Trope World - Volume 1 Chapter 51 To Juggle Chainsaws

A bolt of lightning flew across the black sky. As it passed, parts of the city were illuminated. In the dark a shadow with seven serpentine heads emerged. It hissed and lunged as the lightning bolt struck. Yellow rings of light flowed harmlessly off the hydra’s metallic scales. If it did any damage, it didn’t show. The hydra opened its maws and a metallic glow radiated from them. Silver light surrounded the hydra as it unleashed its breath attack. For dozens of meters around the hydra the ground changed. What was once dirt, the fallen structures of hives, or the praetorians caught in the coned breath attack had been turned into iron.

“I can still sense their life force. Is it being converted into metal qi?” Sebastian said. He was looking through a pair of white opera binoculars. We hold up in an auditorium while the battle commenced. I used my thousand eyes and one skill to look over the scene. The hydra wasted little time snatching up the bodies of one of the praetorians and consuming it. The poor creature was converted into power for the hydra almost immediately. The life force Sebastian sensed had been snuffed out.

“I don’t know much about hydras. I know even less about metal type monsters. Their weakness to fire is our only advantage.” I said.

“That lightning was a, good attempt. It was destined to fail. Steel is a good conductor of electricity. It looked like the hydra’s body worked as a like a lightning rod.” Arthur said.

“Your tea my lord.” Louis said and placed a bone china teacup on a saucer in my hand. I’d have preferred liquor. I sipped the tea and tossed my bow to the side. It wouldn’t do me much good against such a beast.

The creature was huge, it towered over buildings. It was at the nascent soul stage and could use a form of alchemy to break the universal law. Nothing could be created or destroyed only changed.

“Is it possible for that monster to create iron?” I asked.

“No, my lord that is impossible at its level. Though it is powerful we wouldn’t stand a chance if it was that strong.” James said.

“It is clever.” Sebastian said. If it can’t create something from nothing. Then it is changing matter. Somehow it is taking the elements around itself and turning them into iron.

“How does it do it?” I asked aloud.

“We can only guess my lord.” Louis said.

“Do you have a speculation?” Arthur asked. Did I? Just as the bodies were revealed to have changed, dust flies away from them.

“I believe it breaks matter down to an energy form and recombines them as iron. The dust from the breath attack is the excess materials that have formed other elements. Why hasn’t there been a nuclear explosion?” I asked.

“Every universe is different. Some have nuclear explosions, some don’t, and some have atomic destruction. This universe does have nuclear explosions. Which means, this monster has some method of preventing the nuclear reaction from taking place.” Sebastian said. I drained the rest of my tea. I’d have preferred coffee.

I tossed the rest of my tea on the ground and approached the window. A red aura wrapped around my body and I flexed. The window shattered along with the room and hive building. I grin spread across my face at the d.i.c.k move. I needed something to take the edge off.

I felt the presence of my servants behind me. They waited in the wings watching. Who knew what went through their inhuman minds? The building we had been in crumbled to the ground. This area had been evacuated. I was free to get as rough as I wanted. My hand wrapped around Lucifer and I pulled him from his sheath.

Lucifer absorbed the metal qi from the air running it through the cycle of creation and turning it into spirit energy. I had thought I’d reached the end of Lucifer’s evolution. That wasn’t the case. I could sense it growing stronger as time went by. Bathing in metal qi increased its strength even quicker. Just holding this weapon increased by BP by a factor of 15.

Personal BP 37.4Qa

I didn’t know how giant monsters fought. There was no manual or book that gave a rundown. I wasn’t certain of victory. That scared me, it made me careful. Once I committed, I couldn’t withdraw and try again. This fight had to be stacked in my favor.

Magic was stronger when its qi was already present. A water-based spell will always be stronger in a monsoon than during a sunny day. It will be infinitely stronger in a monsoon than in a desert. Over the ocean, or even a large lake that same magic can be even more powerful. That is a well-known fact. Yet, those with the strongest water magic aren’t the primal demons of the underwater city of Dragon Canyon. Everyone knows the strongest water magicians live upon the desert mountain of High Gur’la. It was the lack of water that bred creativity. The mages of Gur’la would destroy the primal demons of the Dragon Canyon.

Fire is not a plentiful element. When I use it, I always fork over my own mana. Only on rare occasions could I make use of the environment. This was one such occasion.

The Hydra lounged on four massive hive buildings. Its great heads wrapped around them as it slept. Dragon fire lit up the end of my blade compressed at the tip. I’ve grown since I’d last used wyrmling. I pointed my sword leaving a ball of flame behind aimed at a target. Then I moved my blade towards the next one leaving a glowing ball of flame behind each time.

The dragon me opened its eyes and roared. Volcanoes exploded within my source of mana. I moved as four dread beams made of fire qi shot through the hive. It happened in an instant. The energy contained within the fireballs were used up and the fire began to burn. The eyes of one of the hydra heads opened blinking sluggishly at the encroaching flame. I swung my blade leaving behind a dozen balls of flame targeting the monster.

