Chapter 194: The Eight-headed Serpent

Stella’s expression darkened momentarily as she examined the enormous eight-headed serpent emerging from the blood-covered ground.

Black scales covered its colossal body, and each of its red eyes burned with hunger. Thick horns formed from demonic energy protruded from its heads, twisting into grotesque shapes that made the creature appear even more intimidating.

Then, however, a wide grin spread across her face.

"Finally, I get to stretch my body," she mumbled while rolling her shoulders.

One of the serpent’s heads immediately lunged toward her, opening its enormous jaws as rows of terrifying white fangs descended to devour her whole.

Stella’s crimson Aura gathered around her feet, and she stepped aside so swiftly that her figure blurred, allowing the serpent’s jaws to crash against the ground where she had stood moments earlier.

"But I don’t want to," she added, bending down to pick up Natia and Gideon before throwing both of them over her shoulders.

Gideon had collected enough Riftstone, and with the dark blood from the slain Gredemons already coating her boots, imprinting the stone would hardly be a problem. All that remained was to reach the dungeon’s exit, and Stella had no intention of wasting more time fighting a monster when she could simply leave.

Crimson Aura spread over her body and extended around the unconscious twins, forming a protective veil that would allow her to move through the clearing.

However, before she could take her first step, the eight-headed serpent opened several of its maws simultaneously, releasing thick streams of purple smoke that descended upon the clearing.

The smoke spread with terrifying speed, swallowing the broken pillars, the blood-covered ground, and Stella’s surroundings until the entire area disappeared beneath a suffocating violet haze.

The moment the purple smoke touched her Aura, sparks scattered across its surface.

Stella’s eyes widened as the crimson energy surrounding her began to fracture, its protective layer breaking apart before dispersing into the air.

"What the—"

Her words never reached completion because one of the serpent’s heads suddenly emerged from the smoke and slammed into her side.

The impact sent Stella flying across the clearing, her body hurtling through the air before crashing into a jagged stone pillar. The enormous structure shattered against her back, scattering fragments in every direction.

Natia and Gideon slipped from her shoulders and fell onto the broken ground.

Stella struck the earth moments later, rolling several times before finally stopping amid the rubble.

She tightened her grip on her sword, but the violent impact still forced blood from her mouth. She coughed violently before pushing herself onto one knee.

For several seconds, she stared at her palms with a deeply unsettled expression.

"What happened to my Aura?" she muttered, wiping the blood from her lips. "What exactly was that smoke?"

The serpent’s hissing echoed through the clearing, drawing her attention back toward the enormous silhouettes moving behind the purple haze. Stella slowly rose to her feet, ignoring the blood dripping from the gash across her forehead as she studied the creature.

"Did it create a Zone using that smoke?"

She had encountered countless strange abilities throughout her life, but the way the purple smoke had dismantled her Aura was unlike anything she had seen.

Stella’s lips curled upward, revealing a grin that looked almost inappropriate beneath the oppressive atmosphere. "I guess I have no other option."

She drew a deep breath, and crimson smoke exploded from her body, spreading outward in a violent surge that slammed against the surrounding purple haze. The two energies collided with a sharp crackle, sending countless sparks scattering across the clearing as the smoke churned around her.

This time, however, her Aura did not disperse immediately.

The crimson energy resisted the purple smoke, carving out a narrow space around Stella as she leaned forward and rushed toward the serpent. She accelerated with a powerful push of her legs, and the air pressure generated by her movement tore through the haze, forcing the purple smoke aside as she closed the distance.

One of the serpent’s heads descended to intercept her, its jaws opening wide enough to swallow a carriage. Stella swung her sword toward its face, but the blade merely scraped across the creature’s hard black scales, producing a shower of sparks.

The serpent recoiled only slightly before another head shot toward her from the opposite side.

Stella immediately formed a veil of crimson Aura around herself, and the incoming head slammed into the barrier with enough force to send tremors through the surrounding ground. The protective layer cracked under the impact, but it held long enough for her to shift sideways and avoid being crushed.

She retaliated with another swing, this time coating her blade with the invisible Intent of a Monarch.

The sword struck the serpent’s neck, and although its scales resisted the initial impact, the combined force of Aura and Intent finally dug into the flesh beneath them, leaving a shallow wound across its enormous body.

Stella’s grin widened.

’So I just need to strike somewhere easier to cut.’

The serpent answered by opening its maws again, and purple smoke poured over her from several directions. Her Aura sparked violently as the two energies met, and part of her protective veil disintegrated before she could reinforce it. A head immediately swept toward the opening, striking her shoulder and sending her tumbling across the serpent’s coils.

She twisted in midair and landed on one foot, but the impact forced her to retreat several steps as pain spread through her shoulder.

Before she could regain her balance, the serpent’s tail swept across the clearing, smashing through the remains of the stone pillars and throwing a storm of rubble toward her.

Stella raised her sword and released a dense wave of crimson smoke, which struck the incoming tail like an enormous battering ram. The collision shook the ground beneath her boots, and although the smoke buckled under the serpent’s strength, it diverted the tail enough for her to slip past its tip.

