Synopsis and Starting Chapter Chapter 2: To Be A Hero
Chapter 3: To Blackwater
Chapter 4: Blackwater And Bullies
Chapter 5: Combat Evaluation
Chapter 6: Frame Perfect
Chapter 7: Ghost
Chapter 8: Friends
Chapter 9: The End...And The Beginning
Chapter 10: Necromancer
Chapter 11: First Fight, First Undead
Chapter 12: The Nexus
Chapter 13: Hunting
Chapter 14: A Crucial Hint
Chapter 15: Catching A Ghost
Chapter 16: Catching A Ghost Ii
Chapter 17: Vengeance
Chapter 18: Chosen Undead
Chapter 19: Valera
Chapter 20: Getting Ready
Chapter 21: Phantasmal Mask
Chapter 22: A Pack Problem
Chapter 23: Raising The Alpha
Chapter 24: The Geist
Chapter 25: Geist Hunt
Chapter 26: The Settlements
Chapter 27: The Odinsons
Chapter 28: Gang Wipeout
Chapter 29: Gang Wipeout (2)
Chapter 30: Loot
Chapter 31: Investigation
Chapter 32: Investigation (2)
Chapter 33: Ghastly Preparation
Chapter 34: Trial Quest 1
Chapter 35: Clearing The Trial Quest
Chapter 36: Clearing The Trial Quest 2
Chapter 37: Clearing The Trial Quest 3
Chapter 38: Secret Boss
Chapter 39: Secret Boss Ii
Chapter 40: Secret Boss Iii
Chapter 41: Flergan The Zealot: Youll Also Like
Chapter 42: Becoming A Lich
Chapter 43: The Death Lord
Chapter 44: Ritual Of Eternity
Chapter 45: Planning
Chapter 46: Planning 2
Chapter 47: Variant Nest
Chapter 48: Clearing The Nest
Chapter 49: The Bloodspitter
Chapter 50: Sudden Attack
Chapter 51: The Chrysalis
Chapter 52: Chrysalis 2
Chapter 53: Raising The Chrysalis
Chapter 54: Alchemy
Chapter 55: {A Meeting To Be}
Chapter 56: Meeting In The Red Circle
Chapter 57: Meeting In The Red Circle 2
Chapter 58: An Experiment
Chapter 59: An Experiment 2
Chapter 60: The Final Phase
Chapter 61: Disaster
Chapter 62: {Seth Solar}
Chapter 63: {Seth Solar 2}
Chapter 64: Calm Before The Emerald Storm
Chapter 65: {A Certain Report}
Chapter 66: The Party Begins
Chapter 67: A Night Of Dying
Chapter 68: Acquiring The Editor Sample
Chapter 69: {Unending Misery}
Chapter 70: {One By One}
Chapter 71: {Volantis, The Tyrant Of Bone}
Chapter 72: {Volantis, The Tyrant Of Bone 2}
Chapter 73: Loot And Summons And More
Chapter 74: {Red Circle Defense 1}
Chapter 75: {Red Circle Defense 2}
Chapter 76: {The Final Act}
Chapter 77: Dying Sun
Chapter 78: {The Oceans Call}: Youll Also Like
Chapter 79: {The Oceans Call 2}: Youll Also Like
Chapter 80: The Finale Of Vengeance
Chapter 81: The Finale Of Vengeance 2
Chapter 82: {Dance Of Duels}
Chapter 83: {Dance Of Duels 2}
Chapter 84: Final Duels And Ascension
Chapter 85: Ascension 2
Chapter 86: A Farewell
