The Altar of Blood was no longer a place of worship. It was a grinder.
Magnus led the charge like a living siege engine. He didn't use a weapon; his entire body was a weapon.
"MOVE!" Magnus roared.
He shoulder-checked a line of three Elite Guards.
CRUNCH.
The guards, wearing heavy plate armor, crumpled like tin cans. They were sent flying into the ritual pit, their screams drowned out by the roar of the red vortex above.
Behind him, the Pirate Army of Asura followed. They were no longer afraid. Seeing a giant smash elites gave them courage.
"For loot! For glory!" The Hyena Leader screamed, hacking at a guard with his saber.
On the other side of the altar, Bo was running for his life—tactically.
"Excuse me! Pardon me! Explosives coming through!"
Bo slid under a guard's legs, leaving a small, ticking clay pot behind.
BOOM!
The runes on the east side of the altar shattered. The red beam of light flickered.
"NO!" Prince Vane screamed from the top of the steps. "Stop them! Jester! Do something!"
Jester, perched on a floating skull, sighed. "Fine. Let's add some spice."
Jester waved his cane. Pink mist rolled over the battlefield.
Illusion Art: Mirror of Nightmares.
Suddenly, the pirates stopped fighting. They looked at each other.
"Why... why do you have my brother's face?" one pirate whispered, terrified.
"Don't look at me like that, Mother!" another screamed, dropping his sword.
Jester had turned their allies into their worst fears. The army began to attack itself.
"Chaos is beautiful," Jester giggled.
Then, he looked at Kaelen.
Kaelen was walking up the steps toward Vane. He stopped as the pink mist surrounded him.
In front of Kaelen, the mist formed a figure.
It was Lyra. She was healthy, standing there, holding a knife.
"You failed me, son," the illusion of Lyra whispered. "You let me rot in that tank."
Kaelen stopped. He looked at the illusion.
Jester smirked. 'Everyone has a breaking point. Even monsters.'
Kaelen tilted his head.
"My mother," Kaelen said calmly, "would never hold a knife like that. She is left-handed."
Slash.
Kaelen swung Nightfall. The black blade cut through the illusion instantly.
"And she talks too much in your version."
Kaelen stepped through the dissipating mist. He looked up at Jester.
Dragon Eyes: True Sight.
Two golden beams of light shot from Kaelen's mask. They pierced the pink mist, finding the real Jester hiding behind a pillar.
"Found you."
Kaelen threw his sword.
Whoosh!
The sword spun like a buzzsaw. Jester yelped and teleported away just as the sword smashed the stone pillar into dust.
The illusion broke. The pirates woke up, realized they were fighting ghosts, and roared in anger.
Kaelen caught his sword on the rebound. He was now face-to-face with Prince Vane.
Vane was shaking. He held a golden scepter.
"Stay back!" Vane shrieked. "I am the Prince! My blood is royal!"
"Your blood," Kaelen raised his sword, "is just red liquid. Same as everyone else."
"Summon it! NOW!" Vane smashed the scepter onto the altar.
He didn't care about the runes anymore. He forced the portal open.
The sky tore open.
ROAAAAAAAR!
A sound like a thousand screaming souls erupted.
A massive, red-skinned hand, the size of a house, clawed its way out of the vortex. It was followed by a horned head dripping with lava.
The Blood Demon: Malphas.
It had been summoned improperly. It was angry.
It didn't look at Kaelen. It looked at the summoner.
"YOU..." The Demon's voice was a physical shockwave. "YOU WOKE ME... FOR THIS?"
The Demon reached down and grabbed Prince Vane.
"No! Wait!" Vane screamed, dangling in the massive red hand. "I am your master! I have the scepter!"
Crunch.
The Demon squeezed. Vane's ribs shattered. The scepter fell.
"YOU ARE A SNACK," The Demon growled, opening its massive maw to eat the Prince.
"Put him down," a cold voice commanded.
The Demon paused. It turned its burning yellow eyes toward the tiny human standing on the altar steps.
Kaelen stood there. His cape fluttered in the demonic wind.
"He is mine to kill," Kaelen said.
The Demon laughed. It was a sound like an earthquake.
"ANT. I WILL EAT YOU TOO."
The Demon dropped Vane (who crawled away, broken and weeping) and swung its massive fist at Kaelen.
The fist was huge. It blocked out the sun.
Kaelen didn't dodge.
He sheathed his sword.
"You are made of Blood Energy," Kaelen whispered. "You are not a living creature. You are a construct of resentment and mana."
