Chapter 87 – You’ve done enough. It’s my turn now.

Hello, dear readers! Here's chapter 87 and that's a massive one! The end of Book 1 is near (One more chapter after this one).

What's new this week? Well, I had a great realization (a sort of epiphany if you will) that helped me get rid of some negative emotions (fear, frustration, etc) that I was previously keeping inside me. That happened on Wednesday night and what happened next was predictable. Thursday morning I woke up with a runny nose, sore throat and heavy head. Nothing serious since I consider the whole thing more like a 'impurities cleansing' than something that I should feel bad about. Anyway, I had finished writing chapter 98 on Wednesday, thankfully. I didn't have time to edit it completely though, but I still posted it on patre0n in case I don't have the energy to write tomorrow. I'll fix it once I get better.

Anyway, that's it for this week. See ya later!

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Molvograd, Molkovia, Earth.

Seraphine's P.O.V.

As soon as she reached a few dozen meters away from Bryn, she activated her Desolate Night twice. The first for herself and the second for her sister, rendering the two effectively invisible from others' Divine Senses and 'normal' Physical Senses. Once she made it much harder for the female opponent to find where her sister's attack came from, she moved around the battlefield through her movement Spell Shade Shift, allowing her some Pseudo-Short Range Teleportation. Although it had some harsh restrictions, whether it be the Elemental Energy consumption or the limited range, those were somewhat alleviated through her special Shadow Void Elemental Energy, which was basically Shadow Energy with some faint traces of Void Energy.

'I don't think I'll need to use my Intrinsic Power to hide myself. Desolate Night should be sufficient. I do need to be careful about her whip though.' She analyzed while observing the woman's attacking pattern. A few seconds later, she noted a flaw, prompting her to fire a full-powered Dusk Palm Spell in the other woman's direction. Unfortunately, the opponent's strength was much higher than hers, and thus, with a flick of her wrist, her whip's popper [A/N: Extremity of the whip] changed target from Bryn to the Spell flying toward her. The result was the instant destruction of her Spell as soon as the weapon filled with Elemental Energy hit the former, prompting Seraphine to remove the control she had on her own Spell as quickly as possible.

Her face then briefly turned pale as a few drops of blood appeared at the corner of her mouth before her chocolate skin regained a healthy dark brown. 'Damn it! I was too careless!' She exclaimed inwardly while checking her condition to see if there were any lingering injuries. An instant later, she let out a relieved breath. Not only was she not injured but she also felt her Cultivation base grow slightly. 'Demian's Perk is really incredible! Although the effects are weaker for me, its effects are still amazing.' She exclaimed inwardly, surprised at the result. 'No wonder Dem's acting like a suicidal maniac! With just this battle, I'm sure he can advance multiple times... Actually, I might be able to do the same...' She contemplated, noting that her Elemental Energy reserve had been almost completely restored.

Having made her decision, she started throwing a Dusk Palms Spell every time she found flaws in the brown-haired woman's attack patterns, relieving some of the pressure that the powerful female Cultivator put on her sister. Unlike the latter, the opponents seemed infuriated by the female Elf's actions. "You fucking rat! Stop hiding like a coward!" If she had normal eyes, Sera would have rolled hers. 'As if I'd do something so stupid!' She chided the woman secretly while throwing another Dusk Palm, just to annoy that bi... That woman even more. With the addition of her younger sister, Brynhild's injuries stopped increasing, although Sera's Divine Sense told her that her older sister's stamina and Energy reserve were still diminishing. 'In any case, as long as nothing unexpected happens, we should be fi...' Her train of thought was instantly interrupted when she sensed a massive fluctuation coming from Demian's direction. Unfortunately, there was no way for the opponent to miss it with how intense the commotion was. Stopping her attack, the female Foundation Building Cultivator muttered in a tone filled with doubts and concerns. "That boy's breaking through? But the fluctuations are too strong for a simple Level breakthrough... No! I can't let him succeed!"

As soon as those words left her mouth, she wore a resolute expression on her face before starting to fly toward Demian's direction with her body exuding signs of a Spell's preparation. 'Me and my big mouth!' Seraphine complained while using Shade Shift to appear in the woman's way while Bryn had a similar reaction, dashing to her side now that she deactivated both Desolate Night Spells. Keeping those active would simply waste her Energy reserve, something she would direly need in the next few minutes if she wanted to not only protect Demian and her mother but also for herself to survive the woman's coming onslaught. While sporting a solemn look, Sera threw a brief glance toward Demian and her mother before turning back toward the coming enemy and declaring inwardly. 'It's my turn to protect you guys. I'm not my past useless self anymore!'

