Chapter 386
[!!]
It was the power of the Throne.
Within his own domain, he could partially mimic the divine abilities his opponent unleashed.
‘The activation condition for the Gluttony power is to bind the opponent.’
He deliberately lured them into lowering their guard, then created an opening through Evan and Lanya to bind Sherard with the Throne’s power.
Especially since Sherard had spent his entire life indulging in gluttony, he was inherently vulnerable to it.
‘Of course, perfectly replicating a high-level power like Gluttony is impossible.’
But even a vague imitation would suffice.
Chris could refine it in his own way.
‘I need to get stronger as fast as possible.’
From this day forward, he would face transcendent beings head-on.
He planned to use Sherard as a sacrifice to ascend another level.
[You bastard…!]
[It’s useless. Stay still.]
As Sherard struggled to break free, Chris unleashed the Throne’s binding once more.
Evan and Lanya joined in, restraining him tightly.
Then Chris activated Gluttony.
Swoooooosh.
Sherard’s soul and the energy he possessed began to flow into Chris.
But soon, he hit a wall.
With an incomplete Gluttony, it was impossible to absorb everything from a demon like Sherard.
[Heh heh, even you have your limits when it comes to reckless greed.]
[Not at all.]
Chris spoke calmly.
[My goal wasn’t to absorb your energy in the first place.]
Absorbing demonic energy would only cause trouble.
[You’re just material for me to train with.]
Chris unleashed his power again.
[Kyaaaaaaaah!!!]
Sherard screamed in agony.
This wasn’t proper Gluttony.
As if refusing to be absorbed, Chris shattered Sherard’s soul and body into countless fragments.
When Chris absorbed those shards internally, a terrible backlash surged through him.
‘I have to use these fragments to temper my vessel.’
There are two ways to strengthen one’s vessel.
The orthodox way: training steadily to expand its capacity.
The other: forcibly imposing trials to strengthen it.
‘Fragments of a demonized soul are more than enough as a trial to strengthen my vessel.’
Here, the vessel doesn’t just mean the core.
It encompasses both spirit and flesh.
Since Sherard was a human turned demon, his fragments carried both physical and spiritual properties, making them perfect tools to simultaneously strengthen both.
[Hah, hahh. You think I’ll just give up?]
Sherard’s face flushed red as he desperately tried to break free from Chris’s grip.
Crack.
The Throne’s binding began to fracture.
But—
[Shut up, pervert.]
Swish.
Evan’s sword sliced through Sherard’s neck.
Lanya stepped forward as well.
Even with his head severed, Sherard remained alive, but they unleashed several high-level spells to neutralize him.
All were spells designed to incapacitate, leaving Sherard powerless.
[No… this can’t be.]
Fear finally crept into Sherard’s voice.
[You will pay for every sin you’ve committed.]
Krrrrrkkk.
Kyaaaaaaaaaaah!!!
With a scream like something being ground to dust, Sherard was completely shattered into fragments.
Chris absorbed those fragments through Gluttony.
‘Normally, I’d absorb them fully.’
But Chris operated his power in a completely different way.
He immersed his spirit and flesh in those fragments.
His soul, body, and core screamed in rejection.
The pain was excruciating, but he didn’t stop.
A demon’s fragmented soul is like a spiritual furnace.
Like forging steel in a blazing fire.
He tempered his spirit and flesh.
Of course, it was madness.
No one in history had ever tempered their vessel this way.
But it was possible.
‘By adapting Gluttony’s power.’
Gluttony absorbs everything from the opponent.
If used skillfully, the backlash could be precisely controlled.
Just enough to aid in training.
Only Chris could pull this off.
‘I have to gradually increase the backlash.’
In an instant, Chris’s spirit and flesh were wounded and then healed repeatedly.
Each time, his vessel grew stronger, and Chris adjusted the backlash accordingly.
Finally, at the last moment—
‘This is the end.’
Chris’s eyes snapped open.
A fierce darkness radiated from his body.
Fwoooosh!!
Kyaaaaaaaaah!!
The dark energy incinerated the demon fragments, and with a horrific scream, they vanished without a trace.
They were completely annihilated.
[Christian, you…]
Evan and Lanya swallowed hard as they looked at Chris.
[Yeah.]
Chris nodded.
[It worked.]
He had finally reached the lower rank of the ninth star!!
Not just a Soma King, but a perfect Demon King.
It was a historic moment, but there was no time to celebrate.
[We have to close the gate.]
Though Sherard was dealt with, it wasn’t over.
They had to seal the gate he had opened.
[I’ll go down alone from here.]
Evan and Lanya pressed their lips shut.
They didn’t want to send Chris alone, but the depths below were too dangerous for them at their current eighth-star level.
[But take my energy with you.]
Evan grasped Chris’s hand.
He was passing on his remaining energy.
Lanya sighed and took his other hand.
[I’ll give you mine as well. This genius mage’s mana is top-tier! It’ll be a great help.]
Evan looked at Chris.
[Make sure you come back safely.]
Chris smirked.
[Who are you worried about?]
