Apocalypse Healer 3: A LitRPG Adventure, page 14
He didn’t even need to finish him off directly. The Champion’s metal armor had already been shredded to bits, and the leather parts wouldn’t last much longer as the acid feasted on them. The sizzling of corroding leather mingled with the scent of blood, acid, and burning flesh, forming a noxious harmony with the pained groans and helpless eyes fixed on him.
“I expected to find hatred in your eyes. But despair and helplessness make sense as well.”
William never averted his gaze. He continued staring into the Champion’s eyes as his tail snapped forward again. A hiss echoed as the serpent-headed tip of the tail opened its maw, revealing a glistening pair of fangs that clamped shut around the Champion’s neck.
The serpent’s fangs dug deep, and William watched the elf’s eyes widen in terror. Yet even as the Champion’s strength ebbed away, he never looked at William with hatred.
“That should be enough. I think,” William said, tilting his head, his voice still devoid of emotion.
He studied the elf as liquid death pumped through his veins, dyeing them venomous green.
Seconds passed in silence. The Champion was too weak to speak, feeble groans all that escaped his lips, and tears trickled from the corners of his eyes while William waited in silence.
“Hmm. Looks like I need to do something, or he’ll die before I get it.”
He spread his claws, wondering if gutting the Champion while he was still alive would help with the extraction. But no further action was necessary, something anchored deep within the elf was released.
Energy, translucent and inconspicuous, swirled through the elf’s dying body. It resisted valiantly but surged toward his neck regardless. Once there, it seeped out and entered William’s body through the serpent’s fangs.
Power flooded him, filling every corner of his form. He raised an eyebrow, the scales on his body clattering as the energy coursed through him.
“That is stronger than I thought. Probably a good decision to go for the weakest link first,” William mused, feeling the unfamiliar power fuel him. The energy wasn’t his yet, but it filled him all the same.
It retaliated, tried to tear him apart—but failed miserably. His body, transformed and reinforced by Zephir, was not something a faint trace of Divinity could destroy. Especially not one rooted in a nature-based, non-violent Divinity.
Still, the Fragment of the Poisonous Beast God within him stirred. It reacted violently to the influx of energy, initiating a clash between Divinities.
If one could even call it that.
The Divinity within the Champion was merely a weak trace from a Minor God, empowering a third-rate warrior. It barely warranted mentioning in the grand scheme of things.
Regardless, it was a beginning.
William had to start somewhere, so that’s exactly what he had done. He had waited a long time, preparing extensively. And now, he had succeeded.
His serpentine eyes drifted to the dozens of elves who had fallen victim to his ambush, a hiss slipping from his split tongue.
Their deaths may not have been warranted, but William killed them anyway. Each one granted him more power. While not as important, the dead couldn’t speak. They couldn’t tell anyone what had happened.
He turned back to the Champion, no longer bothering to restrain the Poisonous Beast God’s Fragment. He let it feast on the Divinity still streaming into his body. William half-expected resistance, but the Champion’s faint groans were the only thing resembling a protest. The Fragment crushed the weak Divinity like a fly and devoured it without hesitation, making its power William’s own.
The Fragment refined the energy flooding into him until it suited William perfectly.
He hissed in ecstasy, power surging through him.
This was exactly what he wanted. What he had been waiting for.
It was what he needed. Power.
That’s not enough. I want more. I need more power!
The addictive sensation overwhelmed him, filling him to the brim and bringing a sense of satisfaction he hadn’t felt in months.
He watched the light in the Champion’s eyes finally fade, but he was unmoved. There was no remorse. Only the thrill of growing stronger, the only thing that brought him bliss.
After all, the joy of growing stronger was all he had left.
William triggered his Authority with a wave of his hand. The dead Champion and his fallen allies erupted in waves of poisonous fog, which he absorbed as well.
“That was a nice appetizer.”
