Chapter 30 — Burning Passage of the Five
The chamber shook under the weight of the five Mutated Transcendent beasts circling the trio.
Red veins along the walls pulsed harder now—the hive reacting to the violence in its gut.
The monsters moved in a coordinated pattern now, less like beasts and more like predators with shared intent. Their molten cracks glowed brighter, turning the entire chamber orange.
Vaibhav's sword-type Transcendent beast spirit flickered along his arm—metal dimming, splitting, the blade fracturing under pressure.
Alicia's armor glowed fiercely, plates shifting across her body like living flame.
Shin held his sword spirit steady, expression sharp.
The first of the five lunged.
Vaibhav stepped in to intercept, swinging his blade spirit upward. The impact rang like metal tearing. Cracks spread across the blade. The beast staggered but didn't fall.
The sword spirit shattered.
Fragments of molten metal dissolved into fading sparks.
Alicia rushed past him.
Her flame armor tightened across her legs as she pushed off the ground, cleaving straight through the weakened beast's exposed neck joint. The creature collapsed instantly.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Another beast followed immediately, chest glowing like a furnace. Alicia caught its first strike with her arm, her armor sizzling where claws scraped. She twisted her blade and cut cleanly through its spine.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: Crimson-Scale Reaver]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Three remaining.
Their steps cracked the floor as they advanced.
Shin breathed once.
His sword spirit sharpened—edges brightening into a thin, Crimson–silver arc.
He rushed the third beast, folding distance instantly.
Starvein Flash.
The blade moved faster than sight, and thin silver veins carved into the air.
The delayed slashes erupted—clean, vertical, splitting the beast down the center.
It fell in two silent halves.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The fourth beast leaped toward Alicia. She shifted sideways, armor flaring. The creature twisted midair—smarter than the others—and tried to catch her flank.
Alicia met it head-on.
Her blade cut through the rising heat, slicing along the creature's throat in a single precise line. It collapsed instantly.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None] — Alicia
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The fifth beast roared and swung downward at Vaibhav. He planted both feet, muscles locking, energy veins tightening under his skin.
He drew his fist back.
Starbreaker Fist.
He struck straight into the creature's chest.
The punch detonated internally—crushing bone, rupturing its furnace-like core. The force flung molten shards across the chamber. The beast slid backward, body charred and collapsing.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
A faint green shimmer drifted from the collapsing bodies toward Vaibhav.
But it didn't all enter him.
Half of it did.
> [+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The other half bent sharply—diverting—flowing into the deeper tunnels, toward the hive's unseen center.
Vaibhav felt the tug again.
Stronger this time.
He didn't say anything—not yet.
Silence returned—heavy, pulsing, hot.
Alicia wiped her blade, hair sticking slightly from the heat.
Next Moment.
The trio moved quickly.
Alicia knelt beside the first beast and cut into its chest cavity, pulling free a glowing mutated-transcendent shard. She set it aside in a careful pile.
Shin tore open another corpse with a single swipe, retrieving another shard.
He worked fast—clean, efficient.
Soon, five shards lay lined on the scorched ground.
Alicia took two.
Shin took three.
Alicia absorbed first.
She pressed the first shard to her palm.
Red light surged through her arm, sinking into her core.
> [+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 1st shard
A second shard followed—smaller, sharper, hotter.
> [+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 2nd shard
Shin absorbed four in rapid bursts.
The first dissolved instantly.
> [+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 1st shard
The second flared brightly.
> [+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 2nd shard
The last shard flickered before melting.
> [+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 3rd shard
Alicia then checked the newest beast spirit she had earned—
a mutated transcendent sword-type spirit — Crimson-Scale Reaver.
The moment she called it out, a segmented fire-forged blade formed along her arm, jagged edges glowing like slow-moving magma.
Its heat distorted the air.
She dismissed it, letting it return to her Sea of Consciousness.
Shin leaned against the wall for a moment, rolling his shoulder.
Vaibhav brushed aside dust and heat, his breathing steadying.
"Let's move," he said quietly.
The hive pulsed once—low, slow, as if acknowledging them.
They stepped deeper into the tunnels.
The hive reacted instantly.
A thunderous rumble shook the floor as red fissures split open across every wall.
Thirty-six Mutated Transcendent beasts crawled out—massive frames, molten cracks across their armor, red steam pouring from their limbs.
They filled every corridor at once, a living wall of heat and horns.
