Elden Ring: With God Chapter 330: Vessel of Rot

With a roar, the rot-eaten Dragonkin Soldier took the initiative and lunged at Bai Shi.

A storm of wings, ford from butterflies of rot, beat furiously, hoisting the creature’s ponderous fra from the lake and into the air.

A colossal crimson claw descended from the sky, intent on crushing Bai Shi.

The power of rot had bloated its already imnse form, making it far larger than any ordinary Dragonkin Soldier. The descending strike was a spectacle of overwhelming force.

Yet a single, fla-wreathed straight sword t the colossal claw, halting its descent and freezing the creature’s body in midair.

Bai Shi stood his ground, sword held horizontally to his side. The Dragonkin Soldier could not advance another inch, no matter how frantically the butterflies of rot beat their wings.

Viscous, rotten fluid dripped from the massive claw, sizzling into vapor against the intense heat long before it touched the ground.

The inferno blazing from the Sword of Night and Fla rapidly incinerated the thick mycelial strands of rot.

And yet, the rot, which had once been so deathly afraid of fire, showed little reaction.

As the rot spread, the creature’s fragnted scales had thickened and hardened.

The rot's mycelium had altered its very structure, forming an almost inorganic carapace that served as both scale and armor.

This loss of organic properties had erased its instinct to recoil from fla.

Realizing it couldn't break through the seemingly flimsy blade in Bai Shi's hand even with its full weight, the Dragonkin Soldier abandoned its attempt to crush him.

It flew backward on its putrid wings, putting distance between them.

As it retreated, the Dragonkin Soldier aid at Bai Shi and unhinged its massive jaw to an anatomically impossible degree.

A torrent of Scarlet Rot breath erupted from its maw, flooding toward Bai Shi’s position.

At that sa mont, the other vessel of rot on the shore finally reacted.

Its gnarled, withered arm gripped a scarlet scepter and pointed it directly at Bai Shi.

The ground beneath Bai Shi's feet instantly cracked apart as scarlet roots burst forth from the earth, attempting to ensnare him.

This entire shore was already the domain of Scarlet Rot.

Bai Shi leaped into the air, effortlessly evading the sweeping breath and grasping roots.

Their first exchange had already revealed a clear difference in power; the staff-wielding vessel of rot was clearly much stronger than the Dragonkin Soldier.

Hovering in the air, Bai Shi fixed his gaze on the Dragonkin Soldier below and decided to eliminate it first.

He swept his left hand along his sword, and the flas surged, spreading across the blade.

The Sword of Night and Fla, already wreathed in a fearso blaze, now lost its original form completely, transforming into a torrent of solar fire.

The lingering embers intensified, spreading until Bai Shi himself was set ablaze, inside and out.

Within the cavernous space, an underground sun began to rise.

A smile tugged at the corner of Bai Shi’s mouth as he plumted toward the ground below.

The sun fell from the sky.

A brilliant inferno erupted, its light painting the entire Lake of Rot in fiery hues.

The Dragonkin Soldier had no ti to react before the searing light filled its vision.

The blade descended, cleaving into the Dragonkin Soldier's shoulder and smashing it to its knees.

In the next instant, its body was split cleanly in two.

A one-hit kill!

As Bai Shi bisected the Dragonkin Soldier, the greatsword of fire slamd into the Lake of Rot, its aftershock parting the waters.

The stench of burning flesh overpowered the putrid sll of rot.

The residual heat kept the rot at bay, leaving a charred gash in the lake.

Feeling the runes flow into him, Bai Shi casually flicked his sword, his back to the Dragonkin Soldier’s scorched remains.

The flas gradually died down, revealing the crimson-hot blade.

Without the fire, the blade slowly cooled, eventually returning to its original state.

His Sword of Night and Fla was only upgraded to

7. While it had been serviceable before, tis had changed.

Forcing it to channel the power of the sun was asking too much.

If he wasn't careful, the Sword of Night and Fla could lt in the middle of a fight.

Fortunately, he had collected plenty of smithing stones. He could upgrade it when he returned.

Witnessing Bai Shi’s terrifying strike, the other vessel of rot showed no fear and continued its assault.

It slamd its scepter into the ground, and pure, concentrated power of rot surged forth from it.

Unlike the rot's external manifestations, this was a dazzling, orange-red light, accompanied by a cascade of falling petals.

