Chapter 189: Feeding the Beast

Gray and Lily moved through the tunnel together, the darkness swallowing them whole. Behind them, Cindy was already raising her hands, silver light flickering as she began weaving barriers into the root walls.

Ahead, the shrieks of the two Imps echoed through the passage.

Gray kept Phantom Cloak wrapped around himself like a shroud, his body dissolving into the shadows, his presence erased from every sense. Lily drifted beside him, her five points folded tight, her dark core pulsing with quiet anticipation.

They found the Imps in the bone chamber.

The two creatures were circling each other, their pupilless crimson eyes scanning the darkness, their tails lashing with frustrated energy. The original body had fully regenerated its head, and the head had fully regenerated its body. They were identical now, two perfect copies of the same nightmare.

Gray watched them from behind a curtain of roots, his golden eyes tracking their movements.

"Alright," he whispered. "Here’s the plan. I’ll hit the one on the left with Void Reaper’s Lance. You hit the one on the right with your spines. Then we run. Don’t stop, don’t look back, just run."

Lily pulsed once, bright and determined.

Gray took a slow breath, gathered his mana, and activated Void Reaper’s Lance.

The void-edged spear formed in his hand, crackling with dark energy. He stepped out of the shadows and hurled it at the left Imp.

The spear tore through the air like a bolt of black lightning, aimed directly at the creature’s chest.

But the Imp was fast.

It twisted, its body contorting, and the spear grazed its shoulder instead of punching through its heart. Dark blood sprayed across the moss.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 264 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (1) — HP: 3040 / 4500]

[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]

Lily darted forward, her five points spinning, and projected a volley of dark spines at the right Imp. The spines shredded through the air, but the creature dodged, twisting and weaving, and only two of the spines found their mark.

[LILY — DARK SPINE VOLLEY — 196 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (2) — HP: 3108 / 4500]

Both Imps turned toward them, their pupilless eyes burning with fury.

Gray grabbed Lily and ran.

"GO!"

They fled through the bone chamber, their footsteps silent, their bodies weaving through the roots. Behind them, the two Imps shrieked in unison and gave chase.

Gray could hear them, the click of claws against root, the hiss of void energy gathering in their throats, the whip-crack of tails cutting through the air. They were fast. Too fast.

A void beam screamed past his shoulder, missing by inches.

[-0 HP]

[NEAR MISS]

Lily pulsed beside him, her dark core blazing, and she turned mid-flight to project another volley of spines. The spines caught the nearest Imp in the face, forcing it to veer off course.

[LILY — DARK SPINE VOLLEY — 188 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (1) — HP: 2832 / 4500]

They burst through the tunnel and into the Heart of the Tartarus.

Cindy was waiting. Her hands were raised, her silver glow blazing, and the moment Gray and Lily cleared the entrance, she cast her spell.

"[Barrier Seal]!"

A wall of shimmering silver light erupted across the tunnel entrance, sealing it shut. The first Imp slammed into it at full speed, its body crumpling against the barrier, its claws scraping uselessly against the surface.

The second Imp skidded to a halt, its crimson eyes fixed on the pool of Tartarus Essence at the center of the chamber. Its nostrils flared. Its tail lashed. It could smell the concentrated mana, the same energy it had been feeding on for centuries.

"Now!" Gray shouted. "Lure it to the pool!"

Lily darted forward, her dark core blazing, and positioned herself directly above the shimmering pool. She pulsed once, bright and taunting, then projected a volley of spines at the second Imp.

The creature shrieked and lunged.

But instead of dodging, Lily held her ground. She waited until the Imp was almost on her, then twisted at the last moment, letting it sail past her and straight into the pool.

The Imp hit the Tartarus Essence and sank.

The liquid erupted around it, hissing and sputtering, the concentrated mana surging into its body. The creature convulsed, its claws scrabbling at the pool’s edge, its mouth gaping in a silent scream.

[ESSENCE OVERLOAD — ACTIVATED]

[NETHER IMP (2) — DESTABILIZING]

The first Imp, still trapped behind Cindy’s barrier, shrieked in fury. It slammed against the barrier again and again, cracks spreading across the silver surface.

Cindy’s voice was strained.

"Gray! The barrier won’t hold much longer!"

Gray turned toward the trapped Imp, his golden eyes blazing.

"Then we finish this one before it gets free."

He raised both hands, Void Reaper’s Lance forming in each palm, and charged toward the barrier.

But before he could strike, the first Imp did something unexpected.

It stopped attacking the barrier.

Instead, it turned its head toward the pool, toward its other half still convulsing in the Tartarus Essence. Its crimson eyes flickered, and something passed between them, a pulse of shared awareness, a silent communication that Gray couldn’t hear but could feel in his bones.