Chapter 87: The Rise Of A Lich
Chapter 88: Return Of The Lich
Chapter 89: Learning Spells
Chapter 90: Exterminating Pests
Chapter 91: New Mount
Chapter 92: Return Of The Lich
Chapter 93: Connection
Chapter 94: Sky Fight
Chapter 95: Corpse Nova
Chapter 96: Ruler Of The Storm
Chapter 97: Holding Out
Chapter 98: Minuteman
Chapter 99: Resolve
Chapter 100: Knightly Intervention
Chapter 101: Art Of Battle
Chapter 102: Incident Of A Certain Flight
Chapter 103: Incident Of A Certain Flight 2
Chapter 104: Incident Of A Certain Flight 3
Chapter 105: Theory Of A Soul
Chapter 106: Meeting Minuteman
Chapter 107: Twin Wills
Chapter 108: Into The Bunker
Chapter 109: Portal Girl
Chapter 110: The Final Plan
Chapter 111: Leaving Minuteman
Chapter 112: To Battle
Chapter 113: {Holding The Wall}
Chapter 114: {Culling The Weak}
Chapter 115: Undead Assemble
Chapter 116: Camaraderie
Chapter 117: Formations
Chapter 118: The Humans Strike Back
Chapter 119: The Perfect Moment
Chapter 120: King Of The Oceans
Chapter 121: From Despair, Hope
Chapter 122: The Legion
Chapter 123: The Battle Rages
Chapter 124: A Storm Is Coming
Chapter 125: Spirit Boundaries Activated
Chapter 126: Bring Down The Thunder
Chapter 127: Bring Down The Thunder 2
Chapter 128: Raising Merman
Chapter 129: Valeras Merits: Youll Also Like
Chapter 130: Valeras Merits 2: Youll Also Like
Chapter 131: Valeras Merits 3
Chapter 132: Restoring Seismic
Chapter 133: The Connector
Chapter 134: Danger
Chapter 135: Sudden Attack
Chapter 136: The Counter
Chapter 137: The Final Fight
Chapter 138: Attack, Attack, Attack
Chapter 139: Beatdown
Chapter 140: Quest?
Chapter 141: Contingency
Chapter 142: All Out
Chapter 143: Bear Witness
Chapter 144: Observation
Chapter 145: In The Zone
Chapter 146: Draconic Might
Chapter 147: A Bloody End
Chapter 148: The Voice
Chapter 149: Survival
Chapter 150: Seismic
Chapter 151: Tag Out
Chapter 152: Game Over
Chapter 153: Aftermath
Chapter 154: Sponsor
Chapter 155: A Deal
Chapter 156: Sentinel
Chapter 157: Hat Trick
Chapter 158: Corruption
Chapter 159: Exposing Hat Trick
Chapter 160: Times Up
Chapter 161: One Last Trick
Chapter 162: Last Stage Planning
Chapter 163: Superior Halo
Chapter 164 - Standing By Haven
Chapter 165 - Rebuilding
Chapter 166 - S Rank Encounter
Chapter 167: A Deal
Chapter 168: Hear Me Out
Chapter 169: Imprisoned
Chapter 170: Another Round Of Questioning
Chapter 171: The Colonel
Chapter 172: Second Deal
Chapter 173: Company Politics
Chapter 174: The Unending Thread
Chapter 175: A Crypt
Chapter 176: Until Next Time Crypts.
