Mage? Magic Engineer!-Chapter 63 - 60: Beast of Corruption and Crystal

Step by step, the Beast of Filth emerged. It was now only the size of a horse, and in the center of its chest was a shattered wound covered in pink crystals, from which dark green pus flowed.

Its tail was abnormally thick and powerful, restlessly whipping against the shed skin and smashing earth and rock to bits. The tip was a mangled stump, also covered in crystals.

It wasn’t like the tail of a normal creature; it was more like the body of a python.

’It should have had a lion’s head and a snake’s head as well. The Chimera that brings desolation.’ ’Another monster from the epics. But just like its previous form, its current state didn’t match the legends.’

The beast that symbolized desolation in the records was now corrupt and filthy.

"Are you okay?" Rorschach asked, forcing himself to remain calm as he faced the newborn monster.

Yina was already feeling slightly dizzy; the spells she’d cast earlier had been quite draining. She didn’t speak, instead holding her breath and trying to recover some of her strength.

The flight Magic had faded, and the two of them slowly descended to the ground.

Rorschach’s Ether still lingered on the previous shed skin. He hurriedly replenished it and cast [Stone Shaping Skill], and the Earth Element crawled up to envelop the monster’s body.

The monster continued to roar and struggle. ’Its strength isn’t as great as I’d expected...’ Rorschach could feel it struggling. As the earth crumbled away, he continuously activated more to replenish it, forming a massive cocoon.

’Faster, compress it faster!’

The [Stone Shaping Skill] desperately compressed and solidified the cocoon. At the same time, Rorschach tried to draw external Ether into his body to restore his Magic Power.

This maneuver made his temples throb and his stomach clench, but Rorschach fiercely suppressed the urge to vomit.

’I can’t stop Casting!’

Rorschach had a strange sensation. His brain was trembling and convulsing, and a bitter taste filled his mouth.

’Compress it further! Further!’

The earthen cocoon was already compressed to its limit. If it were a normal creature, its internal organs would have been crushed, but his opponent was an undead creature.

Rorschach urged his Ether to circulate rapidly, converting it into Fire Element. The surface of the earthen cocoon began to melt. This was the hottest Fireball Skill he had ever cast.

There were no roaring flames, only a red-hot, molten cocoon. Rorschach needed the sand and earth to vitrify. As he wished, the viscous, hot slurry gradually took on the monster’s form, encasing it like a sculpture.

But a deep sense of unease settled over Rorschach. The beast hadn’t actively attacked him yet, merely struggling slightly as it endured his assault.

’Is it even working?’

The moment that thought appeared, Rorschach sensed a dramatic increase in pressure from within the cocoon.

"Yina, defend!"

He instantly cast a stone wall in front of them. The instant the [Stone Wall Skill] rose, Rorschach fired a [Cold Ice Beam] at the cocoon. A massive explosion erupted, blocked by the wall. The combination of the instantly cooled and solidified molten sand and the rising internal pressure caused the cocoon to detonate utterly. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

’If I can’t contain it, I’ll just make it blow up.’ With this in mind, Rorschach fired the spell. The moment he finished Casting, Yina shoved him aside. The stone wall was violently smashed through, breached by a pair of goat horns.

Shards of rock sprayed everywhere, stinging as they hit his body, their sharp edges grazing him and tearing his skin. Rorschach stumbled and fell, his gaze meeting the pink crystal eyes of the goat head. The beast had stopped its low murmuring. After smashing the wall, it stood motionless, its pink crystal eyes murky and dim.

"Run." Rorschach pulled Yina up, and they staggered away. The monster raised its head, then slowly lowered it, aiming it forward. Its lion claws pawed at the ground, building up for a charge.

A fierce wind swept past them from behind. This time, the goat head slammed squarely into the cavern wall—the previous shed skin, which trembled from the impact.

"Yina, can you make us fly again?"

"I can, but not for long." The two of them rose into the air again, dodging a third charge. Looking down from above, Rorschach noticed that the pink crystals on the monster were multiplying.