[I know you always throw yourself into danger for the world, no matter the cost. You’re probably planning to risk your life again to stop this crisis. Just come back alive.]
[Yeah, you’re so annoying with that “I’ll carry it all alone” attitude.]
[…It’s not like that. You’re misunderstanding… Anyway, understood.]
Chris made a grimace and headed down.
[I’ll be back soon. Get the drinks ready.]
He’d been through so much today, he deserved at least one drink—even if he’d probably pass out after just one.
‘Let’s hurry.’
45 meters, 50 meters.
As he descended, the pressure crushed his spirit and flesh.
By 55 meters, the weight was almost too much for his vessel to bear.
‘I have to hold on. It can’t be far now.’
At last, 60 meters.
In the crushing pressure where even moving a finger or breathing was difficult, he found his target.
‘A magic circle. This must be the trace of the gate Sherard was opening!’
This wasn’t the bottom of the lake.
A deeper abyss stretched below.
But Sherard had tried to open the gate here.
No matter how powerful Sherard was, he couldn’t go any deeper.
‘I have to dismantle this magic circle. Can I do it?’
Chris swallowed hard.
‘This magic circle wasn’t made by Sherard. He only activated it. The demons and the celestial throne made it themselves.’
Even Chris, now at the lower ninth star, felt overwhelmed by its strength.
At that moment, a chilling fear ran down his spine.
Looking down into the endless abyss of the lake, a single eye stared back at him.
‘Insane.’
It looked like a Great Demon of the Fourth Order.
If he didn’t dismantle the magic circle, such beings would descend upon the surface world.
‘I have to do this no matter what.’
Chris gritted his teeth.
Fwoooosh!!
The Vampiric Ring had already been pushed beyond its limit and couldn’t be used again.
He poured all his remaining strength into Andriel.
The ultimate magic’s power amplified endlessly within the Throne’s domain.
‘This is too much.’
Overload hit.
But he didn’t stop.
This alone wouldn’t break the magic circle.
Blood dripped from his mouth.
The strain blurred his mind.
-You always risk your life for the world, don’t you?
Evan’s words flashed through his mind, but this time, there was no choice.
‘I’m doing this for the glory I’ll enjoy later!’
Finally.
Beyond all limits, pushing his power to the extreme.
A miracle happened.
Jjeojeojeojuk.
He succeeded in breaking the magic circle!
But there was a problem.
‘I… have no energy left to move.’
Chris blinked.
He couldn’t even move a finger.
‘Damn it.’
The pressure began to press down again.
At this rate, death was inevitable.
‘No! Glory!!’
As he screamed, a figure miraculously appeared in his sight.
Evan!
Lanya was there too.
‘…How? Am I hallucinating?’
No.
Both looked like corpses, barely able to stand.
They had followed him, prepared to die for his sake.
Evan sighed deeply, looking at Chris like a scolding parent.
Lanya’s gaze was much the same.
[No, I…]
[Enough. It’s not like we didn’t expect this.]
[Exactly. You’re really a handful.]
Evan grabbed Chris.
[Let’s go back.]
Chris tried to protest but had no strength.
His consciousness began to fade.
How long had he been unconscious?
Chris dreamed a long, endless dream.
A dream of the world’s destruction.
He had often dreamed of apocalypse since this life began.
The Ragnarok he’d experienced in his past life was deeply etched in his mind.
He vividly saw the world consumed by darkness and annihilated.
But this dream was different.
After the apocalypse, a light descended.
[Destruction is not the end.]
[The new world will be shaped by your choice.]
“!!”
At the clear voice resonating in his soul, Christian’s eyes snapped open.
‘How much time has passed?’
He shifted his gaze and took in the simple room around him. He was in Ruina’s royal castle.
“You’re awake?!”
It was Ruina.
“Ugh. I thought the Grand Duke was dead—I was so terrified my heart nearly stopped!”
…Still as dramatic as ever, Christian frowned.
“Cut the empty flattery.”
“Empty flattery? My feelings for the Grand Duke have always been sincere! Or rather, now that you’re the Demon Lord—Long live Christian the Demon Lord! Long live! Long live!”
“…You’re annoying.”
“Yessir.”
Ruina immediately shut up.
“How long was I unconscious?”
“A week.”
“A week?”
That was much longer than he expected.
“Well, bring me some alcohol. I’ve been through enough—I deserve to have some fun this time.”
He worried that drinking might knock him out for days again, but this time, he really wanted a drink.
“The thing is… it’s not really a good time for drinking right now.”
“Why? What’s going on? Where’s Evan?”
“He went off to fight the demon tribe.”
“…The demon tribe?”
Christian tilted his head in confusion.
“The demon tribe? But I closed the door—how could the demon tribe be involved?”
“Is there still trouble at the Glass Lake?”
“No, the Glass Lake has calmed down again.”
“Then?”
Someone else answered.
It was Lanya.
“There’s trouble elsewhere.”
“!!”
Christian flinched.
“What do you mean?”
“Erosion phenomena have occurred in seven places across the continent.”