The Demon Monarch System

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Numerous groans were heard inside the teaching space as many of the student's expressions paled. Unlike Body Cultivation, the start of Spiritual Cultivation was extremely painful. Hence, the reason the number of Spirit Cultivators to Body Cultivators was 1:1,000.

Nevertheless, Glaive nodded with a hint of praise on his visage, "I must say, this year's standard of youths is a tier above. Although you are all experiencing the preliminary pains of this cultivation, none of you have tapped out; commendable tenacity."

While he continued to walk around, he saw small signs of Spiritual Essence interacting with the student's head. Specifically, the point between their eyebrows. This was a telltale sign that their Soul Temple was ready to be formed.

Unfortunately, that was something easier said than done. To endure a pain equivalent to your brain being severed in half was not a simple request. If one wanted to do so, they either needed a very strong mind or tenacity that went far beyond the norm.

However, if it was the latter, there still remained a possibility to incur injury or even death if one refused to admit defeat in the face of peril. One thing most youths disliked was falling behind their peers. Thus, this created a competitive atmosphere.

Fortunately, Glaive allowed them to take breaks. After all, the Soul Temple wasn't something that required a fluent opening. As long as they primed their mind to the precipice, then they could take the final step at any point. The importance lay in the fact they liberate their minds to their utmost ability.

As a result, various boast could be heard circulating the room as many students took their breaks. On the other hand, students like Apollo, Typhir, Odessa, and the others who already completed this process, continued in their endeavors without interruption.

In the meantime, Glaive gazed at them silently. Compared to a few past batches, their mental strength seemed to be many times stronger. Based on the fluctuations surrounding them, it was safe to say they already stepped beyond the first rank of the Spirit Apprentice Realm.

Yet, when he looked at Apollo, he could sense nothing. Glaive found this to be extremely odd. After all, he was aware of Apollo, and out of everyone, he held the most relaxed expression. It was as if he experienced no pain whatsoever from tempering his mind. 

If so, then from Glaive's perspective, Apollo must possess some kind of variant mind. Additionally, it had to be one that concealed all signs of activity. Otherwise, there was no other way for him to explain what was taking place before his very eyes. 

Of course, it wasn't what Glaive thought it to be. In fact, it was much, much worse. Unbeknownst to him, by introducing Apollo to Spiritual Essence in an orthodox way, he enabled the scenario needed to spur Apollo.

He awakened a new trait!

〈System Alert! You have awakened a new trait. Furthermore, it is deemed as a Pinnacle Vital trait. You have unlocked «Pure Demonic Conversion».〉

As this message sounded in Apollo's mind, he paused what he was doing. Since his advancement in this type of cultivation, he possessed the ability for the notification to appear in either his mind or in the world before him.

Naturally, in his current situation, he picked the former. While doing so, he expanded on the information to understand exactly what the Pure aspect depicted. Since it deemed the ability to be a pinnacle vital trait, that meant it couldn't be trained through regular means.

It means it could only grow along with the state of his being, which as of right now, was a meager Lesser Demon.

Trait Name: Pure Demonic Conversion

Type: Pinnacle (Vital)

Level: MAXED 

Information: Typically, this ability is awakened in a demon that travels the path of supreme power. Unlike the rest of its peers, it isn't limited to one source of power. By using its body as the furnace, any and all energy of matching aspects can be converted into Pure Demonic Anima to power your very being. However, the immensity of the scale effect is determined by your Demonic Order.

Effect -

«Lesser» - By absorbing an energy source of a similar type, you are allowed to convert 0.01-0.1 units of Pure Demonic Anima every second. The value is determined by the thickness of the ambient energy surrounding you.

Conversion Cost: 20% of the energy in conversion.

Current Environment = 0.08 Pure Demon Anima per second.

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As he looked at the information before him, Apollo was frozen in shock! This was the Pure Demonic Anima Azridan mentioned before. It was something he was in dire need of. After all, not only did it contribute to the acceleration of his race evolution, it could also assist in recovering quicker.

However, when he saw how much he could create at the moment, he was appalled. It had to be known, immediately after becoming a Lesser Demon, his body could already hold upwards of 3,000 units of Demonic Anima. 

Yet, with his current conversion rate, it would take over a day just to recuperate his Demonic Anima should he exhaust it all. Not to mention, this took into account the Demonic that was being split between his Tainted Temple and Infernal Nucleus. Thus, Apollo came to an apt conclusion.

'I need to harness Wrath properly soon enough. This is the beauty of Demons learned by Azridan, they possess more than one pool of resources that can also blend together seamlessly,' Apollo mused.

Nevertheless, since his Demonic Anima Reserves were full, he continued forward with his current actions. However, the abysmally slow rate of improvement made Apollo feel a sense of dread.

Unlike the rest, who focused on a single aspect with each type of cultivation. Apollo's anima flowed into three different sources of its own accord. There was his Infernal Nucleus, slowly but surely strengthening his body, the Tainted Temple doing so to his mind and finally, the Stigmata which was converting the anima into a stream of information for him to decipher.

'Unlike the rest, I believe most of my time will be spent absorbing resources. In comparison, there's just not enough time,' Apollo thought while opening his eyes.

As he did so, he caught sight of Glaive examining his curiously. In response, Apollo did the same. However, in his case, he much more curious about the type of Spirit he held. Truth be told, he held a fascination towards them.

More importantly, he held a curiosity towards understanding how a Demon would far against them. Since there were a plethora of worlds out there, there were bound to be beings on par with the Demons.

"Young one, may I ask you a question?" Glaive approached.

As there was hostility in his tone or his vibe, Apollo nodded in consent.

"Is there no pain present when you cultivate your mind? Different from the rest, your expression is always placid as you cultivate it. Additionally, I can't sense the energy you are cultivating. While I can see you absorbing Spiritual Essences, there are no signs of you chiseling your mind," Glaive probed while crouching beside Apollo.

"Ah, there is a reason for that. Simply put, the pain isn't enough to garner a reaction. I have been through some unspeakable things. My body is the culmination of destructive techniques," Apollo replied in a calm tone.

However, from the lack of emotion in his voice, Glaive couldn't tell if this was the truth or not. If it was, then this lad before him was nothing short of an enigma. As far as he knew, there was no pain on par with forming the Soul Temple. After all, one must not underestimate the horror that accompanied doing so.

"I see, well, you may continue. Don't allow me to impede your progress. But, a bit of advice, use the spirit tools, i.e, the shards and/or stones to promote a faster absorption rate," Glaive advised before returning to his inspection route.

'Use the stones, huh,' Apollo mused. Since the information came from an instructor, it didn't hurt to try. Apollo retrieved a single Spirit Stone and held it in his palms. Before experimenting with the lesser version, he wanted to see how these held up with the Tainted Shards.

Thus, Apollo attempted to absorb the energy. At first, it was going well, but then the system message rang, alerting Apollo of the new abilities drawback. After absorbing the stone to the point of nihility, Apollo opened his eyes.

'Oh, woe is me. What a disgusting consumption,' Apollo sighed.