As they stepped into the portal, Ben and Damien found themselves in a strange corridor. The narrow path ahead led to another portal just a few feet away. The ground beneath them felt solid and stable, but the walls were an entirely different story. Surrounding the corridor was a chaotic, unstable dimension that seemed to swirl and writhe, giving off a menacing aura as if it were trying to consume the passage.
Ben paused, captivated by the spatial anomaly. The chaotic energy reminded him of his time in the abyss, where he had lingered as a soul.
Damien's firm push jolted him back to the present. "The portal could collapse at any moment. Keep moving."
Finally snapping out of his reverie, Ben hurried along the corridor. Behind them, the barrier holding back the chaos began to crack as the energy started to erode the corridor.
They reached the portal just in time. As the two of them exited the strange dimension, they found themselves in a gloomy cave far from the Citadel.
The air inside the cave was thick and damp, carrying the scent of earth and moisture. It was spacious, large enough to accommodate about fifty people comfortably. Torches, placed at intervals along the walls, cast eerie shadows across the rocky surfaces, giving the cave a haunting atmosphere.
Ben surveyed the area curiously. He noticed several beds set up against the walls and a few desks and tables cluttered with papers. It was clear that this cave served as a base for Damien and his allies.
Before Ben could take another step, a figure suddenly lunged at Damien. The attacker was none other than Vex, whose arm had transformed into a steel gauntlet with claw-like sharp blades, aiming a lethal strike straight at Damien.
Ben quickly dodged away from the two combatants. But Damien, seemingly prepared for the attack, stood his ground. His arm morphed rapidly, swelling into an enormous grotesque shape that caught Vex’s steel claws. The claws lodged into Damien’s monstrous arm and got stuck, leaving Vex suspended in midair.
Vex’s eyes burned with fury, still enraged at Damien for tossing him into the portal. He seethed at the missed opportunity to fight the powerful foe heading to the Citadel.
Damien met his glare with a cold, irritated expression, "I don’t have time for your tantrums."
But Vex wasn’t about to back down. "I’ve had enough of your impudence! It’s time you learned what happens when you disrespect me."
As he spoke, the claws trapped in Damien’s grip began to heat up, glowing a fierce red. The searing blades quickly melted through Damien’s overgrown flesh, slicing his hand like it was butter. For the first time, Damien’s typically calm demeanor faltered, a flicker of pain crossing his face as Vex’s burning blades cut into him.
But Damien wasn’t about to let go. He tightened his grip on Vex’s claws and, with a powerful swing, hurled Vex into a stack of supply crates in the corner.
"That’s enough! Respect is earned, not demanded," Damien growled.
Vex sprang to his feet, refusing to be beaten. His other arm began to transform, morphing into a long rifle. He aimed it squarely at Damien, his eyes full of intent.
"Enough talk," Damien snapped, his voice brimming with resolve. "Let’s fight."
Mana began to gather in the rifle, the weapon humming with power, ready to fire at any moment.
Damien's morphed arm reverted to its normal form as he calmly walked past Vex.
"I've wasted enough time already. I have surgery to perform," Damien said coolly. "If you want to attack me, go ahead. But I'll just report you to the leader and make sure you’re back at the base doing chores again."
"Like I care!" Vex shouted, his rifle aiming at Damien’s head.
Without a hint of concern, Damien moved to a corner, picking up a can of paint and some brushes.
Vex’s face contorted in frustration, but after a tense moment, he lowered his rifle with a sharp breath, "Fine! I’ll let it slide this time."
"Now that’s a good boy," Damien responded with a knowing smile.
"Stop treating me like a child!" Vex snapped, before turning to storm off.
"And where are you off to?" Damien called after him.
"Outside. You got a problem with that?" Vex retorted.
"Just keep your head low and don’t attract any unnecessary attention, alright?"
Vex scoffed. "I know that! I’m not some kid!"
His angry stomps echoed through the cave’s corridor before finally fading away.
Damien finally turned to Benjamin, who had been standing quietly in the corner.
