Zatiel floated in the center of a massive pool filled with life force and blood energy, and the expression on his face depicted immense agony. A powerful purple fire overflowed the inside and outside of the Neo-Demon, forcing him into a state of constant destruction and regeneration.
Death force inundated Zatiel's cells, destroying more than ninety-nine percent of them. Those who were able to resist the pressure of this destructive energy, proving their superiority, were flooded with life force, entering a hyperactive state of mitosis, regenerating the missing tissues.
The process had to be done in all the body at the same time to avoid flaws. Even a Rank 6 life form would find it hard to monitor all of his cells simultaneously.
The Neo-Demon felt his head would explode due to the massive amount of information he processed every second, but did not back down and keep pushing his cognitive abilities to the next level with Mind Force.
What Zatiel did could be considered an imitation of Nirvanic Rebirth. He used his laws and the copious amount of life force and blood energy at his disposal to simulate the power of the Omega Law.
If it were not for his Law of Rebirth being at the Initial level and having the Blood Duke's regeneration pool, it would have been impossible to achieve this feat.
Zatiel's body was not the only one growing monstrously powerful. Behind him, there was the phantom of a dark tree, more than five thousand meters tall, with strange runes all over his bark and a crown full of leaves that burned with purple fire.
A root full of thorns formed a shield above the area where Zatiel's Bloodline Heart resided. It extended inside the Neo-Demon's body, enveloping the hearts, muscles, and bones.
The Tree of Massacre fused with Zatiel's body, becoming one, and the phantom was the entity's soul that was consuming pieces of consciousnesses and negative emotions.
Zatiel's bloodline had changed the Tree of Massacre, transforming it into a superior version of his kind. While fulfilling some essential functions, the tree's soul was in stasis, and the Neo-Demon controlled it as if it was a new extremity.
The Neo-Demon had been tempering his body and strengthening the Tree of Massacre for more than three months now, but he had consumed less than twenty percent of the red-golden liquid inside the pool.
All of a sudden, the Tree of Massacre's phantom trembled, and its aura spiked as the runes covering its bark became more detailed.
It was at this moment that Zatiel opened his eyes and stopped feeding the tree. His Rebirth Eye glowed, and the next second, the tree's soul vanished, only to reappear the next instant inside his Bloodline Heart.
The Tree of Massacre's soul force could compare with a Peak Rank 5 life form, but the Eclipse's pressure, which also inhabited the Bloodline Heart, was highly superior.
That diminished the amount of energy Zatiel had to use to keep the Tree of Massacre's soul under control.
"A.I. Chip, analyze the Tree of Massacre and its connection with my body."
The next instant, the chip robotic voice sounded inside Zatiel's mind, along with a stream of information.
"Bip... Scanning target.
...
...
Tree of Massacre: Ancient non-sentient life form born thanks to the unique laws of Baator and exceptional circumstances. It is capable of regeneration, prolong its branches for hundreds of thousands of meters, and grow stronger without developing law comprehension.
Due to the host's bloodline nurturing it during its rebirth, it obtained special abilities.
Rebirth Pool: It can function as a reservoir for Rebirth Force and natural energy. The host can use it to replenish his energies or potentiate other objects.
Symbiotic Armor: The Tree of Masacre can form a layer of bark covering the host's body and inner organs. This ability needs plenty of energy that can be provided by the host or from the tree itself.
The host will obtain a fifty percent enhancement in his physical strength and armor as durable as a Pseudo Rank 6 Artifact.
The host can manipulate tree branches to attack enemies. They can be potentiated by Shooting Star End if the Animax Soul Rune is activated.
Warning: If the Tree of Massacre's soul awakens, it will follow its instincts and consume everything in its path. Since the tree covers every part of the host's body, the damage could be lethal."
Zatiel smiled as he heard that information. The Tree of Massacre was an excellent armor that could grow stronger and work as a new energy pool. The fact it was a time bomb that could detonate at any moment did not matter to the Neo-Demon.
