Hoggenberg swiftly thrust nine bone spines into his own body—into his crown, shoulders, kidneys, legs, and feet. Closing his eyes, two wisps of white smoke slowly emerged from his nostrils as a faint golden glow flickered on and off across his form.
Nine golden threads of light shot out from his body, tracing the bone spines before converging into the hollowed-out sphere.
The intricate patterns on the sphere's surface held a mysterious allure, reflecting the golden threads within as they coiled into a luminous mass—mysterious and eerie.
As time passed, the orb grew larger, while Hoganberg's hair rapidly withered.
After about half an hour, the hollow spheres within the bone spines were filled to capacity with the golden light. Hoganberg appeared to have aged decades overnight. Opening his eyes, his gaze lacked the strength it had held moments before.
Yet, slender golden threads continued to draw out from his body, feeding into the luminous mass. From the crown downward, the light clusters within the nine hollow spheres slowly coalesced, gradually forming a golden demon lotus.
From the first hollow sphere, the demon lotus burst into brilliant bloom. Light mist radiated outward, threads of light flowing like water, radiating an eerie beauty.
The second hollow sphere yielded a different result. Behind the blooming demon lotus, a faint golden shadow was discernible—a dual-grade demon lotus!
Proceeding downward, the third demon lotus reflected two shadows behind it, the fourth bore three ethereal demon lotus images... until the ninth demon lotus, which astonishingly displayed eight pale golden shadows—a ninth-grade demon lotus!
"Sssssss..." As the final ninth-grade demon lotus crystallized and bloomed, Hoganberg slowly withdrew the bone spike. Approaching Gaia, he aligned it with corresponding points on his own body and thrust the spike in.
"Aaaah—" Gaia could no longer contain a piercing scream. Never in his two lifetimes had he endured such excruciating agony. The domineering Battle Qi surged into his body like a cascading waterfall, its overwhelming force cutting through his flesh.
The sole consolation was that after these nine clusters of Battle Qi entered his body, they received no further command. They lay dormant within him, refraining from rampaging wildly—otherwise, Gaia's agony would have been unbearable.
The infusion was swift, completed in less than half a minute.
Hoggenberg's bony fingers traced a strange symbol on Gaia's forehead. His fingertips twitched lightly, and he uttered a low command: "Disperse!"
The cluster of fighting energy dormant atop his head instantly dispersed, surging into his body—this time, Gaia felt every muscle fiber and blood vessel being sliced by countless razor-sharp blades, a pain even more excruciating than the initial infusion.
He let out a wail, cold sweat pouring from his entire body.
After dispersing within his body, the fighting energy finally sank into his bones and bloodstream. Gaia was now barely clinging to life. Hoganberg frowned. "Your body's just too weak, kid. Even after being modified into an Infinite Devouring Body, it can barely handle one-ninth of my fighting energy. What a pity..."
He scratched his head. "Too bad I don't have a suitable magic energy medium nearby. Otherwise, I could have finished the job in one go. Oh well, this will have to do. Once I control this body, I'll find a magic energy medium myself."
Gaia slowly opened his eyes, beads of sweat clinging to his eyelids.
Hogberg gave a sinister grin. "Boy, take one last look at this world. Because soon, you won't have the chance..." As he spoke the first part, it was his physical form that spoke. By the second part, a stream of black mist rose from his body. His form collapsed like a sack of rags, while the mist coalesced in midair into Hogberg's likeness, completing the sentence.
The dark mist lunged toward Gaia's forehead, but an unexpected twist occurred.
It should have burrowed through his brow, yet the opening there was blocked by something. It failed to penetrate. Hoganberg uttered a surprised "Huh?" before regrouping and charging again—only to meet the same failure.
Without entering Gaia's body, he couldn't destroy his soul and seize control. Hoganberg's own physical form was already dead; any further delay would cause his soul to vanish into thin air.
"This can't be!" Hoganberg roared. "What the hell is going on?!"
Though still bound by golden fighting energy, Gaia's gaze remained utterly calm: There's something I didn't tell you. This body isn't mine either—I seized it too. The difference is, I did it by accident, while you did it deliberately. I entered this body through this very spot. Did you really think I wouldn't know you'd try the same? Do you believe I'd be foolish enough to leave this passage open for you? I sealed it off long ago."
"I don't believe it!" Hoganberg roared, slamming into Gaia's forehead again and again, yet still unable to penetrate. Gaia watched with pity as his body slowly dissolved, leaving only his head behind. He sneered, "Truthfully, if you'd turned around immediately to seize Anderson's body, you might have avoided total annihilation. But alas... whether it's debts of gratitude or blood, all must be repaid. You hid within my body, endangered my life—so I ended yours. I fear we're even now!"
Hogberg instantly understood. Gaia had deliberately drawn his attention and provoked him, causing him to overlook his last chance for survival and waste precious time in a futile battle of wills.
"Aaah—" Hogberg roared in fury. "But I can still kill you..." With his furious cry, the black smoke completely dissipated. Almost simultaneously, the golden fighting energy coiled around Gaia erupted violently. With a sharp tearing sound, blood gushed from his body.
Falling from midair would be nothing for most Demon Abyss youths with their robust physiques, but for Gaia, the impact left stars dancing before his eyes and a deafening ringing in his ears.
He cursed inwardly: It seemed that Infinite Devouring Body truly had only that one benefit—his physical constitution hadn't improved at all.
Hogberg's deathblow had dealt him severe damage. Lying on the ground, gasping for breath, he couldn't move for a moment.
"Young Master!" A sudden cry echoed from outside the cave. Gaia's heart leapt with joy, then sank. Just as he was about to warn Anderson of the two magic-armored skeleton soldiers guarding the entrance, Anderson had already swept inside like a whirlwind. The two skeleton soldiers stood utterly motionless. Gaia breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that without their master's command, the two Armored Skeleton Soldiers remained frozen in place after his death.
Seeing Gaia covered in blood, Old Anderson hurriedly helped him up. "Young Master, what on earth happened?" Gaia coughed twice, inwardly sighing at how exceptionally frail this body truly was.
He pointed at Hoganberg's corpse. "Go. See what else this guy has on him." Old Anderson helped him sit up before walking over to search Hoganberg's body, finding a money pouch and a ring.
"Looks like a spatial ring. But he wasn't a mage. How did he get a spatial ring?" Gaia wondered. The owner's imprint on a spatial ring vanishes upon their death. Neither Gaia nor Old Anderson were mages, so they couldn't unlock it and could only stow it away for now.
Old Anderson counted the contents: thirty-six gold coins and twelve silver coins. A villain like Hoganberg had no need to carry much cash—he could simply plunder it whenever necessary.
Yet these thirty-six gold coins represented a windfall for the master and servant. Old Anderson exclaimed joyfully, "Young Master, thirty-six gold coins! We've struck it rich!" Gaia pondered briefly, mindful of his own injuries. He glanced at the two magic-armored skeleton soldiers standing motionless by the door: Anderson, ride to the nearest town. Rent a sturdy wagon and two pairs of good horses. These two magic-armored skeleton soldiers are valuable. They must be transported back to the estate."
"But young master, you..." Anderson hesitated, reluctant to leave Gaia alone. Gaia waved him off. "In this bitter cold, who would come out to this desolate wilderness? Go quickly and return swiftly." "
"Yes, sir." Anderson went out again to fetch more firewood, stoking the nearly extinguished campfire until it roared brightly. Only then did he mount his old horse and ride toward the town.
Gaia addressed Hoganberg's body: "You tried to harm me in the end. The things you left behind will serve as your compensation. Whether debt of gratitude or debt of enmity, all will be repaid. Now we are truly even."
...
Two hours later, old Anderson returned driving a sturdy wagon. Two spirited horses snorted thick white breath from their nostrils, pawing the ground restlessly.
Gaia instructed Anderson not to ask questions. The old servant wisely kept quiet and worked, not uttering a word.
Anderson strained every muscle to hoist the two magic-armored skeleton soldiers onto the carriage. Though aged, he still possessed the strength of a low-tier Silver Warrior. Even he had to exert every ounce of strength to move these two, a testament to their immense weight.
"Young master, these two magic-armored skeleton soldiers seem unusual," Anderson remarked as he drove the carriage. "I've seen such magic-armored warriors in my youth, but none were this heavy. After all, the heavier the magic-armored warrior, the more magic crystals it requires."
"Hmm." " Gaia acknowledged with a grunt but said nothing. His wounds throbbed excruciatingly, and eight clusters of soldier-type fighting energy still lingered within him. Though Hoganberg was dead, these clusters—condensed from the essence of Hoganberg's life—remained dormant inside him. Whether they were a blessing or a curse remained uncertain.
"Anderson." Gaia called out. Anderson, who was driving the carriage, poked his head in. "Young Master?"
"Where's that magic gauge?"
Anderson shot Gaia a sympathetic glance. "Young Master, what do you need that for?" "Never mind that. Just find it quickly." Anderson sighed. "Just a moment."
Moments later, Anderson produced the magic gauge originally used to measure Gaia's magic in the imperial capital, Xien.
Gaia stared at the device before him, drew a deep breath, closed his eyes, and carefully placed his hands inside. Anderson couldn't bear to watch. His reluctance stemmed purely from sympathy for his young master. Over the fourteen years of Gaia's growth, this very device had shattered the boy's hopes countless times.