Salvos (A Monster Evolution LitRPG)

559. The World Of His Mind Part Four

Belphegor watched as the army of corruption bore down on him. Corrupted creatures by the thousands— no, there were over ten thousand of them at the very least. They swarmed him, and the end of the world inched closer.

The wall of infinite corruption was slow. It barely ever moved, even if Belphegor refused to fight the corruption. If he just stood there and watched as the world was corrupted around him, maybe he could see the approach over time.

But as long as he fought back against the corrupted creatures forming in the second layer, the corruption’s approach would stall. He could essentially stop the end of the world… for just a little bit.

And yet, an army of corruption converged on him right now. Where did they come from? How did they get behind him?

There was only a single explanation— Belphegor must have been sloppy. 

When he charged back down to the second layer, he was so focused on returning to the end of the world, he must not have been as thorough in clearing the corruption as he thought. He had sent his army of [Gargoyles] out to deal with any residual corruption he missed. But… he realized now that he didn’t sense any of them any longer.

They had perished. And the corruption was allowed to fester and spread.

The corruption only bred corruption. The fact that a single Corrupted Hellspace managed to slip past him had brought forth this army, and now he had to face it all alone.

Alone? Wait… wasn’t there someone with him just a moment ago— 

And the Corrupted Hellspace screeched. It lashed out with a dozen tendrils as Corrupted Gargoyles, Corrupted Netherstones, and Corrupted Netherstructures swarmed around it. Belphegor snapped back into reality as he took a step back. He didn’t budge any further, knowing that the end of the world would have consumed him.

Instead, he just clapped his hands together as he yelled.

“[Worldbreaker]!”

And a shockwave exploded from where he stood. It ripped across the landscape, shredding the ground open. The Corrupted Hellspace reeled as its tendrils were obliterated from the blast. The nearby corrupted creatures were completely torn apart— the corruption wreathing them peeling back and melting away like ice in a fiery explosion.

It shook the world. Even the wall of infinite corruption halted for just a single moment, before resuming its approach. The nearby bubbles of non-existence were knocked back, and the storm of the void was displaced ever-so-slightly

And Belphegor charged. He ran straight into the army of corruption as he bellowed a war cry. He had faced down many countless corrupted creatures before. A few thousand more was nothing to him. He raised his hands as the broken ground began to shift, and the rubble gave birth to his [Gargoyles].

I watched as Belphegor crashed into the Corrupted Hellspace. He roared, tearing through the regenerating layers of corruption protecting its core. It tried to throw him off, but he was like an unstoppable force. The two of them tumbled through the air as the ground continued to crumble.

[Gargoyles] emerged from the ground— being created before my very eyes. These Primeval Demons were strong and sturdy. But against the swarm of corrupted creatures converging, they barely even put up a fight.

The [Gargoyles] were ripped apart like they were nothing. The moment they came to life, they were killed. They only served as a distraction. They were there so Belphegor could deal with the Corrupted Hellspace first.But even then, they weren’t very effective in serving their purpose. 

I looked on as a dozen Corrupted Netherstructures hovered over Belphegor’s back. He didn’t even glance at them— he continued pummeling into the Corrupted Hellspace. However, they took notice of him, and they took action.

The Corrupted Netherstructures sent down tendrils of corruption. The attack struck Belphegor, grazing his skin. He winced, but he wasn’t hurt. He finally raised his head, distracted for a moment. And that was when the Corrupted Hellspace moved. There was a ripple in space— almost like a tear.

And whatever it was, it sent Belphegor flying off into the distance. He nearly flew straight into the end of the world, but he caught himself mid-way through, twisting in the air and landing just before the wall of infinite corruption. He raised his head to face the Corrupted Netherstructures. Then he looked down as a group of Corrupted Gargoyles barreled towards him.

Belphegor dug his hands into the earth, before pulling up. My eyes widened as the ground lifted like a carpet, and he swung it down, knocking the Corrupted Gargoyles in the air. And he took a step forward, creating a javelin from the rocks at his feet. With a single thrust, he hurled the projectile straight into the closest airborne Corrupted Gargoyle.

And the javelin exploded into a thousand small spikes. The spikes shot out in every direction, cutting down the Corrupted Gargoyles and Corrupted Netherstructures with ease. I winced as a handful of the shrapnel flew my way. But they seemed to just phase through my Grand Skill.

