CHAPTER 126: CHAPTER 126 - RETREAT

Cielius and Sebas dashed forward. They were ready to throw themselves in harm’s way for Lucien. In that moment, they were prepared to die just to protect him.

But Lucien had already sensed their intent.

"Back out! I have a plan!" he shouted.

The two froze instantly. Their hearts pounded like war drums. They trusted him... of course they did... but the weight of the incoming spell made their nerves quake.

The spell roared across the battlefield. Its sheer intensity forced them to brace themselves yet they stood firm... eyes locked on Lucien.

At that moment, Lucien raised his left hand.

The black glove shimmered. The runes etched along its surface ignited as divine energy surged through it. Space itself seemed to twist and before his palm, a tiny black hole bloomed...

Hungry. Silent. Ready to devour what was coming.

The Mantle of Infinite also unfurled. It cloaked him in a soothing, protective aura.

The massive sphere of miasma hurtled closer. Its vile energy tore through the air.

Then...

Huuuuummmmmmm—KRRRRRshhhhhh—THWMP!

A grotesque sound echoed. The clash of collapsing magic against devouring void.

No explosion. No shockwave. No dust cloud.

Instead, the great sphere of miasma began to unravel. It was thinning out, drawn slowly and inexorably into the black hole.

But then—

"GAHHHH!"

Lucien’s scream tore through the air as agony ripped through his body. The force of the spell was overwhelming. It crushed down on him like a mountain.

His eyes widened and his veins bulged violently as the pressure mounted. The Mantle of Infinite was supposed to lessen long-range damage but even its protection wasn’t enough. The sheer power bled through.

He staggered, forcing his free hand to steady the one holding the black hole.

His arms trembled. His veins popped beneath the strain. Every nerve screamed.

Pain consumed him. But still, he endured.

’I must hold on... That spell drained all the miasma around us. It’s a one-time strike. No reserves left...’

Blood streamed from his nose.

Muscles tore under the pressure. Even his skin splitted open.

Yet because of the Core of Eternal Flesh he consumed, his body was now far from ordinary. Each wound closed as soon as it appeared, only for new ones to rip open again. A torturous cycle of breaking and healing.

Seconds stretched into an eternity.

Finally, the last of the spell was consumed... vanishing into the void.

Lucien collapsed to one knee, gasping. To him, it felt endless. To the others, it had been over in seconds.

With shaking hands, he pulled potions from his INVENTORY and forced them down. Warmth surged through his body and strength returned in a rush.

From beyond the rift, the hoarse, stony voice growled in disbelief.

"It... it can’t be. How do you possess those items...?"

Then... it broke into grating laughter.

"GAHAHAHA! I see now... We’ve been played. Primordial Slime... Even in death, you mock us. Even in your ruin, you twist our plans to dust!"

Lucien tilted his head, frowning in confusion.

"What the hell are you even talking about? Does your kind just... enjoy monologuing to itself?"

He couldn’t make sense of the rambling. And truthfully, he didn’t want to. Instinct told him that knowing too much would only drag him into something far worse.

So he shook off the thought and moved.

Lucien raised his right hand toward the colossal hand.

The white glove ignited with brilliance. A white hole bloomed before his palm.

It was the inverse of the black hole. It can spew forth everything it had consumed.

With a sharp motion, he unleashed it. The stored magic tore free, surging with the same dreadful intensity as before... now redirected to its original caster. But instead if miasma... It was now divine energy.

"Foolish," the stony voice scoffed.

But Lucien saw it. The colossal hand flinched.

It began to pull back toward the rift... then hesitated. Instead of retreating, it braced itself. It shielded something behind it. Protecting.

And in that instant, Lucien understood.

’The dungeon core... Damn it! I should’ve destroyed it earlier instead of drooling over the profit. Stupid!’

Then came the blast.

BOOOOM!

The redirected spell slammed into the colossal hand as it shielded the core. It detonated in a torrent of force.

Soon...

The dust began to clear.

What remained was the colossal hand. It pulsed faintly, twitching as if alive.

But something was different. Chunks of flesh were missing. Not just flesh. Two entire fingers had been blown off. Their severed forms lied grotesquely on the ground.

The once-terrifying figure now looked mutilated as blood gushed from the wounds. But this was no ordinary blood. It flowed like molten mineral, a glowing liquid blue that shimmered with unnatural heat.

"It worked! GAHAHA!" Lucien roared triumphantly.

Cielius and Sebas exchanged looks. They had no idea how Lucien had pulled it off but it didn’t matter. Relief washed over them and smiles crept onto their lips.

But then—

A shift.

Neither Lucien nor his allies had time to react.

The hand snapped forward in a sudden, desperate strike. The index finger slashed through the air with blinding speed. Its sharp nail gleamed like a blade.

It aimed straight for Lucien.

Too fast. Too close. Too lethal.

In that instant, his life flashed before his eyes. And without thought, the words burst from his lips—

"SCAM THE SYSTEM!"

The attack connected.

CLANG!

A blunt sound reverberated across the battlefield.

When the dust of motion settled, what stood there left everyone frozen in disbelief.

Lucien was unharmed. Not a scratch.

"What!? How!?..." the stony voice bellowed in shock.

No wounds. No impact. As if the colossal strike had never happened.

Lucien quickly retreated out of the hand’s reach. He pressed a palm against his chest, checking for lingering pain.

Nothing. He exhaled sharply as relief flooded through him.