"Well, that was unsightly. Sorry, you had to witness it," Damien said, offering an apologetic smile. "Vex is still young and hot-headed, but he knows when to follow orders. Anyway, take a seat and relax while I prepare the magic circle for your surgery."
"Alright, thanks," Ben replied, taking a seat on a nearby chair. He tried to cross his legs but struggled as his joints had stiffened into the wood, making it difficult to bend his knee.
Meanwhile, Damien began painting a magic circle on the floor with graceful, practiced strokes. The runes he inscribed were precise, flowing effortlessly from his hand. Though the substance looked like ordinary paint, it was actually the blood of a mana beast, rich with powerful energy. Within minutes, the circle was complete.
The atmosphere grew dense as mana gathered around the circle, filling the air with an almost tangible force. Damien stepped back, nodding in satisfaction as he inspected his work.
"Come here, Ben," he said confidently. "It's time for the surgery. We're going to get you back to normal."
Ben quickly jumped to his feet, standing before Damien.
"Thanks for doing this. I really appreciate it."
Damien smiled warmly. "You don't need to thank me. It's the least I can do for a fellow comrade."
Ben hesitated, looking a bit troubled, "I’m not planning on joining you guys, though."
Damien's smile didn’t falter. "That decision is yours to make after you meet our Lord. For now, let’s focus on reversing your transformation."
He examined Ben’s body carefully.
"Well, half your torso, most of your legs, and part of your arm have already turned into wood. Even your left eye has darkened due to the transformation. If I had to guess, about 65% of your body has already turned into a sapling. These aren’t great odds."
Ben stared at his wooden arm, feeling the sensation in his hand fading away.
"I can’t die like this… There’s still so much I need to do," he muttered.
"Fortunately for you," Damien said with a proud grin, pointing to himself, "you have me—a genius surgeon."
Ben managed a small smile, nodding in agreement.
Suddenly, Damien placed a firm hand on Ben’s shoulder.
"To fix you, Ben, I need you to trust me completely. If you falter for even a second, there’s a chance you might die. Only if you can give me that trust will I proceed any further. If you have doubts, now’s the time to step back. Make your decision carefully."
Ben hesitated, agitated by the word "trust." He had already been betrayed once before. But with death looming if nothing was done, he forced a smile.
"Alright. I trust you. I’m putting myself in your capable hands."
Damien smiled, but there was a coldness in his eyes.
"Excellent! Just a heads-up—the procedure will be excruciating. It will feel like you have been stabbed, and your organs are melting. Once this process starts it won’t stop, no matter how much you beg. Only two outcomes await you: either you’ll be cured, or you’ll die right here."
Ben’s expression tightened with discomfort.
"Well… I’m going to die either way, so I might as well take my chances. I trust you, Mr. Damien."
"Good," Damien said cheerfully. "Let’s get started."
In a matter of minutes, Damien had made all the preparations.
Ben now lay in the center of the magic circle, his shirt removed and his arms and legs chained to the floor to restrict his moments. As the weight of the situation settled in, Ben began to have second thoughts.
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"Mr. Damien… is this really necessary?" he asked nervously.
"Absolutely! I can’t risk you flailing around and ruining the surgery," Damien replied, his tone almost too casual.
Ben’s eyes lingered on the dagger in Damien’s hand.
"I just have to ask… I know you’re a surgeon, and I don’t want to doubt your abilities, but… why the dagger?"
Damien’s smile grew unsettling, almost predatory.
"Oh, this dagger? An excellent question: this dagger is the key to solving all your problems."
Ben’s stomach twisted with fear.
"Mr. Damien, if this is some kind of joke, it looks like a sacrificial dagger! Now is the time to drop it and start the surgery, by the way, I don’t see your surgery tools?" Ben asked nervously.
Damien’s expression turned deadly serious.
"I’m not joking, Ben. This very dagger is your salvation now."
The dagger had a glass handle filled with swirling black liquid. It pulsed with an ominous, almost demonic energy.
"How’s that supposed to help?" Ben asked, his voice edged with panic.
Damien knelt beside him, dagger still in his hand.
"Well, all I need to do… is stab you and you will be saved," Damien said casually.
"What?! Is this your idea of surgery? You just want me dead, is that it?" Ben’s heart raced as he tried to wriggle free.
