Chapter 261: Heroic Spirit Species

Chapter 261: Chapter 261: Heroic Spirit Species

The Kinetic Energy Jump Boots on Grom’s feet suddenly buzzed, the Technique engraved on their soles instantly overloading.

Riding the explosive thrust, his body skimmed across the ground as he shot back a dozen or so meters.

The instant he had some distance, Grom gritted his teeth and fumbled at his waist for a vial of green Alchemy Potion.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he plunged the needle deep into the stump of his left arm.

The blood that had been gushing from the wound instantly coagulated under the potent Potion’s effect, and the surrounding muscle tissue began to rapidly contract and seal itself shut.

Across from him, Lance was in just as terrible a state.

He was coughing up mouthful after mouthful of blood, which streamed down his chin and dripped onto the mine floor.

He was dying.

But his right hand still held a death grip on the arm he had just torn off.

"Die, you monster!"

A surge of vindictive pleasure washed over Grom as he watched his opponent weaken.

He knew exactly how much damage his last burst had dealt. He had shattered the boy’s ribs and ruptured his internal organs.

The black-haired youth before him was clearly at his limit.

The Energy Dragon Scales covering Lance’s body began to shatter and dissipate, and his Dark Gold Vertical Pupils faded back to their original black.

He was so weak he had been forced out of his Dragon Descendant state.

Grom clenched his remaining right fist, preparing to step forward and deliver the finishing blow to his prey.

But the next second, he was left completely dumbfounded.

He watched as the boy, who could barely even stand, suddenly had his aura—which had hit rock bottom—impossibly stabilize and even surge higher!

[Resist Death]

Lance raised his head, his eyes devoid of fear. He shattered the rock beneath his feet and charged at Grom like a wild beast once more!

"How is he still not fucking dead?!"

Grom’s lower lip trembled uncontrollably.

Ever since becoming a [Chaos Blaster], he had been corrupted by Chaos Ether, leaving his Spirit highly unstable. Sometimes he even had hallucinations...

But he’d never seen anything this fucking absurd, not even in his hallucinations!

In that moment, Fear turned into hysterical rage.

"You’re the one who forced my hand!"

Grom’s eyes flew wide as he let out a roar.

He was wary of provoking the Underground City’s will. The city was already saturated with Chaos Ether, and he had to rely on daily Potions to keep his Spirit stable.

If the Underground City were to be enraged, the Chaos Ether around him would run rampant, and those unspeakable whispers would once again worm their way into his mind.

That was why he had never dared use his signature explosives, which had forced him into this miserable state of sacrificing an arm to survive.

But now, he was past caring.

[Chaos Harmony] activated! [Blast Geometry] locked! [Source Material Fuses] connected! [Chain Detonation] engaged!

His four Core Professional Specializations linked in an instant.

With astonishing speed, his good right hand dove into the tactical pouch at his waist.

He simultaneously gripped four compressed Alchemy Explosives, each the length of an adult’s finger, between his knuckles.

The surfaces of the cylindrical explosives were covered in complex micro-Techniques, their centers pulsing with a dangerous, dark red light.

With a sharp flick of his wrist, Grom hurled the four explosives at the charging Lance.

This was his life-saving trump card, his absolute last resort.

He never thought he’d be forced to use them in a place like the First Area.

After all, the combined cost of these four compressed explosives was nearly as high as the entire batch he had used to destroy the Silver Hand’s garrison!

Lance had pushed him to the brink, and he was losing his mind.

In his eyes, the boy was starting to look less like a person and more like a monster.

’Just turn to ash!’

Grom cursed wildly in his mind.

In mid-air, the four explosives precisely cut off all of Lance’s possible paths.

Then, Grom’s Spiritual Power instantly ignited the Source Material Fuses.

A blinding white light completely swallowed the abandoned mine tunnel.

The explosion’s blast radius was immense.

A Level 5 destructive power, amplified by the terrifying boost from his four Professional Specializations, drew in all the free-roaming Ether Energy in the vicinity.

A massive Suicide Bombing erupted.

A terrifying, high-temperature fireball expanded in an instant, and the violent shockwave tore apart everything in its path.

