I Became an Ancient All-Host Lifeform - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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015 The End of the Visionary

At the same moment, in the central plaza of the Third Magic Tower, Arke.
Cornelius, the Third Tower Master, approached a colossal statue standing in the middle of the plaza and laid flowers before it in silence.
The statue’s subject was a founding member of the Magic Association and a great figure whose footsteps had left an epochal mark on humanity’s history of magical study.
None other than the first Tower Master, Morian Escalor.

Cornelius stood before Morian’s statue and offered silent prayer, his reverence profound.
He harbored genuine admiration for Morian.
Though his achievements were beyond reckoning, what mattered most was that Morian had been the visionary pioneer of Bioalchemy—the very field to which Cornelius had devoted his lifetime of research.
Cornelius’s respect for Morian approached something like faith.

Yet that great visionary’s end had been pitiable.
An obsessive passion for human evolution and the ultimate nature of magic had consumed Morian entirely.
He had despaired at the limits of human lifespan and, in the end, corrupted himself willingly in pursuit of eternal immortality.
Thus the great visionary who founded the first Magic Tower was also, simultaneously, humanity’s first Lich—a dark sorcerer of the highest order.

In truth, this shocking reality remained a matter of strictest secrecy.
The general public knew nothing of the fact that Morgul, the first Lich who had waged a great war against humanity three thousand years ago, and the great first Tower Master Morian Escalor were one and the same person.
Only the heads of the Magic Towers, the royal houses of each nation, and the highest echelons of the Holy Order possessed knowledge of this staggering truth.

‘To have inherited the great visionary’s will and brought Bioalchemy to such brilliant heights….’

As Cornelius stood in long contemplation, the wrinkles of his face gradually contorted with rage.
The foolish powers of the world had endlessly envied and suppressed this magnificent progress.
In particular, the hidebound fanatics of the Holy Order—cloaked beneath the thin pretense of “ethics”—sought to hinder and control humanity’s great advancement.
They had even gone so far as to plant a spy and tamper with his magnum opus, the Ancient Dragon Egg.
Of course, he had not yet secured definitive proof of the Holy Order’s involvement, yet he was already certain.
How else could the “sudden Oracle” and the “corruption of the egg” have occurred at such a precisely convenient moment?

Cornelius clenched his fist, suppressing the rage that boiled within him.
At length, he lifted his head and spoke quietly, his expression hardened.

“Great first Tower Master Morian… were you faced with the circumstances of today, how would you respond?”

Morian’s statue stood silent, offering no answer.

* * *

– Run faster—! They’re closing in on us!

An urgent old man’s voice rang out sharply from the jewel embedded in Gyusik’s forehead.
The troll old-timer had been rattling on ceaselessly from Gyusik’s forehead as he fled in panicked desperation.
It was like he was doing a live play-by-play broadcast.

‘Yeah, I know! Since I can feel everything through the Fungal Mycelium Network anyway, can you please stop your commentary?’

I cursed the senseless old man inwardly as I ran.
The encirclement had already tightened; at every turn, armed humans with torches lay in wait.
I had never imagined that having my location tracked in real time could put me in such a dire predicament.

‘Sigh…. I should never have trusted this con-artist old troll in the first place.’

Some grand sorcerer who once ruled the world—and he can’t even break a single Breeding Farm barrier? This is the disaster he created?
I wanted nothing more than to claw out the jewel embedded in my forehead and hurl it away….
But what choice did I have?
Right now, the only option was to run like hell without so much as a backward glance.
Just then, shouts from humans sounded at my back.

“There! Follow the red footprints!”
“There he is! That’s him! Grab him!”

A glance over my shoulder confirmed it—the Security Team captain with an armband on his sleeve, flanked by a dozen or so broad-shouldered men, were closing in fast.
Their hands bristled with weapons honed to a vicious edge, and they carried capture nets strung across their arms to seal off escape routes.

Wee-woo! Wee-woo! Wee-woo!

Through it all, that damned siren refused to stop.
Gods, it’s impossible to think straight with that noise screaming in my ears.
I suppose that’s why police turn on their sirens the moment they get behind the wheel—drowns out all reason.

“He’s heading this way! Block the exit!”