A dozen dread beams struck the monster flowing over its scales scuffing them with suit. Otherwise the damage was superficial the beast wouldn’t be slain so easily. A high-pressured blast of green acid blasted through the area I’d formerly inhabited. It sliced through buildings melting away at what it didn’t slice through.

I flew around leaving behind fireballs to unleash their dread beams at the creature. Alone they were less effective than bee stings. Together they were a severe irritation. The battle wasn’t truly started yet. This was positioning.

The monster roared and continued to fire off blasts of pressurized acid and strike out against empty air. The hive buildings continued to burn filling the air with fire qi. The oxygen in this place was supplied by a series of vents. The fire would have plenty of oxygen to burn. The beast shook itself and hissed out. White light covered its body and wiped away the smudges on its scales. More dread beams struck it and the beams were deflected.

The heads moved around blasting their attacks hitting nothing. I changed tactics. Instead of targeting the monster, I aimed for the ceiling above it. Several dread beams fired hitting a few stalagmites above the creature. They fell bursting when they struck covering the hydra with dirt. Still the polishing technique it had cleared up any blemish to its scales.

I sheathed my sword and strung my bow. I unleashed a volley of eruption arrows and dashed to a new location. An explosion later the monster opened its mouths and within them glowed silver. This was it, the trump card it used against the Pretorian wasps.

I activated one against all in full surrounding myself with a powerful crimson demonic aura. Then I combined it with the darkness of nobody surrounding my body in a veil of darkness. I bent my knees and exploded from cover. The world zoomed past me, the sound barrier broke, and I continued to gain speed. My body wasn’t tough enough. I could feel it, the degradation that came with pushing my fragile body too far.

My foot hit a chunk of metal shooting me off track. I leapt and performed an aerial recovery but it came with a price. I lost two seconds and the breath attack was nearly fully charged. I couldn’t use magic and the full power of one against all at the same time. Oppressive blade was out, and I didn’t have many defensive moves. Fairy had a few defensive abilities, but I wasn’t at a level to use them. Besides that, metal out right destroyed wood. Endless peak activated granting me a much-needed boost to my defense. It was worthless against the breath attack coming in. My endurance was draining at 3x the normal rate. I pounded my foot in the ground and launched myself in the air faster than I could fly.

The world glowed silver as the hydra heads aimed for me. I cursed; they can sense me through the metal qi. The air was charged, it was some sort of electromagnetic radar. All seven heads fired filling the world with silver light. I shut down my techniques all except for endless peak. This attack was going to hit despite my speed. Earthen scales covered my body and endless peak grew those scales around me layering them upon each other until I couldn’t move. The breath attack hit like and the world went silver. The attack tore through my earthen scales as quickly as I made more.

I started coming to falling through the air. Something snatched me from the air, and I felt constriction all around my body. It was like getting sucked through a muscular tube. My finger twitched. A layer of earth vanished from my skin leaving me in a metal cocoon. The breath attack had nearly destroyed me. If it had hit me for just a second longer, I’d be dead.

Endless Peak lv100; +10,000CON

Earth Scales lv500; +5000CON

The metal cocoon softened around me as the acid in the hydra’s stomach did its work. It lazily tossed me around as the acids did their work.

This wasn’t my plan. I hadn’t expected to hit a rock and nearly die. I didn’t anticipate getting inside the monster. One against all and endless peak activated. Earth scales formed over my body in a layer far more effective than ever before. Endless Peak’s first ability was to multiply the effects of defensive skills. At level 100 it gained a second ability. The evolution of skills. My earth scales changed interlocking and expanding over my body.

Skill Changed Earth Scales has become Earth Armor

Earth Armor lv500; +10,000CON

Though the acids had little trouble dissolving raw iron. Rock was different. Earth becomes steel but acid is of the water element like blood. Earth destroys water. I activated 25% of One Against All. I punched the wall of the stomach. Soft spongey flesh ruptured. Blood poured out while acid mixed in and left the stomach. Cultivators didn’t need to breath.

I drew Lucifer and cut my way towards the monster’s core. Organs ruptured and exploded. Parts of the hydra turned black and died as blood flow stopped. The stomach sloshed as it crushed in on itself to spew the contents. I made my way to a massive artery and fought the current towards the heart. The monster’s blood pressure was dropping as I swam my way up stream.

“Let me show you a trick.” Gwen said. I stretched my hand out and she ejected a stream of seeds. They quickly sprouted and moved to seal up the lining of the monster’s stomach. Then they closed the artery.

“Won’t it just use its metal qi to destroy your plants?” I asked the green glowing orange haired fairy. She gave me an evil grin.

“Maybe if it was on the outside. These seeds sprouted in the arteries of a nascent soul stage monster. They’ll mutate and gain resistance to metal qi. Now on to the monster core.” Gwen yelled and flew in front of me. I could feel my inner dragon merging with my body. When I snagged the metal monster core the skill will change permanently.

Seconds later I fought my way into the heart chambers of the hydra. In the center of the beating muscle was the monster core. It glowed with silver light. I ducked behind a tumorous layer of muscle as a ghostly dragon peaked out of the core.

“That’s it’s nascent soul. If we want to take the core, we need to seal it. While its in here it will heal any injuries, the hydra sustains.” Gwen whispered then winked at me. Green qi started to flood the hydra’s bloodstream.

