Chapter 9 - A Rift And Awakening
Randy watched on with bloodshot eyes as Jeremiah led the way and his goons followed after him shortly after. As he did so, there was an extreme hatred seething in his heart and boiling in his blood as he solemnly swore to himself that day.
\'I will definitely get my revenge someday. Just wait for me, I let you slowly experience what I did today a hundred-fold…"
…
A few minutes later, Randy tried to get up again after failing to do so many times now. Since a while ago, he tried to get up and make it home before his parents start calling the academy regarding his whereabouts, but he found out that he was unable to move his body. Perhaps, it was due to the mental trauma he suffered just now or maybe his body had finally reached its limit for the day. After the intense training to getting beat up by Jeremiah Zhang\'s goons and finally getting his face burnt by Jeremiah himself. The more he thought about it, the more infuriated he felt.
Just why was he so unlucky? Both his parents had an ability, so it does not make sense for him to not have an ability himself. He had been enduring so much for the last few years when they discovered that he could not awaken his ability despite using different methods that the institution has. All that was so that one day, when he finally awakens his ability, he would show those people that look down on him. However, that does not mean that he does not have feelings and was willing to get bullied forever. Who would willing to get bullied if they can help it? Today\'s event showed him how cruel the current world really is. If you are not strong enough, you become the prey and even if you are strong enough to be considered something, there would always be someone out there better than you.
Randy had been aware of these things from an early age since his parents used to be hunters before retiring and giving birth to him and his siblings. But even if he knew about the state of the current world, he could not change his fate of not being an ability user. He started wondering if there was some cosmic entity out there that would be willing to somehow grant his wish. It does not matter if they were evil or good, as long as he can get stronger, it doesn\'t matter…
"I-It doesn\'t matter what being is out there! If I can at least have one energy compatibility, then it does not matter what ability I have!" Randy bellowed all his pent-up frustration at this moment. He wanted to change his fate and he does not care about how or what ability he gets at this point. The only thing that matters is that he can get stronger and thus change his fate.
"…"
However, after waiting for a couple of minutes that miraculous event had not happened like he had hoped. There is no such thing as a miracle in this world. If such a thing exists, then everyone would have achieved their dreams and aspirations easily without working hard. Randy felt dejected. Although he knew very well himself that such a thing is impossible, he still thought to believe that just maybe if he screamed it enough, the gods or the beings out there would listen to his cry of plea and bestow upon him his very own ability and power, but as it turned out just now, it was only a pipe dream.
\'Damn it! There were probably no gods or demons out there… If they exist, then they would have responded… Fuck! I can\'t even move my legs right now and my bracelet got crushed under the assault just now so I can\'t even call home. Why is everything going wrong today… Just why!\' Randy screamed internally since he could not afford to scream out loud anymore, afraid that he would exacerbate his internal injuries.
"If it is like this, then I will eventually die in some monster or beast outbreak if a rift suddenly appears somed… Eh?"
However at this moment, when Randy was breaking down psychologically, suddenly there was a tear in the space not far from his current location.
Spark!
Whoosh!
The wind in the surrounding started picking up as there was a black hole in space that was forming into an oval-like shaped rift. When Randy saw this, his eyes widen with shock. He was just talking about how he would die if a rift suddenly appeared one day, and he ends up dying due to not having the ability to fight back and now this happens. Even with his basic physical abilities already being at rank E, he would not be able to survive a fight with a monster with the same rank as him. Even E-Rank otherworldly creatures usually have some type of abilities, so he would be killed instantly if he dared to fight them. But now, what is happening in front of him? Was the world trying to kill him off or something? Why was he the only one so unlucky? Everyone in his class had awakened their ability. Even if some had weak abilities, it is still better than nothing. But what about him? He received nothing and yet there, in front of him, a rift was forming, and he could not even move to escape before the monsters or beasts or whatever creature in there start pouring out.
"Fuck!" Randy cussed out loud ignoring the sudden pain he felt as he did so. And then he proceeded to look at the black hole in the space as it suddenly started changing color.
"Forget it! Since I am going to die someday anyway then so be it. I pleaded to whatever cosmic entity that could save my situation, but I did not receive any response so dying like this is not bad. At least, nobody would find my corpse if the creatures ate it all up. Nobody would see my pathetic face as they mourn and ridicule my incompetence in life." Randy said to himself. At this point, he had already resigned to his fate and was going to face it head-on. His only regret would be his little sister, but if he was gone perhaps, she would be able to focus on her studies and become a great celebrity someday with her powers.
Randy shook his head as he held on tightly to his resolution. It does not matter what he feels right now, he would die either way once the creatures start pouring out of the rift in front of him.
A few moments later, the scene on the other side of the black hole, or more precisely the rift was revealed. It was a dark location with no light whatsoever and this got Randy\'s attention, wondering what type of monstrosity would be coming out of such pitch-black rift. While Randy was wondering, a figure suddenly jumped out of the gate instantly catching Randy\'s attention.
It was a flying creature and it stopped on top of Randy at this moment. It was a white ginormous furry creature that seemed to be a wolf. What surprised Randy was the fact that the wolf was flying in the sky.
\'A flying wolf. Since when do wolves fly? Wait, it seems to be wounded from some attack. Just what was it fighting to have such a large scar?\' Randy thought as he watched the creature hovering in the sky above him.