Molvograd, Molkovia, Earth.

Demian's P.O.V.

As time passed by, Demian could feel the speed of his body's regeneration increase little by little to the point that it only took a few minutes for his left arm to reattach itself to his torso, with its previously blasted upper left part having been reformed completely with the exception of the missing bones. The reason for that was that skin, muscles, and other tendons were relatively easy to regenerate for the current him. However, it was more difficult for him to do the same with his organs, let alone his bones which may need hours if not more time to heal. And that was with him having his Perk and his current Special Physique. Otherwise, it may take days or weeks, with the most dire injuries being impossible to heal with one's natural healing factor.

That being said, the lack of certain bones in his upper left chest made it impossible for him to move his left arm without using his Elemental Energy, leaving the former hanging lifelessly with his left shoulder having a strange shape. Nonetheless, it was still much better than his previous open wound. Plus, he had received so many injuries since the start of the battle that he was able to ignore them easily. Naturally, his Perk lowering the pain he had to endure every time helped tremendously as well. His feelings aside, though, his previously gory wounds were clearly upsetting for Adeliya, something obvious from the expression she was making.

Letting out a sigh, he told her. "I'm almost done regenerating my left lung, Liya. Although I still have a few bones missing, I should be able to go help the girls by using Spells." Nodding her head, she replied softly. "You must be careful. Seeing you hurt like that breaks my heart..." Her tone lowered more and more to the point that he was barely able to hear the last few words. However, he could still sense the emotion mixed with her words of concern, making his heart skip a beat, and bringing a happy smile to his face. Feeling much better, he carefully sat up before taking her delicate hand in his own and declaring in his magnetic voice. "I can't avoid risk if I want to protect the women I love. But I promise to be more careful."

The implications behind his words and intimate gestures made her freeze, bringing a slight blush to her fair cheeks. Lifting her gaze to meet his, she stayed silent for a few short moments before a beautiful but somewhat shy smile appeared on her face after which she replied in a voice that made his heart flutter. "Okay." The two then fell silent, completely engrossed in staring into each other's eyes. Despite the loud shock waves exploding again and again in the background, neither of them seemed to care. It was only when Demian's left lung finished regenerating that the two woke up from their distracted state. The reason being that as soon as the organ was healed up, a massive fluctuation erupted from his body, something multiple times stronger than any of his previous breakthroughs.

'I'm reaching Low Eighth Level... But why is it so... Wait! It's... My Physique?!' He thought as he sensed a massive amount of Spiritual Energy being absorbed by his body, not only pushing his Cultivation Base higher but also helping convert his Inner Energy into Elemental Energy and then helping turn his Physique into a High Elementary Grade Special Physique. Interestingly, the trigger for everything was his left lung coupled with his Perk. The former was regenerated as a half-step High Elementary Grade organ and the latter did the rest. After all, his Physiology Perk pushed for balance. Thus, breaking through with his Physique pushed for a breakthrough in his Energy Cultivation as well.

Naturally, a gigantic amount of Spiritual Energy was needed to achieve that feat, prompting him to check the surroundings with his Divine Sense. Instantly, an odd expression appeared on his face due to what he perceived. Indeed, a massive whirlpool of Spiritual Energy, its limits being outside of his range of perception. The thing was, his abnormally strong Divine Sense could reach between one and two kilometers from where he was, depending on the terrain. The disturbance was thus too massive to hide from any Chi Gathering Cultivators, let alone someone at the Foundation Building Rank. "Fuck!" He cursed under his breath when he felt that crazy woman flying in his direction with a murderous look on her face. Thankfully, he was not alone in facing her, and Seraphine and Brynhild quickly appeared to protect Adeliya and him. Nonetheless, he knew that time was ticking and he could not waste it. Having to protect two people would make the two sisters much more vulnerable, after all.

Realizing how deadly the situation they found themselves in brought a solemn look to Demian's face. 'I need to find a way to speed up the transformation...' He pondered briefly before an idea appeared in his mind. 'Since I'm absorbing the Spiritual Energy passively, what would happen if I tried to do it actively?' As soon as that thought came to him, he closed his eyes and tried to circulate his Cultivation Technique to speed up the absorption of the ambient Energy. Unfortunately, the Technique was already running at maximum speed, making him frown slightly. 'Is it really not possible to speed it up?' He contemplated with some frustration.

