Solaire, now wearing a new set of equipment, was currently walking with Xia Yu through a tunnel covered in spider webs. If Xia Yu hadn't known beforehand that this was what the place looked like, he would have thought he had arrived at Pansi Cave.
However, calling it Pansi Cave wasn't exactly wrong, as the masters here were two female spiders. Although they looked a bit terrifying, it was only their lower bodies; their upper bodies were definitely something one could 'go for'!
Before long, the end of the passage came into view. The exit was obstructed by spider silk as soft as gauze, acting like an illusory doorway.
The two looked at each other, nodded, and then walked toward the doorway without hesitation.
Before stepping into the cave, they had already prepared themselves mentally.
The enemy they were about to face was one of the daughters of the Witch of Izalith, Chaos Witch Quelaag.
The Old Witch was one of the four holders of the Lord Souls and the creator of fire pyromancy. During the war against the Immortal Ancient Dragons in the ancient era, the Old Witch and her daughters used chaos fire to burn the great trees where the dragons resided and the fog that shrouded the world. Subsequently, she joined Sun King Gwyn in ushering in the Age of Fire.
Although the Old Witch had now transformed into the Bed of Chaos and her daughters were being continuously eroded by the chaos fire, they were still beings who had fought against the Immortal Ancient Dragons, and their power was not to be underestimated.
Therefore, just before coming to challenge her, Xia Yu had spoken to Solaire, but Solaire simply gave a hearty laugh and stated that a Warrior of Sunlight would never refuse a plea for help.
Moreover, Xia Yu had given him such a fine set of armor. He would come to assist no matter what; no matter how dangerous the enemy ahead might be, it could not cause even a hint of hesitation in his heart.
As the gauzy silk was pulled down, the scene hidden behind the passage revealed itself to them. It was a nest covered in webs and lumpy spider eggs.
"Hiss—!"
Coincidentally, at that moment, a small, beast-like hiss, mixed with the sound of scuttling legs, came from the exit on the other side of the nest.
The moment they noticed the sound, Xia Yu and Solaire gripped their weapons tightly and stepped slowly into the nest.
The next moment, black-red spider legs emitting a crimson firelight appeared from the exit on the other side.
It was a hideous spider that looked as if its entire body was wreathed in flames, covered in long, thin fuzz. Its massive abdomen looked as if it were filled with lava, emitting a dangerous glow.
But the most terrifying part was the head of the giant spider; its torn maw was filled with dense fangs, and its head was covered in a mass of compound eyes. Right in the center of those compound eyes sat a graceful young woman.
The girl's body was fused into the giant spider's head, revealing only her snow-white upper body. Her reddish-brown hair danced without any wind, lacking the stiff feeling from the game.
Seemingly noticing the gaze of the newcomers, the girl's pure and beautiful face moved slightly, and the corners of her mouth curled into a smile.
That smile, combined with the girl's enchanting face, was exceptionally intoxicating, but when paired with the hideous giant spider, it became extremely eerie.
Seeing Quelaag's beautiful and white upper body, only one thought came to Xia Yu's mind: this time, I have to charge no matter what.
Fine, he'll charge!
"Go!"
With a low shout, Xia Yu took the lead. Reaching behind his waist, he gripped eight Freeze Spells from the clash of clans world between his fingers.
Watching Quelaag rush over, he threw his arms out. The eight spell bottles vanished in a flash, flying toward Quelaag from all directions.
Even though Quelaag, wielding the chaos demon sword, was already so eroded by the chaos fire that her mind was blurred, her combat instincts remained.
Facing Xia Yu's attack, which looked like hidden weapons, her lower spider body immediately erupted with violent red flames, attempting to melt anything that approached.
Boom—!
But the moment the spell bottles shattered, an extreme freezing magic exploded instantly. The eight Freeze Spells burst one after another, instantly turning the area around Quelaag into a wintry ice field.
