When the won left Atlas alone, his mind was still aware, but he couldn't move his body due to exhaustion, causing him to activate Void Realm and appear in the destroyed city as howls rang out.
'Looks like I'm not injured in this world,' Read latest stories on empire
he thought while taking out his swords.
'Now, let's clear the level before the ladies heal .'
Following that, Atlas spotted the Void Ghouls rushing toward him while letting out a snarl, but he sidestepped the creature's attack before decapitating with a quick swing of Nightblade as he cast Void Wave.
The azure wave shot out and struck the surrounding monsters, sending them back to the realm. Atlas continued fighting without a break and kept pushing himself until he ran out of mana.
He jolted awake in the real world, the sharp clarity of consciousness bringing a rush of mories—his left eye was gone. A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he tried to sit up, but the searing pain from missing muscle and fresh scars surged through his body like fire.
''Ahhh, damn it,'' Atlas grimaced, forcing himself upright despite the agony. Panic swelled in his chest as he thought, '
Why isn't Regeneration working?!'
Once he was upright, the pain was worse, but he pushed it to the side while standing up to grit his teeth. Atlas shuffled toward the window and opened it only to feel the cold air hit his body.
''That felt good,'' he muttered while watching the trees sway in the distance due to the monsters.
Atlas pulled up the Level Four monster total to see how many Void Ghouls he had killed during his run.
[Void Ghoul – 12981/20000]
[Void Savage Ghoul - 5313/10000]
[Void Brute Ghoul - 48/5000]
[----]
'Nearly done,'
Atlas mused before walking onto the balcony and sitting in the comfortable chair.
'I can't sense Nulia or Athyst, anyone.'
As he sat there, the door suddenly crashed open, and Grishna stord out, her expression frantic until her eyes landed on him. Seeing him sitting upright brought an instant wave of relief to her face. She sighed heavily, her shoulders relaxing.
"What are you doing out here?" she scolded gently, rushing over. "It's cold, and you're only going to make yourself worse." Her voice held a mix of concern and frustration as she knelt beside him, her eyes scanning his injuries.
She started fussing over Atlas, which made him smile as he spoke in a strained voice, ''I'm fine, Grish. It hurts sotis, but I'll get better.''
''Oh, shut up, will you?''Grishna teased, her tone light but affectionate.
''We've all agreed to help you, just like you've done for us. Co inside and let little ol' pamper you so more.'' She gently took his arm, guiding him back toward the warmth of the house.
Atlas chuckled despite the pain, wincing as they passed a mirror. His reflection caught his eye, and the grim reality hit him again. ''My face is destroyed... one side is practically gone,'' he muttered, his voice heavy with frustration.
Grishna turned to him with a soft, reassuring smile. ''You're still handso to if that helps,'' she said sincerely, her eyes locking with his. ''And I doubt the others feel any differently. Now stop fussing and get in bed before your muscles give out.''
He nodded before collapsing into bed, saying, ''Have Athyst and Nulia gone already?''
''Yes, they left a couple of hours ago,'' Grishna answered with a smile. ''Now get so rest; I will make us so tea.''
Just as the Orc woman walked out of the room, a pain struck him, but this wasn't any normal pain. It was one in his very core, 'Ahhh shit, what is happening now?' he thought as his mind clouded.
[Chaos Spirit Infection: Chaos has damaged more than your body - A spirit mage is needed to heal you]
When Atlas read that, his body shut down, but before his mind could, he activated Void Realm and appeared in the city. He looked around as the howls rang out, causing him to mutter with a smile, ''Well, at least I can train in here while waiting to be healed.''
Following that, he started battling the Void Ghouls, and he found it even easier to kill them. Nightblade and Stormforge tore through the monsters' ranks thanks to Void Infusion. While fighting, a notification popped up, which took him by surprise.
[Goddess Luxia has remade your Void Form so you can wield it, but once you do it will damage your spirit even more. "You better not die, boy! Consider this my apology for everything you've been through," she warned, her voice carrying power and a strange sense of care.]
Once Atlas read that, he started killing even more Ghouls and Savages, causing them to vanish into the Void Realm. He fought for hours until returning to the real world, where Estelle was casting Healing Light on him.
He smiled faintly before whispering, ''We need to find a spirit mage to heal , but I have sothing that can help.''
The three won exchanged glances, their expressions of concern and determination. He quickly sent a ssage to Athyst, hoping for a prompt reply. When several monts passed in silence, he frowned and asked, ''They went after the Frost Plant, right?''
***
While Atlas recovered in the Otherworld, Nulia and Athyst rushed across the Northern Wastes. Whenever the two encountered any monsters, the Frostbear woman tore them apart in a wild frenzy, causing Athyst to be wary of her.
Nulia sensed this and stood on two feet, which brought her face to face with the phoenix woman whose purple eyes blazed with determination to help Atlas. She shook her head and spoke, ''I didn't an to hurt him, Little Bird; I would die for him!''
''I know you would,'' Athyst replied, her voice soft yet resolute. ''But it'll take ti for things to return to normal, even though Atlas doesn't care about appearances.''
Nulia nodded in quiet agreent, her gaze thoughtful. As they pressed on, the air grew colder, and soon, they found themselves at the entrance to a narrow mountain pass. That was casting long shadows that made the pair uneasy.
Athyst exchanged a glance with Nulia, worry flickering in her eyes. ''This doesn't feel right,'' she muttered, her hand instinctively moving toward her weapon. ''We need to be careful from here on.''
''I agree,'' the Frostbear woman replied. ''I can feel a powerful monster resides in here.''
Athyst and Nulia cautiously entered the mountain pass, their footsteps echoing against the stone walls. They walked silently for ten minutes, the cold air biting at their skin as the towering cliffs lood above them.
Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. The familiar world behind them seed to vanish, replaced by an oppressive darkness that clung to everything. A thick fog rolled in, and eerie growls reverberated off the walls, bouncing back and forth in a haunting symphony.
The sound of unseen monsters lurked in every corner, making the hairs on their necks stand up. Sothing lunged out of the shadows as they took a corner, but Nulia swiped the monster and tore it in half.
Athyst saw a strange-looking monkey crash to the ground before she started casting Cosmic Blasts into the attackers. Her purple magic lit up the world as Nulia let out an earth-shaking roar and destroyed every creature that got close.
The battle continued until the monsters stopped appearing, causing Athyst to land while dismissing her wings. Nulia returned to her humanoid form as she spoke, ''The Frost Plant should be at the end of this mountain pass.''
"Okay, let's get going and find it so we can return to the Otherworld," the Phoenix woman comnted.
Following that, the won exited the mount pass after fighting more monsters, and when they reappeared, it was a long pathway that hugged the cliffside, causing Athyst to look over the side only to see the rough see.
Thanks to her eyes, she could see the creatures lurking in the deep water. There were octopus-looking monsters clinging to the side of the mountain, waiting for prey to pass by, which made her shiver.
"We better not fall in there, Nulia. There are things below the waves waiting for sothing to eat," she inford the other woman.
The Frostbear woman gulped before the two started carefully walking the pathway. Howls and screams rang out, causing Athyst to spin around as a horde of monkey monsters appeared.
As one of them lunged forward, it rushed toward them, and Athyst quickly unleashed her Cosmic Blast. The bright sphere erupted from her hands, illuminating the dark pass as it soared through the air.
With a roar, the blast collided with the nearest creature, sending it tumbling backward off the cliff's edge. The monster scread as it plumted into the churning sea below, followed by another beast caught in the shockwave.
After that, the two continued as Athyst used her magic to hold the creatures back while Nulia created an Earth Wall that knocked more into the sea below.
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