Absolute Cheater - Chapter 542
Chapter 542: Treasure X
Asher kept his eyes on the werewolf.
“The Devourer of World Bloodlines,” he said calmly, “isn’t just a trait. It’s a curse-level bloodline.”
The werewolf’s grin widened, but he didn’t interrupt.
“It allows you to devour bloodlines,” Asher continued. “Any bloodline. Any race. You break them down and turn them into your own strength.”
The werewolf’s claws flexed. “And?”
“And it’s too powerful,” Asher said. “A bloodline like that can’t exist on its own. It needs a stabilizing agent, or it destroys the host.”
The werewolf’s eyes flickered.
“Vampire blood,” Asher said. “That’s your stabilizer. Their blood is refined. Concentrated. It’s already close to an elixir. That’s why you hunted them.”
The werewolf laughed softly. “You understand more than most.”
“You weren’t killing out of hatred,” Asher said. “You were feeding to survive. To keep the Devourer from tearing you apart.”
The werewolf leaned forward. “And now I’ve found something better.”
Asher’s gaze sharpened. “Me.”
The werewolf lunged.
A wave of blood energy rushed toward it as Asher reacted on instinct.
The moment it touched the werewolf, it vanished.
Absorbed.
Asher’s eyes narrowed. He released more blood-based power. Crimson pressure flooded the area.
It disappeared again.
The werewolf laughed. “Useless. Every blood attack you use becomes mine.”
Asher stepped back once, reassessing.
“So that’s how it works,” he said. “Total blood absorption.”
The werewolf charged again, claws swinging.
Asher dodged, barely avoiding the strike. The ground cracked where the claws hit.
“Your Sanguine Supreme is impressive,” the werewolf said. “But against me, it only feeds the Devourer.”
Asher stopped using blood energy.
His presence shifted.
The red pressure faded, replaced by something sharper.
He reached over his shoulder and drew his sword.
Steel slid free with a clean sound.
The werewolf paused, surprised.
“No blood?” it asked.
Asher took a stance, calm and steady. “I don’t rely on one path.”
He moved first.
The sword flashed, cutting through the air toward the werewolf’s neck.
The werewolf raised an arm to block.
Steel met claw.
Sparks flew.
The impact pushed the werewolf back a step.
Asher pressed forward, each strike clean and precise. No blood energy. No abilities. Just pure swordsmanship.
The werewolf growled. “You think steel will save you?”
“No,” Asher said, slashing again. “I think it will hurt.”
The werewolf swung back, claws tearing through the air. Asher sidestepped and struck low, aiming for the leg.
The blade cut fur and flesh.
The werewolf roared in pain and jumped back.
Asher’s eyes stayed locked on him.
“You can eat bloodlines,” Asher said evenly. “But you can’t eat skill.”
He tightened his grip on the sword.
“And this fight,” he added, “just got simple.”
The werewolf snarled and rushed forward again, faster this time.
Its claws came down in a wide swing. Asher stepped inside the attack instead of backing away. His sword moved once, clean and sharp.
The blade cut across the werewolf’s chest.
Blood spilled.
The werewolf froze for half a second, staring at the wound in disbelief.
“You’re bleeding,” Asher said calmly. “That means you’re not invincible.”
The werewolf growled and slammed both fists into the ground. The impact cracked the stone and sent debris flying.
Asher jumped back and rolled to the side, avoiding the shockwave.
The werewolf didn’t give him time to recover. It charged again, claws aiming for Asher’s head.
Asher blocked with his sword. The force pushed him back several steps, his boots carving lines into the ground.
The werewolf pressed harder. “You should have kept using blood,” it said. “At least then you were feeding me.”
Asher twisted his wrist and knocked the claws aside. “That’s exactly why I stopped.”
He stepped forward and stabbed straight toward the werewolf’s shoulder.
The blade went in deep.
The werewolf howled and grabbed Asher’s arm, trying to crush it.
Asher released the sword instantly, spun, and drove his elbow into the werewolf’s jaw.
The grip loosened.
Asher kicked the werewolf in the chest, forcing distance between them.
The sword was still buried in the werewolf’s shoulder.
Asher raised his hand, and the blade flew back into his grip.
The werewolf staggered, breathing heavier now.
“You’re slowing down,” Asher said. “Devouring bloodlines doesn’t make you skilled. It just makes you greedy.”
The werewolf wiped blood from its mouth and snarled. “I’ll tear you apart.”
It rushed again, but its movements were less clean now. The injury was affecting its balance.
Asher saw it.
He stepped to the side, avoided the claws, and struck again—this time across the knee.
The werewolf collapsed to one leg with a roar.
Asher didn’t hesitate.
He brought the sword down, aiming for the neck.
The werewolf raised an arm at the last second, but it wasn’t enough.
The blade cut deep.
The werewolf fell backward, hitting the ground hard.
Asher stood over it, sword pointed down.
“This ends now,” he said.
The werewolf looked up at him, anger and fear mixed in its eyes.
“You could have stopped,” Asher continued. “You chose to keep hunting.”
He raised the sword.
“And that choice has consequences.”
The blade fell.
Clang.
The sword bounced back as if it had hit solid metal.
Asher was forced a step back. His right hand went numb from the impact, fingers tingling as the vibration ran up his arm.
He frowned and steadied his grip.
The werewolf’s body was changing.
The wounds on its chest and neck sealed shut as the flesh hardened. Fur pulled back, replaced by dull gray metal. Plates formed along its arms, shoulders, and spine, locking together like forged armor.
The werewolf stood up slowly.
“Hehe,” it laughed, the sound heavier now, like steel scraping stone. “I’ve layered over twenty bloodlines from different races.”
Asher kept his stance, eyes sharp.
“This one,” the werewolf continued, tapping its chest, producing a metallic clang, “is from the Steel Titan race. The best body cultivators you can find in the High Realm.”
It rolled its shoulders. Each movement rang faintly.
“Pure steel body,” it said proudly. “Not fake armor. Not energy. Real cultivated flesh.”