Chapter 87: Tomb Of Neher

[ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: EXPERIENCE THRESHOLD BREACHED ]

* Skill Adaptation Source: Gaseous Shift.

* Modification: Expanded localized particulate displacement to total physical volume.

[ APPLICATION SPECS: FULL BODY GASEOUS MODE ]

* Duration Limit: 120 Seconds (2 Minutes).

* Constraint: Severe core strain upon conclusion.

Thomas read the translucent blue lines flaring beneath his eyelids while his worn-out shoes skidded across the deep mud. His linen shirt was already stained with a mixture of dark swamp water and copper blood, but his posture remained completely steady as he reset his footing on a shattered stone block.

Julian side-eyed him from his position, his bare ebony eyes cold behind his glasses as he noticed the Swamp Thallophyte gathering its wind compression currents for another high-speed blitz across the clearing. The High-blood adjusted the leather hilt of his polished steel sword, his voice dropping into a serious octave.

"The battle is raging and our mana cores are degrading by the second, Thomas," Julian spoke levelly. "We should quickly put this hybrid down before we completely dry out our remaining mana reserves."

Thomas gathered his thoughts, feeling Talent humming beneath his skin. He calmly gave Julian a thumbs up and said flatly, "Let’s do this."

Julian smirked, his expression shifting into one of absolute pride. He immediately sheathed his blade and began chanting a complex, low formula under his breath while executing a rapid sequence of intricate hand seals. The ambient energy inside the thicket instantly warped, turning a deep shade of midnight purple as raw spatial mana bubbled up from the dirt.

Clack-clack-clack-clack!

Dozens of glowing purple runes violently spread out across the muck from exactly where Julian was standing, encasing the entire area they were in within a fraction of a second. The runic lines rapidly shot upward into the grey fog, connecting at a sharp apex above the canopy until they formed a massive, translucent purple pyramid that completely trapped them in with the creature, shutting out the rest of the western marshlands.

Julian then whispered softly, "Tomb of Neher."

Thomas overhears this exact phrase, and his dark eyes violently widened into circles of pure shock. The name resonated deep inside his conscious mind, violently flashing back to his awakening day and the entity who had originally given him the Eye of Khepri. He forced his face to remain as calm as possible, but he immediately turned his head to ask the noble successor.

"What did you just say?" Thomas asked, his voice flat but intense.

Julian looked back at him with a neutral expression, adjusting his spectacles. "It is a highly advanced rune spell passed down in our family. It locks down the local space entirely to prevent the target from escaping the boundaries. Why do you ask?"

Thomas offered a single, slow nod of his head.

"Nothing."

Inwardly, Thomas was completely shook by the revelation. He quietly checked his internal system logs, waiting for a notification to flare up, but the blue interface remained entirely silent. The lack of a system alert meant the young man was not an official Apostle of Neher like his personal instructor, Voss, was. Julian had simply learned the runic equation as an elite historical family art, entirely oblivious to the true, cosmic origin of the name.

Seeing that it was permanently trapped within the boundaries of the purple pyramid, the Swamp Thallophyte let out a deafening metallic scream and went into a total frenzy. It did not spend another second posturing. The ancient hybrid aggressively tensed its plant-fiber limbs and blitzed across the shattered stone blocks with a chaotic, unguided velocity.

It appeared directly in front of Ryan before the boy could even realign his short sword. The massive green claw violently tore open his left arm, ripping straight through his cheap leather armor and sending him flying ten yards across the mud, his blade clattering against the stone pillars. Before Mina could even step into the blind spot to redirect the line of fire, the predator blinked away from the muck, appearing instantly behind Lina’s defensive position on the sidelines.

BANG!

The heavy, calcified tail of the monster smacked Lina completely away, breaking her stance and sending her sliding across the dirt floorboards. The apex creature did not stop its advance; it immediately turned its flat, armored skull toward her limp form and rushed over to pounce on Lina to deliver a crushing finishing blow. But before the beast could reach he, a dense cloud of thick white smoke violently appeared in front of its path, completely blocking its trajectory.

That was Thomas utilizing his full body transformation. His entire physical vessel had completely dissolved into a weightless, flowing mist, allowing him to phase through the immediate terrain and manifest directly between the predator and the defenseless girl. The massive green claws passed entirely and harmlessly through the white vapors, the wind compression loops failing to register any physical friction.

Julian capitalized on the distraction instantly. Utilizing his Talent to execute a micro displacement, he immediately appeared behind of the creature’s exposed flank and drove a heavy, mana-infused fist straight into its right ribs, punching the massive hybrid five yards away across the shattered terrain.

Thomas reconstituted his physical frame back into his linen shirt and worn-out shoes, his dark eyes wide open as he monitored the two-minute timer ticking down in his mind. He turned his head toward Julian, an idea forming within his sharp intellect.

"Can you cut off the creature’s power by doing exactly what you did to that guy during the tournament?" Thomas asked quickly, keeping his voice level as they monitored the monster resetting its stance. "If you do that I’m quite positive we can finish it without dealing with its speed."

Julian shook his head smoothly, his face a vacant mask. "Human anatomy is entirely different from that of a wild mana beast, Thomas. Mana beasts do not utilize or circulate mana through a structured meridian network like we do."

He paused, his fingers tightening over his hilt as the beast screamed again from the dirt. "Plus, this entity is a hybrid. So even if I knew the exact methodology to cut off a standard mana beast’s power, a hybrid would be a completely different issue all together. Its circulation circuits are entirely unknown."

Thomas nodded slowly, accepting the tactical reality of the board. He looked back toward the thrashing creature, keeping his mask perfectly calm as he lied smoothly to cover his own system progress.

"Well, I am still actively analyzing its power with my Talent," Thomas said flatly. "Once I am completely done decoding its abilities, I might be able to copy its abilities using my talent."

Julian side-eyed him, a condescending but curious brow raised as he adjusted his glasses. "I truly wonder why a talent like yours is considered a Grade A talent instead of a Grade S like mine."

Thomas simply shrugged his shoulders, his face remaining perfectly smooth as he pretended to be entirely oblivious to the true, special grade nature of Endless Adaptation. He didn’t offer a single word of explanation, keeping his focus locked directly on the rampaging monster ahead as the final minute of his full-body shift began to thrum beneath his veins.