Ascension: Demon Monarch System

45 Awakening, Shortening the Gap
'----'

'"Ughh…" an extended groan sounded as Apollo's eyes fluttered. What his sights awakened to was the dark scene of an unlit cave. Of course

it wasn't much different from what a person could regularly see as his eyes continued to adapt.'

'Beyond that

his body still ached from the previous. However

above all; his mind felt irregular. There was a slight numbing pain still present as if he had an overdraft on his mental strength. Gripping his forehead

Apollo sat up.'

'[You have finally awakened young lad. It seems you had a good rest. While your body still hurts there hasn't been any irreparable damage done to it. In fact

you should count your blessings. Certain things have taken place! Perhaps in the future

you'll become privy to the time.]'

'"Hm? What do you mean finally? How long has it been?" questioned Apollo as he wiped his hand over his face trying to rid himself of the mental dreariness.'

'[It has been approximately 2 weeks. You have been asleep for that long. Of course

this was in my calculations. Naturally

incidences dealing with the inner self take quicker to heal. Not to mention

as you are now; I can't exactly use certain means on you.]'

'"Oh..wait! 2 weeks? I've slept for two weeks? Huh…" shocked by the revelation

Apollo gawked. Afterward

he became surprised. In his previous state

he remained oblivious to the fact that he had increased in levels throughout the fight. Hence

only now did he realize that while he ached

he felt relatively stronger.'

'Raising his hand

he tapped his hand against his eye. He recalled this being the trigger of him blacking out. After this

everything just faded to a vague scene. He wasn't privy to all the events that unfolded. Questions began flooding his mind. He was curious about the events.'

'"Did I… complete the task?" questioned Apollo as he moved his hand and tried opening the eye. His vision was damaged

however

in exchange

his eyes seemed to perceive ever-present floating threads.'

'[That answer is self-explanatory. All you need to do is take notice of your body. I'm sure you feel the differences. You have indeed completed the tasks. Would you like me to recount the events? It would seem you entering that state without mastery resulted in an absence in your recollection.]'

'"Please do

I'm curious about what took place

" stated Apollo in agreement as he rose to his feet. His stiffened body was stretched out slowly and his growing stature crackled and popped with increasing strength.'

'[Very well. It is like so…]'

'Slowly and in meticulous detail

Azridan began telling the story of the state Apollo entered as well as the feats he performed. Of course

he omitted exactly what that state was as it would serve no purpose to disclose it now. After all

he had yet to complete the tasks Azridan had in store for him.'

'[That is the complete story. Your berserk rage took over and allowed you to temporarily surpass your limits. As you see

it came at a price. However

I can tell you now. As you grow stronger

so will that state. In other words

there are chances of your falling into such a weakened state frequently if you fail to become a demon who knows how to harness himself.]'

'"Harness myself? You mean as in to control my emotions?" asked Apollo in a curious tone. Although he was small

he was astute. Drawing clues from small words even if they were incomplete thoughts.'

'[Partly

however

that isn't the whole story. Never mind

you'll come to learn about it in the future. Especially so now that you've completed the quest.]'

'"Completed the quest?" muttered Apollo as he remained in shock. 'Wasn't there slightly over 1

000 beasts needed to complete that? Then is Azridan trying to say within that breeding ground resided that many beasts? And I happened to slay them all? Just what type of rage was that…''

'[If you don't believe me

call up your interface and take note of all the alerts you received pertaining to it.]'

'Nodding and following up after the suggestion

Apollo did exactly. Naturally

he came in contact with the stream of notifications which were mostly repeats but that wasn't what caught his attention. Unlike before

due to him passing out there was now an archived tab. Opening it

a few messages appeared.'

'〈System Alert! Upon the completion of your extraordinary feat

you have received a bonus 50

000 Experience

5 Demonic Pellet

and 5 Spirit Shards.〉'

'〈System Alert! You have completed the quest. However

due to your current state

two rewards have been omitted. To receive them

contact the current warden of the system. Caution! The reward is rather large

brace yourself.〉'

'〈System Alert! Mission COMPLETE!〉'

'«Highest level bonus clearance achieved! Clear Time: 8 months

18 days. Experience reward increased to 500%.»'

'«Material Quest rewards have been awarded.»'

'«You have been rewarded 10 Demonic Essence Pellets.»'

'«You have been rewarded 10 Spirit Shards.»'

'«500

000 (250

000 + 250

000 Experience has be rewarded.»'

'«The Foundational Chart has been upgraded. Your inner physique has increased to the highest degree of this level.»'

'«Congratulations

you have reached Level 79.»'

'«Congratulations

you have reached Level 80.»'

'«Congratulations

you have...»'

'Widening his eyes

confounded by all the levels he jumped

Apollo struggled to utter a word. Instead

he viewed his stat page to get a clear image of exactly what he should expect.'

'----'

'(Demon Monarch System) Lvl.2'

'Name: Apollo Kaiser'

'Race: Demi-Demon (Half-Step) [46.82%]'

'Title: Azridan's Successor'

'Age: 11'

'Level: 71 → 85'

'Experience: 32

110/72

900.'

'Health: 568/568 → 1

312/1

312'

'Stamina: 568/568 → 1

312/1

312'

'Body Cultivation Realm: Rank 5 Mortal [190/200]'

'Physique: Earth-Grade (Peak Tier)'

'Zuls: 147 → 190'

'Strength: 44.6 → 47.4'

'Agility: 37.5 → 40.3'

'Intelligence: 29.9 → 32.7'

'Vitality: 30.0 → 32.8'

'[«Traits»]-'

'«Increased Essence Affinity»'

'Stat Points: 48'

''Ah

so the ratios have once again increased. If not

my Zuls wouldn't have increased so much. I'm guessing it's somewhere around 2.5 now

' thought Apollo. However

averting his gaze his sights remained upon that first message. 'A caution message? Is it dangerous? I don't think so

perhaps it's just a complimentary warning.''

'[No

the system is correct.]'

'"So it's dangerous?"'

'[Not necessarily. Instead

you should be able to see it. Ask yourself

why do you think I asked you to reach Rank 5 before completing this quest?]'

'"Is it perhaps some type of turning point?" answered Apollo half uncertain.'

'[Correct. The answer is exactly so. Upon reaching 100 Zuls

your body is stable enough to begin sensing Natural Essence. Additionally

you should have awakened the Spiritual Vision enabling you to see threads already.]'

'[As a result

it's the opportune time for you to receive the special method that I have trained in and also a technique which should suit you rather well. Although they'll be rather tyrannical and hard to train in; the rewards will be worth it.]'

''I don't mind suffering; I mean what can be worse than death? I'm ready to receive them.''

'[As you wish

I admire your mindset but keep in mind you asked it for this. Oh

I guess I'll reveal this now; there is a 100% chance of you passing out. Much luck to you my successor.]'

'Raising his eyebrows

Apollo immediately braced himself. If even Azridan was agreeing with the alert

the amount of information that would be bestowed had to be astronomical.'

'〈System Alert! Information transference beginning. Now being bestowed vital cultivation methods...〉'