The mutated Chimera realized its target was airborne and its charges were no longer effective. It began to slowly circle below Rorschach, like a predator waiting for its prey.

As it paced, the monster let out a continuous, low roar. A closer listen revealed that the thick, muffled sound was constantly changing. Ether gathered around it as if it were an epicenter, and dark green fluid oozed from its body, revealing more shimmering pink crystals.

’Unlike the large head from before, this thing is using Ether. It’s Casting, converting the Ether into a corrupt, dark green aura. No, not converting—it’s polluting it.’

Yina came to a terrifying conclusion. "It’s chanting." Mustering her remaining spirit, she began to overdraw her Magic Power, forcing out three Silver Stars.

One shattered a small portion of the pink crystals, but the other two sank into its corrupt flesh to no effect. Yina’s Magic had failed to interrupt the monster’s Casting, and the stench of corruption in the cave only grew thicker.

Neither high nor low temperatures worked on it. Rorschach now realized that most of his Shaping Power attacks were useless. He tried to use [Stone Shaping Skill] to interfere with the monster again, only to realize in despair that he couldn’t control the Ether surrounding it.

’Can’t control it? Fine. I won’t even try.’

"Mage Yina, whatever you do, don’t cast any Magic." Rorschach made a strange request.

One bag, two bags... Yina watched as Rorschach took paper-wrapped packets from his Storage Ring and began sprinkling out sparkling white sand. He shook them out hurriedly, the grains drifting down onto the monster and the area around it. The scene was almost comical, like a chef seasoning an ingredient.

’Too slow.’ Rorschach simply grabbed a handful of the paper packets and used [Projectile] to launch them at the monster.

"What is that?" Yina couldn’t help but ask.

Before Rorschach could answer, a change occurred. The concentrated Ether under the monster’s control activated the Vibrating Quartz. The sand grains exploded into an even finer powder, and the Ether let out a silent shriek. It sent an extreme tremor through the Mages, one that bypassed their eardrums completely. An explosive wave, carried on the Magic Power, slammed into every Caster present—including the foul beast itself.

The beast threw its head back and let out a furious roar. Amidst the chaotic torrent of Ether, its rotting flesh and pus rapidly evaporated. More pink crystals crawled across its body, making it even stiffer. The frantically shimmering pink crystal lattices revealed their instability, and cracks began to spread across its already crystallized shell.

The monster’s spell was interrupted, only for a new shockwave from the Material World to strike. This time, with no amber bubble to protect them, Yina and Rorschach were slammed hard against the cavern wall before crashing to the ground. The taste of blood welled up in their throats as pain washed over them. The explosion also caused the outermost layer of shed skin to finally give way. The ground shook violently, and the whole cavern seemed on the verge of collapse.

And at the source of the shockwave, the Beast of Filth had completely crystallized, turning into a shattered and broken crystal statue.

From its abdomen, crystal fragments began to flake away, piece by piece. A long, thin, and desiccated hand reached out from within. It was gaunt and sharp, little more than bone covered by a thin membrane of skin.

"Still more?" Rorschach no longer had the strength to suppress the rising nausea. But what he spat out wasn’t bile or stomach acid, but sweet, metallic-tasting blood. A thread of despair rose with it.

"Do not be alarmed. You have done well."

Suddenly, his panel lit up, and [Deryats Forest (Red)] appeared.

Rorschach didn’t have time to think and activated it immediately. There was no need for a Blood Array; with a mere thought, the Ether transformed into a forest of grass and trees. Bathed in a blue, fluorescent glow, the canopy of trees rose to support the crumbling cavern.

The fluorescent light gathered, annihilating the pink crystals it touched before clinging to the desiccated hand. The blue glow was endless and unceasing. The chaotic Ether was absorbed and converted, flowing into the withered remains.

Yina had already fallen unconscious. From the forest, Rorschach saw a tall, deer-headed god with a human body emerge. The deity extended a hand toward him, and a beetle landed on its fingertip.