Neal came close enough to Inspect. He was a thin man, sharply featured, with the sort of face that seemed to be scowling even at rest. Right now it was not at rest.
It was trained on Zane, and it was drawn tight with anger.
โ๐๐๐ ๐ผ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ฅ (โ๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐)
๐ผ๐ค๐ค๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐
โ๐๐๐ค๐ค: ๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ธ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐จ๐ค:
๐๐๐๐ ๐ฃ ๐๐๐จ ๐ ๐ ๐ผ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐๐๐๐ค (๐ผ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐๐จ ๐ ๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐)
๐๐๐ช ๐๐๐๐๐๐ค:
โ๐๐๐๐ค๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ (๐ธ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐) [โ๐๐ฃ๐]
๐ป๐ฃ๐๐จ๐ค ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ช ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ค๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฅ๐ค ๐๐๐๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐๐ก๐ค๐๐ค, ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค, ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐ช ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ค ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐๐๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ฅ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐ค๐ก๐๐๐๐ค ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐.
โ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐๐๐ (๐ธ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐) [๐ผ๐ก๐๐]
๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ค๐ฅ๐ฃ๐ ๐ช๐ค, ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐ค. โ๐๐ค๐ฅ๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ค ๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐จ๐ค ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฅ ๐จ๐๐๐๐ ๐จ๐๐ค ๐๐ ๐ค๐ฅ.
๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐ (๐ธ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐) [๐ผ๐ก๐๐]
๐น๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐ค ๐ ๐๐'๐ค ๐๐๐๐๐ค๐ก๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ฃ ๐ ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐๐ฃ. ๐๐๐๐ช ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ค๐ ๐จ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐ธ๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐.
"Die!" snarled Neal. He raised his arms to the high heavens.
The sun's rays shot into him. They sped up as they got close till they were thin gold lines shooting through him. They poured in all over in their thousands, a corona of pinprick lights. And he began glowing an eerie black light.
Zane recognized it. It seemed to be the same Celestial Inferno Skill his son had used, but at a much higher Tier.
As it charged, Zane got out an Axe and stacked it with Laws of Sharpness.
Neal blasted the beam. And Zane chucked his Axe to greet it. Flaming Axe met a ray of light.
The Axe cleaved the beam down the middle. One beam went left, the other right.
The beam going right hit plain dirt and exploded. The beam going left hit Kyle right in the face.
Zane thought he heard a shriek; the beam stopped for a moment, finished off what was there, and kept going. It wiped out the Mages behind Kyle too.
By the time Neal stopped the Skill, they'd all been charred to dust.
Kyle Elliott's headless body flopped to the ground. Neal and Zane both stared at it.
Then Kyle dissolved into essence. And flowed right into his dumbstruck, shaking father.
Neal choked. For a few seconds, he hovered there trembling.
Then he turned twitching to Zane. "YOU!" He screamed. "I'll KILL YOU!"
Which seemed rather unfair to Zane. Whose fault was that really? Kyle's essence hadn't gone to Zane, had it?
But Neal Elliott was beyond reason. He seemed deranged, whichโฆ Zane could understand, given the circumstances.
Neal began to glow a deep red, a red like dried blood.
"I prayed," he choked out, "To the demon Azeroth, ruler of the Void Planet. In exchange for a fraction of my soul, he granted me powers forbidden to man! Savage Sage! Bear witness to TRUE MIGHT!"
And he began to expand. Demon horns reared out of his skull. Bat-like wings broke through his back, gaining new bones, swelling faster and faster. Every limb of his blew up, growing gnarled and scaled and dark. Twice its size, thrice, four timesโฆ
"Witness my SACRIFICE!" he raged.
Zane cocked a brow. "You're burning your life force?"
"All of it!" shrieked Neal. His eyes bulged. The veins stuck out stark red. "It'll all be worth it if you BURN IN HELL WITH ME!"