'Plenty of fights have occurred in the time I was absent. The rest of the Marquises do not dare to command me, but they will report me to Duke Krior if I don't help.' After thinking for a moment, Zatiel's eyes released a monstrous killing intent.
'I need to temper my body with life and death battles if I want to increase my potential and keep strengthening it without having to advance to the next Rank.'
Zatiel spread his wings, and the next second he became a flash that left the mountain and disappeared into the distance with a speed that could compare to teleportation.
...
Thousands of kilometers away from the mountain range occurred a battle between two devil armies. Like always, the lesser devils fought in the ground while the more powerful Devil Marquises battled in the sky.
Duke Krior's forces had obtained win after win against the Darkness Poison Duke's army as they advanced through the continent.
The following strategic location to conquer was less than ten thousand meters away from them. It was an ancient castle built in the core of a volcano.
Unfortunately for them, two Devil Marquises arrived as reinforcement for their enemies. One of them was the Skull Dragon, who had lost his body in a previous fight.
The price the Darkness Poison Duke must have paid to reconstruct the Marquess' body should have been astronomical.
Just the Skull Dragon was enough to help the Darkness Poison Duke's side equal Duke Krior's forces since Zatiel did not participate in the battles.
Luckily for the Infernal Rage Titan and the others, the second Devil Marquess did not participate in the fights. He sat in the volcano's peak and coldly watched the battlefield.
He was a towering fifteen-meter-tall devil with a muscular body, red tattoos all over his skin, and dark armor.
None of the Marquises could detect his soul force, but their instincts warned them about how dangerous the man was.
Both sides had fought many times, and the muscular devil never interfered, even when it seemed his side would lose.
In the end, due to both sides' power being similar and the pressure of the muscular devil that made the Infernal Rage Titan not dare to take chances, all the battles end up in a draw.
The Devil Marquises had been fighting for a few hours when all of a sudden, the muscular devil stood up and looked at the distance with a serious expression before mobilizing his energy and Soul Origin.
The Infernal Rage Titan and the other Devil Marquises immediately regrouped when they saw that, but the muscular devil did not care about them.
His body did not grow larger but unleashed an immense physical pressure that made the volcano beneath him tremble. Right in the center of his forehead, a crack appeared that aroused the laws around him.
The red tattoos on his skin glowed, covering his body in a red aura, and an ax appeared in his right hand.
The muscular devil raised his ax and charged part of the red aura into it before waving it down.
That simple movement fired a red beam that moved with power and speed beyond measure.
Two Devil Counts on its path were too slow, and the beam rendered their bodies and souls pieces before extending into the distance.
The Devil Marquises on both sides wondered who was the red beam's target, and the answer came the next second, as an arc of bluish-purple fire clashed with it.
An explosion of purple fire and red aura occurred. A winged man with dark armor and a sword fused to his hand flew straight through the blast.
Everybody recognized Zatiel's Winged Immortal Knight of Death and Destruction, but there was something different about his armor. Instead of metallic plates, a dark tree bark formed it.
Killing intent appeared in the eyes of the muscular devil when he saw Zatiel. He bent his knees to propel his body forward the next second with a power that shattered part of the volcano beneath him.
Zatiel and the muscular devil approached each other with incredible speed. Just when they were about to clash, the Neo-Demon activated Shooting Star End.
The muscular devil's consciousness showed him the Neo-Demon using his supernatural speed to avoid a frontal confrontation and positioned himself behind him.
Zatiel was too fast, and even if the muscular devil managed to respond to the sword aiming at his neck, he would be left full of openings.
However, everything changed when the crack in the muscular devil's forehead opened, showing a blue eye.
The moment the blue eye appeared, a wave of time force expanded in every direction, slowing things down.
Zatiel was moments away from cutting the neck of the muscular devil when the time force struck him, slowing his sword down to the point an ax was able to stop it.
The muscular devil had turned around, and with his free hand, he fired at fists capable of piercing a continent toward Zatiel's head.
Shock appeared in Zatiel's face when he saw the muscular devil's face. He recognized the blue eye's aura from the memories of the Daybreak Bloodline's original holder.
'The Eye of Time!'
