"D-Dad…please, don't worry about…us." Brana roared in desperation upon seeing his father in such a plight, "Please, Dad! Please! Survive!"
"I'm dead as a father if I abandon my children!" The Boar King gritted his teeth and targeted the two Biome Bombs latched to his body, trying his best to grab them and pry them away from his children. His hands began to move faster and faster, raising his speed by repeatedly alternating between weightlessness and heaviness in order to chase after the strings and grab them respectively.
Less than ten seconds later, he managed to grab a string, only to see the Biome Bomb sever the string and condense a new one. As for the energy source required to condense it? Both the Biome Bombs were steadily stealing the Boar King's Prana and Lifeforce.
Thump!
His right knee slammed into the floor, no longer having the strength to get up as the Boar King severed it upon observing that he was unable to block the grey sand's invasion. But his problems didn't end there.
A moment later, eight strings jutted out of the Biome Bomb covering the severed leg and latched onto his body, revealing an opening through which grey sand spilt out. It was trying to target his other leg.
Prana surged in the stump of his right leg, intending to regenerate it. But in shock, he saw that the process was…damn slow. He was no longer in his prime. As a result, it was difficult for him to recover from injuries as easily as in his prime.
Something that would have taken him a fraction of a second would take minutes now. This regenerative speed was superior to Silver Grade Pranic Beasts and was on par with quite a few Gold Grade Pranic Beasts.
But for a pinnacle existence like the Boar King, this duration basically seemed like forever. His heart felt strained to pump blood through his body, unable to endure his dense state.
The Boar King could feel that his body's density was steadily dropping. No, all his twenty-plus Natures of Internal Inertial Gravity were still active. Yes, his stomach biome was still supplying Prana as usual.
However, the problem stemmed from the fact that due to his old age, his body and mind were unable to handle such a workload. Hence, the efficiency of his Prana began to drop, resulting in power vastly below what he was capable of in his prime.
The unfortunate reality of old age is that both your body and mind are no longer what they used to be. Stuff that you could casually execute in your prime could become insurmountable tasks now. And it only got progressively worse with the passage of time.
"Leave us, Dad!" Baga shouted while coughing up blood as the disease ridding him became stronger. As all his Prana had been expended already, his body's defences were at their lowest, making him more prone to the disease.
As a result, they were steadily approaching the end stage of the disease that Yennda had inflicted upon them, which was to become no different from a cripple, unable to do anything on their own and requiring significant care.
Yennda ensured that the disease wouldn't kill them. But it would very well bring them to death's door and give them a VIP experience. This was done originally to force the Boar King into leaving for the Cooter Clan in an effort to cure his kids.
Resha's actions changed everything, destroying whatever plan that others had crafted for the Wean Tribe.
"What's the use of surviving if you're dead?" Tears streamed out of his eyes in helplessness as the Boar King now seemed no different from a weary old man who was unable to protect his family in this dangerous world, "The last thing I want is to survive alone…"
"Big sister is alive!" Baga shouted, "And Braga is too. They're both in your stomach biomes. If you die, they'll die too. Dad! Just save them!"
Baga took in a deep breath before he opened his mouth and bit onto his tongue hard, intending to commit suicide.
"No!" The Boar King mourned as he collapsed to the ground, pleading, "Please! Stop it! My kids…spare them!"
"Why should we?" Resha snorted, his eyes bone-chilling. His face then scrunched up in surprise to see a tendril touch Baga and rapidly supply Lifespan to him, allowing his tongue to regrow in a matter of seconds and even make him a tad younger. He glared at Inala, "What is the meaning of this?"
Ignoring Resha's anger, Inala approached the Boar King, "As long as I'm alive, your kids will be safe. Just as I can steal your lifespan, I can give it back too. Your kids will live prosperous lives. I guarantee that. If they want to avenge you, I'll always face them fair and square."
He stared at the Boar King, "As long as you accept death, I'll protect your kids and ensure they develop to be on par with the Mammoth Clan and Cooter Clan."
"Do you…truly vow to do that?" The Boar King stared at Inala in a daze, "Why are you targeting me? We don't have any enmity."
"You're a Pranic Beast." The Boar King expressed helplessness, "To date, I have supported countless Pranic Beast races to grow and prosper. So, why do you hate me so much?"
