### Chapter 212: The Remnants of the Deity (Part Nine)
I froze for a moment.
Did this thing realize what I was about to do…?
It was trying to hide that bl**d Pearl!
“Not a chance!”
The moment I realized this, I had my azure arm hook the veins wrapped around the tumor with its claws again. I crouched down and quickly climbed over. Just as the bl**d Pearl was about to vanish into the flesh, my azure arm surged with wind and swept out with a flick. My slender fingers dug into the flesh and pulled hard, yanking out the pearl along with a shower of scarlet goo!
I got it!
A flash of triumph crossed my eyes as I gazed at the enormous, withered palm clutching the dimly glowing bl**d Pearl. With all its might, it pulled the pearl out from the writhing tumor. As flesh flew everywhere, I saw tiny bl**d vessels connecting the pearl to the tumor’s surface, as if a multitude of exposed capillaries were stitching everything together. The red glow flowed like liquid, as though it were endlessly feeding nutrients into the massive tumor.
This is it…
Just need to cut this!
With my mind racing, I realized these tiny bl**d vessels were the key. So, I yanked harder on the bl**d Pearl, trying to sever them all at once.
“Hah—!”
I shouted, my azure arm striking out with two bursts of force. But to my surprise, I still couldn’t pry the bl**d Pearl out from the tumor’s surface. The veins stretched like rubber bands, making the surface bulge, yet none of them snapped.
It won’t break…
I instantly understood.
While these vessels were small, they had more strength than I imagined; they were pure energy bodies… or at least formed from some unknown energy. That was the power of a deity; they weren’t real veins that could just snap under pressure.
Then…
I heard the sound of wind howling and the slithering of tentacles behind me, rapidly approaching.
I gritted my teeth, pouring all my energy into another massive azure arm, clasping my fingers together like a blade and striking down toward the numerous thin lines connecting the bl**d Pearl to the tumor—
Let’s see how this goes!
With a ‘whoosh,’ a whirlwind formed, and the thick Dead Smoke coalesced into a vortex from my slashing palm, which I compressed into something solid. The next moment, a crescent-shaped black blade shot out, slicing right through the dense bloodlines!
“Slash! k*ll—”
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
The resilient strands snapped apart like twigs.
…It worked!
The dark moonblade zipped past the bloodlines and struck the tumor; a torrent of thick goo exploded outwards, with chunks of flesh flying everywhere. The pulsing flesh beneath me began to writhe faster, the heartbeat-like ‘thump thump’ from deep inside the tumor intensifying, while the thunderous roar reverberated, shaking the world around me.
Time to run…
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw those thick bl**d vessels, like mud eels, coiling from all directions, the nearest already less than thirty meters away.
But the squishy, sticky flesh below made it impossible to use Moon Step to escape. I threw the bl**d Pearl to my right hand, caught it securely, and clutched it to my chest. Chaotic Power surged forth, black flames lighting up like a bonfire, enveloping my entire body. With a mighty pull, my other azure arm yanked my petite form clear out into the air!
Whoosh!
The wind roared in my ears as everything became a blur. I was skimming the surface of the tumor, my fiery wings spreading wide and flapping, my speed increasing. In a flash, I broke the sound barrier, creating a shockwave ahead, but still, the torrent of bl**d vessels was right behind me, closing in fast.
Fifteen meters…
I glanced back and saw the gap was less than fifteen meters! Panic surged through me. I summoned Chaotic Power, ramping up my wing speed to the max, gripping the bl**d Pearl tightly. The chaotic flames swirling around me flickered, coalescing towards my chest.
What should I do…
Compress…
If I can compress the power of the black flames to their absolute limit, I might be able to break through the pearl’s constraints, then consume it…
I couldn’t be sure it was the right move, but there was no time. I had to try.
Hoo—
The intense black flames flowed like water, gathering in less than a second in my right fist, enveloping my fist and the bl**d Pearl. The flames darkened to almost black ink, flickering in the fierce wind, the blinding white light nearly making it impossible to open my eyes. Holding back the pain, I urged the flames to compress further.
Faster, faster, faster…
In a flash, I soared more than two hundred meters, leaving that hideous tumor behind, darting into the dense mist far beyond it.
But this time, the bl**d vessels didn’t retreat as they had before when I flew away from the peak. They continued to writhe and twist behind me, and the numbers just kept multiplying. No matter how fast I flew, they were able to keep pace and remained ever closer.
I glanced back again.
Less than ten meters now…
What the hell is that dancer doing?! Watching a show?!
With a furious swing of my azure arm, the air quaked, producing a sharp hum, as the Dead Smoke coalesced into several sharp black crescent blades, hurtling from my palm—
“Slash! k*ll!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The moon blades zipped through the writhing tentacles with near invisibility, slicing through with explosive results that sent flesh flying everywhere. The sound of hissing filled the air as the raging smoke corroded the tentacles, a cacophony of splattering goo; countless cut limbs recoiled in pain, yet in the next moment, even more tentacles surged forth.
d*mn it…
This is never-ending!
Frustration boiled inside me as my azure arm swung back like a battering ram, conjuring a flurry of crescent blades and dozens of black flame projectiles that twisted into a raging storm, smashing into the mass of tentacles with reckless abandon—
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!!!
Flashes of bl**d-fire erupted like fireworks, each explosion sending shockwaves through the air. I spread my wings mid-flight to stabilize myself while jockeying for speed. Meanwhile, the chaotic flames gathering around my right fist blazed brighter and brighter.
Come on, come on, come on…
“Work already—!!”
Creak.
In the echoing gray expanse of my shout, the bl**d Pearl in my grasp emitted a sound like cracking glass.
!
My heartbeat froze.
Boom!
In the next instant, the bl**d Pearl shattered in my palm.
Buzz—
Before I could react, the scarlet light exploded from my hand and chest, pushing past the blazing white flames, dispersing the ashes all around and rapidly expanding outward!
“Ugh…”
I couldn’t help but grunt as the immense shockwave sent me flying back, dropping a good ten meters before I began to tumble, my head spinning, a constant ‘buzzing’ filling my ears. Amidst the stars, I saw shards of the shattered bl**d Pearl, burning in black fire, unleashing a barrage of crimson light, surging fiercely towards me.
On the other side, the pursuing tentacles suddenly halted in midair.
Then, gradually withdrew.
I slowly closed my eyes.
It worked…
In the end, I went ahead and…
The raging power surged from my chest, an avalanche of energy swiftly spreading through my body, hotter than flowing, molten bl**d. I could hear the piercing sound of steam escaping from my body, like iron on meat.
Flashing through my mind were the blurry faces of the dead children from Cataloma, remembering the way they looked at me from the street corner, their timid yet hopeful smiles lingering.
