Chapter 1226 Cap 1224: Squeezing the potential  

I've been in this hell for days now and with each passing day I feel my Aura weaken while burns begin to appear in some areas of my body, I also feel my hunger growing more and more to the point that no matter how many Demons I'm eating now, it's never enough.

The longer I stay in this place I feel the worst parts of me reveal themselves more, I never denied these parts of myself knowing I was far from the innocent man who died in a hospital bed, but I also don't want to be a monster thirsty only for blood, if I didn't have such great control over my emotions and a strong will, now I would be acting like all these Demons that I have been killing.

"So you're not dead?" (I)

"No, we are reborn as full Demons, we give ourselves over to the darker side of our Souls, corrupting our own Souls to live."

Right now I was in a place surrounded by dried corpses, a sphere of blood spinning above me while Demonic claws made of darkness are buried in the body of a Demon whose entire body looks like that of a Human if it weren't for the pair of horns on the head.

"The longer you stay here, the less of your humanity you will retain."

I look at him, I know this is just a clone of him, his voice doesn't show the pain of what I'm doing to his body, his Aura doesn't seem to be part of this body and my instincts are screaming to run.

"Why are you coming after me?" (I)

"What would you do if you were left in a desert for days without food and water, then a dinner table with all the best delicious delicacies fell from the sky?"

"How do you always know where I am?" (I)

"This is a place of death, you are the only living thing, the scent of your vitality is like a bonfire in absolute darkness, we can see and feel you anywhere."

"You are very confident in catching me." (I)

"That's because I'm already close enough to you to know that you'll soon weaken, even this clone was just to distract you while the others get closer to tire you out more and more."

I grab his head with one hand as he smiles and squeeze until there is no head left before looking around, but I can't feel anything.

"It's still not enough." (I)

"< Compress >" (I) I make this blood floating above me compress until it becomes a small crystal that together with the crystal presses against my chest, I've done this a few times now so it doesn't hurt like it did the first time.

The flames inside me and this Blood Core will burn everything that is useless in this blood, I discovered that only those Demons that still seem to have some brains are edible, those that are just beasts are not useful to satisfy my hunger or recover my vitality, That's why I started refining my blood this way, it keeps the Starfire away from me.

"I have to find someone stronger..." (I)

-----------------

I had to find a way to awaken my Authority, but by running away the only thing I got was more time to think, only when I started fighting I realized that my Aura was changing or perhaps I should say that I was getting used to using it more appropriately.

I spent a few years using Aura separating it into its various characteristics whether death, madness, nature, or magic, and because of this, it took me a while to realize that my Aura was fundamentally different, trying to use it as I did in the past only made things more difficult.

All the characteristics of my Aura have consolidated into one, trying to use it as I did in the past means that I am restricting my own Aura.

"< Aura Blade >" (I)

Right now I was in my full Dragon form facing a creature even bigger than me, it was the other Dragon, its entire body was transparent with Insect legs similar to spears and several pairs of wings on its long body around it were countless spectral beings that my Aura Blade passed by, tearing them to pieces.

I didn't want to fight this thing, but it was too fast to run, I couldn't let this thing keep chasing me until more enemies appeared, I had to get rid of it now.

The Ghosts around him weren't a big problem, most of my attacks were useless, but at least my Aura seemed to be effective enough forcing me to use it as a weapon.

GGGGGRRRRRRR!!!!!

His attacks were getting more violent as he tried to surround me with his body letting his legs attack me continuously.

"< Space Disruption >" (I)

I concentrate my mana in one of my fists as a magic circle appears in front of me, and then I throw a punch making the magic circle light up as it shatters tearing apart the space cutting the creature's body in half where I move to hit its head just for a new mouth opens on top of your head trying to swallow my arm.

"< Demonic Breath >" (I)

I gather my Demonic energy in my mouth and release it towards his head before I can claim my arm, but all I managed was to throw him away while several of his legs lingered around my body before pulling away completely.

"Why fight when defeat is guaranteed!?"

"You say, how wonderful!?" (I)

Sigh "(Demonic Energy did nothing to him.)" (I)

I was trying to think of something that could hurt him besides my Aura since I didn't want to wear out the only thing that protects my body from this Hell.

I didn't waste my time talking to him, I knew that trying to talk to me means he has enough intelligence to try to deceive me in a certain way, so I keep attacking with everything I have for hours.

Our combat was not fair at all, many Demons and the Ghosts that this Spectral Dragon commanded attacked me many times, causing openings that the Dragon did not miss, leaving my body badly treated.

Just as I fought with Natasha for weeks, my body was once again beaten to the point that every bone in my body was destroyed, I was once again using a skill to move my body, a skill that consumes mana, a limited resource in this place.

Even now where just the two of us are still in the fight, it's only a matter of time for another Demon to come attack me, giving another opening for that damn Dragon to attack.

During all this combat the memories of my continuous combat with my sister flashed in my mind.

"(Don't think...)" (I)

"(Let instinct take the body...)" (I)

"(Just move on...)" (I)

"(When you no longer have strength, go further...)" (I)

My breathing was heavy, my mana was reaching its limit as well as all my other energies, and my Aura was weaker and still maintaining itself with only my willpower keeping it protecting my body.

"< Aura Relic: Blood of the Eclipse >" (I)

I didn't even imagine the form of my Aura Relic, I just let my Aura take shape along with my words with the image in my mind forming following the Aura that penetrates my blood while I am no longer able to differentiate between my Aura and my blood.

When I attacked the Spectral Dragon again my blood moved following only my will to attack, left my body gathering in my hand as I created a sword that was easily my size, a sword that felt like it was part of me as it moved in an attack cutting carrying several of the Dragon's legs.

Soon the fight intensified, and I completely abandoned defense acting like a wild beast moving the sword as if I was moving my own claws, each attack on the Dragon's body left wounds that could not heal, its body stained with red energy that spread throughout his body from the wounds.

When its teeth caught my sword, I ignored its claw piercing my stomach and made the once-solid sword turn to liquid flowing from one arm to the other before reforming, then I slashed with the sword at the creature's exposed neck, cutting it almost in half.

At that moment, hunger roared inside me when I associated the cut neck with blood, and responding to this desire, the sword made from my blood once again became liquid as it entered the spectral body of this Dragon through the large wound in its neck at the same time as my body weakens.

I feel my body burn with a cold energy invading my body draining my vitality and with a look waiting for the enemy to take advantage of my weakness I am surprised to see the Spectral Dragon struggling while red lines spread across its body, even its eyes became red as his body seemed to slowly melt as we both fell to the ground.

Even after the fall, I didn't lose my consciousness through sheer force of will as I dragged my body closer to the Spectral Dragon that is still melting, I felt a calling for me that I tried to reach before someone fell from the sky, a blue-skinned Humanoid figure was everything that I could see before his hand sank into my heart from behind.

But my Blood Core ignites, letting the Stellar flames explode hitting the enemy at the same time as a large wave of blood appears behind him descending on both of us, he squats through the wave creating a path through which he escapes while I dive into this blood smiling.

"(Only with enough pressure can you squeeze out every last drop of potential...)" (I)

This was something that Natasha told me more than 1 year ago, shortly after my evolution, but when I felt all this blood entering me, healing my body and filling me once again with power, I realized what she meant.