Endless Debt-Chapter 876 - 26: Self-Sacrificing Strike
Fatigue, numbness, pain...
Countless emotions swirled in Bologue’s mind, but they were quickly engulfed by a burning rage.
The Flame of the Cauldron invaded the Void Realm once more, pulling down large chunks of brick and stone that fell amidst clouds of dust. Yet, it couldn’t crush the silent Silent Ones. They moved like phantoms or the living dead, loyally executing orders and closely pursuing Bologue.
Under grueling battle, the area of conflict became ruins. Concrete walls shattered, twisted rebar lay exposed, corpses and drying blood sprawled on the ground, blanketed by layers of dust.
"Undead."
"He is also an Undead."
"Cannot kill him."
"Paralyze him?"
"Paralyze him."
The Silent Ones communicated silently. Ethereal Blades cleaved through the smoke, colliding with Envy’s Bite. Previously, Bologue could use an attack characteristic of Envy’s Bite to slice through the Ethereal Blades, but this time the blades locked together, and seconds later Bologue was heavily repelled.
Crashing against the wall, Bologue slid down, propping himself up with his blade, gasping for breath.
"Aimou, something’s off with these guys," Bologue was now certain of this anomaly. "They’re getting stronger, and this power is about to surpass the Prayer Believers."
As the battle progressed, more and more Silent Ones fell, making the remaining Silent Ones even stronger. Bologue thought it was some form of strengthening that reached the limits of a Prayer Believer, but it turned out to be much more.
Bologue’s fighting grew increasingly strenuous. Earlier, he could overpower and slay the Silent Ones, but now he could only fight and retreat. The threat of the Silent Ones greatly increased; several times, they nearly surrounded and slew Bologue.
His own stockpile of ether was also running low. Even with Aimou’s support, it couldn’t sustain much more high-intensity combat.
During a short respite, a piercing buzzing sounded. Bright Ethereal Blades struck from the side. As Bologue raised his sword to block, a scorching stream of fire surged toward him from the front.
With vision shared, the Silent Ones coordinated with mechanical perfection. Bologue could only summon ether. The Flame of the Cauldron rose, altering the surrounding structures. A wall rose to block the advancing fire stream, while Bologue swung his sword to clash with another Ethereal Blade.
The moment of contact quickly repelled him. The Silent One retracted its blade, turned, and struck down with even greater force. Bologue couldn’t defend in time, a crimson streak cutting across his shoulder.
In such a situation, Bologue had no ability to break through the Silent Ones’ defenses. Hunter and prey roles reversed, Bologue unwillingly retreated, leaping to the stairwell, descending several flights.
The Silent Ones had no intention of letting Bologue go. They closely pursued him, one after another, like a pack of wolves chasing prey.
"They’re not just getting stronger in terms of ether strength."
Aimou’s voice resonated. While Bologue focused on fighting, Aimou observed the enemy’s movements.
"I’ve noticed too. They’re learning."
Bologue was startled by his discovery. The mysterious nature of the Silent Ones far exceeded his imagination. "While battling me, they’re learning my combat style to counter it."
In several previous clashes, the Silent Ones accurately seized flaws in Bologue’s tactics to counterattack. Now, Bologue was completely suppressed by the Silent Ones. While they discerned his attacks, they continued to grow stronger.
"Secret Energy? The effect of Alchemy Armament?"
Bologue wondered, unsure how the Silent Ones accomplished this, or whether it was simply technique. Like master swordsmen with years of experience, finding opportunities to counter with ease.
Aimou said, "We need to change our way of fighting."
"Easier said than done."
Habits are hard to change, and so are battles, especially in such a critical situation. Yet after some complaints, Bologue seriously considered Aimou’s suggestion and attempted to apply it.
A large number of Silent Ones descended, producing a heavy thud, followed by gunfire. Several alchemy warheads whizzed past Bologue’s body. Bologue turned to counterattack. Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid formed into a speeding Iron Spear, the tip glowing red. Upon impact, Red Mercury exploded into a cascade of flames.
Amidst the swirling smoke, a milky white Ethereal Barrier tore through the haze. The Silent Ones marched steadily, undisturbed by any external force, like an advancing high wall, mercilessly crushing everyone.
Bologue suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness. Against previous enemies, no matter how powerful, he could find some chance. Yet, against the ever-strengthening Silent Ones, Bologue felt he faced a round shield without any weakness.
"What do you think the Silent Ones truly are? Just undead?"
Bologue asked Aimou, becoming curious about the essence of the Silent Ones.
