The Last Paragon in the Apocalypse
Chapter 1559: Poison Evolution
While Rhazor had no idea since he was in a hurry to escape, the explosion that Nirvana, Fury, and Void ignited by combining their powers had severely injured the forest.
The power of the three explosions was so immense that the vines, flower monsters, and walking trees failed to regenerate after they were reduced to ash. This left the vast area empty, with only ash remaining.
Rhazor may not have realized it, but he had done more damage to the living forest than anyone before him.
Ten minutes after he left, five Universe Gods with green skin and humanoid features appeared on the scene, their expressions hollow as they scanned the area.
Suddenly, a command entered their minds.
"Hunt the human down and bring me his head."
The five green-skinned gods nodded, and they vanished, chasing after Rhazor.
Somewhere deep within the forest, a four-meter-tall humanoid tree stood amidst towering flower monsters, walking trees, tree spiders, and countless other creatures, all looking toward a lone figure seated upon a throne.
This person was a Supreme, and judging by her pale-green skin, she was a tree person, a powerful one at that.
However, she looked and felt different compared to the others.
She was the main forest, or more accurately, she was the forest.
A very long time ago, a seed drifted from one of the Dao Trees currently growing within the Calamity Forest and germinated here.
Ever since then, this seed had continued to expand, starting as a small forest before eventually becoming a vast and boundless domain filled with all kinds of dangers.
Throughout her countless years, many had wandered into the dark embrace of her vastness, never to leave again.
Many demigods and gods were devoured, while some were transformed into her warriors, sent out to hunt and bring her food.
Never once had anyone escaped her control.
That was until today, when Rhazor accidentally arrived here and became the first person to do so.
But he didn’t just leave.
He left with a bang, leaving her furious and highly motivated to kill him.
"Deploy all warriors. I want the head of that human," she commanded in a strange language, and the entire forest obeyed her.
---
Rhazor, who was riding on Qilin’s back when they entered the Soul Portal as Icon had instructed, appeared in front of a river, Qilin coming to a sudden halt.
Turning back, Rhazor saw the forest roughly twenty kilometers away.
"We are not safe yet. Qilin, keep running until we can no longer see the forest."
Qilin nodded and took to the air, galloping at a deadly speed as he widened the distance between them and the forest.
Rhazor knew the forest would come after him, so he had to get as far away as possible before the pursuit began.
After running for three hours, Qilin finally stopped atop a barren cliff.
The moment he did, Rhazor jumped down and patted his head.
"Good job, Qilin. You can go back and rest."
"Okay, Daddy."
Qilin transformed into dark flames and merged with the tattoo on Rhazor’s arm.
Rhazor let out a sigh of relief, his expression brightening.
"That was close," he muttered, looking at the hand he had used to kill the Death Sovereign Tree.
Back in the Jade Nest, after Kent found the Immortal Claw Art, he tasked all of his incarnations with learning it.
And so they did.
They learned the first technique of the Immortal Claw Art, the Beast God Claw Art.
The Immortal Claw Art actually contained seven different techniques, with the first being the Beast God Claw Art, which itself possessed three forms.
The one Rhazor used was the [Domain Cutter], the first form.
He had mastered the first form to sixty percent, yet he had used it to kill a True God.
Naturally, that got him wondering what would happen once he mastered all three forms of the Beast God Claw Art and unlocked the second technique of the Immortal Claw Art.
"I need to improve this Domain Cutter, master it to one hundred percent, and unlock the second form. If I can kill a True God with just the first form, what will become of me when I master the second and third forms, and even unlock the second technique?"
"I must work on that now."
Rhazor sat down and closed his eyes, appearing within his Soul Sea, where Kaden was also practicing some scythe-wielding techniques.
"Hey, dude," Rhazor said, nodding toward Kaden.
"Hey, dude," Kaden replied, narrowing his eyes at Rhazor. "Having fun already?"
Rhazor smiled and nodded.
"I just fought a forest and lived to tell the tale."
Of course, he knew Kaden was already aware of the battle. After all, they were both the same person.
Still, it felt nice to talk about it.
"Good for you. In any case, I will be visiting Earth today to check up on everyone. I might pass by that restaurant we used to visit."
Kaden waved at him and exited the Soul Sea, allowing Rhazor to focus on what he had come there to do.
He activated the Beast God Claw Art and started practicing.
***
Five days later, he opened his eyes in the outside world...
<Your understanding of the Beast God Claw Art has improved tremendously>
<Congratulations, you have fully mastered Domain Cutter>
<Congratulations, you have unlocked Domain Rend>
[Domain Rend (30% Mastery)]
[Description: Unleash a single claw swing and release thousands of claw arcs in an all-directional assault, covering a massive area and unleashing devastation upon everything in its path.]
"Damn, I feel like if I face that forest again, it would be ten times easier to escape," Rhazor muttered, a smile spreading across his face. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
He activated the [Beast God Claw Art] again, and a gauntlet of five deadly talons covered his left hand.
He raised his right hand and summoned another gauntlet.
"Let me test it out."
He turned toward a mountain standing one kilometer away and, using his left hand, unleashed a [Domain Cutter], sending out four deadly claw arcs.
They slammed into the mountain, carved a path through it, and continued onward.
"Wow. I only used fifty percent mastery, and it is already this strong." Rhazor grinned. "As expected of the Beast God. He wasn’t a simple existence."
"Now, the [Domain Rend]."
He kept the same direction and tapped into the 30% mastery he had of the [Domain Rend], the second form of the [Beast God Claw Art].
Then he unleashed a claw slash.
More than three hundred claw arcs burst forth toward the mountain.
When they passed, the rays of the sun, which had initially been blocked by the mountain, illuminated his face. The mountain was nowhere to be seen...
"Well, looks like I have nothing to worry about now, do I?"
Rhazor grinned and deactivated the claws before taking a deep breath and patting himself on the back.
He summoned the map, and thanks to Icon, he quickly spotted his current location.
"I’ll have to go around the forest, which means passing through the Naga King’s domain. I just hope the Flame Dao Crystal is still there by the time I reach the Crimson Haunted Valley."
Rhazor sighed and was about to summon Nirvana’s wings when a series of messages appeared before him.
<You have absorbed a large quantity of Corrosive Poison.>
<Your understanding of Poison has improved greatly.>
<Evolution requirement met. Your Poison is ready to evolve.>
<Yes/No>
"Yes, of course."
Kent felt a wave of corrosive energy surge through his body.
<Your Poison has undergone its first evolution.>
<Congratulations, your Poison has evolved into Blood Corrosive Poison.>
<You have attained Poison Harmony in both Comprehension and Resistance.>
<Congratulations, you have awakened a new innate ability: Poison Aura.>
[Poison Aura]
[Rank: Innate]
[Description: Coat your weapons with poison to increase their damage output by 10,000%. The higher your comprehension of poison, the stronger the effect.]