Rayden tried to stand.

His legs gave out.

He dropped back to one knee.

Too weak.

The lion was simply too strong. There was no angle here. No trick. No hidden edge he could exploit.

He had no hope of winning head on.

The lion raised a brow.

That last attack had been casual. It was not even worth being called an attack. Just a lazy swipe.

Yet the small human was still alive.

Not only alive.

In one piece.

The lion’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Curious.

Since when did humans, especially ones this small, become this durable?

It began walking forward.

Each step heavy.

Measured.

Rayden felt his blood run cold.

There was nothing he could do.

The exit was sealed.

One paw had nearly ended him.

If that beast got serious, he would not even know how he died.

Fight?

Impossible.

Run?

Nowhere.

The only thing left was…

Rayden grabbed the orb hanging from his necklace and held it out in front of him.

Like an offering.

The lion was already closing in, eyes gleaming.

I don’t know if this will work.

It probably won’t.

But I have to try.

If he fed the orb directly to the system, it would be consumed. No guarantee the system would save him.

The Hellbrand was different.

It was permanent. Etched into his soul. It had sealed most of his abilities in exchange for the system.

If he pulled on the Hellbrand and redirected its focus to the orb…

What would happen?

Rayden had no idea.

He could die instantly.

Messing with his own soul was the worst possible gamble.

But what else did he have left to gamble with?

Nothing.

He was done playing safe.

Hoping for the best and ready for the worst, Rayden turned inward.

He grabbed at the Hellbrand within his soul and pulled.

Then forced its attention toward the orb.

Something answered.

A thin strand of hellish essence seeped from deep within him, crawling through his body and into his palm.

Rayden did not realize how lucky he was that Hellskin Fortification was still active. Without it, that tiny thread of hell essence would have burned his body to ash.

The energy slid into the yellow orb.

And then—

It changed.

The orb flared.

Blinding.

Its glow intensified violently.

The oppressive aura of the lion vanished in an instant.

Overwritten.

A new aura erupted from the orb.

Ancient.

Dominant.

Monstrous.

Compared to it, the lion’s presence felt like child’s play.

The lion stared directly into the light.

And then it screamed.

Its mind detonated with pain.

A brutal mind-jacking force tore through its consciousness.

The armored beast stumbled backward, claws scraping against stone as it reeled in agony.

Rayden’s eyes widened.

It worked.

It actually worked.

And not just a little.

This was more than he expected.

This was insane.

Then another thought struck him.

What if he could channel it?

Rayden activated Soul Conduit.

He directed it toward the energy leaking from the orb.

The conduit trembled violently.

Then it opened.

Overwhelming power flooded into him.

For one second.

Just one.

Within that second, Rayden activated Ultra Boost.

His strength skyrocketed.

If before he was at one hundred with boosts active, now he felt like two hundred.

Maybe more.

His veins burned.

His muscles screamed.

But he did not hesitate.

He punched the rocks sealing the entrance.

Boom.

The cave shook.

Cracks spread.

Not enough.

He punched again.

This time the rocks exploded outward, shattering into fragments and blasting open the exit.

Light poured in.

Fresh air rushed through.

Behind him, the lion was still thrashing in mental agony.

Rayden did not look back.

The energy flooding him was already tearing at his insides.

At that exact moment, Rayden deactivated Soul Conduit.

The overwhelming torrent of energy from the yellow orb was cut off instantly.

The reason was simple.

And terrifying.

The power flowing through him was too much. Far too much. Soul Conduit was struggling to contain it. If the energy slipped past the channel it created and entered his body directly, he was certain of one thing.

He would die.

Best case, he would explode into pieces.

Worst case, he would implode into something far uglier.

Either way, death.

Rayden exhaled slowly and looked back at the lion.

The armored beast was still reeling, claws tearing into the ground as it writhed in mental agony.

Rayden had no intention of staying to mock it.

He had not even expected his desperate gamble to work, let alone to this extent.

He was not stupid enough to tempt fate twice.

He turned to leave.

Then he froze.

A steady, gruff voice reached his ears.

“Lord. I’m coming with you.”

Rayden’s eyes widened.

Before he could react, Grah stumbled into view.

Bloodied.

Broken.

But standing.

The defiance in his eyes burned brighter than before.

“Aren’t you dead?” Rayden blurted.

Up close, he could see it.

Grah’s wounds were already closing slowly.

Healing.

He had no idea when that happened. Had Grah evolved? Awakened something under pressure?

No time to figure it out.

“Forget it,” Rayden muttered as he jumped onto Grah’s back. “Move. Top speed. The fastest you can.”

Grah nodded once.

Then he exploded forward.

They tore away from the death cave at full speed.

Wind slashed against Rayden’s face.

He glanced back once, fully expecting the armored lion to burst out in rage any second.

Nothing.

No roar.

No pursuit.

After several breaths, he finally allowed himself to relax slightly.

Then the system message appeared.

Side quest completed.

Reward received.

One time limitless soul energy granted. Activate with intention. Duration one day.

Ten times power boost to all skill cards. One time use. Duration one day.

Rayden smiled faintly.

This would come in handy.

Very handy.

But were they worth it?

If he had died back there, none of it would have mattered.

He clenched his jaw.

He needed to stop acting on wild impulses.

He was no longer the same Vatro who was nearly impossible to kill.

He was human now.

A fragile infant in a brutal world.

If not for the orb doing whatever it just did, he would have been done and dusted in that cave.

What exactly is that orb?

He had no answer.

The brightness faded, the glow dimmed, and he tucked it back under his clothes.

At least he survived.

Even brought back a few treasures.

The monkey probably would not reject him now.

Treasure hunting days were over.

At least for now.

The exhaustion hit all at once.

Maintaining his skills for that long.

Pulling even a trace of hell essence.

It drained him completely.

His vision blurred.

His thoughts slowed.

And before he could fight it, Rayden’s head dropped forward.

He fainted on Grah’s back as the wolf continued charging through the forest at full speed.

Unaware and uncaring that far behind them, inside the shattered cave, a pair of icy blue eyes slowly opened again.

To be continued.

Author’s Note:

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep