CHAPTER 365: CHAPTER 256: POWER OF FLESH AND BLOOD_4

She felt as if countless maggots were writhing and gnawing inside her brain. The intense pain prevented her from paying attention to the battle before her, and she couldn’t help but clutch her head, repeatedly striking it while emitting a painful groan. The Nun fared no better; the backlash from detonating the torch had left her severely injured. However, she was tough, not making a sound until she collapsed.

Tamara’s reaction caught Geralt’s attention. He was in a better state than the two women and hurried over to drag both Tamara and the Nun off the battlefield. That was all he could do. As for entering the battlefield to assist? Geralt shifted his gaze towards the fight. He didn’t even know who the real monster was anymore... Was this a level of power humans could attain?

Lance, too, was unrestrainedly unleashing the power within his body. Ordinary enemies couldn’t withstand a single strike from him. This opponent, however, was a perfect target; not only could it withstand blows from his greatsword, but it also fought back. In reality, Lance’s strength was certainly no match for the monster the Wizard had become. However, the greatsword he wielded was specifically designed to deal with such large creatures. The enhancement from the steel weapon was immense, and with his seemingly unending power, this bizarre stalemate had occurred.

"DAMN IT!" Lance roared, unwilling to drag this out any longer. He tightened his grip on his sword, spun, and channeled all his muscular strength into a powerful, sweeping slash.

The greatsword sliced into the monster’s waist. Its robust muscles tensed in an attempt to resist, but they couldn’t halt the blade even for an instant. It only got momentarily stuck when the blade bit into its spine. But this momentary snag barely affected Lance’s follow-up. He quickly stepped back, evading the tentacles coiling towards him and the massive hand grasping for his head. Then, he wrenched out his greatsword. The force behind the pull was so great it even dragged the monster.

The massive body lost its balance and toppled like an iron tower, further exposing the grievous wound. Within, one could only see a mass of diseased, non-human organs, and, shockingly, countless flesh buds grew upon its internal organs. Even Lance, accustomed as he was to such sights, couldn’t help but feel a flicker of unease. Yet, it didn’t stop his next move. He delivered a backhand strike with his sword, chopping into the monster’s leg—as thick as a concrete pillar—further hastening its fall.

Only when the monster was down could he reach its upper body; such was the frustrating limitation imposed by the sheer difference in height. But now, it was all over. Lance brought his sword down directly onto the monster’s head. It wasn’t that Lance hadn’t wanted to aim for the neck; the muscles piled there were almost as thick as its shoulders. An ordinary Longsword might have been deflected by the skull, but the heavy, massive blade of Giant Slayer crushed the bone directly, cleaving off half its head.

The moment it lost its head, the monster briefly ceased reacting. But then, the flesh buds on its body began to writhe on their own.

"SHIT!" Lance cursed under his breath. He followed up with two more slashes, completely shattering its brain. Even then, it didn’t completely cease reacting.

Had Lance heard Tamara’s earlier assessment, he would have known what likely controlled this body... but he hadn’t. He wasn’t about to play any fancy games with this resilient foe; if he couldn’t kill it conventionally, he’d turn to a higher power.

"Sacrifice."

With its main consciousness gone, the conditions were met. Power surged from the Void, instantly engulfing the monster’s corpse.

A boon...

Lance stood dumbfounded, feeling the feedback: a massive amount of Spiritual Essence, far surpassing that of an ordinary offering. This quantity was comparable only to the unexpected boon he had received on the boat returning from Totnes.

So, it seems to gain such boons, I have to challenge and kill even stronger monsters, he mused. I wonder how great the boon for taking down the Ancestor would be?

And the surprises didn’t stop there. Lance could feel a portion of the boon acting upon his body. He quickly opened his panel and saw only a single line:

"Deepening understanding of the Power of Flesh and Blood... Flesh Reconstruction +1."

What a pleasant surprise! A smile couldn’t help but spread across Lance’s face. To think that what upgraded was Flesh Reconstruction! A quick assessment revealed that using the Ability now consumed less Spiritual Essence and could heal even more severe injuries. However, he remembered the source of Flesh Reconstruction quite clearly: it was acquired from Sacrificing that old bastard, the Butler. And now, he had gained a new understanding of the Power of Flesh and Blood from this monster. Doesn’t that mean this monster...