NOVEL WEB Chapter 30: Fungus
I cocked my head as the man shambled down the street. At first, I thought he was drunk but I somehow doubted people were getting fucked up at the end of the world. Or maybe that was what a reasonable person did. The problem was that he was still alive. I had killed a lot of the monsters nearby but there was no way I had killed them all. I was just about to step out when he passed in front of the moonlight. He was not ok. The right side of his face had vines growing out of it that connected to his right arm like some sort of fungal plant soldier. His shambling was due to his bones and limbs being twisted and broken. I resisted the urge to throw up as the thing shambled closer. I was just about to unleash Psionic Blast when I thought better of it. Wasn't this a perfect time for me to continue my practice? My psychic energy drained as I slowly formed it into a ball.
When I was ready I let the attack fly. I circulated my spiritual energy just in case the thing turned out to be stronger than I expected. The mental attack hit its mark and the thing just dropped. There was barely a trickle of energy into my dantian so I wasn't sure if I had killed it or not. I raised an eyebrow and slowly made my way toward it. Before I had crossed half the distance my blood ran cold as I caught a pair of humans nearly identical to the one I just killed. I took a step back only to find two more coming from a different side street. My thoughts raced as I tried to piece together what happened.
Was it some sort of scout? Like a dummy that was supposed to die to tell where the others were? If so did that mean the more I killed the more would come? How the fuck was I supposed to deal with it then? I took a breath as my heart raced. I just needed to break the situation down into steps. First I had to lead them away from the innocents. After that, I would have to deal with the group near here. Finally, I would need to kill whatever was guiding them. I took another breath and then an idea came to me. I unleashed the tao of adamance. My mental energy began to drain but it worked. All of the corpses turned toward me like hounds that had gotten the scent of prey. Guess that's my cue to move.
I backpedaled and directed my tao field toward them. The whole situation felt like something out of a freaky zombie movie. I found another four corpses before I was far enough that I felt comfortable fighting back. Thankfully I had managed to corral them into a single group so killing them was almost easy. Psionic Rain put an end to them and gave me a chance to plan. I took a short detour to let Christopher know that I was gone and they needed to be ready. After that, I began my search. The corpses were evenly spread out and in enough numbers that it didn't make any sense. I should have seen them earlier.
I hunted them for nearly an hour before finding where they came from—a half-buried sewer entrance which in retrospect probably should have been obvious. I activated Psychic Aegis and let the bubble shield wrap around me. Despite my new power I couldn't help but feel anxious. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and I slumped forward as if expecting someone or something to reach out and grab me. Nothing like that happened. I walked for what felt like an eternity before I came into what looked like a water treatment plant. My attention was immediately drawn to the massive fungal growth on the opposite side of the room. It looked a bit like an alien tree had dug itself into the wall. I wasn't sure where the thing had come from. Nor why the hell the System would create something like it.
Before I could decide what to I felt a sharp pain at the base of my skull. I spun around confused as to how something had gotten through my aegis. When I found nothing behind me my heart started to race. I pushed spiritual energy into the sigil for Psionic Rain but collapsed to one knee before the spell could activate. My vision swam as the most powerful mental attack I had ever faced slammed into me. The entire world inverted and I lost track of where I was. I couldn't feel my energy as panic spread through my body. I fought against myself to regain control as something entered my mind. It felt like a slimy tentacle was coiling itself around my consciousness. I screamed in fury and primal terror. I reached for my tao. First Lucidity, then adamance the combination forced the feeling back.
I alternated both Taos as I slowly returned to my body. When I opened my eyes I lay on the ground in the fetal position. Three fungal corpses pounded on my barrier, a barrier that had already begun to crack. Panic rapidly became fury as I activated Psychic Blast. The mental attack washed over the first monster I saw. My eyes widened as the mental attack was siphoned away toward the large fungal thing. In a panic, I activated Apportation beneath me. I fell into the portal just as Aegis fell apart. The sense of calm washed over me like a refreshing rain as I processed what was happening. The portal reopened and I stepped out a second later.