She darted forward again, using the small gaps between the serpent’s overlapping scales as footholds to climb onto its body. The creature twisted violently in an attempt to dislodge her, while several heads turned toward her position.

Stella moved between the scales, springing across the serpent’s back whenever its body shifted beneath her. Her sword flashed repeatedly, leaving shallow cuts.

A head descended toward her from above, its fangs snapping shut just as she leaped sideways. Stella landed on the creature’s neck, drove her blade into a narrow gap between its scales, and used the embedded sword to stabilize herself before jumping toward its head.

The serpent recoiled, dragging its neck through the purple smoke as its other heads converged on her. Stella released a burst of crimson Aura from her feet and launched herself away, narrowly avoiding a set of jaws that closed around empty air.

However, the purple smoke thickened around her during the descent, and her Aura began to spark again. The protective veil covering her body fractured before she could reinforce it, leaving her exposed when another head struck her from the side.

She was thrown against the serpent’s own body, and the impact sent her sliding down its scales until she caught herself against a ridge. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, but she merely wiped it away with the back of her hand before pushing herself upright.

"You are really making this troublesome," she muttered.

Stella’s crimson Aura surged once more, spreading over her body before condensing around her sword. She charged through the purple smoke, cutting aside the haze with each swing while the serpent lashed at her with its heads and tail.

Whenever a head came too close, she struck it with a concentrated mass of crimson Aura, battering its skull sideways and creating enough space to escape its jaws.

When the serpent attempted to crush her beneath several converging heads, she redirected her movement and leaped onto its back, then ran along its curved body toward the nearest neck.

Her blade flashed as she moved, and she occasionally layered her Intent over the Aura to make the serpent perceive an attack from a different direction than the one she actually targeted.

The deception did not always work, but every moment of hesitation gave her another opportunity to strike.

She continued fighting, alternating between precise swordsmanship and explosive bursts of Aura, until one of the serpent’s necks finally accumulated enough injuries to slow its movements. Stella immediately seized the opportunity, leaping onto the wounded neck and climbing toward its head while the creature thrashed violently beneath her.

The serpent attempted to dislodge her by slamming its other heads against the injured one, but Stella jumped between the strikes, landing on the ridge of its skull before driving her sword deep into the flesh beneath its scales.

The creature screamed, and its wounded neck buckled.

Stella withdrew her blade and raised it high as crimson energy gathered around her body. The Aura condensed, brightening until the surrounding purple haze seemed to dim in comparison, and the sword in her hand transformed into a weapon of pure, blinding red energy.

King’s Sword.

The sword manifested with overwhelming force, and Stella brought the enormous blade down in a single decisive swing.

A crimson arc descended through the air, severing the serpent’s injured head from its neck before continuing into the ground below. The earth split apart beneath the strike, leaving a deep ravine that extended beyond the creature’s fallen head as fragments of stone erupted into the air.

For an instant, Stella stood atop the severed neck, her sword still blazing with red Aura as she watched the head tumble toward the dark blood mirror.

Then the serpent’s body convulsed.

The severed head struck the blood-covered ground and began sinking into the dark liquid, but the moment it disappeared beneath the surface, the flesh at the end of its neck swelled grotesquely. Muscles expanded beneath the black scales, bones shifted with a series of wet cracks, and new flesh rapidly formed where the head had been severed.

Stella’s eyes widened as a fresh head emerged from the injured neck, its red eyes blazing with renewed fury.

Before she could react, the serpent twisted its body violently, throwing her from its back. She attempted to stabilize herself with a burst of crimson Aura, but the purple smoke tore through the protective layer just as one of the newly regenerated heads lunged toward her.

The impact struck her squarely in the chest and sent her crashing into the ground.

Stella’s body bounced against the broken earth before sliding through the rubble, and she finally came to a stop beside a shattered pillar. Her sword remained in her grasp, but blood poured from her mouth as she struggled to draw a breath.

She coughed violently, staring at the serpent with wide eyes as its eight heads rose above the clearing once more.

Then, through the ringing in her ears and the hiss of the monstrous creature, she heard a sweet, chiming voice.

"Do you need help?"

She blinked a few times and mumbled, "What?"

"I can help you kill it."

Stella frowned. "Who are you?"

"A spirit trapped in this wretched place. I will help you kill it, and in return, you will help me."

Stella forced herself to stand up and asked as the eight heads of the serpent loomed over her, "How can I trust you?"

"You do not have to trust me. It is a simple deal. I help you, and you help me."

Stella chuckled and said, "It is not that simple, is it?"

"If I were strong enough to escape on my own, I would have already done so," the voice responded.

"Then how are you going to help me kill it?" Stella asked, furrowing her brows.

The eight-headed serpent shrieked, and three of its heads shot toward her.

Stella’s face darkened, and she gritted her teeth. ’Fucking hell.’

"I will lend you my treasure."

Even though the voice was suspicious, Stella had no choice but to accept its offer.

"Then do it!"