The Conquerors Path

Chapter 1037: Chapter 1035-Bad Memories.

“Since he calls you big sis, you must also be killed with him!”

The main lead of the attackers shouted, it being the shark as their mana started to tremble around. Soon, the location around them was cut off, creating some kind of barrier, leaving all of them inside. Elowen and Kal stood side by side, looking at the attackers while the merman male was stuck at the side, using them as living shields.

The lips of Elowen twitched, feeling a headache hitting her. Beside her, Kal, with quite the stunned expression, looked behind him at the trembling young merman male and the annoyed Elowen as he asked.

“What’s going on?”

“Just a pain in the ass using me to get out of his troubles.”

Elowen replied as she shot the guy standing behind her a murderous gaze. She was way beyond annoyed right now, almost livid would be the truth. The eyes of Kal gained a certain annoyance too as he looked at the young man, feeling the situation they are in is all his fault, which truly, truly is.

Thus, with a quick movement, his hands went to catch the merman male’s neck. The merman dodged it, his eyes widening with surprise at the quick, nimble merman male who seemed to dodge him. The sight also caught Elowen’s eyes as she narrowed them for a moment, her mind running around certain possibilities. The merman male who dodged the catch of his neck had a sly smile.

“Sorry, but I don’t like dudes I don’t know touching me. It would be different if it were kind, beautiful big sisters, though!”

He shouted as he winked at Elowen, making her frown and Kal feel even more annoyed at the young man. His expression did not at all show any sort of goodness toward the kid. While this happened, the rest of the three weren’t sitting still at all. In fact, they were only getting started.

The barrier they set up had its functions of not only cutting them off from the outside world but also placing debuffs on their enemies and buffing them up too. It’s with that confidence that they took action to attack, even though they had intel that the one inside might be harder to catch than they expected.

“Boys, looks like we can go all out now!”

The shark shouted, and the moment he did, his smooth, gentle mana twisted. The moment Elowen felt that single aura for a second, her eyes widened, her pupils dilated, and her instincts grew. While her mind went back into unwanted memories, she always tried to gobble down alcohol that numbed her all over.

The vivid images of blood splashing to her face, the sickening sound of her allies, friends and family being torn apart. The depth of their degradation was taking place right in front of her as she had to take the lives of the ones she once called her family. The sickening sound of her bones breaking as she watched depravity to the finest spread all around.

Inhibition lowered, a world marked in chaos and death and the deep, inevitable feeling that filled all of them who fought. The feeling that this was a losing fight, the fact that the Gods had failed them, the fact that they were on their own. And finally, the despairing knowledge that there is nothing you can do to change all this, no matter how much stronger you get.

‘No!’

She shouted it out of her mind, her expression turning for the worse, twisting like a devil. While at the same time, the 4 of them had unleashed their corrupted aura. The touch of that corruption which grants an extra boost and a sense of protection, filling out the space, making the whole atmosphere dirty. Like shit being thrown at a clean, gentle shining surface.

“The corrupted!”

Kal muttered under his breath, his expression deeply surprised, and a hint of fear flashed through his eyes too. Fighting the corrupted is always a dangerous task, especially when they don’t have the specific protection to even protect themselves against it. Fighting corrupted beings is not an easy task at all.

Taking out how their corrupted mana can twist their attack powers, there is a worse risk of how, if the person is not careful, the corruption could latch onto them without their knowledge, and they could become corrupted.

By the time you realise what has happened, it will be too late.

Only certain specialised beings with special protection, trained to fight, normally take it upon themselves to fight corrupted beings. It’s a mentally draining task where one moment of mistake can cost them their whole future in the realm and the lives of their close ones. Corruption is like that small virus that spreads fast and hidden, making it very dangerous if not handled correctly.

“You! Just who are you!?”

Kal shouted as he gave a sideways glance to the merman male standing behind them with a cool gaze. Though the moment he looked at the enemies in front of them, his expression too was one of great dislike and hatred.

“Me? I am your friendly neighbourhood merman!”

The merman male shouted back with a bright smile.

“Shut it, you twerp….”

Elowen muttered with a dark voice at him. She turned to look back at him, who had shed more of his normal stupid look, now having a more stern face as he stood behind them with his arms crossed. A small teasing smile broke out on his face.

“Once we take care of them, you have a lot to answer for, you bastard.”

Elowen muttered back with a burning fire in her eyes as she looked at the 4 in front of her, who had now surrounded them from four sides. Their eyes burned with depravity as Elowen straightened her back, a sturdy presence leaking from her, her mana of Origin level 8 blazing forth.

Just because she lounges and wastes her time sitting away doesn’t mean her hate towards those beings has fallen off. She was just numbing it all with alcohol to push down all the hate and pain clutching to her legs, whispering her desires to just tear everything apart to avenge the fallen. And now the very things she wishes to forget found themselves at her doorstep. Now she can’t just turn a blind eye.

“Fucking disgusting stench as always.”

“El?”

Kal replied with that surprised call at the words that fell from Elowen. She looked at her childhood friend for a moment, after which she took a deep breath, her expression turning serene. A water-like whip appeared in her hands, and that was not the end of it. On the ground it started to quake and split as small seeds started to bloom and vines grew.

She raised her hand and gave a big hit to Kal’s back.

Slap!

As that sound rang out, a certain temporary connection was established.

Kal staggered forward a step, his eyes widening in surprise as a warm, symbiotic energy flooded through his body. The uncomfortable, oily feeling of the corrupted mana that had been pressing down on him like a dirty film suddenly lifted, replaced by a refreshing clarity that made his own power surge. The debuffs from the barrier melted away, and for a moment he felt lighter, stronger, more in control.

“This… Elowen, what did you just do?”

He asked, voice filled with genuine surprise as he flexed his hands, feeling the symbiotic connection between them, though temporary.

“Shut up and fight.”

“You take the eel. I’ll handle the other three. And you—”

The four assailants didn’t wait for pleasantries. The lead shark beastman roared, his body bulging with corrupted energy as he charged forward, his massive fists glowing with dark, twisting mana. The other shark followed, while the eel-like creature crackled with electricity, and the octopus-armed one extended his tentacles like living whips tipped with blades.

“Kill them all!”

The lead shark bellowed, his voice distorted with corruption.

Elowen moved first, her water-whip lashing out with blinding speed. The whip cracked through the water like thunder, wrapping around the lead shark’s arm and yanking him off balance. Vines erupted from the floor beneath him, wrapping around his legs and pulling him down with surprising strength. The shark roared in anger, trying to break free, but Elowen’s symbiotic connection with the environment made the vines as strong as steel cables.

Kal, empowered by his temporary boost, charged the eel creature. His crystalline arms, similar to Elowen’s Bloomkin heritage but more combat-oriented, glowed with icy energy as he clashed against the eel’s electric attacks. Sparks flew as their powers met, the water around them sizzling from the contact. Kal was a skilled warrior, his movements precise and efficient, but the corrupted eel’s attacks were wild and unpredictable, forcing him to stay on the defensive.

The octopus-armed assailant and the second shark came at Elowen from both sides. She spun gracefully, her whip cracking out to deflect a tentacle blade while vines shot up to entangle the shark’s legs. The octopus assailant was fast, his tentacles whipping around her defences and trying to wrap around her waist. Elowen twisted away at the last moment, but one tentacle grazed her side, leaving a shallow cut that burned with corrupted energy.

“Annoying.”

She muttered, her amber eyes flashing with irritation.