Chapter 183: Inverse Absolute Engravement (II)

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As the cyclone formed, Apollo followed the instruction of the voice in his mind. The lines of the stigmata on his body appeared in his mind. Immediately, he discarded the large bits. His only current focus was the outline.

In the words of Saehtyn, different results required different approaches. Not all demons practiced the way Saehtyn did, but then again, there wasn't another demon who achieved what he did with Ira. 

Hence, this alone gave Apollo enough reason to follow after him. Besides, to beseech help wasn't a sign of weakness. It was a sign that someone was mature enough to admit they needed help. Only those who were presumptuous to the extreme couldn't perform this action.

And such was why they would never truly be strong. Nonetheless, as Apollo examined the stigmata, he learned more about it. The structure was a singular existence. In fact, it was numerous odd demonic words weaved together but it was a language Apollo was unfamiliar with.

That was, until he matched it with the mantra. He soon realized each word resonated with a fragment of the stigmata. And, as he repeated a single word, the structure became exceedingly clear to him. Due to this, Apollo continued with his actions.

Soon enough, it was stripped bare. But, just this simple action caused his body to perspire incessantly. As Saehtyn said, to move forward it was a matter of will and not the body. No matter what state they reached, Sin would always overpower the body.

It was up to one's mental strength to persist through the pain. Thus, Apollo clenched his teeth and tried his darndest to deal with the searing pain burrowing into his body. Fortunately, the way Saehtyn explained was many times quicker than the typical way of doing this.

This just went to show the guidance of a pinnacle expert was worth more than blindly guessing the path of advancing. Nevertheless, it was surprising how on point Apollo's guess was.

Slowly, the imprint appeared on Apollo's mind. However, when just 3% done, Apollo's willpower petered out. With an exaggerated gasp, Apollo fell forward. Before he attempted to recover, he waited until the pain passed.

Thankfully, he knew his limits. If he pushed too hard, he could potentially put himself in danger. Even though Ourosboros was present, the extent of his abilities had yet to be fully explored.

"I'm making progress. Much more progress than I have made on my own during this entire time. I can feel it, the end is getting closer. I will evolve into a Greater Demon," Apollo vowed.

Several moments later, he sat in a stance and absorbed essence for over 10 hours. Finally, after reaching his peak state, he repeated the cycle once again. This time, he was able to persist until 10% done.

With just this alone, Apollo could feel a new realm of power coursing through him. Just absorbing the essence alone wasn't the only way for him to cultivate. After all, the stigmata was something that required his anima. In return, it spat out a type of energy that cleansed him.

In light of this, Apollo was tempted to check his current stats.

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(Demon Monarch System) Lvl.3

Name: Apollo Kaiser

Race: Lesser Demon [1.10%]

Title: Azridan's Successor

Age: 14

Level: 100 [Locked]

Experience: [Locked]

Health: 100%

Demonic Anima Reserves: 3,083 units.

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(Impermanent)

Body Cultivation Realm: ~Rank 6 Zul Warrior

Spirit Cultivation Realm: ~Rank 2 Spirit Apprentice

Meridians: Heaven-Grade (Top Tier)

Zuls: 6,000

Oz: 195

Strength: 300.0

Agility: 235.0

Intelligence: 212.0

Vitality: 141.0

Comprehension: 21.2

Willpower: 21.2

[«Traits»]- 4

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[«Techniques»]- 3

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[«Elemental Affinities»] 

Level 7: Fire, Darkness, Metal, Wind, and Lightning

Level 5: Earth

Level 3: Space 

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[«Demonic Servants»] [«Interdimensional Inventory»] 

Stat Points: 0

"Now that my level is locked, cultivation directly increases all of my stats. Wait a minute, when I was in Ashiraem, I felt as if a restriction was lifted. That should've had something to do with my level. If so, by the standard of the system, I wonder what level Saehtyn has reached," Apollo mused.

Soon enough, Apollo tried one last time to further his engravement. By the end, he was left with 25% of it completed. However, any further and he felt he would venture into insanity. Just a single percent felt like too much to ask for.

This was not something that could be done in one sitting. Since that was the case, Apollo retrieved a Crystallized Chaos and fed it to Ouroboros. At the same time, Elaia had awakened days ago. 

Unbeknownst to Apollo, his last attempt took days to complete. In fact, he could even guess the tolls of the next general lesson bells were fast approaching. However, before that happened, he still had something to do. 

"You two stay here, I need to go do a few things," Apollo said. Before leaving, he left a few resources that both Ouroboros and Elaia could use.

As he reached outside, he saw who he was in search of, "Excuse me, Sir Corvin. I need a favor, can you tell me where Aaron Kaiser's residence is?"

"That is quite easy. Let me check," Corvin answered. Upon checking the directory, he found the area with ease, "If you follow the stream into the intermediate area, you'll find his residence. It is marked number 34."

In return, Apollo nodded. While strolling through the intermediate area, he saw numerous other students mingling with each other. While this was a natural sight, Apollo felt it was a bother. It was much essential time from training just wasted to a triviality. 

Nevertheless, he soon arrived at Aaron's door. After knocking, he was let inside. Upon entering, he noticed the immediate differences between his and Aaron's residence. The formations inside were far weaker and it wasn't as spacious.

"Is this area sufficient for you? Just say the word and I'll give you the funds needed to upgrade. It isn't a hassle," Apollo offered.

However, Aaron declined. "It is fine. I don't spend much time here anyway. Since my problem is my body, I need to get used to it faster. To do so, there is nothing faster than combat. So, tell me, what brings you here Apollo?"

"Here, this is for you," Apollo responded while tossing a pouch to Aaron. As he opened it, Aaron caught wind of 25 Spirit Stones inside.

"Are these Spirit Stones," Aaron muttered incredulously. Naturally, Apollo nodded. Furthermore, since he knew Aaron, he gave him a meaningful look.

"I got those specifically for you. You need to open your Soul Temple and those are better than Spirit Shards at doing so. Not to mention, that didn't come from my pockets. I extorted someone as per my specialty," Apollo smirked.

While the two caught up, the triple toll of the general seminar bells sounded. But, compared to before, the sound was much more sonorous. Apparently, in the last session, there were some people who didn't attend.

As a consequence, the staff made the bells unbearable to listen to. With this, there would be no excuses to be heard for missing the seminar. 

While everyone made their way to the classroom, Apollo looked skeptically at the classroom. In comparison, there were many people present that weren't last time. In addition, not only was Glaive present, but there was also Sapphyr.

Once everyone settled, Glaive spoke to the class, "Today will be slightly special. At first, I was going to use the typical practice to start awakening and honing the Soul Conscience. However, Miss Sapphyr has brought it to my attention that more drastic means would yield better results for you all. With that being said, let's change a few things."

Glaive waved his arms and performed hand seals that caused everyone to be grouped of his own accord. "Some in your group may possess Spiritual Cultivations while some may not. Even though this doesn't matter, this should give those who don't know what to do a sense of direction."

Glaive then took a step back and allowed Sapphyr to take a step forward and take the lead, "Today's task won't be exceedingly hard, you'll just be moving blind. Literally, all of your senses will be robbed from you save your hearing. But, this will only happen to one person in a group at a time. Your objective will be to solve the noise."

"Noise? What noise?" Everyone questioned causing murmurs in the classroom. In response, Saphhyr simply smiled. She formed some hand gestures and soon after, everyone clutched their head in pain.

Typhir even went as far as to scream, "Shut that shit off!"