Chapter 414: Blood Ritual

The demon raised its second finger and turned toward Ethan.

"The second problem is what we will refer to as his mind."

Ethan caught the wording.

’It probably means soul or something even deeper, but mind is easier to understand.’

The room became quieter as the demon continued.

"The instincts inside him are becoming stronger because his body is evolving faster than his mind can process. He is not simply becoming more powerful. He is developing a predatory consciousness that doesn’t think like a human and is consuming his own mind."

Ethan’s eyes narrowed.

"So that’s what happens when he rampages."

"Yes."

The demon’s gaze shifted toward Mark.

"He needs to learn how to control those instincts before they consume his human mind entirely and essentially needs to consume them. If he doesn’t, there may be no coming back."

Kaela’s smile disappeared.

"And how exactly do we do that?"

The demon smiled.

"Ethan will enter his mind."

Ethan stared at it.

"Excuse me?"

"I can create a connection between your minds. Through that connection, you will be able to enter his mental space and confront the instincts inside him directly."

Ethan’s expression became serious.

"So I fight the monster in his head."

"Something like that."

The demon’s smile returned.

"But it isn’t simply about defeating it. The monster inside him is part of him now. Destroying it would be no different from destroying a part of Mark himself. The goal is to make him understand and accept it."

Ethan looked toward Mark.

That sounded easier said than done.

The demon continued.

"While the connection is active, I will use the monsters brought by Kaela to satisfy his body’s hunger. Their living essence will feed his physical side while the person inside his mind deals with the instincts."

Ethan’s eyes widened slightly.

"So while his body is feeding, his mind is being fixed."

"Exactly."

The demon nodded.

"His body gets what it needs to survive while his mind learns how to control what it is becoming."

Ethan considered the plan.

It was insane.

Yet the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

They had been treating Mark’s transformations like a disease.

Perhaps that had been the problem.

Maybe they weren’t supposed to suppress what Mark was becoming and rather support him so that he doesn’t lose himself in the process.

The demon’s expression suddenly became serious.

"But there is one important condition."

Ethan’s eyes narrowed.

"What?"

"The person entering his mind needs to do it soon."

The demon looked down at Mark.

"Very soon."

"Why?"

"Because every transformation pushes him further. If his instincts continue developing unchecked, there may eventually be nothing left for you to save."

Ethan’s expression darkened.

"So we don’t have much time."

"No."

The demon shook its head.

"You don’t."

For once, there was no playful smile or cryptic amusement.

Ethan looked at Mark, whose unconscious body twitched as another faint metallic sheen passed across his skin.

The situation had become far more serious than he had realised.

Kaela slowly uncrossed her arms.

"So, just to make sure I’ve understood this correctly."

She pointed toward Mark.

"He needs living monsters to feed his body while someone enters his mind and helps him not be a monster."

The demon nodded.

"Precisely."

Kaela stared at it for several seconds before looking at Ethan.

"That’s fucking crazy."

Ethan nodded.

"Yeah."

He looked back toward the demon.

"But it might work."

"Correct."

Ethan frowned.

"Assuming we can trust you."

The demon smiled.

"Can you?"

Ethan didn’t answer.

That was the problem.

None of them knew whether they could trust the demon.

It had helped them before and even saved them when they had no other options, but it was still a demon. Now they were allowing it to create a connection between their minds while relying on it to keep Mark alive.

That was a terrifying amount of trust to place in something they barely understood.

Yet what other choice did they have?

Mark was dying.

His body was breaking down, and every transformation truly seemed to bring him closer to losing himself entirely.

Doing nothing wasn’t an option.

Ethan looked at Kaela.

She met his gaze.

Neither needed to say anything.

Whatever happened next, they were going through with it.

Ethan looked back toward the demon.

"Alright."

The demon’s smile returned.

"Then let’s begin."

Ethan glanced down at Mark one last time.

’Don’t you dare die on me, brother.’

Kaela stepped forward.

The demon prepared itself.

Then the atmosphere in the room changed.

The demon’s expression became focused as it began channeling mana.

"Lie him flat."

Ethan helped position Mark on the floor.

Mark’s body continued to convulse as he straightened on the ground.

Then the demon extended its hand.

A thin line of dark crimson blood appeared across its palm.

"To create the connection, I need to use my blood as a conduit."

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"Blood?"

He couldn’t help but be concerned since he was using Elara’s body.

The demon smiled.

"True to the name you humans have given me, I really am a Blood Demon. And don’t worry, I won’t drain her body too much."

It crouched beside Mark and pressed its bloody hand against his skin.

Ethan and Kaela were fascinated by how it drew out its own blood without a cut, seemingly using its pores. But more intriguing were the effects of what it was doing.

Mark’s body immediately jerked.

The demon began drawing.

Blood flowed from its fingers as intricate, satanic markings appeared around Mark’s body. Sharp lines connected to curved symbols, forming a massive circular formation beneath him.

Mark twitched again.

"Hnn..."

Ethan’s expression tightened.

The demon finally looked at him.

"Now you."

"Me?"

"Lie down opposite him."

Ethan hesitated.

He looked at the ritual circle.

Then at the demon.

"You could’ve mentioned the whole blood ritual thing earlier."

The demon smiled.

"You still would have agreed."

Ethan sighed.

"Fair point."

He lowered himself onto the floor opposite Mark.

The oppressive mana surrounding the room immediately became more noticeable.

It then approached Ethan, ripping off his shirt and drawing the same markings across his body. While shirtless, his beast tattoos drew momentary attention from the demon, before continuing its inscriptions.

Blood traced his chest, shoulders, arms, and ribs before forming the same circular pattern beneath him.

Two mirrored formations.

Two bodies.

One connection.

Ethan stared at the symbols.

’This really does look like some satanic shit.’

The demon stepped back.

"Do not move."

"I wasn’t planning to."

The demon raised both hands.

Mana surged.

The red inscriptions across the floor and their bodies suddenly ignited with crimson light.

Ethan’s eyes widened.

The markings grew brighter as the demon continued channelling.

More mana.

Then more.

The sheer amount of power being gathered was absurd.

Ethan had fought powerful Titled and monsters that could tear through buildings, but this felt different.

The mana wasn’t simply surrounding him.

It was penetrating him.

Then he felt something tugging inside his chest.

His eyes widened.

’What the hell is that?’

The sensation intensified.

It felt as though an invisible hand had reached through his body and grabbed something deeper than flesh.

Something fundamental.

His soul.

Ethan’s breath caught.

"W-Wait."

The demon’s eyes flashed.

"Too late."

The pulling sensation suddenly became violent.

Ethan felt as though his entire existence was being dragged from his body, and he was unable to move. His heartbeat thundered, and his fingers dug into the floor as the demon continued channelling mana.

The crimson markings blazed and the connection between the two circles strengthened.

Then Ethan suddenly felt it...