As Ning took over his original body, he could only feel the heat and his body falling to pieces.
Since his main body felt no pain, the heat and the crumbling feeling was the only thing that told him that his body was still under the effect of the toxin.
He ignored every other feeling and focused entirely on the hot liquid in his throat that was burning him even now.
The potion was quite viscous, considering how concentrated it was, and it refused to go down to his stomach fast.
So, Ning had to use his Aether to force the potion down. There were cracks in the esophagus, but they were easily overcome with his control.
As the potion traveled through his food pipe, all the toxin in its path was immediately cleared away, leaving a healthy pipe behind.
When it finally did reach the stomach, the potion instantly dissolved amongst the toxin, blood, and stomach juices and healed everything around it.
Then, the potion made its way through the bloodstream.
Everywhere it went, his body healed. His heart, his lungs, his organs, his muscles, bones. Everything healed.
For 2 full minutes, Ning lay down on the floor with nothing else to do but wait. Once the wait was over, his body was healed.
He stood up slowly. Somehow through the sheer destruction of his body, his clothes had survived. Not that Alexis would mind seeing him naked. She very much likely saw everyone in the world naked.
From what he knew, her eye was everywhere.
Ning tried walking around, getting a feel of his own body. As expected, it was all healed. Even the system confirmed it.
He then looked at the other body that lay next to him, the 4th Supreme of the Tower, Terran Forn.
Ning didn't need this person anymore. He placed his palm on the body's stomach and asked the system, "Absorb all the Aether in him."
<Confirmed>
Similar to how Rachel's skill worked, only stronger, Ning's hands started absorbing all the Aether in his other body.
As a tumultuous amount of Aether started pouring in him, Ning quickly opened his automatic aether absorption technique to properly place the incoming Aether into his Sea of Aether.
Even then, the speed at which he took from his other body was too quick for his main body to convert it into his own Aether.
So, he also had to use his normal absorption technique, which was still miles better than everyone in this world.
Once that started working, it became easy.
Ning stood there for nearly half an hour as Aether Supreme's entire reserve of Aether flowed into him.
Finally, once all of the Aether in that body was stolen, Ning stood up with new vigor.
He had reached Aether Supreme in his main body as well.
"That's nice," he thought. "Can I win if I use this body against the old man?"
As he thought about that question, the answer was obvious to him. "Probably not," he thought. He would have to use his system to truly beat him, and that would cost him a lot of energy that he would rather not use at all.
"I'm going to have to do it the classic way then," he thought. "Time to reach Underlord."
Reaching Supreme had taken him half an hour. Reaching Underlord… that would surely take him at least 5 hours. Ning didn't have that sort of time at the moment.
So, he needed to make that time.
He turned around to Alexis and said, "We need help from anywhere we can. Where is the other Underlord that Perry is afraid of?"
Alexis' eyes narrowed. "Are you sure you want to use him? He hates the tower as much as he hates Perry," she said.
"If he hates the tower, it's better for us. We need that person to delay as much as possible," he said.
She nodded and closed her eyes for a second before opening them again. "Let's go."
With a swing of her hand, they disappeared.
* * * * *
Darian sat in his chair as he read the report in his hand that he found hard to believe.
'But if it's that bastard, he would surely do something like that,' he thought.
The chair rocked as he read more and more information. The tower had, out of nowhere to everyone's understanding, decided to take over the world.
The fighters moved around the city, controlling it like it was their own. Anyone who tried to resist was captured and imprisoned.
From what he could see, the prisoners weren't treated badly, as the ones that followed the orders still seemed to have a hint of humanity in them. But there was also information about blatant abuse of power.
"That bastard, what is he thinking?" Darian got angry. He even thought of going to attack him, but no. If he could do that, he would have done so ages ago.
That bastard was way better than him in the ways of Aether, and even if he could fight him, He was one against the head of the entire world's largest organization.
There was no way he could do any of that. Just as he was thinking, the space in front of him twisted for a split second before two figures appeared out of nowhere.
A man and a woman stood on the carpet in his well-lit room not 2 meters away from him.
He immediately stood up and used his Underlord powers, but for some reason, neither of the two showed any reaction.
"We're not here to fight," the man spoke before he could do anything else.
"Then why are you here?" Darian asked.
"We need your help with resisting the Lord of the tower," the man said.
Darian frowned and eyed the two. "Who are you people?" he asked. He had never thought that aside from that bastard, there would be anyone who could possibly fight against him.
"Ah, sorry for the late introduction. I am Ning Ruogong, and this is my friend, Alexis," Ning introduced himself with a hand in front of him.
Darian looked suspiciously but still decided to grasp the hand.
"I am Darian Canon."
