God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 383: The Demon King Escapes (1).

Dull explosions came from beneath his feet as Cain made use of {Wind Weaver} and {Burst Step} to chase after Stingè.

The moment Stingè stopped, he didn't hesitate to send another {Hell's Nexus} his way. The thin line of concentrated Devil Essence and Ki cut through reality and made its way to Stingè.

This time, the Demon didn't dodge out of the way. Instead, a massive amount of Ki swirled around the shaft of the spear. The attack was blocked cleanly.

Cain immediately dodged to the side when he saw this. No sooner had he dodged, than a massive cutting Ki slash was sent his way.

He immediately made the choice to switch the {Scale of the Abyssal Flame} with {Maelstrom}. Drawing the bow into a full moon, he fired an arrow of compressed cosmic water.

The magically charged projectile shot forward with the speed of a bullet towards Stingè. However, it was blocked by Stingè who wore a very cold expression, his eyes burning with fury and scorn.

Cain grinned slightly and fired a barrage of arrows without stopping. These arrows were not weak at all, and although a few dozen wouldn't harm Stingè, Cain was releasing more than ten every second. This was enough to put pressure on Stingè who was forced to place most of his attention on the worm-like Aether beast.

The worm-like Aether beast completely ignored Cain and focused its attention on only Stingè. Cain was now standing on the back of the creature that was busy chasing after Stingè, too occupied to pay the flea on its back any notice.

'What I need is something big. Something that far surpasses my current output...'

Although Cain's physical attributes had been tremendously boosted, they still couldn't be compared with that of Stingè. However, brute strength wasn't what won a battle.

Cain's cunning eyes were searching for an opportunity, while his brain was processing and computing extremely fast.

'The strongest enhancement spells in my arsenal are the {Flame of Darkness} and {Vampiric Star}. I can only use these spells on flame attribute skills or spells. Does Ki Fire count as one? No... Flame attribute skills and spells require fire elemental mana. Ki Fire isn't the same.'

He planned to deliver a final blow to end it all. Something capable of killing both Stingè and the worm-like Aether Beast.

Cain could feel his mana pool getting fuller and fuller. However, it wasn't enough. He needed more.

Sitting on the soft flesh of the Aether Beast, he watched as the creature tried its hardest to eat Stingè.

"Infernal Celestial Art: Vampiric Star."

A magic circle manifested itself behind Cain and pulsed with a sharp light. Soon, a small orb, the size of a walnut appeared. It rotated slowly at first, but as if sucked in more and more mana from Cain, it grew larger.

Its distinct red glow and the runes swimming within it told of the power linking within. However, for some reason, there was a slight hue of darkness hidden within the star

"Flame of Darkness."

The red glow of the star was immediately stolen away by a devouring darkness. Although the {Vampiric Star} was not an attack spell, any living being would react to the drastic change in atmosphere.

However, because the worm-like Aether Beast was so focused on Stingè, it didn't pay Cain any attention at all, allowing him to focus on what he was doing.

Gritting his teeth, Stingè blocked another heavy attack the Aether Beast threw at him with its stubby arms. Although the legs looked short, that was only with respect to the overall size of the beast. For tiny creatures like Cain and Stingè, it was as big as a hill.

'What is he planning?' Stingè narrowed his eyes.

He was taken by surprise when Cain suddenly stopped pressuring him during his delicate battle with the worm-like Aether Beast. Seeing Cain seated on top of the beast so leisurely made him burn with fury. However, he was not a scourge of the battlefield for nothing.

Despite his rage, he maintained his cool perfectly...

'He's building up an attack. However, it doesn't seem to be very powerful.'

Looking at the black star hanging over Cain's head, he was filled with an ominous feeling. However, the logical part of his brain told him that he had nothing to worry about.

Sensitivity to mana fluctuations and mana flow patterns was one of the advantages of having a high magic stat. His magic stat was already in the tens of thousands, far greater than Cain's, so he could very clearly sense the changes in the mana flow patterns around Cain.

However, if there was one major advantage Cain had over Stingè, it would be their knowledge of magical principles...

Because magic and the arcane arts were so commonplace around the universe, those with exceptional knowledge of it were rather few. Although his knowledge of the Magical Arts wasn't bad, he was a warrior at the end of the day.

The only purpose magic had in his eyes, was to be an instrument of slaughter and convenience. Nothing more, nothing less...

To Cain, magic was more than that. He had also used the [Records of Akasha I& II} to study magic. These books were profound literature that had been stowed away in a place that was impossible for even the strongest of creatures to reach. In the entire universe, there were only a handful of books that could measure up in terms of rarity.

As such, it was only natural for Cain to be better versed in magic than Stingè. That didn't mean that the power of his spells was greater than Stingè's spells. What it did mean, was that he was far better than Stingè at utilizing his mana. If Stingè needed a thousand MP to perform a task, he would only need about fifty or a hundred, despite the difference in magic stats being so huge.

