This one wasn't as strong, but it was fast. It could have been a difficult fight if he were unprepared, but Asher was much more familiar with his demonic body this time around.
As the demon charged, Asher rolled across the ground to dodge. But as he did so, his tail slithered across the dirt like a snake, tripping up the sprinting demon.
The demon squealed as it crashed face-first into the ground. Its scythe-like arms dug into the earth as it scrambled to jump back up, but Asher wouldn't just let this happen
With a simple thought, his tail slithered again, wrapping itself around the demon's legs like a rope and dragging the helpless creature before him, kicking and screaming. Asher showed no mercy as He stepped on the Sickle Imp's back with cruel force.
"How dare you third-party me, you bastard! Have some shame!"
The curse of being third-partied followed him like a plague; no matter what game he played, there would always be some shameless bastards that crawled out of the shadows to clean up after the fight. And now that curse was trying to follow him into real life?
Oh, hell no!
With his disgust and anger for third-partiers burning in his chest, Asher raised his elongated claws, which were now glowing with a crimson light.
[Rending Claws (E)]
His claws faced no resistance as they plunged into the demon's back, tearing through flesh and bone until they burst out of the creature's chest. Blood splattered all around, but Asher wasn't fazed. Instead, his abyssal bloodline felt more excited than ever!
[ You killed a Level 2 Sickle Arm Imp ]
[ You've gained 30 Experience Points ]
From the corpse, dark mist surged and spiralled upward from the tip of Asher's claws, twisting and coiling like black flames. In an instant, a faint was drawn back into him, leaving only a still corpse behind.
[ Your Talent: [Evolve Through Plunder (SSS] is being activated... ]
[ Congratulations! You have successfully plundered the skill - Adrenaline Surge(E) ]
—-
[Adrenaline Surge (E)] - When your HP falls below 50%, you gain a temporary boost to movement speed and reaction time. Designed for survival under pressure.
[You've gained: +2 Agility, +2 Constitution]
—-
[ Congratulations! You have levelled up to Level 1 Abyssal Imp! ]
[ You have gained: +0.2 Intelligence, +0.2 Constitution, +0.3 Strength, +0.3 Agility ]
[ You have gained 4 Free Attribute Points ]
Asher looked at the stream of notifications and took a moment to comprehend everything. He wanted to review his stats, assess his gains, and distribute his points optimally.
But unfortunately, he wouldn't get that luxury.
Before he could even take a breath, Asher felt dozens of nearby demons staring at him.
'Does it ever fucking end?'
Asher felt like he would never be given a moment to rest.
The demons that emerged never tried to hide their intentions. Their gazes burned against his skin like hot coals. He could feel their twitching hunger building beneath the surface of restraint as they assessed the odds of killing him without sustaining any injury.
Knowing that he had to act fast, Asher didn't step back despite being encircled. No, instead, a low hiss hummed from his throat as all the muscles in his body started coiling.
Standing on his toes, he snapped his tail in a wide arc behind him. The spike on top of it tinged with a crimson stain of blood, gleaming in the warped light of the cavern .
Asher wasn't an expert in animal behaviour, but he knew this much: when cornered, you don't show weakness. You make yourself look bigger. Meaner. More dangerous than you actually are.
Like a lion facing a pack of hyenas, backing down now would only lead to being overwhelmed. And to be overwhelmed was to die.
Knowing this, Asher stood tall and inflated his chest. His tail curled around him like a whip made of crimson steel, radiating calculated menace.
It was a sign. A promise. That while he might not be able to kill all of them, the first to move would definitely pay with their life.
Asher saw the demons hesitate and breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
'It seems like I might just survive this one.'
Faced with the encirclement of demons, Asher had acted wisely. But in the end, he still underestimated just how tempting his blood was to this chaotic pack.
It didn't take long for one of them to break. One of the smaller demons, a wiry, horned thing with twitching limbs, couldn't resist the scent any longer. With the smell of delicious blood filling its nostrils, it lost all reason and hurled itself at Asher in reckless abandon!
Asher saw the demon rushing him and snorted coldly as his tail cracked through the air, smashing into its chest and sending it flying.
He dealt with it swiftly, but there was a problem. In that moment of violent movement, his wounds reopened. A gap appeared in his seemingly invincible posture, and another demon was already moving on his flank.
Fortunately, Asher was familiar with these shameless creatures by now. He pivoted smoothly, tail whipping around to smash directly at the attacker.
The demon jerked back, narrowly avoiding its leg being shattered. The sound of stone cracking was like lightning in the sky, shocking the other demons into stillness.
They looked at Asher, the blood-soaked figure standing tall before them, only to meet his sharp, vicious crimson eyes. His long claws gleamed with bloody light while his tail hovered behind him like a coiled viper, ready to strike at the slightest movement.
Under the bloody glow of red light, it was clear: Asher was already becoming twisted and cruel, even after only a few minutes in his new demonic life.
The air froze. The demons gazed at Asher's terrifying visage until one finally broke.
The one whose leg had narrowly escaped earlier realised it couldn't endure any longer, and it turned around and fled.
Fuck that!
It still had a long, prosperous demonic life to live. It couldn't throw it away here!
With one demon acting as an example, more and more demons started to leave.
They didn't know how much strength Asher had left. But the glint of the spike on his tail, and the cruel gleam in his eyes, told them it was still enough to kill at least a few.
No more demons were willing to risk their lives.
Asher finally breathed a sigh of relief.
They hadn't left because they feared him as a predator, but because they saw better opportunities elsewhere.
Why fight the dangerous one, when there were easier battles to third-party?
Honor? Please, be serious.
It was a well-known fact that there was no honour among thieves, so how the hell could there be any among demons?
For them, third-partying wasn't dishonourable; it was a bargain! A two-for-one deal for easier prey. The only reason they didn't do it to Asher this time was because, in their eyes, fighting him wasn't a bargain; it was a scam!
Of course, they could have chosen to grit their teeth and fight him. But why would they do something so stupid? Losing meant injury, and injury meant being kicked down the food chain.
A perfect example was the demon that Asher had smashed into the ground earlier.
Recovering from the fierce blow, it rose shakily, only to feel dozens of malicious gazes lock onto it.
With just one mistake, it had turned from predator to prey.
The demon realised its fate too late. It tried to sneak away, but the second it ran, a pack of screaming demons leapt after it. For them, a new bargain had appeared.
Asher watched silently.
After all the fighting and injuries, his breaths were shallow and raspy. But his crimson eyes still glowed with bloody light as his tail coiled tightly around his waist like a sleeping dragon.
Though no enemies remained nearby, he didn't drop his guard. Instead, he limped toward a familiar obsidian rock and slumped behind it.
As he looked at his wounds, the hardened expression on his face finally turned grim.