Now, Zane had a few Levels on him. And a Signature Title. And two extra Major Laws. But still... that was a lot of Aura. It was starting to swell larger than his ownโฆ
Oh, my. He was getting nervous.
The good kind of nervousโthe kind of nervous that put a smile on his face.
Neal Elliott was going all out. Zane figured he should too.
Neal was still growingโhe'd blown up to the size of a skyscraper now. Batlike black wings speared out of his back, dwarfing the horizon. His face distended, drawing outward, warping into something between a human's and a dragon's. His eyes burned crimson in his skull, smoldering like dying embers.
He reared up, bellowing a deep furious note. And pitch-black fire leaked from his mouth.
He was gathering his powers for one all-out blow.
Zane did the same.
He started loading essence into his Axes. He threw on the Major Law of Absolute Sharpness, he threw on the Major Law of Scorched Wrath, and all through his body he weaved the Major Law of Unyielding Might. His Axes started glowing blistering hot. So did the black star of flame in Neal Elliott's hideous mouth.
Zane leaped into the air.
They threw at the same time.
A furious black beam shot out at him. And he returned fire: Rising Sun Slash!
Two rising white slashes met a falling waterfall of raging ink. Zane's Axes rose, cleaving through it, struggling against that dense tide. But there was an otherworldly power bearing down on them, a power too great to resist. They forced their way halfway upโฆ
But they couldn't hold.
They were blasted aside. The beam shot forth. And Zane's eyes widened.
He tried to dodge.
He couldn't.
***
Neal Elliott saw the shock on the Savage Sage's face. He felt the moment his blast hit the man's body.
It batted him right out of the sky and drilled him straight into the ground. The flames cooked him aliveโbut it wasn't the fires of the flesh that hurt the most. It was the fires of the soul.
Neal's fires swamped the man. His soul lay defenseless before him, tender, vulnerableโฆ and Neal's demonic fires savaged him. Neal felt a shocking chunk of soul go up in flameโenough to kill a man thrice over. It was shockingโNeal hadn't expected him to have so much. He guessed Zane Walker was a World Ranker for a reason.
Was.
The Savage Sage spasmed and went still. The man's body lay face down, still smoking.
He didn't get back up.
And Neal Elliott let out a shrill laugh. He felt his life force ebbing out of him, felt the aching hole in his soul, the grievous price he'd paidโฆ
But it was worth it.
To the side, one of Kyle's women gasped. "No!" she cried. "Get up, Savage Sage, get up!"
He didn't.
Neal sneered. The man could posture all he liked. But in the end, Neal crushed him like any other gnat. Signed or not, he fell like all the rest.
He only wished Kyle were here to see it. Poor Kyleโฆ
He'd gotten his vengeance, at least.
He watched on, feeling smug, as the Sage's massive body dissolved to essenceโฆ.
He squinted.
Wait.
Thatโฆ wasn't essence. Thatโwas thatโฆwhite flame?!
A deep-throated groan came out of the Savage Sage's charred body. And one massive arm moved, propping him up to an elbow. The skin had all burned off the flesh. But he blinked, and stared up, and frowned.
White flames danced over his skin. New skin thrived in its place.
Neal's mouth hung open.
"Butโ" he blubbered. "But I hit you! I felt your soul melt!"
"Yeah," rumbled the Savage Sage. "You did hit me. That fucking hurt."
Then he stood. He grinned.
"You're dead! You should be dead thrice over!" croaked Neal. He didn't understand. "Youโyou've made a pact with a demon too! It lent you its soul!"
Zane blinked, baffled. "โฆNo?"
"Then how?!" Did this Savage Sage have a treasure on him? But Neal would've felt it. Noโhe was sure he'd struck that man dead in the soul!
He should be in a coma, at least. Losing just half his soul should've done that!
But Zane Walker seemed fine. Wincing a little, but fine. It didn't make sense!
โฆUnless...
Unless this Savage Sage had so much soul that Neal had only melted a tiny fraction compared to the rest of him.
Just how much soul power was he endowed with?!