'Not yet...' Cain's eyes twinkled with darkness as he continued to build up more and more mana. The {Vampiric Star} was now being augmented with {Flame of Darkness}. If he made a single mistake now, he would be the first person to die. After all, he wasn't immune to the burn of the Sorcerer's flame just like his enemies.

At this point, the entire Island was in shambles. Each Island was very heavy and had a lot of landmasses. However, the scale of the battle between Stingè, the worm-like Aether Beast, and Cain was enough to tear the Island apart from the seams.

The Aether Beast in question was more than enough to classify as a natural disaster. Cain shivered every time the creature clashed with Stingè not because of the force behind every blow, but because he imagined himself being on the receiving end of it, and came to a conclusion that he would become a pancake after a dozen hits or so.

'This beast is a Calamity...'

Although it was shaped like a worm, its power was anything but. Its many stubby, meaty legs dug into the ground, propelling it forward at a speed that made it difficult for Stingè to outrun it.

It could also use its legs to attack, have access to metal elemental attacks, and could also produce a poisonous acidic mist. It was a terrible opponent to have, with an oppressive defense and attack range that could frustrate its opponents to death.

That was just enough proof of Stingè's strength. The fact that he was able to go toe to toe against this beast, even to the point of almost killing it, showed that Stingè was also not to be trifled with.

'And then, there's me. The delusional bastard that wants to kill them both.' Cain thought to himself, a grin stretching the corners of his lips.

Cain let out a heavy sigh...

Then, he jumped high into the sky. He planned to make as much distance between himself and the two fighters. He didn't want to go through the process of dying again after all...

"Where do you think you're going?!" Stingè roared at Cain as he pulled his spear out of the Aether Beast and attempted to dash at him.

However, Cain was already prepared for this. Handguns appeared in his hands and began pelting Stingè with bullets, hindering his movement. The spear in Stingè's hands spun like a propeller, knocking the bullets out of the way.

The worm-like Aether Beast dashed at him, but a furious kick from Stingè sent it flying. Then, he attempted to chase after Cain, but it was already too late.

The wind fluttered his hair as he ascended towards the clouds...

'This is it...'

The Devil Essence boiling within him became alive and furious as it rushed through his magical Ley lines. The mana flowing within took on a demonically black hue as it rushed into the already dark star burning above his head.

The darkness within the {Vampiric Star} seemed to become like a living, brooding darkness that consumed all. The light around the star was being eaten. A dark shadow spread out across the crumbling island...

Stingè stared up at the star and Cain, his face devoid of blood. Even if he was at full power, he would not be able to tank this attack and come out unscathed.

"Infernal Celestial Art..."

Cain's words echoed like the ordinances of a grim reaper...

"Dark Sun Supernova!"

The {Vampiric Star} shot down faster than a rocket launching into orbit...

'At this range, I can't dodge it.'

Stingè came to a horrifying conclusion. Although Cain had made some distance between them, it was not so much that he could avoid the attack.

'I'll have to tank it!'

Stingè immediately put all his mana into creating a barrier...

"Idle World!"

An invincible done was erected around him. The Aether Beast sensed the danger as well. Although it didn't have any eyes, it turned to Stingè with what could only be described as a hateful glare.

Then it began trying to dig through the ground to avoid the attack. By then, it was already too late.

Before the latter half of its body could make it into the ground, the {Dark Sun Supernova} had already exploded. A terrifying wave of scorching dark heat washed over the entire island.

The shock waves of the impact slammed into Cain's body, pushing him even further into the sky.

Pain shot through his body as burns began appearing on him even in his transformed state.

'Even with my defense, just the shock waves and a bit of the residual heat was enough to harm me this much?!'

Cain could only imagine what those that were at ground zero had to suffer...

High up in the sky were traces of wind and lightning elements, so Cain immediately opened up his Vault to absorb them.

When the force pushing him up died down, Cain quickly activated {Wind Weaver} using the wind elemental mana he had absorbed into his Vault. Since his mana was completely drained because of the spell he had just activated, he had to rely on {Elemental Vault}.

He clenched his fists with burning eyes,

'If that wasn't enough, I don't know what would be...'

***

A/N: Special Mass release of chapters incoming!!!! Just like last month, special chapters will be released till the end of the month. If we can meet the goal by the end of the month, I plan to release an extra chapter every day for the first ten days.

Conditions: GIFTS!

Yes, people... Your gifts and active use of coins motivate me to write more and more of this book I'll seem to enjoy so much. So... Here's how we are gonna do it

Gifts worth 1000 coins: 3 extra chapters.

Gifts worth 2000 coins: 6 extra chapters.

Gifts worth 5000 coins: 15 extra chapters.

I really appreciate the continuous support. From the bottom of my heart. These gifts go a long way. Cheers!

P.S: Gifts higher than 5000 will also be factored in depending on if I have the time or not. For gifts below 1000, I'll try to sum up collective gifts to make it up. If it doesn't reach the mark, I'll still release an extra chapter by the end of the month.