Chapter 3: | Emergence of Amara
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Droplets of water began to fall from the heavens, a soft rain descending.
A colossal figure hovered in the sky, its serpentine body coiled, vast wings beating against the storm.
Its long, elegant whiskers swayed majestically in the wind, accompanied by horns that branched like an elk's antlers.
A thunderous voice echoed as the dragon before her spoke.
"Lowly Kraken, how dare you challenge me!"
Amara let out a chuckle.
"Fufufu, a mighty dragon you are now, but perhaps you'll end up in my stomach sooner rather than later."
The dragon laughed, thunderously amused.
"You... you're one of the most amusing beings I've ever met in my existence!"
Amara chuckled, then a full, unrestrained laugh burst from her.
"Hahaha! 'One of the most interesting,' you say? From what I heard from the humans above, you, the past Dragon Emperor Straugh, were beaten black and blue by the past Emperor of the Whark."
Straugh let out an embarrassing chuckle, clearing his throat.
"Ahem, let's forget that, shall we? And fight."
Amara couldn't help but let out an amused chuckle as she watched Straugh.
She observed the air around him shimmering, the very mana of the atmosphere gathering, condensing, and then drawing inward, compressing into his throat with an audible hum.
"A breath, huh?"
Without warning, a pale, pristine hand tore through Amara's 'stomach, followed swiftly by another, rending the Kraken's colossal form in two.
From the grotesque chasm, a humanoid woman emerged, breaking free and hovering into the stormy air.
Her hair, a cascade of lustrous black, framed a face of ethereal beauty.
Her body was exquisitely curved, with tendrils of black, corrupted matter swirling to discreetly cover her form.
Her lips, a mesmerizing crimson, parted slightly to reveal a hint of teeth.
Her eyes, pools of abyssal black, were fringed by impossibly long lashes, and upon her forehead, a glowing sigil pulsed with ancient power.
This was Amara, in her true, emergent form.
Her eyes closed for but a moment as her hands pointed at Straugh hovering in the air.
"Try to defend this."
The colossal Kraken form that had been beneath Amara now writhed as if independently alive.
Its multitude of tentacles, or perhaps their reanimated remnants, now separate, sentient entities, surfaced from the depths, each one coiling and pointing menacingly at Straugh.
In the next second, the world inside the dungeon shuddered violently.
Each of Amara's Kraken-heads, for her tentacles now bore monstrous, mawed heads, began to pull the very mana from the atmosphere.
The ocean surface churned into a maelstrom, quaking and vibrating from the intense, crushing pull.
Straugh's face, once confident, darkened with pure horror.
"This firepower... it can't be possible for an Overlord!"
Amara chuckled.
"It is, dear. It is possible."
Amara's hands clenched as she muttered.
"Then try and block this attack."
A true Ascension V skill, 'Alter Egos Wrath, activated.
The very air around Amara shrieked in agony, tearing apart as spheres of pulsating, inky corruption erupted from each of her Kraken-heads, hurtling towards Straugh with unnatural speed.
As the corrupted spheres hurtled towards him, Straugh, the ancient Dragon Emperor, didn't flinch.
Instead, a challenging smirk played on his lips.
With a roar that vibrated through the very air, he activated his own True Ascension V skill: 'Explosive Cannon!'
The air howled as Straugh's breath-attack, a searing torrent of raw power, tore through the space between them, slicing through sound itself.
It collided with Amara's pulsating projectiles, not with a bang, but with a reality-shattering CRACK that echoed throughout the dungeon.
The very fabric of reality seemed to strain, threatening to rip apart as the ocean below boiled, quaked, and swelled from the sheer, unimaginable force of their clash.
Amara was amused to see that this fossil of an Emperor could block her Ascension V skill.
"Even though you're only a record from the past, before your death, it seems you, Straugh, deserve the title of an Emperor."
Amara flicked her hand as she pointed at Straugh.
"But this is the end of your existence."
As her ultimate Ascension V skill, Wrath of the Terror, activated, Amara's Kraken form didn't just disintegrate, it melded with her humanoid body in a grotesque, breathtaking fusion.
From her back, thick, muscular tentacles erupted, each one crowned with a monstrous, ego-filled head.
Her form twisted, becoming a true nightmare given flesh.
Scales of iridescent blue and deep green, from countless aquatic species, burst forth across her skin.
A pair of new horns, jagged and dark, tore through her forehead, not merely horns, but the living culmination of countless horned aquatic variants, pulsating with raw mana density.
Her eyes, once pools of black, narrowed into predatory slits, and her aura intensified, warping the very light around her.
She was no longer just humanoid, her body was a terrifying tapestry of mutations: new horns, hardened scales, a powerful tail, and the writhing multitude of ego-infused tentacles on her back.
Straugh stared, jaw slack, his shock evident.
"How... how can you obtain such monstrous mutations?"
Amara's gaze was cold, sharp as shattered ice.
Her very presence was a palpable force, visibly distorting the space around her.
