Once Human, Now a Parasite

Chapter 574

Arthur used his invisible thread in an attempt to catch the Bee, however, the moment they got too close, the insect started buzzing loudly and literally vanished . Fortunately, Arthur's Sixth Sense was locked on to it so he was able to know what happened . The praying mantis turned blurred as it left afterimages, confusing Celes, who only saw the Bee disappear . She thought it just vanished but the reality was that this normal-looking and harmless target had a speed that even made Arthur flabbergasted .

His scythe-like limbs cut everything in his way, whether it's trees, thick grass or hiding monsters . The Bee was intelligent enough to traverse a path full of obstacles to hinder the incoming parasite . The problem is; Arthur cannot kill it, he has to capture it alive so that the mission is completed . It definitely looked exactly like the tattoo and its fast and absurd response to danger ascertained his suspicions, the only thing left is to not let it escape his sight and, of course, catch it .

HE could only continue chasing, he didn't use [Faster Than Death] because there's a probability it'll suddenly shift direction, moreover, this kind of teleportation isn't that efficient in this cat and mouse chase . Celes, who was left alone near the swamp, let out a sigh as she looked at the direction Arthur darted to, not knowing whether it's wise to follow or not . She was strong but that doesn't mean she's as fast as them, which made her practically useless in this problematic situation . There was even the matter of Maxine and Lucy, who seemed interested in the Bee .

Speaking of them, the high-leveled player managed to cut down the Merman, killing it in less than a minute . She and Lucy swiftly crossed the Swamp and wanted to get the Bee but they were blocked by the Grey Seat of Decay .

\"You stop her, I'll go after the Bee . \"

The pink-haired woman darted toward the forest while leaving Max alone with Celes .

\"Yes yes, you do that . Fighting her seems more fun . \"

With her a sword in hand and ready to attack, the player sized up her opponent, her spirit ignited and her eyes restlessly examining every inch of Death Magic user .

As for Lucy, she was like a bullet, running through everything and leaving her path filled with Lava that melted the vegetation and even caused a small fire, which will most likely spread due to the poisonous gas lingering around the swamp .

Arthur ran after the Bee for three minutes, the two even left the whole Swamp area and entered an open area filled with small mountains made from countless small white stones . In the midst of this chase, he changed forms, becoming a large White Tiger enveloped by green lightning and black flames . Two wings massive wings could be seen erected from its back, one was vibrant and majestic like that of an angel while the other was inky black, bony, and grotesque .

In addition, he used [Griffin's Bloody Switch], converting all of his Wisdom to Agility, making him attain a speed that would any spectator dumbstruck .

…

\"This should be the area . \"

A middle-aged man with long black hair, a fully-grown beard, and simple dark blue leather clothes just entered the rocky area along with his partner, a young man wearing a mage's robe and holding a magical wand .

The first one was an exceptional and famous individual often called Sword God . He had a very high status across all the three Universes thanks to his domineering and invincible sword skills . A long time ago, he even battled the Nameless Knight and, from what the rumors claim, it's the only loss he suffered in his entire life .

Sword God Ber Von Xin, he's someone who reached the peak of sword mastery and is the strongest participant of the Red Tower . He got paired with the mage that came with Maxine, the quiet yet strong Tula . He was the second in command of Maxine's group and a talented Magician who excels especially in Ice and Water magic .

Ber Von Xin chose to enter the Red Tower to fight either Leiu or the Joker . However, when he saw Arthur and how he cut down the Celestial Tribulation, another goal was added to his list . He could never forget the sight of that simple yet devastating sword slash . From anyone's point of view, it seemed slow and clumsy but perfection has always been in simplicity, moreso for a sword user .

This pair needs to obtain a special white rock that has a star symbol engraved on it, which is why they immediately came here . Tula didn't object any of his companion's decision and obediently followed, knowing that it's wise to listen to the expert rather than try to find the rock using his magic, which isn't really suited for 'treasure-hunting' .

The two didn't waste time and started meticulously going through every rock, neither complaining or slacking off . Approximately ten minutes after they began, they heard an awfully loud explosion occur a short distance away .

One of the small mountains blew up and a massive Divine Beast showed itself . Its appearance was unique and rather frightening, an ominous aura enveloping it as sped toward one direction . Tula remained expressionless but his wandering eyes indicated that he was shocked and wasn't able to follow Arthur . However, Ber Von Xin could see the shadow of the White Tiger chasing after a minuscule insect .

Without needing any confirmation, they knew it was the parasite who caused the Celestial Tribulation . The mage had already confronted him on the second floor but the Sword God never faced him, neither was he going to anytime soon .

It wasn't a good time and place to initiate a battle so the middle-aged man remained still and merely watched everything unfold .

…

Arthur was only a few meters behind the Bee despite using multiple skills to drastically boost his Agility . The Bee was able to shift direction without losing any momentum but that wasn't the case for him, moreover, every time he tried freezing time to slow it down, it'll just break free easily and increase its speed .

