Apocalypse Healer - Path of Death-Chapter 41B2 - Request

A week passed, but they did not find Basti or William. It was almost as if they had never existed, as if the Earthen Union had swallowed his friends whole. He searched for them in several settlements, but while William was a familiar name, no one matching his friend’s description could be found.

David’s search expanded to the Sanctuaries—they found three within a 100-kilometer radius of Ashville—but still, no one knew of William or Basti. Even their families and friends were nowhere to be found.

While Maja acted like everything was fine, as if they would find his friends soon, David knew better. She appeared confident on the outside, trying hard not to extinguish his hope, but the look in her eyes told him everything he needed to know.

They were probably dead.

He had been half-certain they were alive and thriving, but maybe he had been wrong. Maybe his friends had been caught by surprise, killed by the disasters brought by the Integration. Or perhaps the Infected had caught them, and without a Cleric to remove the infection, they didn’t stand a chance. The possibilities were endless, yet David didn’t want to acknowledge them. Were they really dead? Nothing pointed to their survival—no reason to believe they were alive. However, there was also no evidence of their deaths.

Should he ask the Pantheon? Request a mission at the Familia branches in the Sanctuaries to find out if they were still alive?

Since the gods were watching them—that much had already been confirmed by their constant interference—David might as well ask them. Why shouldn’t he? Completing a few Familia missions for a transcendent being in exchange for putting an end to his worries was worth it. He considered offering the Pantheon a helping hand to receive information about the well-being and whereabouts of the people he held dear. The gods might ask for a lot in return, but David was up for the task.

He immediately submitted his request at one of the Familia branches they had discovered after they gained entry. That, as it turned out, was much easier than expected. They flashed their ID slates, and the Protectors let them inside. It was a good thing that Maja had obtained an ID slate at the Familia in the Dwarven Sanctuary. She was officially registered at the Familia, making things a lot easier for both of them.

David considered leaving the Sanctuary after that but decided against it when an assistant of the Familia approached him with a response to his request. One of the gods offered to answer his question. In exchange, he was to stay in the Sanctuary and complete a few culling missions. And that was exactly what he did.

David accepted immediately and remained in the Sanctuary with Maja, relieved that everything had turned out better than expected. He hadn’t expected the culling missions to be easy, yet the odds turned in his favor. He was one step closer to finding his family and friends. How could he not be relieved?

Not everything was great, though. The assistant may have offered them generous compensation for solving their monster problem, which was odd, as being paid twice for the same task was uncommon, but that turned out to be the least of their concerns.

The real problem with the culling missions wasn’t the strength of their enemies but their sheer numbers.

David had no idea how someone could mess up this badly, but the Sanctuaries had failed to discover Rifts of Witheria Ants—more than a dozen colonies, each with over a thousand workers the size of large dogs. Despite being the weakest, the Witheria Ant Workers were still deadly. A single bite, and the body would corrode within hours. Even a scratch was enough to kill seasoned Protectors if they weren’t well-prepared—yet there were more than ten thousand of them.

The only advantage was that the Sanctuary didn’t leave all the work to David and Maja. Even the transcendent being didn’t believe they were strong enough to handle everything alone. Dozens of Protectors and natives combined their forces to strike and eliminate the Witheria Ant Colonies.

It took days and pushed David beyond his limits, but they succeeded. The colonies were destroyed, and the region was saved. But the missions did not end. It was only the beginning. Yet David accepted them all, hoping each one would be the last.

Even as the next mission—and the one after that—failed to be the final one, he never complained. There was no reason to. Initially, he had taken on the missions to receive answers, but since the Familia paid him and Maja generously, there was no reason to refuse.

For three reasons.

First, they trained relentlessly, using the combat experience to hone their skills and teamwork. Maja was in dire need of intense battle experience, and these missions certainly granted that. As they pushed their bodies, minds, and souls to the limit, they also amassed a small fortune in currency slates.

Second, the benefits granted from the Enlightenment Orb—bestowing them with a trace of enlightenment depending on their contributions in these hellish missions—turned out to be more important than David had anticipated. His Skills had been leveling much slower than before. The Blessing of the World had faded, leaving him with scraps to come by. Until the Enlightenment Orb rewarded him with a tremendous surge of experience. It was crucial, especially for the Skills he rarely used—ones that were useful but underdeveloped due to their lack of variety.

Third, every mission pushed him closer to the truth. David was certain his request would be answered soon.

This will be the last mission, he declared, convinced it truly was.

