Chapter 178: A Large Step

Mid Morning - Mid Summer : Deep Ocean (West of Central Sirathian Mountains)

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*hmmm* A faint hum filled the water as the final antimatter rune activated for the first time in thousands of years.

-But now what...- From what I could tell, nothing had changed. The antimatter created by the runes just followed the cables straight into the ground. -There must be something down there that needs power, but how do I get to it?-

As I genuinely considered blasting a hole straight down and following the cables that way, I noticed the suction of mana into the dungeon increase several-fold without any immediate change in current. -What the…-

It was clearly something unnatural but was also something that immediately piqued my curiosity. -Did whatever I just gave power to, trigger it?-

Quickly making my way further into the dungeon, I followed the flow of mana and winded my way through the maze of huge caves until I came into an absolutely colossal circular room too big to tell the size of. -This has to be the final area...-

Swimming further into the room, there was a steep but steady increase in the mana density. 

Although at first, this wasn't too bad, as it continued to get denser, my mana reading started turning fuzzy, making it difficult to sense more than a meter off my body with any clarity.

But as if that wasn't enough of a red flag, hidden within the room's dense accumulated mana, I could feel a faint aura of some kind.

Although it didn't initially cause any concern, the deeper I went, the stronger it got. -This is definitely not one of my best ideas…-

Continuing to sneak further into the room, I traveled another 3 kilometers before noticing an eerie blue glow in the darkness. -It's a structure! But…- The excitement I felt was immediately shot down by the feeling of suffocation from the monster nearby. -That aura is.. disgusting…-

Although my aura was nothing to scoff at, the creature in the room made it feel like nothing. -But I can always run, right?-

Although I was usually extremely confident in my abilities to escape. That day, I somehow felt like it was inadequate.

Going against my gut and better judgment, I continued forward, eventually getting close enough to see a fairly small cube-like structure about 200 meters tall, but something seemed off about it. 

Coating the entire outside of the structure was a crystallization of mana a few centimeters thick.

To describe it simply, it looked like the entire structure was a massive mana core. -What the hell...-

The only explanation I could think of was that, as mana was sucked through the walls of the structure, over time, it got snagged similarly to how the runes clogged, just on a much larger scale. -But what's inside that's drawing all the mana in?-

Making my way up to the side facing me, the structure noticed my presence and tried to stick out a platform for me to stand on, but it was immediately stopped by the shell of mana. -Ah, that's a problem... How do I get through this...-

Before I could even start coming up with a solution though, the platform tried to force its way through the shell. *Tink*

-Oh sh*t...-

As if it was an actual mana core, the instant a crack formed in it, the entire shell exploded, blasting all its contained mana outwards. *VWOOOMM*

The mana wave was so dense I wanted to vomit, but I didn't have the time for that.

*Woosh* The currents spontaneously changed direction before coming to a complete halt. -You have to be f*cking kidding me...-

I stood as still as possible before finally noticing the tip of a tentacle without suction cups illuminated beneath me. -Why did it have to wake up...-

I could do nothing but cosplay a statue until its attention moved elsewhere, but just when the currents started returning and I thought I'd be able to get away, a small snake arm with a sensor stuck out from the structure.

"ɨnsɇɍŧ mȺnȺ."

My pupils dilated as a gut-wrenching mix of fear and anxiety ripped through my chest. -WHY NOW?!-

Almost immediately the currents froze again, but this time, I felt as if I was being looked at.

The awful sensation sent a chill down my spine that only worsened when I noticed several thin, whisker-like tentacles with glowing tips dangling next to me.

My eyes widened as the whiskers crept closer before I felt a small, breath-like current brush across my neck.

"ɨnsɇɍŧ mȺ-" Interrupting the voice of the structure, I noticed countless sharp and needle-like teeth enter the aura around my neck.

As if instinctually, I instantly gathered a massive amount of hydrogen and blasted it behind me. *blub-FWOOOSH*

*CREEAAAKK* The entire structure creaked and tilted as I blasted the thruster magic towards the creature, but it didn't seem to care in the slightest.

*Shik-Crunch* As claws the size of my legs wrapped around my body and razor-sharp teeth smashed through the scales on my neck, my instinct completely took over.

Instantly coating the horns on the back of my head with steel, I launched several darts at the monster. *CR-R-R-R-RACK*

The creature immediately released me from its jaws, but a cord of fear was struck within me as I glanced back to see the minimal damage.

In a panic, I tried to dash away, but the claws wrapped around my chest only gripped tighter. "SH*T-"

Immediately trying to reach toward the gigantic claws to free myself, I felt my body get crushed against the structure. *WHAM* "Ack!" My lungs ruptured, and ribs cracked from the impact, but I had so much adrenaline pumping that I couldn't feel it.

With my instinct once again taking the helm, I didn't reach for the claws and instead used earth magic to shatter everything my body was touching. *CrAcK*

The creature immediately ripped its paws away as its bones were simultaneously shattered, finally giving me a chance to run.

-GET ME OUT OF HERE!- Launching myself away from the structure, I noticed dozens of massive tentacles coming after me, but I promptly created a large gate and jumped into it.

*Vwoom* The familiar sound of a mana wave echoed in my mind as I made it to the world of nothingness. To the void.

As I floated there, I took a moment to finally calm down and catch my breath. -Sh*t... What the f*ck was that thing...- 

Although I never got a proper look at it, from what I could tell, it had the general frame of a dragon, the face of a shark, and the lower body of a squid, all while being at least 5 times bigger than me.

But it didn't just have the size advantage. To put its strength into perspective, it was a creature a touch below Amphitrite, a large ancient, in terms of both physical strength and aura. -If it could use real magic, it would truly be a creature I couldn't mess with, but...- Glancing back at my side, I noticed that the cuts in my scales from the creature's claws weren't too deep. -If my scales can handle everything but its jaws... Just maybe…-

With my nervousness suppressed by an instinctual craze for strength, I set down a gate marker and made my way back to the laboratory.

As I swam down into the destroyed area of the structure, my eyes were lit with determination. Although it was definitely a lofty goal, I decided to aim for the horizon.

-It may be strong, but without the ability to utilize its disgusting mana pool, it will just be a big stepping stone for me.-

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Inspiration image for the sea creature: https://ibb.co/sWFMb0W