Klaus stared at the hunter, who was looking back at him, and for a moment, the thought of killing it appeared. But then he calmed down and spoke.
“This isn’t over.”
He stabbed the staff into the ground, and the void cracked open.
“A day is coming when you will cry tears of blood. Rejoice, for you have won today. But there won’t be a next time.” A powerful kick landed on the face of the hunter, sending it flying into the void.
“There won’t be a next time.”
He stabbed the staff into the ground, and the void shut closed.
The moment it closed, he turned and looked to his left. After a moment, he turned away and let go of the staff.
The moment he did, his appearance changed back to normal. He felt the strain at once, which instantly made him look pale.
“Senior, how much is gone?” Klaus asked.
[Almost everything, brat. You have eight months more to live if you don’t break through into the Sovereign stage and restore your Life Force.”
Klaus sighed.
He had indeed been reckless, for the moment he activated the death-chosen skill, he knew his life force was being used.
But he had only activated the first form, which is the “Death’s Gaze.” That shouldn’t have taken his life force like that. However, he almost died when he used the seventeenth form to save that demigod.
Now, he must form his last two cores and must pass his tribulation, which he knew wouldn’t be simple in the slightest.
[You cannot use this transformation ability for now. The least you can do is recover your life force and, if need be, use it for a few minutes. But don’t go past the third form.]
Klaus nodded.
He also knew what had to be done to use it more actively.
Though he will be required to use his life force for now, when he awakens, the bloodline that resonates with his fifth core, he will be able to use the ability more actively.
“I better start preparing for my tribulation then.” Klaus sighed again and flew toward his left, where the Devouring Snake and Pickle Berry fled.
It took him close to an hour, but he caught up to them.
“Human, what do you want?” the injured pink snake, now in her demi-beast form, asked. She is human from the waist up and snake from the waist down.
Of course, she has a human face, but her eyes and sharp, pointed ears and the scales on the side of her face show that she is a snake.
When she saw Klaus, she became alert.
“Let’s not do that, lady. I am Klaus Hanson, and you know why I am here. So the question is, are you willing to be stubborn and make this hard for yourself, or are you willing to listen to what I have to offer and perhaps consider that?
Either way, I will get what I came for because you are dying.”
Klaus wasn’t being cold. He was just stating facts. The snake lady is dying, and if she continues to be stubborn, she will die.
“What do you want?” the lady asked again.
“That,” Klaus pointed at the silver snake, making the lady frown.
“I can’t do that,” the lady said, making sure Klaus understood she had no reason to part with her ward.
“Very well. You can die, and I will take her away either way.” Klaus clapped his hands behind him and continued to stare at her.
After a while, he saw the snake lady start turning pale.
“You don’t look too good,” Klaus said, making the snake lady stare at her daughter.
Klaus sighs, watching her. After a while, another big sigh escaped his lips.
“You know, my mother is just like you. Despite knowing she was outnumbered, she ensured I was safe, even going as far as giving her life to ensure my safety.
This is why I will ensure you don’t separate from your daughter. Don’t worry, I will look after her while you recover.
So how about that? Are you willing to trust me and let me handle things from here? Though she must become my companion. It’s for both of our sakes.” Klaus looked at her and knew if she became stubborn again, she would die for good.
“Very well. But if you try anything funny, I will ensure you and everything you love know no peace.”
“Oh, and how are you going to enforce that?” Klaus asked.
In response, a runic mark flew from her forehead and entered Klaus’s forehead without him having any resistance against it.
[That is a dying wish spell. If she dies and you even try to scream at her ward, your soul will be severed, and death is what follows.]
‘That is vicious of her,’ Klaus smiled.
‘But I guess she was just looking out for her daughter. That is a good quality every mother must possess.’
[Indeed. So you better not go back on your promise.]
Klaus nodded and looked at the dying snake lady.
“I will take you to a place where you can recover in peace. Don’t worry; it’s not a prison. And like I said, your daughter will be fine.”
The snake lady nodded and then let down her guard. Klaus retrieved the multi-dimensional cube and pulled all of them inside.
They appeared in a lush garden, where Klaus immediately transformed into his elf form and gave her his frozen blood.
“That will help you recover and undergo your second evolution. And like I said, you can rest assured, Pickle Berry here will be taken care of.”
The snake lady wanted to protest the name, but Klaus was firm on it. Thus, she had to accept it and hand her over to him.
Klaus picked up the silver snake, which immediately opened its eyes and coiled around his neck, causing the snake lady to show a surprised reaction.
“You see, she is already obsessed with me.” He laughed and waited for the lady to consume the blood before he left the cube and returned to the real world.
“Let’s get back first, Pickle Berry. Some people are waiting for us.” The little snake used its tail to brush past his arm, showing she was ready to meet these people.
She met a few years ago and will now meet them again.
Klaus vanished and appeared atop a mountain where his team and the soldiers are now camping.
