The power of the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment was completely beyond Purple Hammer's comprehension.
This kind of power was simply too incredible.
Eternal Imprisonment.
Eternal Imprisonment!
Purple Hammer no longer hesitated. He reached out and plucked the flower of the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment.
As the flower was plucked, the remaining five flowers withered away.
Purple Hammer looked at the vibrant flower in his palm and the red eyeball at the center of its petals. Taking a deep breath, he instinctively knew how to use it.
Gritting his teeth, he thrust the flower into his empty eye socket.
In an instant, the severed stem of the flower seemed to come to life, extending roots that grew deep into Purple Hammer’s eye socket.
The momentary agony made Purple Hammer tremble all over; it felt as if a thick earthworm were burrowing deep into his head, seizing his optic nerve and growing all the way to his brain.
The petals of the flower vanished one by one, and the red eyeball embedded itself into the socket, absorbing the blood from Purple Hammer's entire body.
By this point, Purple Hammer could no longer worry about the pain as he collapsed to the floor.
In his perception, he felt all the blood in his body rushing toward his eye socket, being continuously absorbed by the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment.
In just a few breaths, Purple Hammer’s skin turned from purple to a ghastly pale white.
The blessing from Zeno was triggered passively, maintaining Purple Hammer’s life.
The overwhelming sense of weakness left Purple Hammer slumped on the ground, able only to endure the pain; he was too weak to even scream.
As expected, simply enduring the blessing of the three guardians required every ounce of one's strength.
Purple Hammer soon fell into a near-death state. At that moment, the Heart of Courage from Aclaire’s blessing activated.
Though his body had been drained of blood, his heart continued to beat incessantly.
With the heart’s determined thumping, Lady Zeno’s blessing once again took effect.
Purple Hammer’s flesh began to dissolve, turning into blood that was pumped toward the seemingly insatiable Eye of Eternal Imprisonment with every heartbeat.
As it consumed more and more flesh, the color of the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment became increasingly bewitching.
Meanwhile, Purple Hammer’s robust physique withered, gradually becoming a mere bag of bones before the physical changes finally ceased.
Having squeezed Purple Hammer dry, the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment finally seemed satisfied. It stopped its chaotic consumption and settled peacefully within his eye socket.
Furthermore, the five other empty sockets on Purple Hammer’s head had returned to their full state, having clearly regenerated during the process.
Purple Hammer remained motionless, as withered as a mummy. Only his six eyes were bright and piercing, and his heart continued its tireless beating, keeping him tethered to life.
“I made it... I'm still alive...”
Purple Hammer painstakingly extended a withered hand, took an alchemical potion from his pouch, and struggled to pour it into his mouth.
His body was like land parched by a long drought. As soon as the alchemical potion touched his mouth, it was absorbed by his oral tissues before it could even reach his esophagus.
His heart, which had persisted in beating, was like a field catching the scent of rain. It beat rapidly, squeezing every drop of blood from his marrow and pumping the thin fluid throughout his body.
As his shriveled blood vessels were forced open, Purple Hammer quickly took another bottle of potion and drained it.
Having barely recovered from the brink of death to a state of being merely heavily injured, the remaining thin strands of muscle, nourished by the blood, were just enough to support his body.
He struggled to crawl to his feet.
The surrounding environment had returned to normal. The giant eyeball beneath him had vanished. Looking around, he could see only stone walls overgrown with vines.
Seeing the scene return to normal, Purple Hammer almost thought everything that had just happened was an illusion.
If not for his current withered body and the throbbing pain in his eye socket reminding him, he might have believed it.
The Eye of Eternal Imprisonment occupied his front-facing right eye.
The remaining five eyes had all regrown, though they were still very weak.
Purple Hammer’s attempt to stand only got halfway before he collapsed back to the ground.
His withered body was currently incapable of supporting the weight of his full armor. Purple Hammer was pinned back to the floor by the weight of the Seeker's Armor.
Panic began to set in.
This can't be...
According to his calculations, that group of human adventurers was about to enter the Lava Sea.
In his current physical condition, could he still fight? Could he still compete for the Forbidden Fire?
He had no time to waste!
In the silent fortress, Purple Hammer struggled to remove his armor.
However, his weakened body was simply incapable of the task.
The Seeker's Armor was something he had personally designed and forged; it was exceptionally tight and sturdy, making the process of putting it on or taking it off very complex.
Now, in his weakened state, he could not perform the heavy movements required to shed the complex suit.
Moreover, he was hungry.
So hungry!
The last thing Purple Hammer heard before losing consciousness was the sound of doors being pushed open and the rapid approach of several spider legs.
When he woke up again, his armor had been completely removed.
He was lying on a bed woven from spider silk.
“Is anyone there?”
Purple Hammer spoke with great difficulty.
“You’re awake!”
“Lord Purple Hammer is awake!”
“I’ll go report to Her Majesty immediately! You two, look after Lord Purple Hammer!”
The sounds of several man-bodied spiders talking rapidly reached his ears.
In Purple Hammer’s vision, the movements of these man-bodied spiders appeared as if they were in slow motion.
‘Is this the power of the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment?’
However, after only a moment, Purple Hammer painfully closed his right eye as a wave of weakness washed over him again.
His body was too frail to support the use of the Eye of Eternal Imprisonment.
“Lord Purple Hammer, it is time for your medicine.”
One man-bodied spider propped up Purple Hammer’s upper body while another brought over a potion and began to feed him.
Both were dressed in maid uniforms as smooth as silk.
Recalling the previous words, Purple Hammer quickly deduced that he was likely inside the Queen's Castle within the Spider King City.
Taking a sip of the potion, he felt his body being nourished by the liquid.
With his right eye closed, Purple Hammer spoke urgently.
“How long have I been unconscious?”
He had no time to waste; he had to go and seize the Forbidden Fire.
“In response to Lord Purple Hammer, it has been exactly one day since we entered Lord Tongmu’s fortress and found you.”
“One day...”
Purple Hammer struggled to sit up, wanting to get out of bed.
“Lord Purple Hammer, your body cannot move yet! Her Majesty personally ordered that you must be cared for until you have fully recovered!”
The maids hurriedly pressed Purple Hammer back onto the bed, accompanied by a series of crisp clicking sounds as their spider legs tapped against the floor.
Purple Hammer discovered to his frustration that in his current state, he couldn't even struggle against the strength of the man-bodied spider maids.
“We offer our loyalty to Her Majesty!”
The voices of man-bodied spiders echoed from outside the door.
“It is Her Majesty!”
“The Queen is here!”
The man-bodied spider maids on either side of Purple Hammer quickly straightened their maid uniforms and lined up neatly on their spider legs.
Purple Hammer stopped struggling and looked toward the doorway.
The Queen of the Spider King City.
She was also the sovereign of all spider monsters in the Exiled Land.
Rate on N.U.
