Chapter 2278

Chapter 2278

Bleak Sky manifested in an explosion of caustic Nether, sweeping down to try and freeze Randidly for just a split second. And from the brief stalling of his Nether Core in response to the attack, it almost succeeded.

But Sulfur responded instinctively, a vicious moment of frenzied twisting to bring the arm around above Randidly’s head right before the hammer blow fell. The impact made the marrow in Randidly’s bone ache, and to his surprise, he felt his collarbone fracture.

Congratulations! Your Skill Marred Yet Reliable Foundation of Yggdrasil (T) has grown to Level 967!

The force was overwhelming enough to spike him. Randidly shot down through the air, even as the impact activated Sulfur’s Combat Furnace Unique ability and suffused his body with heat. With a vicious twist, he righted himself and slammed into a conjured plane of gravity. His chest heaving, he raised his head and looked up at Bleak Sky floating above, his hands morphed together into that elongated, blunt instrument.

“An Authority can be considered a Nether King’s signature move,” Bleak Sky said, even while Randidly’s shoulder ached and shifted back into alignment. A decisive blow, yes, but not a debilitating one. “You can understand its role implicity, just from the name: an Authority. In this area, the Nether King has no peer. Yet I believed I could do more with the concept of Authorities. I didn’t want a single area where I could thrive, but a weapon I could wield against any foe. And so I waited to condense my Authority, believing I could prove them all wrong. Overturn the common understanding to create something perfect. What I eventually created was... Forlorn Rain.”

The air around them remained soft and blurred by the constant water droplets tumbling down from the sky above. The spatter of water on the ground in the distance made the conversation oddly intimate. Randidly’s black robe began to cling to his body as it grew sodden.

“It won’t be enough to beat me,” Randidly said with certainty, having completely recovered from the attack. He glanced East and saw the churning significance that meant humanity was being woven together. He then looked below him and saw the vanguard of Deganawidah’s host raise their weapons and roar. Cerulean’s defenders crouched, ready to receive their charge. He focused back on Bleak Sky.

The ancient Nether King shrugged. Randidly had difficulty reading the expression on his face. “We shall see. Updraft.”

Just like that, he was gone again. Randidly couldn’t help but feel a shiver of shock. Although he had known what was coming, even his fine-tuned senses lost their grasp on his opponent. The soft, drifting sheets of rain tingled against his skin, using the multitudes of their folds to allow Bleak Sky to slip away.

While Bleak Sky was in this other state, the rain seemed to press closer. Or perhaps it was a strange echo of loneliness, pulling the rain closer, causing drops to congregate and drip off the tip of his nose. The noise rose to the rustle and pluck of water against orchard leaves, almost more violent than the reality of the precipitation. Until-

“Downcrash.”

This time, Randidly surged into motion in response to the word, producing Acri and thrusting his spear upward in a focused effort to counter the swing of the greatsword. Bleak Sky didn’t even flinch, a collapsing ridge of momentum rushing down toward Randidly with glassy eyes.

Congratulations! Your Skill From the Chaotic Sea, Abrupt Reverberation (T) has grown to 890!

...

Congratulations! Your Skill From the Chaotic Sea, Abrupt Reverberation (T) has grown to 901!

Again, Bleak Sky’s speed caught Randidly by surprise; even with his powerful physique, he was a blink behind. He could only settle for using his spear to alter the arcing course of his foe’s weapon swing, causing the greatsword to slam into this shoulder rather than striking him in the collarbone again. The heavy splash of Nether swept through him again, disturbing the rotation of his Nether Core. Again, Randidly winced as he felt his bones fracture.

But this time while he was spiked downward, he didn’t miss the nova of kinetic force created by the impact. All that energy was deftly gathered and spun together about Randidly into a cloak of storm. Not only could he store it up for later, but the energy also acted as a strange sort of parachute, diffusing and softening the abrupt motions.

By the time Randidly had stopped his descent and kicked back off a plane of gravity to close the distance, Bleak Sky shook his head. His skin had started to become slick with rain. “You will break down eventually. Updraft.”