An air pocket shot through the hydra’s arteries and blasted a chunk out of the heart. The nascent soul roared as silver energy began to rapidly regenerate the heart. The nascent soul never left the monster core. I moved to the top of the heart and sliced through the artery. Then I kicked the heart below me with all my might. The organ shot down impacted the stomach and rolled as it continued to beat shooting blood everywhere. I was gone before the dragon left the heart.

With I quickly cut the bottom of the heart and and blasted through the organs. The heart fell further as I moved back into the heart. Oppression blade covered my blade as I stabbed it through the hydra’s hide. It was much easier to cut my way out than to cut my way in. Phantasmal hands ripped open the hole as the heart fell towards it. The hydra’s Nascent Soul flew at top speed back to it core to stop the heart’s fall.

I activated 50% of One Against All and made my way to the hydra’s sternum. I pushed myself against the bone firing myself off it and ramming my way into the heart. Just as the Nascent Soul returned to the monster core I ripped through the heart, grabbed the core, and shot out of the opening. I tossed it in my bag of holding before turning to the hydra. Its cultivation base quickly dropped from nascent soul stage back to core stage. Its power continued to drop. Without a monster core it was weakening drastically.

Hands made of flames rose from the ground and took hold of each of the hydra’s heads. They pulled in eight ways. Seven on the heads and one on the tail. The hydra’s shiny scales dulled and melted away as the hydra’s heads ripped away. I tossed the pieces in the air and raised my left hand to them. Atomic blast fired off scorching the air with flames. The attack blasted through the remains of the hydra turning its body into charcoal. The attack continued ripping through the hive and erupting on the surface.

I let out a breath feeling great. “Oh, master I’ve saved the best part of the hydra.” Gwen said in a sing song voice. She held a massive yellow sack in her hands. “This is the hydra’s egg sac. Their fertile. I bet they’d make an excellent addition to the sect.”

“Or we could make hydra custard from them and have desert. Its up to you my lord.” James said. A gleam of excitement appeared in the eldritch horror’s eyes. I stared at Gwen for a moment.

“Alright, you can take over the sect’s monster breeding program.” I said. Gwen’s eyes widened in shock and excitement. She let out an evil cackle dropping the mask completely. I coughed in my hand in warning.

“Sorry master, I’m excited about my role. I’ll be sure to make you an army of abominations you can be proud of.” It felt like I was juggling chainsaws. No matter my strength eventually they came down. I could either catch them and throw them back or dodge.

I reached into my bag and pulled out the monster core. The dragon within fought to escape to no avail. My wyrmling emerged from my body and swallowed up the monster core. The dragon circled my body and I felt myself merge into its flesh. It happened before I could react.

I was trapped in the mind of a hungry greedy dragon. It was perfect, a being stronger than any mortal infinite in intelligence. Then it blinked. It happened and I struck. I pulled away its source of mana and turned on the monster. We tugged at the well of mana, it learned quickly how to use mana, but I had experience. It blasted me with mana in sloppy colossal blasts. Bigger wasn’t always better. It was often the splinter that killed the lion.

I condensed my mana keeping it close and fired off dread beams shearing off pieces of the dragon. Each piece taken away grew my power. Before the dragon could adapt, it had only a quarter of my mana. By that point I’d changed tactics to quake. That which is hard doesn’t bend. The quaking waves tore the last of the dragon’s mana apart and its body turned silver. It revealed itself to be the silver hydra’s soul. It cried out in anguish as it crumbled to ash.

My eyes opened to a world covered in flames. I stood in the massive pawprints of my dragon spell.

Phantasmal Doa Skill Discovered: Dragon lv1; Mana Cost 1t; +500INT/WIS

Wyrmling skill deleted

I’d done it, I saved the underworld hive from the pure steel hydra. Hive buildings fell like dominoes. Those not on fire quickly fell under the force behind the Phantasmal Dao’s power. I thrust my right hand forward and watched as dragon spirits wrapped around my hand. They merged with my hand and an element I hadn’t encountered before emerged. This was the essence of dragon the first ability my new skill gifted me.

Even with wyrmling gone, I could still use fire. The territory of flame was still in my soul. Dragon essence flowed through the land drawing power from the flames and empowering them in return.

I created a loop of flame and tossed it up. Balls of flame appeared in my hand and fired through the rings. I dashed from left to right unleashing pillars of flame. Cupping my hands together dragon essence mixed with the fire in my hand charging up releasing a blast of yellow light. I pushed my hands forward unleashing a cone of the hottest flame I’ve ever unleashed. Pillars of bursting flames emerged among the cone burning everything in my path.

Dragon essence merged with my body pushing my magic energy up to the next level. Horns burst from my head, claws emerged from my hands, and a set of dragon wings emerged from my back. My magic energy was easily 50x that of my normal strength. Then my power dropped like a stone. The form vanished and my BP was cut to 25%.

It would take a bit of practice to get this power under control. I flew up through the hole I made earlier. My entourage of eldritch creatures followed behind. I spat out a mouthful of blood and continued to fly.