A terrifying orb of light took shape and shot violently toward Bai Shi.

Bai Shi dodged it, having no intention of taking the hit head-on.

Judging by the color of this rot, it was just like the Valkyrie's phase two attacks in the ga—power drawn directly from the god of rot.

Bai Shi evaded the orb, which slamd into the ground and blasted a deep crater.

After the explosion, the rot’s power gradually dispersed into the air, reforming into flitting butterflies of rot.

anwhile, rot gushed from the crater, spreading and growing layer upon layer.

Bai Shi evaded the vessel's relentless attacks, observing its movents.

As he considered his next move, he heard a stir behind him.

Turning, he was stunned to see the Dragonkin Soldier’s charred corpse moving again.

The bisected corpse maintained its kneeling posture, its two halves pulling apart as the carbonized wounds began to regenerate.

Bai Shi looked closer. Atop the seared, severed body, mycelia were breaking down the charred flesh.

There was no flesh and blood beneath the wound, only viscous rot and a hollow, bubble-like structure.

Thread-like strands of rot extended from both halves of the body toward the middle, reconnecting the corpse.

The reassembled Dragonkin Soldier threw its head back and let out a roar.

But the sound was so distorted it was utterly inhuman.

Bai Shi frowned, watching the ‘resurrected’ Dragonkin Soldier.

Why?

The runes had already entered his body...

Seeing the obvious seams, Bai Shi quickly hazarded a guess.

The creature before him only wore the shell of a Dragonkin Soldier.

The god of rot had infused it with power, forcibly stitching the corpse back together with its divine might.

In a sense, this truly was an entirely different creature.

Bai Shi licked his lips, his eyes gleaming.

Though he didn't fully understand it, wasn't this a great way to farm runes?

Since he was just siphoning power from the god of rot, who cared about the details? All he had to do was kill it.

While Bai Shi's attention was drawn to the Dragonkin Soldier's revival, the vessel of rot secretly gathered its power.

Twirling petals of rot silently spread throughout the area.

Surrounded by a source of identical rot, the petals were nearly impossible to detect.

Once the petals reached a certain density, the vessel of rot tapped its scepter, detonating them all at once.

The power of rot flooded the space around Bai Shi, engulfing his figure.

But with a casual wave of his hand, a figure wreathed in flas easily dispelled the thick miasma.

With his embers burning at their peak, the rot could not breach his defenses.

As for the physical damage from the explosion? It was probably less severe than the damage from his own self-immolation. Bai Shi held out his hand, looking at the violently burning flas, and smiled.

The power of the god of rot was indeed extraordinary. Even while cloaked in a roaring inferno, he could feel the rot relentlessly trying to corrode him.

That purest form of rot was an entirely different existence from its external manifestations.

But when faced with fire, it was just as helpless.

That last attack also gave Bai Shi a rough asure of the god of rot’s current strength.

Though still sealed, it could unleash killing blows worthy of its status.

It was strong, but unfortunately for it, Bai Shi seed to be its natural counter.

The vessel of rot’s power was roughly at the pinnacle of a demigod.

A higher level of power would be more than this vessel could handle.

If a fully-powered god of rot was like spraying sulfuric acid with a high-pressure hose...

...then this vessel of rot was like squirting it with a water pistol.

The potency of its attacks was mainly due to the high tier of the god of rot's power.

But if the rot couldn't even touch him, it was all aningless.

When he eventually faced Malenia, even if she entered her second phase, she probably wouldn't give him much trouble.

Bai Shi thought for a mont, then summoned Ashmi, who was still inside him digesting the power of the Teardrop Chalice.

Even corrupted, the Dragonkin Soldier only had a few tricks, and its strength was not enough to pique Bai Shi’s interest.

He was far more intrigued by the other vessel of rot.

As for farming runes, it was too monotonous. He needed an automatic farming tool.

So, he would leave the Dragonkin Soldier to Ashmi. Let her have so fun farming.

Ashmi, who had been sleeping soundly, looked bewildered at being suddenly pulled out.

Bai Shi pointed to the Dragonkin Soldier and nodded at her.

"Go on. Kill it until it can't move anymore."

"No matter how many tis it revives, just kill it."

Then, Bai Shi took out the Starfall Shadow katana, thrust it into Ashmi's hand, and tossed her toward the creature.

