Chapter 142: Weakening Life Code (Volume Finale)

"Multiple beast contracts... High-grade affinity to Beast Taming Talent... Now, rising from the dead..."

The Patriarch tilted his head, his squinted, sharp eyes raying down on Terrence, who was now standing on his own feet with his head lowered.

Steaming out from Terrence’s skin was an unknown, volatile energy—a turbulent fusion of pitch-black shadow mist, metallic iron sheen, and brilliant azure-gold mana. The sheer strangeness of the aura radiating from his body left the Patriarch utterly bewildered.

Could this be because of his unique taming code? Probably. But whatever it was, seeing it only ignited a deeper, insatiable greed within him.

"I want it even more!" the Patriarch roared.

In a blur of speed, the Patriarch dashed in front of Terrence, his clawed fingers aiming straight for Terrence’s throat to crush his windpipe.

Without raising his head, Terrence simply tilted his shoulder back by a fraction of an inch, allowing the Patriarch’s lethal strike to tear through empty air, whistling past his collar.

An eyebrow shot up in genuine surprise. "You kept up? Give that code to me!"

The Patriarch’s eyes flashed with radiant colors as he rapidly scanned Terrence’s internal body code. It was completely different from moments ago—as if the code was updating and rewriting its own logic in real time. Ancient, glowing runes pulsed around the sphere of light hovering within Terrence’s soul, shifting the very atmospheric pressure surrounding them.

The atmosphere had transformed entirely. An explosive surge of power had flooded Terrence’s frame, elevating his survival rate from zero to terrifying heights.

Yet, the Patriarch forced a sneer. The massive collection of stolen codes carved into his own flesh and centered around his sphere of light made him an invincible god. No discarded outcast could ever hope to defeat him.

"You have enough," Terrence said in a flat, emotionless tone. His eyes were devoid of heat—cold, dark, and hollow.

Before the Patriarch could process the words, Terrence executed a razor-sharp pivot on his heel. Swinging his leg in a whip-like arc, he shattered the Patriarch’s footwork and swept his balance entirely out from under him.

The world suddenly inverted for the Patriarch.

’What was that?!’

Panic spiked in his chest as he felt his body falling for the first time in decades. In a fraction of a microsecond, the Patriarch thrust his hand toward the marble floor, flexing his legs to catch his momentum and roll violently away just before impact.

He barely cleared three feet before a sonic boom detonated in his ears. Terrence had already caught up, closing the distance at supersonic speed. The air warped around Terrence’s trajectory, turning time into a crawling sludge where split seconds stretched into an eternity.

Then, the Patriarch caught sight of Terrence’s right arm—and his breath hitched.

’Is that... a beast’s arm?!’

...

Crisp, system chimes echoed through the core of Terrence’s mind:

[SS-Rank Mutated Iron Shadow Hound (Noir) & SS-Rank Sky Dragon (Avery) used Transfiguration Skill!]

[Skill Share: Noir & Avery Hybrid Transfiguration — ACTIVATED]

A violent wave of energy surged through Terrence, elevating his consciousness to an entirely different realm.

The world around him shifted—colors burst with blinding, hyper-vivid clarity, and the oppressive weight of the world evaporated.

If Noir’s passive Light Body had bestowed lightness and rapid speed, this high-dimensional hybrid fusion was different—it felt a hundredfold lighter. Every single fiber of his muscle vibrated with boundless kinetic potential, as if a single step could send him flying into the stratosphere.

Slowly, terrifyingly, Terrence’s right arm underwent a complete physical metamorphosis.

Dense, metallic black fur sprouted across his forearm, coiling with iron-infused dark particles that drifted into the air with every movement. Simultaneously, shimmering azure and golden dragon scales materialized beneath the fur, interlocking like an impenetrable crystalline gauntlet. His fingers broadened, his knuckles hardened into metallic armor, and his fingertips tapered into pitch-black, razor-sharp obsidian talons that hummed with volatile gravity pressure.

Dark shadow mist and sky-elemental light swirled around his clawed hand, cracking the stone floor beneath him from sheer aura weight alone.

The Patriarch’s deadly eyes snapped toward Terrence, shrinking to tiny pinpricks as absolute horror finally pierced his arrogance.

[Successful Transfiguration! You can now easily use both Transfiguration Skill Share on both beasts.]

[Keep it up!]

"Wait, kid... I think I have to put you in your place. You are being far too arrogant!" the Patriarch hissed, trying to mask his panic as his own stolen codes surged onto his skin, manifesting dark red crimson scales and glowing runes across his arms.

"What did you just do to yourself? Did you use the same technique as that experiment?!"

Terrence didn’t reply. He simply stared forward with dead, predatory eyes.