Even Quelaag at the center was turned into an ice sculpture. Within it, it seemed even the inextinguishable chaos fire was frozen.
"This spell is truly powerful," Solaire remarked as he arrived at Xia Yu's side a beat later, holding his Sunlight Straight Sword and Sunlight Shield, which he was still unwilling to replace.
"But it can only trap her for a moment. External forces ultimately cannot defeat such a powerful enemy."
Just as Xia Yu finished speaking, the ice crystals freezing the witch suddenly let out a crisp crack. The next moment, a flame that seemed capable of burning everything slashed toward the two in the blink of an eye.
"Get back!"
Xia Yu, being the first to react, gave a low shout and vanished from the spot in a flash. Solaire also hurriedly rolled to the side to dodge.
Boom—!
The extreme flames exploded, and the walls covered in silk and eggs, along with everything in the path, were turned into scorching lava by the chaos fire.
In the center of the ice field, the freed Quelaag held her chaos demon sword, still in the posture of her recent slash.
Seeing that the enemies had dodged the attack, her upper body reared up high, and the hideous spider mouth below opened wide. In the next instant, a scorching fire breath was spewed out.
Sizzle!
The rolling flames annihilated the air along the way, and the red light illuminated the entire nest. Even the silk at the top of the nest was ignited. In just a few seconds, the entire nest turned into a sea of fire.
But a moment later, three red blade waves sliced through the spreading sea of fire, flying toward Xia Yu with unstoppable momentum.
Unexpectedly, three golden Lightning Spears suddenly shot from not far away, colliding with the blade waves. The clash of lightning and fire instantly produced a violent explosion.
Boom, boom, boom—!
Surging energy suddenly erupted from the point of impact. The nest, originally held together by silk and eggs, was directly annihilated ten meters downward.
The melted lava immediately poured in, and a lake filled with lava appeared in the nest.
As the flames dissipated, Solaire waved to Xia Yu from a distance and condensed another Lightning Spear, hurlng it at Quelaag.
But this time Quelaag was prepared. She directly shattered Solaire's Lightning Spear with a sword strike. Looking at Solaire as he condensed another Lightning Spear, a look of fury appeared on Quelaag's face. Her long hair danced with the fire behind her, and the flames churned violently with her anger.
Before she could attack Solaire, Xia Yu on the other side had already brought out Vordt's Great Hammer and lunged forward, smashing it toward the white figure.
The great hammer of Vordt, which had been taken back by Ashen Xia Yu, had finally been reforged by Andre the blacksmith into a size that a human could use.
Although Vordt's Great Hammer was still quite large compared to a normal polehammer, to the current Undead Xia Yu, it felt a bit small.
After all, the enemy was too large. However, the frost enchantment inherent to Vordt's Great Hammer was perfect for dealing with an enemy that relied primarily on fire.
Xia Yu raised Vordt's Great Hammer high, bringing with it a biting cold wind. Bolstered by magic, the air the hammer passed through was stained with ice crystals.
Even the air that had heated up due to the flames dropped significantly in temperature.
Clang—!
The great hammer and the demon sword collided fiercely. Quelaag, who had been preparing to attack Solaire, turned her body just in time to defend.
Ice and fire reflected each other. The flames constantly spewed out, trying to swallow the ice, but Xia Yu, with his high health and mana pools, directly increased his magic output, suppressing the chaos fire with sheer quantity while also increasing the downward pressure.
Feeling the weight pressing down on her, Quelaag's expression changed. Just as she was about to change her move, Xia Yu suddenly retracted Vordt's Great Hammer.
Having lost the opponent she was struggling against, Quelaag's body immediately lost its balance. Taking advantage of the fall, Xia Yu used telekinesis to push off the air, then clenched his fist and swung, landing a heavy punch right on Quelaag's slightly surprised, beautiful face.
Unvirtuous Witch, Haymaker!
Bang—!
Quelaag's dazed face caved in deeply. Immense power transferred from her cheek, pulling her neck and her entire body along, sending her flying backward.
