Level Up: Voidwalker

After checking the total, Atlas relaxed just as Estelle appeared. She was wearing a comfortable-looking nightgown that failed to hide her hourglass figure. He shook his head before taking the tea she offered with a smile.

''Thank you,'' he said.

The blonde woman beamed as she joined him on the seat, rested her head on his shoulder, and smiled as she drank some tea. Atlas felt warm and sunk into her as the two grew comfortable watching the night sky.

As they rested, the couple started to fall asleep. Estelle gently ran her fingers up and down his only arm, which relaxed him; Nulia and Amethyst left Mount Pass behind, drawing closer to the plant that would help him.

Meanwhile, Grishna and Artemis faced their trials on the journey south. Unbeknownst to them, the tides of war had finally reached the northern lands. The once-mighty Astorian Empire had fallen to the relentless Achaemenids, their forces sweeping the region like a storm.

***

''Come on, Little Bird,'' Nulia said as they entered a snowy forest.

Amethyst glanced around and noticed the overwhelming amount of mana lingering in the air. She shook her head before replying to the Frostbear woman, ''I'm coming! The snow is deep here.''

Nulia giggled before shifting into her massive bear form, her voice now a deep, rumbling growl. ''Climb on. It shouldn't be too far from here.''

The phoenix woman gracefully mounted her back, and with a powerful surge, the Frostbear woman charged through the forest, her heavy paws thudding against the earth as they sped beneath the canopy of trees.

After running for an hour, Nulia felt something off coming from around them and quickly jumped to the side as an explosion rang out in the spot they were just in. Amethyst panicked and started casting Cosmic Blasts at the ambushing monsters.

The Frostbear woman tore them apart with ease. Explosions, howls, and screams of pain echoed throughout the forest. Nulia started using magic to remove dozens of creatures that dropped to the ground.

Amethyst quickly recognized the attackers as Chaos Monsters, fury igniting within her. With a wave of her hand, she unleashed her phoenix fire, incinerating them in a blaze of heat and light.

Beside her, Nulia held off the larger creatures, launching Ice Blasts and Bolts into the horde. Purple and blue energy flared across the forest, lighting the trees and scattering nearby creatures in fear.

After hours of trekking through the snowy forest, they finally reached a clearing. The air was crisp, their breath visible in the cold. Before them, a majestic waterfall cascaded down icy cliffs, its waters crashing into a half-frozen pool below. Mist rose from where the water met the ice, shimmering in the pale winter sunlight.

Amethyst paused, her fiery aura dimming as she admired the scene. "It's beautiful," she whispered, her breath warm in the cold air.

Nulia, still in her bear form, nodded, the snow crunching beneath her heavy paws. "A brief moment of peace," she rumbled. "But we should keep moving."

Before they could take another step, the atmosphere shifted ominously as a Chaos Aura enveloped them. From the shadows, Blightborns emerged—creepy, humanoid creatures twisted by dark magic, their eyes glinting with malice.

As Amethyst drew closer, Nulia instinctively transformed into her human form, muscles tensed, ''Little Bird, soar high and leave me,'' she commanded, her voice steady and fierce as she summoned her razor-sharp claws.

"No, I won't!" Amethyst shouted defiantly, her hands radiating with vibrant purple mana. Her eyes flared with intensity as she unleashed a piercing screech that reverberated through the forest, echoing for miles.

In response, a horrifying roar pierced the air, freezing the Chaos Beings in their tracks. The sky ignited in brilliant shades of blue as a mana storm erupted overhead, swirling with raw energy.

The deafening roar continued, echoing like a fierce battle cry, like someone had been pushed to madness. Amethyst's face showed a worried expression, but she let out several more screeches.

''What are you doing!'' Nulia demanded when hearing the new roar.

She looked at the brown-skinned woman and spoke regretfully, ''I've awoken a monster inside Atlas, and he is angry.''

Minutes dragged on as the Chaos Monsters launched their assault, forcing the two women into a fierce battle. They fought hard, but as time passed, the relentless tide of Blightborns and other horrifying monsters began to push them back.

