Chapter 65: Second Form

“600 times gravity!” As he took his first step, Rod gasped sharply, then quickly held his breath and focused intensely, not daring to relax in the slightest. His body seemed to be splitting in half from the unbearable pain, and the burning combat energy erupting from within also distorted under such conditions, becoming eerily strange. At this moment, with gravity at 600 times normal, Rod felt he had reached his limit.
“No, I must keep going!” Taking a deep breath to stabilize his breathing, he endured the waves of pain throughout his body and the constant warnings from that sense of collapse. Rod gritted his teeth and thought to himself.
It was so close—just two steps away. After those two steps, he could enter that mysterious place. Rod wasn’t willing to give up now. After all the struggles he’d gone through, giving up here would be impossible! By now, he understood that if this was a towering ladder reaching the clouds, then the path he had taken before was merely a road leading to that ladder—a path free of any danger or difficulty. It was only now that he had truly begun climbing up the ladder.
Danger was everywhere; what lay ahead was merely the most basic test! Here, there was no need for magical beasts, no need for powerful warriors, and no need for guardians. Just this gravity test was enough to prevent those below the late Saint level from entering!
That’s right, the late Saint level. Rod was confident that his ability to withstand gravity was no less than that of a mid-Saint level warrior. Since he could already barely endure it, it was clear that this pressure required at least someone at the late Saint level to cope! His time as a demon in this world hadn’t been in vain.
“800 times gravity!” As he took his second step, Rod felt his mind shake violently. Unable to hold back the suffocating pressure in his chest, he opened his mouth, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out. Under the force of gravity, the blood quickly fell to the ground, creating a terrifying hole that disappeared deep into the earth. The power of gravity was truly terrifying.

The bones made a creaking sound, as if vowing that they were about to burst. The sudden increase to 800 times gravity was unbearable for Rod! 800 times gravity—this level of gravity might not have bothered Rod in the past or in other places; even 1,000 or 2,000 times gravity wouldn’t have affected him so much. But here it was different! External elements were scarce here and difficult to condense, leaving Rod with no choice but to rely entirely on himself, with no external forces to draw upon. If he had such forces, Rod was confident he could withstand even 6,000 times gravity! But here, 800 times gravity already pushed him to the brink. His bones began to crack, and his body started to react—cracks appeared on the skin of his limbs. Without the protection of his combat energy, these cracks would have spread rapidly; even with its protection, they were spreading slowly.

Blood seeped out bit by bit and quickly fell to the ground, sinking into it and leaving behind pits and dents. Finally, he understood why the ground was so full of holes—probably all caused by this.

A bitter taste filled his throat as another mouthful of blood sprayed out. Rod felt utter despair! He had already crossed the critical point back home, and the 800 times gravity here was probably equivalent to 6,000 times gravity in the outside world!

After all, even a quasi-saint-level warrior in the outside world could only withstand up to 5,000 times gravity! Rod had gone far beyond that limit. If it weren’t for his abnormal physique, he would have already died.

There was only one last step left, within reach—but Rod couldn’t take it. His body began to tremble violently, emitting a creaking sound.

At this point, retreating was no longer possible. Rod realized grimly that there was no way back. Every step backward would mean facing the same level of gravity as now, and he couldn’t endure such pressure over a long distance. Moving forward meant just one step, but he still didn’t know what the gravity would be like there, not to mention that energy wall and the dangers within it! Caught between two choices, Rod smiled bitterly in despair—seemingly having fallen for a trap back home. Was it useful to come here at the late saint level? Definitely not! Perhaps only god-level powerhouses could attempt this!

“I can’t die! I still have so much to do. The three-year promise—I can’t break it!” Nightingale, Kambi, Sambik, and Jem… One by one, their figures flashed through Rod’s mind as he roared in despair. The faces of these brothers and loved ones came to mind—they had abandoned their families and the world, giving up wealth and glory for him. He absolutely couldn’t let them down! He couldn’t drive them to despair! Rod knew very well what would happen to them if he died.