"I can’t guess. They’re so bizarre," Aimou also couldn’t give a definite answer. "What’s certain is this eerie splitting immortality must be enabled by a Blessing."
"Then what about the power he’s gradually gaining?"
Bologue considered a possibility, "Could it be a blessing from a devil?"
"A blessing?"
"Yes, he was favored by a certain devil and received such a blessing," Bologue continued, "So bestowing another layer of blessing would be just a small effort."
"I’ve never seen such an example."
Bologue shook his head, "Just like how many debtors we’ve seen."
"If it’s a devil’s blessing, then which devil is it from?"
This gradually strengthening and limitless power reminded Geoffrey of the Joyous Desire Witch’s blessing, but that only increased the amount of ether, completely different from this rising intensity.
"Evidently, it could be a devil beyond our knowledge... or a devil within our knowledge, only we’re witnessing his blessing for the first time."
Bologue knew more information than Geoffrey, and recalling the various events within the Great Rift, the image of Tyrant Mammon once again flashed before Bologue’s eyes.
Could this be Mammon’s blessing?
Then what nature would this blessing take?
The greedy are never satisfied.
Bologue contemplated as he continued to retreat until he was cornered by the Silent Ones, this time leaving him with no escape, while the remaining Silent Ones guarded the only way out. At a glance, there were still dozens of them.
The Silent Ones strode forward, the sound of footsteps and the friction of iron armor echoing, their silence maddening to any person. Bologue struggled to maintain his composure, the distance between him and the Silent Ones gradually closing, until only a few meters were left.
The time had come.
The canyin halo bloomed within his azure eyes, ether blazed fiercely, igniting Bologue’s Alchemy Matrix, uniting his and Aimou’s power, the peak of etheric reaction nearly reaching that of a Negative Power User.
In the desperate silence, Bologue multiplied and detonated all the Red Mercury within the Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid.
In an instant, it was as if a miniature sun had exploded, the sweeping flames devoured everything, scorching white filled everyone’s vision, next, eyes were seared blind, armor burned red, skin scalded and turned charred black, the thin silhouette nearest to Bologue was directly vaporized.
The building now in complete lockdown, the high pressure from the explosion found no outlet, even with the Void Realm’s protection, the gray-white walls rapidly blackened, subsequently covered with cracks, the Silent Ones were pinned to the ground under the high pressure and temperature, the shock reverberating, colliding, the pressure inside reaching its limit, enough to crush all life.
Amidst the incinerating ashes, a few glimmers still resisted, the connected etheric barrier barely withstanding the high-temperature and high-pressure assault, followed by the Silent Ones feeling waves of suffocation.
The Red Mercury consumed all the oxygen within the building, even if the high-temperature and high-pressure didn’t destroy them, the oxygen-depleted environment would suffocate them to death.
The armor buckled under the pressure, followed by ruptured lungs, blood mixed with shredded flesh spewing from mouths, within the explosion’s core, Bologue had already turned into a charred corpse, the deadly flame wave, carrying high pressure, swept mercilessly through all life within the building.
Under this mortal strike, the entire building was plunged into a deathly silence, countless bodies lay strewn in the rubble.
This silence lingered for a long time until the sound of painful gasping surfaced amidst the charred remains.
Bologue struggled to crawl up, his newly regenerated skin replacing the charred flesh, a thin scale armor covering his bare body, after the painful gasping, Bologue’s vision gradually cleared.
"I really should get myself a Second Skin like yours."
Bologue complained, each self-sacrificial attack left him in tattered rags, it was somewhat embarrassing.
Aimou’s laughter echoed in his mind, although the laughter sounded a bit weak.
Bologue chuckled along, under the intense fatigue, he uncontrollably collapsed to his knees.
To eliminate the Silent Ones at once, multiplying and detonating the Red Mercury nearly exhausted all their ether, both of them now in etheric depletion. Fortunately, the outcome was apparent, utilizing the building’s enclosed Void Realm alongside high temperature and high pressure, they successfully killed all the Silent Ones.
Just as Bologue was relieved at his quick reflexes, a charred corpse in the distance started to writhe, a Silent One who was almost burned to a crisp slowly stood up, most of his skin was blackened and charred, flesh falling off, revealing a scarlet hue.
Bologue thought this was the Silent One’s last struggle, but the next second, an etheric reaction beyond imagination erupted from what could almost be deemed a corpse.
Prayer Believers, Negative Power Users, Defenders...
A terrifying etheric reaction surged like a blazing sun among the corpses, enough to drag everyone into the abyss of despair.
