[DING]

[You have slain <Kraug>(B-rank)....

[You have slain <Naruk>(C-rank)....

[You have slain <Belish>(unawakened)...

[You have slain <Tusk>(E-rank)....

[You have slain...

[You have slain....

......

......

I just watched as the list of names kept growing.

A statistical proof of the first city I’d wiped out on the demon continent.

The names, the ranks, all of it being presented to me.

The thousands of lives I’d snuffed out in a heartbeat.

I should have felt something.

Anything.

Even if I hated demons, these were lives not just numbers, yet..

"I guess I really am that devil aren’t I?" I mused quietly as the names kept piling up..

...

"Then so be it.."

[DING!]

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

......

Ahh, so that was it.

It seems my insane jump in law comprehension for death wasn’t just a one time occurrence, it had been stacking up in the background of my muted notifications....

<<DING>>

<<DEVOURING SUCCESSFUL>>

<<Energy converted... 100,000,000k>>

<<You have acquired <Demonic Serpent Bloodline(Exalted)>.

<<You have acquired the <Demonic serpent Physique(Exalted)>.

<<You have acquired talent<Ouroboros Descendant(Exalted>.

<<You have received insight into the [Minor law]<embers of envy>.

<<You have acquired the ability <embers of envy(Exalted)>...

...

"Hmmm? This must be from that worm.." a murderous rage threatened to rise within me as I remembered just who I’d gotten all this from.

"Weak!" Yes! That was my honest verdict for all I’d just received.

The me that would’ve been excited for any little power up a few weeks ago was now completely unfazed by what I was seeing.

A few things stood out, like the embers of envy law and ability, since I recalled that snake asmodeus using something called Flames of envy to intercept the old man’s attacks, but other than those, it was all,

"Trash."

"Next.." completely uninterested in whatever this demon had to offer, I moved unto the next and unsurprisingly,

[You have slain <Kethis>(A- rank)...

[You have slain <modrex>(S- rank)...

[You have slain <Thoner>(S- rank)....

[You have slain..

"You bore me with your attempt at guilt tripping me, system."

[..]

"Those lives mean nothing to me."

"It matters not how many names you force into my head, they’ll be just that, names, meaningless, worthless, so, do me a favor and stop. Now!"

[..]

[Acknowledged].

[DING!]

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

[You have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>.....

[You have gained insight into the self created law<Flames of Envy)...

[You have gained insight into the self created law<Flames of Envy)...

[You have gained insight into the self created law<Flames of Envy)

<Flames of Envy(8.7%)>]

"So that’s what that was".

It wasn’t merely an attack but a self created law that demon had comprehended huh?

Then wouldn’t that mean that the demon was within,

"The Law creation stage huh? But then," why did he still seem so weak before the old man? And what was that final attack that had been capable of injuring an already escaping law creation expert?

[DING!]

Almost as if answering me, the system suddenly chimed as the entire screen went pitch black, and then,

[You have glimpsed the true nexus of creation..]

[You have glimpsed the true nexus of laws...]

[You have gained insight into <@&#%*€£>..

You have gained insight into <@&#%*€£>..

You have gained insight into <@&#%*€£>..

<@&#%*€£(0.0000000......0000.....1%)>..]

"What?" I blinked several times as I stared at the random nonsense being displayed on my screen.

I didn’t know what the system was trying to tell me.

Nexus of creation?

Nexus of laws?

And then all this weird stuff?

Just what the hell did I touch upon?

Yet before I could ponder on it any longer, the system glitched then returned to normal, the darkness and the weirdness from before all gone.

"System.."

[O’ Son Of Chaos, you’re not ready... not yet.]

I could sense a hint of solemnity in the system’s usual robotic tone, and that coupled with the fact that it had addressed me once again as Son Of Chaos and not "Host" made it clear that something was afoot.

But this time, I decided to trust the system’s judgement, since even without looking, I could already tell something was extremely different about what just happened, so, I pushed it aside, moving on to the next set of notifications.

.....

[You fallen into a state of absence...]

[You have gained insight into the [MAJOR LAW]<Soul>..

[You have gained insight Into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>..

[You have gained insight into the [MAJOR LAW]<Soul>..

[You have gained insight Into the [SUPREME LAW]<Death>..

.....

"Ahh.. this must be what Khalifa was talking about back then.. me dying." I mused, curious.

"But what’s this state of absence? I’ve never heard of anything like it before, system?"

