Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] Chapter 185: Book 3: Chapter 37: Admonishment

Read chapter 185 of Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

Book 3: Chapter 37: Admonishment Chapter 37: Admonishment “You gonna sleep forever?” He awoke still laying in the shallow water on the cave floor, his body burning with pain. He felt hands grab him beneath the shoulders and was lifted to find Lance looking at him with a smile. “I was thinking I earned a little nap.” He grinned softly. “Nah, you gotta go poke the altar, remember?” Garret clapped him on the shoulder, making him groan. “You’re the resident creepy statue activator. So, off you go.” He grumbled under his breath as a response before he mentally dove into his storage bracelet. It only took a pop of a cork followed by a single gulp, to down his healing potion. “Give me a second,” he said. The chimera beast was still lying at the pool’s edge, dead. But the cavern had been cleaned up as well. At least, there was no trace of Alex’s blood or the chimera’s purple fluids, that he could see. He assumed Henry had gone to work on the area with a water spell to powerwash it all away. Which was... smart actually. He knew where he needed to go and a quick jump took him across the small cavern in a single leap. Landing on unsteady legs, he managed to stagger up onto the platform on the other side of the pool. His bones still burned from forcing his caustic blood into overdrive, every throb of pain a reminder of what he’d done. But he wasn’t about to let that slow him down now. He stepped forward. The statue loomed ahead, its carved features were partly eroded, but its depiction of a serpent looking to the sky in anger gave off an aura in a way that set his teeth on edge. He decided not to waste time and placed one hand on the stone, forcing his will into it. The familiar chime of the System rang in his head. Hidden Objective Complete – Lake Biome Shrine Reward: +2,500 Dungeon Points [Lake’s Blessing] – Dungeon Effect Applied; The Chimera Hive’s link to the Lake has been cut. Dungeon chimeras have lost access to Kinetic Redirection. The words echoed like a bell toll through his skull. His lips curled into a tired grin. The objective was another step toward completing the dungeon. Behind him the others stood in the shallows of the pool. All of them were bruised and exhausted. Garret leaned on his shield with water still dripping off him in sheets. Allie’s glow still flickered faintly at her palms, casting pale arcs of light across the slick walls. Holly caught Alex’s attention across the cavern, a faint smile tugged at the corner of her mouth when they locked eyes. He straightened his posture as best he could, wiping blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. “That’s two biomes down. Forest and Lake. Means we’re that much closer to finishing this damned dungeon.” Garret huffed. “Good riddance, I was getting real tired of my own attacks being thrown back into my face.” “Wasn’t your face, Garret. It was your body. You’ve got plenty of padding there.” Holly said. “Hey—” “Don’t start,” Eric cut in, though his smirk betrayed the edge in his tone. The tunnels sloped upward in a slow spiral on their way back. Alex stumbled near the front with one hand dragging along the wall for balance while the other pulled a cork from yet another glass vial. The healing potion burned like sour liquor as it went down, stitching together torn muscle with a crawling tingle. He was abusing the potions, drinking far too many of them too quickly, something the Heavenly System didn’t like. Hence the burning sensation, and the horrid taste. He grimaced, then pressed his thumb against the first of the three gems slotted into his bracer. Its inner light dimmed as he siphoned its energy, trickles of its power bleeding back into his aether channels with every inhale of his lungs. “Always you, every boss fight ends with you half-dead, knocked out, or bleeding in ways I don’t even want to describe.” Holly muttered behind him. He didn’t look back at her. He just kept his gaze on the faint shimmer of light Obby was highlighting in his vision. The end the tunnel ah