"You talk too much."

In a split second, everything had turned upside down. Now, the Patriarch faced an enemy unlike any he had ever encountered before.

Before the Patriarch could finish gathering his crimson mana, Terrence vanished.

BOOM!

The floor beneath Terrence pulverized instantly as he tore through the distance. He reappeared directly in front of the Patriarch, swinging his monstrously transformed arm in a violent horizontal arc. The obsidian talons sliced through the air, trailing dense shadow mist and blazing azure-gold dragon light.

The Patriarch reacted out of pure survival instinct, raising both of his scale-covered arms to block the blow.

CLANG!

A deafening metallic impact rang through the vast chamber. The force was so immense that the shockwave blew away all the stone pillars within a twenty-meter radius, turning them into fine powder.

The Patriarch’s eyes widened in absolute shock as the scales on his arms shattered like glass. The razor-sharp obsidian talons bit deep into his flesh, slicing through his stolen physical enhancements as if they were made of damp paper.

"Aaargh!" the Patriarch spat out, blood spraying from his lips as he was launched backward like a cannonball.

His feet dragged across the floor, carving two deep trenches into the stone as he desperately tried to kill his momentum. Before he could even regain his footing, a shadow detached itself from his feet.

Noir’s shadow manipulation flared beneath him, binding the Patriarch’s ankles in place.

"What?!"

Above him, the air pressure plummeted. Terrence was already descending from the sky, his hybrid claw raised high, gathering a terrifying concentration of Dark Slash fused with dragonfire.

"Die!" the Patriarch screamed, frantically throwing out both hands. A massive, blood-red barrier woven from hundreds of stolen life-codes formed above his head, shielding him from the strike.

Terrence brought his claw down without a single second of hesitation.

THUNDER CRACK!

The hybrid claw slammed directly onto the crimson barrier. For a microsecond, the shield held, but the sheer weight of Noir’s heavy iron-shadow particles combined with Avery’s destructive dragon mana pulverized the barrier instantly. The blood-red runes fractured and burst into harmless embers.

The strike continued its downward path, tearing cleanly across the Patriarch’s chest.

SLASH!

A deep, brutal gash opened up across the Patriarch’s torso from his shoulder to his waist. Blood spurted violently, bathing the dark leather of his tactical gear in crimson.

The Patriarch collapsed onto his knees, clutching his gaping wound in utter disbelief. He panted heavily, his chest heaving as he stared up at the monster standing over him.

His youthful face was now covered in sweat, dirt, and his own fresh blood. The absolute, god-like confidence he had carried for decades was completely destroyed.

Terrence landed silently on his feet, his hybrid arm still hummed with dark, crackling energy. He raised his cold, hollow eyes and looked down at the bleeding Patriarch.

"Is this all the current Patriarch of the Lee Family has to offer?" Terrence asked, his voice dripping with icy contempt.

The Patriarch couldn’t respond. What little strength he had left was rapidly draining away. He forced a faint smirk, trying to project confidence, but his trembling body betrayed him.

Terrence raised his hybrid arm to deliver the killing blow.

BOOM!

A sudden explosion detonated between them, sending a thick cloud of smoke obscuring Terrence’s vision.

Within seconds, the Patriarch managed to stagger back. Yet, he remained severely weakened—the life codes within him flickered unstable after his desperate, frantic activation earlier.

"I guess it’s time for a strategic escape."

A foreign voice cut through the smoke—neither Terrence’s nor the Patriarch’s.

As the dust settled, Terrence’s eyes widened. A familiar figure stood before him, slinging the Patriarch’s weakened body over his shoulder.

"Klein... what is the meaning of this?"

Klein ignored him completely. With a single snap, a blinding light engulfed them both.

Terrence instantly recognized the phenomenon—it was an escape or teleportation technology.

In that moment, the terrifying truth clicked. Klein had never been fighting the Lee Family; he was in cahoots with Gilbert and the rest of them.

The whole thing was a setup—and all that made sense since what Gilbert accidentally mentioned about Terrence meant to be the "sacrifice."

A sudden wave of exhaustion crashed over Terrence as Skill Share deactivated.

He collapsed toward the ground. Even though he stood as the victor of this battle, it had come at a brutal cost.

The Lee Family was finally destroyed. He had achieved his goal, but he was far from finished.

’My body... it’s still not strong enough,’ he thought, coughing up a mouthful of blood as Noir and Avery rushed to his side to prop him up.

’I have to become stronger...’

[Mission Triggered!]

[Objective: Sell 999 Tamed Beasts within the Nustra Region.]

[Time Limit: 1 Year]

[Reward: SSS-Rank Light Dragon]

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Volume Ending!