89 Chapter 88
When Dio was surrounded again, he raised his shield and focused all of his strength on this last move.
"I hope it works!"
Dio muttered as he lowered his shield and made it hit the ground.
"DUMMMMMM!"
This time, the divine energy explosion was much more powerful than before.
It knocked down all the skeletons inches away from him, and it shattered the weak parts of the frozen trunks of three nearby trees.
These three trees fell, which caused more to fall until all the trees Dio had touched fell.
"BRAAAAAAM"
The enormous trees that had collapsed around him caused the ground to tremble while striking a serious blow to the army of the undead.
The fall created a thick cloud of dust, which Dio used to his advantage to escape.
He used what little energy he had left to move through the shadows and avoid the dangerous trunks.
It was a success; he managed to escape.
He kept moving forward to make sure he was safe this time, even after he was sure he had escaped.
Dio decided to climb a tree to the top since there were no souls or zombies attacking him. He then sat down on one of the tree's trunks to do some healing.
The wound from the enemy had finally stopped bleeding, but it showed no signs of healing.
The cut on his thigh was improving, but the arrow wounds needed him to pull them out without breaking the tips.
Fortunately, Diana had given him a long lecture on treating penetrating wounds of all kinds.
After removing the arrow, Dio closed his eyes to sense his energy reserves and received good news.
The advantage of being here was the high energy concentration.
Unfortunately, he couldn't use it freely because he would likely explode his body without proper training.
Dio's body acted as a direct channel to the underworld.
Dio could use it to refuel his energy now that he was still taking a rest, even if he didn't need to use outside energy during a battle.
After a few minutes, Dio recovered what would take at least an hour on Earth.
"Έλα, και γίνε τα μάτια μου!"
(Come, and become my eyes!)
Dio won't let himself be taken aback this time.
He summons up four skulls that float around the tree and let him see from all four directions at the same time.
"Επικαλέστηκα την τιμωρία του ποταμού Φλέγηθων!"
(I summoned the punishment of the River Phlegethon!)
Dio summoned a drop of a bright red liquid.
This time, he didn't hesitate.
He brought the drop of liquid fire to his mouth and swallowed it because he was too tired and sick of being in pain for so long.
'What does it feel like to drink lava?'
Dio didn't know how to describe it.
First, he felt something cold going down his throat, then this cold spread throughout his body, and then came the pain.
He tore a tiny branch off his side and bit it so he wouldn't have to scream. He tightly hugged the tree to keep himself from writhing and falling to the ground.
There is no way to describe the pain of being burned alive from the inside; Dio had never felt anything like it.
He had no choice but to try to stay still and not move or scream.
It lasted a few seconds, but for him, it felt like hours.
Then Dio sat down again and wiped the tears from his face.
Then Dio looked at his wounds; they have all been healed, but there is still a scar in the shape of claws on his stomach.
He was sure that the scar would eventually disappear now that the wound had healed.
Dio looked around to see if anything had happened while he was healing.
The skull spell was canceled because of the pain.
Fortunately, Dio wasn't found by anyone, and everything was calm.
"I feel hungry."
Dio isn't really hungry; it's just a feeling of hunger. It's normal to rest and recover by eating after putting in so much energy.
"So, I lost my backpack while I was fighting, as well as everything I picked up so far and my gems."
Dio remembered his backpack only now.
Dio decided to rest for a few hours and maybe get some sleep.
He cast some simple spells around him; they serve as a nearby alert.
The only person who can now approach him without him knowing is a magician.
Dio used this same spell to warn him if someone tried to enter his room, but this time in a larger area and about ten meters around him.
It may seem like a short distance to be warned of a potential attack, but with his superhuman speed and reflexes, it's certainly enough unless he was attacked by a speedster or a projectile many times faster than sound.
He fell asleep easily this time.
...
Dio woke up a few hours later.
It's a bit hard to measure time in a world where the light is constantly the same.
Dio should have brought a watch or his phone, but the idea of bringing them for this adventure he was preparing for seemed ridiculous.
Dio stood up from the trunk and stretched his whole body while savoring the relaxing sensation it gave him.
This was certainly the most relaxing sleep he had ever had. Unfortunately, he always didn't dream.
This has either never happened to him since he was a child, or he hasn't remembered his dreams, which seems odd.
That's why Dio didn't pay much attention to this fact until he looked it up years ago.
According to some research, the complete lack of dreams can be related to mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety.
Dui didn't show any signs of these problems, so there must be something else about his lack of dreams.
However, Dio let it go when he was out of information.
"So, what should I do now?"
'I have two options: continue further into the bunch of trees I'm in or return all the way I came.'
It's risky for him to go back and fight with the three bats again, as he has to go through the army of skeletons.
They may be chaotic due to the lack of their leader, but it's not certain that there's only one zombie in this vast place.
The biggest risk of going deeper into the forest is not knowing what he might find.
According to the logic of such places, the deeper he goes, the more deadly it becomes.
Έλα, και γίνε τα μάτια μου!"
(Come, and become my eyes!)
Dio needed to try something before deciding.
The floating skull slowly starts to go up while going through and around the tree branches and leaves.
It keeps going up until Dio has a great view of where he is, at which point he decides what will happen to him.
After a few hours of walking at his maximum speed, there is a large circular zone in the center of the forest without trees.
Dio can't see in great detail since the shared vision of the skull doesn't have his enhanced vision, but there seems to be some structure alone in the center of the open area.
It can be dangerous but also a source of information or opportunity, and since it's somewhat close to him, he decided to take the risk.
Dio forgot to consider the forest in his calculations of how long it would take to reach his destination.
He first tried jumping from tree trunk to tree trunk to avoid having to move on the ground below, but not all of the nearby trees' big trunks were safe, and he even came across a huge insect that looked like a larva.
Dio shook his head to erase the disgusting sight of the insect.
So he returned to the ground, and because of that, it took a few more hours to reach the center of the forest.
Dio didn't enter the center right away; he observed it from the top of a tree while doing his best to hide himself and watch the situation without being seen.
But after a few minutes, Dio was sure there was no one on the long, circular lawn covering an area of kilometers in the center of the forest.
He was sure there was no one on the grass or hidden in it, but the cave in the center of it may hold surprises.
The cave was projecting out of the ground like a gray stone peak.
The entrance was just a hole in the wall, so dark that even with night vision, he couldn't see what was inside.
He can take a chance on getting closer because the cave is in the middle of everything.
He has a lot of space to dodge or avoid getting hit if something goes wrong.
So, Dio jumped from the tree and stepped on the ground.
When he finally put both feet on the ground, his vision began to shake and blur.
Dio made an effort to wake up and try his best to ignore whatever was happening to him.
Dio can feel the ground under his feet, but his vision has become the screen of an abstract painting.
But it was getting better. The eyes began to focus, and after a few seconds, he could see clearly.
But he was still not where he thought he would be.
The underworld Dio has seen so far is no exception; everything has a dark aesthetic, but even the beauty lies in the shadows.
...
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