Chapter 177: Pale White
Chapter 178: Volantis
Chapter 179: Volantis (2)
Chapter 180: Into The Crypt
Chapter 181: 22
Chapter 182: Into The Nexus
Chapter 183: [Bonus Chapter] Into The Nexus 2
Chapter 184: Complete Overhaul
Chapter 185: Bors The Giant Blacksmith
Chapter 186: Fixing Volantis
Chapter 187: Second And Fourth Deathguard
Chapter 188: Volantis Restored
Chapter 189: [Bonus Chapter] Worthy
Chapter 190: Orcish Might
Chapter 191: [Bonus Chapter] A Hard Headed Counter
Chapter 192: Burning Agony
Chapter 193: [Bonus Chapter] A Worthy Rage
Chapter 194: Boundary
Chapter 195: Top Of The Necropolis 1
Chapter 196: [Bonus Chapter] Top Of The Necropolis 2
Chapter 197: Diving Into The Chrysalis
Chapter 198: The Depths
Chapter 199: Warmth
Chapter 200: Love And Fear
Chapter 201: Boundary Overcome
Chapter 202: Boundary Details
Chapter 203: Resting
Chapter 204: Love, Past And Present
Chapter 205: [Bonus Chapter] Love, Past And Present 2
Chapter 0.1: Last Updated
Chapter 0.2
Chapter 206 Love, Past And Present 3
Chapter 207 Love, Past And Present 4
Chapter 208 Ambition And Training
Chapter 209 Learning
Chapter 210 Mana Flow
Chapter 211 The Chrysalis’S Talents
Chapter 212 Shaping
Chapter 213 Competition
Chapter 214 Returning To The Crypt
Chapter 215 Nomads
Chapter 216 The Nomad Chiefs
Chapter 217 Negotiating With The Chiefs
Chapter 218 Negotiating With The Chiefs 2
Chapter 219 Negotiating With The Chiefs 3
Chapter 220 Agreement
Chapter 221 Blackwater Students
Chapter 222 Stick And Carrot
Chapter 223 Technos
Chapter 224 Okeanos’S Quest
Chapter 225 Maze
Chapter 226 Invincible Formation
Chapter 227 First Trial Quest Revisited
Chapter 228 Flower Fight
Chapter 229 Training Payoff And Meeting With Z
Chapter 230 Meeting With Z (2)
Chapter 231 Blackwater Allegiance
Chapter 232 [Bonus Chapter] Eileen’Sconversation
Chapter 233 - Stay And Fight
Chapter 234 - Megaloptera
Chapter 235 - Megaloptera 2
Chapter 236 - Megaloptera 3
Chapter 237 - Clint, The Unbreakable
Chapter 238 - Infiltration
Chapter 239 - Desmond
Chapter 240 V-Parasite
Chapter 241 Feast
Chapter 242 Feast 2
Chapter 243 Feast 3
Chapter 244 Feast 4
Chapter 245 Feast 5
Chapter 246 Ln Sync
Chapter 247 - Explore Time
Chapter 248 - Samples
Chapter 249 Lnstinct
Chapter 250 Name
Chapter 251 Road Trip
Chapter 252 ’Cops’
Chapter 253 Diamondback
Chapter 254 Lnterrogation
Chapter 255 Settling Down In Redrock
Chapter 256 V Correspondence
Chapter 257 V Correspondence 2
Chapter 258 Ready To Go
Chapter 259 Randall'S Repairs
Chapter 260 Resolution
Chapter 261 Last Dream
Chapter 262 An Unseen Cold
Chapter 263 An Unseen Cold 2
Chapter 264 An Unseen Cold 3
Chapter 265 Unanswered Questions
Chapter 266 Emergency
Chapter 267 Airbird
Chapter 268 [Bonus Chapter] Clint'S Job
Chapter 269 Seraph
Chapter 270 Cure
Chapter 271 Expectations And Rewards
Chapter 272 More Loot
Chapter 273 Immortal Advice
Chapter 274 Resolve To Fight
Chapter 275 Simmering
Chapter 276 Trial Quest
Chapter 277 Demons
Chapter 278 The Grinner
Chapter 279 [Bonus Chapter] Greater Demon
Chapter 280 Greater Demon 2
Chapter 281 Greater Demon 3
Chapter 282 Insight
Chapter 283 Defense
Chapter 284 Defense 2
Chapter 285 Deimos, The Dark Eye
Chapter 286 Deimos, The Dark Eye 2
Chapter 287 Power Of The Sun
Chapter 288 Power Of The Sun 2
Chapter 289 Third Trial Quest Rewards
Chapter 290 [Bonus Chapter] Final Round Preparation
Chapter 291 Final Prep: Necropolis
Chapter 292 To Take A Tome
Chapter 293 Night Parade
Chapter 294 Stranger
Chapter 295 Familiar Faces
Chapter 296 Judicata
Chapter 297 A Stranger'S Offer
Chapter 298 The Hearing Begins
Chapter 299 [Bonus Chapter] The First Vote
Chapter 300 Second Vote, First Offer
Chapter 301 [Bonus Chapter] Second Vote, Second Offer
Chapter 302 Sentinel
Chapter 303 Sentinel Vote...?
