Chapter 137: Core Mutation

The Thalassarch’s mouth was already glowing again as the second beam charged.

Gray, unwilling to take the hit, activated Current Dash and dissolved into the water, reforming directly above the creature’s head. The vortex he left behind pulled at the Thalassarch’s fins, dragging it slightly off balance. In the same instant, he fired Void Reaper’s Lance straight down.

The void-edged spear tore through the creature’s skull.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 192 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1862 / 2800]

[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]

[BEAM CHARGE — INTERRUPTED]

The crimson sphere in the Thalassarch’s throat shattered, the gathered mana spraying outward in a chaotic burst. The creature convulsed, its jaws snapping shut on nothing, its crimson eyes flickering wildly.

’Quit shooting beams all over the place, you damn fish!’

Gray didn’t give it time to recover. He activated Phantom Cloak and vanished, but this time he didn’t stay still. He circled constantly, never pausing, his position always shifting.

The Thalassarch’s eyes swept the chamber, tracking the faint drain of his cloak. But Gray was moving too fast for it to lock on. It lunged at empty water, its jaws snapping shut on nothing.

’It can track the drain, but only if I stay put. As long as I keep moving, it won’t be able to find me.’

He fired Needle Storm from a new angle. The needles struck the creature’s flank, and this time the secondary effect triggered, the crescent blades slicing through the shadow scales and drawing dark, crimson fluid.

[NEEDLE STORM — 58 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1804 / 2800]

The Thalassarch roared, its aura flaring. Crimson Pulse intensified, and Gray felt his mana drain accelerate.

[-40 MP]

[GRAY ASHFORD — MP: 830 / 1300]

’It’s trying to drain me dry.’

He deactivated Phantom Cloak, letting his presence flood back. The Thalassarch spun toward him, but Gray was already moving, Current Dash carrying him ten meters to the right.

He fired Arcane Burst the moment he reformed. The pulse of disruptive mana slammed into the Thalassarch’s body before it could react.

[ARCANE BURST — 182 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1622 / 2800]

[CRIMSON PULSE — DISRUPTED]

[Mana abilities restored.]

The crimson aura stuttered and died. Gray felt his mana channels clear, the pressure lifting from his core.

’Now.’

He activated Phantom Cloak again and moved, circling behind the Thalassarch. The creature was still recovering, its eyes flickering as the Arcane Burst disrupted its senses.

Gray fired Void Reaper’s Lance into its spine.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 188 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1434 / 2800]

[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]

[SPINE DAMAGE — MOBILITY REDUCED]

The Thalassarch’s rear fins went limp, its body listing to one side. It thrashed, trying to turn, but its movements were slower now, uncoordinated.

’Its mobility is gone. It can’t chase me.’

Gray pressed the advantage. He fired Needle Storm again, the crescent blades carving through the creature’s exposed side.

[NEEDLE STORM — 62 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1372 / 2800]

The Thalassarch shrieked, its crimson eyes blazing with fury and fear. It couldn’t catch him. It couldn’t hit him. Its only ranged attack was disabled, its aura was disrupted, its mobility was crippled but it wasn’t done yet.

The Thalassarch’s body began to glow.

The crimson veins along its flanks blazed bright. The shadow scales along its body began to crack, leaking crimson light.

[Crimson Detonation — CHARGING]

[WARNING: The Thalassarch is overloading its core. Upon detonation, it will release a catastrophic mana explosion with a 30-meter radius.]

[Estimated charge time: 8 seconds.]

’Eight seconds?!’

Gray stared at the creature as it began to glow brighter, its body swelling with contained power.

’It’s going to blow itself up and take me with it.’

He had eight seconds to kill it or escape.

He activated Current Dash and dissolved into the water, reforming directly above the Thalassarch’s head. His blade-tentacles spread wide, all eight of them aimed at the creature’s skull.

’Die!’

He drove every blade into the Thalassarch’s head.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 196 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1176 / 2800]

[CRITICAL HIT — SKULL FRACTURE]

[STUN — 3 SECONDS]

The Thalassarch’s glow stuttered, the crimson light flickering as its concentration broke. But it didn’t stop. The core was still overloading, still building toward detonation.

[Charge time: 5 seconds.]

Gray didn’t let up. He wrapped his tentacles around the creature’s head and activated Grip Jaw.

[GRIP JAW — 62 DAMAGE]

[GRIP JAW — 58 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 1056 / 2800]

Overcharge detonated directly into the cracked skull.

[OVERCHARGE — 198 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 858 / 2800]

[STUN — 5 SECONDS]

[Charge time: 3 seconds.]

The Thalassarch’s body was convulsing now, the crimson light pulsing erratically. The overload was destabilizing, the core fluctuating, but it was still building toward critical mass.

’Two more seconds. I need to kill it NOW!’

Gray fired Void Reaper’s Lance directly into the creature’s brain.

[VOID REAPER’S LANCE — 204 DAMAGE]

[THALASSARCH — HP: 654 / 2800]

[BLEED — 10 DAMAGE PER SECOND]

It wasn’t enough. The Thalassarch was still alive and still counting down.

[Charge time: 1 second.]

Gray stared at the creature, his mind racing.

’One second left. I can’t kill it in time. I need to run.’

He activated Current Dash and dissolved into the water, reforming twenty meters away. He kept dashing, kept moving, kept putting distance between himself and the dying creature.

The Thalassarch’s body went critical.

And then it exploded.

The blast was blinding. A sphere of pure crimson light expanded outward from the creature’s body, consuming everything in its path. The cavern walls vaporized. The Mana Heart Crystal shattered, its dormant light extinguishing in an instant. The shockwave ripped through the water, slamming into Gray with the force of a falling mountain.

[-328 HP]

[GRAY ASHFORD — HP: 512 / 1290]

[CRITICAL CONDITION — STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY FAILING]

Gray tumbled through the water, his body rag-dolled by the blast. He crashed into a rock formation, his carapace cracking, his blade-tentacles snapping.

Gray hovered at the edge of the devastation, the explosion had carved a massive bowl into the seafloor, its walls glassed smooth by the heat, its depths still glowing with residual crimson light.

And at the center of that crater, something was moving.

The Thalassarch’s remains were pulling themselves back together. The shattered remnants of the Mana Heart Crystal, its violet light now bleeding into the creature’s flesh, merging with the crimson veins until they pulsed with a new, terrible color.

The system flickered, the text glitching violently before stabilizing.

[THALASSARCH — MUTATION IN PROGRESS]

[Absorbing Mana Heart Crystal remnants...]

[Core mutation detected...]

[Level: 45 → ???]

[Threat Level: EXTREME → UNKNOWN]

’It’s... it’s absorbing the crystal,’ Gray thought, his mind struggling to process what he was seeing. ’It used the explosion to crack the crystal and now it’s eating the pieces.’