Chapter 416: A Gamble

Drops of molten orange liquid hissed out of the warp of space, dripping against the bronze flooring of the tenth step.

An intoxicating sweet scent accompanied the thick sap of elixir dripping out of Seth’s inventory gate.

’And they say the habit of looting doesn’t come in handy,’ Seth thought with a smirk.

Back during their mission with the dragons he had refused to leave the genesis nest empty-handed.

And that single motion, fueled by greed, had allowed him to get his hands on something this valuable and insanely useful to his current state.

The dragon genesis amniotic fluid, the elixir pool that nourished the young of the flame dragons.

Granting them flame-blessed physiques, and allowing them to grow in strength rapidly by tempering their cells.

Buckling to the pressure he got on his knees, cupping his hands before the thick flow of amniotic sap.

The thick sap pooled in his grasp, his eyes reflecting the orange glowing content.

He leaned forward and took a deep slurp of the good stuff, the sweet scent already stimulating his digestive tract.

Seth’s brows rose the moment he had a taste, the content of the elixir tasting like nothing he had expected.

He had anticipated heat, hot enough to burn his mouth, and a taste akin to molten minerals.

But his expectation differed greatly from reality, he dipped his head further down the good stuff, basically vacuuming the contents down his throat.

’Mnnn... the irony of an elixir meant to nurture the incarnates of flame made flesh turning out to be so cool, tasty and refreshing,’ Seth thought as he continued to indulge himself with more of the good stuff.

The moment the content of what he was drinking hit his stomach it was felt immediately.

Almost like swallowing a lump of lead and feeling it hit the stomach.

And from this feeling he could tell that unfortunately, it seemed even his body wouldn’t be able to digest this elixir as fast as he anticipated.

And that was because of how dense and compact the nourishing content was.

His body wasted no time beginning to break down the elixir, a wave of heat finally beginning to bloom from the depths of his abdomen.

Waves of heat coursing through every fibre of his being, reinvigorating every bit of his cells, bolstering their capacity and boosting their activity.

For a moment he even felt a sliver of reaction from his silver cells, though the reaction was faint and short, Seth was sure of what he felt.

His body began undergoing changes, assimilating the nourishing properties of the elixir, he could feel his strength rising, and his digestive process slowly picking up pace.

Seth raised his head, dismissing the inventory gate and cutting the flow of elixir shut, gasping, he felt filled, his stomach practically bulging at this point.

As the revitalizing flow surged through his veins, his energy reserves replenished faster than the pressure of the grand stairs could wear it away.

His body practically bursting with might, his base ability set on a steady rise...

He closed his eyes for a moment, immersing himself in the massive waves of renewed strength coursing through his frame.

"Hmmm, I see, it’s like I thought, this elixir nourishes the body at a cellular level..." Seth moaned.

This elixir didn’t just nourish the body by attaching stat energy properties to one’s cells, like other means, no this elixir directly boosted the cell capabilities.

Elevating the body’s base strength, no energy attached, which was ironically the perfect means Seth could use to grow stronger now, especially since the realm of essence was currently beyond his grasp.

Nourishing every cell...

Seth’s eyes suddenly snapped open, realizing something a tad bit too late, the surge of energy coursing through his cells rushing upwards and infiltrating and blistering every cell composing his body.

Even the cancerous ones...

"Fuck!" Seth hissed, as the blinding pain hit so suddenly he was knocked out of balance despite the fact he wasn’t standing.

His vision bled red and the piercing pain at the back of his head intensified, the cancerous, revolting clumps of cells bursting with an invigorating surge.

The mass slowly rising and the cancer cells digging deeper into his neural network...

"Arrgh!!" Seth couldn’t help but scream as the pain intensified, his vision going white, and his complexion pale as he crumpled to the ground, every muscle trembling as sweat pooled.

The transition from pleasure and satisfaction to the ominous pain was too jarring and Seth wasn’t prepared.

But regardless he could only endure, spit and snot dribbling down his chin as he writhed in pain...

The cancerous growth spurt continued for another 13 seconds that felt like 13 years of hell, and when the relief hit, his muscles still couldn’t relax as the trauma of the pain was practically burned into his body.

Seth quivered, panting heavily, his blurring vision slowly clearing, the pain was gone yet the aftereffect lingered...

The silent struggle continued for a few more seconds, before Seth managed to get to his feet...

His stomach settled, but he still felt full, and reinvigorated by a level of strength he didn’t think he would have been able to recover so soon.

He stood bursting with strength, a strength that came with a cost...

Wearing a grim look he stared at his hands, "So this is how it will be..."

The choice was clear, if he wanted to ascend these grand stairs and grab a chance at claiming the Greed mantle, he would have to depend more on the elixir.

Meaning this cancer spurt wouldn’t be the last, by increasing his strength, his terminal condition wouldn’t be left behind.

Who knew when the cancer would grow enough to eat at his last essence stem connecting to the stat pathway leading to his brain, the one that still granted him access to his last asset among his attributes: intelligence.

If that happened, he wouldn’t be able to process information, or formulate his next steps as smoothly.

It was a dangerous gamble, but one he had to take nonetheless...

His jaw set, he moved, raising his foot to take the 11th step, the pressure doubling, the strain tearing at his body.

But the effects of the elixir couldn’t be more visible, his body rapidly consuming the energy reserves, his muscles bulging, allowing him to bear it.

Without hesitating he took another step, the 12th step...

Seth put away all distraction, making the stairs his only goal, step after step he climbed higher, sweat dripping from the seams of his armour, his body digesting the elixir’s properties even faster.

The pressure and stress on his body allowed him to process and assimilate the elixir faster than he should.

His head ringing with a chant he repeated almost like a mantra, "This might be my only opportunity, I cannot miss it."