Ashmi was still trying to process the situation, tilting her head in midair as she thought.

The Dragonkin Soldier opened its maw and tried to swallow her whole.

The next mont, Ashmi, coated in Scarlet Rot sli, burst out from the back of the Dragonkin Soldier's head.

Clutching the Starfall Shadow, her eyes grew sharp.

She still didn't quite understand what was happening, but she knew one thing: it was ti for a massacre.

Her host was right. All she had to do was kill.

Ashmi quickly engaged the rotten Dragonkin Soldier in battle.

Although one might call it a battle, in reality, it was a one-sided slaughter.

Ashmi now possessed over ninety percent of Bai Shi's power, whereas the rotten Dragonkin Soldier had barely reached the level of a demigod.

In other words, it was about as strong as Godrick.

Ashmi didn't even deign to use her sword. With a single kick, she snapped the Dragonkin Soldier's waist in two, as if it were a stray dog on the roadside.

She followed up with a slash from the Starfall Shadow, easily severing its roaring, twisted head.

Another death, and more runes flowed into Bai Shi's body.

anwhile, Bai Shi was having a thrilling fight with the vessel of rot.

Though the power of rot was completely neutralized by his embered state, the vessel's physical strength was formidable.

This custom job was loaded with raw power.

Bai Shi wasn't using any weapons. Instead, he activated his Great Rune, enlarging his body to its maximum size.

Since the enemy's rot was useless against his sun-like flas, it was left with only its base physical stats.

In that case, his opponent posed no special threat.

Bai Shi wanted to cut loose and fight with abandon for the first ti in a while.

As the Great Rune changed his size, his stats shifted.

His previously maxed-out Arcane began to drop, as did several other attributes.

At the sa ti, however, his Vigor and Strength surged to their peaks, both breaking past their limits.

Unlike Arcane, which was less crucial in a direct fight, Vigor and Strength were made for a warrior's bloody brawl.

The vessel of rot charged swiftly at Bai Shi, its massive horns lowered.

However, what awaited it was a Bai Shi whose size was now large enough to face it head-on.

Bai Shi grabbed the vessel’s giant horns with both hands, the force of the charge pushing him back and carving two deep furrows in the ground beneath him.

The powerful draconic charge was brought to a dead stop.

Now looking down at the slightly shorter vessel of rot, Bai Shi t its gaze.

Then, while one hand kept the creature’s head restrained, the other shot forward in a brutal punch.

The vessel of rot twisted its tattered, ancestral head and opened its massive mouth to bite down on Bai Shi’s embered fist.

But Bai Shi’s fist was faster. Before the jaws could snap shut, he changed its trajectory, striking its lower jaw perfectly.

The vessel’s head was smashed violently upward, its entire body lifting off the ground for a mont.

The sound of cracking bones echoed, but the wounds quickly sealed themselves with viscous rot.

With its head still thrown back, the vessel of rot thrust its other claw upward in a surprise attack, aiming for Bai Shi's abdon.

Within its hollow eye sockets, a hint of cunning seed to flash.

An extra mouth for fighting—that was the advantage of a beast's body in a brawl.

The sharp claw pierced Bai Shi's torso, but he paid it no mind.

Bai Shi grabbed the massive arm, yanked it out of his body, and twisted it into knots.

Rotten juices splattered across his body, only to be instantly incinerated by the embers.

The embers slowed his healing, but as long as it didn’t hinder the fight, it didn’t matter.

A satisfied smile spread across Bai Shi's face.

It had been a long ti since he had enjoyed such an exhilarating fight.

Ever since his battle with General Radahn at Redmane Castle, most of the enemies he’d faced lacked anything close to his power.

As for Mohg, his abilities were too annoying, always dodging and refusing to fight head-on.

And after being empowered by the Formless Mother, he had beco so overpowered that Bai Shi had to use Fengling Yueying to finish him.

An enemy like this vessel of rot, which was essentially a blank slate of physical power to him, was a rare treat.

After suffering Bai Shi’s counterattack, the vessel of rot silently retreated.

Its unnaturally twisted arm quickly regenerated.

Once its body had recovered, the vessel of rot leaped back and forth in the air, looking for an opening.

Bai Shi crouched slightly, then shot upward, slamming directly into the airborne vessel’s chest. The withered body caved in deeply.

That was payback for the charge just now!