Hell Difficulty Tutorial Chapter 799 - Vault number 2

It seems we must accelerate our pace far more than initially anticipated.

“Izzy, cast your attention here. Who is the most crucial individual present?” I inquire, abandoning my pretense and voicing the question directly. A few heads turn in my direction, but Izzy appears to grasp my intent.

“Bowen,” she states.

I acknowledge this with a nod and advance. While I have been experimenting, manifesting and controlling mana outside my body has proven somewhat challenging for the moment. Certain abilities, such as detection or those with minimal mana requirements, are feasible, but others remain nearly impossible. I still believe I could achieve them with sufficient effort, yet a more expedient method exists.

Unseen by those below, I deliberately inflict a deep gash upon my hand with the ornate brooch I wear, causing my blood, brimming with hyper-condensed mana, to gush forth.

Under my direction, it erupts, contorting into the form of a nail and impaling the cranium of one of the feyliths I deem the most perilous within the assembled group.

An uproar ensues, with the nobles scrambling to retreat behind their escorts, and even some feyliths making hasty attempts to withdraw. Two of the feyliths, however, surge forward, their movements swift and their physiques evidently robust.

My own kinetic energy propels me to the side and then back in a disorienting sequence of maneuvers. My blood, shaped into a projectile, narrowly misses the man’s head as he evades, just moments before I plunge the dagger in my left hand into his chest. This dagger, fashioned from wood derived from my fragment, continues its rapid growth, piercing the man’s torso from within as I release the hilt and propel him backward with a kick.

Another feylith reaches my position, but Izzy’s flames flare momentarily, just enough to disrupt his advance and immolate half his face. Despite this, the remaining feylith presses his assault with unwavering resolve, targeting me directly. His fist connects with my chest, but I seamlessly absorb the entirety of its kinetic force into my being.

More blood continues to seep from my wounded hand as another blood-nail pierces the chest of the feylith, striking where his heart resides. Fortifying my physique with kinetic energy, I hurl him against the wall, the impact producing an audible cracking of his bones.

A subsequent torrent of Izzy’s fragment erupts, engulfing the feylith in flames and rapidly reducing him to a mere skeleton, with remnants of flesh still clinging and falling to the ground.

Disregarding the convulsing form from whose chest cavity a nascent tree is beginning to sprout, I channel energy into my body to pursue the fleeing individuals. I dispatch them swiftly, ignoring their desperate pleas and explanations. Even as I reach Bowen, my consciousness utilizes my fragment as a focal point, initiating the construction of a teleportation array to one of the markers I’d previously placed outside, aiming to bypass the defensive wards and formations established within this complex.

“Where is the egg? Your establishment would have acquired it not long ago,” I demand, halting directly before Bowen, whose entirely green hair and eyes betray his attempt to distance himself from me. Behind him, a structure resembling prison bars encloses numerous smaller chambers, each secured with its own door.

“What?! I… I have no knowledge of it! What are you doing? Do you even comprehend…”

“Izzy?”

“He is fabricating falsehoods.”

Reinforcing my body with kinetic energy, I seize his arm and apply a sharp twist, shattering it completely. “The egg,” I reiterate.

He cries out in agony, clutching at the bars, yet only a portion of my awareness is fixated on this scene. The remainder communicates with Biscuit, another segment shapes the blood trickling from my hand into a dagger, honed to the utmost sharpness, and the final aspect utilizes the Nameless Tree to continue establishing the teleportation route for our departure.

“V-vault number 2,” the feylith finally reveals through a pained groan.

“Izzy?”

“His assertion is truthful.”

I incline my head and grasp him by the nape of his neck, drawing him along as we proceed past the vaults. We traverse a corridor illuminated solely by a luminous orb, which Izzy now carries. At its terminus, Biscuit and Noodle are encountered. Both have been impeded by what appears to be a metallic barrier, upon which they have managed to etch deep scores, yet their efforts to breach it have proven futile.

“Is it concealed behind there?” I question Bowen.

“Y… yes! Please… my arm.”

“Grant access to the chamber,” I command him.

In response, he nearly weeps. “I am incapable… no one possesses the ability.”

“His statement holds veracity,” Izzy corroborates.

I scrutinize him. My hope was that he might possess the key, or that someone present within this facility would. I do not believe the implants integrated within the staff members are sufficient for this purpose. Each implant appears intrinsically linked to their living signatures and ineffective when extracted, at least according to my deductions from observation and logical inference. Perhaps an individual like the man adorned with the white brooch might have succeeded, or perhaps he genuinely lacked the capability. However, that possibility is now irrevocably in the past.

With a decisive swing, I employ the dagger in my grasp, severing his head from his body, and advance towards the formidable metal plate.

My very blood surges with so much mana that I can partially direct its flow. I’m currently forcing it from my body, letting it trickle out from the gash on my hand. It cascades down the dagger I’d prepared, extending its blade into a formidable weapon. My goal is to make it exceptionally long, slender, and razor-sharp. Two skills remain effective for this purpose, their capabilities somewhat intact even within the confines of this generated field.

[Manifestation - lvl 40 > Manifestation - lvl 41]

[Manifestation - lvl 41 > Manifestation - lvl 42]

[Ley Line - lvl 74 > Ley Line - lvl 75]

Following these exertions, a wave of lightheadedness washes over me. Since my physical augmentation and the acquisition of my new trait, I've observed that my healing passive isn’t performing as it once did. I’m starting to suspect that even acquiring a more potent version might not significantly alter the outcome. The reality is, my blood has become exceedingly difficult for any ordinary healer to replenish, and my body is likely undergoing a similar transformation. Lily, bless her, can still manage, but she’s a far cry from what anyone would deem a ‘normal’ healer.

