The stunned watchers had no clue if Jasmine had truly eliminated Rain or not, considering that his form could scatter and reconstruct somewhere else... even Bishop Na’thir and the Hound refused to accept what their eyes had fed them.
"His soul is secured within the Hexgaze Lurker’s subconscious barrier... no one at this low rank has what it takes to kill him unless they catch the Lurker."
Hound frowned deeply as he switched his focus to the Chameleon with the rest of the watchers... Gamemaster Envy had highlighted the Lurker so everyone could track Levi’s chase.
However, the moment Hound’s eyes landed on the chameleon, his breath hitched in disbelief. He swiftly reached out to the Bishop and uttered, "Master... he is glitching... it happened."
"Shut it... I have eyes."
Bishop Na’thir’s expression turned glacial at the sight of the Chameleon glitching uncontrollably between spiritual, physical, and illusory states. Though Levi had yet to close the distance, the Bishop knew the outcome was already a foregone conclusion.
As the mastermind behind Rain and Hexlurker’s merger, he was proud of himself for having created one of his greatest masterpieces... two entities with aspects/innate traits that synchronize to perfection, giving birth to the perfect assassin.
An untouchable ghost.
Yet, he eventually discovered that Rain suffered from a fatal defect: if either entity sustained even the slightest harm, their combined form would begin to glitch uncontrollably.
It was as if their souls were instinctively clawing to separate and restore the natural order. After all, they hadn’t signed a binding contract or been born as one; their souls and bodies had been forcibly stitched together on a surgical table until they were considered as ’one.’
"Such a severe reaction... his primary soul must have sustained immense damage." Bishop Na’thir shifted his frigid gaze back toward Jasmine, though a sliver of intrigue remained buried in the depths of his eyes. "I don’t know how this girl managed it... But the Gamemaster’s silence during her techniques implies her Aspects are shielded by Nocturn’s authority. And Nocturn never cloaks a Rifter’s knowledge unless he deems it a secret worth keeping."
His reaction was shared by Bishop Va’ren and the rest of the powerhouses, who felt like they had underpaid for such a shocking game... like it wasn’t enough to find out about Levi’s Aetheric Flames.
Now, they have discovered two unknown Aspects that none of them, or even the network, seemed to have a clue about... During ancient times, this situation might not have been that surprising, given that there were thousands of known Aspects, if not more, hidden.
But in this day and age? It was rare, too rare... especially for such a high-quality aspect with properties to alter reality.
"Black and White inks... two opposite aspects with an immense binding authority." Bishop Va’ren let out a long exhale to calm his agitated heart, "If I have the girl and her nightcrawler bloodlines, I might have a shot at creating my own branded original potion recipes with similar powers..."
Bishop Va’ren wasn’t the only one with malicious thoughts... many other entities from different noble houses, fields of study, or mysterious backgrounds instantly saw Jasmine’s immense value that went beyond what a commoner’s mind could think of.
When adding Levi’s ownership of the Soulleech Maw to the mix, all of them memorized three names with no intentions of ever forgetting them: Levi Larson, Jasmine Rahma, and lastly...
’Terra...’
’Terra... I have to reach out to the Clan and update them quickly... other Houses will start investing their resources on this planet, and we have to be first.’
’Send word to the Elders... Terra is not a waste, as the scouts reported. It is a breeding ground for anomalies... If we don’t establish a foothold now, we’ll be fighting over the scraps of their influence in a decade!’
’I want a full dossier on every known phenomenon or unknown currently on Terra! These kids can’t emerge from the same planet, the same region, without a divine intervention! I believe Terra is one of the many focal points favored by the universe, and we have to explore it fully... for our vision, our truth, our quest...’
Whether it was Boundless Noble Houses, Mysterious Cults/Organizations, or just curious parties... Levi and Jasmine had called for a storm on that small blue marble, and it was paved with the greed of a thousand empires.
Whoosh! Whoosh!...
While the powerhouses schemed in the darkness, Jasmine couldn’t care less about the storm she had unleashed... the moment she eliminated Rain, she felt every ounce of energy sapped out of her system, leaving her incapable of even resisting the momentum of the rope.