Kaelen placed both hands on his stomach.
Void Cauldron: Third Seal - Blood Refining.
CLICK.
Inside Kaelen's soul, a heavy, rusty gate unlocked.
A terrifying suction force exploded from Kaelen's body.
When the Demon's fist hit Kaelen, it didn't crush him.
It dissolved.
"WHAT?!" The Demon screamed, pulling back its stump. Its hand had turned into red mist and was being sucked into Kaelen's body.
"More," Kaelen said. His eyes turned entirely black. The Abyssal Dragon was hungry.
He jumped.
He landed on the Demon's chest.
"Devour."
A black vortex opened behind Kaelen. It was small, but its gravity was infinite.
The Blood Demon roared in terror. It tried to run back into the portal, but it was glued to Kaelen.
"NO! STOP! IT HURTS!" The Demon shrieked.
Its massive body began to unravel. Ribbons of red energy were ripped from its form, swirling into the black vortex, then funneled into Kaelen's dantian.
The pirates watched in stunned silence.
Magnus stopped fighting.
Bo dropped his crossbow.
They were witnessing a human eat a demon.
Inside Kaelen, the energy was chaotic. It burned. It was violent. But the Void Cauldron refined it instantly, turning the dirty blood mana into pure, golden Dragon Qi.
Spirit Ocean Level 2.
Boom.
Spirit Ocean Level 3.
Boom.
Kaelen's cultivation skyrocketed. His aura expanded, turning the red sky back to normal.
In thirty seconds, the massive Demon was gone.
Consumed.
Kaelen landed on the altar. He burped. A small puff of red smoke came out.
"Tastes like iron," Kaelen critiqued.
He looked at his hand. His skin was glowing with a faint crimson luster. He had unlocked the Blood Dragon Constitution—infinite stamina.
He turned to Prince Vane.
Vane was curled up in a ball, sobbing. He had lost his army. He had lost his demon. He had lost his mind.
Kaelen walked over.
"Please..." Vane wept, hugging Kaelen's boots. "I'll give you anything! The Treasury! The Fleet! My sister! Take Seraphina! Just let me live!"
Kaelen looked down at the pathetic Prince.
"You offered your own sister to save your skin," Kaelen said with disgust. "You are not fit to be a King. You are not even fit to be a pirate."
Kaelen kicked Vane away.
"Magnus."
The giant walked up the steps, casting a long shadow over the Prince.
"He called you a slave," Kaelen said. "He is yours."
Magnus looked at Vane.
Vane looked up at the Titan he had mocked. "Wait... Magnus... buddy... I was joking..."
Magnus raised his foot.
"I... not... joke."
STOMP.
The altar cracked.
It was over.
Kaelen turned to the army of stunned pirates.
"The Prince is dead!" Kaelen shouted, raising his fist. "The Demon is dead!"
The pirates hesitated for a second, then erupted.
"ASURA! ASURA! KING OF THE ISLES!"
Bo ran up, hugging Kaelen's leg. "Boss! You ate a demon! Are you going to eat me next?"
"Only if you don't find the Treasury Key," Kaelen smiled.
Suddenly, a slow, sarcastic clapping echoed.
Seraphina walked out of the jungle shadows. Her red dress was spotless. She looked at the remains of her brother, then at Kaelen.
"Impressive," she purred, walking up the steps. "You killed my brother. You killed my demon. Techniclly, you just won the Tournament."
She stood inches from Kaelen.
"But now comes the hard part, Asura."
"What?"
"My father," she pointed to the floating platform in the sea. "The Pirate King. He didn't want a successor. He wanted a vessel. He intends to possess the winner's body to extend his life."
Kaelen's eyes narrowed.
"So, the whole tournament was a trap for a new body?"
"Yes," Seraphina whispered. "And you just proved you have the strongest body."
BOOOOM!
From the ocean, the Pirate King's aura exploded. It wasn't human. It was ancient, rotting, and incredibly powerful.
Spirit Ocean Level 9 - Peak.
"My son is dead!" The Pirate King's voice thundered across the island. "But a Dragon has taken his place! PERFECT!"
Kaelen gripped his sword. He had just leveled up, but a Level 9 master was a different beast.
"Ready for Round 2?" Kaelen asked Magnus and Bo.
Magnus cracked his knuckles. "I... smash... old man."
Bo sighed, reloading his crossbow. "I need a raise."
The Battle for the Crown was over. The Battle for the Soul had begun.
Author Note: "If you like the story, please vote with Power Stones! It helps me write faster."