Salvos (A Monster Evolution LitRPG)

554. Storm of the Void

[-̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ Hellspace - Lvl. -̸͙̍̀͠-̴̛̠͊̀͝-̵̪̱̼͑-̶̰͎͙̉̆͝ ]

I heard a low groan, followed by an explosive chittering that shook the tunnel. It felt like the entirety of the second layer of the Netherworld was trembling as the giant rift emerged from the storm of non-existence.

I stared at it. I could barely even focus on it. It was almost like an ephemeral thing— like it was vanishing with each inch it moved. But it was still there. The Corrupted Hellspace slowly drifted forward, and it left a trail of distortion behind. 

I glanced back for a single instant. Behind me, an army of corrupted creatures gave chase. Everything from Corrupted Netherstructures to mere Corrupted Rocks. It was an army that had grown to over a thousand. It was what I initially expected to see when I first descended down to the second layer.

But all I found was a Corrupted Hydra and a handful of Corrupted Netherstones. So I had grown complacent. I made a mistake. And that had cost me greatly. Now, I was trapped. I didn’t know how I was going to escape. 

I had a dilemma. I could either turn back to face the army of corrupted creatures, or I could fly on to the single Corrupted Hellspace. There was no obvious choice here. Both seemed like suicide. More and more Corrupted Netherstones and Corrupted Gargoyles appeared from the rubble littering the tunnel— their numbers never stopped growing. If I plunged straight back at them, I would only be able to survive as long as the amount of time [My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends] had left.

And I was pretty sure that was about five… maybe ten minutes at the very most, at this point. Meanwhile, the trek back to safety would have taken me substantially more time than that. 

On the other hand, there was only a single Corrupted Hellspace ahead of me. The choice seemed obvious. At least, at the first glance. I had a higher chance of surviving a single enemy— even if it was stronger— as long as I had my aura of invulnerability protecting me. But that was the problem.

I remembered how [My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends] was bypassed back during the battle of Alyras. Avaritia had used a Grand Skill to temporarily take the form of the Demon King, and his essence had completely overwhelmed my own. The very same could happen now.

I didn’t even know if my aura of invulnerability could protect me from the Corrupted Hellspace. That was why this was a gambit I couldn’t make a decision on. And even if I managed to survive unscathed, I didn’t even know what I was going to do next.

Beyond the Corrupted Hellspace was nothing. Bubbles of non-existence— clouds of the abyss. A storm of the void. A wall of oblivion.

Well, it wasn’t exactly a wall. But it was close enough. I only saw little gaps of space between the cluster of nothingness. I would have to really squeeze through to survive that. And I didn’t think I could do it. 

I sighed. Was this it? Was this the end of me? Was I too cocky? Was I too foolish? I had found myself in numerous situations where I was at death’s door, and I had pushed my luck to the very edge. And now, was I finally going to… die?

I flew on silently. A lull in my mind. The world I had known was shattered— everything I had fought for cascaded into nothing here in the depths of the second layer. Even as the corrupted army gave chase and I continued to meet the Corrupted Hellspace, I knew nothing waited for me except for despair.

It was as my dad had said: I was nothing. I was… I was…

No! I steeled myself. I wasn’t going to die here— I wasn’t going to give up! If I was going to die, I was going to die fighting.

I am Salvos. From the very moment I met the others, I knew I could die at any moment. The world was not kind to me— it had never been kind. That was why I fought to get stronger. Yes, I wanted to level and become more me, but I also wanted to be strong enough so I could live as me.

And that was what I did here. 

“Come on! I am not scared of you! I am Salvos! I am an [Angelic Devil Princess]— [Draconic Apprentice]! I am Secely’s Sentinel, and I am the Devil’s Daughter! You should be the one afraid of me!”

I yelled as I spread my arms wide, flying straight for the Corrupted Hellspace. [My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends] shifted— the gray sparks expanded from my right claw, spreading to cover the rest of my body. This armor of invincibility might not save me, but it was the best I had right now. 

I heard the chittering of the army of corrupted creatures behind me. The low groan of the Corrutped Hellspace sounded like a challenge— a roar in return to my war cry. I didn’t look back once. I didn’t shy away from staring down the moving rift.

I flew on. And I remembered what my dad had shown me as I focused on a part of my Status.

