Jon felt his eyes widen, as his Heretical Chalk Pauldrons shattered.

That putrid dark-yellow lance of corruption natured spiritual energy pierced through the spiritual shield that Glaucus manifested, crushing whatever meagre defences the Fragment Of Armour possessed.

Jon could feel the exact moment that Glaucus shattered underneath the incredible amount of force inflicted from this single strike. Foul corruption natured spiritual energy gathered into a single point, piercing through flesh, muscle, and bone. The blow caused Jon's figure to go flying backwards, crashing into the cold icy waters of the river behind him.

He swore that he could have heard the faint shouts that came from Ru Luan Di and Ashvattha Rana, alongside the violent emanations of corruption natured spiritual energy and blood natured spiritual energy that roiled off the Malum Hobgoblin.

Before Jon even had the opportunity to move, the eighteen-year-old felt the back of his head collide with the bottom of the riverbed. A dull thud echoing beneath the slow moving waters, his vision growing distorted and his ears ringing with a familiar high-pitched whir.

Jon had been concussed several times before during his time on Earth and had had a resistance towards physical strikes and blows through his Fragment Of Marrow.

Despite Jon having taken the first step beyond the limitations of a mortal human form, he still possessed the physical structure of an ordinary human, unable to ignore the weaknesses that came with a mortal coil.

Jon noticed that the waters around him had been dyed red, obscuring the vision of his Minerva-Sagacity Eyes. Jon knew that there were several system notifications placed in the centre of his vision, trying his best to decipher what was written on each of them.

[Heretical Chalk Battlefield]: Each successful strike against enemies will regenerate a miniscule amount of war natured spiritual energy.

[Putridus Maledictum]: Inflicts a continuous corruption-natured damage over time effect. Corruption natured spiritual energy gnaws on organs and blood cells, multiplying as time passes. Additional stacks have an additive effect.

[Tainted Pustules]: Inflicts a continuous fungi-natured damage over time effect. Poisonous spores feast on organs and glands, producing more spores as the effect progresses. Additional stacks have an additive effect.

[Curse Of Corruption]: Reduces resistances towards all corruption-related damages, afflictions, and debuffs. Additional stacks have an additive effect.

[Curse Of Spores]: Reduces resistances towards all fungi-related damages, afflictions and debuffs. Additional stacks have an additive effect.

Although Jon could not quite read their effect descriptions, he could feel numerous different types of spiritual energy wreak havoc within his physical and spiritual bodies. Curses which tore apart what Mortal resistances Jon's abilities were capable of manifesting.

Corruption natured spiritual energy devouring his organs and healthy blood cells, propagating without end as if a cancer feasting on his innards. Fungi natured spiritual energy chewed on his lungs, heart, and stomach producing microscopic mushrooms which devoured the walls between his cells.

Jon could not muster the image of his Wood Mana Core in his mind. His Fragment Of Regeneration lying dormant, motionless, as he gazed up towards the water's surface.

'Glaucus… shattered in a single blow. How much strength must a Knight possess to kill a Mortal in a single strike?' Jon could not help but think to himself.

Jon just floated there for a few moments, unable to comprehend just what he was doing underwater.

One moment he was smiling, standing beside individuals he considered friends and allies, and the next moment his shoulder was bleeding out from two places, obvious signs of corruption growing around his wounds.

The eighteen-year-old thought he could hear a feminine-sounding voice echo throughout his mind, feeling the familiar touch of roots softly coil around his arms and legs. His Sea Of Knowledge was somehow stuck between turbulent and still, the distance between his conscious and subconscious minds closing and widening with each passing moment.

'I jumped in front of Sariel, feeling [Monstrous Intuition] twitch. Then, the familiar presence of corruption natured spiritual energy pierced through my shoulder,' Jon managed to recollect his thoughts, his mind still hazy from being struck in the head.

Jon remembered being launched backwards and crashing into the waters behind him.

He remembered something striking his head the moment his back touched the soft sands at the bottom of the riverbed, his mind becoming a cluttered mess of thoughts, dreams, desires and memories.

He did not register himself being pulled out of the river, his mouth sputtering out water as his lungs instinctively devoured whatever traces of air he could get his hands on.

The sounds of wood crashing against flesh and bone echoed throughout the riverbank, although Jon found his vision obscured beneath a growing cocoon of tree roots and wooden tendrils.

The familiar sight of Ashvattha Rana entered his vision, causing Jon to wince as he noticed black-coloured veins stretch outwards across his flesh from the wound on his shoulder. The young human noticed something growing within the wound, using his free hand to brush aside a mushroom that had sprouted from his purplish-yellow flesh.

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Another bout of pain caused Jon to groan as he pulled the mushroom out, roots and all.

This instance of pain filled Jon with a twisted sense of clarity. Endorphins flooding his system as Jon reached out towards the mental image of his Wood Mana Core, releasing a flood of wood natured spiritual energy towards his Fragment Of Regeneration, Fragment Of Prana, and Fragment Of Incarnation.

His mouth muttering the chant of [With Thou In Hand, Wood Shalt Live Forever] before he even realized what was going on.

"Song. Life. Earth. Green. Eight hundred and eighty-eight shall represent the innumerable infinities. The verdant sun shall birth the harmony of boundlessness. The seventeen undying generals shall watch over the thou coffin, the immensities of heaven unable to be unravelled in a single generation".

"Choir. Spirit. Wood. Immortal. Mortals who deigned to reach towards eternity, incapable of lasting more than three generations. Thou shalt become the fulcrum which stands at the gates. Thy imperial knight. Thy greatest custodian. Manifest yourself before me and become the symbol of thine eternal reign!".

