maintain a comfortable grip on it. Arthur didn't know if he was doing the right thing but he hoped his attack was greater than the sum of its parts.
"Hurry up, Arthur. The rituals only got another five seconds in it." Iris shouted. I guess that explains why the monster was floating in mid-air, then. Grunting, Arthur rushed over to the monster. He would have preferred it if he could have generated more momentum by running at the thing but his spear was currently; far too heavy for fast movement. It was nothing more than a glorified, cumbersome stick right now. One that cracked the ground it was placed upon because of its weight.
He did the best he could, boosting his attack with his tried and tested water bullets, but he'd be the first to admit it was his poorest thrust. His damn weapon was simply too heavy. Thankfully, he'd had the foresight to aim a little higher than his target- slightly above the creature's head- and the spear took the monster in its eye. The soft flesh offered little resistance and his spear passed into the monster's skull, penetrating its brain. That was when all hell broke loose.
Unlike his previous use of the skill, this time, Arthur was pulled towards the resultant explosion. Where the previous one had been a massive ball of green fire, his current strike caused a tiny centralised orb of pitch black to form where the ascended bloodbeasts skull had once been. It was so dark it almost looked 2D and the gravitational pull was strong enough that it took all his considerable strength to stop himself from getting dragged into it.
Groaning, Arthur dug his heels into the ground. His soul armament was locked in place and pushing off the end of it was the only thing preventing him from flying face-first into the miniature black hole. That's what he'd dubbed his most recent attack, and he wondered if the gravitational properties it possessed came from his greaves or the energy he'd absorbed from the bloodbeast.
Whatever the case, Arthur's instincts- enhanced as they were by his beastly traits- were screaming at him to avoid the black orb. It just looked wrong, a rejection of reality that tolerated the existence of nothing. The world was strangely silent, and it took him a moment to realise it was because his ears had ruptured, drops of his blood leaking out of his skull before they were caught in the orb's orbit and dragged towards it. If anything, the damn thing was getting stronger and Arthur was starting to worry if he'd bitten off more than he could chew. He was without a doubt, the most durable thing on the planet, but he was fairly certain he could sense a pseudo-concept originating from the orb. Would he survive getting hit by it? Arthur didn't want to find out.
By this point, the ascended bloodbeast was barely recognisable, its entire body crushed down to a blob of meat that constantly regenerated as it was absorbed by the orb. Cursing, Arthur could do little but hold on, his muscles straining. The muscles in his left forearm cramped and it felt like his ankle was a second away from tearing. Just as he felt like he could hold on no longer, a golden chain wrapped around his waist and pulled him backwards.
For some reason, the manifested magic seemed immune to gravity's pull and he thanked his lucky stars. Whilst he might survive a direct collision with the death orb, Ayesha would die near-instantly if she was dragged into it. With Iris' and Ayesha's strength added to his own, as well as the two dozen water bullets he launched at his own chest, he, and by extension the spear he clung so desperately to, were finally able to escape the orb's gravitational field.
With the connection cut, all the forces he'd placed on himself were finally able to act, and he was launched backwards at the speed of sound. The sound his body made breaking its barrier hardly audible through his half-regenerated eardrums. This has happened way too many times today, Arthur thought as he came crashing back down to the ground, sliding another dozen metres before he came to a stop. It didn't necessarily hurt him, but he'd much prefer if he could remain on land more in the future. Opening his eyes, Arthur made his way back to his feet. The sight that greeted him was shocking.
His hair-brained attack had done quite a number on the landscape, but that wasn't what held his attention right now. His eyes were focused on his spear, or rather, the lack of it. The top third of his weapon was missing, the only hint of its prior existence being the jagged edge where you could see it had been broken off. I guess I have my answer now. My soul armaments aren't indestructible. I just need to almost break reality to damage it. Almost as if he were the but of some cosmic joke, a system notification flashed in front of him. He wasn't an expert on things, but he was pretty certain that the flashing red box it was written on wasn't a good sign and the fact that it ignored his do not disturb settings.
Automated message-
WARNING! You have reached the established damage limit for the Tier-1 Zones and attempted to break through it. This is considered a highly illegal act and risks damaging the dimensional membrane and increases the likelihood of reality destabilising...
A level 1 Administrator has been contacted to review the circumstances of your crime... Please await a response...
The response in question a half second after the warning, for which Arthur was immensely grateful.
Report: Bamage limit Breach I- #E3900001r
Administrator: Arlo
Verdict: Judging by imminent danger to the planet, mage Arthur Ward has been found innocent of any crime. Please observe precautionary measures in future altercations
The message was short and to the point and Arthur was grateful that Arlo seemed like a no-nonsense type of person. He hoped it was an accurate representation of system bureaucracy as a whole but something told him he wouldn't be so lucky. Case in point, Lady Sleyca seemed pretty high on the totem pole and if she wasn't a corrupt noble of some kind, Arthur would shave his head bald. There was one final notification to read, and Arthur grinned when he realised it was a new title, the first in a series too if he wasn't mistaken.
Reality Breaker I (Tier-3)- (Deal 5,000,000 damage in a single strike whilst below level 200)- Ignore 20% of negative environmental effects. Restrictions of any kind, magical and mundane are 10% less effective on you.
Warning: Pursuit of the remaining titles in this series may grant you criminal status
It was a tier 3 title and its effects were incredible. He'd have to do some research to find out what exactly counted as an 'environmental effect,' but if his suspicions were correct, he'd be a very happy man. If the restriction resistance applied to everything truly, it meant that he'd find it easier to ignore any restrictive rules or circumstances people tried to put on him. Being the first title in the series, Arthur was certain they ascended all the way up to tier 4- if there was a tier beyond that, he wasn't aware- with the requirements at the top probably being something absurd like one hundred billion. Tier 4 was the realm of elder dragons and world-swallowing serpents, creatures who could destroy entire continents at a whim.
Arthur didn't know if he'd ever get that strong, but he'd certainly try. More important, was the fact that he'd have to be very careful if he tried to earn them, ensuring that he did so in a way that didn't make him an enemy of the system. The title also raised a few questions; what was the damage limit exactly and more importantly, why did it exist? If reality could be broken, did it spell wholesale destruction or something else? Were there realms of unreality, places that existed outside the laws of the multiverse? Or did they simply cease to exist?
They were all questions Arthur wanted answers to but he knew he wouldn't be getting them any time soon. Besides, his black orb of annihilation was finally breaking down and it looked like the monster still lived. If anything, the ascended bloodbeast had provided a thoroughly disappointing fight and unless it had a final phase, it would be over very soon. Five million points of damage meant that the monster's health had been permanently reduced by 300,000 points which would leave it with only 260,000 health, a pool which whilst still very large, was smaller than his own.
Honestly, I don't think we even need Captain Arencia for this. With Iris on our side, we stacked the odds in our favour a lot but really, that was easier than the fight with the regular bloodbeasts. Arthur knew that the seer had done 'something' to make his reality-breaking attack so powerful. Sure, he'd poured a decent amount of energy into it, but not THAT much. Ayesha had said that the vampires would give up this planet, an entire tier-1 world if only to get Iris on their side. Arthur had thought she was exaggerating and simply hyping her best friend up. That wasn't the case anymore.
Whatever the woman had done, she'd made an impossible fight easy. If anything, Ayesha had undersold her. Arthur didn't think he was the only one with a legendary class around here.
Regrowing his spear, Arthur got ready to fight.
Next Chapter- Saturday
