Chapter 1618 (1/2)

Randidly casually investigated the situation in his body while Lay’mel trembled in front of him. At moments like this, silence was an effective weapon; allowing Lay’mel to make up horrible truths about what would happen to him was much more effective than Randidly trying to threaten him directly. And it also helped take the edge off of Randidly’s implacable wrath toward this constant threat to him and his Squad.

From what he understood, Lay’mel was constantly plotting against him, endangering his recruits in the process. In Randidly’s mind, that was a deep debt to pay.

Previously, the jump in his Stats, particularly the growth of Dreadful Alacrity and Primordial Nether Juju, was so abrupt and vast that his physical form had difficulty keeping up. His new cells could properly express his power, but his old cells simply weren’t built to the same specifications. Which required Randidly to methodically rip off his muscles and allow them to heal back.

In his chest, Randidly used his blood to rupture his veins and spread through his body. Once he possessed the freedom, he scraped away at his organs, taking a bit of the inferior biological matter with each pass. The process was uncomfortable, but Randidly manipulated his blood skillfully. Soon, the entirety of his insides was cleansed and regenerated.

And I bet that visual is the reason he’s petrified. Randidly glanced at Lay’mel. Then he reached up with his right hand and ripped a hole in his skin right below his diaphragm. All the contained blood and old, weak biological matter flowed out and splattered on the ground. Lay’mel looked like he would be ill.

Randidly’s skin was steadily growing back across his bare muscles, but the former Drill Sergeant’s eyes were wide and blank; he was perhaps constantly reliving the vision of his teammates getting slaughtered as he stared at the chunks of flesh spread across the ground. Randidly favored him with a wicked smile as he raised his leg and stomped down. His foot ruptured and he scraped it against the Nether Pinion to make room for the regenerated flesh.

Honestly, Randidly’s first impulse was to kill Lay’mel and be done with it. But in the current situation, he could think of another use for the man. It was a gamble, but being a part of the Swacc Family meant that this individual was rather well informed. Right now, Randidly dearly wished for concrete details concerning the undercurrents within Military High Command.

Snorting, Randidly raised his hands and slapped them against his ears. His eardrums shattered and blood dribbled down his head and neck. As the flesh rapidly healed, there wasn’t much difference in hearing, but the delicate mechanisms of his ear were now much more robust. Randidly considered trying to scrape away bits of his brain to let his grey matter improve, but that seemed a bit… reckless.

With the increased power in his arms, Randidly went for his joints and tendons next, ripping out long sinews and tossing them to the side. All the while, Lay’mel was shaking like a leaf.

When his body was satisfactorily healed and remade, Randidly produced a cloth from his interspatial ring and began to dry himself. Not that he minded, but he thought that looking like some sort of bloody zombie would make communicating with his subordinates slightly awkward. Then he released a bit of the Stillborn Phoenix’s image to motivate Lay’mel. His left eye shifted into a black hole. The ominous sound of the black hole devouring air and emotions in the surrounding space finally seemed to pierce through the fear and reach the former Drill Sergeant.

Lay’mel paled further so that his skin was as white as a blank sheet of paper. Yet at least he finally realized that Randidly wasn’t going to speak any further. “I- I-...! You… you shouldn’t k-kill me too c-c-casually-”

“Why not?” Randidly chuckled. “The Swacc Family has a grudge with me anyway, and messaging is currently restricted by this situation. Isn’t the best option to eliminate all evidence that this encounter happened while I can? And you, Lay’mel Tuuellethe, are a very dangerous piece of evidence.”

“I w-won’t-” Lay’mel began to stutter, but Randidly silenced him with a look. Lay’mel’s expression grew heavy. Both knew that even if Lay’mel didn’t want to report the issue of this failed ambush, he would have no choice. As long as he lived, the Swacc Family would seek him for information regarding Evick Swacc’s demise.

Seeing that realization finally come over Lay’mel’s face, Randidly smirked. Then he spoke slowly. For now, he could afford to wait on making this decision. “Well, aren’t we in the same boat? Pursued by the Swacc Family for becoming involved in incidents having nothing to do with us? If you come with me now and provide some information, I’ll let you live.”

Lay’mel gave Randidly a blank look that said ‘we are definitely not in the same boat’, but he didn’t dare verbalize those thoughts. Instead, his visage was clouded as he considered the implications of what Randidly was saying. Some of his fear went away and Lay’mel turned thoughtful.

For Randidly, it was a calculated gamble. Although the Swacc Family wouldn’t have any proof, he doubted that the Swacc Family wouldn’t be able to find out that he was responsible for the death of Evick Swacc. Perhaps Randidly would be able to frame another faction for their deaths, but the Swacc Family would likely still start the investigation with him, the actual target. And besides, to frame someone, Randidly would need more information. Hence his attempt to strong-arm Lay’mel.

In addition… Randidly could control the expectations of the Swacc Family if he kept Lay’mel alive. After all, the prowess he demonstrated to kill Evick Swacc and his groups was far from his full strength.

“I… this… okay. What information do you need?” Lay’mel said uneasily.

Randidly simply smiled in response and turned away. The questions could wait until later, and he wanted to keep Lay’mel off balance. He hopped down off the blood and gore spattered Nether Pinion and walked to one of the crystalline wall of the fractured space. Lay’mel blinked and hurried after him. “Did I say something-”

“Quite for now,” Randidly said sharply. His senses flowed outward through the strange Aether barrier, following the flows of energy. As he examined the surroundings, Randidly had to admit that what Commandant Wick had done was rather impressive. Whether the Nether King had wanted to contribute or not, its powers had been inadvertently incorporated into this strange stasis. Nether became the bridges between the isolated spaces. As long as those inside the space understood enough about Aether and Nether, it was possible to travel between the separated zones.

Releasing a breath, Randidly closed his eyes and let his senses wander outward.

Congratulations! Your Skill Left Hand of the Nether Oracle (M) has grown to Level 245!