Chapter 50: The Beast Graveyard

Chapter 50: The Beast Graveyard 

Deep within the beast graveyard's shadowy entrance, Darius swam easily through the depths. His Arcane Gaze, a shimmering light in the murk, barely extended a few meters ahead. 

'This barrier will give me plenty of air, provided I steer clear of combat,.'

As he moved forward, his swimming strokes gradually lost their initial speed—not significantly, but enough for him to note a change. 'The water's thickening? I hope it doesn't continue like this.'

Fortunately, the water's consistency remained unchanged as Darius moved forward. Soon, he spotted objects floating amid the murk.

'Bones!'

Quickening his pace, Darius encountered a small floating skull adorned with three horns sprouting from its jaw. 'A Spiked-Turtle, a first-stage creature,' he identified. Seizing the skull, he concentrated, searching for any residual mana. 'Odd, even if it is new, there should be some trace of mana here, age only refines it.'

Discarding the skull, Darius swam deeper, the waters revealing more skeletal remains. Spines, ribs, leg bones, and numerous other bones crowded his view. 'Now this is a graveyard,' utilizing skulls as markers for their species, he reached for another, similar in size to a man's but with a long, elongated snout and absent eye sockets. 'No tusks. A first-stage Cave-Boar, and still no mana,' he noted, his frustration mounting.

 Darius hastened his pace, seizing as many bones as he could to inspect them. He quickly noticed two unsettling patterns: every bone, regardless of its apparent age, was utterly devoid of mana, and each identifiable skull belonged to a stage one mana-beast.

'This is growing peculiar. Why are there only first-stage mana-beasts here, and why are all these bones drained of mana?' 

He propelled himself deeper, deciding to momentarily disregard his surroundings. As he did, he felt the water thicken again, noticeably slowing his movements.

Deciding he had ventured deep enough, Darius grasped another skull from the murky waters. This one, another spiked-turtle's skull, not only bore three spikes on its jaw but also one on its nose—a second-stage creature. Yet, once again, upon focusing, Darius found it alarmingly devoid of any mana.

Frustration and concern mounted as he continued to collect more remains, each examination yielding the same disheartening result, no mana. The only difference, all of the skulls belonged to second-stage mana-beasts.

 'This graveyard seems layered, each one home to a different stage of beast. But what's draining all their mana?...No matter, Haku needs at least a 3rd stage Mana-Beast for it to be worth it, I'll just have to keep going.'

 As Darius swam cautiously, his pace slowed, eyes sweeping the murky depths. 'There must be something down here draining these bones. Just hope it's a natural phenomenon.'

 Suddenly, Darius caught a flicker of movement in the gloom. 'Nope!' Instantly, he released his barrier, channeling a surge of wind mana, creating a five-meter-wide bubble beneath the water. The contents within the bubble temporarily hovered, exposing everything to Darius's view.

In that brief moment, Darius glimpsed a pair of odd mana-beasts. They were long, man-sized fish, their bodies like eels with murky white scales, but what stood out were their large, bug-like faces, sharp clasping mandibles and two long antennas.

 "Ethereal Steps!" Flames burst from Darius's feet as he swiftly plunged into the water outside the bubble. Almost instantly upon reentry, he whirled around, hands extended, and cast, 'Mystic Water Mirror!'

The entire sequence—from creating to exiting the bubble—occurred in a mere fraction of a second. As soon as Darius left, the bubble collapsed, the enormous weight of the water above obliterating the beasts within. The point of collapse ignited a brief but extreme heat flash, sending a shockwave surging in every direction.

Just in time, Darius's mirror materialized, absorbing the force. It barely contained the shock, the surface webbing with cracks, yet it held firm.

'Swamp-Roaches?! Why did it have to be them? Nasty little creatures.' With no immediate need to breathe, Darius activated his Ethereal Steps, harnessing the water element to swiftly descend to deeper waters. 'Lucky for me, those creatures can't survive in deep water. They shouldn't even be this deep, but I suppose the allure of a graveyard is too strong.'

 Swamp-Roaches were universally despised Mana-Beasts, notorious for their rapid and abundant reproduction. They reproduce asexually, feeding on the carcasses of dead animals, stripping away flesh and devouring any remaining mana.