"I don't hate you," Inala said and reverted to human form, revealing his male figure, "My daughter is Gannala."
"Do you understand now?"
"Ah…" The Boar King said as he slumped his head in defeat, having grown even older now, barely having a couple dozen seconds left to live. "This is…a repeat of history."
"It's not," Inala said and reverted to Royal Zinger form, keeping his guard up, "The only one dying today is you. Your family will be safe."
"I guarantee it on my name."
"Is that so…" The Boar King gazed at his kids helplessly one last time, on the verge of deactivating his Natures as he no longer had the physical and mental strength left to keep them active anymore, "I'm sorry. I wasn't strong enough."
"I…hope you keep your word." He stared at Inala and closed his eyes, ready to accept his death. But then, his face twisted upon seeing his second body land on the gate connecting Compartment 1-K to the centre. The two bodies were within range of 180 metres from each other, allowing their minds to be connected.
There was chaos in the connection, as the influences almost treated them as two separate individuals. But there was still an exchange of information, allowing him to understand everything.
Keuk!
The second body of the Boar King was sent flying as Geugeu transformed into a thundercloud and bombarded them. Boul Brimgan brought out nine golden feline giants and ganged up on him while Raaha made a beeline towards Yarsha Zahara and kicked her away first.
Once she was out of the picture, he thrust his plasma sword at the Boar King, aiming for his neck.
The first body was on the verge of death from old age while the second was about to be killed by the combined trio of Geugeu, Raaha, and Boul Brimgan.
Staring at the scene while still trembling in fear from various Compartments of Layer One were Empyrean Tusks. They instinctively feared the Boar King, unwilling to get close to him despite the situation being in their favour.
It was why when the Boar King was chasing after Resha, no Empyrean Tusk targeted him, including Rhanalla who was the second strongest. Instead, she ran away to an adjacent Path. After all, her Primary Nature was screaming at her to flee.
Even now, it was the same as she shouted, trying to communicate with the figure of Orakha who was the closest. They were separated by the walls of the Attributed Region, but as it was transparent, they could see each other.
"Run!"
She shouted, communicating it with Orakha through her body language.
"Why? We're on the verge of winning." Orakha said and pointed at both the bodies of the Boar King being bombarded by Inala's side and Raaha's side respectively.
"No, Run!" She shouted, expressing the urgency of the matter further.
"Wait a second…" Orakha felt a chill as he stared at Compartment 1-O and saw the Empyrean Tusk there exhibiting the same behaviour as Rhanalla. He noticed the Empyrean Tusk in Compartment 1-P doing the same.
1-B, 1-C, 1-D, and so on, in every Compartment of Layer 1 that had an Empyrean Tusk, Orakha observed that they were standing before the gates with a sense of urgency, shouting at him to run and also convey it to the trio targeting the Boar King.
"Virala, do you know what they're talking about…?" Orakha turned to his side and asked Virala, only to see the latter had transformed into an Empyrean Boar King and now was already close to a gate, sprinting at top speed, about to enter the Compartment on Layer One that he had a key for. "This fucker!"
Though Orakha was angry, he realised that Virala had a stronger situational awareness than him. The fact that he was desperately running away in this situation where they had an upper hand meant that things weren't as they seemed.
It was then did Orakha realised something was amiss, 'Wait! Why is Yarsha not retaliating after being sent flying by Raaha? With her speed, she should have joined the battle by now.'
He turned in her direction and observed her unleashing Prana Shocks in large numbers to move to the other corner of the Attributed Region's centre, going as far away from the Boar King as possible. 'She's…running away?'
He stared at both the figures of the Boar King, 'Inala and Resha are right next to the first body. The three powerhouses are next to the second body. This is…?'
'All of the Boar King's threats are in his proximity now!' A sense of foreboding enveloped him as Orakha bellowed, "Chief! Run! Run Away!"
"The Boar King is acting!"
An instant after his shout, over a hundred Bolts of Transcendence impacted the Attributed Region, damaging it beyond recovery. And then, a pillar of light exploded out and expanded into the skies limitlessly, displaying a phenomenon no different from when the Major Treasure of Attribute revealed itself.
But this…was stronger!