As a burst of Essence shot throughout Caster, a Transformation took place in seemingly an instant. His body grew and bones shifted. His face became flatter and his form quadrupedal.
There was nothing human about him.
There was nothing that indicated he was a natural animal.
This was Taowu, a Peril of mythology.
Large ivory tusks bore from his mouth, each shining and its ends sharper than a Transcendent Spear. His face was morphed into something almost human, but flattened and with wide, dull green eyes. The skin was crinkled and grey.
The rest of his form was that of a most ferocious beast. It had a long body with fur a pale brown. The color was similar to Caster's own hair, only if it had been neglected and mistreated for decades.
An incredibly long tail that was a dozen meters long that appeared to be a mixture of scorpions and lizards sprouted behind him. Despite its size being comparable to the rest of his body, the tail moved with a mind of its own, extraordinarily powerful and independent.
The rest of Caster's limbs became that of a tiger's, built for power and violence; the claws were capable of incredible acts of mauling.
Each bit of him was more deadly than the last, and in his current state, he thought that only Gehrman's Transformation was more akin to a Nightmare Creature than his own.
Still, as Taowu, he was stronger.
And far more deadly.
Not only was his hide and claws as deadly as Transcendent materials, but he also had the [Onyx Carapace] Attribute.
In the 3rd Nightmare, he had slain thousands of Nightmare Creatures, enough to fulfill the requirements of the [Prince of The Underworld] enchantment on his [Underworld Armor]. When that happened, the opportunity to Soul Bound the armor to him appeared.
Though he did not recall why he was so willing to go through with the unknown procedure, he had done it, and the result was the breaking of the Memory and the gaining of an exceedingly powerful Attribute.
[Onyx Carapace] allowed him to summon armor that was Soul Bound to him. In other words, it was always the same Rank as Caster was. So at the moment, it was Transcendent. However, the true boon was that he could maintain the Enchantments from the Armor at all times. His passive durability shot through the roof, his body could change in weight at his discretion, there were several other resistances offered as well.
Of course, he could also summon the old [Underworld Armor] with this Attribute, only it was now a part of him, so no sparks from a Memory appeared. Instead, the form of Taowu was simply immediately covered head to toe perfectly in perfectly-cut dark stone.
Not only would it always perfectly fit him, even in this Transcendent Form, but it bolstered the natural offenses that he had, making the body of Taowu the peak of what Transcendent material could accomplish.
With only a little application of his Aspect, this body could rather easily cut through the flesh of Great creatures.
Of course, this wasn't just any Great Creature.
It's either a Devil or a Tyrant. It's actually hard to say in this case. The Arbiters are unique in their independence and willfulness as Beasts. The ones here act the same as the ones that wander off on their own that we've picked off. However, in any other case their actions would indicate a Tyrant's control.
A mass of fleshy limbs were quickly approaching, filling up the entirety of the dam's passages.
Caster had to make a decision quickly.
Would he flee and risk involving the other two, turning the battle into a widescale clash between whatever Arbiters were left and this thing?
Or…
Internally, Caster wished he could wield the [Prideful Chikage] in this state. He bet that with this decision, the sword would be singing a song of death for him.
The strange, black-clad form rushed to meet a rushing mass of flesh.
He spread the wave of deceleration outward, slowing the arms and hands.
At the same time he winced a bit.
There was always a different measure of resistance whenever he slowed creatures of the Great Rank, but this was beyond anything he'd felt before.
The Great Demon didn't put up this much of a fight, that was for sure.
Still, when he met the Nightmare Creature in battle, the bone, muscle, and flesh instantly shattered wherever he charged. The shockwaves spread further than the dam, even reaching places a couple kilometers away.
With his head down and face protected from gore from the [Onyx Carapace], the tusks of Taowu met those pieces of the enemy which had been decelerated.
Meanwhile, the very matter that existed within the tusks accelerated multiplicatively with three different Acceleration effects. It came to the point that the air around him started to burn.
With all that hitting decelerated matter at the same time, the result was truly catastrophic. In terms of raw damage, it could only be surpassed by Gehrman and Changing Star as far as he knew. (Of course, one of Mordret's Reflections might very well be able to do similar destruction as well).
The incongruent states of being met, and the reaction was one of chaotic matter that exploded outward.
If not for the combined durability of Taowu and the [Onyx Carapace], Caster may very well have been harmed by his own assault.
In this case though, he wasn't slowed down because of pain. Instead, it was because the rest of his limbs and tail were also flashing outward at impossible speeds, erasing the remains of the Great Abomination from the surroundings. This way, none of the flesh could appear behind him to pincer him.
