Endless Debt

The temperature, which had reached its limit, shattered Bologue's pain threshold the moment it touched him. He could feel nothing anymore, only endless numbness, a sensation that also descended upon Aimou.

Bologue forced out Jia Meng's Blood Transfer Sword, but he was struck directly by the power of the Negative Power User. The explosive fire pushed him, a series of burns and impacts driving him toward the scarlet earth, where he ultimately succumbed to the sea of flames.

Aimou tried to call Bologue, but it seemed as though he had lost consciousness, and the surrounding sensations too became a numbing warmth. However, Ether soon poured into his body, and his flesh rapidly regenerated.

Bologue awoke swiftly, and those delayed sensations of pain returned once more. He opened his eyes in the midst of the fire, his whole body charred black, ash-laden flesh shedding away like molted scales, new flesh buds growing and smoothing out dents as they intertwined.

Seemingly unaware of the pain, he propped himself up with the blade and stood with difficulty. In his mind, Aimou felt utter despair, as if every nerve was being cut by sharp knives; the pain was almost splitting her head. Yet, Bologue remained completely unmoved, as if such pain no longer registered with him.

"Are you alright, Aimou?" Bologue inquired.

Aimou did not respond, curling up tightly. If not for her immense resilience, she would have already wanted to dissolve the Shared Chord Body to escape the torment of the searing pain.

After waiting for a moment, Bologue felt some regret. He had become Aimou's shell, able to protect her from injury, but the intense pain still extended to her.

Once again, a raging fire ignited overhead. Latis struggled under Nade's fierce attack. This scarlet bishop did not seem adept at battle, and with Jia Meng having fled with the Immortal Heart, he had no reason to continue the conflict with Nade.

The branches of flesh obscured the view. When Nade burned away the obstacles to pursue Latis, he had already burrowed underground with decayed roots and sprouts.

Unnoticed, the tendrils of the decayed roots had permeated the entire Void Realm. The sturdy land was stretched apart by thick blood vessels. Jia Meng thought he had escaped, but Latis could feel the aura of the Immortal Heart, following relentlessly.

The battle within the Beast Fighting Arena paused with the departure of the Immortal Heart, but at this moment, Nade's gaze fell on Bologue.

He had long noticed Bologue's anomaly. Though not of the Scarlet Decay Sect, he possessed exceptionally strong recovery power, and it seemed as though another person was hiding within his body.

Crimson eyes settled on Bologue, and in an instant, Bologue felt as if he was placed in boiling water, scorching pain surging again from the surface of his body.

The current situation was extremely unfavorable for Bologue. The Scarlet Decay Sect had been nearly wiped out, and the group led by Nade controlled the scene. Bologue could see countless figures beyond the firelight, their silhouettes distorted by the high temperature, becoming blurry, shredded sounds echoing by his ear as if mocking him.

"Aimou, even if I die, don't sever the Shared Chord Body."

Bologue admonished.

He possessed an Undying Body; even if he died, he would merely enter a dormant state. As long as Aimou maintained the Shared Chord Body, she could escape the distractions of reality and hide within his body.

If Aimou were to dissolve the Shared Chord Body, given the intensity of the battle on the scene, this poor Alchemy Puppet would be torn apart in an instant.

"Hmm."

A difficult response echoed in his mind, as Aimou, together with him, remained within the sea of flames.

Bologue fiercely flung a grappling hook, attempting to escape from the sea of flames. This was the most perilous situation Bologue had ever encountered, with several Negative Power Users engaged in battle, different forces having varied objectives, while he was alone.

The worst part was, now Nade seemed to have set his sights on him. Just as Bologue leaped out of the sea of flames, a barrage of gunfire erupted, Nade's subordinates opening fire on him. Fortunately, they were not Alchemy Warheads, and the Deceitful Snake Scale Silver easily blocked them, but then a massive fireball came crashing down.

This time, Bologue couldn't dodge. Its destructive range encompassed all potential escape routes, and with a thunderous explosion, Bologue, trailing scorched embers, slammed hard into the ground.

Neither Secret Energy nor Ether stood any chance against the Negative Power Users for Bologue, not to mention he was already exhausted from the prior battle.

Nade was not in a hurry to pursue Latis. Their manpower this time was abundant, appearing only at the end partly to wait for the depletion of the Scarlet Decay Sect's power, and partly to infiltrate the Void Realm, which now lay completely under their control.

