[Soul Attack! Warning!]
[Soul Attack…]
[Warning…]
The notifications flashed repeatedly in Alex’s blurred vision, their soft chime barely audible over the sound of his ragged breathing.
His limbs felt like lead, and his chest burned as if molten iron coursed through his veins.
Daniel’s claws glowed ominously, their dark energy radiating through Alex’s body as they pierced through his armor like paper.
Ding!
[Your armor has been destroyed.]
The once-reliable protection disintegrated into fragments of light, leaving Alex utterly defenseless.
He gasped in pain as the claws pressed deeper, the cold steel wrapping around his heart like a death sentence.
Every beat sent a wave of agony through him.
His HP bar was already at zero now, which meant that only one thing remained: [Soul Damage].
And Alex couldn’t do anything to stop him anymore, since his limbs didn’t respond.
“You’re nothing,” Daniel hissed, his voice laced with disdain and triumph, “I am the strongest. No one can defy me.”
Leaning in closer, his lips curled into a malicious smirk, “Goodbye, FateBreaker.”
With a sickening crunch, Daniel’s claws closed tightly, crushing Alex’s heart in one decisive motion.
Blood sprayed across the cracked ground as Alex’s body went limp, his vision fading to black.
Daniel pulled back, his claws dripping crimson.
A satisfied grin spread across his face as he turned toward the rest of the [Fox Tribe Village].
“Pathetic,” he muttered, raising a hand to summon his next spell, aimed toward the fox girls this time.
But just as he prepared to unleash destruction upon the village, an ominous pulse of energy erupted from Alex’s body, halting him mid-step.
A faint panel flickered before Alex’s lifeless eyes.
Ding!
[The Heart of Calamity has decided to save you.]
[The Hatred will disappear.]
“What the…?” Daniel muttered, his gaze snapping back to Alex’s body.
A dark, pulsing energy radiated from Alex’s chest.
The ground quaked beneath him, and the air grew thick with a suffocating pressure.
From within Alex, black and crimson tendrils began to writhe and twist, tearing through the air like living shadows.
The [Heart of Calamity], dormant until now, surged to life, its malevolent energy spilling forth like a dam bursting.
The earth trembled violently as the tendrils coalesced, forming a monstrous figure.
Scales that shimmered like obsidian in the moonlight began to take shape, each gleaming plate emanating a deadly aura.
Three serpentine heads rose into the sky, their jagged horns glinting and eyes blazing with unholy fire.
The [Three-Headed Hydra] had returned, but it was no longer the beast Alex had absorbed into the heart months ago.
Its time within the [Heart of Calamity] had transformed it, evolving it into the fearsome level 800 [Three-Headed Calamity Hydra] (Demigod)
Daniel’s eyes widened, his confidence faltering for the first time.
“Impossible…” he whispered, instinctively readying his [Hatred Claws] to battle.
The blood-red weapons glowed brighter in his hands, their edges sharp enough to cut through steel.
The Hydra let out a deafening roar that echoed for miles, shaking the very foundations of the village.
Its first head lunged forward with terrifying speed, jaws snapping shut around Daniel in a move known as Three-Bite.
It was the move that had almost killed Alex the first time he met that monster.
The impact sent him flying, his body crashing through several trees before he skidded to a stop.
He staggered to his feet, coughing up blood, but the Hydra was relentless.
Its second head reared back, summoning a torrent of acidic venom that hissed and sizzled as it splattered across the battlefield.
Daniel barely dodged in time, summoning a massive [Mega Barrier] to shield himself.
The shimmering dome barely held against the onslaught, cracks spreading across its surface like a spiderweb.
The Hydra’s third head opened its jaws wide, unleashing [Calamity Flame], a searing black fire that consumed everything in its path.
The barrier shattered under the assault, and Daniel screamed as the flames licked at his armor, burning through even his strongest defenses.
[KEEP GOING!] The Hatred Demon through all of that used some of his power to keep the man alive, though, [Or else I’ll destroy your soul myself!]
“Damn it!”
Snarling, Daniel retaliated with a flurry of attacks.
He conjured dozens of [Shadow Blades], each blade aimed directly at the Hydra’s heads.
The weapons streaked through the air, but the Hydra moved with surprising agility for its size.
It twisted its massive body, using its spiked tail to deflect the blades effortlessly.
The Hydra retaliated with [Abyssal Tail Strike], slamming its tail into the ground.
The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the earth, causing Daniel to stumble.
Seizing the opportunity, the Hydra’s first head lunged again, its jaws clamping down on Daniel’s left arm.
With a sickening crunch, the Hydra flung him aside like a broken doll.
Daniel groaned, his aura flickering as he struggled to rise.
His [Hatred Claws] flared brighter, and with a roar of defiance, he launched himself at the Hydra, slashing wildly.
The claws struck true, carving deep gashes into the beast’s scaled hide.
-57,372,849!
He did deal damage.
But…
[The Heart of Calamity fuels this monster’s body.]
The Hydra’s regeneration was near instantaneous.
Dark energy flowed over its wounds, sealing them as quickly as they were made.
“You’re just delaying the inevitable,” Daniel growled, his breathing labored.
The Hydra’s three heads roared in unison, their combined voices shaking the heavens.
In addition to gaining 100 levels, and an evolved body, the Hydra had also acquired several more skills.
The second head activated [Venomous Fog], filling the battlefield with a thick, toxic mist.
Daniel coughed violently, his movements slowing as the venom seeped into his bloodstream.
[You have received the “Poison” (Extreme) effect.]
The first head lashed out again with [Crushing Fang], clamping down on his torso and shaking him violently before slamming him into the ground.
Daniel’s screams of pain echoed as blood pooled beneath him.
But no one came to save him.
In its head, the Hydra had been given instructions by the [Heart of Calamity], and it would do anything to follow them.
The Hydra’s third head loomed above him, its fiery maw open wide.
And it ended it with its most powerful skill: Infernal Devastation.
A concentrated beam of dark fire was summoned from the three heads’ mouths, a beam that tore through Daniel’s remaining defenses, leaving him charred and broken.
Even the [Hatred Demon] knew he couldn’t save this boy after he received this much damage.
[Tsk. Useless human.]
Daniel lay on the ground, his body shattered and his aura flickering like a dying flame.
Meanwhile, Alex stirred.
The [Heart of Calamity] pulsed within him, mending his shattered soul and reigniting the spark of life within him.
Slowly, he pushed himself to his feet, his gaze cold and unyielding.
“Goodbye, bastard,” Alex growled, his voice low and menacing.
The [Heart of Calamity] pulsed again, and black chains erupted from it, streaking toward Daniel.
The chains coiled around him, tightening with unrelenting force.
“What… what is this?!” Daniel gasped, struggling against the chains, but it was useless.
They crushed his body, snapping bones and tearing flesh.
‘SAVE ME, DEMON!’ he shouted from the depths of his soul.
But nobody came.
There was no answer.
The [Hatred Demon] had abandoned him.
From his mangled form, Daniel’s soul emerged, a small, pulsating heart.
The chains shifted, ensnaring the soul and lifting it high into the air.
Daniel screamed, his voice filled with desperation and terror.
“No! Stop! You can’t—” Discover exclusive content at empire
The chains constricted further, and with one final pulse of energy, the soul shattered into a thousand pieces, disintegrating into nothingness.
Ding!
[You have permanently killed “MartialMage”!]
The Hydra let out one last triumphant roar before dissolving back into tendrils of energy, which receded into the [Heart of Calamity].
Alex stood over the remnants of his foe, his breathing steady now.