The Demon Monarch System

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The darkness continued to lacerate Apollo's soul form, creating bits and pieces of dark particles that warped his soul's solidity. 'This...this technique. On top of being an offensive ability, it seems as if it also lingers. However, there also seems to be an obscure guide,' Apollo thought quietly.

Every time a slash nicked a piece of his Soul Form away, Apollo inched closer to learning the basics of the technique. Unlike a typical method, the best way to absorb this knowledge was by experiencing the effects firsthand.

As a result, in order to properly learn the hidden technique, Apollo had to experience damage. Luckily, he wasn't worried about the technique endangering his soul. After all, when Fuhrer's soul was damaged, Destrys assisted in recovering the wounds that were inflicted.

"I'm right there," Apollo muttered, clenching his jaw. He could feel it, the line separating him and the next partial fragment was thinning with each passing second. Just one more push and he would break past the threshold.

In light of this, Apollo closed his eyes and opened his entire soul to the remnants of the energy present. While this was a dangerous move, it had to be done. Unlike the tempering process beforehand, the blades were continually draining his mental energy along with accumulating fatigue.

If he didn't take lead, then he would exhaust what little mental energy remained before grasping the technique.

Thus, he stopped acting conservatively. With his defense laid bare, he absorbed a large bombardment of the ceaselessly conjured blades which left his soul in a state similar to tatters. Be that as it may, he didn't grimace nor complain. Apollo merely closed his eyes with a placid look on his face.

That last series of strikes was different from the rest. It was almost as if the area could sense that he rendered his defenses null. And, because of that, it overwhelmed him with a fusillade composed of torrential dark energy.

Needless to say, it was enough to saturate his soul beyond what was needed.

Due to this, Apollo's comprehensions were both quick and profound. It wouldn't take long for him to complete to process. All he needed was a serene environment to absorb the information.

Unfortunately, this atmosphere wouldn't simply wait for that to happen. Since it was a test of comprehension, outside conditions were usually utilized to obstruct comprehension.

It was up to the individual to possess enough fortitude to resist that obstruction. Failure simply meant they weren't ready and success meant they were adequately skilled. 

All of a sudden, a ripple of darkness appeared around Apollo's body. It flickered in and out of existence with a faint presence. If his peers tried to sense this, it would be barely discernible. But, it wasn't due to its weakness. On the contrary, it was due to the fusion Apollo was trying to attempt.

At first, the ripple was black, but then it shifted to grey. A moment later, it changed into a see-through amethyst. However, based on the fluctuations from the energy, it wasn't complete yet.

It became contrived, twisting and turning until light no longer affected it. Unbeknownst to Apollo, he was melding his Tenebrous attainments with the knowledge gained from this experience.

On the other hand, the dark storm reached a peak, launching dark blades in sporadic intervals. Quickly, they all hurled towards Apollo, intent on disintegrating his soul. The closer they came, the more momentum they picked up, extracting sustenance from the dark storm.

Not too long after, they arrived before Apollo, but something unexpected took place. Each of the blades aimed towards him stopped in place after gradually losing speed. At a glance, it would seem like it lost its power source but that wasn't the case. 

The ripple around Apollo had changed drastically in little no time at all.

It split into numerous parts which then turned into blades that reacted to the incoming projectiles. Apollo's strike immediately lost out upon initial collision, but unlike the incoming attacks, Apollo possessed more energy blades.

Slowly, Apollo opened his eyes and witnessed the ordeal unfold. He raised his hand and continued to guide the darkness blades. Halfway through their flight path, the slashes became invisible. Hence, the reason why the incoming blades seemed to stop of their own accord.

"Interesting. I'll call this technique Void Rend. Multiple blades of darkness which possessed increased cloaking abilities. I'm not sure how powerful the stealth capabilities are, but the power of the blades is already quite powerful," Apollo muttered in slight shock.

At first, he didn't expect the attack to be that strong. In truth, he expected it to be far weaker than the blades this storm conjured. After all, he had entered this place while operating on fumes.

Nevertheless, he had forgotten about his dormant Tenebrous powers. In addition to masking his power, it also possessed the ability to augment darkness.

After all, darkness was birthed from the void and the Tenebrous Path was created from the same origins. It was only logical that they could meld as one and complement each other.

Gradually, the repeated impact of his torrent of Void Rend blades pushed back the darkness blades until finally, they shattered them.

Simultaneously, Apollo's blade dispersed as well. Since his mental strength had reached its limits, he didn't possess the means to keep the technique active.

With an exhale, he retreated to the gate behind him. If he stayed any longer, the storm would just continue to conjure those blades without end. Should that happen, he would just end up in a precarious situation. 

A few moments after he entered the gate, his body was ejected back into the special space. 

When he appeared, Destrys crossed his arms and shook his head for some reason, "You finally exit. I didn't expect you to take so long to learn a simple technique such as Darkness Rend."

Due to his current condition, Apollo didn't immediately respond. On the contrary, he took the time to recover some strength. The repeated actions of reaching his limit left him on the verge of passing out. If that happened, he wasn't sure what would happen to his body.

After all, this was just his Soul Form. What's more, he never allowed his Soul Form to become this weak. Therefore, he didn't want to learn the penalties of allowing his soul to experience extreme weakness. 

"Tch. If you attempt that on your own, it will take too long," Destrys scoffed, finding Apollo's actions idiotic. He waved his hand and sent a cloud of dark ethereal energy towards Apollo. 

First, it reappeared the countless small wounds on his body. Then, it reinforced his Soul Form, bringing it back to its peak. However, as Apollo realized how reinvigorated he felt, he thought something was amiss.

"What is this sensation?" Apollo mumbled in awe, examining his palm from front to back. Compared to before, his Soul Form wasn't as translucent. There was now a hint of solidity.

"Obviously, you have experienced refinement. Just training your vessel isn't enough. If you train your consciousness separately, you'll increase your progress twofold. Regrettably, places to train the consciousness are hard to come by. Even this place will only suffice to a certain level," Destrys revealed. 

Afterward, he examined Apollo thoroughly, "Show me the fruits of your comprehension. Surely you didn't comprehend some lackluster version of my technique." Destrys chortled, teasing Apollo.

What Apollo didn't know was that the technique everyone learned wasn't truly the same. While it was all a rendition of Darkness Rend, the weaker one's energy, the weaker their version of the blade would be. This was why Destrys urged Apollo to temper his mental strength.

If there was a disconnect between darkness affinity and mental strength, it would lead to an abnormal Darkness Rend. In this case, abnormal wouldn't be beneficial, it would be dangerous. There was a chance of the entire technique going haywire and damaging the conjurer as well.

Finally, once he recovered to a suitable state, Apollo lifted his hand towards Destrys. A dark blade formulated slowly before accelerating towards him. Gradually, it picked up speed until the vibrations allowed its presence to disperse.

Destrys' eyebrow rose in surprise as he snapped his finger. A distinct shattering noise echoed from the space before him, "Not bad, this isn't a typical Darkness Rend, it's different. It's been mixed with a revered practice of your Demons. What do you call it?"

"Void Rend," Apollo muttered. 

"That's good, but as it is now, you haven't taken it to its zenith. When you do so, the true meaning of a rend will befall you," Destrys said whilst clenching his hand. The shattered blade pieces back together before twisting to the point it tore space open.

"A true rend is meant to tear. However, for that to be possible, you must continue to refine yourself. With that being said, it seems something is becoming rather unrefined while awaiting your return," Destrys uttered with a  delighted chuckle.