It didn't actually hurt that much. After all, she was a Chaos Witch; even if she was a mage, she wasn't that fragile. However, the psychological humiliation was immense.
Her consciousness, which had been eroded by chaos fire until only obsession remained, actually felt a hint of grievance. Even her mother had never hit her in the face.
To be hit by an Undead she didn't even know today—where was the justice in that!
Quelaag's eyes turned slightly red. As she flew backward, she flipped her body and stabbed the chaos demon sword into the ground to stop her momentum.
But Xia Yu didn't care about fair play. He used a burst of telekinesis in mid-air to chase after her.
Just as Quelaag stopped herself, he raised Vordt's Great Hammer high once more and swung it toward Quelaag's head.
This time Quelaag had learned her lesson. She didn't block it head-on, immediately twisting her body to dodge. At that moment, Solaire also moved in to attack.
While Quelaag's attention was still on Xia Yu, Solaire lunged forward and fiercely stabbed his enchanted Sunlight Straight Sword into the spider's abdomen.
"Hiss, ahhh!!!"
The hideous spider let out a wretched howl. Solaire took the opportunity to give a violent slash, and hot blood as thick as lava sprayed out instantly.
Having succeeded, Solaire didn't get greedy and quickly dashed away. The sprayed blood landed on the ground, immediately corroding it into flaming pits.
The hideous spider was a part of Quelaag's body, so the sudden pain made Quelaag glare with fury, but by then Solaire was already far away.
Xia Yu, however, had not moved away. The sound of wind in her mind made Quelaag's eyes narrow. The hideous spider's mouth below her opened wide, intending to spew fire breath, but Xia Yu tossed a Freeze Spell right into the spider's mouth.
Crack!
In an instant, ice spread, freezing the hideous spider. Xia Yu also used the air to propel himself, pouring all his strength and magic into the hammer, then slammed it down onto the part where Quelaag's body joined the spider.
Boom—!
This time Xia Yu didn't hold back at all. The magic that erupted was also unprecedentedly massive. Under the heavy blow, the junction between Quelaag and the hideous spider twisted and snapped, and the erupting ice completely extinguished the rising flames.
The ground bearing the force erupted with a powerful shockwave that swept through the entire nest, making the floor ripple like the surface of the sea.
Whether it was the lava flames or the untouched spider eggs, everything crumbled inch by inch under the ripples. Then, the nest began to collapse.
Seeing this, Xia Yu directly threw Freeze Spells toward the collapsing areas, stopping the further destruction of the nest.
This place couldn't be destroyed yet; he still had things to do.
The area where it collapsed was frozen, and the destruction temporarily ceased. At the same time, the once scorching air became chillingly cold, as if midwinter had arrived.
"You really are amazing. I feel like you could have defeated the enemy even without my help," Solaire said in admiration as he walked over, seeing the enemy on its last breath.
"No, I still need your help. It's not over yet," Xia Yu replied with a smile, putting away the Vordt's Great Hammer and taking out a straight sword.
With that, he looked at the dying Quelaag and thrust his sword into the heart of Quelaag's human upper body.
"Sorry."
Watching Quelaag's body gradually lose its life force, Xia Yu murmured, though he didn't feel much.
After all, in his view, as long as the soul hadn't completely dissipated, it wasn't a total death.
Furthermore, he didn't intend to absorb Quelaag's soul or forge it into a weapon; what he wanted was the chaos fire within Quelaag's soul—or rather, a portion of the Old Witch's Lord Soul.
If that were the case, he could eventually resurrect Quelaag through her soul. After all, when he played the game, he quite liked this red spider. Of course, his favorite was naturally the White Spider.
As Quelaag died, her soul emerged. Xia Yu reached out to take the cluster of soul energy, the corners of his mouth curling upward.
"Just as I thought."