However, the creature had a confused expression at this moment as it suddenly opened its mouth and spoke in a fierce sounding tone. "Hm? A human? What is a human doing here? No, that is wrong… What am I doing here? Where is this place? I remember fighting that pale skin bastard and a portal appeared in front of me and then… Hm?"
The wolf-like creature stopped speaking as it turned its head around and saw the portal behind it. It wanted to go back, but then, it remembered that since that bastard was following behind him, then he would most likely come out of this portal thing as well.
"Damn it! If I wasn\'t injured by that vixen, I wouldn\'t be running for my life right now!" The wolf-like creature spoke loudly in annoyance. How could someone of his caliber run away from some weakling that served under that vixen? If they had not staged an ambush, he would have killed them all. Those pale bastards were so hard to sense with his nose without concentrating.
The wolf-like creature turned its head away from the portal. It decided to not go through the portal and venture into this unknown place instead. However before it could leave, it noticed that the little human was watching it with his mouth wide open as if he had seen a ghost.
It then thought of eating this human to recover its injuries, but he was not sure when the pale-skinned bastard would follow after him and any second matters right now, so he decided on not eating the human, thereby sparing Randy\'s life, and instead flew away while saying, "Human! You are so lucky that I do not have the time to waste otherwise you would\'ve ended up in my stomach right now! I quite enjoyed the taste of human flesh than any other creature… What a waste!"
However, the moment he flew away, the dripping blood from its wounds suddenly spurted out and Randy who was left speechless when he saw the wolf speaking just now was still dumbfounded even after the wolf broke the wall of the building and left. He continued to look up at the position where the wolf was before with bewilderment. He wondered if he was hearing things. He had never heard a beast or even a monster that can talk before.
It was at this moment, unbeknownst to Randy, the spurted blood from the wolf-like creature dripped down like a raindrop into his mouth and face, although the size of the drop was larger than a raindrop. It was carried by the gust of wind created when the creature suddenly took flight and flew away in a hurry.
Randy noticed that something entered his mouth at this moment, and he wanted to spit out whatever it was. However before he could do so, he felt the substance melt into his mouth, and he then had this sudden uncontrollable impulse to swallow it.
"Gulp!" The sound of the throat swallowing resounded.
"Fuck! What was that? What did I just swallow?!" Randy proceeded to touch his face and then he saw the blood in his hand before a realization suddenly dawned on him, "Wait, was it the blood of that wolf-like creature?"
He was bewildered about what happened just now as it felt like he could not control himself from swallowing the blood that entered his mouth.
"Wait… I am alive, I am actually alive, Hahahaha!! Ouch! Haha… Ouch!" Randy was so delighted that he suddenly could not stop himself from laughing. He actually managed to survive an impending doom. How lucky was he?
However, his happy moment was cut short when another silhouette in black suddenly dashed out of the portal, and just like the wolf-like creature from before, the figure was confused about his current location, but he ignored that a moment later, as he could smell the stench of the wolf-like creature from here, meaning it was here just moments ago. The figure then looks down and as he saw Randy, he had the sudden urge to attack him and drain his blood, but it held it down and ignored Randy before he started chasing after the wolf in flight.
"What?! He just left like that?! Does this mean I am luck— Arghhhhh!!" Before Randy could finish speaking suddenly there was a sharp pain in his already worn out and battered body. The pain was excruciating almost as if his body was set on fire in a furnace.
\'What the fuck is going on! What happened to my body! Am I going to die like this after surviving a crisis just now?!\' Randy inwardly wondered amidst his screaming voice.
"Gahhhhh! Arghhhh!" Randy was wailing about in pain. The pain seemed to stem from his blood suddenly boiling in his body. Randy could feel his mouth and body turn hot from the power contain in the inhuman blood. He screamed as he felt his body burn up and the sensation reminded him of his torture a while ago, but this is more intense.
Randy could feel his consciousness slipping away as the intensity of the pain kept increasing as time passed. There was visible redness to his skin that seemed to be burning out from the inside.
However, at the moment when Randy felt his consciousness slipping away from him due to the unbearable pain, at that time, a mysterious otherworldly voice suddenly resounded inside his head, amidst his vague consciousness that was fading away.
⟪[Detected A Low Life Form Awakening!]⟫
⟪[Location Detected: Low-Ranking Dimension.] ⟫
⟪[Detected An Ability Forming. Protocol: Assisting in the Awakening Process…]⟫
⟪[Detected An Anomaly in the Life Form. Applying A Solution.]⟫
⟪[Anomaly Resolved. Assisting further in the Awakening Process…]⟫
⟪[Ability Formed Successfully.]⟫
⟪[Congratulations! You have awakened as the Blood [%#@], granting you the ability to fully assimilate with other life forms\' blood and transitioning into their form, thus acquiring their abilities and traits.]⟫
⟪[Applying the Statistics Mechanism in the Life Form. Please Wait…]⟫
⟪[Detected the blood of the Werewolf King of Wind. Assimilation Commencing…]⟫
⟪[Assimilation of the Werewolf King\'s blood: 30% Completion.]⟫
⟪[Due to assimilating with the Werewolf King\'s blood, you have obtained these additional abilities and traits of the Werewolf King: Superior Regeneration[30%], Shapeshift(Werewolf)[30%], Heightened Senses[30%], Gale Riding[30%], Reinforcement (Strength of the Werewolf King[30%])]⟫