"It is because I am a Transmogrified Kraken, a unique 9★ variant."
She stated, her voice resonating with ancient power.
Straugh sighed in defeat.
"You win."
His body polymorphed into a humanoid body as he slowly descended onto the ground.
His hair golden yellow, his eyes blue, Straugh's face was defined and handsome.
"You. What's your name, my killer?"
Amara's mutations disappeared as she gazed down at Straugh's naked, bared body.
"Fufufu. I thought it was just a rumor that the previous Dragon Emperor was... well, extremely handsome. And big down there."
Straugh chuckled, a perplexed look on his face.
"You're one interesting lady, I'll give you that."
Amara chuckled.
"How about mating with me? Perhaps we could procreate a new variation of dragon?"
Straugh blushed.
"This is the first time a woman has ever asked me for that."
Amara's hands slowly slithered down into Straugh's abs as her gaze was lewd.
"There's always a first for everything, dear. So, how about it? Are you in?"
Straugh closed his eyes then sighed.
"But... for what reason do you want to procreate with me?"
Amara's finger swirled around on Straugh's nipple as she mischievously licked her lips.
"Perhaps because I found you... delicious."
Straugh chuckled as his gaze turned serious.
"Hahaha! Well, I am delicious, indeed. But I can see you have a deeper reason."
Amara raised both of her hands then pouted cutely.
"Well, you found out."
Her hands grabbed Straugh's 'thing' blatantly as she whispered like a succubus.
"Well, I am waiting for the new Emperor of Whark here for a rematch."
Straugh raised a brow.
"An Emperor of the Whark? So, it seems a new one has appeared."
Amara chuckled.
"And you know that's not the only reason, right?"
"Haaa,"
Straugh sighed.
"Sure, I can do that. I'm quite curious about the new Emperor of the Whark, and it's been so long since I've... tasted some woman."
Amara smiled.
"Same. Same. It's been quite a while, and it's a first for me to mate with a humanoid."
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The currents roared around me, not in protest, but in exhilaration, as my fist effortlessly tore through their liquid embrace.
It had been days, several now, since I'd engaged the Overseer of the tenth floor.
After conquering that challenge, I'd plunged deeper, fighting this new Overseer for what felt like an eternity.
Why this prolonged dance of death? Simple.
I was honing my personal claw technique, and I needed the perfect sparring partner.
My claw shifted, a blur of motion, cleaving through the water with precision before shifting its angle mid-strike.
My opponent, a towering humanoid crustacean, was indeed fascinating.
Its carapace shimmered, and its massive claw, sharp as a honed blade, moved with surprising agility.
This Overseer knew the art of the claw, truly, which made it an excellent, albeit frustrating, tool for me to master my own strength without resorting to lethal force.
It shrieked.
"Damned bastard, stop playing with me!"
A smile formed on my face.
I gave it a thumbs up while dodging its claws.
"Hahaha! You're fun, so no, I won't be killing you anytime soon."
It shrieked again.
"Take this, you damned arrogant bastard!"
My knees lowered, my body coiling to dodge its incoming claw.
But true to form, its claw changed trajectory, sweeping down in a furious arc.
I merely smiled.
I'd predicted this move a hundred times already, the Overseer truly never learned, did it?
Lifting my left foot, I redirected its claw with a precise kick.
My own hand, already transformed into a razor-sharp claw, cleaved through the water, leaving a fleeting trail of crimson.
I aimed for a vital area, yes, but held back, just enough to wound, never to kill.
It shrieked in pain and indignation.
"You damned bastard! DIE!"
My body moved like a shadow as I reappeared behind it.
I whispered.
"Stop saying 'Die!' Haven't you said that repeatedly throughout our fight? Can't you come up with something new?"
Its mandibles opened.
"DAMNED BASTARD! STOP MOCKING ME!"
I sighed.
"But isn't it right for the strong to dictate how the weak live? And can you at least be more creative with your wordings?"
It lashed out, slashing everywhere ferociously like a true maniac, a desperate flailing I'd seen perhaps four times already.
I knew it would eventually calm down, gather itself, and pounce.
But this time, its massive claws trembled, then slowly, deliberately, rose above its head.
In the next second, a gush of blood spurted from its neck as it chose to die, to end our training by its own hand.
"Well, well, well,"
I murmured, watching its final convulsion.
"Fighting you was a truly great learning experience. So rest in peace... inside of my stomach."
A dark tentacle erupted from my back, quick as thought, and efficiently devoured the crustacean's dissolving form.
As a hologram of notifications flickered before me, I couldn't help but smile bitterly.
It truly would have been better if we had fought for a few more days.
---
[You have slain the Overseer of this floor]
• [Karkhold Mantislash 5★]
[Flawless Victory achieved.]
[You have let the Overseer feel despair.]
[You have broke the Overseer mind]
[You have forced the Overseer to commit a suicide.]
[You have gained 25 levels.]
[Access to the next floor unlocked.]
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