Damien calmly hovered his hand over Ben’s chest, searching for something.
"Of course, it’s a surgery. I just need to stab you right where your mana core is. Now, let me find it…"
"You tricked me!!" Ben shouted, his voice trembling with anger.
Damien sighed, his tone flat.
"Sadly, there’s no way to reverse your transformation once it begins. I had the chance to study the previous Eternal Dendrite constitution holder, but I couldn’t save him either."
"Then all this time, you’ve been lying! Why?" Ben yelled, his fury rising.
"I am not joking, I do have a way to save you, at least theoretically. That’s why I brought this dagger." Damien smiled wickedly as his finger traced a spot on Ben’s chest.
"Ah, there’s your mana core."
Damien raised the dagger, its point hovering just above Ben’s chest.
"Please explain yourself, Damien!" Ben demanded, his voice low but edged with fear.
Damien let out a weary sigh.
"Alright, I suppose I owe you that much. The Eternal Dendrite devouring your body isn’t just some random transformation—it’s a curse. A divine-class curse, to be exact, designed to kill its host. To resolve such a curse, you’d need an even higher level of divine magic spell... but no one has been capable of casting that."
"So it's hopeless, then?" Ben asked, his heart sinking.
Damien shook his head.
"Not entirely. It’s impossible to cure using conventional means. But..." He held up the dagger, the swirling black liquid inside seeming to pulse ominously.
"...I have something unconventional. This dagger—The Wraith’s Kiss—is a high-class cursed weapon. The dark liquid within it contains a powerful malevolent spirit almost as powerful as celestial or divine spirit."
Ben’s eyes widened in shock.
"Wait, where are you going with this?!"
Damien’s smile returned, almost amused by Ben's reaction.
"Yes, exactly. My plan is to let this malevolent spirit possess you. Once it’s inside you, it will try to claim your mana core which is already possessed by the eternal dendrite. Then the two spirits—the divine spirit and the malevolent spirit—will battle each other. Because they’re of opposing natures, they should cancel each other out."
"Let me get this straight," Ben said, struggling to contain his panic. "Your solution is to let me be possessed by yet another spirit and hope they’ll fight it out?"
"Exactly!" Damien said, his tone far too cheerful for the situation.
"Are you insane?!" Ben’s voice trembled as he struggled against the chains. "Just let me go! I don’t need any more of your so-called 'help'! You’re crazy!"
Damien chuckled softly, his eyes remaining cold and detached.
"Don’t worry. According to my calculations, this should work out smoothly."
Ben’s breath quickened as he stared at the dagger, fear curling around his spine like a tightening noose.
"I’ve had enough… just let me go," he pleaded.
Damien sighed as if considering it for a moment.
"Alright, if you don’t want to go through with it, I won’t force you."
Relief washed over Ben, his muscles relaxing slightly.
"Yeah, now just untie me—"
"Just kidding," Damien interrupted, and with a swift motion, he thrust the dagger deep into Ben’s chest.
"That’s what you get for not trusting me."
The blade sank into Ben’s flesh, blood spilling from the wound as Damien drove it deeper. Ben gasped, agony ripping through him as the cursed dagger pierced his chest. He felt the dark, gooey liquid inside the blade surge into his body, slithering through his veins like it had a mind of its own.
Ben screamed in torment, writhing in pain. His vision blurred as the spirit invaded him, but through the haze, he could still make out Damien’s sadistic smile.
"You… bastard… you…"
"Shh," Damien said mockingly. "Don’t speak. You might bite your tongue—this is just the beginning. Remember to breathe."
It didn’t take long for the malevolent spirit to fully possess him. Ben’s body convulsed violently, his eyes rolling back as his limbs twisted unnaturally. The metal chains bit into his wrists, nearly breaking his arms as he thrashed, his head slamming repeatedly against the floor.
Damien watched the scene unfold with eerie curiosity, his head tilting slightly.
"Oh my, so that’s what happens when two spirits fight over a single core. Fascinating."
He suddenly remembered something and casually reached into Ben’s pocket, pulling out a pendant with a glowing feather inside—a feather from the legendary Sunfire Bird.
