Chapter 615: Vitality

A storm of blackness filled Liam’s vision. The downward slash released enough energy to part the lake, carving a river through it and anything in its path.

A deafening hiss matched the event. Toxic water splashed everywhere as the taipan jerked back, thrashing up and down, its body bending oddly due to the half-severed section spilling blood nonstop.

Even with three steps from the incredible martial arts, Liam had been unable to cleave through the snake cleanly. Admittedly, he was no swordsman. Slashing wasn’t what he did. His attack had only featured immensely destructive power.

Still, it didn’t matter. The taipan looked half-dead, but it wasn’t dead yet, so Liam attacked again.

A drum-like thud resounded through the area, alerting the taipan and awakening a newly formed trauma in its pain-riddled mind. The magical beast reverted to its most basic instincts, knowing it had to destroy the threat before it suffered from it.

When Liam took a second step, the taipan had thrown its head at him. Its open mouth hovered above him, pushing against the tides of black Qi he released to close itself.

The wild tides could only delay the inevitable. They were no real martial art after all. The storm surrounding Liam was simply a consequence of the insane energy build-up inside him, creating a hindrance rather than an actual shield.

Nevertheless, the storm still bought Liam a fraction of a second, and he used it to take another step. A third drum-like thud resounded, and Liam poured all the built-up energy into his greatsword.

The upward slash generated a rising torrent of blackness that slammed into the half-cleaved section, finishing carving through it. The snake split in two, and a bloodied item shot out of the part connected to its tail.

The fan reappeared in the open, whining about its dirty state, only for the sensation seeping through the mental connection to turn its attention toward its source.

Liam was waist-deep in the toxic waters, supporting himself on the greatsword with one arm. The other wasn’t visible because a serpentine head had covered it, along with most of his torso.

The attack had been successful. Liam had indeed launched what looked like the finishing blow, but he hadn’t been the only one. The taipan had also used that opportunity to stab his fangs into his body.

The effects were as deadly as Liam had dreaded, acting faster than any other poison he had ever tested. Paralysis immediately spread, turning his body into a cage. It set his muscle tissues on fire, melting them from the inside, and purple bruises spread everywhere, signaling internal and extensive blood loss.

The fan released a shrieking, metallic whine as Liam fell forward. It reached him before he could immerse himself in the toxic waters, supporting him from his shoulder, only for the head attached to him to tilt his body and make him slide off anyway.

Liam’s body disappeared inside the toxic lake amid the fan’s panicked whining, but the boiling that followed silenced it. The black, slimy waters and darkened air seethed, retreating, leaving the world to converge on the underwater figure.

All the widespread poison fueled a technique. Even the black patches on the huge magical beast paled, the infection receding to obey the one it belonged to.

Soon, the world became clean. The giant basin that had once held the lake remained dark, tainted beyond recognition, but no toxicity afflicted it. All of it was now inside the figure lying inside the crater, convulsing as his martial art fought the venom inside him.

Tolerance didn’t mean immunity. Liam had always known that poison could still kill him. That had been his great Master’s first warning, but he had options, the same ones every branching expert had.

Just like Liam’s opponents refused to die no matter how much he poisoned them, he could keep death at bay with healing methods. The taipan’s venom was rather instantaneous, but not as instantaneous as his snake head, and his innate tolerance gave him a brief window to work with.

The Life Qi worked nonstop to heal what the venom damaged, buying Liam’s dantian time to devour the poisonous aspects of the foreign substance inside him.

That was the most basic strategy against poison, the one Liam often had to overcome. The deadliness was finite. He could keep healing until what had infected him ran out of power.

Of course, the strategy had two important requirements. The first was for the healing to match the deadliness’ speed, while the second needed Liam’s energy to last until the foreign substance was dealt with.

The rank 3 Life Qi cleared the first requirement, but the venom just wouldn’t stop trying to kill Liam. Soon, he exhausted all the energy retrieved from the poison he had spread, having to use his own reserves to keep the healing technique active, which emptied them as quickly as always.

Even then, the math painted a grim picture. Liam instinctively knew he would run out of Qi before the venom lost its power, but he had more than that at his disposal.

The paralysis had somewhat receded amid the internal clash. A circular flask appeared in Liam’s hand, which his trembling arm brought to his mud-stained face. The amphora he had stolen and refined was his only suitable healing method, so he couldn’t waste a single drop.

And while Liam was used to ending up in such indisposed conditions, help arrived. A tanned hand grabbed his, steadying it, while a soft palm half-cupped his mouth, creating a bowl where the transparent liquid could flow.

Liam drank greedily, sucking and licking the drops left on the palm once the flask was empty. Meanwhile, immense vitality raged inside him, finally claiming a victory over the venom.

The soft palm worked with Liam, too. It offered its fingers for him to suck, making sure nothing of that miraculous liquid was left unused. His condition stabilized right afterward, leaving him weak, but still providing enough strength for him to push with the arm stuck inside the giant mouth.

Liam grunted as the fangs slid off his body. He freed himself from the bite, the remaining vitality inside him closing off those injuries as he struggled up, receiving help once again so that he could sit against the reptilian head.

The taipan had died a few seconds after Liam had cleaved its body in half. That was why he had been able to use the poison afflicting its flesh for the Life Qi. Honestly, he would have never tried to do so unless his senses confirmed the kill. He couldn’t have risked healing it after all.

As the foreign vitality vanished completely, the weakness from Qi deprivation arrived. Liam had exhausted his reserves, but Rachel supported him, keeping him straight.

"Thank yo-" Liam began to say, only to catch a glimpse of Rachel happily sucking her fingers, the same fingers that had been in his mouth.

Luckily, the fan saved Liam from having to process the scene. It landed on his chest with another high-pitched whine, worry seeping through the mental connection.

Liam could only heave a sigh, patting the weapon, deciding to focus on his appreciation for such trustworthy companions. "Just try not to get eaten next time."