The Imp in the pool went still.

And then it began to absorb the essence.

The liquid mana flowed into its body in reverse, drawn inward like water into a drain, and the creature’s pale flesh began to glow with that same iridescent shimmer. Its wounds closed. Its limbs thickened. Its horns lengthened.

"No," Cindy breathed. "It’s not overloading. It’s feeding."

Gray’s golden eyes widened.

"It’s adapted. It’s been drinking from this pool for centuries. It’s not poisoned by the essence. It’s evolved to consume it."

The Imp in the pool rose. Its body had grown, its muscles bulging, its claws lengthening into jagged scythes. The second Imp, still trapped behind Cindy’s barrier, slammed against it one final time, and the barrier shattered.

Cindy screamed as the backlash tore through her mana channels.

"AHHGG!!"

Gray didn’t have time to check on her. Both Imps were now in the chamber, one empowered by the essence, the other free from the barrier. They circled him, their tails lashing, their crimson eyes burning.

The system flickered, the analysis updating.

[NETHER IMP — ESSENCE-ENHANCED]

Level: 55 → 58

HP: 4,500 → 5,200

Threat Level: EXTREME → CATASTROPHIC

« WARNING »

The Nether Imp has fully absorbed the Tartarus Essence, evolving into an enhanced state. Its regeneration, speed, and void output have all increased dramatically. Additionally, it can now share its enhanced state with its split bodies.

Gray stared at the creature, his mind racing.

The plan had failed. The trap had backfired. The Imp had turned their weapon into its own power-up.

"...That’s a problem," he said quietly.

Cindy pushed herself upright, her frills trembling, her silver glow flickering weakly. She had drained most of her mana casting the barrier, and now she was paying the price.

"What do we do now?" she asked, her voice thin with pain and exhaustion.

Gray didn’t answer immediately. He was watching the two Imps, studying their movements, their postures, the way they circled him. They were faster now. Stronger. More confident.

But they were also more arrogant.

The essence-enhanced Imp had grown larger, heavier. Its movements were faster, but its body was bulkier. Its tail was longer, but its turns were wider. It had traded agility for power.

"It’s stronger," Gray said slowly. "But it’s also slower. It can’t dodge like it used to."

Cindy’s frills lifted with sudden understanding.

"You want to use that against it."

"I want to use everything against it." Gray turned toward Lily, who was still hovering near the pool, her dark core pulsing with quiet determination. "Lily, can you absorb the essence too?"

Lily pulsed once, bright and uncertain. She drifted toward the pool, her five points orbiting slowly, and dipped one of her points into the liquid.

The essence flowed into her, and her dark core blazed with sudden, brilliant light. Her body swelled, her points sharpened, and when she pulled back, she was noticeably larger, her presence heavier, her energy deeper.

[LILY — TARTARUS ESSENCE ABSORBED]

[LILY — ENHANCED]

Lily spun once, testing her new form, then turned toward the Imps. Her dark core pulsed with confidence.

Gray allowed himself a small, grim smile.

"Good. Now we’re on even ground."

He turned toward the two Imps, his golden eyes burning.

"Here’s the new plan. We don’t try to out-speed them. We don’t try to trap them. We hit them hard, we hit them fast, and we don’t stop until they’re dead. Lily, you take the one on the left. Cindy, support from range. I’ll handle the enhanced one."

Cindy’s frills stiffened.

"Gray, that thing is Tier 5 peak. You can’t—"

"I can," Gray said.

He raised both hands, Void Reaper’s Lance forming in each palm, and charged.

The enhanced Imp lunged to meet him, its claws scything through the air. Gray ducked under the first swipe, twisted past the second, and drove both lances into its chest.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 284 DAMAGE]

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 276 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (ENHANCED) — HP: 4,640 / 5,200]

The Imp roared, its tail whipping around, and Gray was forced to leap backward to avoid the blow. The creature’s wounds closed almost instantly, the essence-enhanced regeneration working faster than ever.

But Gray had expected that.

He activated Tectonic Shift, slamming his foot into the ground. A jagged spire of stone erupted beneath the Imp, launching it upward. Its guard broke, its chest exposed, and Gray fired Cavitation Pulse directly into its heart.

[CAVITATION PULSE — 312 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (ENHANCED) — HP: 4,328 / 5,200]

[STUNNED — 2 SECONDS]

"Now, Cindy!"

Cindy raised both hands, her silver glow blazing despite her exhaustion.

"[Glacial Lance]!"

The spear of ice shot across the chamber and punched through the Imp’s exposed chest, driving it back against the wall.

[GLACIAL LANCE — 368 DAMAGE]

[NETHER IMP (ENHANCED) — HP: 3,960 / 5,200]