My mind raced to figure out a way to deal with my current situation. I formed my psychic energy into a small blade and sent it toward one of the trio. The attack barely made it halfway across the room before it was drained away by the mushroom. "Fuck me." Before I could come up with a new plan the trio rushed for me. I backpedaled and pushed the strand of lucidity in my palm. I attempted to form a sphere out of it like I did with my mental energy but nothing happened. I ducked a spear made out of a hardened vine just as a pulse of mental energy blasted out of the mushroom. My vision swam as my danger sense finally woke up.
I pushed spiritual energy into my right arm and left leg. I then used both to block two attacks. White hot pain shot through my body forcing me to bite down a scream. I pushed away from the trio and pushed spiritual energy into my arms the same way the bug queen had. I then added the tao of adamance. The three monsters rushed me and this time I met their charge. My danger sense warned me just as the largest of the trio aimed an overhead strike that would have shattered my spine. Acting completely on instinct I stepped back and into a spinning back fist that snapped the jaw off the closest monster.
Before I could celebrate the small victory I was forced to avoid another spear thrust. I ducked inside the guard of the largest one and aimed to jab into the center of its body. I then reached up and grabbed its head with both hands. As soon as I reached I unleashed Psychic Blast. The attack engulfed it before the mushroom had the chance to drain the energy. A surge of kill energy told me I had succeeded. I backed off as both of the remaining corpses writhed and transformed. They ripped their fallen brethren apart like alien scavengers. I didn't need my danger sense to tell me that letting this process finish was a bad idea. I rushed forward both hands raised and leaped onto the shoulders of the largest one. I wrapped both hands around it and unleashed a Psychic Blast from both hands. The twin attacks used the monster's head as a battleground. I held it for less than a minute before it collapsed and a fresh surge of energy filled me. Before I could reorient myself the mushroom in the corner unleashed another mental attack. This one was much weaker than the first and Intellect Fortress kicked in.
I leaped away from the monster and turned to face the third corpse. Who had transformed its arms into both a spear and an axe blade. The two weapons were connected to whip-like arms that flailed wildly. I pushed energy into Psionic Rain and then infused it with the strand of Adamance. The blades fell from the sky like heavenly judgment. The attack left no opportunity for the mushroom to steal its energy before it slammed into its target. As soon as the attack finished I rushed forward and slammed both fists into the center of its chest. A scream of danger forced me to retreat before I could unleash the 2nd stage of my attack.
I narrowly avoided the axe blade as it tore through the air. I took a minute to catch my breath as the corpse monster rushed me. My lungs pumped like bellows as I ducked beneath the creature's first attack and placed my palm against its chest. In the next second, I unleashed Psychic Blast in its beam form. The indigo light washed over it for a second before a pulse of mental agony flooded my body. My vision blurred as I backpedaled. Intellect Fortress drained a massive amount of spiritual energy. Before I could finish processing that attack I was forced to dodge the fungal spear tip. I wiped a bit of blood from my nose and pushed spiritual energy into Psionic Rain. The spell was once again empowered with the Strand of Adamance.
The blades fell as fresh pain exploded in my temples. It took me a second to realize that I hadn't been attacked. Instead, the pain came from overusing my tao. I grimaced as I mentally prepared myself to finish. It was then that the final surge of kill energy flooded my dantian. The pure bliss mixed with relief and was nearly enough to make me collapse to my knees. I fought against the darkness that crept in at the edges of my vision. I still had to deal with the actual fungus. I conjured a blade of psychic energy and shot it toward the thing but it didn't work. The attack was absorbed long before it got close enough. I searched my mind for an answer and groaned when one came to me.
I pushed spiritual energy into my hands and moved forward. I began ripping the fungus apart in a disgusting display of physical carnage. I wasn't sure if the spores would be able to infect me or if there was some other requirement. Either way, I activated Psychic Aegis and kept my mouth and nose covered. When I finally got the kill confirmation the adrenaline from the battle had long faded and I was just tired. I half walked and half limped out of the tunnel. I walked until I found an empty gas station and finally let the darkness claim me.
