NOVEL NEXT Chapter 425: Stand tall and face your tribulation
The demons writhed, but Damon's chains twisted like drill heads, shredding their insides to pulp. With a single clenched fist, he commanded the blood spears to erupt in bursts of golden-crimson light. The forest shook with the simultaneous explosions, and when the dust settled, nothing remained of the nine but scattered gore and twitching limbs.
Damon exhaled slowly, lowering his arm. His eyes widened in shock. Unlike the abyssal monsters, the demons were completely susceptible to his poisonous blood, and they folded in no time. This was not the shocking part.
The shocking part was the control he had over blood manipulation and poison manipulation. Both had increased significantly. He had only been thinking about his bloodline instability and, in general, his body's fucked up condition.
But now he realized that the bloodline purification, or whatever the hell that happened to him, actually managed to give him a huge power boost in a silent way. He wanted to see what other things he had gained in the process, but that could wait. First things first.
He tossed more healing potions and recovery potions to the group and personally went over to Erin to assist with her healing.
Damon crouched beside the serpent, observing her. Her scales were fractured, her breathing ragged, blood still leaking from deep gouges. The sight made his jaw tighten. For Erin to be reduced to this state… whatever had struck her was not an ordinary demon.
"My Lord… he will come back… I have injured him, but he will be back… My Lord… I need to protect my Lord." Erin was continuously muttering, even though she was on the verge of losing her consciousness. She was forcing herself to heal faster, to recover sooner, just to make sure that she could fight another demon.
Damon sighed. "Idiot. You're already half-dead, and you're still worrying about me?"
It looked like Erin heard him loud and clear. "My Lord, your aura is leaking out. It will continue to attract stronger demons. They are all coming for you, my Lord. I need to protect you at all costs. I cannot allow these mongrels to disturb your evolution."
Damon instantly understood. These demons were probably attracted to whatever happened after he had consumed the Blood Coral. In all honesty, he hadn't expected the Blood Coral to be this efficient. Otherwise, perhaps he would have consumed it in a more secure location. Not that there was any such location.
In fact, this was just the beginning of his problems. With Blood Reign out of commission and recovering, and this sudden boost in purity, perhaps not all of his bloodline was hidden any longer. At this rate, every second spent here was only bringing him closer to getting exposed. He needed to wake Blood Reign up immediately.
On the off chance that the other one could help him, Damon tried asking the snake item spirit. "Can you hide my bloodline?"
Damon waited for a moment, but there was no response. Fuck. He inwardly cursed the useless item spirit and was about to move on when the indifferent voice sounded in his mind.
"There is no need. You cannot hide forever. You are a mere imitation who possesses only a fraction of an ancient god's bloodline. There is no need for you to hide. You should stand tall and face your tribulation. If you survive, then you will become all the more powerful for it. If you fail, then that is your fate."
Damon's face twitched. "Let Jesus take the wheel. Sure. Why not? Right after I roll over and let Aiden fuck me again!" He sneered and ignored the woman's condescending remark.
Damon silently helped Erin drink one health potion after another until he could finally see her flesh knitting together and her scales regaining their lustre. Ellora also cast some sort of healing skill on her.
After a while, everyone somewhat recovered, except for Erin, who fell into a deep sleep. "Thank you for guarding me." Damon sincerely thanked the group.
Kate lowered her staff and let out a shaky breath, exhaustion etched across her face. She didn't look directly at Damon but allowed the faintest smile to slip through before she leaned against Mark's massive frame. Mark simply grunted in response, folding his arms.
They only did what Damon would have done for them, and there was no need for any gratitude or apology between them.
Kaelthorn and Ellora both bowed and nodded. Riven was missing, and it looked like he was knocked out somewhere.
Damon smiled. "Why don't you guys take a break for now? I am here, and I got this. You can join me after you rest for a while." Even though everyone's wounds were now healed, the mental exhaustion part was still there, and it mattered a lot. There was no need to push anyone any more than he already had.
Kaelthorn and Ellora obeyed the order without saying anything, but Mark and Kate firmly shook their heads. "I will be right here. I am not going anywhere." Mark grumbled and walked away to find another rock to lie down on.
"I am not logging out either. I am not leaving you alone." Kate also declared.
Damon kissed her forehead and hugged her. Kate then followed Mark's lead and lay down on another spot, taking a small shut-eye break.
Damon also walked over and exchanged a few words with the merpeople, asking them to rest as well. Finally, he sat down and closed his eyes. However, he did not go to sleep or meditate. Instead, this time, he focused on his senses.
He wanted to see just how much his primordial senses had improved after the blood coral.
Damon's eyes slid shut, and the world bled away into sensation. His heartbeat slowed as his primordial senses expanded. At first, it was not noticeable. It was the usual cacophony of the world noises, of anything and everything that was happening around him.
It was way too much for his brain to handle, and Damon was very close to shutting it down. But then, something clicked. Like identifying a needle in a haystack, he was able to pick out the strong demonic aura in the distance.