Chapter 356: …I need to stop raising flags.

"...I really need to get used to this."

Lucian spoke as he stared at the stone sunk into the ceiling above. Then, he let out a sigh.

"Whatever."

At the very least, it was over now.

And he was glad it was, he wasn’t sure he could have endured all that pain anymor—

THUMP

And just as he thought about it, Lucian felt his Heart pump in that heavy manner again.

"What...?"

He blinked and before he could react—

THUMP

With another pump, his entire body shuddered and he realised it.

It wasn’t over.

An endless amount of energy rushed through him, his muscles tightened again, his blood became denser and then—

Then something else happened.

"HAAAHHFF!!"

Lucian inhaled sharply, gasping for air as he pressed his chest.

He could feel it.

His Demonic Energy reserve... it was expanding.

Lucian knew he had a reserve inside his body, a place that stored all of his Demonic Energy, a place that stored... a finite amount of energy.

Even as he grew with time, he always knew his limit, he always knew where the bottom of his reserve was.

Now, that bottom moved.

Farther, and farther and farther away...

"Holy..."

Lucian’s eyes widened as he felt the capacity keep expanding.

What was it?

Five times?

Or was it ten?

He couldn’t even tell.

And the energy filling it wasn’t the normal Demonic Energy either, it was that ridiculously dense Energy.

And his new Heart kept producing more.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

With each THUMP more and more energy was produced and Lucian couldn’t believe it.

Could one man even hold this much energy...?

He wondered in his head. It almost felt like he could use his barriers, telekinesis, regeneration, One-Inch Dominion, all at the same time and it still wouldn’t make a dent in his reserves!

"...just what in the hell is happening to me?"

Lucian let out a weak laugh.

Then, just as he thought he had recovered—

"Uugghk!!"

Another wave of pain hit his body and he groaned.

"...still not over."

He spoke with difficulty.

His Heart rate accelerated.

THUMP

THUMP

THUMP

His nails darkened and lengthened, then they returned to their normal size. The violet in his eyes burned with an even stronger shade of violet, it continued burning brighter and brighter before it dimmed. Strange black-violet patterns appeared along his forearms, then they disappeared as well.

Lucian could feel it.

Something was happening, something... deep inside him.

He knew that feeling.

His True Form.

It was... changing.

’Even that...?’

He couldn’t believe it. He didn’t know what the change was, but he wanted to see it. Not that he had any intention of activating it right now, not in the state he was in, he could barely control his normal body right now.

"Haaaahhh... haahh... haaahhh..."

Lucian took more deep breaths as his Body finally calmed down, then, he lay down with his back on the ground, still breathing hard.

He then slowly raised his hand, his hand felt... different, much, much, much heavier than before, but at the same time, it felt much easier to move.

It was... a strange feeling.

Something clearly happened to him, something that was definitely related to Neroth’s Heart that he consumed.

He could feel his blood was now purer, he didn’t need to be a genius to know what that was about.

He no longer had the blood of a High Incubus.

He was now carrying the blood of an Arch Incubus.

His gamble paid off. Whatever that thing or being inside him was... he devoured an Archdemon’s Blood, just like he devoured a High Demon’s blood before.

It went just as he expected.

Only that...

The results were not what Lucian was expecting at all.

Honestly, all Lucian had hoped was that his blood would get stronger, he would gain a few abilities and that was it.

But this was...

This was entirely different.

Lucian could feel it, his entire body had changed and it wasn’t a small change.

He felt like he weighed at least a thousand kilos now, but at the same time, he had speed that a normal eye couldn’t even keep up with, his energy was far, far denser than before, his reserves were far bigger.

And these were just the changes he could feel.

He was almost positive there were more, much, much more.

"Haaah... Haahh... Haahh..."

Lucian clenched his fists as he felt the ridiculous amount of strength he was holding onto. He had absolutely no control over his body or his abilities. His head was still overwhelmed by his ridiculously enhanced senses, that was the part he was outright ignoring right now with the help of Red Quiet.

He was... a mess.

In the state he was in, he probably couldn’t even move around alone.

But...

"...worth it."

Lucian grinned.

It was all worth it.

Devouring Neroth was very much a fun activity he would like to repea—

Just as he thought about it, Lucian, even though he had used Red Quiet to protect himself from all the sounds around him—

He heard something.

A familiar voice.

"LUCIAN!!!!"

It was Neroth.

"...huh?"

Lucian blinked in disbelief.

This...

This shouldn’t be possible.

Lucian felt it himself, Neroth was devoured, there was nothing left of him inside him. Then how...

For now, however, that didn’t matter, Lucian, even though he knew the consequences, released Red Quiet and the moment he did—

BOOOOOOOM

His senses were overwhelmed.

"LUCIAN!!!!!"

He heard the enraged scream again.

BOOOOOOOM

Then there was another explosion.

BOOOOOOOM

Then another.

BOOOOOOOM

And then another.

Explosion after explosion, all over the Arcelis Estate.

"What... is happening?"

Lucian had no idea, his senses were far too overwhelmed to make sense of the information they were giving him.

The only things that stood out were tens of thousands of footsteps, running in all directions, at random, screams and cries of shock, terror and pain, and the explosions.

The Arcelis Territory—

It was in shambles.

And the only other thing Lucian could hear was an Archdemon’s voice coming from a direction he couldn’t point out, seeking his blood.

Seeking revenge.

And Lucian—

"...I need to stop raising flags."