'Your definition of fun is really twisted. Unless you're a masochist, of course," Nyx groaned next to him, her form splattered on the ground.

Who's complaining now? Leo rolled on his back, his chest still heaving. And I'm not a masochist, thank you very much. I simply think this was more fun than slaughtering Voidlings who couldn't even fight back. That's all there is to it.

'If you say so,' she muttered, and going by her tone, she definitely didn't believe him. 'At least it worked,' she added, slowly raising to her feet. 'Take a look.'

Despite knowing he could just check notifications to confirm that, Leo grimaced and picked up his aching body off the ground. He stabilized his wobbly limbs and only then scanned the area, now absent of any shadows.

Would you look at that...

While the scorched and disfigured ground still remained, almost everything else changed. The heavy air, filled with violet vapor, was gone, letting sunlight fill the ex-Wasteland just like any other part of the city.

As for the deep glowing fissures that once produced the dark mist?

Leo easily spotted them all over the area, their sizes and positions untouched. However, just like with the vapor, their constant light was missing, devoured by Nyx and him. Now, they stood empty and consumed by darkness, just like any normal, useless hole.

Well, nothing we can do about the destruction. Besides, Vetilim will take over this place soon anyway. People will forget a Tainted Wasteland was even here.

"I doubt we could have done this three days ago," Leo noted out loud. "I swear, Devour was like a minute away from shutting down. I guess at least now we know our limits..."

'Indeed,' Nyx nodded, sitting down next to him. 'Rewards?'

He shrugged. "Sure. No time to waste. We have a few more places to visit before nighttime."

As Leo said that, he summoned the System's interface. Like expected, it prepared a few notifications for him, but nothing too overwhelming.

Tainted Wasteland destroyed. Void's influence on Earth weakened. Distributing bonus experience and rewards to all contributors.

Congratulations! As the main contributor towards the destruction of a Tainted Wasteland, you have been awarded 1000 Ether and a Rare quality weapon.

Do you wish to deliver the item to your Soul Well or the real world?

Huh, no level up. Leo frowned. Disappointing but not really surprising. Maybe if the Wasteland was a bit stronger... Oh, whatever, a thousand Ether is still nice. And a weapon... Alright, give it to me then, System. Real world, please.

Like any other time, golden light erupted on the ground before him. This time, while still prickling at his eyes, he didn't have to shield them and just watched as the System finished its delivery.

What do we have here...

In place of the golden dome now lay a weapon unlike any other. For one, similar to an item Leo once found, this one too, was half transparent, filled with a blood-red glow. Then there was its unique appearance made up of two short, single-edged blades without handles, yet still connected together by a chain.

"Okay, that's a first," he murmured, stepping closer to the item. "Spectral Inscription? Maybe... Identify."

Oh...

Install: Blades of Chained Inferno (Rare):

An install-type item crafted by a skilled Soul Smith. Often used by the Narzak recruits. Grants the user the ability to summon chain-scythes into their hands. The chains can extend to a limited length. After initial bonding, this item will provide the user with basic knowledge of how to wield it.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Active: Ignition - Channel Essence into the weapon to ignite it with Blood Fire.

"Chain-scythes?" Leo furrowed his brow, searching his memories for a mention of such a weapon. "The hell is that? I mean, the description sounds nice, but a scythe? Really? It definitely doesn't look like one."

Nyx hummed.'This might not be its true form. Only one way to really find out if you can use it. Do you think your soul can handle the additional strain?'

He nodded right away. "Yeah. With the ascension and all those levels, it shouldn't be a problem. If anything happens, I can always remove it."

'Well then,' the feline stepped away. 'Go on. Try it. I will be right here.'

Narrowing his eyes at her, Leo snorted and picked up the weird item. A new notification instantly appeared, asking a question he had seen only once before with Touch of Carnage.

Do you wish to Install Blades of Chained Inferno into your soul? Install-Type items can be removed any time you want.

Do it.

The item in his grasp exploded into splinters of hard, transparent light. For a moment, they just floated above his hand, but then, all at once, they dived towards his chest, sinking into it within seconds.

Leo flinched as the item passed the mythical barrier between his body and soul. The phantom weight landed on his shoulders as it settled somewhere near the Spark of The Void, but it was far from enough to bring him down.

Alright, wasn't too bad. Still have a place for a bit more. He nodded to Nyx, and she sighed visibly. "I told you it will be fine. I know my limits. Well, most of them anyway."

When the feline threw him a deadpan look, Leo just huffed and raised his arms. "Anyway... Blades of Chained Inferno."

A spark of power escaped his soul as the install item activated, connecting to his Essence. Crimson liquid escaped his wrists next, flowing out like a waterfall. Yet, just before it could reach the ground, the fluid energy flared brightly, blinding everyone around.

Leo blinked out the white spots in his visions as, at the same time, a flow of knowledge, manifested in short pieces of memories, entered his mind. They all presented the same thing: simple examples of how to use the weapons resting in his hands.

Initial bonding of Blades of Chained Inferno completed.

Interesting.

He glanced at the black chains, tipped with just as dark blades, coming out of his wrists. Like one of the memories showed, he sent a simple command into the weapon, and at once, the chains pulled back, sinking into his skin.

Very interesting.

Grabbing a chain, he spun it as fast as he could at his side before releasing it towards a boulder a few feet away. The blade sailed forward as its reach extended and, with a power he didn't expect from such a weapon, sunk a good few inches into the rock.

"Not bad. Could be useful against a group of weaker opponents or if I want to kill something from range without using Essence. For close quarters, though?" Leo shook his head. "No chance. It's too unwieldy. Maybe a master of those could do more, but somehow, I doubt it can win against a normal weapon. What do you think?"

Nyx shrugged as best as a feline could. 'I know even less about weapons than you do. If that's what your opinion about them, who am I to argue... Although, didn't you forget about that active ability?'

Leo cursed and sent a spark of Essence into his hands. Weak flames instantly erupted across the weapon, licking at the chains and blades. Some even touched his skin, but the burning never came.

Built-in resistance... Damn, I wish I still had my minions. Could have tested this on them.

Letting out a heavy sigh, he dismissed the chain-scythes. Like he told Nyx, he could use them, but only in some particular scenarios. An item like that could never become his primary weapon.

Maybe if the blades had handles. He mused, picturing the adjustments in his head. Yeah, much better. Still a bit useless, considering I have a better alternative... Though, I wonder what Blood Fire exactly means.

With a shake of his head, Leo pushed this subject away for later. A new weapon was really the last of his worries. He could work out its uses as he went. No need to sacrifice more time for it than necessary.

"Not a bad morning to start with," he summed up, turning to Nyx. "So, what do you want to do next? Ants and a bit of butchering or some information gathering? Your choice."

The feline tilted her head. 'Isn't the Soulling nest closer? I thought we would stop there on the way to the Ameists.'

"We can do that," Leo nodded. "But no, the church isn't on the way to the old trainyard. Check my memories if you want. Here, I even got one for you."

Nyx blinked, her eyes glazing over for a short moment. 'Hmm, I suppose you're right. Let's get what you need from the Ameists first, then. We don't know how long it will take to search the tunnels.'

"Now that I'm not scared to use Hunter's Pulse?" He said as they slowly left the cleansed Wasteland behind. "An hour at most."

'We will see about that,' she huffed and shot past him. 'Race you there!'

Leo chuckled.

Cheeky cat.