She had invested everything within her to erase Rain, and her friends were the first to notice the negative changes... just as she was about to be swept by the wind and thrown to the abyss, Nurah emerged from her shadow and caught her.
’You can rest now... You really went all out.’
Nurah showed a comforting smile as she helped Jasmine sit on the rope’s surface... yet, Jasmine’s expression remained unchanged.
She had used one of the most powerful abilities in her arsenal... an ability that assured her of killing almost anyone at a similar rank to hers since Ink and Erasure authority superseded many other Aspects under the laws of the universe.
Though it was always at the price of her entire energy reservoir, which meant she couldn’t use it against multiple enemies or if her energy levels weren’t at their peak.
In addition, she had to paint her target in great detail to ensure the erasure, which added another condition.
Still, it was a fearsome ultimate.
While everyone was stunned that Jasmine could pull off such an insane feat, Jasmine knew that it wasn’t enough.
’It’s not over yet... I haven’t been rewarded half of his collected horns.’
She sent a message to everyone, her eyes tracing Levi and the glitching Chameleon on the other side.
Hearing this, Nurah and the rest of the Daywalkers switched their attention to the chase... the moment they picked up on the glitching Chameleon, their expressions turned stern.
"So, that’s what Levi has been after."
"Is that the mercenary’s real form?"
Arthur and the others had no clue what Levi was doing earlier, as he didn’t tell them about the Chameleon... and since no one could see it besides him and Jasmine, all they could do was put their trust in Levi.
"Real form or not... Let’s get moving!" Tyrese shouted, "Kill him, and the game ends!"
Tyrese’s shout was all it took to snap the Daywalkers out of their daze. They surged across the rope to assist their captain, driven by a simmering rage; after being left helpless, feeling as though their lives were no longer their own, every one of them harbored a deep, burning hatred for Rain and his partner.
Meanwhile, Arthur, Shia, and Nurah stayed behind to take care of Jojo and Jasmine... they knew that Levi had it handled sooner or later.
Unbeknownst to them, the Hexgaze Lurker might be glitching and didn’t seem to have much control over his forms, but he was still as slippery as ever.
"Damn it... I can’t even trap him." Levi frowned deeply.
He stood hundreds of meters away from the Chameleon, sweat rolling down his forehead and soaking into his black bandana. He had exhausted every trick at his disposal, yet he still came up empty-handed.
The Hexgaze Lurker had mastered the art of slipping one’s grasp... whether it was physical, spiritual, or even mental... He dealt with them all in their own ways, leaving Levi more helpless than when he had fought against Fang.
It might seem like the Hexgaze was just wasting time since his death was guaranteed at the end of the game, but in reality, he wasn’t just surviving... during the entire chase, he was always aiming at collecting the tens of spawned Giant Horns around him and Levi!
He had collected so much that Levi was forced to collect any nearby Giant Horn to avoid handing it over.
It seemed like the viewers had finally noticed after picking up on the rapid increase in the Conqueror’s Faction’s collection of points.
-Raiders: 176/ Conquerors: 85..86..87.-
-What the... how are they catching up to them so fast?!-
-Is there a system bug or something?!-
-Huh... It’s him! It’s the weird Chameleon!-
The answer was immediate, leaving the spectators breathless: the glitching Chameleon was blinking almost instantaneously from one Giant Horn to the next, flickering across the battlefield like a stuttering crimson shadow!!
The instant one spawned in its vicinity, it was already claimed!
The fact that the Giant Horns’ spawn rate had increased immensely at the later stages of the game didn’t help the Raiders either!
"What a twist!! Even after everything the Raiders went through, the Conqueror’s Faction refuses to die!! There are still five more minutes to the game, and it doesn’t seem like Jor’Thyrek has any intentions of slowing down!" Gamemaster Envy shouted, pleased with the development.
He knew that the game would be marked in history with his name on it if the Raiders’ Faction failed to win the event in such a cruel manner.
A single Chameleon, who didn’t seem to have any other powers besides his ability to avoid capture, was going to be the end of them!