Chapter 304 Attack On The Judicata
Chapter 305 Rescue
Chapter 306 Rescue 2
Chapter 307 [Bonus Chapter] Aftermath Of The Judicata
Chapter 308 The End Of The Attack
Chapter 309 Settling Down
Chapter 310 Vexa'S Merits
Chapter 311 [Bonus Chapter] Project Arachnophobia
Chapter 312 New Laboratory
Chapter 313 Learning Room
Chapter 314 [Bonus Chapter] Spider Bait
Chapter 315 Back To The Nexus
Chapter 316 A Deal With A Demon
Chapter 317 A Reasonable Understanding
Chapter 318 The Forest
Chapter 319 A Trapped Spider
Chapter 320 Capturing The Spider
Chapter 321 Mollusk Hunt
Chapter 322 Mollusk Hunt 2
Chapter 323 Winding Down?
Chapter 324 A New Challenger
Chapter 325 Boss Geist
Chapter 326 To The Death!
Chapter 327 Worthy
Chapter 328 Etal Reversion
Chapter 329 Execution
Chapter 330 Boundary
Chapter 331 The Entity
Chapter 332 The Entity 2
Chapter 333 Arcadia
Chapter 334 Ceasefire
Chapter 335 Support
Chapter 336 Lightspeed And Valkyrie
Chapter 337 The President
Chapter 338 The President 2
Chapter 339 The President 3
Chapter 340: The President 4
Chapter 341: Spider Mining
Chapter 342 An Inheritance Issue
Chapter 343 [Bonus Chapter] An Inheritance Issue 2
Chapter 344 An Inheritance Issue 3
Chapter 345 Hammerhead Meeting
Chapter 346 Hammerhead Meeting 2
Chapter 347 Despair, Ye Mighty
Chapter 348 A New Party
Chapter 349 A New Party 2
Chapter 350 Relationship Progress
Chapter 351 The Soulmonger
Chapter 352 A Sudden Intrusion
Chapter 353 Mel Morales
Chapter 354 Omega
Chapter 355 Three Minds, Three Directives
Chapter 356 Machines And Demons
Chapter 357 Mysteries Of Birth
Chapter 358 Scrapheart
Chapter 359 In The Future
Chapter 360 In The Future (2)
Chapter 361 Plans
Chapter 362 [Bonus Chapter] Plans (2)
Chapter 363 Balar, The Eyed
Chapter 364 Feather'S Meeting
Chapter 365 Raid Plans
Chapter 366 Clint'S Decision
Chapter 367 Assassination
Chapter 368 Healing Procedure
Chapter 369 Preparing For The Aa
Chapter 370 The Journal
Chapter 371 The Journal 2
Chapter 372 Heist Planning 1
Chapter 373 Heist Planning 2
Chapter 374 Journal Entries 1
Chapter 375 Journal Entries 2
Chapter 376 Journal Entries 3
Chapter 377 Panopticon Cure
Chapter 378 Panopticon Cure 2
Chapter 379 [Bonus Chapter] Panopticon Cure 3
Chapter 380: Panopticon Cure 4
Chapter 381: Appraisal 1
Chapter 382: [Bonus Chapter] Appraisal 2
Chapter 383: Appraisal 3
Chapter 384: Appraisal 4
Chapter 385: Dragon Strategy 1
Chapter 386: Dragon Strategy 2
Chapter 387: Dragon Strategy 3
Chapter 388: Heist Intrusion
Chapter 389: Heist Intrusion 2
Chapter 390: Heist Intrusion 3
Chapter 391: The Dinner Incident 1
Chapter 392: The Dinner Incident 2
Chapter 393: [Bonus Chapter] The Dinner Incident 3
Chapter 394: The Dinner Incident 4
Chapter 395: The Dinner Incident 5
Chapter 396: Breaking In
Chapter 397: [Bonus Chapter] {Shuten Doji}
Chapter 398: Happiness
Chapter 400: {Usurper}
Chapter 399: {The Search}
Chapter 401: {Aftermath}
Chapter 402: {Oni }
Chapter 403: Happiness 2
Chapter 404: {To The Vaults}
