Chapter 43: Flame Knight Ignaros!

Mana was an energy mixed with purified Essence and the madness of Corruption. When a woman leveled up using the mana of other monsters, they also ingested that madness along with it. It accumulated slowly and affected them. But if it ever managed to conquer the sanity of the said person, they would lose control, and the Corruption would turn them into Abyssal Creatures. Abyssal Creatures were abominations that lived in the Primordial Expanse. Their minds were perverted, bizarre, and alien. They were also known to fight amongst themselves on occasion, but mostly only inside the Primordial Expanse. On Earth, their single goal would be the destruction of everything in their path. They were indeed insane and filled with madness, but that didn’t mean they lacked sanity or intelligence. Their sanity was rather perverted, sinister, and ineffable, contrasting sharply with what humans considered sane. The Abyssal Creatures had no strong sense of self. Just imagining Amber falling to Corruption and turning into an abomination of Tier 11 sent chills down Leon’s spine. He didn’t even want to think about the consequences of it. Just a single Tier 4 monster, as the inhabitants of Dungeons were called, was already enough to wipe out their entire class, let alone a Tier 11 who transcended mortal limitations. "I was this close to losing control," Amber chuckled and said. "It really came off as a surprise. But I had your potion, so I hurriedly drank it to suppress the excited Corruption inside me." "It wouldn’t have worked," Leon spoke softly, as he knew that his potion would have rather weak effects on all Ascended humans. "If it were anyone else, the potion wouldn’t have been enough. But who do you think I am?" Amber smirked, making Leon wonder if this was her real personality or if she was still being affected by the Corruption. She pointed at the bubbles and said, "That minor suppression was enough for me to take advantage of it, and although it did affect me still, at least I managed to return to normal. But I didn’t immediately help everyone." "Huh?" "Everyone was scattered, so I couldn’t help every single one of them. They weren’t just fighting off the monsters but also the Corruption inside them. So, instead of focusing on saving them, I concentrated on how the potion actually suppressed the Corruption in my soul and made this barrier to help everyone." Indeed, Leon’s guess was right. These bubbles really prevented the flow of corrupted miasma inside and kept the students safe. "That’s why I was late. It took me some time to crack the process and make this barrier. I also had to personally go and make it on everyone, so that also took time." She smiled at him and added, "Since you were here guarding them, I managed to reach the others in time since I didn’t need to focus on them. Well, it’s also because I was confident in them, but you understand." "This is why you said I saved five lives," Leon muttered. "Indeed. You saved mine too," Amber nodded. "Anyways, if you’re done checking, then let’s go. That guy over there is getting restless and probably thinking he’s some king or emperor. Gotta give him a reality check." "You can read his mind?" "Of course not. But that’s probably what I would think if I were getting a power-up, so it irks me." Leon rolled his eyes at her and asked, "By the way, you analysed the potion so quickly? Can’t the others do the same? Patent wouldn’t mean much in our world." "Oh, don’t worry about that. I’m an exceptional talent when it comes to the matter of souls and mind," Amber waved her hand nonchalantly and began to walk away. "Even my Master used to praise me for that, so you can rest assured that others will take years to achieve what I just did. Also, I still can’t tell exactly how it’s made. I can just roughly understand how it works, so I replicated some parts of it. It won’t work if I try to make potions." "I see. And here I was afraid I’d become poor before even tasting the richness," Leon chuckled and followed behind her. "Damn, you’re greedy! You really want money that much?" "You don’t?" "I like money rolling in!" With Amber on his side, Leon wasn’t afraid of the Dungeon anymore. They strolled into the second sector where they found broken armours lying on the ground. ’So, she even killed everything in the fortress?’ After passing through it, they arrived at the very centre of the fortress. There was a giant hole in the ceiling because of the dark pillar of miasma, and at the bottom of that pillar stood a humongous monster. Flame Knight Ignaros! The boss was a giant blackened knight clad in charred armour, molten cracks across his body, and he wielded a massive greatsword that was big even for his size. His helmet had broken and fallen to the ground, revealing his grotesque face which was probably once human. Veins were popping out from all over his face, leaving only his crimson eyes filled with madness. "The Core is in the centre of that pillar, but the Miasma is protecting it," Amber said as she took a step forward. "Hide somewhere for now. I’ll make him disconnected from the core. Once that happens, the pillar will be gone and you can destroy the core." "Got it!" Leon didn’t hesitate to run towards the corner and hid behind a thick wall. There was simply no way he was going to meddle in this battle because it would only result in one thing for him. Death. ’This is the first time I’ll be watching such an epic battle live. It really is scary and exciting at the same time.’ Leon wondered as he took out his bat and focused on the centre of the ruined fortress. Leon watched as Amber casually walked towards the Boss and the boss also finally noticed her. Before Leon could even make out what happened, he noticed the Boss disappearing from his position and Amber looking at the sky. He craned his neck and found Ignaros soaring high up in the sky. His eyes widened as he quickly looked back at Amber and found her surroundings shattered but she herself was unscathed. ’What just happened? He’s so fast that I can’t even follow his speed?’ Although Leon knew there was a massive gap between him and the Boss, it still astonished him how he couldn’t even follow his speed properly. But he could guess what had happened. Ignaros noticed Amber and attacked her without any delay. His speed might have been enough to deal with Leon, but Amber easily saw through it and sent him flying through the air like a broken kite. ’And he’s massive. She really just sent a monster that weighs tons so casually. I’m the one who made this power system, so why am I being so surprised?’ Still, Leon focused on the battle more so he could get more insights. Even something little from this battle could benefit him greatly. Just then, a deafening noise filled the atmosphere as the whole fortress shook and debris began to fall all around Leon. ’Now what happened?’