Born in Blood



Liam was too fast for the Skunk to react.

His upper-right fist – strengthened with churning chaos – collided right across its pointy snout.

BANG!

Letting out a screeching cry of pain, the Skunk's entire body jolted to the side due to the sheer weight behind Liam's punch.

Tufts of its fur began to secrete acidic goo, smoke and mist that tainted the air.

Holding his breath, Liam used all his arms to smash downward against the Skunk's head.

A layer of acidic, mud-like armor softened his blow, but his six arms struck like loaded hammers.

BOOOM!

A heavy shockwave rang out as the beast's head met Liam's knuckles.

The Skunk's head was forced downwards, but it let out another screech. 

'Ora' gathered at its underside, condensed, then – as it whipped around with its tail rising – made a shrill hiss as it released.

WISSSSS!

Liam leapt back with a strained scowl, dodging past a flurry of disgusting dark ooze intending to melt him.

Parts of his skin, and especially his hands, sizzled with burning liquid. 

The gauntlets weren't invincible. 

Skunk acid ate through the glimmering surface, but only half a nail's length.

They were still perfectly usable, and would reform once Liam had transformed again, but further damage could take away their strength.

Evidently, even Liam's Ashura Form wasn't strong enough to suffer through the brunt of a Rank 4 Zenith. 

Especially when it came to the beast's specialty.

Despite that fact, Liam decided to test the limits of his prowess. 

Cocking his knees, he jumped in, fists blazing with chaos as he uppercutted the Skunk's acid-protected chin.

BANG!

Again, a series of loud booms and bangs rang out within the amber forest. 

Liam was giving the Skunk a hard time. 

There were only two things the Skunk was good at.

Defense, and spewing acid.

Its fur was exceptionally dense and thick.

Despite that, Liam's punches sent shockwaves shooting through its organs, stunning it at times.

At the same time, Liam would just dodge the acidic attacks due to how fast and small he was.

Blood started to spill from the Skunk's snout and certain patches of its fur.

If the fight went on, Liam could actually defeat a Zenith ranked beast on his own!

…But Liam was also wounded. 

His gauntlets and skin were singed by the acidic mist.

His silver hair was riddled with pieces of green gunk, no longer glimmering.

A piece of his ornate shoulder pad was missing.

And as he fought, a vicious, bloodthirsty expression grew on his face.

ROAR!

Eventually, Liam's bestial instincts had grown to its peak, forcing him to express his anger in the form of a long roar.

The Acrid Skunk flinched and screeched in response, more 'Ora' gathering around its body, creating a denser version of its armor.

It now prioritized defense.

At that point, Liam's senses returned to him for a split second. 

That was enough for him to call it quits and turn around.

The Skunk didn't chase. 

It watched Liam growing distant with a cautious gaze, then skittered around and ran the opposite direction.

Dashing away, Liam undid his transformation and gritted his teeth as a wave of burning pain washed over him.

Becoming an Ashura came with higher pain resistance, but his human side didn't have such privileges. 

At first, Liam's consciousness wasn't consumed by the violent thoughts. 

Liam had absorbed two Rank 3 Beast Wills at a time for an entire month to expand his mind, after all.

Increasing his mental energy countered the murking effects of his Ashura side.

Still, it grew difficult to remain focused as the battle raged on. 

It was like Liam had to prove he was the victor. 

That he was superior to a beast.

'For me to go toe to toe against a Zenith is a good enough milestone.'

Liam had actually tried using his Shadow with his Ashura Form.

Unfortunately, he couldn't make it work.

Liam was only used to one kind of Shadow, after all.

The Shadow of an Ashura had four more arms, and was much bigger than normal.

By extension, it was much more difficult to control.

After an hour or so, Liam found himself a safe cave to cultivate and heal his wounds in.

He threw a pill in his mouth and regained a bit of energy, then waited for night to fall.

He smelled horrible, and taking a bath was his next course of action. 

Thankfully, where his next victims were, there was plenty of water. 

///

The sound of gushing rivers surged beside a large boulder, resisting the fierce tides.

Atop the boulder, were a few Sect buildings that looked newly made. 

Blue robed martial artists went this way and that, carrying large boxes of various materials and tools in their hands.

Somber looks were on their faces, but with it, resolve.

What was once the mighty Endless Tide Sect, was now a relic of the past. 

Their Patriarch had died defending his disciples against a Rank 5 Dragon, and they were without his leadership.

There were only a measly 43 disciples remaining.

But they were still in the process of rebuilding their clan, and with it, their name!

…Just then, a pale, gothic figure drenched with water appeared at their open gates.

He was wearing full black, wielded two blades, and had witch-like nails and fingers.

The Endless Tide disciples didn't sense him.

He was like a ghost wrapped in Shadow.

A Wraith. 

A Revenant.

A Phantom.

In an instant, the figure burst into dark flames. 

Red and yellow stars acted as eyes.

In the next moment, the Wraith turned into a thin streak of dark light that shot through the Sect perimeters.

WHOOSH!

SHING!

SPURT!

For a good two minutes, the figure went unnoticed.

Every disciple the misty Wraith passed by, a red line appeared on their neck, followed by a spurt of blood and a rolling head.

It helped that their screams were drowned out by the gushing waves of water.

23 had died.

Another two minutes passed. 

Another 14 followed.

One more minute passed.

A total of 43 disciples had been killed in just five minutes.