Chapter 496: Extractions
The Heart Grasp Spell was a curse-type spell designed to strike directly at the heart of the target.
With all four casting the spell simultaneously, they were all confident that Vale didn't have countermeasures as he had yet to consume his third Darkness Possession potion.
Furthermore, they already knew about the Malefic Branch Spells, the Spell Dispersion and the Incorruptible Body. According to the information they received, Vale's achievement with these spells shouldn't have reached the Intermediate Realm yet.
With that in consideration, Vale would be incapable of resisting four curse spells simultaneously.
The blond man was also confident that Vale would die at this point since he should be vulnerable to this attack.
The curses hit Vale at the same time, and they heard two cracking sounds. It seemed that the spells shattered his defenses as well.
The ambushers were confident that Vale would have perished by now. However, upon inspecting Vale's body using their Phantasm State, they were taken aback to discover that his life force still persisted. The spell meant to destroy his heart had failed to claim his life.
Confusion filled the air as the ambushers tried to comprehend what had just transpired.
"W-what?" One of them stammered as he considered whether Vale had five hearts.
"He must have received some kind of protective spell from the Tower. Let's try again." Another suggested, refusing to believe that Vale could employ the same trick multiple times.
Unable to cast the Tier 2 Heart Grasp spell due to its cooldown, the ambushers opted for different deadly curse spells instead.
They unleashed "Heart Blade," "Brain Burst," "Soul Curse," and "Flesh Rot," targeting Vale's physical body.
But just as they launched their assault, Vale's voice rang out, uttering the words of a spell.
"Spell Dispersion..." He calmly invoked.
The four curse spells were instantly dismantled. The blond man, who had been contemplating his own escape after obtaining the Creation Ring, was also unable to activate his Shadow Steps.
A cold glint settled on Vale's eyes as he declared, "No one will leave this room."
He then summoned Yvaine, his Dark Spirit, and simultaneously activated his Water Domain Spell, a spell he extracted from Aersus.
The combined effects of Spell Dispersion and the pressure emanating from the Water Domain disrupted the ambushers' movements despite not being near a body of water. Well, they may not be in a nearby lake or body of water, but they are still in a humid area.
Yvaine immediately made her move and summoned dark tendrils to suppress each enemy in turn.
"I'm running low on energy. Let me take some from them." Yvaine said, and she didn't even wait for Vale's reply before taking some of their strength.
Vale didn't mind her actions as he understood that if he allowed these five individuals enough time, they would likely call upon another entity to possess their bodies—an ability the Vessels excelled at.
He didn't feel satisfied just yet, so Vale activated his Evil Eye, a spell capable of inflicting mental harm on its target.
"I'm not sure how effective this is, but I hope you guys won't go insane..." Vale muttered.
As the spell struck the Vessels, their already vulnerable bodies weakened, causing them to kneel to the ground.
"Vale! You're going to die here!"
But the battle was far from over, as Vale watched them use their remaining strength to activate their Mystical Artifacts.
Uncertain about the power of the necklaces they wore, Vale knew he had to act swiftly. He employed his Lightspeed Spell, striking each of them in the sternum with precision, rendering them unconscious.
"You shouldn't give me that kind of warning..." Vale muttered as he quickly took the necklaces they were wearing.
The battle seemed too easy, but it was because he managed to stop them from using their possession ability. Once they've gotten possessed by another Entity, Vale would not be sure if he could win against them so easily.
Furthermore, despite knowing that he has Spell Dispersion, they trusted that it wouldn't be strong enough to dispel Tier 2 Dark Spells.
Vale wasn't sure if they had problems in their heads, but they seemed to have underestimated him too much.
They don't even have some decent backup plans in case they fail to kill him using their Heart Grasp Spell.
With a sigh, Vale scanned the surroundings and confirmed that there were no other Arcanists watching them. It was thanks to the Formation Art they arranged before attacking him.
"The Barrier Formation should last for a few more minutes. I can still interrogate them." Vale muttered... However, before that, he decided to extract all of them.
Since they are all Dark Arts Practitioners, they must have some decent Spells in their bodies.
[ Living Human has been discovered. Would you like to start the extraction? ]
"Yes..."
[ Extraction Successful. Energy +40, Strength +0.2, Agility +0.2, Intelligence +0.5, Incomplete Spell Light, Complete Create: Shadow Soldier Spell Model, Memory Fragment ]
[ Extraction Successful. Energy +40, Strength +0.2, Agility +0.2, Intelligence +0.5, Incomplete Spell Light, Complete Heart Grasp Spell Model, Memory Fragment ]
[ Extraction Successful. Energy +40, Strength +0.2, Agility +0.2, Intelligence +0.5, Incomplete Spell Light, Complete Create: Shadow Soldier Spell Model, Memory Fragment ]
[ Extraction Successful. Energy +40, Strength +0.2, Agility +0.2, Intelligence +0.5, Incomplete Spell Light, Complete Create: Shadow Soldier Spell Model, Memory Fragment ]
As soon as Vale got his third incomplete Spell Model of the Create: Shadow Soldier Spell, he immediately felt that something had changed in his body... It was a bit painful, and dark energy had even started leaking out of his body. However, he was able to endure it and he returned to normal after.
Even without checking his attribute panel, he knew that he advanced his Level 7 Create: Shadow Soldier to Level 8!
As for the content of the Memory Fragments, it contained information regarding the Evanescent Vessels or the method of having their bodies possessed.
This also includes some information related to the Creation Ring and their plans to do with it.
After consolidating these memories, he finally turned his attention to the blond man. Vale took the Creation Ring in his hands before he started his extraction.
[ Extraction Successful. Energy +40, Strength +0.2, Agility +0.2, Intelligence +0.5, Incomplete Spell Light, Complete Light Absorption Spell Model, Complete Terror Grasp Spell Model, Memory Fragment ]