He had come within a breath of death again. The feeling was too bitter. It was something he knew he’d never get used to.

"Fuck you," he muttered under his breath. "Are you Kurama or something?"

Cielius and Sebas nearly collapsed on the spot. Only now did they finally understand what Lucien meant when he spoke of life-saving skills. This... this was it.

And now that the enemy’s weakness had been revealed, the tide had shifted.

The colossal hand was weakening. Its movements became sluggish. Its wounds were bleeding molten blue.

"Grandpa Ciel! Sebas!" Lucien shouted. "Hit the dungeon core! That’s what it’s protecting!"

They moved without hesitation.

Spell after spell slammed against the hand, forcing it into full defensive mode. With its broken flesh and missing fingers, it could only carefully curl around the core like a shield.

Then...

Lucien bolted forward. He had no more second chances and no more tricks left to save him if he failed here.

When he drew close, the massive finger twitched. It then flicked forward in a desperate strike even as the hand kept shielding the core.

But Lucien was ready.

Anticipating the movement, he twisted sharply and weaved past the flick with precision. His momentum carried him around the giant hand’s guard.

And now, blade in hand, he was positioned to strike directly at the dungeon core.

But then—

The massive finger slammed against the ground.

A tremor rippled out. It nearly threw Lucien off balance. He staggered and in that split second, the colossal finger swiped across.

The impact sent him bouncing across the battlefield once more.

Yet this time, Lucien grinned through gritted teeth. The strike lacked its former power. The giant was holding back. Too cautious now.

Mid-air, he twisted. He corrected his posture and landed on his feet.

He knew it. This fight was nearing its end.

All he had to do... was land the right blow.

The problem was clear though. No matter what they did, none of their attacks were enough. They were locked in a stalemate.

But then—

Something stirred.

His Gargoyle Ring pulsed.

Lucien blinked. He yanked off the Eclipse Gloves and there it was. The ring glowed with a strange light.

His eyes darted around. That’s when he saw it.

One of the giant’s severed fingers that was blown off earlier lay not far from him.

The closer he moved toward it, the brighter the ring’s glow became...

Lucien lit up.

Without hesitation, he reached out and pressed the Gargoyle Ring against the severed finger.

And then... something wholly unexpected happened.

The ring began to drink.

It absorbed the molten-blue blood at a staggering pace. It pulled it inside like a starved beast.

"You dare!?" The stony voice thundered. Rage, fear and disbelief mingled within it... but the giant could do nothing to stop it.

Lucien’s eyes widened.

He watched as the ring swelled with power. The glow pulsed like a heartbeat until finally... it flickered as if sated.

Lucien tapped it with a knuckle.

"Well, well. Your description didn’t show that you could still suck blood. Or is it different when it’s the blood of your own creators?"

The ring, of course, offered no answer.

Lucien didn’t waste time pondering. Whatever this was, it was unprecedented... and exactly what he needed.

"If you can really let me borrow powers from beyond then let’s test that. Now that you’re full."

And so... Lucien acted.

He poured divine energy into the Gargoyle Ring.

The colossal hand responded instantly, thrashing in a frenzy. But its focus was split. Cielius and Sebas continued their relentless assault on the dungeon core. The hand could only shield it, unable to strike Lucien.

That was when the ring erupted.

A blinding glow surged from it.

From within, a towering gargoyle silhouette of pure light broke free. Its wings stretched wide. Then—

It dove straight into Lucien.

His chest heaved. He felt it.

Something was different.

His body no longer felt heavy, strained or bound by flesh. He felt light and untouchable.

His veins burned with power. His muscles thrummed with life. He felt... invincible.

And then knowledge struck him like lightning. His aura flared.

With a surge, radiant wings of light burst from his back.

And then... he was airborne.

Lucien laughed. He glided through the battlefield as if he’d always belonged to the skies. Every movement came naturally as though he had been flying since the day he was born.

From the rift, the voice trembled at last.

"A blunder..."

Its once-imposing tone cracked.

"I should have known... To kill a descendant of the Primordial Slime... preparations beyond this would be required. Even if you are but an insect now... you cannot be underestimated."

Lucien only scoffed.

"You’re misunderstanding something."

His voice was mocking.

"I’m no descendant of some Primordial Slime. I’m just your friendly neighborhood hero."

With that, he moved.

From his INVENTORY, he drew another blade. He channeled a huge amount of divine energy over it.

The colossal hand twitched. Slowly, it began to retreat... pulling back toward the rift.

"You may take this victory," the stony voice rumbled. "But know this... I will return. A year, a decade, a century... no matter how long it takes, I will come back in my true form and I will grind you to dust."

Lucien tilted his head.

"Bruh. I won’t live that long. And as if I’d let you just walk away."

His wings flared. Borrowed strength surged through him.

In the next heartbeat, he was gone... appearing in a blink above the rift.

He raised his blade over the colossal hand.

"Now, taste my Blade of Despair."

He descended like judgment itself.

The strike carved through the monstrous hand. Rhe blade sliced its flesh as if it were nothing but wet clay. The scream of rending essence echoed as Lucien drove the attack downward... until steel met its true target.

The dungeon core.

Shrieeeeek!

The stony voice howled in raw agony. It echoed through the rift with a sound that rattled the marrow of all who heard it. Then...silence.

The voice was gone.

All that remained was the severed hand twitching uselessly.

The core shattered in two.

And a stillness that followed the storm.

Then—

[Ting!]

[Achievement Unlocked: The Final Pulse]