Chapter 126 ‒ Sands That Devour, Blood That Howls
Chapter 126 ‒ Sands That Devour, Blood That Howls
Thamutekh’s molten eyes narrowed, his sceptre tapping the dais with deliberate finality. A deep, echoing tremor crawled through the hall, vibrating up Tyler’s boots and into his skull.
[Thamutekh Activated Skill: Sandstorm]
The air convulsed. Sand rose in violent, spiralling cyclones from every crack in the floor, lashing across Tyler’s visor like a thousand tiny knives. The lantern lights flickered and dimmed, swallowed by the swirling storm. Visibility dropped to nothing; Tyler felt as though he were standing in a raging ocean of grit.
From within the sand, shapes scuttled — sharp, spindly legs clacking against the ground. Scorpions, dozens of them, emerged as if born from the storm itself. Their obsidian carapaces gleamed under fleeting flashes of spectral lantern light, each claw snapping hungrily.
Tyler’s breath rasped in his throat, raw and choked. I can’t… see…
He raised one arm instinctively to shield his face. A scorpion lunged from the blur, stinger arcing downward. Tyler sidestepped just in time, slicing the creature in half. It crumbled into sand, scattering into the whirling torrent.
Another came from the side. Tyler pivoted, blade whistling through the storm. Another burst of sand. Another. Another.
[Activated Skill: Forcepush]
A shockwave exploded outward, sand and scorpions flung away like splintered debris. Tyler stumbled forward into the gap he had cleared, his knees threatening to buckle. His chest heaved, each breath a burning gulp of sand-laden air.
His mind reeled. Focus… I have to focus… If I stop moving… I’m dead.
A claw scraped across his thigh — he grunted, nearly dropping to one knee. Another stinger jabbed at his shoulder; he twisted and cleaved it before it found its mark. Each impact, each nick, each skitter of claws chipped away at his dwindling strength.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity inside a grinding maw, the sandstorm began to thin. The air cleared in ragged pockets, the last scorpions reduced to crumbling dunes beneath his blade.
Tyler stood panting, his armour scoured and cracked, thin rivulets of blood leaking from dozens of shallow cuts. He staggered backward, almost slipping on the swirling sand beneath him.
Thamutekh’s laughter rolled like a funeral drum through the hall. His voice dripped amusement and cold curiosity. “Impressive… Few have weathered my sands and remained standing.”
Thamutekh tapped his sceptre again.
[Thamutekh Activated Skill: Locust Swarm]
A harsh crack shattered the silence — the coffins Tyler had passed earlier split open one by one, echoing like a hundred dry bone fractures. From each gaping void erupted a writhing flood of glimmering locusts. Their translucent wings buzzed with a piercing shriek that drilled into Tyler’s ears. The air turned into a living fog, the swarm blotting out every flame and every shape beyond.
[Enemies Identified: Drought Locust, Level 50 x281]
Tyler’s vision blurred. He staggered, raising his blades instinctively. No… no… not again…
[Activated Skill: Berserk]
His veins pulsed with violent red energy. His blades whipped around him in savage arcs, slicing through the first wave of locusts like a whirlwind of steel. Their shredded husks exploded into clouds of sickly green ichor, splattering across his armour.
But for every handful he cleaved down, dozens more rushed in. They sank their mandibles into his exposed arms, crawled under torn plates, bit into his neck. Each bite burned like acid, his muscles locking and trembling.
Tyler screamed, a raw, bestial sound torn from his gut. He spun, blades flashing — another wave dropped, coating the floor with viscera. Still, they came.
Love this novel? Read it on NovelFire to ensure the author gets credit.
Too many… can’t… breathe…
Locusts flooded into his helmet vents, clawing at his mouth. He gagged, coughing out blood and ichor. His vision flickered red at the edges. More bites. His fingers spasmed, nearly dropping one sword. Another mandible pierced the soft flesh behind his knee — he buckled, gasping.
A thousand flickering images flooded his mind: Milo’s smiling face, Miho’s terrified eyes, the harbinger crow’s caw echoing in that distant frozen corridor. Every ghost clawed at him, dragging him deeper into the red.
I’m slipping… again…
He clenched his jaw until it felt like it would shatter. Another bite at his wrist. Another at his thigh. His heart thundered like a war drum.
I can’t… can’t stop…
Tyler’s eyes snapped wide open, pupils flaring. His blade work turned savage, even reckless — his swings wilder and faster than before, tearing through the locusts as if he had become a living grinder. Red sparks cracked along his limbs, the berserk energy flickering dangerously.
