Apocalypse Healer - Path of Death-Chapter 19B2 - Modification

Time seemed to slow to a crawl, yet the pain didn’t lessen. If anything, David’s condition worsened as the prickly sensation spread deeper into his eyes.

He considered scratching them, carving out whatever hurt him, while casting [Restore] to counteract the effect, but dismissed the thought and endured it instead.

David had no idea how much time had passed. However, by the time the agonizing sensation finally subsided, the ground was covered in his blood. He willed the Law of Blood to remove the blood from his face without a second thought and looked up to see Melach and Zachariah staring at him with wide eyes.

Why can I see their life signals? He thought, furrowing his brows. There was no Blood in his eyes to augment them. It shouldn’t be possible to see the lifeforce all around him. Not only could David see the life within his friends, but he also perceived faint traces of Aether and the radiant glow of Origin Essence lingering in the air around him.

Zachariah said something, his lips moving, but David heard nothing. He looked at the notifications instead.

[Glorious Potential potion stimulated your dormant potential. Modification at the Initial Transmutation Stage has been completed.]

[Modification has been acquired.]

David ignored the sting in his eyes, narrowing them to tiny slits.

“David? You… are you fine?” Melach’s voice barely reached him.

He retrieved a silver longsword from his storage and examined his reflection in the polished metal.

Crimson... No, like blood.

David gasped, running his fingers through his hair. It was still dark brown like he remembered, but it was longer than before, slightly disheveled, and a few strands looked like they were drenched in blood. But it wasn’t blood. He had already removed all traces of it with the Law. His hair—at least a few strands—had changed.

But so had his eyes.

The change in his eyes was more prominent. His once vibrant emerald-green irises had turned a deep crimson. Not even a trace of his original color remained!

“Batshit crazy,” he muttered, touching his eyes. After a moment, his head flicked to the others. “You guys can see that too, right?”

Melach’s eyes widened while Zachariah’s narrowed. The regressor leaned in, inspecting David’s eyes.

“I thought I was mistaken when your eye color changed before, but it looks like I was right. It’s a Body Modification, isn’t it?”

At least Zachariah knew what was going on. That did not necessarily mean everything would be fine, but it reassured David a great deal.

“The System called it a Modification, yes.” He nodded before shifting his attention to the massive pile of notifications, checking the most important ones.

[Using the Law of Blood beyond the User’s comprehension resulted in a severe strain on the Source and Soul. However, due to a sufficient influx of Apex Blood and Origin Essence, all damage inflicted on the Source has been mended.]

[Your Source has grown. +1 Soul, +4 Blood.]

[Proficiency of Law of Blood increased drastically.]

Middle(Minor) → High(Minor)

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[The Rank of your Primary Class increased by one.]

Bronze VI → Bronze VII

[+3 Attribute Points.]

[Proficiency of Weave of Life increased.]

…

…

[Proficiency of Blood Bullet reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 VIII] → [Tier-0 X]

[Blood Bullet reached its limit. Initiating Tier progression.]

[Blood Bullet: Tier-0 X] → [Blood Blast: Tier-1 I]

[Proficiency of Healing Light reached 100%.]

[Tier-0 IX] → [Tier-0 X]

[Healing Light reached its limit. Initiating Tier progression.]

[Healing Light: Tier-0 X] → [Healing Sphere: Tier-1 I]

[Proficiency of Healing Sphere reached 100%.]

[Tier-1 I] → [Tier-1 III]

…

David skimmed through many notifications, but most were about his Skill Runes’ growth. Since he frequently used Skill Runes for defense, healing, and combat—both close and ranged—he had various Skills to develop, and that was exactly what they did. Their growth was incredibly fast, but he knew it stemmed from the Blessing of the World and the danger of fighting Regional Bosses, a Rift Boss, and nearly a hundred Giants from various Tribes, ranging from the Peak of Bronze Rank to Silver Rank.

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Only after reading the latest notifications did he understand how he had slain so many Giants near the battle’s end.

[An overflow of Origin Essence entered Dao Comprehension, creating a path to profound comprehension.]

[You have acquired the Intent [Bloodlust].]

[You have acquired the Intent [Rend].]

[Your Secondary Class’ Rank increased by three.]

Iron V → Iron VIII

[Body increased by three.]

Low(Intermediate) → Middle(Intermediate)

The only time David had heard about Intents was from Zachariah, which he did not consider very helpful. The regressor was on another level. However, Zachariah had, at least, one Intent—the Sword Intent. Zachariah hadn’t mentioned it often, nor had he explained much about it, but David knew that Sword Intent allowed Zachariah to use a portion of the Sword Law at will. He understood that much very well—the memory of Zachariah conjuring small silver swords to stab him out of nowhere was still imprinted in his mind.

However, it was hard to believe that he had just acquired two Intents.

His Secondary Class’ rank increments made sense since [Dao Comprehension] was the Monk’s Legacy Skill. It was only natural that acquiring two Intents through the Legacy would drastically improve the Monk’s Rank. But… how did he acquire the Intents? Rend, specifically.