Jon felt whatever insignificant strength his body could muster vanish as he manifested Archetype Green. The eighteen-year-old gritting his teeth as he sacrificed half his available lifeforce to summon the pseudo-independent spiritual construct into existence. The moment that the Spell effects were completed, brought Jon an incredible sense of relief.

Archetype Green transferring whatever debuffs and afflictions that were wracking Jon's flesh and organs away from himself, granting him numerous instances of [One With Green].

[One With Green]: Increases natural recovery rate and stamina regeneration [4].

Although it was just a minor effect, the buffs generated from [With Thou In Hand, Wood Shalt Live Forever], stacked on top of one another, working to regenerate whatever wounds Jon had just received. His natural recovery rate increased significantly, even without factoring [Green Is The Flesh, As Red Is The Blood] into the equation.

Jon could not help but overload [Green Shall Become The Ode To Eternity], as he fought to recover what scant traces of lifeforce his Yaochi-Jade Prana enhanced. He could hear the sounds of Ashvattha Rana's voice in the background but did not focus on it as he tried to stand on two feet.

There were much more important things going on right now.

His mind focused on the intense bursts of blood natured spiritual energy and corruption natured spiritual energy from across the riverbank. His Sea Of Knowledge gaining some measure of control back over itself, halting what violent trembles and surging waves rocked his imaginary mental construct.

Jon felt his fingers clutch the soft wet sands beneath himself, carving long, finger-width trenches through the beach. The chaotic rise and fall of his chest had grown smoother, no longer scrambling to inhale the oxygen around himself.

Lifting his head, Jon could feel some feeling of control back in his arms and legs, manifesting the Spear Of Verdant Cedar in one hand, and the Thulian Spellspear in the other. The young human focusing the gradual release of spiritual energy from his five Mana Cores, enhancing various physical characteristics as the sense of clarity within him grew clearer and clearer with each passing moment.

Ice natured spiritual energy flowed into his Fragment Of Marrow, [Ours Is The Blood That Births Winter And Ice] manifested his Murmur-Glacial Marrow, dramatically increasing all of Jon's physical capabilities.

Knowledge natured spiritual energy flowed into his Fragment Of Eyes and Fragment Of Instinct. [Monstrous Intuition] and his Minerva-Sagacity Eyes working in tandem increases the effectiveness of Jon's senses to the nth degree.

Wood natured spiritual energy was divided into numerous equal portions. His Fragment Of Regeneration still working to heal the wounds inflicted onto him, while his Fragment Of Spear and Fragment Of Prana moved to support Jon and his numerous actions.

Spear natured spiritual energy was channelled into [Behold Thy Phantasmal Spear, Enveloped In Thulian Grace], causing the spear in his hands to gain a neon-pink tint to its cross-shaped blade.

War natured spiritual energy worked to shroud himself in the effects of both [Le Mat Avancement] and [Behold Thy Heretical Armour, Adorned In Chalk Light]. The near bleached-white surface of Glaucus appearing on his shoulders and biceps once more as Jon rose to his full height, gripping each of the spears in his hands tightly, causing his hands to turn white as a result.

Jon did not care how much spiritual energy he had left in each of his Mana Cores. He used each of his abilities without reservation, and without caring for how much spiritual energy he expended with each passing moment.

Taking a single step forward, Jon furrowed his brows, feeling the familiar touch of a tree root coil around his ankle. The eighteen-year-old Jon, clad in his Fragment Of Armour and baring his Fragment Of Spear and Fragment Of Weapon, glanced towards his bodhi tree companion, with a small smile marring his face.

"I'll be counting on you for support Rana. I'll be needing the effects of both [Naraka Of Protection] and [Niraya Of Protection], as will the others," Jon replied, the sounds of battle still booming from behind the cocoon the Earthen Treasury Womb had placed him inside.

Jon could feel Ashvattha Rana's gaze match his own, even with the bodhi tree lacking physically distinct sensory organs. The human and bodhi tree pair continued to stare at each other, the latter sensing the familiar presence of confidence and rage gathering beneath the surface of Jon's Sea Of Knowledge.

Ashvattha Rana did not notice when Jon integrated the Fragment Of Ira into his Spear Mana Core, her attention focused on overloading the effects of both her [Naraka Of Protection] and [Niraya Of Protection], even forgetting about affecting Jon's other companions.

Ashvattha Rana did not know why he desired to integrate the Fragment which he admitted held no interest in his heart or mind. Before the bodhi tree even had a chance to speak, Jon started reciting the effect description of his Fragment Of Ira.

[Fragment Of Ira] [Wrath Is The Paradise Whispered On Thou Lips] (Spear, Ira, Spell, Ability, Technique, Buff, Debuff)

Effect (Mortal): Chant, then drown oneself in the hedonistic pleasures of the blood-red sin named wrath. While under the effects of [Wrath Is The Paradise Whispered On Thou Lips], gain an instance of [Decadent Spear Blessing], [Ira Benedicite], and [Virtuous Red Sin].

[Decadent Spear Blessing]: While active, thrusts and slashes made with spears will produce additional instances of damage. Pseudo-spiritual spear constructs will manifest parallel with each attack, each dealing a specified fraction of the original damage.

[Ira Benedicite]: Increases resistances towards virtue related damages, afflictions, and debuffs. Increases resistances towards light related damages, afflictions, and debuffs. Increases resistances towards spirit related damages, afflictions, and debuffs.

[Virtuous Red Sin]: Inflicts a continuous spear-damage over time effect. Spear natured spiritual energy takes the form of a wrathful illusion which warps the mind and spirit, filling the target with an immense hatred. Additional stacks have an additive effect.

One ended, reverse the effects of [Wrath Is The Paradise Whispered On Thou Lips] for an equal duration.

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