Chapter 304: One Heavenly Feast Enters

Damian could clearly see the hesitation on Cassandra’s face. He tried to calm his voice. "Cassandra."

She avoided his gaze.

Damian tightened his grip on her shoulders. "Just fucking tell me."

Cassandra finally let out a tired sigh. "The Forbidden Art actually comes from my sword."

Damian frowned.

Cassandra glanced toward the crimson energy flowing throughout the festival grounds. "My sword hasn’t completely reached King Grade yet. Right now, it’s only a Semi-King Grade weapon."

Damian’s eyes widened slightly.

Cassandra continued weakly, "Normally, it would slowly evolve by absorbing my Sword Intent, emotions, and cultivation... But for some reason, mine has another path."

Her eyes shifted toward the countless black-red threads spreading across the grounds. "It was [Demonic Queen’s Blood-Birth Festival], a path that sacrifices everything."

Her voice grew quieter. "Once enough energy is gathered, the Queen Sword will undergo a complete rebirth... and become a true King Grade weapon."

Damian stared at her. "What about you?"

Cassandra touched a hand to her chest. "I’ll be reborn as well, body and soul. And once that happens, the sword will permanently bind itself to me."

Damian was slightly surprised when he heard that.

So this Forbidden Art wasn’t a suicidal technique at all. It was a form of tempering, one that forcibly converted others into energy to fuel the user’s own rebirth.

In a way, Damian found the technique somewhat interesting, but he quickly pushed the thought aside and looked back at Cassandra. "Then why the fuck are you acting like you’re dying?"

Cassandra gave him a bitter smile. "Because there isn’t enough life force for me to be completely reborn."

Damian froze.

Cassandra continued, her voice growing quieter. "The ritual requires far more energy than I expected. If there isn’t enough, then instead of rebirthing me... it’ll simply consume me."

She paused for a moment before speaking again in a low voice. "But if it succeeds..."

Cassandra lowered her gaze, her fingers slowly curling against her chest. "If it succeeds... I’ll become a true demonic cultivator. A real demon."

There was no pride in her voice. If anything, the words seemed to disgust her. "I don’t even know what I’ll become after that, whether I’ll still be... me."

Damian stared at her, his jaw tightening.

For a moment, he said nothing, but suddenly a thought appeared in his head..

He turned to Cassandra and directly asked. "What if you add mine to the mix?"

Cassandra’s head snapped up. "What?"

Damian put his hand on his chest. "My life force! If you add mine, would it be enough?"

Cassandra stared at him in shock. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

Damian let out a shaky breath, forcing a faint smile onto his face. "I already died once for you, so..."

Cassandra’s expression twisted immediately. "Damian, this isn’t fucking funny!"

Damian smiled. "I know."

He stepped closer, his eyes locked onto hers. "But if the choice is between watching you disappear right in front of me and risking my life again..."

His voice cracked with frustration. "Then screw my life. I’ll do it again."

Cassandra stroked Damian’s face. "Damian..."

Damian took her hand and turned serious. "You don’t get to decide to die by yourself and expect me to just stand here and accept it."

Cassandra’s lips trembled.

Damian swallowed hard before forcing another crooked smile. "But this time, if you survive..."

He pointed at her again. "You’d better remember your fucking promise and join my harem afterward."

Cassandra stared at him in disbelief.

Before she could say anything, Damian suddenly pulled several pill bottles from his storage ring.

Her eyes widened. "Damian, what are you..."

He uncorked them all and swallowed everything at once. A violent surge of energy erupted through his body.

Damian gritted his teeth as his aura climbed rapidly. He was forcing his body to its absolute limit, squeezing out every bit of vitality he could.

If he was going to throw his life force into the ritual, then he would make damn sure it was enough for Cassandra to complete her rebirth.

Cassandra shouted, "Damian, stop!"

He ignored her.

Turning toward the countless black-red threads, Damian took one final look at Cassandra.

Then he threw himself directly into them and it made Cassandra’s mind go completely blank.

For a heartbeat, she could only stare before terror crashed through her. "DAMIAN!"

His life force immediately began flowing into the ritual, and Damian gritted his teeth and looked toward her. "Stop staring!"

He shouted through the pain. "Just fucking do it, Cassandra! Finish your own rebirth!"

Cassandra stared at Damian, her entire body trembling as every instinct screamed at her to stop the ritual.

Her instinct wants her to tear him out of those crimson threads, but Damian’s final words kept echoing through her mind.

With tears gathering in her eyes and her fists clenched, she decided to finish this.

If this was truly the last thing Damian was willing to give her... she refused to waste it.

Cassandra forced herself upright and, with trembling hands, performed a series of hand signs. "Fine, Damian. I’ll fucking do it."

The [Demonic Queen’s Blood-Birth Festival] immediately responded as countless crimson threads gathered around Damian.

The moment his life force entered the ritual, Cassandra’s eyes widened. "What...?"

The amount was absurd.

Far beyond what she had expected from a Golden Core cultivator.

What Cassandra didn’t know was that Damian’s body was anything but ordinary.

From the system gifts alone, Damian had obtained a King-grade Spiritual Root, a Royal-grade Physique, and a Noble-grade Bloodline.

His body had also been tempered repeatedly by countless treasures, pills, and cultivation resources.

To the forbidden ritual... Damian was practically a fucking heavenly feast, the kind that appeared only once in a lifetime.

The crimson formation soon erupted with power, and the remaining cultivators throughout the festival grounds were instantly drained dry.

Aldren’s final scream vanished beneath the roar of the ritual before everything fell silent. The festival was over.

But Cassandra had made one final adjustment, preserving at least a sliver of Damian’s vitality and giving him a chance to survive.

After that, the blood-red formation began collapsing inward as all the essence it had gathered converged toward the now-weakened Cassandra.

Her body disappeared within an enormous mass of crimson-black energy.

The dissolved Queen Sword followed, countless fragments merging into the forming shell.

Layer after layer condensed around her until, at last, a gigantic black-and-red cocoon floated above the ruined festival grounds.

Inside the cocoon, Cassandra’s consciousness slowly began to fade. Her final thoughts were not of revenge but of Damian.

"Please... don’t die again. And please... don’t make me lose myself."