His guess was correct; Quelaag's soul indeed contained a piece of the Lord Soul—the Chaos Lord Soul once possessed by the Old Witch.
Even King Gwyn had shared his Lord Soul with his subordinates; there was no reason the Witch wouldn't share hers with her daughters.
The Chaos Lord Soul had granted the Old Witch the power of chaos fire, but she eventually lost control, causing the fire to erupt. This not only turned her into the Bed of Chaos but also affected her children.
Thus, what he wanted to do now was separate that part of the Lord Soul—the part of the chaos fire that had tainted Quelaag's soul.
Afterward, he would absorb and fuse that portion of chaos fire right here to enhance his own power.
Because absorbing it here would leave him vulnerable to surrounding dangers, he had called Solaire to guard him. Otherwise, he could have soloed Quelaag by himself.
As for why he didn't go to another world to absorb it, it was because only this world provided the right timing and environment for the process to go smoothly.
Besides, he had intended to meet and chat with Solaire anyway, so there was no need to trouble his other selves.
Of course, he wasn't unprepared. If he couldn't absorb it, he would just send it in a Red Envelope to store it for later.
In any case, the Red Envelope was like an infinite space with frozen time; whatever went in came out exactly the same, and it could store anything.
With these thoughts, Xia Yu greeted Solaire and asked for his protection. Then, he focused his mind and integrated Quelaag's soul into his body.
He then began to partition Quelaag's soul within himself. Tainted by the chaos flame, her soul manifested in various chaotic forms.
The golden soul looked like a burning flame, but within that flame, a portion was golden-red—that was the fragment of the Chaos Lord Soul.
As if performing a delicate surgery, Xia Yu used his own soul to partition Quelaag's. Since Quelaag was dead, her soul offered no resistance, allowing Xia Yu to do as he pleased.
As time ticked by, Quelaag's soul was soon successfully partitioned, with the golden soul and the golden-red soul completely separated.
Having stripped away this part of the Chaos Lord Soul, Xia Yu guided the Pyromancy Flame within his body, preparing to fuse the Lord Soul fragment into it.
The Pyromancy Flame and chaos fire shared the same origin, so the Pyromancy Flame could certainly carry the power of chaos. After all, among pyromancies, there were Chaos Pyromancies.
While thinking this, Xia Yu guided the Pyromancy Flame and the chaos to meet and merge. In an instant, the veins on Xia Yu's forehead bulged.
He felt a ball of fire burning inside him. Crucially, this wasn't just a feeling; it was a fact, as the Pyromancy Flame merging with chaos was truly burning his body.
"My body won't even let the first flame burn it. A mere Pyromancy Flame thinks it can use my body as kindling!"
At that moment, Xia Yu channeled all the power within him. Those complex energies turned into a torrent, enveloping the Pyromancy Flame that was currently fusing with chaos.
For a brief moment, the Pyromancy Flame seemed to pause. Just as it tried to flare up, the various powers surged forward, completely drowning it out.
"Phew, is that all?"
Xia Yu wiped his forehead. He could already feel the Pyromancy Flame's submission. Now, there was no need for delicate control; he just had to wait for the Pyromancy Flame to slowly fuse with the chaos.
"Is it done, my friend?" Solaire asked, putting away his straight sword and shield and walking over when he saw Xia Yu open his eyes.
"Yeah, it's done," Xia Yu smiled. "Thanks, Warrior of Sunlight. Praise the Sun."
"Praise the Sun!"
...[dark souls i]: Thanks for the help, everyone. It's over on my end.
[clash of clans]: So the red spider girl is dead?
[dark souls i]: Sort of, but the soul is still here, so it's not a complete... [clash of clans]: Shut up, you beast! My Quelaag, you died such a miserable death! Why did you have to die... [dark souls i]:... [dark souls iii]: So, was Quelaag's upper body really wearing nothing?
[dark souls i]:...I was focused on the fight and didn't notice.
[clash of clans]: Bah, are you even a man!