He just crashed into another mountain of stone, which the Bee managed to pass through using tiny holes . Sadly, Arthur wasn't able to destroy the mountain as it was actually a sleeping, humongous golem . As countless rubble flew into the air, Arthur activated the White Tiger's special ability, allowing him to pass through physical objects .

Unfortunately, he was able to travel a short distance before the golem managed to somehow grab his body and slam it in the other direction, clearly doing it to buy time for the fleeing Bee . By the time Arthur stabilized his body, the insect was no longer in sight, it actually managed to successfully escape .

Feeling irritated over this, Arthur unleashed his anger upon this moving boulder . His appearance changed again, becoming an enormous Azure Dragon that unleashed a deafening cry .

Before the golem could do anything else, the dragon opened its mouth, in which a violent and transparent red energy was quickly forming . The moving rock seemed a bit sentient as it crossed its arms to block the dragon's breath .

Less than five seconds later, an unstoppable blast was shot from Arthur's mouth, flinging the enormous body of the golem in the air . When it heavily crashed into the ground, the earth restlessly shook and mountains of stones crumbled . Though more than half of its body vanished due to the dragon's breath, the golem used the favorable terrain to restore its body .

Arthur transformed into the Vermillion Bird and flapped his wings, filling the ground and sky with bright orange flames that incinerated everything in their way . A blinding orange sun rose from the bird's chest and shone in the sky, covering the real sun's light and bringing a suffocating heat .

By the time the golem stood up, the miniature sun of fire exploded, resulting in a truly frightening shock wave .

Tula protected himself with several layers of ice barrier which quickly melted, causing him to be pushed a few hundred meters . As for the Sword God, he remained motionless like a statue, neither affected by the heat of the flames surrounding him . He seemed to be admiring the sight, his body covered by a thick layer of sword essence, protecting him from all damage .

When the area cleared a bit, this rocky area was gone, it was replaced by a blackened ground . However, right where the golem miserably perished, there was a shiny white rock that stood out .

Arthur paid no attention to the rock as he turned his head to the side, his eyes focusing on a pink-haired woman which stood at the edge of the damaged area . He returned to his human appearance and deactivated the skills, seeing no more purpose in chasing a lost target .

Just as he was about to leave, he noticed a black-haired man walk toward the golem's non-existent corpse and pick up the shiny rock . When he touched it, the tattoo on the back of his hand reacted and soon, he surrounded by a pulsating blue light .

Knowing that the task was completed, Ber Von Xin smiled at Arthur, showing no hostility whatsoever . He politely bowed to the parasite before he, and the faraway Tula, were teleported to the 4th floor .

…

Lucy wasn't able to immediately catch up to Arthur as she didn't have high stats like before . When the soul bound was gone, the stats bonus she gained from Arthur no longer took effect either . Nevertheless, she was still an Overgod with a strong Physique, she also has her Devil Arm . Thanks to the past Soul Bond, her limiter was automatically broken so her stats didn't go under the 1 billion mark .

They weren't as high as before but she kind of compensated that with her cultivation and over-the-top techniques . The only down-side is a massive down-grade to her physical abilities .

Seeing that Arthur had lost the Bee, she didn't chase after him anymore and was about to go back only for a fast silhouette to head her way .

Her fists were enveloped by hot Lava as Arthur rushed toward her, his hand releasing colorless and unseen energy that shook the space and restricted the range of her Magma attribute .

Seeing his frontal attack, she thought he was going to attack so she punched him . Her retaliation had missed as he vanished, appearing behind her, though before he could do anything, the ground underneath his feet became liquid Lava, boiling hot and melting his boots .

Like a fountain, the Lava exploded, forcing him to retreat only for Lucy to swiftly turn around and violently kick the right side of his waist . Having a good grasp of what he could and couldn't do, Lucy was surprised that her attack managed to hit .

Her feet, which became actual magma, hit his body and melted the clothes, skin and even the bones, causing a lot of blood to gush out . Arthur showed no reaction to his injury, his eyes focusing on her now-retracing leg and incoming fist .

Seeing her fist going for his chest, he grasped it and dispelled the skill, finally getting rid of the magma . He used his leg to attack the leg which was keeping her standing, quickly making her fall . He followed up by applying more force and pushing her to the ground and pinning both of her hands .

\"What are you doing?\"-Lucy

His eyes were glued to hers as he totally immobilized her .

\"No, Lucy, what are YOU doing?\"

He spoke with a calm and a certain tone as if he knew he got the right person . Appraisal gave him information about this pink-haired woman, moreover, with his eyes, he should be able to see the real appearance of any target yet all he saw was an unfamiliar face, nevertheless, he sure of his guess, of his intuition . After all, it just didn't make sense that he hasn't met her yet .