'Those looked like first stage. If I cared enough, I might report this, but it's not my problem...well...,' Darius allowed a slight smile as he pushed through to the next level, noticing the water had thickened enough to slow his Ethereal Steps to a crawl. Deciding to adapt, he summoned his Blessings of the Zephyr, creating a wind barrier around himself to breathe again.

'That should be far enough,' Darius noted, glancing back to find no pursuit. He understood that Swamp-Roaches generally ignored the living unless provoked. They were feared and loathed primarily because they could give rise to a World-Ender—a humanoid mana-beast with the ability to command a horde. Left unchecked, their rapid reproduction could swell their numbers and enhance the likelihood of evolving a horde member into this formidable leader.

'Since there aren't any roaches here, there should be some usable bones for Haku,' Darius thought, beginning his search.

 Darius instantly noticed this layer was vastly different from the previous two. His view, still limited to three meters, revealed an empty expanse; no bones were visible, and swimming through it felt like pushing through sand.

'Makes sense, reaching the third stage is rare for Mana-Beasts, and their lifespans are generally pretty long.'

Continuing his dive, Darius began to meticulously search the area. After what felt like hours, he finally came across a complete skeleton—a feline creature with three tails. 'A Blaze-Cat, not ideal unless we're desperate, but let's check for any residual mana.'

As he reached for the skeleton, his fingers closed around a tail of the beast, and he was instantly greeted with a warm sensation, a promising sign of lingering mana. 'Success! Now, let's hope there's something compatible here.' Storing the skeleton is his pouch he continued his search.

 Darius soon stumbled upon another skeleton, this time a half a meter long, three-headed serpent. 'An Ash-Viper? Glad it's dead. Each head carries a unique poison in its fangs, and it even breathes poisonous fog. Too bad Haku isn't compatible.' He stored the Ash-Viper skeleton in his pouch and continued his search.

Time wore on as he encountered only two other skeletons. One was a Mountain-Stag, massive beasts whose size grows with each evolution, the third stage towering at twelve meters with enormous antlers that matched their colossal stature. 

 The other skeleton was painfully familiar, his heart aching at the sight—a Forest Guardian. It was the same species of Mana-Beast his father had encountered, the one he'd read about as a child. The words of the bard who chronicled his father's adventures echoed in his memory, still vivid and compelling.

Staring at the massive, mammoth-like skeleton, Darius hovered in the water, his body still. 

 His expression remained neutral, but gradually, a shadow crossed his features, his jaw tightening as he swam past the remains, leaving the skeleton untouched.

Darius's thoughts raced as he swam deeper, his face etched with frustration. 'This area will be tough to search with this visibility. There's no telling if there's even a beast compatible with Haku here.'

He angled downward, 'Is there a fourth layer? Bones from a humanoid beast would be ideal, compatibility aside. If there's no fourth layer, I'll keep looking for a bit longer. If I don't find anything suitable, Haku can decide whether to use what we've found. If not, I'll find another use for them.'

 Struggling against the dense water, Darius moved slowly, eventually reaching a point where it felt like swimming through loose soil, his muscles straining from the effort. 'It's like the water ahead is solid,' he thought, pressing his hand against what seemed like a barrier—solid to the touch, yet he could see movement beyond it, with debris and plant matter swirling in the water.

Throwing a punch at the barrier, white bubbles streamed through the water, resulting in a muffled boom when they struck the invisible wall. 'Definitely a barrier here. There's got to be a fourth layer!' His eyes sparkled with anticipation. 'This is a natural barrier, so there is no array to deal with.'

 Darius, his focus intensifying, began to push against the wall with all of his might, even harnessing his Ethereal Steps to speed up the movements of his legs, causing them to kick rapidly like blurred blades.

'Come on!' As he exerted himself, Darius's muscles bulged, showcasing the remarkable strength he had cultivated over four years. Through continuous use of his mana, his elemental tattoos had enhanced his physical power to effortlessly wield fifty Cauldrons of Force. As he pushed against the barrier with ten thousand pounds of pressure, he could feel a slight give under his relentless force.

 As Darius slowly made headway, from out of nowhere, two enormous red lights ignited before him, revealing the pale sockets of a colossal skull looming directly ahead.

"Shit!" Caught off guard, Darius halted his effort against the barrier. The moment he stopped, the slight indent he had created snapped back, sending his exerted force—all fifty Cauldrons of Force—right back at him. His body was catapulted upward like an arrow, the pain of the recoil softened only by the sight of the massive skull withdrawing into the darkness. 

