Return of the Mythic Bloodline

The body of Ashwing turned into fine particles as it entered the endless pit of the dragon’s mouth. Once it was done feeding, the translucent dragon was absorbed into the ape’s body.

The ape’s size began expanding, its rock-like body growing even thicker. The air around it stirred as waves of Soulforce erupted from its body, destroying the surrounding terrain.

A fourth eye, which had not been there before, opened on its face as it evolved into a Rank-Seven Death Demon.

"GROAR!!!" it roared, releasing a burst of dark fire from its mouth.

"Th-that technique is similar to the All-Devouring Art I use to absorb the cores of Death Demons," Maximilian exclaimed, unable to believe what he was seeing. "B-but this monkey’s method is even more advanced. It actually absorbed Ashwing’s entire body and evolved into a Rank-Seven Death Demon. It even learned its ultimate skill."

From all the information his father had provided him about the Riftlands, it was clearly stated that a Death Demon could not evolve its rank. An Abyssal Demon King would always remain Rank Five, while a Soul Devouring Ape would always remain Rank Six. Yet before his very eyes, he had witnessed the ape evolving into Rank Seven by using a dragon’s devouring technique.

"Was Father’s assumption really true?" Maximilian gasped, his eyes widening. "C-could there really be..."

His words stopped mid-sentence as a massive punch, several times larger than his entire body, appeared before him, shifting the air backward.

He immediately drew his sword, gripping the hilt with one hand and pressing the flat of the blade with the other.

Bam!

The punch struck with a sonic boom, sending his body crashing toward the ground like a falling meteor.

He landed on his feet, skidding several feet backward before stopping himself by stabbing his sword into the ground.

"Aren’t you being a little too wild?" Maximilian muttered at the colossal ape as it descended before him, the impact sending shockwaves through the ground.

Maximilian barely reached its knees. Even in his transformed state, he would still be less than half its size.

Pushing off the ground with all six limbs, the ape bolted toward him. The moment Maximilian came within range, it swung its massive claw in a wide horizontal arc.

Maximilian leaped upward, landing on the back of the palm as it swept beneath him. He struck his Sword Aura-laced blade against its skin and began dragging it along as he sprinted up the ape’s arm.

Before he could move past the elbow, the ape attacked with its other hand. It slammed into its own arm as Maximilian jumped away at the last moment.

"I couldn’t pierce its skin even with Sword Aura," Maximilian muttered, staring at the ape’s unscathed arm. Its body was even tougher than that of young dragons.

"In that case, try this..."

Maximilian gripped the sword with both hands above his head. High in the air, beneath the grey mist that hid the sky beyond, dark clouds began gathering. Ripples of thunder echoed as black lightning danced within them.

The lightning gathered at the center, directly above the ape’s head. Maximilian swung his blade downward in a vertical arc.

"Sword Aura! Lightning Decree!"

A pillar of Death Lightning descended from the clouds like heavenly tribulation.

"GROAR!!!" the ape roared, unleashing a burst of dark flames at the incoming pillar.

The moment the two energies collided, ripples of shockwaves spread in every direction, filling the air with the hissing of fire and the roaring of thunder.

Slowly, the lightning overpowered the flames and struck the ape below.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Maximilian mocked with a grin.

The ape had raised all four of its arms at the last moment to protect its head, but they still suffered heavy damage. Their thick outer shells cracked apart, and dark liquid bled from the wounds.

The ape’s four eyes shifted toward Maximilian in a furious glare. It began pounding its chest with all four hands, each strike sending vibrations through the air that pushed Maximilian backward.

"First you attack me, and now you’re angry that I countered?" Maximilian scoffed as he extended his hand. A buzzing sound followed, and a beam of lightning shot from his palm.

As it reached the ape, instead of dodging or blocking it, the ape opened its mouth, inviting the lightning in.

"Biting off more than you can chew!?" Maximilian snapped as he further increased the output of lightning.

The ape continued devouring it. After a few seconds, its body began breaking apart from within. Several wounds appeared across its torso as the lightning tore its way out. The sheer amount of Death Lightning from a dragon proved too much for the ape to devour.

To keep itself from exploding, it raised all four palms forward and suddenly released the excess lightning back at its source.

"The fuck?" Maximilian gasped before the lightning struck him squarely with a deafening boom.