"Ah, I almost forgot about this," Damien said, examining the pendant. "Well, I'll leave the rest to you now, my lord."
Ben’s convulsions grew more violent, his body writhing uncontrollably as the spirits waged war inside him. Blood erupted from his mouth, nose, and eyes, streaming in grotesque torrents as if his body were tearing itself apart from the inside. His screams, once loud and desperate, faded into ragged, hoarse gasps—his voice worn down by the endless agony. His once human form began to resemble something more beastly, twisted by the curse and the malevolent spirit fighting for dominance.
Damien, meanwhile, appeared thoroughly unbothered. He reclined in a chair a safe distance away, leisurely sipping from a delicate cup of tea. He had brewed it himself moments before, a fragrant blend that filled the air with calming notes of herbs. He carefully selected a couple of biscuits from a small plate, placing them beside his tea with meticulous precision.
As Ben’s body convulsed in the background, Damien sighed contentedly, raising his cup for another sip.
"Ah… drinking tea while watching someone in the throes of unimaginable agony. Now this is how I like to pass the time," he mused, a smug smile on his lips. "If only Vex were here to keep me company, this would be absolutely perfect."
He took a bite of his biscuit, crunching thoughtfully as Ben’s guttural groans filled the chamber. With a serene demeanor, Damien watched the gruesome spectacle unfold, savoring both the taste of his tea and the twisted entertainment before him.
But Damien’s amusement wouldn’t last long.
Damien was still savoring his tea when the ground beneath him began to rumble. He instinctively steadied his cup, trying to keep the liquid from spilling, but the peace was short-lived. The cave wall suddenly exploded in a shower of debris, sending rocks and dust flying through the air. A figure crashed into the cave, tumbling across the floor before coming to a stop. It was Vex, bruised but alive. He quickly scrambled to his feet. Without hesitation, he transformed his arms into weapons, and his eyes fixed on the gaping hole in the cave wall from which he came.
Debris from the blast struck Damien’s teacup in his hand, shattering it into pieces. For a moment, Damien stared at the broken handle in his hand, his expression darkening with a cold fury.
"Vex," Damien growled as he approached, holding up the broken handle like a death sentence, "You just destroyed my favorite tea cup. If it’s a fight you wanted, you got it."
It was the first time Damien had shown such raw anger.
But Vex, eyes still locked on the opening in the cave, didn't even glance at him.
"To hell with your cup!" he snapped. "We’ve got bigger problems right now."
Damien followed Vex’s gaze toward the breach in the cave wall and froze. The air had grown thick with power, a palpable presence approaching. His expression shifted to something far more serious as he looked toward the opening.
A moment later, a figure floated through the breach, his presence almost blinding. A young man with blonde hair and a face full of disdain hovered in the air, encased in a gleaming suit of armor that seemed to radiate light. His arms were crossed, and his eyes burned with contempt as he looked down on the two of them.
"So, this is where you vermin have been hiding," the man sneered, his voice echoing through the cave.
Damien and Vex both raised their guards instantly, tension crackling between them and the armored figure.
"Vex," Damien hissed, his brows furrowing in anger, "I told you to keep your head down! Now, why is this man knocking at our door?"
"Do you really think this is the time for that?" Vex shot back, his eyes never leaving the intruder.
The blonde man unfolded his arms and stretched out a hand.
A spear of light materialized in his palm, glowing with raw, pulsating energy.
"You two are clearly up to no good," he said, his voice calm but laced with menace.
"I’m here to put an end to it. Right here, right now."
Standing before them was none other than Lux Sentinel, the Heavenly Virtue of Ambition—one of the 12 Heavenly Virtues in the flesh.
Damien's fury turned to cold calculation as he adjusted his stance, his mind racing.
Facing one of the Heavenly Virtues was no simple matter.
"Well never mind now... Things just got a bit complicated," Damien muttered, his fists clenching in preparation for the coming battle.
Vex's smile widened as he aimed his weapon at the intruder,
“Finally I can go all out!”
Both of them were well aware that they were in for one heck of a rough ride.