Secondary Skills: 

[Available Secondary Skill Points: 6]

[Draconic Fury] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Fragmented Pocket Dimension] - Lvl. 10

[Full Phase] - Lvl. 15 (Maxed)

[Greater Teleportation] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Manifestation of the Old Gods] - Lvl. 5

[Truth Divination] - Lvl. 5

[Warped Time] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Passive - Dragon Scales] - Lvl. 10 (Maxed)

[Passive - Master of Material Manipulation] - Lvl. 15 (Maxed)

[Passive - Weaker Regeneration] - Lvl.5

I ignored everything except for [Fragmented Pocket Dimension]. Nothing else would help me here. I recalled how the Devil had shown me the multiverse— the worlds beyond the Nexeus. He had navigated through the emptiness between each and every single one of the universe with his tiny little world. 

I had survived the folds between the Netherworld and the Mortal Realm before. But that was completely different from the nothingness between the worlds. And while I was pretty sure that these bubbles of non-existence weren’t akin to the true void, they were still worse than the folds between the planes.

So I needed [Fractured Pocket Dimension] to survive them. Maybe it might not be enough, but I had to give it a try. Normally, it would take me a bit of focus to cast the Skill, However, I didn’t have the time right now. So I just dumped 5 secondary Skill Points into it, maxing it out right this instant.

Secondary Skills: 

[Available Secondary Skill Points: 1]

[Draconic Fury] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Fragmented Pocket Dimension] - Lvl. 15 (Maxed)

[Full Phase] - Lvl. 15 (Maxed)

[Greater Teleportation] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Manifestation of the Old Gods] - Lvl. 5

[Truth Divination] - Lvl. 5

[Warped Time] - Lvl. 20 (Maxed)

[Passive - Dragon Scales] - Lvl. 10 (Maxed)

[Passive - Master of Material Manipulation] - Lvl. 15 (Maxed)

[Passive - Weaker Regeneration] - Lvl.5

And then I raised my head. The world shifted around my body. Even as I flew on. I began to try to encase myself in a layer of my own space as the Corrupted Hellspace eyed me. The rift in the air was like an eye, bearing down on me. 

I flew straight at it, even as I continued weaving a tiny bit of space around me, trying to create my protection from the bubbles of non-existence. But I should have been more worried for what was directly in front of me. The Corrupted Hellspace unleashed a blast of corruption my way. I raised both my arms over my head as I sent my own blast of [The Holy Flames] back at it.

“You—” 

But in an instant, my own magic was snuffed out. I closed my eyes, sucking in a deep breath. The blast of corruption shot straight my way, even as I flew on. I waited. I hoped that my Grand Skill was enough to stave off the blast. 

My eyes fluttered shut, and the world grew eerily silent for a single moment.

Then I heard the screeching. An overwhelming static noise that overwhelmed all my other senses. My eyes snapped open as I saw the smear of colors flaking out around me. I was surrounded by the corruption— it wrapped around me like a sphere of flames. 

But [My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends] held up. At least, for a moment. It sparked out, clashing with the colorful smears of distortion. It tore away at my aura of invulnerability, and some of the corruption leaked through. Tiny motes of the corruption landed on the scales on my forearm.

At first, it was bearable. It only hurt a little bit. My [Corruption Resistance] protected me from the miniscule amounts of the corruption that broke through my invincible armor. But then more of [My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends] faded away. The Corrupted Hellspace’s attack was too powerful. And it didn’t stop.

It completely engulfed me. It blotted out my vision. I didn’t even know where I was going. I just flew on. Even as my aura of invulnerability continued to peel away, and an intense pain overcame my body. I tried to bear with it. Even though it felt like I was being stabbed by a thousand needles, I clenched my jaw together, biting back against the urge to scream.

But more and more of the corrupted broke through. A deluge of the iridescent colors flaked down, crashing against my arms as I covered my face. The feeling in my claws almost seemed to vanish— replaced by a numbing pain that began to spread down my scales. The bright lights muddled my vision. I tried to fight back. Unfortunately, I couldn’t.

Finally, it was too much. I screamed.

“AhhhHhHH̵̻̄͝hhHHh̶̛̞͂͋̓HHh̶̛̞͂͋̓h̶̛̞͂͋̓HHH̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝H̵̻̄͝—”

And suddenly, the pain vanished. I blinked as all the iridescent flakes dissipated. It happened so quickly, I didn’t even realize what was going on. I lowered my arm for a single moment, then I saw it.