'That creature was immense! I couldnt even tell what kind of beast it was. Perhaps it still possesses some will, I felt no killing intent so maybe it was merely curious. Regardless, I could tell that thing could easily kill me. Looks like Haku will have to make do with whatever I find in the third layer.'

 Refocused on his task and determined to avoid another encounter with the massive skull, Darius resumed his search in the third layer. Driven to find at least one more skeleton, he moved swiftly through the dense water, his refined muscles working hard against the resistance.

Surrounded by unending darkness, he swam for hours without encountering a boundary. 'This place is massive, way larger than the levels above. I could be down here for days and I don't think I'd be able to search the entire space. Haku must be worried by now, think its a good time to head back, if anything we can come back after I figure out this bottleneck.'

 Just as Darius was about to begin his ascent, a glimpse of something at the edge of his vision stopped him. He swam closer and his eyes widened in surprise. "Guess my luck is still pretty good!"

Floating before Darius, was a large skeleton of a canine. 

He examined the bones, noting the spikes protruding from its spine. "A Thunder-Wolf, well, earth element is better than nothing." Despite their name, Thunder-Wolves are earth element Mana-Beasts, covered in large metallic plates that evolve in quality as they grow. Their name derives not from their elemental nature but from the thunderous sound created by a pack's charge, the heavy clatter echoing like storm-driven thunderclouds as they hunt.

 'The beast's plates must of sunk, maybe they're resting down on that barrier. Another reason to come back here. Besides that fouth layer, thousands of pounds of Mythril is hard to pass up.'

As he continued his ascent to the surface, Darius stored the giant wolf's skeleton. "It's not the best option, but the Celestial Beast Soul Mantra should compensate for the elemental difference.'

 Darius felt a twinge of satisfaction, though it wasn't the perfect match, securing a third-stage canine beast was still a win. 'Haku will be able to break through to the second layer of his technique now. Having a little brother stronger than me could be, annoying... should've been me first...' Mid-stroke, Darius halted, a brief furrow creasing his brow as he mulled over his thoughts, 'Jealous? No, it's just frustration towards myself.'

With an admonishing smile, he brushed aside the fleeting sentiment and resumed his swim, pushing towards the surface.

As he reached the second layer, the resistance in the water eased significantly. Surrounded by drifting bones, Darius thought, 'If I take it slow, those Swamp-Roaches won't be a problem.'

 Maintaining a deliberate pace, Darius was keenly aware of his surroundings in the murk. 'A few first-stage Swamp-Roaches aren't much trouble, but if they've been here a while, I could be dealing with hundreds. Worse still, if there are second or third stage ones...'

As minutes stretched into hours, his ascent was mostly quiet, marred only by occasional shadows flickering at the edge of his vision, darting away before he could focus. 

'Haku had a point; our next search will be above ground.' The thought triggered a sudden memory—Maguayan, the Water Elemental King, and her chaotic underwater mana region. A chill coursed through him at the thought of navigating such treacherous waters.

 'If I ever visit those weirdos, she'll be the last.' Darius continued his ascent, swimming carefully through the floating bones, gently nudging them aside to avoid sending them scattering into the murky gloom.

"What the!" Darius's yell bubbled out as he hastily pulled back his arm to inspect it. A deep puncture marked the back of his forearm, blood streaming from the wound as he clutched it tightly.

Glancing back, he spotted the offender—a horn from a Bladed-Gecko skull. These creatures were notorious for their razor-sharp horns protruding from their skulls and tails.

 Darius swiftly switched to water mana, dispelling his wind barrier. Clutching his wound, his hand emitted a soft glow as the skin began to knit together, the bleeding slowing. 'I need to get out of here before—fuck me.'

The blood he had shed had drawn unwanted attention. Beyond his narrowed field of vision, countless pairs of blue lights hovered, the eerie glow revealing the presence of numerous first-stage Swamp-Roaches. 

These lights were the eyes of second-stage Swamp-Roaches, their sizable bodies overshadowing the smaller roaches. Surrounded by hundreds, with dozens of the more formidable second-stage roaches appearing, Darius realized he had accidentally summoned a living nightmare—a small horde was assembling around him.