Chereads / Eclipse: The Terror of Mystery / Chapter 35 - I'd rather choose death

Chapter 35 - I'd rather choose death

A frail man clothed with a threadbare tunic traversed through a cramped battlefield that was filled with gore and bloodshed. Asher had his eyes sharpened, not even daring to blink. 

Every now and then, he would take some severely sharp turns that should be practically impossible with the momentum he was moving with. His goal in doing so was to avoid any sort of collision with any other soldiers.

'Its not their bodies that make me shudder, its their bloodlust.' Asher thought with a visible terror present within him, mixed with absolute focus and solemness as well.

The aroma of blood was everywhere, each breath had it stained with it. The shadowy darkness that had enveloped the world had somehow grown much more darker than before. 

'Is it because of the gate?' He thought with a calculating expression. The silver and black blades of the two armies clashed severely against each other; their collision and screams of fury echoed through the air. It was so intense that it made Asher wonder what made them clash against each other with such anger.

If such an army were with humans, he could undoubtedly bet that the mystic creatures of the void would suffer a huge blow. Now that he was contemplating about the men fighting, it made him wonder:

'Who is leading these armies?' Asher thought with a heave of sigh; up until now, he had not seen the captains of the two armies that led such bloodthirsty monsters against each other.

As he swiftly moved through the armies like a shadow dancing through the branches of a tree under the shining, scorching rays of the sun, the reality gate became bigger and bigger.

Gripping his white blade with a thirst for blood and severe longing to fight. He needed to reach the reality gate no matter what, and knowing what sort of predicament he was in, he had to fight eventually. 

Spinning his blade, he, with calm eyes, turned around in a swift manner. Twisting his torso slightly, he bent his abdomen towards the back, dodging an incoming kunai with a hair breath.

A spark flew in the air as Asher blocked two black blades with his own white blade behind him. 

The Assassin was back; his hands were firm in gripping his two black short swords. His hands trembled before putting a severe force on Asher's blade. 

With a grin, Asher swiftly manoeuvred himself, rubbing his white blade against his short swords; he swang his arm, bringing a chop to his head. The Assassin immediately left the pursuit of their colliding blades before taking a step back, dodging his attack.

Immediately, both of them grinned before disappearing from their spots. Several sparks flew in the air just as they manoeuvred through the battlefield while exchanging their blade against each other. 

Tracing his hands on his blade to get a better grip, Asher spun around, dodging a thrust from his opponent before swinging himself above his opponent's black blade. 

A blade suddenly manifested in front of him, just barely away from piercing into his eye. Spinning his body, he dodged the incoming thrust once more before hitting the assassin's back with his hilt.

A sharp metallic sound echoed as he did so.

'Damn his robe.' He thought before bending down and bringing forward a kick before jumping through the use of his hands. The Assassins turned around only to be kicked in the face.

Rubbing his hands against the ground, Asher swiftly stood, slightly hunching towards the left before bringing the white blade that he held with both of his hands, with its trajectory going towards his opponent's neck.

Instantly, the assassin vanished before appearing beside Asher. Bending his waist slightly, Asher's hair brushed against the opponent's blade that he had just dodged.

[Your Eyes have evolved.]

Disregarding the voice, he immediately left the trajectory of the incoming slash that was previously a thrust before bringing his blade forward with one hand while the other was convulsed into a punch.

The Assassin leapt in the air, his feet tapped against Asher's shoulder lightly before vanishing completely.

'Where is he?' Asher thought before hastily moving to the side, dodging a thrust. Just before the assassin could retreat his blade for another thrust, Asher took the chance and immediately grasped the man's arm while blocking a punch that came in retaliation.

A grating voice echoed within him as blood started to flow through his nostrils.

'Damn his punches.' Asher thought with gritted teeth before swiftly bringing the arms above and moving beneath it, swiftly moving the arm behind the man's back.

This was one of the techniques that he used often when he was back in the outer districts.

The man moved his elbow in retaliation, only to be ripped off by a white blade. Blood flowed as the assassin lost one of his arms. Blood flowed as his ripped arm fell to the ground, its blood dripping into the sand beneath.

Suddenly, Asher's face broke into a frown.

'Why isn't he screaming?' He thought with suspicion, hoping that would not be the case. Bringing his tachi forward with his other hand, he cut off the assassin's other arm.

Just before the assassin could move, Asher spun his body before bringing his armed hand forward with tremendous speed.

Blood splattered through the winds, flowing with it. The assassin's decapitated head fell to the ground; blood flowed from it, raising the aroma of blood significantly.

However, Asher stood still with eyes widened, staring at the beheaded head with utter shock and visible fear.

'What is that?' He thought as he stared at the shapes present at the man's beheaded head, the part of the neck where the blood was flowing from. The shapes endlessly moved, worm-like, through his blood and neck. A disgusting black fluid oozed from those worm-like creatures that had mixed with the crimson blood, giving rise to a new and disgustingly strange fluid that sent chills through him.

'Don't tell me...' He thought that before the worm-like creatures started to extend themselves out from the blood, their tails were also pitch-black in hue, their tails intertwined together, eventually forming a cluster of intertwined tails.

'He's a void creature.' Asher thought before turning around and rushing away with tearing speed. His eyes were engulfed with fear that made him focus even more towards his destination.

'Run before he grows back. Run!' He thought to himself, hoping his body would listen to him and surpass its limits. But so was the reality; all that happened was that he was soaked in sweat.

'That creature, it's the same. It's the same one that killed my parents. It's the same one!' He thought to himself, followed by the surfacing of an image in his mind.

A black behemoth, no bigger than a human but has strength, surpassing several high-graded behemoths. These behemoths were called Shadow Demons. In ancient times, they were called Skinwalkers; these creatures fed upon the souls of humans before using their bodies as hosts. And as they feed upon more creatures, they then gain the memories of their victims, their skills, and their identity itself!

If not for the blackish worm-like creatures, Asher knew he would lower his guard and get killed by that behemoth.

'I'd rather die than get captured by those things.'