A wall of non-existence.

I crashed straight into it.

“No—”

It was too late. I hadn’t been able to create my [Fragmented Pocket Dimension] in time. I plunged into the nothingness as I tried to cry out. But nothing left my mouth. There was no sound— all the overwhelming sensation of pain I was feeling just a moment ago disappeared.

The world went dark. I tried to flap my [Angelic Wings]. But I felt nothing behind my back. I listened for the chittering of the corruption. And I heard…

Nothing.

I had no thoughts.

I felt no pain.

Was there suffering?

…maybe.

I simply stopped existing.

But the clawed hands remained.

In the non-existence, a pair of arms floated. They were attached to nothing. In fact, they weren’t even fully there. There were bits of black scales, but there was also a white skin underneath. At first, they looked like they had been chomped off by a terrible monster. However, upon closer inspection, it was quite evident there was something else to them.

Something quite odd. A peculiarity.

And that was that they flaked with an iridescent light. The hallmark of divinity. But it was not divinity which wisped off the pair of arms. It was a distortion. Perhaps that was what protected them here in this storm of the void.

So the claws moved. They began to weave a magic that was being woven earlier. Was it by instinct, or was it intentional? It didn’t matter. They created the reality that was needed.

And I felt my senses return. 

I opened my eyes as I found myself in the abyss. My own space was what was protecting me from non-existence. But it was slightly different from usual. Normally, I felt like I had to push back against the void like when I was trapped in the folds between the planes. However, right now, it felt like… nothing was imposing against the space I created.

It was just there. Like a wall that protected me. A world I could manipulate with ease. And I used it to guide me— I navigated through this storm of the void. I couldn’t tell how much time passed since I first entered here, but there were flashes of light— moments where I passed through the real space between the bubbles of non-existence.

I just waited, flying on silently as the corruption wisping off my forearms faded away. Until, finally— 

Grand Skill [Claw of Corruption] learned!

Abundant experience is awarded for the learning of a Grand Skill!

Skills [Fragmented Pocket Dimension] and [Full Phase] have consolidated into Grand Skill [The World of My Mind]!

Subspecies [Angelic Devil Princess] Level Up! 

[Angelic Devil Princess – Lvl. 162] -> [Angelic Devil Princess – Lvl. 163] 

Gained 5 Stat Points and 3 Skill Points! 

Subspecies [Angelic Devil Princess] Level Up! 

[Angelic Devil Princess – Lvl. 163] -> [Angelic Devil Princess – Lvl. 164] 

Gained 5 Stat Points and 3 Skill Points! 

Class [Draconic Apprentice] Level Up!

[Draconic Apprentice - Lvl. 138] -> [Draconic Apprentice - Lvl. 139]

Gained 2 Secondary Skill Points! 

Class [Draconic Apprentice] Level Up!

[Draconic Apprentice - Lvl. 139] -> [Draconic Apprentice - Lvl. 140]

Gained 2 Secondary Skill Points! 

[Title Available]

I blinked, sitting up. I didn’t even realize I had been sitting down. At some point, I had emerged out the other side of the storm of the void. And now, I was back in real space. I glanced back at the bubbles of non-existence behind me. Then I looked down at myself. I didn’t even register my new Grand Skills. I only had one thing in my mind.

“I’m alive?”

I asked, poking myself on the chest. And a voice spoke in response.

“Indeed you are.”

I spun around, raising my claws as I readied for battle. But then I caught myself. I saw who it was, before blinking a few times. 

“Belphegor?”

The Primordial Demon stood before me. All around him, his [Gargoyles] lay dead— reduced to nothing but rubble. He nodded at me with a small smile before raising his head.

“You did well to reach this place at your level.”

“What are you—”

I opened my mouth, then paused. I watched as Belphegor turned away from me. He spread his arms wide as I looked past him. He faced it too. He spread his arms wide as my hands drooped down to my side, and I could only gasp.

“What is that…?”

Belphegor just chuckled in response.

“Welcome to the end of the world.”

And I beheld it— the distorted thing. The mixture of bright colors. Buzzing and consuming everything, turning it all into nothing. It was…

A wall of infinite corruption.