Shin stared. "WHAT THE F@CK?? We ain't killing this many. Are we??"
Vaibhav rolled his shoulders once. "Well… I'm not sure about you guys, but I definitely can. I absorb life force instantly, remember? I get stronger with every kill."
Shin clicked his tongue. "Yeah, yeah—you Hacker. Cheater."
The beasts charged.
The fight broke across multiple chambers, each one exploding into heat and shockwaves.
Walls cracked.
Stone liquefied.
Dust rolled in thick clouds as the trio cut through the swarm.
A cluster of four lunged at Vaibhav first.
He stepped into them, fist rotating with violent torque—
Celestial Maul.
Light spiraled around his arm, gathering into a blinding flare.
His strike detonated across all four bodies, tearing molten cracks through their armored chests.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Another group swarmed Alicia.
Her fire armor spirit surged, plates tightening with molten glow. She planted both palms outward—
Ethereal Divide.
A transparent barrier rippled forward, reflecting the leading beast's full impact into its own skull. It folded instantly.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: Blazefang Rupturer] — Alicia
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Two more leapt over the corpse. Alicia shifted, armor spikes flaring, and swept a burning arc across their bodies.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Shin vanished into motion—only heat distortions marked where he'd been.
Voidstride Step carried him between five beasts at once.
Claws and jaws snapped at afterimages, but none hit.
Then he inhaled once.
Starvein Flash.
The sword spirit ignited in his hand—sleek, blazing metal.
Light bent around his swing, silver veins carving perfect lines through the air.
0.4 seconds later—
all five beasts split apart mid-charge.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
A larger seven-beast unit barreled down another tunnel.
Vaibhav stepped up first.
His fist tightened, absorbing heat until the air warped.
Starbreaker Fist.
He slammed into the first beast's chest—
its torso detonated outward.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Shin carved through the next two using Mirage Flow, projections confusing their instincts until his blade found both cores cleanly.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
Alicia met the fourth with a rising slash—flame aura igniting the cut.
The beast erupted in fire.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+2 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The next two lunged together. Alicia braced—
Packbreaker Shell.
A dome of spiked force erupted, impaling both instantly.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
[Beast Spirit Acquired: None]
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The last beast rammed Vaibhav from the side.
He twisted its jaw, kicked its knee, and tore its core plate open with raw force.
> [Beast Spirit Acquired: Molten Titanrend] — Vaibhav
[+8 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — Vaibhav
The fight continued like this—
multi-chamber warfare, heat and shockwaves tearing through the hive as they dismantled the entire swarm.
One by one the beasts fell.
Their bodies steamed on the furnace-bright floor.
When the final one collapsed, Alicia immediately knelt and began extracting shards.
Her hands worked fast through molten armor and cracked crystal plates.
Shin helped her stack the glowing blue shards into long rows.
Vaibhav stood guard, fists still trembling with overcharged force.
When the last shard was pulled free, they retreated into a hollowed cavity deeper inside the hive—quiet enough to breathe, but still pulsing faintly with heat.
Alicia started first.
> [+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 1st shard
[+2 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 2nd shard
[+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 3rd shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 4th shard
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 5th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 6th shard
[+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 7th shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 8th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 9th shard
[+2 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 10th shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 11th shard
[+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 12th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 13th shard
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 14th shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 15th shard
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 16th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 17th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 18th shard
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 19th shard
Shin absorbed next—controlled, efficient.
> [+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 1st shard
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 2nd shard
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 3rd shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 4th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 5th shard
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 6th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 7th shard
[+8 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 8th shard
[+6 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 9th shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 10th shard
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 11th shard
[+7 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 12th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 13th shard
[+5 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 14th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 15th shard
[+3 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 16th shard
[+4 Mutated Transcendent Power Points Gained] — 17th shard
When the final shard melted into Shin's arm, the cavern finally quieted.
Alicia leaned back slightly. "…All done."
Shin rotated his shoulder once. "Good. Now we go see whatever's stealing your life force, Vaibhav."
Vaibhav watched the glowing floor pulse toward a single direction.
"Yeah. Whatever it is… it's waiting for us."
They stood.
Ahead of them, a single massive tunnel stretched downward—
red veins brightening, heat rising from its depths.
The path to the hive's true heart.
They have gained total Six Beast Spirits: Alicia gained 2 Mutated Transcendent beast spirits, Shin gained 2, and Vaibhav gained 2.