บท 79: Chapter 79: Self reflection

Immediately after he detected the danger, Zaos was struck by an attack he could not evade.

The nature of the attack was a projectile, to be more precise, it was a spear glowing with intense white light. The spear carried a fierce momentum as it pierced through Zaos' abdomen, leaving behind a gaping hole.

[Wha–] Zaos' mind shook as an extreme amount of pain assaulted him. He fell to his knees, looking at the hole in a daze. The attack was too fast, and even though he sensed the danger beforehand, he could not react.

He was still trying to get over the shock when his danger senses flared once more. Despite receiving the warning on time, a similar scene presented itself as Zaos was once again struck by an attack he couldn't react to.

This time, the nature of the attack was a powerful kick to that face that sent him flying. As he crashed through several tents, Zaos heard an enraged shout that he could barely comprehend.

"You vermin! You dared to kill my son! I will torture you to death!!" The shout had just ended when Zaos' danger senses alerted him of an incoming attack. Yet, once again, he was unable to evade it. He was struck in the chest by a kick of a similar magnitude as the previous strike and the result was his chest caving in while the momentum with which he crashed into the tents increased once more.

He had barely recovered from the last attack when he was struck by another attack. This continued for several minutes as the wounds on Zaos' body accumulated. During this time, Zaos was truly helpless. His mind was a mess as he was constantly being assaulted by intense pain while also being alerted of an incoming attack he could not evade. This cycle made it impossible for Zaos to focus to activate his teleportation elemental weave.

After being beaten for over five minutes, the flurry of attacks finally came to a halt giving Zaos a much-needed break.

Zaos' appearance at the moment was horrendous, he had a gaping hole in his abdomen, his right shoulder had a deep cut that exposed the bones, and he was bruised all over his body. However, even in this horrible state, Zaos' life force was still strong as his body did its best to repair its wounds.

[I'm alive?] Zaos thought in a daze as his mind slowly cleared.

"Hmph! I won't kill you so easily, I will make sure you pay for the sin you have committed here today!" A female voice filled with fury reached Zaos' ears causing his slightly dazed mind to instantly gain its lucidity.

Anger, fear, and resentment flooded his mind as he heard the voice. These mixed emotions prompted him to act quickly as he mobilized the void mana in the surroundings and employed his teleportation elemental weave.

[I will return the favor someday!] Zaos declared internally with bloodshot eyes.

As his figure vanished from sight, he caught a glimpse of his enemy rushing toward him in vain.

***

Three days later.

In a secret chamber somewhere underground.

Zaos slowly opened his eyes and was immediately assaulted by intense pain that caused him to grimace.

[Where am I?] He looked around with a dazed expression. The environment was dark, but with his night vision, he soon realized that he was in his underground hideout.

[I survived!] Zaos was first overwhelmed by joy before dread washed over him. The joy quickly dissipated as he fearfully recalled the encounter.

After devouring the corpses of the light mystics, Zaos had prepared to retreat when he was alerted of impending danger by his acute senses. Yet even though he received the warning, Zaos was unable to act as the attack moved too quickly!

To teleport, Zaos needed to move a considerable amount of mana to activate his teleportation elemental weave. This required a bit of time and focus to achieve, but because the attacks moved too quickly, Zaos was unable to activate his ability to escape. He was forced to passively take the beating while barely holding onto his consciousness through the intense pain that assaulted him whenever he was struck.

[If she didn't stop willingly so as not to kill me, I would have been unable to escape if I lost consciousness.] Zaos was solemn. One of the reasons for his arrogance and fearless attitude so far was his confidence in his teleportation ability, yet at his moment of need, he was unable to utilize it. This, alongside the early fight with Haild, crushed the immense pride and arrogance that had been slowly building up within him.

[I have become overconfident and rash.] Zaos' heart turned cold as he analyzed.

After crossing over to Krulon and getting over so many hurdles relatively unscathed, it was inevitable that the feeling of superiority to the masses began brewing within him. At some point, he began underestimating his enemies while also trusting in his abilities too much.

[Although I have constantly aimed to get stronger, I became too comfortable with my current strength,] The realization struck Zaos fiercely. There were too many uncertainties with his current abilities, in the situation where he suddenly lost them or they were sealed, what would he do?

His combat abilities were only average and he heavily depended on his elemental weaves. For weaker opponents, this wasn't a problem, but for individuals such as Haild, it was a massive flaw that could easily be exploited.

[My mana control isn't even up to par with elves of my rank!] Zaos' expression became grimmer the longer he pondered.

[This can't go on, I have to fix these flaws!] Zaos decided in his heart.

He got up and was about to begin some training when he realized something…

[Oh? I have fully assimilated light mana with my body…] Zaos laughed bitterly at this news. After devouring the corpses of hundreds of regular mystics and one grand mystic, he had fulfilled the criteria to achieve this result. Yet, the price he paid was not light, there were still wounds on his body that hadn't fully healed even after three days of rest.

Zaos sighed and shelved the matter to the back of his mind, after all, although he felt a little stronger, there wasn't much of an increase in his strength.

[From now on, I need to be more cautious with my actions. I can't keep on recklessly charging into dangerous situations without a proper plan and serious preparations…] Zaos sighed as he dragged his slightly injured body to a certain corner of the chamber where he began his training.