Chapter 322
Simple
The blender saw that its prey had slowed to a stop, and a feeling of bloodlust and excitement enveloped its entire being.
It had been chasing what should have been easy prey for far too long. It had to satisfy its palate with the sweet taste of flesh and blood…
It gained more and more speed as it realized it was aiming for a still target. Its joy and sick delight heightened to the highest degree.
Oh, how it couldn't wait to feel its body cut through flesh, the mist of blood clinging to its skin, the smell of iron and death thick in the air before it finally consumed it all.
It wouldn't miss even a piece. It would scavenge the forest for any parts that had flown away just to finish its salivating meal.
… This heavy bloodlust would be the writing of a contract with death itself.
This was one of the massive differences between the levels of deadline creatures. While their strength would naturally increase tremendously, it was a common consensus among ascenders that the most terrifying part of these creatures was the intelligence they gained as they grew stronger.
Take, for example, the devil that had sadly taken the lives of the others in IAM's group. It had shown moments of extreme cunning at critical times.
Using the spawnling as a distraction and feigning its ability to shoot out its black liquid—just those moments had been extremely fatal.
The ability to think and use common sense is something most human beings inherit—with the exception of Karens—that differentiates humans from other animals. It is what allows them to speak, communicate, come up with new ideas, and create solutions to problems.
And in the hands of deadline creatures, it was a harrowing affair. The simple ability to think, process information, and form ideas allowed a deadline creature to become many times more deadly than simple-minded beasts that only knew how to satiate their desires. It made a world of difference.
That's why, at the level of peak novice… this deadline creature couldn't discern the strangeness of Henry's movements leading to its downfall.
As the deadline creature barrelled toward him, Henry glanced at his jian and made sure it was ready. He decided to pour fifty percent of his mana into it instead, ensuring there would be no mistakes.
He leaned against the particularly thick tree, feeling the rough bark press into his back as he calmed himself. Pure focus enveloped him.
His sand-coloured eyes took on a golden glow as the creature drew so close he could hear the disturbing sound of flesh spinning.
It was a wet, grinding roar—like slabs of meat being fed through a relentless grinder. There was a high, metallic whine buried beneath it, as though bone scraped against bone at impossible speed. Every rotation produced a nauseating churn, a thick, viscous tearing that vibrated through the air and into his chest.
The wind whipped through his curly hair as it closed in on him. The deadline creature, sensing that victory was imminent, released a screeching bellow that could have turned stomachs with fear — but no such fear existed in Henry's eyes.
He gripped his mech tightly, his avien flaring as mana drained from his core at incredible speed. Then suddenly he jumped.
He leapt at the last possible moment, when there was no chance for the creature to stop — its only choice was to continue forward with its momentum.
But he rose only a little over one meter, perhaps due to his injured leg. He couldn't jump as high as he normally could.
He was at a height where it would tear clean through his waist and legs, resulting in a particularly gruesome death that seemed all but guaranteed…
But no.
Suddenly, with his uninjured leg, his foot planted against the tree behind him. With a fierce grunt, he kicked off into a front flip.
Inches—mere inches separated life from death as the creature narrowly missed him. And as a result, its spinning mass slammed directly into the thick trunk behind him.
With a loud Thuck! followed by a gruesome sound — something between a gargle and a chainsaw choking on resistance — its rotation faltered violently. It could spin no more.
It was stuck.
Henry's eyes blazed as he used that spinning momentum. Time seemed to slow. His hands tightened around his jian as he began to fall.
His gaze locked onto its blue eyes. On its face were normal blue eyes — almost disturbingly so. From its mouth, dark purple tentacles suddenly spilled out, stiffening as they shot toward his head, aiming to pierce straight through his brain.
Even in this compromising moment, the pure tenacity of the deadline creature shone through. It was utterly determined to be the last one standing.
Henry, however, felt utterly and completely calm. Even if there was a raging fire in the pit of his stomach, he did not panic.
Instead, he followed through with the trump method he had yet to name — feeling absolute and unwavering confidence in its power.
"AAAAHHHH!"
With a bellow of power, his eyes burned as golden light spilled from them. He spun midair, the liquid fire at the tip of his jian reacting to his intent. It became less illusory and far more tangible, the air around it crackling as raw power radiated from Henry.
His figure resembled a young hero —His hair whipping violently in the wind, tightly coiled muscles straining with force as he tore through the dark tentacles. Dark green liquid splattered outward as he completely obliterated them!
His strike did not slow. There was no stopping the unstoppable. The creature couldn't even register pain before the jian landed on its neck — and sliced through its paper white skin as if it truly were so.
An eruption of mana burst outward as time seemed to resume. Henry landed in the pose of a warrior who had survived a million battles, having just slain his greatest adversary.
Nothing moved.
The deadline creature's head did not roll. It remained perfectly still, almost as if Henry had missed.
Slowly, he straightened. His arms felt like lead, and he was grateful he hadn't suffered a backlash. Still, nausea crept up on him—it was the first time he had used so much mana at once.
He took heavy breaths and did not turn to face the creature. From his lips, a quiet whisper escaped.
"BURN."
Suddenly, from the creature's neck, golden flames erupted. They were strangely transparent, yet intensely bright as they spread across its entire body. It wasn't even able to release a scream before it was consumed. The flames burned with relentless purpose, almost alive, determined to devour everything.
They did not stop until nothing remained.
Not even a trace of ash to remember it by...
Henry said nothing. The burning hatred in his stomach eased slightly.
Gripping his jian, he slowly walked away… deeper into the forest.
…
"…"
"…"
"…"
"What the actual fuck was that!?"