Even with the protection of his [Blast Geometry] Specialty, which allowed him to find a precise blind spot in the blast and negate ninety percent of the damage, the aftershock still sent him flying.

The surrounding rock walls began to crumble, and tons of boulders rained down.

In the fiery blast, the wide tunnel ahead was utterly reduced to rubble.

Grom slammed hard onto the ground but didn’t even look back to see if Lance was dead.

He spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with pieces of his own organs, gritted his teeth, and pushed himself up with his one remaining hand.

He frantically activated his Combat Boots and fled for his life toward the Public Safety Zone, stumbling and crawling as he went.

Because at the very moment of the explosion...

...his extremely high Perception had picked something up...

Deep within the First Area, the roars of countless Demons and the chaotic thud of footsteps had blended into a single, terrifying wall of sound.

The Demons lurking in the darkness had been thoroughly roused by the Underground City’s fury.

Like a tidal wave, they were now surging toward him from tunnels in every direction—the culprit who had vandalized the Underground City!

...

The temporary camp of the Crimson Bell of Death.

A great fire still blazed within the massive Metal Firebowl.

Several of the team’s core members were resting around the fire.

Their leader, Cassis, sat on a wooden crate, a puzzle nagging at his mind for the past few days.

Two full days had passed since the explosion at the garrison.

The Public Safety Zone remained suspiciously quiet.

The Silver Hand and the Iron Throne hadn’t erupted into any real, bloody conflict.

’Are the people in those Grand Guilds all cowards?’

Cassis thought with utter contempt.

’Their core garrison was blown up right under their noses, destroying over half of the supplies they worked so hard to bring in. How could they possibly swallow such a humiliating disgrace?’

’The higher-ups of the Silver Hand are as spineless as that famous Marquis of the Green Hat in the Royal Capital!’

Just as Cassis was contemplating whether to add more fuel to the fire...

...the Dark Elf Assassin who had been out on reconnaissance strode quickly into the cave.

Cassis could clearly sense the elf’s excitement.

"Did you find the exact location of the Lord’s chamber?"

Cassis stood up and asked, unable to hide his eagerness.

The Dark Elf nodded and reported rapidly.

"I’ve scouted the entire route."

"The place is a complex chamber with intricate terrain and many adjacent areas."

The Dark Elf took a breath before continuing.

"But I used a Long-range Observation Item and confirmed the specific type of Lord inside."

"Boss, just as we thought, the Lord was affected by the rules of the Summer Crown. It underwent a rare Tier Mutation!"

"It’s become a Heroic Spirit Species!"

Hearing this, Cassis couldn’t suppress a greedy, excited grin.

In the Underground City, the rewards for hunting a Heroic Spirit Species were absolutely massive.

Treasure Fragments, Star Spirit Bases, Epic Skill Crystals...

...any one of them was a treasure that could benefit a person for a lifetime.

Such an opportunity was incredibly rare. Only under very specific circumstances would the Underground City’s consciousness pull historical echoes and lingering attachments from the Star Realm.

After all, the Heroic Spirits who left their mark on history rarely chose to answer the Underground City’s call and descend into the Material Realm.

"Excellent! Which Heroic Spirit is it?" Cassis pressed urgently.

"It’s..."

The Dark Elf had just opened his mouth to answer when his voice died in his throat.

He turned and stared in shock toward the cave entrance.

Cassis followed his gaze, just in time to see Grom’s small figure stumbling through the entrance.

The Half-Elf was a pathetic sight.

His expensive suit of Steam Armor was in tatters.

In addition to the gruesome stump where his left arm used to be, his body was covered in countless fresh wounds, some deep enough to reveal bone.

The tears and claw marks were clearly the result of frenzied attacks from a horde of Demons during his escape.

Grom took a single step into the safety zone before his stamina gave out completely, and he pitched forward, collapsing face-first onto the ground.

Armless, broken, and on the verge of death.

Everyone in the cave gasped.

"Didn’t he go to the First Area to have some fun?" the Dark Elf whispered in disbelief.

’How could he end up in such a miserable state in a place that doesn’t even have high-level Demons?!’

And then, Cassis’s sharp hearing picked up the sound of frantic footsteps from the tunnel outside the cave.

It was the sound of countless Demons frantically surrounding their camp.