Building My Empire in the Frozen Apocalypse (Riley Carter) novel Chapter 118

Chapter 118 Fusion Transformation

“Enough talk. Time to die.”

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Nightshade let out a grating, humorless taugh. “You really think I’m afraid? I gave everything to the dark god for this. I am unstincible!”

Then, in one sudden move, he tore the black robe from his body.

What was revealed underneath was horrifying.

His form was twisted, no longer human. His flesh was a mess of deep, ritualistic scars and glowing runes. At the center of his chest, a sickly purple–black heart pulsed visibly, beating against his ribs. His face was just a ruin of decayed tissue, unrecognizable as anything that had once been a man.

“Huuuum–wooom–huuuum-”

A low, discordant chant spilled from his lipless mouth. It was no language of this world–just a bone–deep vibration that clawed at the mind. Riley’s thoughts immediately turned foggy; a wave of nausea and disorientation

washed over her.

“System Warning: Mental corruption detected! All attributes temporarily reduced by 20%!

“Accessory ‘Guardian’s Heart Pendant‘ detected… resisting…/resistance successful! Negative effects cleared.”

A pulse of warmth spread from the pendant on her chest/pushing back the psychic assault like a shield.

“PineappleBeer! Heads up–it’s a mental attack!” Riley/shouted, turning toward her companion.

PineappleBeer was a survivor from a previous timeline, but she clearly lacked any mental protection gear. Her face had gone sheet–white, her body swaying slightly on her feet. The status “Stunned” glowed faintly above her head.

Nightshade raised his staff, aiming it at the stone altar below.

“By sacrifice… Godfall!”

“CRACK–BOOM.”

The whole chamber shuddered violently. The central slab of the altar split apart, and a thick, coppery stench of blood filled the air. From the widening crack, a massive, squirming mass of flesh forced its way upward.

It was the size of a two–story house. Its surface was a grotesque patchwork of rotting limbs, unblinking eyeballs, and slimy tentacles, all oozing a toxic green mist.

“Come! My god! Your faithful servant begs your blessing–become one with me!”

Spreading his arms wide, Nightshade leapt from his throne directly into the writhing flesh–mass

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Chapter 118 Fusion Transformation

“Sizzle… squelch…”

The creature reacted the living acid, engulfing him instantly.

A moment later, the entire mound convulsed.

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Dozens of tentacles lashed out wildly. Nightshade’s white grinning mask now protruded from the top of the biomass–but grown to monstrous size. Beneath it, amaw ringed with jagged, broken teeth ripped open.

“Evolution Complete: Nightshade–The Rotten Tyrant

“Status: Fusion Transformation (Dual Health Bars)

“Abilities: Poison Mist Spray, Lashing Tentacles, Psychic Screech, Corpse Detonation”

“ROCOOOARRGH-!”

The fused abomination unleashed a roar so powerful it cracked the bone–white walls around them.

“What in God’s name is that?” PineappleBeer gasped, shaking off her stupor. Her expression darkened as she took in the towering horror.

“Stay sharp,” Riley said, tightening her grip on her axes. Her eyes held no trace of fear, only cold focus.

“WHOOSH–THUD!”

A barrel–thick tentacle, studded with barbed spines and weeping blisters, smashed down where she’d stood, carrying the reek of decay and infection.

Riley dove into a roll, barely avoiding the blow. The obsidian floor where her feet had been exploded into shrapnel. A flying shard grazed her cheek, leaving a stinging line of blood.

She pivoted and swung an axe into the tentacle.

“Clang!”

The impact sent a shock up her arms. “It’s like hitting steel!”

The blade barely carved a shallow gash. The tentacle recoiled, then whipped toward her again in a series of furious strikes, which she deflected in a shower of sparks.

Knowing she couldn’t out–muscle it, Riley didn’t hesitate. She pulled out one of the weakness–inducing grenades she’d picked up earlier and hurled it. Against a target that huge, there was no missing.

Purple vapor enveloped part of the creature’s bulk.

Riley breathed heavily. Her “Storm Splitter Dual Axes” still glowed with pale blue energy, but the skin between her thumbs and forefingers had split from the force of her blocks. Blood slicked the axe handles.

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Chapter–118 Fusion Transformation

Across the chamber, the Rotten Tyrant roared again, the sound deafening in the enclosed space.

The weakness potion had taken effect, but the thing’s raw power was still terrifying.

“Left side!” A voice yelled.

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A shadow blurred past–PineappleBeer, dagger in hand. She drove the blade deep into one of the monster’s many eyes. Greenish–black fluid sprayed out.

“GRAAAGH!!”

The creature shuddered in pain, and a forest of tentacles thrashed outward in a blind, sweeping attack.

“Umph!”

PineappleBeer, half–shrouded in her stealth skill, was caught by the tip of a tentacle. The impact lifted her off her feet and hurled her into the wall. She hit hard, the air driven from her lungs, and coughed up blood.

“Cough… damn it,” she wheezed, struggling to rise. Her reinforced leather armor was shredded along one side. Her left arm hung at a wrong angle–clearly broken.

Out here in the frozen wastes, unlike in some shielded dungeon, injuries were brutally real. A broken bone meant slowed movement. Blood loss stole warmth and stamina. Pain clouded judgment. Every wound mattered.