Chapter 405: {Subject 6A }
Chapter 406: {Break In}
Chapter 407: {Twin}
Chapter 408: A Dream
Chapter 409: A Dream 2
Chapter 410: A Dream 3
Chapter 411: A Dream 4
Chapter 412: Dream'S End 1
Chapter 413: Dream'S End 2
Chapter 414: Raid'S End 1
Chapter 415: Raid'S End 2
Chapter 416: Raid'S End 3
Chapter 417 Raid’S End 4
Chapter 418 Meteor Labs Demolition
Chapter 419 The Return
Chapter 420 Down To Earth
Chapter 421 Lab’S End
Chapter 422 Unsealed
Chapter 423 Cycle Of Life And Death
Chapter 424 Restored
Chapter 425 Swords
Chapter 426 The Monk
Chapter 427 Split
Chapter 428 Sheathed
Chapter 429 Blackwater Plans
Chapter 430 Blackwater Plans 2
Chapter 431 Blackwater Plans 3
Chapter 432 The Convoy
Chapter 433 Infiltration
Chapter 434 Suspicion
Chapter 435 Intrusion
Chapter 436 Necromancer Vs. Capo
Chapter 437 Necromancer Vs. Capo 2
Chapter 438 Necromancer Vs. Capo 3
Chapter 439 Necromancer Vs. Capo 4
Chapter 440 Warehouse Raid
Chapter 441 80%
Categories Genre: All, Fantasy, Ongoing Status: Ongoing ______
Total Chapters in book: 443
Estimated words: 749807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 3749(@200wpm)___ 2999(@250wpm)___ 2499(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 749807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 3749(@200wpm)___ 2999(@250wpm)___ 2499(@300wpm)
______
LIST OF LAST 10 CHAPTERS:
Page No. 443 Page No. 442 Page No. 441 Page No. 440 Page No. 439 Page No. 438 Page No. 437 Page No. 436 Page No. 435 Page No. 434 Page No. 433 Chapter 53: Raising The Chrysalis
Chapter 53: Raising the Chrysalis
Aldrich went over to the Chrysalis and knelt down by it. He picked the creature up. It was odd, staring at it. The Chrysalis was not much larger than a basketball. An entire dimensional space generated from something this tiny.
"It is exceptional that such a minute creature was capable of harboring such vast space." Fler'Gan voiced Aldrich's thoughts, thinking the exact same thing.
"Yeah. And I'm excited what this variant can do for me in undeath." Aldrich placed the Chrysalis down and chanted. "Serve."
Green energy flowed into the crystal centipede, and as it did so, the ruby red luster of the Chrysalis changed into a dark light emerald green.
[-10 Mana]
[Mana: 163/183 ] 153/183]
[Units Controlled: 20/22 ] 21/22]
Aldrich intently waited, watching the Chrysalis to see how it would move. The Chrysalis uncurled from its ouroboric position with slow, lethargic movements. Its many legs moved for just a few seconds before they froze over and the Chrysalis once more curled back up, completely still.
"Hm." Aldrich put a hand to his chin. He sensed its intentions. "It wants energy. Without it, it can't move properly or do much of anything."
"Specifically, an Ether Deposit," said Stella as she came to Aldrich's side with Valera by her side. By now, the bloodspitter lizard had regenerated its head, and it strutted forwards beside Aldrich too.
"Ether deposit, is it?" Aldrich pondered this.