Like a Flame Demon, he strode towards Bologue, curious about Bologue's recovery power, which might serve the Shadow King.

Bologue struggled to sit up on the ground, moving back a few paces, his heart heavy. This operation had been fraught with complications from the outset.

"Will we die?" Aimou asked fearfully.

"No, trust me."

Bologue encouraged Aimou. In the absence of reclaiming the Immortal Heart, he needed to prioritize protecting Aimou.

As for the fleeing Jia Meng, he wouldn't escape easily. From the beginning, someone else in the Beast Fighting Arena had been watching Jia Meng.

In the shadows, Teda sped through the winding and repetitive corridors. Some lingering enemies attempted to block his path, but before they could make a move, they were crushed into pulp by his violent fantasies.

Bologue had underestimated Teda's combat power. He used to be just an alchemist focused on research, but it had been seven years since that past self.

Seven years isn't long nor short, but for some, it is enough time to change everything beyond recognition.

Suddenly, a violent tremor came from deep beneath the ground, as if something exploded below.

Bologue no longer bothered guessing what it was. It was like a battle royale down here, enemies everywhere, and it wouldn't surprise him if a Defender suddenly emerged.

After the tremor came an Ethereal Shock. By the time it spread into the Beast Fighting Arena, the shock had weakened considerably. Bologue's consciousness was somewhat blurry; the Ethereal Shock felt familiar, as if he had just encountered it recently.

But he had no energy to think about it. The crimson Flame Demon stood before him, flames entwined around Nade, as he slowly raised his hand, and the scorching dragon's breath spewed forth.

It was as if it was mocking Bologue. Faced with the engulfing dragon's breath, the Deceitful Snake Scale Silver of his Iron Armor would melt in an instant, and even approaching it would result in burns.

Bologue could only keep fleeing, constantly exhausting his stamina, until a misstep transformed the ground beneath into boiling lava.

He stumbled and leaned against a corner of the wall, with no more routes for escape.

"Aimou, you can reconsider the job offer now," Bologue muttered. "We'll likely encounter situations like this often, might even die unexpectedly."

Waking from the heat of battle, Bologue suddenly felt sorry. Aimou felt the same pain, although he had grown numb to it, Aimou was different; she was still a child.

"It must hurt, right?"

Bologue spoke as he leaned back on the wall, touching the stone with one hand, trying to determine if he could summon the wall to escape from there.

"It's fine, it's nothing."

"You don't have to force yourself, Aimou," Bologue said with concern.

Aimou was silent for a few seconds, her voice feigning cheer, whispering in Bologue's ear.

"It's supposed to be this way. As we can share joy, we should also endure suffering together."

Hearing such a response, Bologue smiled and said no more. He focused his attention, figuring out a way to escape the Negative Power User standing before him.

The extreme blaze surged once more, and Bologue's eyes were stung by its intensity. The brightness was so harsh that even looking directly at it might blind him, or possibly vaporize him outright.

It's over.

At this moment, Bologue clearly and vividly felt the power of the Negative Power User. Thinking this, the Soul Shards within his body all readied themselves for battle, prepared to provide Bologue with robust ethereal support.

But as Bologue stood on guard, the anticipated destruction did not arrive. Instead, there came a sense of oppressive suffocation, affecting not just his senses but also interfering with his Alchemy Matrix.

Golden light surfaced on his body, driven by another force, causing Aimou and Bologue to separate.

Bologue realized that all the Ether had fallen into silence, quickly fleeing, continuously evaporating until an ethereal vacuum was formed.

Even the flames around Nade momentarily faltered, not completely extinguished, but their ferocity diminished considerably compared to before.

Bologue knew who had arrived. At the critical moment, these guys had finally reached the scene.

With the corridor shattered and collapsing behind, the Violence Suppression Action Group made a strong entrance. Ethereal Prohibition engulfed the entire Beast Fighting Arena, even restricting the growth of decaying roots and sprouts.

"King's Shield Guard detected, intensity response as Negative Power User."

Without direct observation, the hand crossbow-wielding team members detected the enemy deployment within the Beast Fighting Arena merely by Ethereal Perception.

"Begin suppression."

The commander raised a hand, issuing the order simply and bluntly.