He leaped atop a massive lizard, conjuring five [Blood Aegis] in quick succession. The monster’s head snapped toward him, maw wide open. The first shield cracked as the lizard’s razor-sharp teeth—resembling longswords—pierced it, but David stared calmly at the massive beast.

"You're in my way," he muttered, pulling his hands together as a cacophony of cracks resounded. His wrists and hands cracked and deformed, but David remained utterly silent as white particles gathered in his right hand while black particles coalesced in his left.

He gathered the particles in his hands, forming thin black and white streams. It took only a moment to will the streams together. They intertwined and grew, expanding until a black-white sphere formed between his hands, yet they never merged. The black thread ground against the white thread, seemingly attempting to assimilate into one, but it never came to be.

The lizard roared, but to David, it was just a whisper tingling in his ears. The Blood in his Source and Blood Storages drained rapidly, leaving only traces as he unleashed [Primeval Pulse]. He barely succeeded in activating the Advanced Skill, forming its weakest form, yet David smiled at his achievement. It had not been an easy feat—breaking his wrist and hand, damaging his Relic—but if that was what it took… so be it.

His hands whipped toward the lizard’s head, and he watched the creature spin around. There was no sign of the crimson shields, but David was not worried. He smiled as the lizard shot toward him, its wide-open maw closing in to shred him apart like its last victims. However, the sword-like fangs never got to taste his blood. The scenery around him changed suddenly, and he appeared above the lizard.

"Thanks, Maja," he said inwardly, blocking out the sickening crunch his right arm made as he unleashed the torrent of power restrained in his hands.

The black-white sphere whistled through the air. However, all David saw was a flash—glistening pristine white and pitch black. He had expected as much. The attack was fast. Too fast, even for him to see with enhanced vision and modified eyes.

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His gaze followed the vibrant trail until it struck the lizard. There was a hole in its head—clean through—bringing a smile to David’s face. The corner of his lip curled upward as a pained screech rang out. It felt like time slowed, minutes must have passed—or maybe only a second or two—when the lizard collapsed, and a notification popped up.

[You have defeated Sworas Lizard (Elite).]

One of the monsters a dozen Protectors failed to eliminate had died to a single attack. Just like that. David snickered, savoring the victory. The cost of casting [Primeval Pulse] didn’t matter—not for now. So what if it drained his Blood Storages and most of his Source? The lizard was dead, and he had succeeded in unleashing his Advanced Skill’s power, even if it wasn’t at its full potential.

His euphoria was cut short. David was falling from a great height, forcing him to conjure a crimson shield beneath him.

At the same time, a second lizard leaped at him. But David only looked at the lizard.

"That's not what I call a quick kill, Maja." He smiled at the massive creature but focused on the golden swirl forming above it.

The swirl expanded in an instant. Then, a familiar, incredibly dense ore deposit plummeted from the sky.

David watched in amusement as the truck-sized ore landed on the lizard leaping at him, pulling it to the ground, crushing the monster’s spine with a crunch.

Something within him stirred, and he didn’t block it. He got pulled away from space and appeared beside Maja, who glared at him.

"I was just joking. Good job." He grinned, certain he looked like a fool as he pointed at a pack of smaller lizards with his mangled hands. "Now, deal with our little friends."

More ores the size of small cars rained down, the weight pressing hard on their skulls and spines, crushing them.

Even now, David couldn’t say for certain how heavy the dense ores were. But even the smallest deposits put tremendous strain on his spatial necklace.

If they can crush monsters capable of killing a dozen Protectors at the Peak of the Bronze Rank, David thought, grinning. The Sworas Lizards were deadlier than they were durable, but a single mistake would have been fatal. Yet one massive ore deposit was enough to kill them. No matter how David looked at it, that was exciting. Watching Maja crush her enemies with a wave was exhilarating!

She smiled from ear to ear, looking more confident than ever. As for what had happened with her, Lukas, and their friends, Maja didn’t seem to mind any longer. Maybe she had forgotten. Regardless, David was glad to work with her. Fighting alongside a Portaligist who could use her skills properly made everything much easier.

"Done." Maja turned to him and shuddered when her eyes traveled downward. He followed her gaze and recalled his mangled arm, casting [Greater Restoration].

Sickening crunches rang out as the bones in his right arm shifted. David felt the movements in his wrist and hand with clarity. It was painful—like slippery worms slithering through his lower arm. He shuddered and watched as his bones reassembled in an orderly fashion.

"You don’t have any bones, but you better heal as well," David muttered to the mangled Relic once his right arm was tended to. He cast [Greater Restoration], hoping he wouldn’t have to remove the Relic. Regrowing his arm was a valid option, but David had gotten used to it. The Relic was useful—though not as much as he had hoped when he first acquired it.