However, his confusion only lasted until he felt the missing parts of his shoulder bones and ribs recovering multiple times faster than previously, probably thanks to the massive amount of Elemental Energy washing every cell of his body. The phenomenon suddenly gave him an idea. It was somewhat reckless, with even the possibility of delaying his breakthrough. However, his life would not be in danger, and with their current situation, it was a necessary risk to take. 'How can I gain anything if I don't risk anything?' He briefly thought, having made his decision.

Taking a deep breath to help himself focus, he began to modify his Cultivation Technique little by little. With his previous experience, it was a relatively easy thing to do. And indeed, a brief moment later, his Energy absorption increased slightly. However, what worried him was the price behind that improvement. Due to the higher volume of Energy circulating inside his Channels and Veins, some rips and tears started appearing along their walls. Naturally, Demian knew not to push them too far and thus kept the wounds at a level that his Perk could deal with quickly. Otherwise, he would just end up crippled, which was the opposite of what he wanted.

As his Channels and veins repeatedly received injuries before regenerating, he noted how they grew not only tougher but also more flexible, allowing for more Energy to circulate through them while decreasing the rate and degree of tearing they experienced. All in all, it was a virtuous circle, having his Channels receiving injuries and growing more powerful through his Perk which used the growing amount of Energy pouring into his body to make the latter stronger. As time passed by, he noticed his Cultivation Base growing faster and faster. Mid Eighth Level, 63% Water Elemental Energy. High Eighth Level, 65% Water Elemental Energy. Peak Eighth Level, 66% Elemental Energy.

When Demian felt his Cultivation reach the Peak of the Eighth Level, he felt a massive bottleneck, blocking him from reaching the next Level. His intuition told him that it appeared due to the lack of time his body received to adapt to his quickly growing Energy Cultivation. The difficulty of breaking through to the next Level thus increased. For normal Cultivators, that would mean taking a few days or weeks to let their bodies adjust to the colossal increase in power. However, Demian was anything but normal, as evidenced by what happened next.

Previously, the Energy was used to boost his Cultivation Base as soon as it was absorbed. This time, however, it was simply accumulating in his body, giving the impression that he would explode at any second. Fortunately, nothing of the sort happened. Instead, the Elemental Energy acted calmly as if it was directed by some unknown entity which might have been his Perk at work. 'Whatever the case, it's a good thing for me. Much better than turning into red fireworks.' He thought while keeping a sliver of his Divine Sense on Brynhild since Seraphine was only 'visible' through their Soul Bond.

When he sensed the heavy injuries the redhead exhibited, a mix of anger and frustration surged in his heart, prompting him to push his Cultivation Technique and thus his body even further, which massively boosted the speed of Spiritual Energy absorption. The downside was the increasingly serious rips and tears appearing on his Channels and Veins' walls. At this rate, he would end up crippling his own Channels in less than a minute, something that would definitely kill him, not because of the injury itself, but because he would be slaughtered by the madwoman blocked by his two cousins. Fortunately, he was lucky and the sudden influx of Energy on top of what was already inside him previously seemed to trigger a change in his situation. The previous shackles stopping him from improving the Grade of his Physique crumbled under the onslaught of Elemental Energy before the latter started flowing into every cell of his, inducing wondrous transformations.

Those transformations were so massive that Demian felt a bit overwhelmed for a brief moment. Nonetheless, he did his best to inspect and follow those changes. From the top of his head to the sole of his feet, every centimeter of skin, muscles, tendon, organs, bones, etc was washed with the potent Water Elemental Energy coursing through his Spiritual Channels and Veins, refining them by purging the impurities present while triggering a positive evolution in every aspect such as flexibility, strength, stamina, etc. There was also a hint of... 'Is my body taking some kind of Elemental properties?' He analyzed while sensing the alterations he was experiencing.

However, those were not the only improvements. His Channels and Veins were also growing tougher and more flexible, and he even perceived a new Main Spiritual Channel being unlocked, which would not only help his overall Cultivation Talent but also help him purify his Elemental Energy. Speaking of Elemental Energy, the latter started growing at a tremendous pace. When the barrier broke, the amount of Elemental Energy instantly went to 67% from the previous 66% before shooting up at lightning speed while his Cultivation Base broke through to the Low Ninth Level. 70%. 72%. 75%. 79%.

The feeling of rapid improvement was exhilarating for the young man, something that was rarely encountered, even for him. The pleasure was almost as good as having sex with his Elven lover. Well, not quite but it still felt amazing. Unfortunately, he was not able to enjoy it in peace, as the sliver of Spiritual Will locked on Brynhild alerted him of her situation. The gigantic redhead was indeed flying in his direction, unconscious and with her body full of bloody lacerations. Not only were her external injuries heavy, but his Divine Sense also informed him that her internal organs were heavily wounded creating multiple internal hemorrhages while also suffering numerous bone fractures. Unfortunately, it was not just her who suffered serious wounds as the Bond he shared with Seraphine told him that the elven woman's physical state was horrific. The only upside was that the latter benefited from his Perk, which should not only save her from dying but also boost her power growth, even if it seemed to be less effective than when he was the one benefiting.