“Fate isn’t determined by heaven! Hmph, no one can take my life!” His eyes gradually turned blood red as Rod stared up at the energy wall ahead and shouted loudly.

“What if it’s hell? Even if it is, I’ll still go through it!” With a roar, Rod’s eyes turned completely red, his world engulfed in blood-red darkness. The strongest thought left in his mind was killing—yes, killing, driven by pure hatred and unwillingness!

The blood in his body rapidly transformed, flowing at speeds dozens of times faster than normal. It was clear that Rod’s body was undergoing tremendous changes.

His body was growing at a speed visible to the naked eye. Every muscle seemed to swell as if catalyzed, veins bulging out, looking fierce and powerful. The internal injuries he had suffered before seemed to heal rapidly, and the cracks caused by pressure on his limbs and body also healed quickly, returning to normal in just a short time.

The blood within him spun rapidly, constantly changing color, shifting toward blue. In just a few breaths, it turned completely blue—light blue, an eerie blue!

Roar… Countless emotions seemed to find release at this moment as his body continued to change. Rod opened his mouth and roared. After that roar, a tangible sound wave spread in all directions, creating waves wherever it passed. Except for the part that hit the energy wall ahead, which disappeared as if it had never existed, the sound waves in the other three directions spread violently, cutting through everything they touched like tofu, leaving no chance of survival.

Gradually, after the roars, Rod’s body began to stabilize. His eyes, once blood-red, reverted to their normal black and white color. Yet at this moment, those clearly defined black and white pupils gave off a profound sense—deep and unfathomable, like a black hole, mysterious and terrifying! It gave one a sense of shock.

At this moment, his body also started to contract strangely. His once towering frame and grotesque meridians began to shrink until he returned to his original appearance! Yet one thing was clear: Rod at this point was no longer comparable to the Rod of before—he had undergone tremendous changes! His appearance had changed, but his internal state remained the same, with his blue blood intact. Everything appeared eerie and strange.

“Heaven wants to kill me? I’ll defy it! People want to kill me? I’ll kill them!” A slow voice came from Rod’s mouth. At this moment, the combat energy he had unleashed became calmer and more stable, as if it had found a core.

“Hmph, the second stage of the demon race? Indeed powerful!” Rod muttered to himself after looking at his body.

Eight hundred units of gravity no longer posed any threat to him—just as easy as two or three hundred units! Rod knew it was all because, during that critical moment of life and death, his potential had been unleashed. The hidden demon blood within him had finally erupted—stronger against the strong, weaker against the weak, that’s how it was! Back then, in the woods outside the capital, under siege and on the brink of death, his demon blood had finally awakened, revealing his true identity as a demon. But time was short, and although his blood had awakened, it was still in its most basic state, with many shortcomings. After the crisis, he fled, and since his blood hadn’t fully awakened, it fell back into slumber! So, to be precise, Rod had actually remained human up until then, as his demon blood hadn’t fully awakened—he was still a true human! Everyone had misunderstood him!

This time, Rod had truly completed his evolution. Only now could he be considered a true demon! His blood had fully awakened, his blue blood remained, his body had evolved beyond the most primitive first stage and entered the second stage, gaining memory inheritance. Only now did he truly become a true demon. Only now could he unleash all the power of a demon!

Rod learned all of this through the inheritance of memories. At the moment his bloodline changed, an inexplicable presence suddenly appeared in his mind without him being prepared. By the time Rod reacted, he had received some mysterious messages! As his bloodline fully awakened and his body changed, he managed to understand a bit more in a short time.
Those messages were the inherited memories, passed down through generations of demons, and they were also the reason why demons were so powerful—because they belonged to an ancient bloodline capable of inheriting memories spanning thousands of years!
From these inherited memories, Rod managed to grasp a little bit in that brief time, understanding his current state: the second form of demons, the Awakened! He also learned that demons had a total of six forms. He didn’t have time to delve deeper into the others, but he knew that with each advancement in form, his strength would see tremendous breakthroughs and improvements! Just like now—entering the second form already gave him a sense of breakthrough, soaring from the quasi-saint level straight to the peak, seemingly on the verge of reaching the saint level!