However, dwelling on this is unproductive. It’s a future concern, one I anticipated.

With a backward reach, I plunge the long, needle-like sword into the metal plate. It pierces the surface as if it were mere sand. The defensive arrays prove utterly ineffective in disrupting its passage, and the same applies to the surrounding field. Driving the sword downwards, I leverage my body's weight and begin carving a circular aperture, ample enough for our passage. Though it appears effortless, the task demands considerable strength. It requires the full might of my body, bolstered by mana and kinetic energy, to accomplish.

Just as I complete the cut and retract the blade, perspiration starts to bead on my brow. The feeling of lightheadedness returns with a vengeance.

There is no need for instruction. Biscuit dramatically expands, then forcefully rams himself against the freshly cut opening. He pushes his head against the metal, creating a sliding motion. The plate, likely weighing several tons, is no match for the determined corgi. He continues his assault, employing his paws and sheer persistence, utterly disregarding any potential damage.

Finally, with a prolonged, resonant clang, the excised metal section breaks free. It plummets to the floor on the other side, landing with a profound thud. It doesn’t rebound; instead, it settles heavily, as if fused to the ground.

We clamber inside, immediately finding the field’s intensity amplified. We are now within a circular chamber, distinguished by five distinct doorways. Each is adorned with numerical markings and features what appear to be prison bars. These doors are remarkably varied in their construction.

One is a deep, impenetrable black, fashioned from wood. Adjacent to it lies a door made of glass, containing an enigmatic, swirling liquid. Then, there is a pair of crimson doors, their surfaces polished to an almost impossibly smooth sheen. The fourth door presents an intricate mosaic of numerous small scales. Lastly, the door to vault number two is crafted from wood, intricately decorated with metal wire inlays.

My sword effortlessly slices through the bars and then the door itself. Concurrently, Biscuit’s primordial energy envelopes me as he reverts to his puppy form and hops onto my shoulder. Clinging there by his front paws, he intercepts every defensive projectile aimed my way while I work. A relentless barrage continues to fly towards me, and at one point, the very lighting orb Izzy holds fractures, plunging us into absolute darkness.

Precisely as my cutting concludes, another seismic tremor rocks the entire structure. In the distance, I detect the unmistakable sound of a wall fracturing, and momentarily, a portion of the mana-suppressing field, erected by the Champion, falters.

The door I’ve been breaching detaches with a resounding crash, its weight far exceeding expectations. It reveals a compact chamber housing multiple display cases. Dominating the center is a single case containing an egg, roughly the size of my head. It appears rather unremarkable, save for the subtle covering of scales.

With a swift cut, I breach the display case, snatch the egg, and hurl it towards Noodle. He expands and promptly devours it. Even after this brief contact, my hands feel strangely numb. I replicate this action with several other cases, securing all accessible items and tossing them to the serpentine form.

Biscuit unearths several large chests from the chamber, which the snake also consumes. Only after the entirety of this vault’s contents have been assimilated do we depart.

I instinctively move towards the next vault when yet another tremor shakes us, causing the surrounding field to fracture further. I detect probing scans sweeping over us, and I sense the immense signatures of powerful beings descending from above. A significant number of them possess a formidable cultivation far exceeding my own.

“We’re leaving,” I declare decisively.

Noodle retracts, shrinking significantly as he climbs into Izzy’s sleeve, though his movements are noticeably slower than usual. Biscuit follows, and I scoop him into my arms.

I force mana from within my core. Even now, through the compromised field, I manage to extract sufficient power to compress it into a sphere of pure darkness. I then divide this into three distinct portions. The first I deposit within the chamber housing the five vaults. As we ascend through the breach, I place another just outside its perimeter. The final piece, I launch down the corridor, towards the area where the majority of the fallen bodies lie.

As we finally arrive at the Nameless Tree, which has ascended to such a colossal size that its branches are now pushing against the ceiling, all the orbs begin to consume what little mana remains in the atmosphere. The tattered remnants of the feylith's body can still be seen scattered at its base.

Before initiating our teleportation, Izzy releases a flame orb from her grasp, sending it crashing onto the ground. It then flows across the floor like a liquid, spreading rapidly and incinerating anything in its path that lacks the ability to resist. Its power continuously escalates as the surrounding field weakens.

Along with the fragment, which I snatch at the very last second, we all teleport away. We materialize beside Tess, who had been bearing one of my marks throughout this ordeal.

We've reappeared on the streets of Hadon, but they are now in a state of disarray. Numerous buildings have been reduced to rubble, the streets are fractured, and panicked citizens, laden with their belongings, are desperately fleeing the city. Looting is rampant amidst the chaos. The earth continues to tremble with ongoing tremors originating from outside the city, and the sky above is a ghastly blood-red, radiating a disturbing amount of mana radiation that I can sense surging from the west.

Tess displays no astonishment at our sudden arrival. "I had a feeling you'd utilize the mark you placed on me. Is everyone alright?"

"Yes," I affirm, my gaze still scanning the devastated surroundings. Perhaps expending effort to conceal our tracks was entirely unnecessary.

"The egg is with you, I presume. If you consult your status, the three-day countdown has already commenced." Even as she speaks, Tess doesn't falter, and we follow in her wake. "We'll be boarding one of the airships. They informed Min-Jae about an immediate departure and extended an invitation, so he's already there, relaying information to us. Lily will be instrumental in getting the rest of us safely onto the deck."

"That sounds like a solid plan," I concur.

A flicker of dissatisfaction crosses Tess's face. "It's likely the best course of action available to us right now. Our priority is to put as much distance between ourselves and this place as possible. Let's make haste. I've already notified the others that you're safe, but we'll require the twins or Soph to integrate you into the communication link."