He balled his claws into a fist, the ecstasy of power still pulsing through him as he looked up—toward a wide-open plain and the silhouette of a distant city glimmering on the horizon.
The presence of more Champions called to him.
More prey awaited.
17
RESTORED
Even though David barely had the energy to move, the Void inside Zachariah had to be removed. His arm was already beyond salvation, and it wouldn’t be long before the infection spread to the rest of his shoulder. Close to half of it was already ravaged, leaving them with only one option.
“Can you do it? I’d do it myself, but it’s a bit difficult to cut off my own shoulder,” Zachariah asked calmly, beads of sweat trickling down his temples. “Carve out as much as you have to. Be generous rather than stingy!”
Being too careful could kill the Regressor but removing too much could do the same. He needed to strike a perfect balance: carve out every trace of the Void while leaving enough to preserve life using two Blood droplets.
David wasn’t confident, especially not with a mind-splitting headache interrupting his thoughts, but he stepped closer with a nod.
“I can see the Void well enough,” he commented, prompting Zachariah to raise an eyebrow.
It looked like he had something to say, but a blade of Rend whipped out from David’s left hand before he could speak. Maja shrieked as blood, tainted with a gray-black substance, spurted from the Regressor’s arm stump. The rest of his arm landed on the ground with a resounding thud a moment later.
“The condensed source of their power had been removed from your body. That should slow the process,” David explained, ignoring the stunned eyes locked on him.
“That’s insane,” Maja muttered, slumping to the ground.
David continued, materializing the Obsidian Blade in his left hand. He pressed his lips together as Zachariah tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck and shoulder. Yet, even as he lowered his guard, his eyes never left David’s.
There was no hesitation as David slashed down, cutting deep into Zachariah’s shoulder, drawing both blood and a pained groan. Yet, as painful as it must have been, David was more surprised to find he couldn’t cut any deeper.
“Your body is a fucking menace,” he cursed, dematerializing the Obsidian Blade once the natural resistance of Zachariah’s flesh became too much.
Sure, he could have applied Rend to the Obsidian Blade—used Words of Power to shape the Intent into a saw—but that would’ve inflicted unnecessary pain. Worse, it could have killed him. Blood was already pooling beneath the Regressor like there was no tomorrow. Wasting too much time would bleed him out.
“One more hit should do, though. Their power is helping me,” David grimaced, sensing the repercussions of harboring Void traces through [Healing Link] and Bloodthrone Dominion.
He applied [Herald’s Blessing] to the Obsidian Blade as he conjured it again, analyzing Zachariah’s condition to ensure everything aligned. Although trickier than expected, he moved quickly, spitting out Words of Power as he infused the blade with Rend.
He cleaved down, showing no hesitation even as the blade tore through bone, severing a large portion of Zachariah’s shoulder. The chunk slid down and landed beside the Void-infected arm. A fountain of crimson-gold followed shortly after.
“Fuck. That shit hurts more than I expected,” Zachariah growled, his face paler than before.
“Isn’t that obvious? Worse, consuming so many potions resulted in severe repercussions. Your body is revolting—which is rather… problematic,” David said, his connection to Zachariah revealing the weakening effects of the potions.
All of the potions Zachariah had consumed were wearing off, including the strength-augmenting drugs. Their backlash was bound to worsen the situation.
David cast [Weave of Life] using the energy of an entire droplet, hoping it would be enough to preserve the Regressor’s life temporarily. Then, he cast [Greater Restoration] using half a droplet in an attempt to stop the bleeding. However, the Skill needed more power to fix the chaos within Zachariah’s body.
What else can I do? Should he consume more potions? That might stop the bleeding, but whether his body would survive the strain was uncertain.
He cast [Healing Sphere] as often as he could with the energy remaining in his Source, ignoring the problems of his own missing limb now that it had stopped bleeding.
The network of lifelines on the ground should be enough to keep Zachariah alive for a few minutes. His condition would probably worsen, but he wouldn’t—shouldn’t—die right away.