Nonetheless, he was pissed. 'That bitch is dead.' He coldly decided while opening his eyes instantly and with a slight push, went from sitting cross-legged to flying in the air toward the injured redhead. With his inhuman speed, he found himself appearing by her side with a slight push of his leg against the ground before a small Water platform materialized in front of him. Then, in what seemed to be a choreographed dance, he created a Water Elemental Palm to grab Brynhild's unconscious body from the air while being very careful not to worsen her injuries. At the same time, he pushed slightly against the first platform which propelled his body back to where he was previously seated. Naturally, he moved Bryn in front of him while they were still on the move in case the female Foundation Building Cultivator wanted to continue attacking them. As soon as he arrived before Adeliya, he gently laid the unconscious woman down on the ground, after which he used his Elemental Energy to remove the Foreign Energy in her wounds or it would be much harder for her to heal completely. Once he was done, he let out a relieved sigh, which grew deeper when he noticed the enemy Cultivator flying away with a worried look on her face.

Turning toward Adeliya who as soon as her gaze fell on her daughter's injuries had a panicked look on her face. While wearing a reassuring smile Demian stated. "Don't worry, Liya. She only needs some time to heal up completely, but her life isn't in danger. Could you take care of her while I get Sera, please?" His soft voice seemed to have a calming effect on the older woman, who nodded and replied firmly. "I'll do it."

Feeling satisfied, he instantly dashed a few dozen meters away from where he stood. Following the Bond, he swiftly found Seraphine's battered body hiding with the help of her Desolate Night Spell, the latter disappearing as soon as he arrived close by. The sight that greeted his eyes froze his mind briefly before a wave of fury mixed with sadness and worry erupted in his mind. Taking a deep breath to rein in his emotions, he started taking stock of her injuries to check if she needed him to help her remove the Foreign Energy lingering in her wounds. With his fist clenched tightly, his gaze fell on her beautiful face, its right side now marred by a slashing wound so deep that a part of her scalp was gone and some cracks were visible on her skull bone. If the attack hit a few centimeters on the left, she would have died instantly. The realization made him shiver in fright, cementing his decision to never let such a situation happen again. Crushing the enemy with overwhelming power was much better than risking their lives fighting cross-level or even cross-rank battles.

Feeling sorrowful, he continued with his inspection, noticing a big part of her skin and muscles missing, leaving many of her fractured bones visible to the naked eye. What amazed him, however, was that, despite the painful torment she was experiencing, she was still conscious, even if barely. Crouching over her, Demian said in a quivering voice. "You silly woman. Why did you push yourself like that?" As those words left his lips, he noted the proud smile on her face. "I did it..." She whispered, clearly incapable of speaking louder. "...I protected you... I'm... Not useless..." Her words made him freeze on the spot, his heart filled with a flood of emotions.

Unwittingly, his eyes turned misty before two identical tears fell down on the ground. With a loving smile, he gently replied while doing his best to hide his sadness. "That you did. You were amazing, Love." Pausing for a second to appreciate the happy grin on her face, he then added. "But you can sleep now. I'll deal with the rest." As those words reached her ears, a small grunt escaped her lips before her eyelids closed and she lost consciousness. While gazing at her unconscious body for a brief moment, he muttered with tenderness. "Choosing you as my Soul Bonded lover is truly the best decision I've made in my entire life..."

Taking a deep breath to calm his fluctuating emotions, he then materialized a Water Palm to carry her body back to Adeliya. Lowering Seraphine's body to lay her down by her sister's side, he then gazed at Adeliya. He was about to speak when she interrupted him. "I'll take care of them." She paused for a brief moment as her eyes fell on her injured daughters. Clenching her fist, she instructed while looking furious. "Make her pay." Nodding his head, he responded firmly. "I will. I'll ask Roman to protect the three of you while I chase her." After that, he gave some instructions to the Roman trio before turning his gaze in the direction of the fleeing woman.

Taking a deep breath to calm the cold rage filling his heart, he then analyzed. 'She fled toward Molvograd. Is she looking for help with stronger Cultivators?' The thought of facing someone at the Mid or High Foundation Building was worrying for the young man. After all, his current combat power should barely reach the Low Fourth Level of the Foundation Building Rank. 'I'm still growing stronger but I shouldn't take too much risk. I've done enough today.' Pausing for a second, he added inwardly. 'I'll just track her for a few kilometers. If I can't find her before I arrive in the city, I'll simply give up chasing her.'

