CHAPTER 7: | LIMITATIONS ARE NOTHING BUT A JOKE
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An immense, surging strength coursed through my form.
The off-balance that I'd felt moments before was gone, now it was replaced by a profound, terrifying harmony.
I gazed at its tail, descending toward me like lightning incarnate, yet in this new state, time itself seemed to slow.
Finally, I could read the world's intent again, unraveling the threads of probability.
The vision I had longed for had returned.
My false soul had finally merged with my body, faster than expected, all thanks to the coming of Grotesque Physique.
The world sharpened, its movements becoming predictable.
Like a flash of pure lightning, my form vanished from the ground in an instant.
I reappeared behind its back, like a spectral blur, and swept my tail with all of my strength, sending it hurtling into the unyielding ground.
CRASH!
Sediments erupted, billowing into a murky fog, and its screams, guttural and pained, ripped through the water.
But now, its advantage in terms of stats and skills was now rendered useless.
I could see its every intent, its every desperate movements.
Now that the situation had completely reversed.
It thrashed, trying to regain its footing, but couldn't.
I unleashed a furious barrage of blows, mirroring the brutal dance it had forced upon me moments before.
'Hahahaha! Fucking die, you bastard!'
Yet, its vitality was far more tenacious than I had anticipated.
With a desperate surge, it intercepted my tail with its maw, clamping down.
It tried to reel its body, leveraging its weight to slam me into the ground.
But I had already expected this.
Then with a forceful, defiant twist, the situation flipped again.
It was the savage demon that crashed into the ground instead.
Letting out a loud, triumphant bellow, I clamped onto its gills.
My maw sank deep, and I twisted my form violently, aiming for the kill.
The water shook and convulsed around us, yet the demon, thanks to its ever developing sapience, twisted along with me, narrowly avoiding a fatal injury this time.
Its eyes gleamed with a savage, desperate intelligence.
It twisted its body forcefully, dislodging my grip before clamping its razor-sharp maw onto my gills, tearing them open in a swift, sickening motion.
Blood exploded into the water, as a crimson cloud formed around my head, and pain struck my nerves like a bitch yet again.
But this time, I met it with fury.
I raised my tail, slamming it into its gills in a crescendo of force before opening my maw and biting into its gills again, twisting my body, ripping them clean off in a swift, brutal motion.
Shock was palpable in its eyes, a flicker of disbelief could be seen, but it couldn't react.
I twisted my body like a surging tornado before slamming my tail into its gaping, wounded gills, sending it flying straight into the ground.
Boom!
But it refused to yield.
With a desperate, insane surge, it hauled itself up and charged at me, as pure madness was now visible in its eyes.
Its maw spiraled open, like the terrifying vortex of a colossal sandworm's mouth.
But it was futile.
I could see its exact path and anticipate its every strike.
Raising my tail high, I dashed toward it, intercepting its bite with a devastating tail slam.
With all of my strength, with renewed fervor, as I focused all of the impact into a single, annihilating point on its skull as I muttered internally.
'Bull Gang.'
My internal voice was a cold whisper, a predator's promise.
The moment my tail contacted its head, the sickening sound of something cracking could be heard.
I closed my eyes, a grim satisfaction settling over me.
'Die, you demonic beast!'
I roared internally, slamming my tail harder, as I poured every ounce of my might into the strike, sending it crashing violently back into the ground.
Boom!
Sediments rose again, billowing into a choking fog, with blood swirling within it.
I let out a ragged sigh, a mix of exhaustion and triumph.
Perhaps this truly was the most difficult fight I'd had since my new cycle began.
'Truly a beast of its own right.'
I mused internally, a grudging respect forming despite the pain.
'Its will was something that shouldn't exist. How could it attack me with its insides impaled by a spike, with countless fresh scars marring its body, and so utterly exhausted?'
I couldn't help but hold some respect for it.
It was rare to find beings with such raw, unyielding insanity, a creature that only died when I killed it with 'Bull Gang,' focusing every ounce of my power into a single point, that penetrated its skull and turning its brain into a bloody goo.
'Hahaha, truly what a crazy fight I had, and it was thanks to you that I've realized it again.'
Gritting my teeth until my gums bled, I tore its flesh and crushed its bones apart.
A fierce frustration gnawed at me.
I was too weak.
Too weak to take my revenge, too weak to become an Ascendant, to weak to truly rule all.
'Power was what I wanted. The thing I chased, even at the cost of sacrificing everything. Power was what I chased.'
I gazed at the hologram with a firm, unyielding resolve.
The moment of revelation, the gender reveal of the skills I have gained, was finally here.
---
[You have slain.]
• S: 0 | T: 1 | Level 2 | Feral Gorefang [3★]
[You have gained.]
[4500 - EXP.]
[You have gained a level.] x2
---
[You have slain a being above you.]
[You've obtained.]
• [Limit Breaker]
---
[You have devoured.]
• S: 1 | T: 1 | Level 2 | Feral Gorefang [3★] x1
• S: 1 | T: 1 | Obsidian Hulk Whark [2★] x4
[You have gained.]
[+ 7 - Health.]
[+ 12 - Stamina.]
[+ 0.22 - Physique.]
---
[Skills Devoured.]
• Devouring Maw [Tier 2]
• Obsidian Carapace [Tier 3]
• Razor Maw [Tier 2]
• Stone-Bound Muscles [Tier 1]
• Territorial Roar [Tier 1]
---
[Grotesque Physique would like to devour these skills.]
