Nelson and the others looked at the hand that emerged from the void, clutching the staff-turned-spear.The hand stretched outwards, emerging from the void. Soon, an elbow region emerged, followed by a shoulder and and head. Then, the torso was visible and lastly, the legs came out from the void.The golden forcefield closed behind the new stranger, isolating Eric and Amy within.The eyes of everyone outside was one of horror and shock. This newcomer bore a likeness to the new stranger that came to attack them initially.This… is… cloning? He cloned himself?! As though one of him wasn't enough?! Nelson raged and lamented in his mind as he stared at the clone holding on to his spear.“It's a clone but it's just slightly stronger than us.” Matt confirmed with a stern expression. “It's most likely a Peak Awakened Grade 1 entity. It's within reach.” Matt added before materialising a white futuristic katana with a glowing blue laser edge.“Good.” Nelson said with a dark expression before o
Within the golden ethereal dome of energy, Eric had unleashed the “Divine Punishment” enchantment of the Divine Smite and his opponent had tanked it while not letting go of the weapon itself.Eric gritted his teeth and planned to morph the weapon into something that would make his enemy lose his grip on the weapon.Suddenly, the sound of metal groaning reached his ears causing him to pause in dread. No way. It can't be right? There's no way! Eric had a thought but he didn't think it was conceivable at all.A system screen abruptly popped up in front of him.[Divine Smite Durability Point: 19987/20000][Divine Smite Durability Point: 19235/20000][Divine Smite Durability Point: 18897/20000]In the span of three seconds, the durability of the Divine Smite went down by 1103 durability points. Eric's Divine Smite had sustained damage when it clashed with the other Divine Smite but it had fixed itself, just like any other item higher than the Mundane class, when it rested in Eric's invent
Eric watched with trepidation as the blackened hand of the man pulled a brightly glowing golden gemstone from Amy’s chest.It wasn't that he plunged his hands physically into her chest, rather, his skill allowed him to directly come in contact with all the essence of his target as well as all the various constituents within that target.It was putting your hands through a lake and pulling out whatever was inside. Basically, the heavier it was, the more valuable it seemed within the target.Amy was currently unconscious, held up by the man's grip on her neck and oblivious to whatever was going on.“Erica!” Eric called out to her twin, who swiftly responded.She came over and took Nelson from him while Eric ran forward insanely fast to take Amy from the hands of the man.The two other clones have been dispatched with one crumbling totally into decaying flesh and putrid blood and darkened pus-like substance while the other was totally obliterated and mauled by Maric's weapons and Matt's
Mr. Baker stretched his hands forward and encompassed the unconscious Amy in a forcefield bubble, quickly taking her away from the man’s presence. The man didn't bother stopping him because he had gotten what he wanted from her. Even if he wanted to stop them from taking her away, he might fail in doing so and it might prove fatal for him due to Eric's unstable state. “Is she alright?” Chuck came over and inspected her. Everyone also gathered around her in concern. Matt frowned his face and shook his head. “Although it's not Analysis, my Vital Vision is detecting an anomaly in her body. It's like a void or a vacuum in her essence-body.” Matt explained and deactivated his skill before adding succinctly. “Asides this, she's alive.” Erica pursed her lips, placing the back of her hand on her forehead. “She's… feverish. Dammit, what did that bastard do to her?” Erica cursed, an out-of-character behaviour because she was upset. “Two people should stay with Nelson and Amy while the
Both of them withdrew, leaving a distance of at least 25 metres between them, while panting and sweating profusely. ‘Two for the price of one. That's Karma for you, you bastard!’ Eric cursed internally before cracking a smile. “Abyssal Aura huh?” The man gauged the stone in his hands briefly before stowing it away in his inventory. After a moment's deliberation, he smiled and said; “Given the fact that it's from you, King Noel, it is utterly valuable. And Theft never lies, this is the heaviest skill you have and by the looks of it, you haven't even used it yet.” He then chuckled and rambled on, “I presume it's what makes you you and it is greater than the Samsara inheritance you possess. My mission here is complete, I even had some bonuses as well.” ‘Yeah, keep d*ck-riding yourself. Theft just got scammed by a higher skill, I'm the MC, you bastard. I'm Him! The Exclusive One!’ Eric chanted internally, his glee and happiness was immeasurable. Contrary to his feelings, his face w
Everyone was adrift above a massive glacier, despondent and drained of all emotions and strength. There was an active ocean current propelling the glacier towards an unknown direction. Amy was still asleep and Nelson’s condition had stabilised due to his self-regeneration but it was still far from optimal. “What do we do now?” Chuck asked with a serious tone, seeing that Eric was just staring at the horizon where Jasmine and the man left for about six hours. “Cut it out, Necromancer. Let him process his thoughts and talk at his own leisure.” Matt refuted Chuck and shook his head. ‘He’s probably regretting keeping that girl alive back then.’ Matt mused internally before shaking his head. Countless moments of silence passed and Eric finally stirred, clenching his fists. The first light of day was just appearing from the horizon, painting it with a tint of surreal orange hues. Erica stood up from her spot on the glacier and walked towards her brother in hopes to get through to him.
About two weeks had passed since the whole chaos of bounties ensued and the people now knew the consequences of their actions. The rewards of the bounties were automatically deducted from the one issuing the bounty, regardless of whether they had money or not. This has left many to be destitute in system currency and even many casually hunted. If one didn't know how to change appearance or hide from skills like Analysis and the likes, the hunted would not live a safe life. Following this development, as well, was the creation of several factions dedicated to bounty hunting and they have more or less ‘culled’ the useless bounties and claimed rewards for themselves, leaving the truly dangerous ones. Eric and co had finally reached land and it was a forest of some sorts, not too dense and not too sparse. They were currently residing in a cave, unsure of the next move they'll make. Amy and Nelson, especially Amy, were despondent about the fact that they lost something valuable that day
“How's the hunt?” Erica asked the remaining members of the cohort that just arrived into the cave. “Futile. There are almost no animals or game in these woods.” Matt responded with frustration as he dismissed his shotgun construct, causing it to dissipate in a digital glitch-like manner. “Yeah, the forest was quite peaceful asides the occasional chirping of crickets and you know, normal forest ambiance.” Chuck added succinctly as he sat on a small rock and heaved a breath of relief. Chuck and Matt had gone out to search for food for the rest of the cohort while Maric and Mr. Baker went out to confirm where they were. “Nothing like I've seen before Eric.” Mr. Baker shook his head and sat down as he began recounting his scouting experience alongside Maric. Apparently they had gotten to land after the glacier and ocean current brought them here. And they got to this place on a misty night at the edge of a rocky cliff. “The forest on this part is quite normal, if I do say so myself.