Chapter 210 - 209: Share and Share Alike
A circular, scorched black hole suddenly appeared on the writhing body of the Life-Devouring Blood Boil.
The piercing Aurora Energy Beam took away the Life-Devouring Blood Boil’s final breath of life.
The entire chaotic Flesh and Blood Forest seemed to fall silent for an instant, and then...
SPLAT!!!
The Life-Devouring Blood Boil was like an overinflated balloon.
After a brief pause, it violently imploded before the great mass of dark-red flesh erupted outward!
A powerful shockwave blasted outward, carrying with it a skin-crawling slurry of flesh.
"Shit! Take cover!"
And so, the team members who had just peeked out cursed as they ducked back behind cover, lest they get splattered.
The controlled parasitic creatures also stiffened at this moment, the red light in their eyes quickly dimming.
Then, like sand sculptures losing their support, their bodies burst apart, dissolving into foul-smelling puddles of blood and rotten flesh that scattered across the ground.
The sight was utterly bizarre.
A Parasitic Wolf, mid-pounce, simply disintegrated in the air, its body falling to the ground in a SPLAT of countless fleshy fragments.
A Flesh and Blood Vine, still inching forward, instantly shriveled and rotted, collapsing into a puddle of lifeless, fleshy sludge.
Level 20 (378/575) -> Level 21 (463/600). Leveled up!
The Experience Points from a full four Life-Devouring Blood Boils were enough to push Zelir to the next level, bringing him to Level 21.
He glanced first at the progress bar for Technique Celestial Calculation.
Flame Thunder Spear, the Four Level Multi-layered Spell Structure Magic that marked the threshold to becoming a Middle Level Mage, was almost done analyzing.
After a moment of thought, Zelir allocated the four attribute points to Intelligence.
Power: 95
Agility: 105
Constitution: 98
Spirit: 119
Intelligence: 130 -> 134
Perception: 32
Charm: 58 -> 59
Lucky: 51
Talent Skills:
Technique Celestial Calculation
Magic Contract
’The Intelligence requirement for a Four Level Multi-layered Spell Structure Magic must be high. I’d better be proactive and keep raising my Intelligence.’
’A Magic of that level could even severely wound a [Cruelty]-rated Abyssal Evil Vine.’
’If I could master it, even if I couldn’t match the power Instructor Lena displays, it would still be an incredibly strong trump card against [Challenge]-rated Demons.’
Zelir’s gaze swept over the Talent Skills on his status panel again.
[Reach Middle Level Mage to unlock a third Talent Skill.]
’I can’t wait to see what my next Talent Skill will be...’
With all the Life-Devouring Blood Boils dead, silence returned to the horrifying and grotesque forest of flesh.
Without their power to sustain them, great sheets of parasitic flesh peeled away from the tree trunks and branches, dropping to the ground.
They piled up in a thick layer on the ground.
The tissues began to rot quickly, releasing a heavy stench that enveloped the entire grove.
"Hooo..."
The others all let out a sigh of relief.
They looked at each other, taking in one another’s sorry states.
"We finally took care of that disgusting thing."
Valles scraped the still-squirming sludge off his Leather Armor with his Curved Saber.
"Life-Devouring Blood Boils... They have Demon Cores, right?" Marcus said suddenly.
The team fell silent for a moment.
Of course, a Life-Devouring Blood Boil was bound to have a Demon Core.
But... where was the Demon Core?
All eyes instinctively turned to the pile of flesh on the ground.
Its surface was even still steaming.
Without a doubt, the Demon Cores were in there.
Someone would have to dig them out by hand.
Even for the squad members—who, after years of adventuring, were accustomed to all kinds of bloody and harsh environments—the thought of it was repulsive.
"Gray can get them," Valles said, breaking the silence.
"That’s right, yeah, Gray can get them," Maki chimed in.
"No way! In your dreams!"
Gray immediately protested. "I’m not doing that kind of work by myself! We all do it together!"
Normally, he would have just done the dirty work.
But the mess left behind by the dead Life-Devouring Blood Boils was just too disgusting; it was beyond his limits.
"Alright, alright, stop giving Gray a hard time."
In the end, it was Marcus who stepped up. He clapped his hands. "Let’s all help out."
’Help out together...?’
Hearing this, Zelir instinctively took a step back and bumped into Maki’s broad chest.
"Where do you think you’re going, Zelir?"
Maki’s massive hand clamped down on his shoulder.
Although he couldn’t see Maki’s expression under his mask.
But from his tone and the way his eyes crinkled, Zelir could tell the guy was definitely smiling.
"As teammates, we share the good times and the bad, right?"
"I... I, uh..."
Zelir’s mind raced, searching for an excuse.
Gray and Valles looked over too, staring at him with deadpan expressions.
Under their intense gazes, Zelir finally buckled.
He sighed, utterly defeated.
"Fine, fine... I’ll help."
...
Zelir plunged his hand into the pile of flesh, an indescribably soft and squishy sensation spreading up his arm.
If he closed his eyes, he could almost trick himself into thinking he was playing in the mud.
But the moment he opened them, the gruesome scene snapped him back to reality.
Even through the layers of waterproof fabric and clothing, the feeling was nauseating.
He dug his fingers in, tore the mass apart, and exposed an even deeper layer of flesh.
The process of finding the Demon Cores was just that brutally simple.
When the Life-Devouring Blood Boils were killed, great layers of flesh had peeled from the tree trunks and piled up here.
The Demon Cores, their spoils of battle, were hidden inside, and with no suitable tools available, they could only be dug out by hand.
’Digging with a scabbard...’
’I’d probably have to throw it away and buy a new one when I was done.’
"Why didn’t anyone bring a shovel?" Gray complained loudly.
"Good question."
Maki said without looking up from his digging.
"Next time, I’ll make sure to bring a shovel on the hunt. That way, when you die, I can dig your grave."
The smell permeating the air grew even stranger.
It wasn’t just the foul stench of rotting flesh; mixed in was a cloyingly sweet fragrance.
This was Zelir’s Aromatherapy, a skill he had learned from Instructor Manlin for Monster Hunting.
He had intended to use the fragrance to drive out the stench and make the air a little more pleasant.
But unexpectedly, instead of canceling each other out, the two scents combined into a sweet-and-sour stink that was even more nauseating.
"Ugh... BLEARGH!"
Valles finally couldn’t take it anymore. He ripped off his mask and began to vomit violently.
"Can’t you puke somewhere else? I’m digging here!" Gray cried, on the verge of a breakdown.
After a long stretch of frantic work, the four Demon Cores from the Life-Devouring Blood Boils were finally unearthed.
The Demon Cores themselves were also very strange-looking.
Unlike other Demon Cores that were crystalline, these were round, fleshy objects.
Their surfaces were even covered in fleshy buds, each less than a centimeter long.