### Chapter: 403
Holy Magic and the Orb.
To reconstruct Kraush’s vessel, Aria and Crimson Garden, along with Terasius, personally prepared the materials.
Kraush’s vessel had completely melted away after his fierce battle with Abella, and it had been a struggle to reclaim it ever since.
However, Kraush didn’t consider it a bad experience at all. In fact, he realized a lot because of it.
Surrounding Kraush were countless connections, and these ties didn’t just vanish because he had lost his power.
Instead, they’d work tirelessly to support him in areas where he fell short.
There wasn’t a single person who would turn away from him just because he was powerless.
That realization held more value than anything for Kraush. He had no regrets about sacrificing everything to protect the world.
But still, a sense of longing lingered within him.
When one cannot grasp something, they tend to fantasize about it, but when they lose what they had, they often reminisce about it.
Kraush was no exception.
That nagging sensation at the back of his mind was something he felt often.
But now, Kraush was feeling a flow of power course through him as freely as it hadn’t in a long time.
He inhaled deeply.
The power forcing its way in was shattering every remnant of the decayed within him.
Every time that happened, ragged breaths escaped his lips.
Cold sweat began to drip down.
He had somewhat prepared himself when they mentioned reconstructing the vessel that had melted away. But this was definitely an unbearable pain like none he had experienced before.
“I can see why Aria said it like that.”
Memories surged back of when he fully absorbed the power of the White Dragon King with the help of the Demon Lord.
The process of reconstituting his entire body was something he had personally endured and realized just how horrific it was.
He didn’t expect to relearn it all again today.
“Extreme.”
Swallowing back the conviction from his parched throat, Kraush closed his eyes.
Instead, he focused on the chaotic power smashing through his insides.
The Orb contained the fundamental essence of the corrupted dragon, Barkra.
The wicked dragon, a member of the fallen dragon royalty, had ravaged surrounding nations, rampaging wildly.
Perhaps that was the reason; the power of the corrupted dragon was saturated with such a wretched aura that even world erosion was frightening.
This was a curse.
An unbearable curse born from the howls of the wicked dragon.
Kraush couldn’t quite grasp what life the dragon lived, but one thing was certain: it hated the world ceaselessly, and its resentment reached all the way into Kraush’s world.
It sought to extinguish all life, and ultimately, it wished for its own flame to die out.
That wickedness’s curse was ruthlessly shattering Kraush’s vessel to pieces.
But simply destroying it wouldn’t bring any help.
Crimson energy began to seep from Kraush’s eyes.
The essence of the Celestial Star started to show its power.
Born of the Celestial Star, one could expect to curse the world, howl with rage, and purge a murderous intent.
Strangely, the force of the Celestial Star bore some resemblance to the dragon’s curse.
Much like how Kraush neutralized the murderous intent contained within the Celestial Star during the frenzy of world erosion, the curse of the wicked dragon could also be reined in by the Celestial Star.
The surging wrath of the Celestial Star burst through Kraush’s body, colliding with the wicked dragon’s curse.
The clash sent his mind spinning into a fog, but Kraush tightened his grasp on his consciousness.
Simultaneously, the Holy Magic—crafted from the collaboration between Crimson Garden and the Demon Lord—began to pour forth its power in earnest.
As the Celestial Star clashed against the wicked dragon’s curse, the aftermath filled his insides with Holy Magic.
Holy Magic was virtually akin to divine power.
Though it was merely remnants now, Kraush’s flesh had once reached divine heights, and it was rapidly absorbing this Holy Magic throughout his body.
At the same time, Immortality began to stir.
Immortality had the inherent ability to restore the vessel of the soul back to its original form.
Thus, now that his soul vessel was shattered, Immortality actively sought to mend it.
Multiple phenomena were occurring simultaneously within Kraush’s body.
At the center of it all, Kraush was obviously feeling like he was at death’s door, yet somehow, a smile was creeping onto his lips.
He could feel it.
The shattered vessels returning to their original shape and his body starting to revive.
That fact warmed Kraush’s heart.
“Laughing amidst all this? You’ve gone insane.”
Crimson Garden muttered, giving Kraush a dumbfounded look.
Others might have been fainting or biting their tongues because they couldn’t bear the pain, yet here was Kraush smiling.
But he couldn’t help it.
The joy of reclaiming what he once lost was far more significant than he imagined.
‘Never thought I’d feel this longing.’
In the end, Kraush was yearning for those days when he could advance unrestricted.
He resolved to thank Aria later.
With that thought, Kraush focused inward once again.
—
It took roughly two days for Kraush to fully reconstruct his vessel and assimilate the power.
After those two days, when reconstruction was finally complete, Kraush promptly collapsed, passing out from sheer exhaustion.
Having hit his physical limits, he could no longer sustain consciousness.
So after two more solid days of sleep, when Kraush finally woke up, he felt refreshingly alert like never before.
Sure, he felt stiff from everywhere, but it was nothing compared to the struggle he had endured when his vessel melted down.