[The World Of My Mind] was not just like my [Fragmented Pocket Space]. It was even better. It functioned like a little mini world. And with it, I could phase between the planes— or even better, phase out of existence while still seeing everything that happened around me. 

I sighed in relief. I was safe. But Belphegor wasn’t. I narrowed my eyes as he was swarmed from behind by the corruption. A Corrupted Hellspace circled around him, and a group of Corrupted Netherstructures were distracting him. There were Corrupted Netherstones— and even Corrupted Rocks— buzzing around as well, but he ignored them.

Belphegor didn’t even give the weaker corrupted creatures a moment’s glance. He roared as he charged straight through Corrupted Netherstructure after Corrupted Netherstructure, heading straight for the Corrupted Hellspace. Even though he was alone and outmatched, he was still… winning?

Well, he was putting up a fight at the very least. But I was afraid that wasn’t going to last long. After all…

I glanced back towards the end of the world. Right before the wall of corruption, a rift was forming. A brand new Corrupted Hellspace was being birthed. And here, from [The World Of My Mind], I could see ripples in space beginning to form. Even more Corrupted Hellspace could be created soon.

Belphegor wouldn’t be able to fend them off all alone. I had to help him. He couldn’t die. Because… I still needed to know what happened with my dad!

I took in a deep breath as I considered my options. Other than [The World Of My Mind], I had no other Grand Skill currently available except for [Claw Of Corruption]. And I didn’t even know what it did. 

I pursed my lip as the nearby rift twisted, being painted in the corruption. 

There was another option— another way I could potentially help. And it was…

[Title Available]

After surviving the bubbles of non-existence, I had been given a brand new Title. Of course, I had plenty of Titles to choose from. Those that I had not picked long ago— they were still available for me. But I knew that I had a brand new Title— or maybe even multiple Titles— for me to choose from now.

And it could potentially help me save Belphegor here. While I couldn’t fight off the army for him, I could just grab him and we could escape into my reality space. 

I closed my eyes as I focused on the available Titles.

Title for Great Feats:

Requirements for one Title have been met!

“What is it?”

I waited. I listened as the words echoed in my mind. And my eyes snapped wide open.

Titles:

(S̶̛̼̗̅ecė̶̺̜͕ly’s S̶̛̼̗̅ė̶̺̜͕ntǐ̶̬nĕ̷̪ͅͅl̵̨̦̗͗̔̃)

You have -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝-̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ against a myriad of -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝-̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ both from the outside and from within! Whether it be a -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ that threatens to kill hundreds of millions, or an invasive -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ of -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ that came from far away, you have -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝-̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝-̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝

+50 to [Vitality]

+50 to [Strength]

+50 to [Endurance]

+50 to [Wisdom]

+50 to [Agility]

Bonuses:

*You cannot be harmed by the corruption of the world!

*You are more resilient to magical attacks!

*Your Grand Skills’ cooldown are reduced by 50%!

“Huh.”

I… could not be harmed by the corruption? That wasn’t right— didn’t that mean I was completely invulnerable to the attacks of corrupted creatures? I frowned, watching as Belphegor grabbed the Corrupted Hellspace by its tendrils, unaffected by the flakes of corruption digging deep into him.

No— I could still be hurt by the corruption. As long as it was a physical attack or something else. But the corruption itself couldn’t harm me if I took this Title. I would still be crushed by a single tendril swung down by the Corrupted Hellspace, but that blast of corruption that had enveloped me earlier wouldn’t have hurt me. It would no longer corrupt me.

With this Title, I would be able to help out Belphegor. I might even get brand new Title Skills that could aid me against this corrupted army. There was almost no detraction to it. Well, none except for one very clear problem.

I closed my eyes, focusing on the Title once more. It was the exact same Title I currently had, but… corrupted. 

That was why I would be immune to the corruption. It wasn’t because I had mastered my divinity, or I had fought off the corruption. It was because I, myself, would become corrupted. 

It was a difficult decision to make. And each passing moment I remained here in [The World Of My Mind], I knew that the opportune moment for me to act would pass soon. When the other Corrupted Hellspaces make their appearance, I wouldn’t be able to intervene any longer.

So, perhaps foolishly, I made my decision.

Title Lost!

(Secely’s—