The Evolution Of A Goblin To The Peak

Chapter 1163: The Demon: Power

Spatial Whisperer narrowed his eyes. His perception spread across the area, tracing the flow of mana, the disturbances in space, and the lingering ripples of killing intent.

His vision shifted—beyond the physical, into the folds between mana and void.

"...There it is."

A faint, distorted energy pulsed beneath the chaos of the battlefield. It was faint—so faint that even the sharpest senses would have overlooked it. But to a master of space like him, it was clear as day.

Dark red threads were weaving through the soldiers’ bodies—thin as spider silk, yet pulsing with a sinister rhythm.

"Control threads..." he muttered, clenching his fists. "They’ve been tainted."

He followed the threads back to their source, eyes flickering with spatial light. The lines converged deep beneath the earth, vanishing into a hidden layer of corrupted space. The demonic resonance leaking from it was unmistakable.

"Tch. I knew it. They’re manipulating the entire army from below. I need to get out of here."

Spatial Whisperer took a deep breath. For the first time since the battle began, his expression hardened.

"Sir!"

A figure approached him from behind.

Spatial Whisperer turned his head as the person stepped forward. After a brief pause, his eyes widened as he looked toward the Guardian Fortress.

"Are you certain?" he asked.

"Yes, sir!" the person replied confidently.

Spatial Whisperer took a deep breath. A solemn expression settled on his face as he stared at the Guardian Fortress.

"It seems the situation is about to change."

...

Outside the [Five Elements Barrier Formation].

Kessa’s colossal hand shot forward, the air trembling with each movement. Her claws closed around one of the Seventh Shackle Realm experts, crushing the space between her fingers.

"Argh!! No!!" The man’s scream tore through the chaos. He thrashed wildly, unleashing bursts of energy in desperation—but her grip only tightened, bones cracking under her strength.

The faces of the Eight Shackle expert and the other Seventh Shackle warriors twisted in horror.

"No!"

"Attack!!"

They surged toward the towering hydra, their weapons blazing with divine light. Explosions flared against her scales as countless strikes collided with her enormous body.

Kessa stood her ground amidst the storm. Flames, lightning, and force rippled across her form, but she paid them no mind. All nine of her heads turned in unison, their golden eyes locking onto the helpless expert in her grasp.

A deep rumble built in her throats—then, one by one, her jaws opened. Torrents of energy began to swirl, gathering into blinding spheres of destruction.

Above her, the Eight Shackle expert raised his massive sword, powerful aura surging. With a furious roar, he brought it down.

Bang!!

The impact split the air. Scales shattered and blood burst into the air like a crimson rain, the ground trembling beneath the hydra’s roar.

It was agonizing—but Kessa endured it.

[Hyper Convergence Beam]!!

A single dot of light formed before her nine heads, small yet impossibly dense. For an instant, the world held its breath—then it burst outward in a blinding torrent of power.

Boom!!

A beam of violent energy ripped through the air, straight and merciless. It struck the ground, and in the next heartbeat, a storm of destruction swept across the battlefield.

Boom!! Boom!!

The earth split open. The shockwave raced forward, swallowing thousands in its path. In the wake of the blast, the landscape itself was rewritten—an enormous scar stretching across the land, a perfect straight line of annihilation.

For twenty kilometers, all life was erased.

Only silence and ruin remained.

Swoosh!!

Dark smoke billowed from Kessa’s nine heads. She lowered her gaze and saw her own hand—nothing but bone. The Seventh Shackle expert she had once held no longer existed, reduced to dust in the brilliance of her attack.

A guttural growl rumbled from her throats.

Growl!

Her flesh began to writhe and knit itself back together. In moments, the bones were wrapped once more in muscle and scaled hide; her wounds vanished as though they had never been.

Then, slowly, all nine heads turned—her golden eyes glinting with cold, unbroken fury—as she set her gaze upon the remaining enemies.

The Eight Shackle expert and the remaining Seventh Shackle experts felt a chill crawl down their spines.

A Seventh Shackle expert, one of their own, had died just like that.

And none of them could do a thing to stop it.