Ether was an odd type of energy that had manifested on Earth after the Altering. In its purest state, it appeared to be a glowing white light with an atomic structure that constantly fluxed, making it impossible to stabilize and study.
There were even theories that Ether seemed semi-sapient, oddly self-destructing when confined in laboratories.
On its own, Ether was worth little to nothing. It had zero reactivity nor malleability, so science and technology could not generate energy from Ether or change its form into something more useful.
But oddly, in the presence of Alter powers, specifically with Alter Organs and cells, Ether reacted. Or perhaps it was the other way round with the organs being capable of interfacing with Ether. Some people thought Ether created Alter powers, others thought Alter powers generated Ether - it was an endless debate akin to the question of whether the chicken or the egg came first.
Regardless, Ether and Alter powers were inextricably linked. All Alters generated trace energy signatures of Ether, especially when they used their powers. The Ether energy signature was what scanners used to detect powers.
The denser an Alter's cell count, the stronger the Ether signature they generated.
But Ether also occurred naturally in deposits all across the planet. Variant ecosystems bloomed around Ether deposits and Alterhumans competed with variants to vie for Ether for in the presence of Ether, Alter powers grew stronger. And, more importantly, higher tier techno Alters could fully harness Ether to fuel their sci-fi superweapons, processing the seemingly useless particle into a hyper-efficient, physics defying energy.
"From what I remember, Chrysales are created deep underground. Nobody knows exactly where, but they do know that wherever there are Ether deposits, Chrysales aren't far behind. They latch onto the deposits, drain them, and fuse with their environments," said Stella. "They attract variants usin' Ether and sorta farm em'. Variants come and breed and die inside their nests, and whatever dies turns into nutrients. Usin' those nutrients, they expand."
She stared down at the Chrysalis's stiff, unmoving form. "Guess this little guy's all outta' juice. And without another deposit to anchor onto, it ain't gonna' be movin', maybe not ever."
"Hmm. So I need to find an Ether deposit to even make this thing usable?" said Aldrich.
"I figure. And in most cases, it takes months to years for a Chrysalis to make a proper nest," said Stella.
Aldrich picked up the Chrysalis and wondered whether it was worth it to keep the creature. Ether deposits were not uncommon, but it was hard to find one that some mega corporation did not mine out or where variants gathered en masse.
"Energy, you say?" Fler'Gan clapped his hands together, but because his skin was soft and moist, it made a squelching sound. "May I propose, O Elder, a rather interesting potential solution?"
"What is it?" said Aldrich.
"Your Phylactery," said Fler'Gan. "It may not seem like it, but there is an incredible amount of energy hosted within it. Enough such that if fully unleashed, the arcane shockwave alone could flatten half a human city."
"Really now? I couldn't sense anything coming from it when I held it," said Aldrich.
"Because the energy is tightly sealed within. Otherwise, it would be far too easy to track the magical trail of the Phylactery, and that defeats the purpose of having a safe, undetectable place to house one's soul, no?" Fler'Gan stretched out an open hand to Aldrich, beckoning for the Phylactery.
Aldrich materialized the Phylactery and gave it to Fler'Gan, trusting the learned Mind Eater's decisions.
"But perhaps if I undo a few seals…," Fler'Gan hunched over the purple orb and traced his slimy fingers around the many lines of sigils inscribed upon it. They glowed blue, and he started to use the tip of one of his lengthy digits to rewrite the letterings.
"Watch it, old man. Make sure not to blow us all up," said Stella.
"You insult me, my dear," said Fler'Gan with a scoff. "I am more learned than you could ever be with that brash and impatient attitude of yours. Now stay in silence as I work."
Fler'Gan reordered multiples lines of sigils over a hundred times at rapid speed, obviously showcasing a level of familiarity with the Phylactery that stood as evidence of his decades of research building it.
"There." After one minute, Fler'Gan finished. The Phylactery clicked slightly, and a few crack-like seams opened across its surface. Beneath these cracks glowed bright green energy: the color of necromancy.
