Chapter 165: Forces of Nature

Chapter 165: Forces of Nature

No luck? Vir asked as Cirayus approached. His eyes remained closed, his mind focused on the never-ending task of expanding his bodys prana-carrying capacity.

Nay. The Ash has shifted considerably since I was here last. Landmarks are missing, and strange new ones have taken their place. I know generally where we are, but pinpointing a location is another matter entirely, the giant replied, setting down two full waterskins and a sack full of wild edibles hed collected on his outing.

Would've been nice if we could've brought Maiya's Acira along, Vir grumbled.

Alas, Acira cannot survive here in the Ash. Demons have tried before. They become Ash dyed before long.

Ash dyed? Vir asked.

Corrupted by prana. They often gain great strength in the process, but lose their minds instead. Doomed to roam the Ash as feral beasts.

Would that have happened to me, if I didn't get a handle on things? Vir shuddered at the thought.

How goes your training, lad?

Slowly, Vir replied. It takes a lot longer to see gains now compared to when we arrived here.

Hah! Yknow, Ive mentored a lot of demons in my time. You just might be the most reckless of them all. With as much Ash prana as you have, its a wonder youre even walking.

Its been a week since we came here! Vir said, opening his eyes to stare at the demon. A field of empty Ash stretched on in all directions, without a single feature to color the landscape. Ive only just gotten to where my body doesnt hurt being at equilibrium with the ambient prana.

Vir had spent his waking hours meditating, pulling prana into his body to stretch his blood vessels. Until recently, hed maintained a supersaturated layer of blood near his skin, keeping the rest of his body at a prana deficit so he could use Talents without risk of overstressing.

But that was just a stopgap measure, and so hed worked on how much prana his blood could carry. If, at equilibrium, he had extra capacity, then he could safely use more prana to boost his attacks. Here in the Ash, his only limit was how much prana his blood could carry.

In his spare time, Vir had attempted to work on Prana Vision, though the staggering density that granted him power continued to stymie his eyes, forcing him to run with a minimum of prana to avoid blinding himself.

Aye, only a week. The stronger the reaction, the longer it takes to adapt to this realm. Ive accompanied demons whove had far less severe responses, and even they took weeks. Youre doing well, lad. More than well. You ought to be proud of your progress.Visit no(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience

I guess Vir grumbled.

Usually, I only see such advances when a demon does something reckless.

Vir looked sheepishly away.

So youve hurt yourself overtraining?

More like experimenting with concepts I knew nothing about. This was a long time ago, when I first learned I wasnt Prana Scorned.

Scorned Humans are blind. Theyve had millennia to advance, yet they remain blissfully unaware of not just one, but three affinities! Its a wonder theyre as strong as they are.

How strong, do you think? Demons vs Humans. Who would win?

War was the last thing Vir wanted, though given how much humans hated demons, if they ever did come into contact, he doubted there would be peace.

Humans. Without a doubt, Cirayus replied immediately.

I thought demons were stronger, though? Their magic seems more powerful, too.

Aye, this is true. The average demon is stronger than the average human, and our strongest demons are far stronger than the strongest humans. Weve also delved further into the secrets of prana than humans have.

Then

Numbers, lad. There are far more of them than there are of us. They breed like insects. It is difficult to overcome the advantage of size with individual strength alone.

Vir fell silent. Was that it? Or was there more to it? Hed have to judge for himself. How did they live? What did they eat? What was their culture like? The Demon Realm promised a whole new world to explore.

His desire to meet demons warred with his wish to grow stronger. As frustrating as it was that they were lost within the Ash, the more time he spent here, the more hed grow. Then again, the sooner he got out of the Ash, the sooner hed be able to speak to Maiya again. Possibly.

Were moving again? Vir asked, getting up.

Aye. Exceptions exist, but its too dangerous to linger in one place more than a few hours. Never understood how, but Ash Beasts will eventually start tailing us. Some can be dealt with simply. Others not so much. Id rather avoid that if we can.