“Downcrash.”

Barely a sliver of time had passed where the rain was allowed to fall in peace before Bleak Sky returned like a massive black guillotine, catching Randidly in his transition. But now wreathed in a storm of force and his body burning with Sulfur’s Combat Furnace activation, he narrowed his eyes and whipped Acri around to impale the blurred comet of Bleak Sky.

Congratulations! Your Skill (Fusion Domain) Helen’s Sea, Cradle of Unlikely Lives has grown to Level 1129!

Bleak Sky barred his teeth, the strain clear on his face now. Being soaked with rain made him seem almost fake, a wax figurine left too long near the fire and starting to run. From the glitter in his eyes, it was clear he had run out of reserves. “Updraft.”

“Downcrash.”

“Updraft.”

Downcrash.”

“Vacating Breeze.”

“Updraft-”

“Break,” Randidly interrupted, the injuries in his body healing at a rapid pace. With each of the previous rapid impacts, the storm of force around him had multiplied until it spanned a huge area, an almost city’s worth of furious winds and dangerous kinetic momentum. All this, lined with Randidly’s Nether, had gradually grown inoculated against Bleak Sky’s Nether in each collision.

Now, in the whole of the area Randidly’s storm covered, that kinetic energy forced the Nether into the weave of Bleak Sky’s Authority. The Forlorn Rain tore and left the sky grey but dry. The clouds whimpered and vanished.

Bleak Sky hung in place, looking gaunt and haggard. Randidly carefully gathered the kinetic force he could scavenge back through his body. Then he considered the fragile figure hanging opposite him in the air, even as his hands morphed back from a weapon to just skeletally thin fingers. Randidly felt a twinge of regret he had fought this depleted version of Bleak Sky, the one who had unleashed that powerful part of himself to try and kill Cerulean outright.

Strangely, Randidly found himself speaking. He almost couldn’t stand what a let down this confrontation had been. A lot of his vicious resolve to challenge the universe ebbed as he faced off against this Nether King, who had obviously been beaten down by existence inside the Nexus. “It was a powerful Authority.”

Immediately, he regretted the words. Bleak Sky looked up at him with hollow eyes. The response was clear on the Nether King’s face, even if he didn’t vocalize it: if the Authority had been truly powerful, you would have died.

Randidly bowed his head. Bleak Sky’s Nether Core sputtered and spun, unable to maintain its speed, unable to accelerate, Nether leaking out in every direction. It would not be long until he died. Some part of Randidly wanted to remain, out of respect for this rigidly disciplined figure, but another part knew Bleak Sky would hate him for it, to be witnessed at his weakest.

And also, he was needed elsewhere.

“You did well,” Randidly said as he turned away.

“Don’t pity me,” Bleak Sky hissed, but it lacked any real bite. He just sounded like an exhausted old man.

Suddenly, Randidly realized why Bleak Sky so wrenched at his heart; he reminded him of Shal. And with that, all the fire and fury returned to him. His emerald eyes burned as he glanced briefly up at Pine, hanging over them all.

Randidly produced his Alchemist’s Passport and opened a portal through space, not a moment too soon. He forced his regret and strange wonder about whether he would have a similar end to the side, instead considering his first real goal: the first attempt of three impossible tasks, to create the Philosopher’s Stone.

As he appeared in the cave system outside of the Cult of the Savior’s base, he allowed himself to focus on the specifics. Because while the generalized Philosopher’s Stone of legend would allow him eternal life and to turn lead into gold, those were not very useful abilities with the advent of the System.

No, Randidly Ghosthound, with Nathan’s help, was going to create a very specific sort of miracle. One that would be infinitely valuable within the confines of the System and would benefit his Alpha Cosmos. It would refocus his Fateset as well, toward an Alchemist to pervert and twist the effects of the System as well, which was the true goal of the attempt.

He would create a stone that, when touched, would give you any Class you could imagine.