Aldrich saw in high interest as the Chrysalis in his hand started to twitch, coming back from dormancy as it sensed the Phylactery's energy. It was not Ether, it was mana, and yet, the Chrysalis still recognized it.
"I sense you are just as excited as I, O Elder," said Fler'Gan. "To witness whether this world and our world may mesh together."
Valera patted Stella on the back as she stood up on her own now, healed enough by Aldrich's passive [Anti-Life Shell].
"Master… are you sure about this?" Valera said. "That Phylactery - you need it to become a lich. Who knows what this crystal thing will do to it."
"I assure you, Phylacteries are not so fragile a construct," said Fler'Gan. "If indeed this creature requires months to years to siphon a deposit of this energy form known as 'Ether', then I sincerely doubt it can significantly drain the Phylactery's reserves before the Elder halts it or destroys it."
"I'm curious about this too," said Aldrich. "I understand your concern, Valera, but I'm alert. I've mentally commanded the Chrysalis not to harm the Phylactery at all, only to see if it can absorb the mana. If anything happens out of the ordinary, I won't hesitate to force the Chrysalis to stop or destroy it if needs be."
"Understood, master," said Valera.
Aldrich put the twitching Chrysalis down. It moved with surprising speed, immediately leaping and latching into the Phylactery. The Chrysalis circled all around the purple orb, curling back into its ouroboric position across the Phylactery's surface.
Aldrich waited tensely, seeing if the Chrysalis regained its energy. Instead, something unexpected happened.
The Chrysalis sunk into the Phylactery like it had fallen into water.
"Master!" said Valera.
Aldrich raised a hand to calm her. He could still sense the Chrysalis within, and it did not exhibit any sign of hostility or disobedience to him.
"The creature has fused into the Phylactery." Fler'Gan picked the orb up and began to navigate the many glowing lines of sigils on it again.
"Yeah, we can see that," said Stella. "But is that a good thing or not?"
"No, you do not understand. This fusion, it is remarkably complete. It is not merely that the creature has sunk within the Phylactery, it has become the Phylactery. They are now one and the same." Fler'Gan's three red eyes widened as he saw the cracks he had formed on the Phylactery sealing up on their own. "Marvelous! Look! This experiment has been a resounding success! Our world and this world, its fusion - a success!"
Fler'Gan held the orb out excitedly for everyone to watch. Within the glassy glowing purple orb, the dark silhouette of the curled-up Chrysalis could be seen.
"It's…adjusting," said Aldrich as he felt what the Chrysalis was going through and the intentions it projected. "It's taking in mana, but it isn't using it. It's getting used to it, trying to process it.
And to do that…it wants to be close to me. I'm the source of its life, and there's mana inside me, too. It wants to link with my body, to fuse with me as well so that it can analyze my mana first. My mana's more familiar, and once it's done processing that, it shouldn't have an issue getting used to the Phylactery."
Aldrich took the Phylactery from Fler'Gan's hand and gazed at it, feeling a distinct draw to it.
He knew what to do with this.
He dematerialized the gear on his upper body, leaving him bare naked from the waist up. His body had noticeably bulked up since the beginning of his undeath due to the stats he had pumped into it. He had always been physically fit from his training, but now he was even bigger.
Not overly big like a bodybuilder, but he still had a sizable amount of muscle that straddled a perfect balance between strength and speed.
Lean and strong. Ready to overpower and crush in one moment, then sprint and chase in the other.
"Oh, master, you do look so very ravishing," said Valera as she licked her lips, her fangs showing. She blushed in shyness but still panted and leaned forwards like a predator eyeing a prize they had hunted for days. And in her case, she had been on the hunt for years.
On top of this, her usual shyness as an upstanding knight melted away because she was still low health and craving blood. And for vampires, the act of craving and drawing blood was closely linked with sexual desire.