• Devouring Maw [Tier 2]
• Obsidian Carapace [Tier 3]
• Razor Maw [Tier 2]
• Stone-Bound Muscles [Tier 1]
• Territorial Roar [Tier 1]
[Yes] / [No]
---
I gazed at the devoured skills with a satisfied smile, as a flicker of curiosity tugged in my mind.
Why would Grotesque Physique require my explicit permission to devour these skills, to consume their essence, when it could just do so automatically?
But still, this was better.
I could choose which skills I wanted Grotesque Physique to devour, to assimilate.
It was a definite plus, a sign of control.
Then slowly, I made my way into the crevice where I'd hidden earlier, my form, now a few meters larger, scraping against its rough walls as I pushed myself deeper into its confines.
Then, a predatory smile curved across my face, cold and calculating, as I clicked 'Yes.'
---
Devouring Maw [Active | 5 - Stamina | ▪︎]
A powerful, crushing bite attack capable of pulverizing rock, shattering lesser armors, and dismembering prey with ease.
Obsidian Carapace [Passive | ▪︎]
The Whark's outer hide is composed of incredibly dense, interlocking obsidian-like plates, providing exceptional resistance to piercing and slashing attacks.
Razor Maw [Passive | ▪︎]
The Whark's teeth are sharper and more numerous, capable of delivering devastating shearing and ripping attacks that strip flesh from bone.
Stone-Bound Muscles [Passive | ▪︎]
The Whark's musculature is incredibly dense and unyielding, granting it remarkable raw strength for its size, enabling it to deliver powerful blows and resist physical restraints.
Territorial Roar [Active | 10 - Stamina | ▪︎]
The Whark lets out a deep, guttural roar that vibrates through the earth, intimidating lesser creatures and warning off potential threats within its immediate vicinity.
---
Just as I expected, Grotesque Physique was indeed influenced by my authority.
How did I know that?
Well, it was easy.
It was a skill affluent to my authority 'Myth Voracity,' But a lesser version that could only obey me.
Since it required my tacit understanding, my explicit permission, to devour those skills and convert them into its own traits by 'marking' them.
How does such a unique skill grow in power?
The answer was simple, by devouring the 'potential' of other skills.
And what did I mean by potential?
The answer was their levels, Tiers, stages, and even their inherent evolution paths.
That was the potential that Grotesque Physique stripped, rendering those consumed skills unable to advance further on their own.
But this was the path I envisioned for my future, a path that wouldn't demand the endless, training of my skills.
Instead, I would simply fuse them into a 'false ascension skill' without much problem.
Even if the immediate result was a false ascension skill, it was better.
I could easily gather the quantity of skills needed to rival a true ascension.
Quantity, after all, was quality in itself.
And it wasn't as if I couldn't convert it into a true ascension skill in the future.
So, there was no need to worry about my future, all of this was predetermined and meticulously planned by me.
The sensation of the cold water, caressed me like a numbing balm, wrapped around my numerous fresh wounds as I squinted my eyes, then smiled.
Since a far more urgent matter now presented itself.
I gazed out as a massive 'Obsidian Hulk' approached the perimeters of my hiding spot.
I couldn't believe it.
These demonic beasts were moving in a synchronized group, as they slowly corneres a creature with rugged, stone-like armor that allowed it to perfectly camouflage itself within the jagged crevices.
Its aura was barely a whisper, a faint ripple in the energy around it, a true master of stealth, hiding itself from the approaching horde.
But these Obsidian Hulk Wharks were cunning.
Their massive forms suddenly flickered out of existence, dissolving into the dim water as they prepared their ambush.
Crash!
A cloud of fine dust and debris erupted, billowing around them as their powerful tails struck the cliff face.
The very rock shuddered, vibrating with the force, but their joint efforts were useless.
Their elusive opponent was a true master of stealth and disguise.
The hidden creature moved in a blinding blur, a sudden splash echoing through the water as blood erupted, forming into a crimson cloud.
Splash!
Then, in the next second, before the Obsidian Hulk could even respond, the hidden creature's razor-sharp fangs tore through the white-eyed Obsidian Hulk's thick Obsidian Carapace with alarming ease.
A sickening crunch, audible even underwater, echoed through the depths.
Crash!
The white-eyed Obsidian Hulk's head was crushed into a pulp in one forceful bite.
Blood and its brain now reduced to a sludge, scattered across the waters.
The other four Obsidian Hulks tensed with a primal fear.
They knew it then, they were not the hunters, but the hunted.
All of them were nervous, frantically scanning the cliff, but they found nothing.
Their opponent was a cunning, unseen predator.
Then a predatory smile erupted from my lips as I gazed at the tantalizing target before me.
The hunter that the Obsidian Hulks were searching for was here, right in front of me, its tail wiggling, attempting to hide.
I opened my mouth, a cavern of sharpened teeth, and snapped it down, as I devoured its tail mercilessly.
Blood exploded.
But I didn't care.
It thrashed, but I continued, who would refuse such a plump ass, wiggling right there, waiting to be eaten?
It couldn't even let out a full howl.
It knew that the Obsidian Hulks would hear it, would end it, and that's precisely what made this situation so favorable to me.
With a final, decisive snap of my maw, its lifeless body appeared before me, and I began to munch on it slowly, savoring the taste of its flesh.