With so little time left, David retrieved a few corpses from his defective storage. Most of the monster corpses he’d stored still contained enough lifeforce to let him recuperate some energy.
However, as it turned out, the energy was nowhere near enough.
He needed more lifeforce, as he could not tap into his own reserves. His body was already a mess, leaving him barely anything to draw from—at least not without risking ending up like Zachariah.
David looked at Maja for a moment but discarded the idea shortly after. While she hadn’t been injured, her lifeforce wasn’t strong enough to make a difference—not if she was supposed to survive as well.
In that case, he thought, his eyes drifting to the Void Fragment’s corpses.
Zachariah would most definitely not like this but the Regressor was in no position to complain. Words of Power rolled from his lips as he drew from the fraction of a Blood droplet that had formed in his Source. He circulated it through his body, infused it into the Sacred Beast Core to drain a portion of the Blood it hoarded, and emerged with the strength of two droplets. Strong enough to change something, David ignored the Beast Will as it lashed out at him.
He squashed the remnants’ resistance and released the Blood from his body, all while more Words of Power escaped his mouth. Bending down before the Void Fragment’s corpse, David inserted Blood.
“What do you think you’re doing?!” A weak curse rang out from behind.
“Stay the fuck in the lifeline network!” David snapped back when he felt Zachariah rouse. “I am not going to absorb the Void swirl, or whatever they call this shit, so calm down and focus on recuperating!”
He could still feel Zachariah’s displeasure through [Healing Link]’s connection, but his emotional well-being had never been David’s concern. His physical condition, on the other hand, was another matter entirely.
David closed his eyes, Words of Power resounding once more as he drained the corpses’ fleeting lifeforce. He stayed far away from the Void swirl, even if that was where most of the Void creature’s lifeforce had gathered and activated [Aether Breath] once more.
The Words of Power he spoke shifted slightly, stimulating the Source, forcing it to work in overdrive. Blood droplets came to be in great quantities as the minutes passed.
“I think he’s dying!” Maja said in a hushed tone, her voice laced with anxiety, but David didn’t respond.
A hand landed on his shoulder and shook him urgently, forcing David out of trance.
He kept tendrils of Blood inside the Void Fragment, continuously draining the remaining lifeforce to produce more Blood, and got back up.
“Don’t interrupt me!” he yelled, staring daggers at Maja. She stepped back, eyes wide, and mumbled something incomprehensible.
David felt a pang of guilt as he looked at Maja, unable to control her shaking limbs. She looked worried—even afraid.
“I know you mean well, but I can sense his condition thanks to a Skill of mine. Stopping me while I gather the energy needed to fix him—to ensure he won’t die—won’t help.”
He knew he was being unfair here, but it was impossible to babysit and console Maja, adjust to her emotional state, and reassure her while maintaining [Weave of Life], [Healing Link], [Healing Spheres], and [Aether Breath], just to listen to Maja and take care of her when he should be focusing on Zachariah’s condition, avoiding the Void traces in the Fragment from which he needed lifeforce to create Blood, and stimulating his Source to produce more Blood using Words of Power.
David had to do everything at once, all while the mind-splitting headache tormented him.
Now that he was ready, David deactivated [Weave of Life] and [Healing Sphere]. He also lowered the energy used to supply [Healing Link] and diverted his focus from using [Aether Breath] actively. The Words of Power ceased, and [Greater Restoration], overclocked with five Blood droplets, triggered.
He had never used the Skill with that much energy, as it was wasteful under normal circumstances. Not this time!
[Greater Restoration] jumped into effect, and healing power flooded Zachariah. His complexion didn’t improve instantaneously, but David could sense the shifts within Zachariah’s body. The backlash of Zachariah’s severe usage of highly potent potions and drugs was the first condition to be taken care of. A portion of [Greater Restoration]’s energy was all it took to fix these issues, leaving more than half to stop the severe bleeding.
