Cryptomining Supervillain

Chapter 227 227: 227 BACK TO THE RUINS

227 BACK TO THE RUINS

"I hope he's still here," he muttered.

Bringing up his tracking map on his app, Damen followed a pulsing marker through the labyrinth of collapsed corridors. He moved slabs of stone and twisted steel out of the way, forcing a path until, at last, he reached a sealed chamber hidden beneath the debris.

This was a secret room…one even he had never known about.

It was Lord Nicaesa's healing chamber.

Despite the destruction above, the chamber remained intact. In the center stood an enormous machine, humming softly. It glowed with a faint internal power, independent from the fortress grid.

Suspended in one of the tanks was a familiar figure…Lord Nicaesa himself.

"Uncle Nic… finally." Damen dismissed the tracking map.

He had previously marked Nicaesa as one of his "favorites," so he could always find him. That marking had led him here.

But one look at Nicaesa's pale body made his heart sink.

"Damn it… you're in a bad shape."

An android nurse emerged from the shadows, its metal face lighting up in recognition. "Greetings, General Dark. What may I do for you?"

"You recognize me?"

"Yes. You are registered as commanding authority within this facility."

"Then tell me," Damen said, stepping closer. "What's his condition?"

The android's eyes flickered as it processed the data. "Lord Nicaesa remains stable but unconscious. The battle with the Shadows of Anubis depleted his remaining life force."

"Then how do we restore it?"

"He requires aur energy," the android replied flatly. "However, our reserves are fully depleted."

Damen clenched his jaw. "Damn it. All my aur's with Liorea. I have none left to revive him."

He looked up again. "Is there any other way?"

The android went silent for a moment, her internal systems whirring.

"Alternative method detected," it finally said. "I can reconfigure the chamber to draw power from a Core of Genesis…but the Core requires Bloodstones as fuel."

The alternative method would use Bloodstone instead of aur stones as power source.

"Then do it."

"We have insufficient Bloodstone supply," the nurse replied. "All our reserves were consumed maintaining the fortress's force field before its collapse."

"Then make more," Damen ordered.

"Creation requires raw material…alien blood."

Damen chuckled darkly. "Now you have it." He rolled up his sleeve. "Take mine."

The android obeyed without hesitation, deploying a transfusion rig. Crimson flowed through transparent tubes, merging into the machine's system. Artificial blood replaced what was taken, while Damen's essence condensed within a crystalline chamber.

Moments later, a Bloodstone formed…a massive gem of deep crimson, pulsing faintly with life.

The android held it up. "The purity of this Bloodstone exceeds all previous samples."

"Good," Damen said, breathing heavily. "Feed it into the Genesis Core. Bring Lord Nicaesa back."

"At once," the android replied.

-----

While Lord Nicaesa recuperated inside the chamber, while Damen waited.

He brought up his stat screen to check what had happened to his body.

Name: Damen Dark

Strength Rank: AA  Meta Rank: AA  Blood Rank: BB  Psychic Rank: AA

Strength: 10,699 | Charm: 10,386 | Meta: 11,131 | Command: 11,132 | Blood: 1,068 | Armor: 12,916

The blood transfusion had weakened his Blood Rank back to BB, and his Armor fell accordingly to AA.But all his other stats had risen to Rank AA after absorbing the power from the Shadows of Anubis.

"Damn… this is so cool," Damen muttered, grinning. "A few more battles like that and I might even reach Rank S."

Then his smile faded.

He knew too well what that meant. Every gain came with risk. A single mistake in the last few days could've ended him.

He had been lucky. If dawn had come a minute later, he would be gone.

"I can't rely on luck forever, he thought. I need to get stronger."

Exhausted, he rested inside the chamber.

By nightfall, no new alien assault came. The horde seemed to have withdrawn after conquering Fortress Myrone.

He remained there for another day, keeping watch and maintaining the machines until at last Lord Nicaesa opened his eyes.

The first thing Nicaesa saw was Damen.

"Damen… why are you still here? The alien horde won't let you go so easily, you must leave this alien world now," he said weakly, concern in his voice.

Lord Nicaesa thought they were still in battle with the alien horde.

"Uncle Nic, you've missed a lot," Damen smiled, pulling a chair closer.

He recounted everything that had happened—his battle with the Shadows of Anubis, the rise of the twin suns, and his narrow escape from the Shadow of Ra.

Lord Nicaesa listened silently.

When Damen finished, he exhaled heavily. "I defended this fortress for so many years… swore to live and die with it. Who would have thought that the one to fight to the very end would be you, Damen."

Damen scratched his neck, embarrassed. "I was almost killed a few times. The alien Cores you gave me…those saved my life."

"I'm glad they served their purpose well," Nicaesa said, smiling faintly. Then his expression turned solemn. "But I couldn't get you any more of them."

Damen chuckled. "That's fine. There'll be plenty on the battlefield. I'll hunt for more tomorrow—and bring back fresh alien blood for you."

At the mention of blood, Nicaesa paused."Wait… there were no Bloodstones left in my chamber. Where did the ones that healed me come from? Their quality is far beyond what we used before."

Lord Nicaesa was not ignorant of his own recuperation chamber. There had been no aur stones or Bloodstones remaining to aid his recovery.

The Bloodstones had come from Damen—and they were of exceptional quality.

Damen didn't bother hiding the truth.

"They came from my blood. You know I was infected by alien blood before… now my blood can crystallize into powerful Bloodstones," he explained.

"Your blood can do that?" Nicaesa asked, stunned. "Just how many secrets are you hiding?"

Damen shrugged it off.

Nicaesa's eyes softened. "In just two years, your power has grown beyond anything I imagined. Perhaps soon, you'll reach the rank of Superhero… as I once hoped."

His voice lowered, heavy with regret."But unfortunately, there is no longer a Fortress Myrone for you to inherit."

Damen looked at him firmly. "Don't worry. Our work isn't over yet. There are still thousands of soldiers waiting for us in Liberty City. We may have lost the fortress, but the Space Rift still needs protecting."

Nicaesa nodded slowly.

His strength was not yet fully restored.

Without another word, he returned to the healing tank, the pale blue liquid closing around him once more.

-----

The next day, just as Damen was preparing to head out to the battlefield to hunt for meta artifacts, Lord Nicaesa stirred once more.

"Damen," he called weakly. "There's something I want to give you."

He pointed toward a sealed cabinet near the wall.

Damen crossed the room, opened it, and found several items stored within—robes, armor pieces, and a few pieces of jewelry that still shimmered faintly with energy.

"Take the silver bracelet," Nicaesa said.

Damen lifted it carefully. "What does this do?"