Primordial Awakening: My Bloodline Evolves Infinitely

Chapter 45: Shard Of Salvation

Leonard’s eyes darkened in disdain.

"You’ve got to be kidding me..." He cursed bitterly under his breath.

He had mentally prepared himself for many challenges, but never had the idea of a monster capable of increasing his corruption crossed his mind.

It was essential to keep his current corruption low since it represented the time limit for how long he could survive in the Void. Yet the Orc Shaman had shortened his remaining time significantly with a single attack.

Leonard knew that if the corruption continued to increase at the same pace as it had until now, he had six more days at best... For as long as nothing increased it any further.

Still trying to get his bearings under control, he was too slow to notice that the buffed orc had already swung its club toward him.

"Bro!" Winston shouted.

He quickly reacted and took the full force of the blow with his shield.

"Such power! Be careful, it’s clearly stronger than normal!" He warned, feeling his bones ache.

"Thanks." Leonard nodded in appreciation. He noticed that Harley had taken the corruption exposure the worst. Momentarily stunned, she clutched her chest as she coughed uncontrollably.

With no time to linger, he charged at the orc in front of him.

Fortunately, the Orc Shaman didn’t target them any longer. It seemed that the monster’s goal was simply to increase the corruption of every awakener present rather than focusing exclusively on a single party.

Leonard ducked under another of the orc’s swings, closing the distance.

For a moment, the idea of summoning Valor crossed his mind, yet he quickly reconsidered. Even with his mana pool increased to 230, it would place a tremendous strain on his energy. It was wiser to save his strongest trump card in case he found himself facing the Orc Shaman.

Which was why he ought to summon Joker instead.

Now that he had risen to Level 7, he was able to command the mist to assume the form of the Elder Ferocious Wolf he had previously faced in the Wolf’s Den dungeon.

Following his orders, Joker condensed into the wolf’s body. Although he retained only 10% of the original’s attributes, the sudden appearance of the wolf startled the enraged orc momentarily.

Leonard immediately made use of the opening. Wielding Titanic Oath, he aimed for the monster’s arm. Simultaneously, Joker opened his jaws wide and lunged at the orc’s leg, eager to disrupt the creature’s balance.

[Lightning Strike activated!]

Like thunder, the axe collided with the orc’s arm in a clean hit.

Unfortunately, the strike proved lacking. The axe’s head buried itself deep into the limb, but its momentum halted midway.

"Ridiculous!" Leonard bellowed.

He had severed an orc’s arm in a single motion before, yet to his dismay, the orc’s buff didn’t just increase its strength... it also increased its defenses!

To make matters worse, neither the lightning from his skill nor the frost of his axe appeared to affect the orc in any way. The creature was indifferent to pain, almost like a berserker consumed by rage.

Similarly, Joker’s bite was ineffective. His fangs barely pierced the outer layer of the orc’s skin before stopping short of driving any deeper.

The orc’s eyes gleamed menacingly. Curling his free hand into a fist, he struck Leonard square in the stomach.

"Guh!"

The leather armor Leonard wore absorbed part of the impact and prevented a potentially fatal injury by lessening the damage. Nevertheless, the air was driven out of his lungs, and his vision started to spin.

With a kick, the orc hurled Joker to the side.

"You goddamn brute!" Harley yelled, finally recovered from the corruption exposure.

She closed the distance faster than a heartbeat, and wind started to coil around her arm.

"Rapid Thrusts!"

Having observed the exchange, she knew that her thin rapier had no chance of piercing the orc’s body. Instead, she aimed for the weak points, mainly the eyes.

The orc grasped her goal far too late. Before he could close his eyes, her weapon had already shot forward like an arrow.

With several quick stabs, she gouged out his eyes.

ROOOAR!

The monster was no longer able to remain indifferent to pain. Raising his arms, the orc covered his eyes as he let out an agonized scream.

"If sharp attacks don’t work, then what about blunt ones?" Winston didn’t miss his chance.

His hammer struck the orc’s head squarely. The force was enough to throw the orc off his feet and topple him to the ground.

"At least this worked." Leonard exclaimed with a sharp breath, still feeling the impact of the orc’s punch.

The monster attempted to get up and retaliate. However, before it could, Leonard and Joker slammed their bodies into the orc’s shoulders, keeping it pinned down.

Albeit blinded, the orc felt the hairs rise on the back of his neck when Winston’s hammer descended with monstrous force.

The monster’s head popped like a pumpkin, finally killing it on the spot.

[You contributed to the defeat of a Level 10 Orc.]

[You have gained 100 Experience!]

Level: 7 [Experience: 325/800]

The 100 experience he had gained for his assist did little to keep Leonard content for long.

Although one of the ordinary orcs had been dealt with, there were still four more remaining, with an Orc Shaman leading the horde.

He quickly surveyed the surroundings. Surprisingly, his party had been the first to defeat an orc, the others were still struggling to keep up with the monsters’ buffed attacks.

Without a doubt, the biggest danger was the Orc Shaman.

While the rest of the orcs were mainly fighting with the frontlines, the Orc Shaman had ventured deeper and started throwing fire attacks toward the recently erected walls, behind which Samantha and the rest of the backliners were supporting the awakeners.

If the monster’s leader wasn’t stopped, they risked losing their one and only healer!

"You prick! Do you know how much work it took to set up these walls?!" Leonard bellowed as he threw Titanic Oath straight in the direction of the Orc Shaman.

The creature turned just in time to notice the incoming strike. She evaded the projectile by stepping to the side. However, the axe’s head caught on the edge of her robe and caused her to drop a golden sphere.

For a second, the Orc Shaman’s eyes studied Leonard before noticing the nearby dead orc.

Although the ambush hadn’t been discovered until it was too late, the awakeners here proved too tough to be subdued with so few troops.

"We will be back. There is nowhere to hide." She declared menacingly before throwing a potion at her feet.

Her speed suddenly increased. While the ordinary orcs were still keeping the awakeners busy, she dashed to the side and disappeared from view.

"So an Orc Shaman is intelligent enough to form coherent sentences..." Harley commented, having overheard the orc’s words.

"Honestly, I would have felt better if they were all just mindless monsters." She admitted in a somber tone.

Leonard was inclined to agree. Fighting intelligent creatures was always noticeably harder.

While the others were still fighting the remaining orcs, he quickly went over to the wall. He needed to rely on Samantha for her healing, and he wanted to closely examine the sphere the Orc Shaman had left behind.

But the moment his hands made contact with the sphere, it shattered into pieces.

[You have come into direct contact with a Shard of Salvation! Your corruption has decreased by 5%!]

[Corruption 12%]

"The hell?"