Ascension of Chaos

Ashley

Shit, this hurts.

I grit my teeth as I fly straight through the tunnels of the volcanic region while being chased by monsters aplenty. So many in fact that I can't block or dodge every last attack and end up taking at least one attack every several seconds.

Fortunately for me, my destruction resistance skills manage to minimize the damage taken by the attacks. But the damage is still building up.

And it fucking hurts.

Especially when I'm trying to fly while my wings are literally full of holes.

Ignoring how that's even possible in the first place, of course.

I shoot a glance behind myself to see over a dozen different mini bosses chasing after me. Mini bosses ranging all the way from minor destruction-touched dragons to kobold kings. A rank of kobold that's apparently even higher than kobold lord.

And all of the monsters behind me are throwing attacks of all kinds at me.

Breath attacks, destruction magic in every form imaginable, massive bolts no doubt made from some skill, webs, and so on. They all fly at me with abandon, tearing holes in me and my defenses easily.

Because all of these monsters are far stronger than I am.

But I manage to continue flying through the tunnels without pause. Even when I let out a scream as my left arm is torn off entirely, and when a chunk of my calf is ripped off by an alpha dracoraptor's fangs and poison begins to spread through me.

I just keep flying.

Keep flying and everything's good.

Keep flying and I will survive.

I repeat these thoughts over and over again in my head as I fly, getting new injuries one after another. Even though I still haven't managed to kill even a single fucking monster in the inner region of the Unique Domain. Because every last monster here is far stronger than I am, even with my skills. And they're all grouped together as well.

Not to mention that I don't have Blake's support here like I did in the central region.

Speaking of Blake, when I briefly glance at his livestream, I find him struggling even more than I am. Simply because he doesn't have as many evasion or defensive skills as I have.

He does have better healing skills though, so we end up being about even in our fleeing.

Meaning we're both just as injured.

But the biggest problem right now is that I can't head in the direction I remember. Because the monsters are chasing me away from the exit.

And deeper in to the volcano.

At this rate I could very well end up accidentally entering-

My thoughts come to a grinding halt when the very possibility that I was just thinking of turns into an actuality. Even as Blake makes it out of the volcano on the screen floating next to me.

But I don't pay that screen any mind anymore.

Not as I freeze in place high in the air inside of the chamber I just entered.

A chamber that none of the other monsters dare to enter, with all of them just stopping at the entrance and some even whimpering before running away.

Because the chamber I just entered is not a chamber at all.

It's the crater of the volcano.

And sleeping at the center of said crater is the largest monster I have ever seen in my life.

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The King of Destruction.

I narrow my eyes a bit while holding some of my injuries, taking this brief moment of respite to let them heal as I look over the king.

The Unique Monster is nearly two hundred meters from snout to the tip of his tail, and he is currently sleeping at the center of the crater, half submerged in lava. It has the appearance of a massive tyrannosaurus rex mixed with some sort of land dragon, with two legs and two small arms, a massive triangular head with its eyes closed. Meanwhile everything inside of this crater is covered in glowing crimson cracks that, when analyzed, return similar results to the gunpowder and magma. All stating that it is charged with the True Damage of the King of Destruction's gaze.

I wipe the sweat forming on the palms of my hands on my pants as I slowly fly upwards, hoping against hope that the King of Destruction doesn't wake up. And when I'm about halfway up towards the peak of the crater, I get a message from Blake telling me that he's made it out of the inner region.

Despite that, I don't respond. Because not only can he see for himself what is going on through the livestream, but I just can't right now.

When I make it three quarters of the way out of the crater without the King of Destruction waking up though, I pause as a thought comes to mind.

Hmm.

It's worth a shot.

I fly back down a little bit and begin setting up some of my remaining rings inside of the crater itself. Then I continue flying up towards the exit up top.

Only for the King of Destruction's eyes to flash open out of nowhere before turning to me. Instantly making System Notifications flood my vision and ears while screams echo out from the monsters down in the caves.

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 29/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 28/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 27/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 26/30 charges remaining.}

…

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 1/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 0/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of- Warning. User has no charges remaining. One unit of Chaos Energy has been expended to refill 10 charges. You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 9/30 charges remaining.}

…

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 1/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 0/30 charges remaining.}

{You have used up one charge of- Warning. User has no charges remaining. One unit of Chaos Energy has been expended to refill 10 charges. You have used up one charge of Chaotic Source! The True Damage has now been redirected! 9/30 charges remaining.}

The King of Destruction lets out a loud roar as I immediately turn off the System Messages to get them to stop covering my vision and fly as fast as I can right over the edge of the crater. Then I continue flying down, even while I hear the King roaring his anger and climbing the sides of the crater.

I grit my teeth before flying up into the air instead of down the side of the volcano.

Well, shit. I don't care anymore, and Chaotic Source should protect me.

"Activate it!!! Activate it now!!!" I shout in the hopes that Blake will hear as I activate Assimilate.

But nothing happens for several seconds.

Right as I'm beginning to wonder if he decided not to activate it while I'm too close or if he's not watching the livestream, a white sound fills the area. Following which explosions echo out across the volcano as the ground and volcano itself are all torn to pieces, filling the air with crimson ash and making it impossible to see.

I'm also hit by some of it, but it is just reflected. The same as the King's own gaze was.

The number on the icon in the corner of my screen denoting my current list of System Messages instantly shoots up at a rapid pace. No doubt counting all of the kills I've made along with Blake through this maneuver. Not to mention the skills I'm getting from said kills.

And amidst all of this, I hear the King of Destruction letting out an incredibly loud roar of anger and some pain.

But I just keep flying high into the air as the crimson ash chases after me at an equal pace.

I fly higher and higher and higher. All the way until the ash finally slows down and I pull ahead, letting me finally turn around to look at the destruction below.

Only for the ash to be too thick to see anything.

So I glance at Blake's screen to find him perfectly safe while flying over the lava of the central region, not even being anywhere near the inner region anymore. Even if he's still covered in wounds.

I turn back to the volcano as I wait for the ash to settle.

And when it eventually does?

I'm left staring at a complete wasteland filled with patches of lava here and there, with the volcano itself nowhere to be found.

And an incredibly pissed off King of Destruction glaring at me in the center of it all.