Path of the Slayer B3 51. Defiled Nomad & Second Objective

I tossed my arm cannons behind me and thrust my veteran slicers at the defiled nomad’s face.

Unlike the prior woman, this one still had most of his robed clothing, even if it singed and ragged. His defiled Path Energy raged with palpable and crushing power, and his every movement was fast and competent, easily dodging my first attack.

He replied with a darkened punch filled with defiled magic. A blast of magnetic lightning expanding out from my armored chest helped slow it down as I shifted around the punch.

Even while missing the hit, his strike cracked the air with such power it nearly knocked me out of step. But my strength, agility, and many enhanced attributes kept me stable as I circled around and slashed at his flank with the veteran slicers.

Dodging my strike once more, he twisted around while laughing boldly in the face of my onslaught. More of his twisted magic appeared with a dark flash in his hand, summoning a curved bone blade that oozed a sickly substance.

The next time I swung my veteran slicers, he parried my attack with his curved defiled blade and slashed at me in return, forcing me to step back. That invited him to press the offensive with even more pressure than I’d produced against him. The tide turned for the worst when he finally unleashed the powers of his higher Grade.

[Oh no! You’ve been set upon by a Veteran Domain with Tentacle Sphere and Enhanced Corruption!]

A darkened dome formed overhead, entrapping me and whoever else caught within. The dome wormed and squirmed before forming thick tubes that extended down toward me and the defiled nomad.

The tubes swayed and flexed, showing a full range of motion, before extending even further, forming into reaching tentacles that had me surrounded from all directions. I could barely pay attention to the trap being set by the Tentacle Sphere as the defiled nomad kept laughing, mocking me, and forcing me back with each swipe of his blade.

He wasn’t in the low Level 100s. He must’ve been above Level 111, and he might’ve had more than just his Path Magic and Domain. He could have Great Skills as well, because some of his fighting maneuvers came across as extra supernatural, going beyond practice, grace, and the power afforded to him by Legendary Path Energy.

Yet, I braced myself and fought back with more gusto. I stopped losing ground and pushed him back with overt aggression, even if it meant taking hits that stressed my Epic Great Skill, Pain Eater Juggernaut. My Path Energy drained rapidly as I fought and fought, our blades clashing stridently with sparks of hellish and filthy energies flitting between us.

Eyebrows raised, with his eyes lit with surprise, the defiled nomad took a large step back and broke our direct engagement. The tentacles closest to him moved in the way, blocking my direct approach.

“Impressive, brother. You are truly an incredible warrior. No wonder the Dragon Princess sent you,” the defiled nomad said.

“You aren’t my brother,” I muttered. “The way you corrupt your end of the ancestral roots is a sin too grave for my people.”

“Look how the pot calls the kettle black!” The defiled nomad laughed. “You think you aren’t as depraved?! You wield the power of the Hell Realms!”

“I’m not using that to hurt our roots!” I shouted.

“And that’s supposed to make you better than me? You aren’t! Defilement is a gift from the System. This is in her blood! The parameters are but restraints, and we’re revealing the truth of her! All you do is derive pleasure from madness and dance with demons while serving as a dog of the Dragon Princess!”

The defiled nomad kept laughing at me.

I didn’t bother speaking any further. Perhaps he was right about defilement coming from the monstrous side of the System, but my hellish corruption wasn’t as bad. Being around other nomads had taught me that. The power of the Hell Realms was far more acceptable than whatever came from defiled corruption.

Besides, I had to deal with the massive tentacles that had me surrounded now. The Twin Vambrace Veteran Slicers couldn’t help me any further, so I had them sheathed back into the slim ports inside my left vambrace. My attention turned to the small handle in the forearm of my Hellion Boss Shredder.

The defiled nomad’s face twisted monstrously. “I could crush you right now … but it’ll be better if I break your spirit first.” He gestured for me to go ahead. “Bring out your greatest demon slave. Then be swept along with me by the defiled blood of the God-Queen!”

Part of me sensed a trap.

Part of me knew I couldn’t wait around any longer.

I didn’t even know if Grimmy was still alive.

Only one thing stopped me from activating Hellion fully. When I looked around, I noticed Doomie wasn’t near me.

Before I could call for her, a weak but clear voice reached out to me and the defiled nomad. It sounded from outside his Tentacle Sphere, a voice that filled me with warmth.

“It’s Okay If I’m Little,” Grimmy said with a bloody gargle, her Epiphany resounding faintly. Then, her voice became stronger, booming with confidence. “I’LL HONOR MY MASTER!” Then her voice became far stronger than that, sounding more like a titaness instead of a small half-gob girl. “I’LL FIGHT TILL MY LAST!”

A scorching sunny light blade cleaved the entire Tentacle Sphere in half. The defiled nomad screamed as the dual Oaths of the Little Fighter overwhelmed the Veteran’s power.

Grimmy made her reappearance next to me as if she was teleporting until the shockwave from her movement caught up and gusted over me. She was covered in golden light that hid most of her body from direct vision. She was nothing but a wellspring of power that kept gushing out of her.

“Shall I deal with this for you, Master Arden?” she asked, her voice booming still, but not as loud as before.