The horrifying truth sank in: if any of them were caught by her, it would be over. Instant death.

The Nine-Headed Hydra of the Blood Lightning Monster—Kessa—was far beyond their expectations. They had heard tales of her strength, but seeing it firsthand was a nightmare brought to life.

"You can’t defeat me..." Kessa’s voice echoed, deep and guttural, spoken in the ancient tongue of monsters.

Her nine heads loomed high, the air around her shimmering with residual energy. For her, the outcome of this battle was already decided. Victory was merely a matter of time.

Unless a peak Eight Shackle Realm expert—someone like Arden—arrived, none of them stood a chance. Even an ordinary Eight Shackle Realm warrior would need three, perhaps five others of equal power to bring her down.

She knew it.

And so did they.

One Eight Shackle Realm expert and the remaining nine Seventh Shackle Realm experts felt a shiver crawl down their spines.

ROAR!!!

Kessa unleashed a thunderous roar as all nine of her mouths opened at once.

[Bestrou]!!

A blinding surge of energy gathered and fired simultaneously, the sky splitting apart under the force of her attack.

Swoosh!!

On the other side of the battlefield.

Souta turned his head slightly, his gaze narrowing as he felt Kessa’s energy spike violently through the air.

"It seems Kessa’s rampaging with all her might," he muttered, a faint smirk curving his lips.

He wasn’t worried. He knew her strength better than anyone.

When they slew the Rank 1 Sovereign in the Land of Vanko, it was Kessa who dealt the decisive blow. And during the war against the demons in the sub-world, she was the one who slaughtered most of their forces.

"She won’t lose."

His eyes sharpened. "Then it’s time for me to finish this too."

Souta turned to face his three opponents, lightning crackling faintly across his body.

He had only three left to deal with. The gap between his power and Kessa’s was still vast—but it didn’t matter. He would reach that level soon enough.

For now, his focus was clear.

Defeat these three and then move to assist Doranjan and Erkigal.

With that thought in mind, Souta swung his blade in a single, fluid motion—

Slash!

Space itself split open before him.

Ohm!

A surge of white smoke burst forth like a tidal wave, flooding the battlefield in an instant.

The three Seventh Shackle Realm experts reacted the moment they saw it. They already knew about the Blood Lightning Monster’s dreadful Dream Power—and they knew what that smoke meant.

"Retreat!" one of them shouted.

But it was too late.

The white smoke swallowed them whole, spreading outward to engulf everyone within the area.

The world around them shifted. The sky twisted, the ground melted, and in the blink of an eye, the battlefield vanished—replaced by an eerie, endless expanse.

"This is bad!"

"We’re inside the Blood Lightning Monster’s dreamscape!"

Panic flickered in their eyes. This was why they never dared to fight him up close. They feared this place—a world where his will reigned supreme.

They turned their gaze forward, every instinct screaming danger.

From the distance, a wave of killing intent rolled toward them.

Souta stood there, his expression cold and unyielding. Blood-colored lightning crackled around him, illuminating the dreamscape in flashes of crimson light.

Arcs of lightning fell from above like judgment.

The Blood Lightning Monster had claimed his domain.

He gathered the crackling energy into his blade, the air vibrating with raw power.

[Blessing of the Hunt]!!

Without hesitation, Souta launched himself forward, crimson lightning erupting beneath his feet. A massive, spectral skull materialized behind him—its hollow eyes burning with blood-red light.

He had no reason to hold back.

These three would die here.

Swoosh!!

The giant skull lunged, devouring him whole in a surge of red brilliance.

Ohm!!

Light exploded across the dreamscape. The three Hero-rank experts felt their instincts flare in alarm, a primal dread crawling down their spines.

"Move!!" one of them shouted, and they leapt away—

—but too late.

A tide of blood and darkness surged after them, stretching across the sky like a living storm.

"Damn!!"

"I’m actually trembling!"

"I... I can’t control it!"

Terror took root in their hearts. The very dream around them twisted in response to their fear. The Blood Lightning Monster’s presence pressed down from all directions—inescapable, suffocating.

They could feel it now.

In this place, he was absolute.