When all hope seemed lost, another roar echoed overhead, reverberating through the chaos. Suddenly, a brilliant blue comet streaked across the sky, hurtling toward them with breathtaking speed.

It crashed into the ground with a thunderous impact, unleashing a wave of fire that engulfed the surrounding monsters and obliterated their foes in a breathtaking explosion.

***

While resting, a panicked screech pierced through the air, igniting panic in Atlas's eye. He jumped to his feet as the sound reverberated throughout the Otherworld. 'Amethyst!' he thought.

Without a moment's hesitation, he activated his Voidwalker Form. A wave of excruciating pain washed over him, threatening to consume his entire being as his flesh was burned away, but he pushed it aside.

The women were in danger. Shadows began to coil around him as he transformed into a living silhouette, his body stretching and twisting into an imposing figure. Long, sinewy limbs ended in razor-sharp claws, and his teeth glinted like knives, capable of tearing through steel.

As he grew taller, an aura of darkness enveloped him, consuming all traces of light. Estelle, watching in panic, felt a chill run down her spine. ''Atlas!'' she called out, fear lacing her voice.

With great effort, he turned to her, his voice strained, ''Stay here and only come when I summon you and bring the monster Tyson.''

Atlas surged across the Northern Waste like a wild monster. The frozen landscape blurred around him as he raced forward, the biting cold unable to penetrate the primal energy radiating from his Voidwalker Form.

His clawed hands tearing through the snow and ice. Shadows danced around him, swirling like smoke as he embraced the chaos within. The ground trembled beneath him with every powerful stride, echoing his raw fury.

Ahead, he could sense the presence of Amethyst and Nulia. The air crackled with tension, the distant sounds of battle drawing nearer. With a fierce roar that echoed across the icy expanse, Atlas pushed himself harder, the darkness flowing through him like a raging river.

'Can't let it take over,'Nôv(el)B\\jnn

he thought while something was trying to fight for control, but he beat it.

Following that, Atlas pointed his hand at the ground and fired a Void Bomb; when the spell exploded, it sent him soaring high into the air, where he used other spells to zoom toward the phoenix screeches.

Five minutes later, he spotted a battle in a snowy forest, and without thinking, he cast his strongest spell while falling toward the horde of Chaos Monsters, which he could sense from where he was.

Atlas soared toward the ground like a missile, and when getting close, he let the fully charged spell go as he touched the earth,

'Void Smash.'

A wave of azure fire washed out like a tidal wave and annihilated any monster caught in its wake, but to his surprise, it didn't harm the girls as Amethyst cast a Cosmic Shield, but it was unneeded.

Once the attack was over, Atlas appeared in the center of a crater, causing him to stumble as he returned to his humanoid form. He managed to drop to one knee while coughing up blood that stained the stone below.

Your next chapter is on empire

'Ah shit, I pushed myself too far,'

Atlas mused with a stupid smile as he opened a portal to the Otherworld and collapsed into it.

Nulia and Amethyst stood at the top, clutching white and blue flowers. Without hesitation, they leaped into the crater, following closely behind Atlas. They quickly found themselves separated.

Atlas crashed down into the center of the Scalebreaker nest, his arrival causing an immediate stir among the monstrous creatures, which erupted into a frenzy of panic and confusion.

'Calm down!'

Cera's voice rang out, cutting through the chaos like a blade.

The Scalebreaker Matriarch rushed toward Atlas, her presence a beacon of authority amidst the turmoil. She started nudging him, but he was unconscious. The monster gently scooped him up using her tail while thinking,

'What have you done now, Master?'

Following that, she told the other monsters that she was taking him back to the treehouse, where the three women panicked, but Nulia started creating the cream needed to heal Atlas with the help of Estelle.

The Scalebreaker Matriarch traveled through the jungle as she hummed a gentle tune to him. As the jungle passed, other Scalebreakers followed behind to protect her in case any monsters attacked her.

Cera's gaze fell upon Atlas, and a warm smile graced her features,

'You're like a rowdy son,'

she said, her voice filled with a strange mix of affection and authority.

'But I still care about you, Master, even if you are the Voidwalker.'

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