Apocalypse Healer - Path of Death-Chapter 8B3 - A God?

With too much horrifying news to accept, and too many pieces of information to digest, David’s mind went blank.

The world around him turned into a blur.

When he regained full consciousness of his body and surroundings, David failed to suppress a pained groan. His eyes were wide open, staring at a wooden ceiling and a dimly lit lamp that illuminated the dark room faintly, but he did not move—even though he could.

But pain was not the reason he remained unmoving, even as it passed through his body, consuming him slowly. David couldn’t even think about moving as countless thoughts and memories of old times resurfaced.

It was one thing to learn about the death of his family and friends, and another to find out that one of his best friends had turned into a serial murderer. Could he even call William that at this point? Was ‘serial murderer’ the right term for someone who’d killed countless innocent people in the last Cycle?

David breathed out heavily, ignoring the searing sting spreading across his upper body as he inhaled again.

What happened to me? He looked down at the bloody bandages covering his entire body.

“I had to restrain you a little bit. You lost control of your emotions and threatened to wreak havoc. I couldn’t afford that,” Zachariah’s calm and composed voice reached his ears.

“I see,” David muttered, using [Blood Manipulation] to retrieve the blood soaked in the bandages before casting [Greater Restoration], using one of the two Blood droplets left in his Source. At this point, his Relic and Blood Storages were drained completely, and it was quite obvious that his Source had been empty not long ago as well. The Aether in the Energy Pathways had been drained to replenish two droplets, which David used to mend his wounds.

Feeling better, David looked around. He was no longer outside the Sanctuary—that much had already been apparent—but it looked like Zachariah had brought him back to the room he’d leased not long ago. It was already late as well. The last rays of sunlight had disappeared beyond the horizon, but David’s eyes did not linger long on the window and the fading light. He turned to Zachariah, who sat beside the window, watching him silently.

“The Venomancer was your friend, wasn’t he?”

“He is my friend,” David snapped, but he wasn’t so sure anymore. Was he really?

Does he know I am here? He was probably there when the Cohorte attacked. William must have seen him. So… he knows and disregarded everything?

“Is he, really? William may still be your friend, but the Venomancer certainly isn’t. Didn’t you listen to me? That guy is a psychopath! He will do everything it takes to support Zephir. And why? For the sake of power! As long as the Poisonous Beast God gives him more power, William will do anything!”

David growled and jumped to his feet, his wounds tearing open again.

Zachariah didn’t move, but their eyes met. His words rang cold and sharp through the room, “Sit the fuck down.”

Heavy pressure descended suddenly, the wooden planks beneath them creaked, and a crimson flow returned to the bandages. Droplets of blood trickled down, yet they never reached the floor. David manipulated them, twisting them into needles—only to be met with dozens of silverish-golden swords.

David growled, struggling to reclaim control of his emotions, but he slumped back onto the bed. He sat on the edge, his feet bursting through the wooden planks as he kicked them in frustration.

“William killed millions. Hundreds of millions, if we include the independent realms he annihilated for power before I caught and killed him,” Zachariah spoke coldly, his silverish-golden swords still levitating in the room. “And he would have killed more to become stronger if I hadn’t been the one to eliminate him.”

David clenched his hands, fingernails digging deep into his palms. But he controlled the raging fire in his chest and listened.

“Since William is acting more aggressively this time, I believe Zephir has decided to pursue a more aggressive strategy than before. I’m led to believe that the Venomancer has regained his spot as the Poisonous Beast God’s Fragment Holder. In fact, Zephir might have granted him a stronger Fragment than before, since the Venomancer and his Cohorte destroyed several System Sanctuaries before arriving at the Dwarven Sanctuary.”

Zachariah didn’t stop talking for a while, forcing more and more information into David’s mind. The Regressor told him about the power Zephir must have acquired by consuming the traces of divinity embedded in the Pantheas they had conquered, and how the Poisonous Beast God’s influence on the Earthen Union had expanded thereafter.

He did not hold back from telling David all about the horrifying acts they were going to perform if William was granted more power. After all, he was already the equivalent of a Prime Champion as a Beast God’s Fragment Holder. Only, Zachariah feared William had been given more power than the average Prime Champion, and that William’s Authority had grown considerably stronger as well.

The more David listened, the angrier he became. The doubts and denial made space for fury and wrath.

One of the few people from his old life—those whom he had held dear—was not only alive but also an enemy? Responsible for all of this?!

Stolen novel; please report.

“He wants to grow stronger, you say. How do you think he will do that?” David asked once Zachariah’s tireless monologue ceased at last.

He was far from calm, but there was little he could do right now. It wasn’t like William was there for him to question. Even if he were, David somehow doubted his old friend would chit-chat with him. Things had changed. Everything was different.

“I’m sure they will focus on creating a Divinity for the Venomancer. That way, William would become the strongest being in the Earthen Union—until the divine entities outside the Earthen Union can descend. And that does not mean anyone will descend, since descending is not a simple ordeal. It’s complex, time-consuming, and it won’t help us anyway. By the time the Pantheon and other gods emerge in the Earthen Union, we will already be Transcendents with Divine Seeds—preferably Divinities,” Zachariah looked conflicted and sighed again.