Hemmed in from all sides, Gyusik and I had no choice but to be herded toward one narrow corridor of escape.
The warehouse building we’d first arrived at when we came here.
And after fleeing this way and that for what felt like hours, Gyusik’s energy was nearly spent.
Well, it can’t be helped. Every other exit was blocked, and the warehouse was the only way out.
Let me catch my breath for a moment and think of how to keep running.

“He’s trapped inside the warehouse! Ha ha ha! Now the rat’s caught in his own cage!”

The Security Team captain’s gleeful shout rang out from beyond the warehouse walls with brutal clarity.
I quickly pressed myself against the back of a towering stack of feed sacks.

Crimson magical footprints glowed vividly across the warehouse floor, tracing a clear path straight to the feed sacks where we crouched.

‘What do we do now?’

Morgul answered without hesitation.

– Ack, we’re past negotiations. A straight charge is our only move. I’m gathering the fungal organisms in this area, so break through them however you can and get out of here!
‘Ha, that’s the kind of desperate faith I can work with.’

I laughed without hope at his proposal.
Cornered as we were, there was nothing left but to commit fully.

Click, tap-tap.

In that instant, the lights in the Feed Storage Warehouse flared to life all at once.
Now that I think about it, how does that even work? They don’t seem to be fluorescent bulbs.
Whether it’s the feed factory or here, the people of this world harness magical power like electricity.

“He’s hiding by the feed sacks. A few of you hold the entrance—the rest, surround the pile.”

Armed men pressed closer, nearly on top of us now.
If we stayed hidden much longer, they’d pin us down without mercy.
The moment the Security Team members grinned with cold intent and leaned their heads around the edge of the feed pile—

[You use the skill “Instant Acceleration lv1”.]
[The skill “Instant Acceleration” has leveled up. lv1 → lv2]

Perfect. The skill leveled up just in time.

Snap!

Gyusik burst from the feed pile with explosive speed, and the nearest man lost all sight of us in the blur.
But the others were waiting behind.

“There! Get him!”

The Security Team members were about to surge forward in unison, weapons raised, when—

A deep, thrumming boom—!

A violent surge of magical energy erupted from the warehouse floor, and the writhing Fungal Organisms suddenly began clumping together.
Five Iron-headed Mushroom Monsters that Morgul had hastily summoned burst up from the ground.

“What the—?!”
“They’re fungal beasts!”

The mushroom creatures, armored with their hard caps, immediately charged at the Security Team members.
In moments, the warehouse transformed into a battlefield—human and fungal monster locked in chaos.

‘Perfect! This is our chance! Gyusik, break through!’
Crack—!

Using the opening the mushroom creatures created by throwing themselves at the guards, Gyusik sprinted toward the warehouse entrance at full speed.
But the only exit to the outside was already sealed off by a Capture Net, guarded by four Security Team members.

“You’re not getting away!”

Two of them held the Capture Net from either end of the entrance, while the other two charged at us.
Fine. If they want to come at us, all the better.

‘Gyusik! Release it!’
Screech—!
[Activating skill “Toxic Spores Lv1”.]
A shrill hiss—!

A cloud of sickly green Toxic Spores erupted from Gyusik’s skin in all directions.
The effect was devastating.

“Hack! Wheeze—!”
“My—my eyes! Ahhhhh! *Cough-cough*…! I—I can’t breathe!”

The two who’d inhaled the Toxic Spores head-on collapsed to the floor like soldiers trapped in a gas chamber, tears and mucus streaming down their faces.
Heh. How do you like my special Toxic Spores recipe?
While not lethal yet, the toxin is potent enough to incapacitate enemies without poison resistance.
Seeing this, the Security Team captain—still locked in combat with one of the Iron-headed Mushroom Monsters—shouted orders.

“Poison! Cover your mouths and noses!”

The two at the entrance immediately wrapped their sleeves over their faces.
Now one of their hands is free. Perfect.
I seized control of Gyusik immediately and rushed at the one holding the Capture Net with only one hand.
Then I sank my fangs into his left hand.

[Activating “Plague Fangs Lv3”.]
[Injecting “Neurotoxic Saliva Lv1” into the target.]

The plague fangs combined with the neurotoxin drained all strength from his body, and he crumpled.

A low groan escaped him.