[dark souls iii]: Bah, eating alone, are we!
[marvel]: Bah, scumbag!
[nier: automata]: Bah, selfish!
Watching a bunch of horny people in the group flame him, Undead Xia Yu felt no ripples in his heart; he even felt like laughing. Is that all?
He was eating alone, so what!
[dark souls i]: Stop dreaming and give up. Besides, I've already put Quelaag's body into a Red Envelope. If you want to see, go ahead and claim it.
The various Xia Yus:... [clash of clans]: I used to think the Ashen One was heavy-tasted and disgusting enough, but I didn't expect someone to be even bolder. Whose subordinate is this!
[dark souls iii]: You freaking... [nier: automata]: Good grief, turns out not a single person in the Soul World is normal. I thought the Undead was quite serious.
[ghostwire: tokyo] @[nier: automata]: By the way, the nier: automata in my world is getting an anime adaptation. Do you want to watch it?
[nier: automata]:!!!
[nier: automata]: Send it to me! Send it to me now!
In the Nier World, Neil Xia Yu jumped right off his stool in shock. He never expected that one day he'd be able to watch an anime of his waifus; he was too excited.
"Is something wrong, Lord?"
A2 saw Xia Yu dazing in his office chair before suddenly jumping up. Thinking something had happened, she hurriedly stood in front of Xia Yu to inquire.
"Ah? Oh, it's nothing. I just needed to move around after sitting for so long." Noticing A2's worried expression, Xia Yu reacted immediately, explaining while hopping around.
He couldn't exactly say he was excited because he was about to see an anime of them.
Seeing that Xia Yu was truly fine, A2 breathed a sigh of relief and suggested, "Since you're tired of sitting, why don't we go for a walk, Lord? Your health cannot have the slightest problem."
"Hmm... alright then."
With the suggestion, Xia Yu also felt like he had been a shut-in for too long lately. It was time to go out and breathe some fresh air.
So he naturally took A2's hand and walked outside. A2 didn't refuse... [nier: automata]: Hehehe, A2's little hand is so soft and warm... ahem, where's the anime! Where's my anime!
[ghostwire: tokyo]:...What's the rush? It only starts broadcasting in January on my end. It's only December now; you have to wait at least another month.
[nier: automata]: Dammit! Then why the hell did you mention it!
[ghostwire: tokyo]: Hehe, be nicer to me, or I might not send it to you.
[nier: automata]:...Brother, I was wrong or2
[ghostwire: tokyo]: Nice butt~
[marvel]:...This person—no, this ghost—what's wrong with him? So disgusting.
[clash of clans]: To be fair, it really is disgusting.
[dark souls iii]: From this, we can conclude it's not that we are individually disgusting, but that Xia Yu is inherently disgusting.
The various Xia Yus:...Good grief, this guy is making sweeping generalizations again, really not afraid of offending people.
[Xia Yu has joined the Chat Group!]
[dark souls iii]: Oh? A newcomer again.
[Xia Yu]: I just joined the group and saw someone calling me disgusting! Who the hell are you!
[Xia Yu]: Ah, so it's all just me. Dammit, why would anyone call themselves disgusting!
[resident evil]: Newcomer, ignore that guy. Which world? What's your status?
[dark souls iii]: Rare indeed. I didn't make a vow this time, yet a newcomer joined. Congratulations, congratulations!
[dark souls iii]: Almost forgot, I didn't make a vow last time either.
[Xia Yu]: None of that matters. I just have one question: can you guys deal with a high-dimensional evil god? My world is about to be destroyed by Him.
The various Xia Yus:...Seems like a formidable fellow has arrived.
[resident evil]: Him? High-dimensional? Evil god?
[Xia Yu]: Yes, but it's not His true body descending, but a single drop of His soul.
[Xia Yu]: I have reasons I can't let go of here, so I can't abandon this world. There's still endless gourmet food waiting for me to create.
[Xia Yu]: So, please help me!