He waved his hand, dismissing the silverish-golden swords, and leaned back in an attempt to look more relaxed. That failed miserably, but David didn’t mention it. The Regressor looked distressed, which was usually a bad sign—even worse than learning about your best friend’s secrets… his dark side.

Either way, the easiest way to create a Divinity would be to gather Fragments left behind by other gods. William could harvest these Fragments and fuse them together by force. However, that would only be enough to become a demigod at best. Maybe Zephir hopes for William to stagnate as a demigod, making it easier to control him, but that didn’t work last time. William created a proper Divinity, which means he must have annexed the harvested Fragments and made them his own. He then altered them as he saw fit to create a Divinity that suited him best.

While it was pleasant to hear that the Poisonous Beast God and William had been at odds in the last Cycle, it was already established that the divine beings remembered Zachariah and the last Cycle. Zephir was almost certainly aware of William’s acts and would have intervened in the creation of a proper Divinity if he wanted to stop William from becoming divine.

Regardless of their schemes, the Poisonous Beast God and William were dangerous. They all needed to be dealt with—even William.

“How did you plan to rescue the Earthen Union in the first place? Let’s ignore that your plans failed miserably because almost nothing worked out as intended. What have you been up to other than hunting them?” David asked, glancing at Zachariah’s hands again.

He knew Zachariah had severed his own hand, most likely due to an infection inflicted by a Sapling of the Void—a Void Fragment. The Regressor had been hunting them, but for what purpose? What exactly was his plan?

“My plan hasn’t changed a lot. I will stop them, while growing stronger than ever. However, I hope the Pantheon and other forces will move faster shortly to deploy their Champions and Children to help. If that works out, we can work together against the Void.” Zachariah shook his head, ignoring the look David threw him at the mention of the Void. “I expected some Infernal and Heavenly forces to fight since they can never stop making everything about themselves, but too many seem to betray each other for their selfish gains. Then again, that should not come as a surprise.”

“Either way, I was supposed to grow strong enough to collect the Shards of the Void that assimilated when the Fragments accumulated enough power in the wake of their carnage.” He retrieved a black crystal that looked somewhat familiar and stored it again after a moment as its energy poured out. “They’re the reason Saplings come to be, which is also why I labeled them as such—I consider them the seed of their origin.”

The Regressor shrugged and grimaced as he revealed more of his plan. “I am—or was—supposed to regain my old status and kill as many Saplings before they can make use of the Earthen Union’s weakness and amass enough chaos to evolve into Fragments. And everything should have worked out, given that I had reached the ranks of the gods and devils faster than anyone. I was an equal and the only one they could safely send back, since I was a native of the world—certain it wouldn’t give them more power.”

“But it failed. Something went wrong, different than calculated, and the plan failed. And they are already wreaking havoc while you have yet to regain your old status as a…” David tilted his head, his eyes bulging as he realized what it meant to reach the ranks of the gods and devils. “God? You were a god?”

Zachariah definitely didn’t look like one. Then again, nothing could surprise him at this point—not after everything Zachariah had thrown at him today.

“Right now, I’m mortal. Weak compared to what I had once been.” Zachariah inclined his head. “Regardless, after various challenges, my powers are not as restricted as they used to be. Reclaiming everything won’t be easy and will take a while, but I should be strong enough to do some cleaning.”

His lips still parted, he paused for a moment. Looking at David, he added with a thin smile, “As long as I have someone to fix me up at times, cleaning shouldn’t be a problem.”

That was it. David couldn’t tell if Zachariah cared a lot about the Dwarven Sanctuary, but the Regressor was most certainly interested in his healing abilities. Even if the Void Fragments were to injure—infect—Zachariah, David could help.

“But too many things have changed. Some gods must hate me more than they fear the future and survival of the cosmos. Or maybe they always have—and always had—their own personal schemes to deal with the issues at hand.” Zachariah shook his head faintly. “Though many things have changed, I can still use a fair deal of my power and intervene in the Earthen Union’s fate. The final step of my plan hasn’t changed; the Fissure has to be sealed. Weakened by the Shards that can be found all over the Earthen Union, and barred forever.”

Is it okay for him to talk to me about all of that? To mention them this often? David wondered in uncertainty.

But as confused as he was, Zachariah wasn’t. The Regressor looked like he had decided to reveal a little bit about everything.

Would sharing this information strengthen the Void? Probably. However, Zachariah took the risk and told David, presumably thinking that letting him know was more valuable than the gains their enemies might make in return.

“Are you confident in sealing them forever?” David couldn’t help but ask.

“Nope.”

“What?”

“I am not confident. But this is the best chance we got.”

That didn’t sound too pleasant, yet the smile playing on Zachariah’s lips calmed him.

“And you should be ready to fight them as well,” the Regressor said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I won’t force the fight upon you, but sooner rather than later, the fight will come to you.”

David grimaced, recalling his first encounter with a Void Fragment. He had barely seen it at that time, but it almost killed him.

His hand pulled to his chest and clenched it firmly, feeling the wildly drumming heart that threatened to tear his rib cage apart.

“Prepare and be ready to strike first if you want to make a change.”

You don’t have to tell me twice, David thought, his lips parting.

“I will be ready when you need me.”

The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel