God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 367: Black Dragon, Ascending...

The air was immediately saturated with thick motes of darkness...

Hunter who was about to rush in once again, paused in his tracks...

Stingè stared at Cain, surprise on his face,

"A devil? No... It was a human before. However, it is already in the beginning stages of the corruption..."

Cain couldn't understand Stingè's words, and that was because he had completely lost it.

"Cain! Get it together!" Hunter yelled. However, Cain was too far gone. His mind was being consumed by Devil Essence.

Although Devil Essence was very powerful, it was a power that could induce rot and corruption. The reason for the downfall of the uncountable worlds that the Devils have invaded was this nature of corruption.

What Cain was experiencing was very similar to the way a {Miasma Devil} created {Zombies}. It slowly corrupted a planet and its inhabitants, absorbing all life, and turning it into a dead world.

Humans, or mutant beasts that were affected by Devil Essence would begin to mutate slowly until they adopted a devilish nature and became subservient to the devils.

Still, this was a gradual process for those with a system. Normal humans would lose their sense of self and turn into mindless monsters. However, those blessed with the system were able to acquire a certain level of resistance. And as they climbed in levels and Tiers, they became more and more resistant.

However, they also slowly lost the benefits that came with having Devil Essence. Spells, skills, and abilities that were augmented by Devil Essence were far more powerful than those that weren't. And although the purity of Devil Essence couldn't be compared to that of a devil, it was still a significant boost.

"This isn't good. This isn't good at all." Hunter's face turned ugly.

Hunter turned into a streak of light as he dashed at Stingè. His hands flew forward at lightning speed as he dished out attack after attack, trying to keep the insane demon's attention on him.

'A corruption?! I thought we didn't need to worry about any of that for now!'

There was a huge chasm that separated them from the rest of the battlefield. The others couldn't come to their aide even if they wanted to.

Stingè continued to stare at Cain, 'This purity. It is almost at the same level as a True Devil. How the hell is he still human?!'

The amount and purity of Devil Essence was slowly climbing, which meant that Cain was slowly losing resistance to the corrupting nature of Devil Essence.

Stingè snorted, "If you are going to turn into a mindless beast, I might as well just kill you now. You are of no use to me."

"Idle-"

Just before Stingè could deliver a killing blow to Cain, the world shook...

The pillar of black Devil Essence turned into a smoldering conflagration of darkness. A pair of blood-crimson eyes appeared in the darkness and stared at Stingè with hatred and malice.

Stingè let out a sigh, "What a waste. To think the mutation would be completed so quickly..."

As Cain walked out of the smoldering could of darkness, a few changes could be observed. The new form he had adopted was very similar to Rakshasa. However, the major difference was the halo of golden light that surrounded the crimson-streaked darkness that surrounded his body.

Cain was using {Golden Body} to slow down the rate of corruption...

***

His mind had turned into a turbulent sea. However, he barely managed to hold onto his reasoning.

'System, what is going on with me?'

{Replying to host: The host's body is being corrupted by the Devil's Essence that has taken root in his body}.

Cain felt the urge to smash his head into the ground in frustration,

'Corruption? What even is that? Am I turning into a Devil?'

{Replying to host: Not quite. The host's mind, body, and soul are being corrupted by Devil Essence. However, the host cannot turn into a devil. Instead, the host will turn into a being that is neither human nor devil. A disgusting reject of the universe that should be killed and destroyed immediately}.

Cain began to panic, 'What the hell?! Why is this happening?!'

{Replying to host: There are multiple reasons, the first being that the host has a constitution that makes him more susceptible to Devil Essence. This constitution isn't special, and almost all humans and lesser races possess the same constitution}.

{Creatures that do not have access to the system aren't able to resist it for the most part. Hence, they will eventually turn into mindless abominations that are controlled in body and soul by the devils. The only way they can avoid this fate is by accepting the divinity of a Celestial being}.

{Those that can grow stronger thanks to the system will develop resistance to this corruption on their own. The stronger they become and the more Tiers they climb to, the more they would become resistant to the corruption of Devil Essence. Those at Tier 2 and above are practically immune to it}.

'But why is this happening to me? If I possess access to the system, I shouldn't be going through this, right?'

{Replying to host: Affirmative... However, the host possesses a skill that makes him susceptible to all forms of energy}.

Cain let out a tired internal sigh, 'Let me guess... {Draconic Transfiguration}?'

{Replying to host: ...Affirmative}.

Cain felt bitterness rise in his heart. He had doomed himself.

'So what should I do now? Is there any way to stop this corruption?'

{Replying to host: There is no way to stop the corruption once it has begun. It can only be assimilated or slowed down. However, due to your {Draconic Transfiguration} skill, it will only progress faster, so the best thing the host can do is to slow it down with a powerful transformation skill.

Cain's mind was filled with turmoil. Of all times for this to happen, it had happened now, when he was in the thick of the most dangerous battle he had ever dough in his life,

{Replying to host: Affirmative...}

Cain's eyelids twitched...

'The only transformation ability that I have is {Golden Body}. I guess that will have to do.'

Although {Golde Body} was incredibly taxing on him, it would have to do. Besides, there was no way he could take Stingè on in his normal form...

As such, Cain activated {Golden Body}, completely unaware of the changes that it would bring...

***

Walking out of the storm of darkness, Cain could sense the changes. He could feel his body slowly changing. He was becoming faster, stronger. He could feel strange horns growing out of his head. At the same time, his tailbone was growing out, and a serpentine tail was manifesting into existence.

His claws and canines were also growing longer, and his height and body weight were increasing exponentially.

He could also sense Devil Essence with far more clarity than ever. It was very strange. The cloud of Devil Essence floating behind him was like the cold embrace of the night, sticking to him like a possessive lover, never wanting to let go.

And for the first time, he could finally get an inkling of what Stingè's power was. He could only describe what he was seeing as boundless...

***

{Demonic Drake-Kin} level 150 (Deadly, Tier 1)

Strength: 61,000.

Agility: 40,000.

Defense: 3,000.

Magic: 100,000.

HP: 1,211,000/1,211,000.

MP: 1,000,000/1,000,000.

Skills: ???, ???, ???.

***

Cain let out a laugh...

'Ha... Seriously. This is truly a joke.'

The truth of the matter was they had no fighting chance. Regardless of how one wanted to put it. There was no hope for them.

'He's even more powerful than the {Alabaster Leviathan}, that treacherous sea beast.'

Cain had never heard of a {Demonic Drake} before. However, this confirmed that Stingè had the bloodline of a demon or one that was Demonic in nature.

In the end, all that didn't matter. Fighting was futile. He wasn't even qualified to face off against this creature.

"Ho? You are conscious? I thought you'd already descended into the depths of madness"

The cloud of Devil Essence followed behind Cain as he walked closer.

"You..."

"Hm?" Stingè watched Cain intensely as he walked closer.

'So odd... A corrupted, but he hasn't lost his sentience. Quite odd... He is as interesting as the human with the Beast of Ragnarok bloodline.'

Stingè frowned, 'Still, he's already been corrupted. There's no point in keeping him alive.'

Cain stared at him with his glowing golden eyes,

"You are strong. But..."

"Hm?"

"But you haven't seen anything yet."

"Ho? That is quite the foolish thing to say. You don't seem to understand the difference in Tiers, do you?"

Indeed, Cain didn't truly understand the difference in their strengths. However, he didn't care. To him, the target before him had to die, regardless of how string he was...

Cain took a stance...

The two blades in his hands were pointed forward, positioned to be slightly diagonal with the ground. His legs dug deep into the stones beneath his feet.

His breathing stabilized, yet his heart raced like the wingbeats of a hummingbird...

A sharp glint traveled from the tip of the blades, across the edge, all the way to the hilt.

At that moment, the darkness that followed behind him seemed to come to life. A pair of deep, crimson eyes ignited in the depths of the cloud of Devil Essence.

Ki Fire exploded onto the surface of Cain's weapons...

As Cain moved the creature born within the darkness moved as well...

"Ha! Even if I die, I'll die when my soul is all burnt up, and my body can't move anymore, you bastard!"

The being within the darkness struggled to break free from its cocoon as Cain's body turned into a blitz of flames, sparks, and darkness.

In that moment, all of his understanding of battle, martial arts, Ki, and Devil Essence merged together.

Stingè watched in amazement as a gigantic illusory dragon created from Devil Essence snapped its abyssal jaws open.

The sky split open, and the ground cracked into a billion pieces as Cain poured all his physical power and energy into the strike,

"Dark Dragon, Ascending..."