When the dust settled, both the ape and Maximilian were revealed, still standing. Both of their bodies were covered in deep wounds and scorched skin, with remnants of lightning still dancing across their injuries.

"Now you’ve really done it," Maximilian muttered, his pupils shrinking with anger. "You even changed the Soulforce signature of my own lightning and used it to harm me."

The dark scales on his arms and shoulders began spreading across his entire body. The wings on his back grew wider as he transformed into his dragon form, reaching nearly half the ape’s size.

With a flap of his wings, he soared high into the air.

"Try devouring this as well," he said, opening his mouth wide.

All of his Soulforce gathered in his throat, causing it to bulge. Maximilian was about to unleash the catastrophic attack that none of his opponents had ever lived to tell the tale about. But then, something unexpected happened.

The look in the ape’s eyes completely changed, its expression becoming one of awe. Slowly, it dropped to its knees and bowed until its head touched the ground.

The Soulforce gathered in Maximilian’s throat dispersed as his golden eyes shifted toward the ape in confusion.

"What’s gotten into it so suddenly?" he murmured, utterly bewildered.

Maximilian descended to the ground once again, still in his dragon form.

"Raise your head," he said.

The ape didn’t budge from its place, its head firmly pressed against the ground in a bow.

"Could he not understand what I’m saying?" Maximilian murmured, confused. He cautiously moved closer to the ape. Getting caught in its massive claws was the last thing he wanted. "Hey, can you understand me?"

The ape slightly moved its head, causing Maximilian to instantly spread his wings. From the corner of its eyes, it looked at Maximilian in confusion.

"Hah... it really can’t understand me. Or perhaps..."

RAISE YOUR HEAD!

Maximilian’s deep voice resonated directly inside the ape’s mind. It immediately rose to its feet before settling into a sitting position.

"As I thought, it can understand Dragon Tongue." Maximilian was now even more curious about this strange ape.

CAN YOU TALK?

The ape shook its head.

HOW DO YOU KNOW THE SPELLS OF DRAGONS?

The ape began scratching its head with two of its arms.

"Hah... is he just an idiot?" Maximilian sighed before asking in simpler words.

WHY DO YOU BOW TO ME?

The ape first pointed a finger at Maximilian, then at its own eyes before spreading its arms wide.

YOU HAVE SEEN ME?

The ape nodded before spreading its arms wide again.

YOU HAVE SEEN ME THIS BIG?

The ape nodded again, this time excitedly.

COULD YOU SHOW ME WHERE YOU SAW ME?

The ape rose to its feet, turned around, and leaped high into the air, covering hundreds of meters in a single jump. It waved at Maximilian to follow before bolting forward in long leaps.

After following it for several kilometers through the territory of Rank Six Beasts, they arrived before a vast crater stretching for over a hundred kilometers. Five massive pillars of uneven heights jutted out across the crater’s surface, with one of them extending all the way into the grey mist high above. The crater was so deep that ten apes like the one Maximilian was following could stand atop one another and still barely reach the surface.

The space within the crater felt unstable, and gravity itself was distorted. Countless pillars of rock, both small and enormous, floated at irregular heights, some as large as mountains.

"I-I have never seen a place like this," Maximilian gasped, his eyes widening in shock at the breathtaking scenery. "The very laws of the world are distorted here."

The ape excitedly pointed toward the center of the crater before pointing back at Maximilian.

Maximilian looked in the indicated direction and saw a colossal mountain standing at the crater’s center, its summit broad and uneven.

He followed the ape, flying above its head through the air. They stopped upon reaching the foot of the mountain, which was formed from the same clusters of dark rocks as the rest of the Riftlands.

"There aren’t any monsters here," Maximilian said after scanning the entire area with his Divine Sense. "This must be the ape’s territory."

Using all four of its arms, the ape pushed aside a massive boulder as large as itself, revealing the entrance to a tunnel that had been unevenly carved through the mountain.

The tunnel was tall enough for the ape to walk through comfortably. However, it was so dark that Maximilian couldn’t see its end. After walking for over a kilometer, the other end of the tunnel finally came into view, glowing like a distant star.

"Th-this is..." Maximilian’s words died in his throat as he stared in absolute bewilderment at the sight that awaited him beyond the tunnel.