All those Aether disappeared into its body without any single iota of its being wasted, and the wolf shuddered, just as a phantom image of a black wolf with three heads appeared on the head of the wolf.
The phantom image was packed with dense slabs of muscles, and the three headed wolf was built like a tank.
Was that an Incarnation?
He had always wondered about this next state that came after the Rift state, which was supposed to be the pinnacle of the first Circle of Dominators.
Most would never even reach this
State, and those that did were revered for their sheer power. Dominators at this level were powerhouses in their own right and could control a large portion of land.
Although his Attributes may be equal to Dominators at the Incarnation State, it did not mean he had all their skill set.
In the battle with General Augustus, he apparently did not use any of the powers of his Incarnation, most likely because he had underestimated Rowan and did not know of his quick power surge just after he killed the three–faced Abomination, or maybe there was a cost in using an Incarnation that he did not yet know because he refused to believe the General left anything to chance.
The phantom black wolf sank into the head of the wolf and a layer of black smoke began emerging from the bones of the wolf, covering its body like another flesh. It should have suppressed the effects of Flesh Light, as two pale eyes gleaming with fury grew out from its empty socket.
It created another jaw made of black smoke and crouched low to the ground, the growl from its chest beginning to vibrate the earth, sending small stones and dust flying. The surrounding began to darken as it seemed as if the presence of the wolf was draining the light out of the day.
The energy that the wolf was giving off had suddenly tripled, and a tongue made of black smoke licked its chops.
Rowan’s serpentine eyes were devoid of nothing but curiosity at the new capabilities of the wolf, and he squeezed the Mace, it was slightly bent, but it was still a solid weapon, and it would still serve.
He barely saw the next charge of the wolf, as the moment his Spirit detected its movement, it was already a few feet away from him.
Rowan did not stand still or retreat, as he was already priming the skills he was about to use. He did the opposite and used Dash, while pouring Aether into the Bash Skill, making the Tower Shield he carried glow like a bloody sun.
“BOOOOM!!!”
Another louder bang erupted from that clash, which created a mini earthquake in the vicinity.
Dust and rocks were sent flying and Rowan’s body flew out of that clash faster than a speeding bullet, and plowed through dozens of houses and factories before tearing through what was left of the fence, and he forcefully rotated himself, and finally arrested his momentum by digging his feet into the ground, leaving long trails of destruction under his feet.
Rowan’s arm holding the shield had snapped in a dozen places, his left breastbone had caved in and seven of his ribs were crushed. His boots were now trashed, and he was down to a dozen.
The pain he felt was weirdly persistent, a reminder that his insane healing factor was still not working at full capacity. The shield had been destroyed, and Rowan felt the air around him tremble as the wolf stepped through the rubble, the front part of its snout had been smashed to pieces, leaving its face pressed flat.
Even with the enhancement from its Incarnation State, Rowans abilities fueled by Aether were still potent enough to affect him. Rowan began to guess that the quality of the Aether his Spirit was generating must be different because they increased the potency of his Ability Runes to a ridiculous amount. 𝗼𝘃𝗹.𝗼𝐫𝗴
Rowan cocked his head to the side, as he clinically assessed the creature before him. Most of its teeth were gone, and it was now moving with a limp, as its right shoulders had been crushed. The wolf had obviously not expected Rowan to charge and also underestimated the power behind their clash.
Rowan grinned, as his tepid blood began to slowly heat up, scanning through the Spatial bracelet, he brought out a heavy hammer. Wielding two weapons now, he activated the Berserker Skill—Enrage. A fog of red enveloped him, and he resembled a warrior bathed in blood, and with each step, he took he left glowing red mist in the air.
He charged, although he was not fully healed as his arm and body still ached something fierce, but he trusted the tenacity of his body against all else, and the moment before the clashed he activated another Berserker Skill—Vortex.
He became a tornado of blood and destruction, as a shrill that sounded like the death knell of a thousand of men in battle emerged from the techniques Rowan had just unleashed, and the wolf gave a low growl.
Everything shattered apart when they clashed, and the remnants of the town were buried under the feet of the two unearthly creatures that battled.
The next few moments passed by in a blur, Rowan knew he had brought out eight more weapons before the wolf finally rested in quivering pieces.
The only reason he could win in a short time was that the Incarnation State of the wolf did not last for a long time, it dissipated amidst their fights, and it was all Rowan needed to finish crushing it.
His breath was short as he strained to keep the curse under check, for the wolf had left deep gouges on his ribs and his back. His body squirmed as if it contained dozens of rats trying to bite their way out of his body.
With his will, he held it all in place and did not bleed. He felt the Ouroboros Serpents stirring inside his hearts and the pieces that were left of the wolf crumbled into ash and a single golden blood drop hovered in front of him.
Rowan did not feel much connection with this blood drop, for although it was shed from his body, his true Essence had already left it, and what was left behind was just a massive source of energy.
This would be different if he were dead. Although these creatures were terrifying and maybe their limits were unknown, their threats would be exponentially more severe if Rowan had died when spawning them.
His true nature as a five-headed Ouroboros would be spread among them, and the implications of that were too terrifying to consider.
Rowan sucked the blood drop into his mouth, all the while marveling that this powerful creature emanated from a single drop of his blood, and he knew there were other creatures that the curse spawned that took a much larger portion of his flesh.
The blood drop felt a bit solid, almost like a grape. He bit into it, and it exploded into a wave of blissful energy that he directed towards the first Ouroboros Serpent, who was the closest to completing its first Legendary Skill Awakening.
He was pleased when he saw the Energy value skyrocketed by another million, and with the addition of two hundred soul points from the wolf, he just had a sizable harvest in the twenty minutes of battle. The growth in his Aether control had increased, and he was altogether happy with his progress.
Rowan looked towards the direction where the survivors were headed, it was North towards the town, he debated heading there or just pushing west, and ultimately, he turned around and headed west.
He could feel a faint pulsation inside his blood, like the breathing from a massive colossus. That was Envy. The sensation from the weapon was becoming weaker as he sensed it had been taken farther away from him.