“Unhappy?”

David looked at Zachariah and shrugged. I think "confused" fits better here.

Zachariah cocked an eyebrow as David continued, “I obtained an Intent earlier—two, to be precise—but one doesn’t really align with the Law of Blood.”

“What did you get?”

“Bloodlust and Rend.”

“You received them without anyone’s influence, right? No transcendent being appeared to grant you the Intents?” Zachariah looked at him as if he were waiting for something.

David shook his head. “Nobody appeared. It’s been a while since I saw Asmodeus and the others. But what is Rend? Have you heard of the Intent? What Law is it from?”

The regressor didn’t answer, but he looked like he was deep in thought.

Was Rend the reason his attacks had felt so much stronger as the battle neared its end? David wondered. It didn’t take much to recognize the crimson hue oozing from him as Bloodlust, but Rend was harder to identify.

He willed Rend to life, coating his hand in a gray hue. Up close, it appeared similar to Zachariah’s Sword Intent. However, it felt different, evoking a distinct sensation in David. Rend didn’t seem as versatile as Sword Intent, but that didn’t necessarily mean it was weaker. He materialized the Obsidian Blade, naturally extended Rend—surprisingly easy to control now that he knew it existed—letting it shroud the scimitar before slashing down.

A small portion of Rend shot out in a crescent-shaped projectile. It was faster than his bloody projectiles had been and far more lethal. The crescent projectile struck one of the drained Giant carcasses, ripping through its shoulder.

David whistled, lowering his arm, only to feel the ground tremble. He stared down and noticed the tip of the Obsidian Blade scraping the soil. But what truly caught his eye was the tear forming around the tip where it touched the ground.

“That… is interesting,” David muttered, grinning.

He studied Rend’s abilities a little longer, hoping Zachariah would answer his questions once he was back from his world of thoughts. However, before that could happen, a familiar clattering attracted his attention.

“I couldn’t close the portal to the Giant Tribes, but I restrained them,” Torb said as the space around him began to crack. It split open, revealing familiar terrain. It was the land outside the prehistoric Rift. The Xenoceratops were still present as well.

“You want us to leave already?” Melach chuckled, his eyes widening as he stared at the portal.

“We are done here. I received a notification saying that my Champion mission had been completed with a Perfect Score,” Torb beamed like a fool. “I will become Fortress Champion once we’re out of here!!”

Zachariah turned to Torb, whose fists closed and opened but only grunted something incomprehensible before turning back to David.

“So many things are different this time, but you are the most confusing of them all. The World Awakening pulls on my nerves, but I feel like your actions and growth will make me lose my sanity.”

“No problem… I guess?” David was so baffled, he struggled to think of what else to say.

He stood still, trying to interpret the regressor’s words while Zachariah turned to the crack in space. Without hesitation, he walked through it and disappeared. David blinked a few times before following Melach and Torb as they stepped out.

Entering a Rift for the first time had been weird, but he was prepared the second time. The scenery around him shifted as he walked. He slowed, reluctant, as he sensed the Aether density decrease drastically. The ambient Aether was still thick and pure, but it was incomparable to his experience beside the Rift Core. However, the biggest loss for David was the sudden absence of Origin Essence. There was none left for him to absorb.

Not even the messages that popped up before him as he returned to the Earthen Union could dampen his happiness.

[Congratulations! You contributed greatly to the clearance of the prehistoric Rift - Valley of Predation. Your Party used a unique method to take claim of the Rift Core, resulting in additional benefits.]

[Sanctuary Creation has been chosen as the primary reward, deducing the Party’s additional benefits greatly.]

[+1 Attribute Point.]

David barely finished reading the notification when a husky but domineering voice rang in his ears.

“Good job, youngling!”

His head flicked to Torb, who stood before a towering… dwarf? A really big dwarf-looking giant?

David looked more intently at the black-haired dwarf standing opposite Torb and tilted his head. The four-meter-tall figure was translucent. A sheen—a hologram, maybe—he guessed at first. However, something told him there was more to it.

The life signals he sensed from the being were far from normal. Could that be the Essence of a transcendent being? David felt immense power from the tall dwarf, but only now did he realize that the figure might actually be Fortress. Could that be?

David had seen Asmodeus and Bereth once, but they’d been shrouded back then. This was different. However, he didn’t doubt for a moment that Asmodeus and Bereth could mop the floor with Fortress.

The Dwarven God felt powerful, even if only a portion of his might had descended to the Earthen Union, but the bits he had sensed from the Ruler of Blood and the Guard of the Eternal Cycle were on another level. They couldn’t be compared.

David heard murmurs from Torb and the transcendent being as they spoke, but he was too engrossed in studying Fortress’ Essence to listen properly. He only turned to them when Zachariah approached the dwarves.

Zachariah walked ahead of Torb, staring straight into Fortress’ eyes as the god glanced at him.

“Do you still remember me, Fortress?”