Family members do not fear each other or guard against one another.
"This is the critical moment that decides success or failure..." Ron quickly weighed the pros and cons in his heart.
Reason told him he should retreat immediately and activate protective magic.
But intuition told him this was the only chance to gain Nari’s complete trust.
If he failed, he might suffer severe physical damage, possibly leading to irreversible mutations.
But if he succeeded, he would gain absolute protection and support from an Apostle-level entity.
The weighing lasted less than three seconds.
"Of course, I would trust you."
Instead of retreating, Ron stepped forward resolutely, arms open wide, to embrace the tentacle emanating an aura of death.
"Because you are my mother, and I am your child. Family members... shouldn’t be afraid of each other."
As soon as these words were spoken, all of Nari’s eyes widened.
It clearly hadn’t anticipated Ron’s courage and trust.
Throughout its long life, no creature had dared to actively touch its contaminating tentacles, let alone in such a trusting manner.
The moment the tentacle touched Ron’s body, hell descended.
Intense pain swept through his entire body like electricity; it wasn’t ordinary pain but rather a complete restructuring from the cellular level.
He could feel his being forcefully rewritten, with his entire body undergoing distorted reactions, and even his thought patterns being invaded by foreign consciousness.
Strange scales began appearing on his skin, veins became swollen and black, and muscle tissues began to writhe autonomously.
Most terrifyingly, he could hear strange noises from within his body.
It was the sound of bones rearranging, organs shifting positions, blood altering composition.
Even more horrifying was the spiritual erosion.
Countless fragments of madness flooded into his brain like a tide; ancient malice from the depths of the Abyss attempted to infect every thought circuit.
He saw numerous possibilities of death, felt waves of extreme emotions like despair, fear, pain, and insanity.
Hallucinations began to appear before him:
Indescribable entities whispered in the shadows, and concepts of time and space became blurry.
Yet even amid such intense pain, Ron forced himself to remain rational.
He activated the "Star Eater’s Ravings," letting the star’s cold, indifferent power anchor his spiritual core.
Even more incredulously, Ron forced a smile upon his face.
It wasn’t a forced grin but rather a heartfelt expression.
Even as his body underwent hellish pain, even as his spirit suffered unimaginable torment, he still showed unconditional trust in Nari.
"Thank you... for being willing... to embrace me... mom..."
His voice was hoarse and broken due to pain, requiring immense willpower to utter each word.
"No! My child! Stop now!"
Nari emitted a cry of anguish and immediately retracted the tentacle.
Seeing the horrifying contamination marks on Ron’s body, its guilt and self-reproach erupted like a volcano within.
"Mom didn’t mean to! Mom just wanted... just wanted to see... didn’t think it would turn out like this..."
Nari’s voice was filled with remorse and heartache; it frantically searched for something within itself.
Its massive body rolled violently in the seawater, churning up stormy waves.
"Wait! Mom has a way! Mom definitely has a way to save you!"
The next moment, a large eye deep within Nari’s body began to separate a fist-sized fruit.
The surface of the fruit flowed with a life-like radiance, exuding an enchanting fragrance.
"This is the ’Life Fruit’! One of mom’s most precious collections!"
Nari carefully presented the fruit to Ron, urgency in its voice:
"Quick, eat it! It can reconstruct any damaged life structure, including the mutations caused by Abyssal contamination! Please, you must get better..."
Ron trembled as he took the unusually valuable fruit.
Even amidst the intense pain, he could feel the terrifying life energy contained within the fruit.
It was almost equivalent to the total life energy of an entire city.
The fruit melted as he took it, transforming into a warm current that washed through his whole body.
The twisted muscle tissues began returning to normal, mutated veins reverted to their original shapes, and even the spiritual wounds rapidly healed.
More wondrously, the healing process not only eliminated damage but also brought additional benefits.
Ron felt his essence of life strengthened.
His resistance to Abyssal Power increased significantly, even his cellular regeneration ability gained permanent enhancement.
[Constitution 3.9→4.3(+0.4)]
[Gained Special Talent: Contamination Resistance·Middle]
"How is it? Does it still hurt? Is there any discomfort?"
Nari asked with concern, all its eyes focused on Ron, fearing to miss any signs of distress.
Such worry was so sincere and pure; she had completely immersed herself in the role of a mother.
"I’m completely healed, even better than before."
Ron replied genuinely, reaching out to gently stroke the nearest ordinary tentacle of Nari:
"Thank you for saving me, mom."
This closeness made Nari tremble with excitement.
The entire storm environment underwent intense fluctuations due to its emotional shifts.
"My dear child... Mom’s true beloved child..."
Nari’s voice is filled with maternal fulfillment and happiness.
"Now, let’s perform that fusion ritual."
Nari began to mobilize the Chaos Power within, but this time not for destructive release, but for precise environmental modification:
"Mom will create the most perfect environment for you, ensuring no one can disturb our family gathering."
Around them, the Chaos Storm started to undergo miraculous transformations.
Under Nari’s precise control, originally chaotic energy rearranged and combined, forming a stable experimental space.
Gravity, temperature, humidity, even the flow of time, were adjusted to the most suitable state for precision operations.
"Within this barrier, even Max, that keen old fellow, cannot perceive our existence."
Nari proudly introduced its masterpiece:
"Now, tell mom what you need to complete the ritual? No matter how precious the materials, mom will find them for you."
Ron looked at this ancient being willing to give him everything.
His heart surged with emotions hard to describe.
There was the satisfaction of a successful plan, the touch from Nari’s genuine emotions, and a heavy... sense of guilt.
But soon, the researcher’s rationality regained dominance.
Emotions are precious but should not interfere with rational judgment.
The ultimate goal of this contact is to gain power, gain knowledge, and gain the possibility of breaking through one’s limits.
"I need an absolutely stable space, along with a fusion environment for Soul Steel and Magic Crystal."
He began detailing the technical requirements of the fusion ritual:
"The entire process will take about seven to eight hours; any minute disturbance could lead to failure."
"No problem!"
Nari immediately agreed and began further modifying the surrounding environment:
"Mom’s child is to perform an important ritual; any being daring to disturb will be torn to pieces directly by mom!"
With this promise made, the surrounding space began to undergo even more precise changes.
Watching all this, Ron began formulating detailed plans for the next steps.
The fusion ritual was just the start, the real goal was to entirely transform the Stand-In Puppet into the ultimate weapon he dreamed of.
A magic sword capable of adapting to any environment, possessing self-evolution ability, and entirely under his control as an Active Magic Sword.
And now, he possessed the strongest protection, the most precious materials, the most perfect environment, and a "mother" willing to give him everything.
Everything was proceeding according to plan, even more smoothly than the most optimistic expectations.