He immediately sat up as soon as he opened his eyes.
Then he swiftly began inspecting his insides.
Kraush awakened the power of the Aura that resided within him.
Though it was somewhat lacking compared to his experiences with world erosion and Aria, Kraush easily surpassed the master level.
With the vessel melting, the Aura had also been suppressed, so he hadn’t been able to tap into it properly.
Awakening the Aura after so long, it surged up from within Kraush’s body, quickly scouting through his internals.
It was in motion.
It was moving remarkably smoothly.
As this realization struck him, Kraush’s eyes widened in surprise, followed by a burst of laughter.
“Haha.”
Could he really experience such a day again?
He could undoubtedly feel power flowing distinctly through his body.
Of course, it couldn’t compare to his peak.
Back then, he was using all methods possible to claw his way up.
But this was more than sufficient.
Kraush conjured Ignis, igniting flames.
The grayish flames, a blend of the wicked dragon’s power and Holy Magic, flared high.
It was a different type of flame from the black and white flames he’d wielded before.
Kraush gripped his hand tight.
Though it wasn’t blazing as fervently as before, seeing the flames in front of him made it clear.
‘I can grow again.’
That alone was enough.
He wasn’t starting from the bottom like before.
With a foundation laid out for him, he would rapidly regain his strength and continue growing.
“Don’t go crawling back to world erosion again.”
Just as that certainty settled in, Kraush lifted his head, tracking the voice he heard.
The voice belonged to someone he knew very well.
Crimson Garden August.
Now she was an immortal who had abandoned her immortality.
Though she had cast it aside, she remained determined to monitor the lifespan of her subjects.
Seeing her, Kraush couldn’t help but smile.
“Why would I give up on the easiest way to get stronger?”
“Try saying that in front of your wives.”
“Just kidding.”
Kraush was done with world erosion, and he no longer felt the need to take risks with dangerous techniques like Extreme Blood Poison.
His inherent power was more than enough.
“How’s the body constructed from Holy Magic?”
That was what Crimson Garden was genuinely curious about.
Hearing that, Kraush chuckled briefly and rose from the bed.
“Want to test it out?”
What a provocative statement.
But Crimson Garden didn’t scoff at his words.
Instead, she looked down at Kraush and said,
“It wouldn’t be so bad to see how easily I could break this body I crafted for you.”
What a terrifying thing to say.
But it was clear that Crimson Garden was also eager to find out Kraush’s current physical capabilities.
Kraush, too, was curious to see just how far the newly formed body could push its strength.
It was a fine match-up.
“Typically, it’s rather common for a disciple to defeat their master, so be careful.”
“Hmph, you’re still way off.”
The Demon God, Crimson Garden August.
Kraush had thrown down the gauntlet at her.
—
Following Crimson Garden, they arrived at the Magic Laboratory of the Jeblam Royal Palace.
Given this was a place Terasius often utilized for magic experiments, it had been set up with a wide array of spatial, defensive, and enhancement magic.
In the middle of this massive laboratory, Kraush and Crimson Garden stood facing each other.
They were attended by Terasius and Eri, who had both collaborated on the Holy Magic research.
“Ready to fight right after waking up? Aren’t you getting tired of this yet?”
Eri looked at Kraush with a baffled expression.
Considering he had just woken up, one would think he might want to rest a bit longer, yet here he was ready to jump right into action.
“I shouldn’t have even bothered to nurse you back to health,” Eri grumbled.
She had been the one providing care to Kraush during his slumber, and she half-joked that she might as well have restrained him to let him sleep more.
In the meantime, Kraush was loosening up his body.
Stretching his legs and swinging his arms, he finally loosened his neck and looked over at Crimson Garden with a grin.
“I feel like the best I’ve ever felt in my life.”
“Who do you think cast that magic on you? Of course, it’s only natural.”
Crimson Garden sniffed, raising her hand.
“The start is—”
“Whenever you’re ready.”
With Kraush’s reply, Crimson Garden snapped her fingers.
At that moment, dozens of magic circles appeared behind her.
Feeling the power contained within the circles, Kraush let out a wry smile.
How ruthless.
But that was just how Crimson Garden rolled.
He wasn’t too worried about hitting her with all he had.
Kraush drew his sword.
Unlike before, he didn’t have the Rain Thunder Prime or the Heavenly Sword.
So the weapon in his hand was a plain sword.
‘Let’s see.’
It was time to stretch his muscles a bit.
But just as that thought crossed his mind and he powered up the sword, it began to violently tremor.
Clank!
The sword shattered suddenly, sending shards flying in all directions.
Kraush stood there in shock.
Seeing this, Crimson Garden snapped her magic back into place.
Kraush looked down at the broken sword with incredulous eyes.
Crimson Garden couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Before you fight anyone, maybe you should get a new sword.”
“… Right?”
Kraush suddenly found himself missing the Rain Thunder Prime.
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