Though Richard had the chance to access this space since his evolution,

he remained skeptical and wary. But in light of an unfathomable threat like the Fifth Finger, he no longer had a choice.

He either engaged in a sure-loss battle or took a chance at fate — and he did.

Alfred frowned as he gazed at the dull silhouette of Richard. Something was wrong...

His eyes glinted warily. He could feel a choking amount of divine matter dwelling in the depths of this man's soul. He couldn't sense it previously, but now that Richard had entered this strange trance-like state, it became obvious.

Alfred's expression turned grim. There was a scary existence taking refuge in that fragile soul.

There's something wrong with this plane. It's not as simple as Master thinks it to be... He grimly gazed at the scaled form of Kraig and Richard. These two were such anomalies that even if you scoured through most great ether planes, you wouldn't find any like them.

"I can't let him finish whatever he's doing..." Alfred's once kind, elderly gaze turned chillingly cold.

Suddenly, his neck prickled and a stinging sensation was felt. His pupils constricted as his figure rapidly dissolved into intangible corrupt matter in order to escape.

Kraig was already upon him, his dagger slick against his neck, looking to decapitate him. The assassin hero moved so fast, even Fifth Finger Alfred couldn't register his movements.

Arghhh! He groaned in pain, as turning intangible seemed to have been an even worse mistake. The assassin's blade didn't discriminate between body and soul — turning intangible just gave it leeway to strike his soul.

Alfred rapidly took to the skies in an attempt to create distance. The assassin was too fast and his strikes too lethal. The only way to handle such a foe was through distanced attacks.

Unfortunately for him, the assassin hero seemed to have premeditated this move. A cold hand gripped his heel tight.

Bam!

He was slammed violently into the crusting earth.

"ENOUGH!" Alfred raged, his eyes turning lightless black, his pupils taking on a murderous blood glint. His frail frame bulged unnaturally, his grey hair receding downward, billowing in the wind.

The assassin hero, not fazed by this transformation, was already upon him — his two deadly daggers glinting.

Hmph! Alfred scoffed as the veins underneath his pale white skin bulged like deep black serpents, his flow of corruption raging.

Murky black force surged across his figure as he met the hero's attack with a heavy strike punch.

The wind clapped and howled, bending and straining from the raging clash between the two.

"As an assassin, I bet attack is your only defense. All I need is one hit and you're out of the equation!" Alfred declared.

He unleashed a furious barrage of heavy strikes, with chilling synergy and stifling technique — each strike aiming at odd, uncomfortable angles.

And the hero wasn't lacking either, meeting clash for clash. The two raged on as the earth groaned from straining pressure. Wide cracks traveled through the surroundings, and with a furious earthquake-like tremor, the earth deformed — some regions rising, some sinking.

Both opponents weren't fazed by this as they continued to clash, neither side relenting. The furious, ear-rending claps of explosion from their attacks bent space, and the wind raged around them.

Slowly, this havoc reached the distant silhouette of Richard. But thankfully, right at the moment the region he stood on was sinking, his eyes opened.

An unfathomable deepness concealed within.

He jumped from the sinking region, landing at another somewhat stable location.

And the moment his feet touched the ground, the clash ceased, as the hero assassin returned to Richard's side in a blink.

His figure still stood straight, his tattered hooded cloak armor still the same as when the battle began — no signs of strain, weakness, or fatigue.

To think a level 25 summoned hero could push a Fifth Finger of Gluttony so far — even if it was merely a fragmented avatar. It was a pity these Legendary summons were restricted to the ranks of their master. If not, taking out Alfred would have been possible for Kraig.

Alfred gazed at Richard's figure from the distance, and his heartbeat quickened the moment their gazes clashed.

His face warped into a scowl. Something had changed about Richard, and this wasn't good news to him. He had planned to get rid of Richard before he could finish whatever it was he was doing — but Kraig wasn't as easy of an opponent as he thought...

Meanwhile, on Richard's end, he didn't even pay much attention to his foe. His sense of focus was on the popping up notifications.

[You have obtained First Level Benefits!

— Eternal War Body (Fragment: 1/9): A supreme physique born of war. Only under pressure can true gems be made. The greater the foe, the more you bleed, the stronger you get! Cap for strength increase: 10x.

Mutated Stats:

Attack: 160

Shell: 160

Blood Aura: 110

Legendary Item: One of the 12 set weapons — Demon Crusher!]

He could feel the refreshing surge of strength permeating his system, as even his cells quivered from power.

His fists clenched and unclenched. With this, he could have a go at Alfred.

A heavy weapon simmering with a rose-gold hue appeared in his grasp — a gigantic war hammer. A Demon Crusher indeed.

Richard smiled sinisterly. "We attack together!" he instructed, as Kraig gripped his dagger, his stance more pensive and ready to pounce.

A chill ran through Alfred's spine. He could feel the raw power surging from Richard, and his eyes trailed to the massive weapon in his grasp. His hair stood on end at the sight — that thing was a Legendary Tier weapon!

In this state, he dared not confidently claim he could shrug off attacks from legendary items.

Whoosh!

His pupils trembled as he braced his arms. The two foes — Kraig and Richard — were already before him. A dagger piercing toward his left, and a massive hammer looming from the right!

He managed to block the dagger, but the moment the hammer made contact, a raging destructive force rippled through his frame. His veins ruptured, bones crumbled, and even his corrupt force was eradicated on impact.

From the left, the assassin's grip on the dagger remained steady as Alfred's frame was flung directly, uncontrollably toward the glinting edge.

Alfred's jaw rattled, and his gut sank. He knew instantly — there was no way he was surviving this fight. Well… his avatar wasn't.

His eyes glinted coldly as corruption rumbled violently from his core. His figure bulged further, his height and size grew.

"Not good! Run!" Richard realized what was happening, as he burst into a sprint — his speed pushed to the limits.

But even then, he wasn't fast enough to escape the range. Alfred's body bloated with abominable levels of corrupt force to the limit and…

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Corruption raged through the land, scarring it. Void trembled from pressure, and a vacuum formed at the heart of the massive explosion.

By the time the shockwaves cleared, Richard's mangled body could be seen buried in dirt and debris.

"Cough! Cough! That fucker just had to try to take everyone with him."

[Congratulations! You have fulfilled your end of accomplishment: Defeat Fifth Finger of Gluttony — Alfred!

Territory Quest has gotten a step further to completion: Defeat all Six Fingers of Gluttony — 3/6]

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