[Host’s Hurricane-to-Body Sync has increased from 70% to 99%]
[Hurricane Energy Points have grown from 10,000 to 20,000]
[Host Hurricane Grows Stronger]
The system notification flashed before Ryuk’s eyes, pulling him out of his reverie.
He stared silently at the panel for a while, before a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
’The spirit was right. Battle truly is the fastest way to progress Hurricane Cultivation.’
He had fought for less than five minutes, yet his Hurricane Energy Points had doubled, and his Hurricane-to-Body sync had almost reached 100%.
It was a clear improvement in something he had no idea how even to improve just a few hours ago.
Although, to be fair, it was also one of the hardest battles of his life, even though it happened in less than five minutes, so it didn’t come that easy.
His gaze slowly drifted toward Owen’s corpse.
[Why did you even decide to keep him alive in the first place? Why didn’t you just kill him off along with his mates?] the system asked, in confusion.
Ryuk hummed slightly before replying.
’I wanted to learn more about the strange power one of his mates used.’
[Strange power?]
’That second Apocrypha stage assassin used a powerful occult ability that trapped both Princess Elfie and me inside a card-based world, filled with monsters below."
"That realm wasn’t illusory. It was hauntingly real, and what’s more... there was no trace of Apex or Abyssal energy in that realm.’
’It held a bizarre aura... It felt like magic. Dark Magic. And that drew my interest.’
’I hoped I could question him about the power... and perhaps the occult organization he belonged to as well.’
’But I guess that curiosity almost killed me,’ Ryuk muttered as he reached for Owen’s neck.
Hanging around it was a simple, dark-colored necklace.
When Ryuk took it and placed it in his palm, he noticed the tattoos on his arm subtly shift to black.
’This chain holds a significant amount of Abyssal energy,’ he thought.
His second hand reached out.
With Abyssal energy surging to his fingertips, he pressed it against Owen’s chest and watched as the body slowly turned to ashes, dispersing into the Void.
Soon, all trace of Owen was gone, except for the dark chain, which Ryuk wrapped around his wrist.
’Good. I can now adapt to energy through non-living materials,’ Ryuk thought, eyeing the chain now coiled like a serpent on his arm.
’I’ve realized a new truth.’
[What is it?]
’If Hurricane allows me to adapt to energy forms, then I don’t need to risk touching opponents during battle. Instead, I can use objects like this.’
’Chains, rings, artifacts filled with different energy. If I wear them, I’ll adapt to their energy and unlock techniques related to them.’
’It’s far safer and more effective than relying on physical contact, as once opponents realize I need a touch, they will stop falling for that trick altogether.’
[That makes sense.]
’Also... I’ve noticed I can vividly remember what my techniques feel like when I’m under pressure — when my heart is pounding, when I’m on my last leg.’
[Hmm... Is that why you were able to easily shift into the Knull transformation and even use one of its techniques?]
’Exactly. At that time, I didn’t stop to think about what it meant to be a Knull."
"All I had was a plan: touch her, copy her Abyssal energy, shift into a Knull, grab Orrelith off her hands, and escape into the Void Rift.’
’I wasn’t worried about whether I could become a Knull again. For a moment, I fully believed I was one — like I’d never lost the Knull bloodline in the first place.’
’In that delusional state, I pulled off the transformation in a blink... and used the ability without hesitation.’
’Only under pressure — when I delude myself into believing I am what I need to be — do I truly awaken the skill.’
’But if I’m sitting cross-legged and calmly trying to activate it? I’ll remember I’m not a Knull anymore, and that makes things ten times harder.’
Ryuk looked down at his hands, the tattoos flickering between dark and purple, and his eyes gleamed with deeper realization.
"The key to Hurricane power... is delusion." Ryuk muttered aloud.
"There’s no need to think about what it’s like to be a Knull."
"I am a Knull. I am a Jade Dragon. I am a Void King. I am an Ice King!"
"This is the path to Hurricane’s true power."
"There’s no such thing as imitating a technique like I previously thought."
"That was a wrong approach."
"To believe without doubt that you’re what you wish to be is the key to Hurricane."
His eyes flickered with mad resolve, a knowing delusion.
And yet...
It worked.
The chain coiled in his hand began to ooze with ingrained Abyssal energy.
In a flash, Ryuk’s form shifted, growing, changing, and soon enough, he stood as a hulking, seven-meter-tall devil, a flickering red thorny tail trailing behind him like a living whip.
The shift made his mouth turn into an ear-reaching maw, and a grin broke across it.
’I understand this power now,’ he said, but all that came out was a growl.
COUGH
COUGH
The sound of coughing rang through the void, and Ryuk paused.
In a blink, he returned to his human form, catching his breath.
He moved the chain from his palm and wrapped it tightly around his wrist.
Surprisingly, it didn’t feel out of place — more like a simple dark chain hung around his wrist.
He stepped forward and arrived on the platform where they all surrounded her.
The armored beings who had appeared during the final moments of battle were, of course, his Nexus Legion.
The last time Ryuk had called on them was during the war with Zar’kul.
But he’d never forgotten them.
The Nexus Legion wasn’t tied to any of his bloodlines.
It was a Pact, like the Void Asura Pact, and hence was never lost after he lost his bloodlines.
They had always been there, waiting and ready
And when he summoned them again, they came instantly to his aid, saving him from a precarious situation.
His gaze moved from them to look at her, lying on the platform, coughing a couple of times before she snapped open her eyes.