David redoubled his effort, his head feeling like it would burst apart, as he cast [Greater Restoration] again. And again, until he was certain Zachariah would survive.
Once the Regressor’s survival was ensured, David swayed and fell.
“I’ll take care of our arms later, okay?” he said, his vision turning hazy as he caved in to the fatigue he’d accumulated.
David didn’t know how they reached the Dwarven Sanctuary, but it was safe to assume Maja brought them back.
The next thing he remembered was stirring in the bed, waking up as bright, warm light bathed his face. He groaned and turned to the side, pulling the blanket over his head to hide from the intrusive sunlight. However, as it turned out, using his right arm to move the blanket was rather difficult—especially given the lack of an actual arm.
“Right…” David groaned, pulling the blanket aside with his left arm. His eyes fluttered open, and he pushed himself upright.
“You slept longer than expected,” Zachariah’s voice rang out from the side, and David looked over to catch the Regressor seated at the edge of another bed on the other side of the room.
“How long was I out?” David rubbed the back of his head, yawning.
“Roughly 24 hours. More or less.”
That was a lot longer than expected, but it made sense. His Source was no longer drained, and the lingering strain on it was gone.
“You drained Their lifeforce,” Zachariah said, his tone laced with anger and… was that uncertainty?
“And I am fine,” David reassured his friend begrudgingly, not wanting to talk about it any further. Maybe they could talk about it in the future, but not a minute after he woke up.
Zachariah looked conflicted and hesitated for a moment but nodded in the end. “Yes, you are. And I am happy about that. Still… what you did there was really dangerous. One mistake and Their power would have entered your Energy Pathways or, worse even, your Source. From what I can tell, you can see a lot more with your modified eyes than life signals, which is great and all, but you need to be more careful. Don’t do that too often if you can avoid it. They are powerful—much stronger than you may think, even in death.”
Even though he could tell what the Regressor implied, David rolled his eyes. Still, he nodded slightly, trying to be a little more careful in the future. Not that it would matter. Danger lurked everywhere, and it was only a matter of time before they clashed with more Fragments and Saplings.
“Regardless of what I just said… I am happy you did it. If you hadn’t done that, I would probably be dead,” Zachariah said, though he looked like every word he spoke took an enormous amount of effort to roll from his lips. “Thank you. I’m glad you were there to help me. It would have been really problematic to deal with the Fragment and Sapling alone.”
You would be dead, David thought, but left the words unspoken and waved dismissively.
“No problem. Fighting the Sapling was rather interesting—fun even to a certain extent—and watching you fight the Fragment helped me a lot.”
That being said, David got to work. His Source was filled to the brim, providing him with everything they needed to restore their bodies back to full health.
It was already late evening when all the work was done. The last droplet of Blood left his Source, filling the room with vibrantly shimmering spheres that offered warmth and healing one last time.
David absorbed the ambient Aether through his regrown arm and punched the air, creating a small shockwave that splashed against the nearest wall. The wooden wall creaked and groaned, but he was fortunate enough not to break it.
“Your restoration is near perfect. That’s rare to see,” Zachariah muttered, a silver shimmer flashing across his restored body. “It’s even better than it used to be. Then again, your earlier restorations were also very good. I guess Blood improves the properties of your Skills more drastically than expected. My calculations were wrong.”
It didn’t really feel like the Regressor was talking to him, but David knew what he was referring to. The information on [Reinforce] had barely changed, indicating that his arm’s recovery didn’t affect the amount of time and effort he had invested into refining his Body and Energy Pathways.
[Reinforce] – [Tier-2 I]
Body – Elite– IX (0.00%)
Energy Pathways – Elite– VIII (65.19%)
Both Body and Energy Pathways’ progress had diminished by only a few percentage points. That was more than acceptable, given that his arm had been restored from scratch. It wouldn’t have surprised David if his regrown arm had been much worse than the rest of his body, forcing him to train and nourish it once more to fully recuperate.