His left hand went numb, and the Capture Net slipped from his weakening grip.

Thump.

Excellent! The exit is clear!
I seized the moment and bolted outside.
At that instant, a notification window appeared with a brilliant burst of fireworks.

[You have broken through an encirclement while completely surrounded by multiple enemies!]
[You have achieved an Achievement! You have obtained the Achievement “Zhang Fei’s Bravery.”]
[“Zhang Fei’s Bravery”: When surrounded by multiple enemies, your breakthrough power and combat strength temporarily increase dramatically.]

Well, I’ve gained a worthwhile achievement.
It seems to be the story of Zhang Fei from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms—the warrior who drove back Cao Cao’s vast army with a single thunderous shout at the Bridge of Long Boards.
Now, even if I’m surrounded by swarms of enemies closing in, I should be able to shatter their formation and escape.
…But something feels off. Why does this other-world status window say “Zhang Fei”?
That’s when it hit me.
The ones who sent me to this other world and made me pull this absurd stunt are very likely Earth people after all.

Right now the situation is urgent, so I’ll shelve that question and focus on staying alive.
Just as I was about to flee, I noticed the figure collapsed on the ground.
Ah… while I’m at it, should I suck some of that bastard’s blood? Then I could farm “human genetic material” right now.
That would be an extreme gain.
At that moment, a shout from the security chief echoed from deeper inside the warehouse.

“The intruder is escaping! Catch him!”

Right. Now isn’t the time to leisurely farm genetic material.
The ones inside the warehouse will be coming out soon, and there are still plenty of pursuers swarming outside!

‘Let’s go, Gyusik! We need to bolt!’
Snap!

We managed to escape and completely vacate the Breeding Farm grounds.
Though the red footprints still appearing beneath my feet are a bit bothersome.
For now, at least we’re “safe.”

* * *

Though we’d managed to escape the Breeding Farm, Morgul was still groaning and complaining.

– What the hell kind of magic did these modern folk construct so intricately? It simply won’t come undone….

This incompetent old man had been fussing over Gyusik’s feet—still marked with those red footprints—for hours now.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. I was a fool to trust that old codger.
Unlike our “self-proclaimed Archmage,” the other side’s mage’s tracking magic was remarkably effective.
The red prints wouldn’t wash away no matter how hard I scrubbed his feet in flowing water, and even when we crossed a stream, the red footprints floated on the surface of the water.
But what on earth is the principle behind that?
At this rate, I had no idea when we could shed this stubborn tag. If we kept fleeing like this, it was obvious we’d eventually be caught by our pursuers.

‘All right, that’s enough. Stop it.’

I finally made a decision.
Running away endlessly like this wouldn’t help.
Unless I settled things completely with our opponent, the situation would just repeat itself.

‘Let’s just head to the Mushroom Cave and have a proper fight.’
– A fight? What’s a fight?

Ah, Morgul would have no way of knowing what “a fight” meant.
Would he understand if I explained it as both sides clashing together in one group engagement?
Never mind, it’s too complicated to explain properly—let’s just move on.

‘Never mind what it is.’
– Hm?

I answered curtly and made my way toward the Mushroom Cave.
If we were going to have a proper clash with those bastards anyway, shouldn’t we fight on home ground where we held every advantage?
The real problem was that these Magic Tower mages were proving far more capable than I’d anticipated.
If a Detection Barrier they’d laid in advance performed at this level, what kind of direct combat ability could they actually bring to bear? I couldn’t afford to drop my guard for a moment.
Then again, if they’re only good enough to be sent rat-catching at the Breeding Farm, they can’t be among the Magic Tower’s elite.
So just how strong are the Tower’s best mages, then?
I hadn’t the faintest idea.

– What kind of security architecture is this convoluted? Wait, what’s this now? I’ve never seen a formula like this before….
‘Still… ugh.’

Watching him labor away at analyzing the Tracking Magic bound to Gyusik, I couldn’t help but sigh.
All that bragging in life about being humanity’s greatest arch-mage in all of history—it was nothing but hot air.

– Damn it! This is infuriating! These youngsters nowadays are all style and no substance….

…Still, having him is better than nothing.
Given how formidable and meticulous our opponents are, we’ll have to throw everything we’ve got at this one decisive strike.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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