[Ding]

The system’s tone had returned to the usual emotionless robotic one, almost as if this one and the one from earlier were two separate entities.

Stuffing down my confusion, I focused on the explanations.

[The State of Absence occurs when a soul leaves its body and temporarily anchors itself to another existence]

"So, it’s basically connecting my soul with that of another person?"

[Affirmative]

"But I already did such a thing with Lucien, why didn’t I enter any such state?"

[Host didn’t, but the demon child, Lucien, did.]

"Ahh... is that so?" The revelation made me more curious than worried, because according to Valen, my father didn’t have any such comprehension of a law tying to the soul,

"But then again, dad was speaking about the concept of soul with such familiarity back then, seems I need to have a talk with the old man." Making up my mind to ask the old man about all this later, I refocused on the task at hand,

[DING!]

[Your comprehension of the [SUPREME LAW]<Death> has deepened significantly....

[SUPREME LAW]<Death(50.34%)>].

.....

[Your comprehension of the [MAJOR LAW]<Soul> has broken through a threshold, you have gained insight into the [SUPREME LAW]<Soul>...

...

Your comprehension of the [SUPREME LAW]<Soul> has deepened significantly...

[SUPREME LAW]<Soul(53.4%)>....

....

"Hooo...." I’d already seen these notifications before, but seeing them again, I couldn’t help raising a brow at the ridiculous jump in percentages the laws had received.

From barely any form of comprehension, jumping straight to the Embodiment stage, it was all quite surreal, but then again, with something as broken as Chaotic Comprehension, I guess this much is to be expected...

"Now, what did I get from that filth.."

<<DEVOURING SUCCESSFUL>>

<<Energy converted.. 100,000,000k>>

<<You have acquired a fragment of the <Omni-Beast Suppression Bloodline>, <Draken Bloodline(EXALTED)>..>>

<<You have acquired <Metal dragon bloodline(EXALTED)>..

<<You have acquired the <Metal dragon Physique(EXALTED)>..

<<You have Acquired the talent <Iron bound sovereign(EXALTED)>..

....

"Damn.. that’s quite the haul you disgusting bastard, at least you weren’t completely useless." I whispered under my breath as my eyes scanned through the notifications.

My attention had already been stolen the moment I saw <Omni-Beast Suppression Bloodline>.

"So it wasn’t my imagination".

These families really were descendants of something far greater.

This one acquisition shattered every remaining doubt I’d held.

But before I could ponder any further,

[Your bloodline <?????(sealed)> is reacting...

[Your bloodline <?????(sealed)> is reacting...

...

"Not this again..."

[Your bloodline <?????(Sealed)> has successfully assimilated fragment of the <Omni-Beast Suppression Bloodline>..

[Your bloodline <?????(Sealed)> has successfully assimilated <Metal Dragon Bloodline)>....

...

I just stared in blank dumbfoundment as the same situation from during the monkey inheritance run occurred once more.

"Heh! Now I really can’t wait to see what you two do, assimilating my precious acquisitions left and right, you better be worth it." I muttered underneath my breath.

Done with all that,

The only question that remained now was,

"How deep does this hole go. How close are these families to the true bloodlines, and how much of a hand did this <Omni-Beast Suppression Bloodline> wielding family have in father’s death." My eyes flashed coldly.

I wasn’t about to assume that this discovery I was having about the true ties of these ancient families doesn’t somehow tie to father’s death.

I still remember clearly what valen had told me.

"No one on terra should’ve been capable of killing your father."

So if he believed it so deeply, then it must’ve been true.

I have faced the old man multiple times, and he was a monster unlike any other, yet that same monster had said my father was an anomaly even he couldn’t face.

So, when he said no one on terra should’ve been able to hurt dad, coupled with these new discoveries, it was clear dad’s death wasn’t something so simple.

I didn’t know if the old man knew any of this, but I was more inclined to believe that he did, and if so, then he must also have his suspicions.

"Seems I really do need to have a talk with the old man." Settling my thoughts, I slowly opened my eyes and then,

"Eyy!!! Big brother!!! You’re finally awake!!"

"Haaa... of course he’s still here..." I sighed mentally before a fond smile appeared on my face,

"Hey there little man."

**********

A/N: huh, seems there wasn’t that much to unpack afterall.

I’ll update the stats compendium soon, so you can find all that’s needed there, but that’ll be after his meeting with the old man.

Anyways,

*************

Thanks for reading.