Vir nodded, dusting the ubiquitous ash off his cloak. It helped that his clothing was mostly black, anyway. Anything that wasnt, like his backpack, was quickly dyed. It seemed like the fate of any colored item in this gray place.

It was among the deadliest beasts in the Ashen Realm, rumored to live only in its most prana-dense regions. Never did he expect one to venture so far to the periphery, and based on the giants expression, neither had Cirayus.

They watched as the beast descended rapidly, chasing some unseen prey.

Prey that had absolutely no chance of getting away.

Instead of slowing its descent as Vir thought it would, it crashed into the ground, the giant body crumbling into a million pieces.

Did it just kill itself!?

When Cirayus expression remained unchanged, Vir knew he was wrong. He peered deeper, leveraging both his sight and Prana Vision to see the truth of the matter.

Vir gasped, earning him a stern look from the four-armed demon.

The Wyrm hadnt crumbled. It had split.

Millions of tiny organisms swarmed around the Ash Beasts, tearing them apart, bite by tiny bite.

Flesh, bones, everything. Only a sea of blood remained when they were done with it, staining the ash crimson. Itd taken only seconds.

The pieces moved together, reconstituting into the awe-inspiring beast that boasted a Balar Rank with far too many zeroes.

Instead of ascending back to the air, it burrowed underground, using its constituent pieces to bore a cavern-sized hole at such an alarming rate, it sent reverberations through the ash.

Explosions of soot marked its path as it snaked underground, weaving its way ever slowly toward them.

Cirayus stiffened, grabbing hold of Vir, but then the Wyrm changed course, away from them. Silence returned moments later.

Only then did the demon sigh, wiping off the sweat that trickled down his face.

Didn't think wed see one of them out here. Never seen one so far from the core.

That was a Wyrm right?

Aye. If wed been any closer, wed be goners.

The records at the Pagan Order said they were some of the most dangerous beasts in the Ash. That was certainly scary, but are they truly that dangerous?

Cirayus gave him a horrified look. Lad, those beasts arent merely animals. Better to think of them as natural disasters. Like a tornado or an earthquake. If it notices you, you die. Simple as that. There is no outrunning a Wyrm. Once it marks you, it won't stop. Ever. Until you are dead.

Theres no killing them. To do so, you'd have to annihilate every one of their constituent pieces. And there is no hiding, either. The only way to survive is to avoid their notice. As you just witnessed, it consumed a thousand Ash Beasts in the span of seconds, each strong enough to end you with a mere glance. What chance do beings like us have?

Virs head reeled, tryingand failingto wrap his mind around the being hed just witnessed. Unlike the Prana Swarm in the Human Realm, this was the real deal. The obscene Balar Rank was fully justified. Even on the lower end, it was the deadliest beast hed ever laid eyes on.

No, I should correct myself, Cirayus said. I stand no chance.

Vir rolled his eyes. You hardly need to clarify. If you dont, I might as well be dust.

Yes, in your current state.

Vir frowned. What do you mean?

I mean that if Jalendras theories are accurate, that if you somehow unlock the full power of that, Cirayus said, pointing to Virs chest, then maybe. Just maybe youll be able to fight such beings on an even footing.

Virs thoughts froze. Fight? With a natural disaster?

He laughed. Impossible.

Perhaps Cirayus was being generous. But even so, Vir knew the only way he'd get there was by training and testing himself against difficult foes. Which gave him pause.

Cirayus... Why haven't we dueled yet? I'm sure I could learn so much by fighting against you.

The giant nodded slowly. Aye. In due time, lad. Thing is, demons fight differently from Ash Beasts. We use tactics and strategies Ash Beasts wouldn't. For now, my primary goal is to make you strong enough to fend for yourself here in the Ash. And here, you'll find no demons. Only beasts. There's a saying in the Demon Realm: Train as you Fight. But fear not. Duels are coming. The demon grinned. In fact, by the time we exit this realm, you'll be sick of fighting me.

Vir nodded, wondering when he'd get to fight his next Ash Beast. As it turned out, he wouldn't have to wait long to get his chance.