Monarch of Darkness, Arsene

Chapter 28: Body Cultivation Begins

Sitting upright, I looked at the confused expression that hung on Yura\'s gorgeous face, "Confused," I asked,

Nodding her head, she eyed me, "How do I eat this,"

My eyes grew wide as I clearly remembered her joining the academy class in the Acadamy of War, "Arent you an Alchemist,"

Nodding her head, a blush hung on her delicate cheeks, "...I...I don\'t like to read," she mumbled, clearly trying to hide her face.

Laughter burst from my mouth as I began rolling around, "How...how...How did you become one of the smartest people in school."

Growing even more crimson, Yura turned around, "I just keep forgetting. After I take the test, I forget everything the next day...STOP LAUGHING, ARSENE!"

Bursting out again in laughter, I gazed at the glaring Yura with an interesting look. She was clearly not from the mortal realm, knowing about the royal mark of devils and clearly having an absurd level of talent. Yet, she had a terrible memory in regards to school.

Her face was as bright as an apple as she stomped her foot cutely, causing me to grin, "Yura, what do you plan to do after we ascend to a higher plane."

At my question, she smiled, "Higher realm? Do not forget we are being watched as we speak. And you will do well to not underestimate this planet."

Suddenly remembering, I gave a familiar smirk toward the sky, "Yes...we are, huh...To eat a blood seed, you must peel the hard shell back and remove the flesh from within. Eating anywhere else will result in being poisoned."

Looking a little jealous, I saw Yura nod before she slowly began pealing the seed back. She gave a magical smile before biting down like she was eating a rice ball. Watching her eat like a child, I looked away.

Yura was oddly different than what I originally thought; she was surprisingly cute and in some ways innocent. Pushing the thought from my mind, I, too, began peeling the seed. Looking at the bloody orb inside, I smiled.

A blood seed was the first thing most people had to find before beginning their Body Cultivation. The Realm of Blood, as it\'s known, is not truly a Qi cultivation realm, but rather it\'s from the body cultivation tree.

We strengthen our bodies to handle the qi we absorb in the beginning. The stronger our body, the more qi we can hold. Thinking about all the trials I had to do just to increase my body, I smiled bitterly.

Qi cultivation was easy mode, while body cultivation was truly where the hell began. Smirking at Grey, who I knew was watching, I laughed, swallowing the entire seed along with the crimson orb. Yura gasped, shouting with astonishment, "what the hell are you doing!"

Shrugging my shoulders, I felt my body beginning to glow crimson while black veins began to protrude around my body. Snickering, I felt a cold warmth followed by a sharp pain assault my scenes. Suddenly to Yura\'s surprise, my body returned to normal as if nothing was wrong.

"....I forgot you have a physique," she murmured, still nibbling on her crimson orb. She giggled a little before ignoring me, focusing completely on her cultivation.

As my skin returned to normal, I felt a deep transformation taking place deep within my body; like gears turning, my bones began to crack, which surprisingly didn\'t cause any discomfort. Closing my eyes, I stared deep within my body as a crimson qi gently flowed through me, evolving everything it touched.

My twelve meridians, the eight extraordinary Vessels, and lastly, the twelve Divergent began to expand and contract as they grew wider and stronger. Suddenly a deep searing pulsed echoed out from my shoulder as I suddenly saw the crimson light slowly begin turned black as the bitter night.

Demonic Qi? My mind began to race when suddenly, a massive gate deep within my mind appeared before me. With a bang, the black light struck the gate, causing blood to gush from my mouth.

Fear crept into me as my gate slowly began being corrupted by the demonic qi. Like it was being rotted away, the door shivered as it transformed. Demonic essences shimmered from the door as the mark of sacrilege embedded itself into the door.

I didn\'t know why but I could feel my soul pulsing with a demonic light as the seemingly recreated gate forced by sin shot up. Pealing my eyes open, I looked up at the dark sky. My mind cold as deep icy killing intent filled my heart. Clenching my teeth, I took a deep breath, settling my heart and nerves.

"The Gate of Truth has been opened," I said aloud, gripping the scorching mark on my shoulder. Standing up, all the bones within my body began popping as a massive power flooded my body. Grinning, I laughed, consumed by the darkness of night.

Yura eyed me, snorting with a look of derision as she continued cultivating. Not worrying about her, I created a fire causing her eyes to shoot open. She quickly bolted towards me, sitting close to the fire staring at me with expectation. Her amethyst eyes glittering with hope and longing.

Trying hard not to laugh, I continued, taking out a slice of tier-two meat from my bracelet before throwing it on the pot. A deep sizzling sounded out as I began throwing various spices I gathered from all around Pendragon over the meat. Staring at the natural fat melting from the meat like butter, I heard an odd sound causing me to gaze at the drooling young woman.

With a flip, I seasoned the other side before throwing a bottle of Asterion Royal Vintage into the pot, a pricey bottle I stole from Grey just to piss him off. A deep, profound scent filled the forest as Yura\'s drool intensified flooding the area around her like a lake. Watching the pot reduce, I smiled, placing my finger on the meat to see how well it was cooked.

Summoning two plates, I quickly made an aesthetic design before pouring myself and Yura a glass of wine. Her face began to light up like a firecracker as she stared hungrily at the food.

"Enjoy," I elegantly whispered, smiling lightly as she tore into the medium-rare steak. The juices began bursting forth with each bite she took, swallowing her in a layer of grease.

Cutting myself a slice, a burst of flavor exploded within my mouth as I bit down. My eyes began to shine with radiance as I couldn\'t help cut another slice of the perfectly pink steak before me. Yura had already finished her plate as she stared at me pitifully.

Giving her a smirk, I suddenly saw her hand flicker as she snatched my plate. Grinning from ear to ear, she shot off into the distance, the sounds of her chewing on my masterfully cooked steak rang like bells in my ear.

"YURAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"