I woke up sometime later to a throbbing headache. My muscles throbbed angrily and I was incredibly thirsty. I pat my body down to make sure there were no vines or mushrooms or other unholy abominations growing out of me. I took a deep breath and calmed myself down before taking stock of my situation. The sun wasn't up yet so I shouldn't have been out for too long. I passed a mental eye over my channels and dantian and smiled. I had gained a level from the battle. I put my free points into agility and shut the menu. I hadn't gotten any new titles for the victory so the monster wasn't special which kind of sucked but it was good practice. I wasn't the only person that could use mental attacks so I needed to make sure I had ways to deal with monsters that were either immune or had high defenses. Or find a way to overpower any defense.
I made a mental note to keep my eye out for another one of those creatures. The neighborhood around me was peaceful so I figured it was time to return to my new citizens. My head was pounding which meant I wasn't in the mood to use any of my energy. It took me around an hour to run back to the warehouse, none of the fungal corpses were around which only made my anxiety rise. I found Christopher and a group of ten guards standing out front.
"We were a bit worried when you hadn't returned. Did you deal with whatever it was?" He asked as I slowed to a stop.
"Yeah, though we should get out of here as soon as we can. I don't know if there are any more in the area and it's a bit worrisome. Do you all need anything before we set out?"
He shook his head. "We should be ready to set out in an hour or so once everyone is awake. I think we should leave around sunrise?"
I checked the horizon and slowly nodded. It was hard to know for sure but I figured that should be within the next hour or two. "Yeah, I am going to get some cultivating in. Let me know if you need anything." I left the group to finish their problems and found a quiet corner. I took a deep breath and began cycling my energy. Once again I was reminded how much the energy on earth sucked. Which only made me want to get back to Amara as soon as possible. I went through and meditated on each of my spell sigils until I felt someone approach. I slowly opened my eyes and let the calm fall away.
"Uh, Christopher wanted me to let you know that we are ready to go." The man who spoke looked to be in his early twenties with dark brown skin and black hair that hung to his shoulders. He was wearing a collection of clothing that made him look like a child who had snuck into his father's closet.
"Alright let him know that we will leave in ten minutes."
Once he left I got to my feet and stretched. It was a bit surprising how quickly my body recovered all of my scrapes and scratches were gone. They hadn't even left any scars. When I was ready I opened a portal and stepped onto the roof. I overlooked our caravan and gave Christopher a thumbs up. After that, we once again began our run through the streets. This time things went much smoother. The few monsters that attacked were handled by the guards outside of a particularly large metal dog. The thing looked big enough to eat a horse but still lacked any mental defenses.
I was especially surprised when Christopher and three of his guards worked together to kill one of the faster dogs. They weren't anything to write home about yet but they were getting a lot better. I couldn't be sure but based on their looks of triumph one of them had leveled at least once. The mood in the group had become much lighter by the time we arrived at Amara. The massive skyscraper stood like a beacon of hope, illuminated as if it stood in defiance of the world around it. I couldn't help but smile as everyone stared at it as if they were expecting it to turn into a mirage. I opened another portal and appeared at the front of the group.
"Alright, you all can take rooms for yourself starting on the third floor. Families and similar units should try to stay together for comfort. Feel free to arrange yourselves how you see fit. For today leave the academy alone I will arrange some time with Christopher to determine who would like to learn what. For the next week focus on getting acclimated after that everyone will be expected to pitch in."
Once they were squared away I made my up to the System shop. My recent battles told me that it was time to get serious. I stepped into the storefront and scrolled over to the pills. "Fuck me." I shook my head at the prices of everything. My credits had kind of recovered through my slaughter but this was once again going to clean me out. I purchased two sets of all the basic healing pills. I placed the two pill bottles into my pockets made my way down and dropped off everything I carried from the mall. I handed Christopher four pills to treat any of the sick and injured before heading back to my quarters. I went through and emptied my back of the furniture and placed it all in one corner. I wasn't sure what I would do with it but I didn't want to have a full bag anymore. I placed the pills inside and then checked on my cultivation chamber. The energy inside felt like entering a refreshing shower. It felt like my entire body was greedily sucking it in. I reluctantly left the room a few minutes later and made my way into my boardroom. It was time for me to figure out my next steps.