"This is a serious moment, you." Stella bonked Valera's helmetless head with a karate chop. "Keep that horniness in check."
Valera growled but stayed still, understanding that Stella was right.
Aldrich looked down at his body. In the center of all that muscle, right below his plate-like pectorals, there was the massive hole that Seth Solar had gouged out. He placed the Phylactery tentatively within it and then -
The Phylactery glowed before tendrils of pink flesh emerged out of it, latching onto Aldrich's insides. More and more of these tendrils appeared rapidly, soon quickly filling up the gaping hole left behind in Aldrich's chest.
There was now only the glowing purple surface of the Phylactery jutting from his chest, covered seamlessly in pale skin and regrown bone and muscle.
Aldrich went down into one knee as he saw complete and utter darkness.
"Captain!"
"Master!"
Valera and Stella immediately rushed to Aldrich's help, but he waved them back.
"I'm fine," said Aldrich as he saw nothing but darkness. He realized this was what the Chrysalis saw. "There's nothing in the Phylactery. Just darkness."
"That is to be expected," said Fler'Gan. "After all, a Phylactery is ultimately a vessel to contain a soul. Once your soul transfers within, the darkness you see will be painted over by the color of your soul. It will become your very own inner world: a manifestation of the self.
And now with this creature nested in the Phylactery, you have an additional layer of defense if anyone attempts to target your Phylactery directly. Perhaps the creature may utilize its spatial manipulation to conjure portals that bend deadly attacks to your soul away. Perhaps it may even absorb them. Perhaps it may even learn magic and cast spells of its own.
The possibilities are simply endless, and to grasp them, we require further experimentation."
"Defense, is it?" Aldrich returned to his own vision as the Chrysalis became more and more used to its newfound energy source. He willed the Chrysalis to try and attack from within the Phylactery.
Aldrich tapped the Phylactery, and it crackled with arcs of red energy before turning a solid vantablack, almost like a black hole. This was a dimensional portal. A tiny one, granted, but a portal nonetheless: the Chrysalis was starting to use mana to fuel its warp powers.
Small tendrils of darkness stretched out from it, slithering slowly on the ground, picking up pebbles here and there before sinking back into the Phylactery.
"What the hell was that!?" Stella jumped back at the sudden emergence of surprise tentacles.
"The creature is learning at an exceptional rate," said Fler'Gan. "That darkness was some of the mana stored within the Phylactery. The creature has managed to control the mana, using it to create tendrils to interact with the world.
Yet, judging by the minute size and chaotic shape of those tendrils, it is unused to shaping mana."
Aldrich felt the Chrysalis protest within him. It cost a significant amount of energy to make it open a portal, even a portal that small, from the Phylactery and draw things in.
"Not just that," said Aldrich. "Like you said, by design, anything inside the Phylactery is completely sealed off from the outside to prevent energy leaks. That includes the dimension that the Chrysalis creates.
So anytime it wants to attack, it has to open a portal, and portals are costly. It's too small and weak, so its 'max mana pool' isn't large enough to do much more than open that tiny portal and spew out a few mana tendrils.
It needs time to rest, absorb, and grow like it did with an Ether deposit.
I know you want to experiment even more, but give the Chrysalis some time. We can start testing its limits as it grows."
"As you wish, O Elder," said Fler'Gan with a barely concealed sigh, disappointed he could not see and experiment more.
Aldrich, too, wanted to experiment, but he remained patient. He could only imagine how incredibly useful this Chrysalis-Phylactery fusion would be. One of the biggest issues he had was that he could not carry around his undead without attracting attention.
But with the Chrysalis, he could store and release them at will.
"Then what now?" said Stella.
Aldrich snapped his fingers and bid the alloywing eagle down to the cavern. "We head to Haven City."
Total Chapters in book: 443
Estimated words: 749807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 3749(@200wpm)___ 2999(@250wpm)___ 2499(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 749807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 3749(@200wpm)___ 2999(@250wpm)___ 2499(@300wpm)
______