I calculated our advantages quickly. “Are you affected by the monsters Merlin’s holding back?”

“Somewhat. Only the closest ones who are still alive,” Grimmy explained. “I’ll probably get even stronger if I’m fighting them all directly.”

“Go get a Veteran kill under your belt. Then go switch out with Merlin. Leave this one to me. It’s personal.”

“Your wish is my command, Master Arden.”

“I won’t let you!” The defiled nomad moved like a bullet to cut down my knight. But I was already prepared for that, striking where I knew he’d end up.

My metal fist collided with his jaw with a perfect punch. I knocked him off his feet, sending him straight onto the rocky floor with an immense impact.

By then, Grimmy was already gone, and another enemy Veteran died so fast it was hardly believable. Then the Little Fighter became a golden streak across the smoky and defiled air.

Her light became brighter and brighter as she drew closer to her true prey – the giant Rank 5 monsters.

Merlin stopped holding the defense, and the first Rank 5 monster – a mutated gorilla three hundred feet tall – opened its maw to eat the golden star that was the Little Fighter.

Its head along with the upper half of its body fell apart into chopped pieces that splattered in all directions. With more monsters incoming, Grimmy’s power skyrocketed, her light shining across the lands. Even the defiled nomad was slow to move as everyone beheld the power of my knight.

I didn’t blame them.

My favorite junior was indeed awe-inspiring.

And she’d pledged herself to serve me.

I bet Melody would become green with envy once I showed her Grimmy.

The situation improved even further when Sharia’s fight jerked away from Grimmy’s position before it jerked back toward the golden massacre. Then the death of another Veteran entered my System Logs.

Sharia’s fight was over, and she was freed up to rest some. That should mean the entire battle was our win, with Grimmy holding back the massive Rank 5 monsters with ease, freeing up Merlin as well.

Yet, the defiled nomad maintained his arrogance.

“You think you can end us so easily! We’ve been chosen! We’ve been bathed in her defiled blood. We’re too strong to be taken down by the likes of you! He said so, our prince!” the defiled nomad shouted.

Instead of asking who the hell was their prince, I rapidly yanked on the pull cord – once, twice, thrice. The Hellion Boss Shredder became active, roaring with violent glee.

Green smoke gushed out from the vent on the back of the forearm. Toxic green runes flashed brightly from the crimson frame. Sparks of toxic green autosaw magic spiraled and churned in different directions around my metal claws.

The defiled nomad watched with scorn and wariness as I stood across from him. That punch I landed on him earlier must’ve spooked him, and the more he feared, the greater my advantage became. Then my advantage went up even further when Doomie walked onto the scene with two things in each of her hands.

In one hand, she dragged another Veteran of the Defiled Covenant that was beaten to a shred of their life. In her other hand, she held my Epic Rank 5 Genocide Greatsword that she must’ve taken out of my belt for me.

With her gaze focused on me again, she raised up the defeated Veteran and the Genocide Greatsword as offerings.

“Good girl,” I told her, and she nodded at that.

The defiled nomad stopped hesitating and shot a corruptive beam at the two of us.

Without having to say a word, I nudged Doomie into action with my Slayer Intent. She quickly handed the Genocide Greatsword over to me while throwing the defeated Veteran in the way of the defiled nomad’s attack.

The defiled nomad pulled back his magic, and I fastened my grip on the Genocide Greatsword’s handle before activating its enchanted machinery.

The heavy and large blade split slightly along the edge. A circular disc in the middle of the blade rapidly spun around like a top, but at speeds that went beyond sound.

Once my autosaw magic, magnetic lightning, cursedness, and doom energy seeped into the blade, it struck the spinning capacitor engine in the middle. Then all four energies flowed out as spiraling ribbons along the open edges of the Genocide Greatsword.

Autosaw green.

Hellish red.

Magnetic purple.

Dooming gray.

All four colors represented my greatest magic energies beyond Path Energy and my Slayer Intent. Together, they sharpened each other. They empowered the Genocide Greatsword beyond its Epic Rank 5 status. To where I knew it wouldn’t survive this. It would break before or after I finished.

But for this moment, the Genocide Greatsword was one of my most perfect creations. The defiled nomad deflated as I swept my greatsword through his Veteran comrade who was trying to crawl away. A series of notifications filled my System Logs.

[Congratulations, Slayer! You’ve slain Pathwalker Veteran Connor, “Salvation Is Through Defilement,” Epic Level 104 Path of the Defiled Covenant!]

[Bravo! You’ve slain a Veteran while still a Pathwalker! Increased Leveling!]

[Congratulations, Pathwalkers! You’ve slain 4 Veterans of the Defiled Covenant! You’ve earned another Two Trillion Credits in your Realm Verse Bank Accounts!]

[At this point, the Royal Quest is considered satisfied. However, if you wish to achieve the last objective, please continue offensive actions against the Defiled Covenant in the Crossroads Citadel Realm. The final objective: [1] Killing 80 Pathwalkers (above Level 61) on Path of the Defiled Covenant.]

[Achieve this third objective and you’ll quadruple your Basic Reward and receive a Super Reward: A Dragon Princess Favor.]