The progress became slow, but devastating.
The tunnels started to collapse around them, but when they did, Caster simply bulldozed through them as well.
However, the shifting path disrupted his deceleration, making his charge not as potent as it was at the start.
Still, Caster raged forward.
In real time, it all happened in a matter of a few seconds. However, in his Accelerated mind, it took much, much longer to make his way through the mess this Great Creature was throwing at him.
The rate at which he destroyed what the Nightmare Creature produced had to be kept in his favor, lest he be pushed back and the thing gain greater ground.
In truth, he should have attacked immediately instead of running away to regroup.
I suppose that's the difference in experience. Even though I can think so much faster than anyone else, I still hesitated. In a fight at this level, even a decision that lasts such a short amount of time can have a great effect.
In his mind, that was the reason why Gehrman was such a monster. Of course, the mastery and ingenious use of his Aspect put him above everyone on his level. However it was his ability to instinctively always make the optimal choice in battle that truly separated him from all others.
That was what Caster was chasing, and the more he improved the more he realized just how out of reach Gehrman was.
That being said, in the process of chasing that unobtainable goal, he also became untouchable in terms of skill to the average Saint.
That was why, even as he slowed and extraordinary powerful blows started to land on his armor, Caster still managed to keep everything off him for the most part.
Still, even the great Armor that came from his Soul was getting broken apart.
As he started to wonder how much farther he would have to go, the answer came to him as he once again reached the room he had been in previously.
The Great abomination now hovered in the middle of the room. Now it was a much more enclosed space as the walls were covered, and then layered with many arms and hands that shivered at his arrival.
They held back for a moment, inviting him inside the creature's den.
For that short time, the creature offered him reprieve, obviously baiting him.
Big mistake.
The form of Taowu disappeared in an instant.
Each of the hands and arms of the creature twitched in surprise. However, this did not last long. With a roar and wave of destruction Caster came back, building up massive momentum and energy.
The aura of Taowu filled the room, stalling the assault that was already meeting the large beast that was Caster.
He turned into a monster of mauling viciousness. Burning and slashing through the walls of flesh even as they swarmed him.
It would have to be over in an instant, as the endless supply of flesh covered his exit now. If he did not truly decimate everything and get ahead of the head's outpouring of this vile mess, then he would be in grave danger.
All thoughts disappeared as the cacophony of sound barriers breaking and rock being torn and crushed turned into a bass-like, drowning, song that only he could hear.
It fueled him unlike anything else.
He felt unstoppable.
Then his leg was caught.
Caster's heart sank as his momentum plummeted. Even as the hand that grabbed him was turned to ash, several more were already surrounding him. Tearing at him and returning all the violence he had inflicted upon the creature.
He dodged for a while, turning back into his human form and back to Taowu in an attempt to shake off the hands.
However, his capture was inevitable.
He felt the fingers wrap around his body and tear away massive chunks of him.
The pain was unlike anything he had felt in a long while. In his accelerated state, the agony was drawn out far longer than it would have for anything else. However if he abandoned that state he would die in an instant.
A laugh filled with mirth echoed as the head's mouth split impossibly wider and let out a croaking and cruel sound.
It grew and grew as Caster fell apart more and more, losing the shape of Taowu, he went back to his human form where massive chunks of his torso and legs were missing. Muscles were torn roughly and a chunk of flesh from his face were torn away, revealing his teeth.
For anyone else, this would be the end.
The Nightmare Creature seemed satisfied, the hands stopping their assault for a moment to examine Caster's dying body, as if examining a piece of art.
Then, a specific hand reeled back, ready to tear out his throat when every single part of its body tensed.
Something unfamiliar and alien radiated off Caster. It was unlike anything the Nightmare Creature could comprehend. Very faintly, the smell of what it sought to reach lingered for long enough to cause a short circuit in the Corrupted mind.
This was not an Aspect, it was not a thing of the Flame which is sought so deeply to destroy.
It was a deep dark red. A silent scream of pain and death pierced outward, causing shivers to run through the Great Creature.
The glowing power was separate, yet intertwined deeply with Caster, bonded to him. The Nightmare Creature's hands which had been roving over Caster suddenly recoiled as the deep red glow coated their fingers.
They were not particularly strong. They did not disintegrate or feast on the flesh of the Great creature.
However, they were so strange that they gave Caster an opening.
He decided right then to do something he had long theorized, but had yet to accomplish, simply due to the fact that it would be so damn taxing.
For him, it may very well take weeks, if not months.
It also might have side effects he wasn't entirely aware of.
However, the alternative was death, he didn't have much of an option in this case.
He pulled back all of his power, and focused Acceleration on solely his mind. Even with a Great Abomination reaching for him well past the speed of sound, the thing all but halted in Caster's mind.
Of course, in this case, Caster could not move either. The only thing accelerated was his thoughts.
That, and one other thing. Looking within himself, something that did not exist in this plane of reality.
The only reason he could sense it was because he had sworn [Corruption] Oath Run.
What he sought was Vermin.
The supply of Vermin the New Workshop managed to produce in Gehrman's absence had expanded astronomically.
After Mordret figured out how to produce them with the "Sin Series Memories", they had carefully cultivated what little they had and kept it as the most secretive weapon of the New Workshop.
Though Mordret was technically sworn to Song, that guy was a bastard, so his "loyalty" to the Great Clan was not worth much.
In fact, if the Song Clan wasn't his only hope at killing his father, Caster suspected Mordret would straight up join the New Workshop.
It was for that reason that they were no longer openly antagonistic to each other, only bitter and unfriendly.
Still, as much as Caster found the horror story of Valor that once haunted his nightmares to be a pain in the ass, he couldn't deny the help he had provided.
Vermin could really only reproduce with "sin". What "sin" was exactly was rather nebulous.
Oskar had proposed giving the small supply of Vermin to some prostitutes to have them cultivate it.
However, Mordret had correctly pointed out that – while that may work – "sin" would likely be supplied in regard to the seven sins listed in the Memories that birthed Vermin.
This led them to split the supply of Vermin in two. Each of the most evil bastards that represented all seven sins the best would receive Vermin.
Naturally, this was Mordret and Caster.
After a few months, the supply of Vermin had increased enough that they were able to extract a fair amount of Vermin via drawing blood, only to then allow it to be transmitted to the others in the New Workshop who were deemed the most obtuse and foul people.
It was mostly random people that Oskar had picked out, and after a while the Vermin multiplied nicely inside them.
It was also around that time that the Vermin reached a critical mass inside both Caster and Mordret.
When that happened, the value of the [Corruption] Oath Rune was revealed. With it applied, they gained limited control over the Vermin in their body. This granted them very, very minor blood manipulation while also increasing passive regeneration.
The situation of Vermin in New Yharnam was much better now. It spread every so often, with occasional "blood drives" being conducted that allowed them to surreptitiously recruit those most fitted for receiving Vermin and secretly imbibe them with a small amount that would grow on their own the more the person engaged in sin.
Of course, they did ask for consent from the individual first. So far though, no one had turned it down after learning what it could potentially grant them.
Though very few had the [Corruption] Oath Rune, as Gehrman had a finite amount of power to distribute Caryll Runes, they did all gain the [Infested] Attribute, and would be the first to receive that Caryll Rune whenever the Red Judge returned.
Those who did have the Oath Rune were imbibed first after a good amount of Vermin had built up.
Ideally, one day all of New Yharnam would be [Vilebloods]. Such a scenario would grant each of them perfect health as the Vermin inside them would purge all disease. Additionally, their healing factor would increase exponentially over time.
And since mundane people could also achieve this status, it was entirely possible that those who took on First Nightmares would go in with that power at their disposal, increasing the likelihood of getting a higher Ranked Aspect.
That didn't matter right now though.
At the moment, Caster needed to turn that minor healing factor into something akin to a powerful Aspect.
He pumped Essence through the Vermin he felt, accelerating them. He had done this before with his Ascended Ability. The aura he produced could work, but it was not optimal or efficient.
Instead, the best way to go about it was to go through the thousands, if not tens of thousands of Vermin and individually accelerate them with his Awakened ability. Since they were not truly enchanted or of any sort of Rank, these Vermin did not require much Essence at all.
It was an exceedingly greedy approach. However that also meant that new Vermin would be spawned at a faster rate, which then in turn could be accelerated.
More. More. More.
A gluttonous mindset.
An unstoppable pride that refused to yield fueled him.
The lust for power filled every activation of his Awakened Ability.
He also let his envy loose. Envy for Gehrman and his impossible power.
Wrath and Sloth did not find purchase within him, as those would only slow down his growth. They did not need to be though, as the fervor in which he let the five sins run through him was enough to excite the Vermin exponentially.
Internally, he prepared himself.
He would need exceptional will power and stamina in order to accomplish his goal.
To maintain these mindsets and desires over hundreds of hours would be something he had never even attempted.
Yet he would today.
Such was Honor Fell, the man who betrayed his clan and forsaken his name in order to gain more power.