Having made his decision, he started jumping in the air at a speed akin to flying. Once he reached the appropriate height, he materialized a small but solid Water platform under one of his feet and pushed against it to propel himself forward swiftly. Once his momentum decreased, he did the same under the other foot, repeating the same process again and again allowing him to move extremely quickly in a straight line. Despite not being true flight, a small feeling of satisfaction appeared in his heart when he thought of how he achieved the same thing as those Qi Gong Martial Artists in those Wuxia novels he read in the past in less than three months.

That feeling aside, he also sensed the ongoing changes in his body, wondering. 'I don't know if it's because of my Elemental Energy reaching almost 90% concentration, the breakthrough in my Physique, or the activation of an additional Spiritual Channel, but wielding Water Elemental Energy became so much easier. I can even do the Qi Gong 'flight' without needing external objects. It's pretty draining on my reserve, though. It's a good thing that I'm not going too far and I've got my Perk to help me.'

Barely a dozen seconds later, he felt a familiar presence through his Divine Sense, confusing him slightly. "What's going on?" He muttered while approaching the confused woman a kilometer away. While coming closer, he could hear her talking to herself. "I need to flee quickly before that boy catches me. His Aura is too scary. It's not worth taking the risk to face him." Her reaction puzzled him. Not how she was scared of his Aura, since he was aware that the difference in power between two Major Levels was massive and kept growing the higher one went. With him being as strong as a Mid Foundation Building, if barely, her Low Foundation Building combat power would be utterly useless against him.

However, that was not what puzzled him. 'She looks like she thinks she's still advancing... It's as if... Is she mind-controlled or something?' While trying to analyze what was happening to the woman with his Spiritual Will, he finally arrived a few dozen meters away from her, a distance sufficient for any of them to reach instantly. Pausing in the air, he asked coldly. "Ready to die?" His words seemed to wake the woman up from her confused state. Turning her gaze in his direction, the look of worry on her face turned into horror when she noticed who he was. "YOU! How did you catch up to me? I..."

Before she could continue, Demian disappeared from her view and reappeared by her side with his left hand clenched around her neck. Sending some Elemental Energy to seal her Dantian, he then looked into her eyes, his face lacking any emotion. "Do you know what I hate the most?" He questioned rhetorically in a deathly still tone. "It's people hurting my women. I don't care if I get hurt myself. I can get stronger through it anyway. But if someone hurt them..." As those words left his mouth, he subconsciously started focusing his Aura on the woman who stood helplessly in his grasp, increasing the pressure with time. "That Pietr's words were something I couldn't tolerate. But when I saw how you almost killed my two women..." At that point, the defiant look in her eyes had disappeared, replaced by begging. Cocking his brow briefly from confusion, he then understood. 'Sealing her Energy made her incredibly vulnerable to my Aura. Especially since my Physique is a Rank stronger than hers.'

A second later, she lost consciousness, making him snort in displeasure as he muttered. "You really deserve to suffer but..." Shaking his head, he simply broke her neck and sent some Elemental Energy to destroy her brain, killing the woman directly. "I'd rather spend my time with the girls." With a slight thought, her corpse was covered by a thin layer of Water Elemental Energy before the human-sized water figure instantly turned into a tiny water ball, smaller than his pinky. With another command, the small water ball disappeared, letting what was left of the woman's corpse drop to the ground below.

With the woman's death, the last of his known enemy, the heavy concerns buried in his heart vanished almost completely, giving him a sensation of lightness all over his body and mind. As if in sync, his breakthrough finally ended with another small round of improvement. Closing his eyes, he sensed the changes his body experienced. 'Mid High Elementary Grade. Peak Low Ninth level. 91% Elemental Energy converted. 5 Main Spiritual Channels. My Inner Energy also seems purer, but it's hard to evaluate since there's no Information Storing Jade explaining the difference in details in the Estate's Library... Whatever! I got stronger and that's what matters.'

After having analyzed the transformations he experienced, he reopened his eyes, his gaze filled with a mix of emotions. "The Danilov family should have stronger Cultivators than those three..." He muttered absentmindedly before shaking his head slightly and contemplating. 'As long as I take the girls and cultivate for a year or two, I don't believe they'd be able to hurt us anymore.' Having made his decision, he threw a last glance toward what was left of the woman before swiftly running back to the Estate through the air with numerous thoughts swirling in his head.