But it healed. Not as efficiently as his broken hand and wrist, but it did heal. The process was as fascinating as it was unexpected.

He had always assumed [Greater Restoration] worked only on living things. And while the Deryadus’ Arm was as close to being alive as an inanimate object could get, David was fairly certain it wasn’t.

Regardless, it worked. Deryadus’ Arm was back at full power, altered Blood running through its artificial Energy Pathways and veins. There were no kinks or lingering damage left behind by [Primeval Pulse]’s recoil.

Good, he thought, checking the newest notification. He dismissed it without a second thought. All he had acquired was some Skill proficiency—no level-up. But that was expected after the gains he had made from annihilating the Ant Colonies with Maja and the Protectors. Most of his Skills had improved significantly after that, and the mission rewards had been a pleasant surprise.

“Good thing you can heal,” Maja shuddered. “But why is your body breaking down that easily in the first place? Didn’t your Body stat reach the Superior Rank recently?”

David had to acknowledge she had a good point. His Classes had advanced to Silver II, and he had used his Attribute Points to push both his Body and Soul stats to greater heights. His Body had advanced to Superior, which, as expected, resulted in agonizing pain. David shuddered at the memory.

At least the metamorphosis hadn’t lasted long, he reminded himself, trying to calm his nerves as the memories resurfaced. Even after conjuring a dozen [Healing Sphere] and overclocking [Weave of Life] to regenerate his broken body as it metamorphosed, the pain had been unbearable. Still, he was a lot stronger than he used to be. Advancing to the Superior Rank had changed a lot, yet he couldn’t help but feel that continuing to use [Reinforce] on his Body and Energy Pathways in his free time had been worth it.

But no matter how much stronger—how much more durable—his body had become, even the lowest level of [Primeval Pulse] was enough to break his wrists and hands.

It was all his Soul’s fault, he reminded himself. While his Body had advanced easily to the Superior Rank, his Soul was only at the Peak of the Advanced Rank. Or it would have been, if not for the secondary effect of his Intent, Origin Attribute, which had triggered.

His Source had reached the Superior Rank, tripling the size of his Blood droplets. As for their potency, David was starting to have a hard time comparing Blood to ordinary energies like holy power. Blood was much stronger—by a significant margin. And that was exactly why [Primeval Pulse] had wrecked his arms.

Had he used mana or holy power instead, he was confident the outcome would have been different. But the sheer potency of his Blood and pure Origin Essence had turned even the weakest form of a powerful Advanced Skill into a deadly weapon.

I should learn to hold back, David grumbled inwardly. Or to heal faster.

One way or another, he needed more training.

And answers.

“Let’s go back. We’re done here.”

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***

The Familia receptionist returned their ID slates with a professional smile. “The Familia recognizes your contribution to the Sanctuary’s safety. Your achievements have been verified and forwarded.”

She placed a currency pouch and the Enlightenment Orb before them and gestured. “Please accept the Familia’s gratitude, sir.”

With a wave, David stored the currency pouch in his necklace and pressed his right hand against the Enlightenment Orb. It glowed suddenly, and a searing-hot stream of energy forcefully entered his palm. It traveled upward and didn’t stop until it reached his head. He closed his eyes, mentally preparing for what awaited him.

A headache crept up the back of his mind, but he disregarded it as a pleasant notification—something he had been waiting for a long time—flashed to life.

[Proficiency of Holy Touch reached 100%]

[Tier-1 XIX] → [Tier-1 XX]

[Holy Touch reached its limit. Initiate Tier progression.]

[Holy Touch: Tier-1 XX] → [Sacred Aura: Tier-2 I]

It was about time [Holy Touch] reached the second Tier. More information regarding the newest functions of his upgraded Skill entered his mind. However, David was barely given any time to savor the luxury of acquiring [Sacred Aura] when a small scroll materialized before him.

The receptionist raised her eyebrows and pulled back in a hurried manner. She didn’t seem to know anything about the scroll, but David could tell what it was about. He was certain.

The information he had requested.

Everything he wanted to know was written in the scroll.

David was certain.

He reached for the scroll and picked it up. However, he didn’t dare to open it right away. Somehow—though he couldn’t explain why—he hesitated.

There is no reason to hesitate, David reminded himself, breaking the silver-gleaming seal and unrolling the scroll.

His eyes raced over the information, and his face darkened.

“No…” he muttered, as the world around him dulled to gray.