"Round two?" said the Savage Sage. He got out his Axes.
Neal screamed. He turnedโall several hundred feet of himโand flew as fast as he could, batting his massive wings. He had to make it to the Gorge! If he could dive down thereโ
Suddenly he was moving very fast, faster than he'd thought possible. It must be his desperationโhe tapped into a wellspring of energy he didn't know he had. He felt a wild excitement; he'd make it out!
He glanced down and saw nothing but air.
And he realized it wasn't him that was moving very quickly. It was just his head.
His body was quickly receding behind him into the distance.
He screamed one last time.
And everything went dark.
***
Zane's head pounded.
His body was pretty unhurt. But he still got a warning that he'd dipped under 50% health.
Soul damage, huh.
He still didn't have much clue what to do about it. Tanking it had worked fine-ish for him so far, but when something truly massive struck himโlike that black beamโhe'd been so hurt he couldn't get up for a good ten or twenty seconds there.
That was death in any other battle.
Neal Elliott's giant demon body dissolved into a whirlpool of white essence. It swirled into him.
๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ก!
๐ผ๐ค๐ค๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐->๐๐
But something else fell out from that body, something that didn't dissolve. A murky orb the same color Neal's eyes had been. It rolled to a halt. Zane inspected it.
๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ธ๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐ (โ)
๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐พ๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ ๐ป๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ธ๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐, ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐, ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฃ ๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ค ๐๐๐ค ๐๐ค๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐. โ๐๐๐ฃ ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐, ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ค ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐!
๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ค: โฆ
It was pretty much all the Skills he'd seen the Cultists use. Plus a Law tacked on at the endโthe Major Law of Ethereal Flames. There was some kind of Law trance in here, Zane gathered. He skimmed down to the end.
๐น๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ค ๐ช๐๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐๐๐ฅ. ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฃ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐, ๐๐ ๐ฃ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ค, ๐๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ฃ ๐๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ช๐ ๐ฆ๐ฃ ๐ค๐ ๐ฆ๐โ
Zane stopped reading.
Huh. So this was that 'Inheritance' those stragglers had been talking aboutโwhat the whole Cult was based on. Just a bunch of Skills plus a Law package in one. They seemed related to each other too. Quite a windfall. It might be ranked C, but it was really a bunch of C-ranked treasures bundled in one.
Most of these Skills didn't interest Zane so much. They weren't really his style. But there was that healing Skill, Rebirth in Flame. And a soul defense Skill too, 'Hellfire Cloak,' that he could really do with.
Just applying the Law of Fiery Rebirth on its own lightly cleaned up surface-level wounds pretty well. But he'd seen those Fire Mages regrowing Kyle's limbs in real timeโcould he do that for himself?
He was just one person self-healingโฆ probably not at the rate they were doing it. Even just patching up serious internal wounds in the heat of battle would be really useful. It was like using essence and Law to temporarily mimic the effects of a super-high Regeneration stat. It tickled him.
Then there was the Law hidden within. The Major Law of the Ethereal Flameโฆ
Now that Zane had one fire Major Law, he could vaguely make out the scope of the elemental Law that held itโthe Elemental Law of Fire. He wasn't anywhere close to it yet. Maybeโฆ a fifth of the way there? A sixth?
This orb would help him get one step closer.
He breathed out and looked around. He could sit down with this and try to suss out whatever Fire Laws he could. Try to nab some Skills before he hopped into the Gorgeโฆ
The sun was close to setting.
Thenโ
Of course. He blinked and looked around. These people were still in chains. One by one he went through and cut them off, finding himself swamped in that usual ritual of sobbing and thanking, and he realized, slightly depressed, that he'd been right. No dungeon crawling was happening today.
Then came the part he was dreading. The part that was unfortunately necessary, since it was clear these people were in no condition to fend for themselves.
He claimed the Safe Zone and messaged Reina to explain just what kind of mess he'd gotten himself into.
She promised she'd be there for him before sunset.
โฆ She was honestly a saint.