[Activated Skill: Firestorm]
Flames erupted from his body in a violent tornado. Locusts incinerated mid-flight, their screeches dissolving into ash. The hall flashed white and orange, shadows writhing like dying phantoms. Tyler roared through clenched teeth, his voice almost lost in the roaring blaze.
At last, silence. The final locusts crumbled into scorched fragments, drifting to the ground like blackened snow.
[+562 XP]
[Level Up! Tyler Level 152 → 163]
[Attribute Points: +11]
Tyler collapsed to one knee, flames still dancing off his armour. His breath came in ragged sobs, each exhale scraping his throat raw. Blood pooled beneath him, his skin aflame with a thousand stinging lacerations.
He trembled violently, his head lolling forward. “I… I can’t… No… it’s not over…”
A deep, rumbling chuckle echoed across the hall.
Thamutekh rose from his throne, stepping forward with deliberate majesty. “So much spirit… so much struggle… and yet you still believe violence alone can save you?”
Tyler raised his head weakly, one eye squinting through the crimson haze. His swords dragged on the floor like dead weight.
Thamutekh’s gaze gleamed. “Shall we test your resolve further?”
Tyler snarled, pushing himself upright. He pointed one sword at Thamutekh, red sparks still flickering along the blade.
[Activated Skill: Lightning Bolt]
A searing arc of energy leapt toward Thamutekh, lighting the chamber with a blinding flash.
The blast struck Thamutekh’s chest — and fizzled, absorbed into the shifting sands that cloaked his body. He didn’t even flinch.
Thamutekh tilted his head slightly, a cruel amusement curling at the edges of his muzzle. “Did you truly think such trifling light could pierce eternity?”
Before Tyler could react, a mound of sand behind him heaved upward, forming a towering silhouette. A massive shape lunged forth, moulding into Thamutekh’s image — identical down to every line of his armour and the jagged crown of horns.
The clone swung its sceptre, crashing it into Tyler’s side. He flew across the hall, bones cracking as he slammed into a pillar, shards of sandstone exploding around him.
He coughed violently, flecks of blood staining the inside of his helmet visor.
Tyler struggled to stand — but two more mounds of sand erupted, forming two additional Thamutekh clones. Each bore the same regal sneer, the same predatory anticipation.
[Enemies Identified: Thamutekh Clone, Level 200 x3]
The first clone lunged again, its sceptre crashing downward. Tyler rolled aside, shards slicing across his arms. He managed a wild counterstrike — but his blade simply passed through sand, the clone reforming effortlessly.
The second clone swung horizontally, catching Tyler across the ribs. He crashed against the floor, his breath exploding from his lungs in a sharp, gurgling gasp.
He pushed up on trembling elbows, but the third clone closed in from behind, smashing its sceptre into his back. His armour split, a howl ripping from his throat as he tumbled face-first into the sand.
Pain exploded behind his eyes. His body convulsed, each nerve screaming.
I can’t… I can’t keep up… it’s too much…
The clones advanced again. Another sceptre swung down, another blow that rang through his skull like a bell. His vision narrowed, black spots swimming at the edges.
Tyler forced one blade up, trying to guard — but a clone kicked him aside, his arm twisting at an unnatural angle. His blade clattered away into the darkness.
His mind swam. Is this it…? Is this all I am? A worthless echo, broken in the sand?
One clone lifted its sceptre high, the other two closing in on both sides. Tyler felt the weight of inevitability bear down on his chest, suffocating.
“I… don’t want… to die…”
A sceptre smashed into his side. Tyler gasped, bile rising in his throat. Another cracked into his shoulder, bones snapping audibly. The pain was all-consuming — a world of red agony flooding every sense.
No… I… can’t… breathe…
He fell to the floor, chest rising and falling in shallow, convulsive gasps. Blood pooled beneath him, his remaining sword slipping from limp fingers.
Above him, the three clones loomed, shifting and re-forming, as if savouring the final blow.
Thamutekh’s laughter reverberated across the chamber, a low, echoing chime of triumph and scorn. He raised his sceptre, pointing it down at Tyler’s broken form.
“Is this truly all you have to offer? You, who would claim the essence of the gods? You, who would defy fate itself? Pathetic.”
Tyler’s eyelids drooped. His fingers twitched once, then stilled. His thoughts blurred, dissolving into crimson haze.
Then —
A faint vibration. A warmth, dark and electric, crackled at the edges of his mind. A red energy pulsed beneath his skin, winding up his arms like coiling serpents.