BOOM!!!
I exploded forward.
The world blurred.
Mountains became streaks.
The barren ground disappeared beneath me as I crossed thousands of meters in an instant.
My body was moving faster than before.
Much faster.
The strange thing was...
I wasn't consciously pushing myself.
My body simply knew how to move.
The hunger had sharpened everything.
My senses.
My instincts.
My reactions.
Even my perception of Energy.
Everything felt clearer.
I could sense countless fluctuations scattered throughout the wilderness.
Most were weak.
Some were stronger.
But one stood out.
A powerful Energy signature.
My first target.
The moment I locked onto it—
THUD!
My left heart beat like a war drum.
The red stripes across my body burned brighter.
THUD!
My right heart answered.
Calmer.
Steadier.
Keeping the violent side from completely overwhelming me.
I smiled faintly.
"Don't get in my way."
I wasn't sure whether I was speaking to the hunger...
Or the beast inside my bloodline.
Either way, I accelerated.
BOOOOOOM!!!
A sonic boom exploded behind me.
The shockwave tore through the barren land.
Dust rose into the sky.
Cracks spread across the ground.
I didn't slow down.
The creature ahead had noticed me.
Its Energy suddenly surged.
Then—
ROOOOOOOAR!!!
A terrifying roar shook the wilderness.
My eyes brightened.
There it is.
The hunger inside me immediately reacted.
DEVOUR.
My body accelerated again.
The distance disappeared.
Then I saw it.
A massive creature stood between several shattered mountains.
Its body was covered in dark scales.
Four enormous legs supported its massive frame.
Two curved horns extended from its skull.
Its mouth was filled with rows of jagged teeth.
Demonic Energy poured from its body.
The creature was enormous.
At least several hundred meters tall.
And it was staring directly at me.
Its eyes were blood-red.
It had sensed my presence.
For a moment...
Neither of us moved.
The creature lowered its body.
Its muscles tightened.
Then—
BOOM!!!
It charged.
The earth exploded beneath its feet.
Its massive body moved far faster than something of its size should have been capable of.
I smiled.
"Good."
I didn't retreat.
I charged toward it.
The distance between us disappeared.
Its enormous claw came toward me.
WHOOSH!!!
I tilted my body.
The claw passed beside me.
The wind pressure alone tore apart the mountains behind me.
I appeared beneath its chest.
My fist tightened.
BOOM!!!
I punched upward.
My fist collided with its body.
The impact produced a deafening explosion.
The creature's enormous body was lifted from the ground.
Its scales cracked.
Blood sprayed from its mouth.
It flew backward.
But before it could recover—
I disappeared.
BOOM!
I appeared above it.
My leg descended.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The creature crashed into the earth.
The entire mountain range shook.
A crater several kilometers wide formed beneath its body.
Dust covered the battlefield.
I landed at the edge of the crater.
My expression remained calm.
But my body...
Was screaming.
The hunger had become stronger.
The demonic Energy pouring from the injured creature was attracting me.
My body wanted it.
Every cell wanted it.
The red stripes burned.
My left eye glittered.
I took one step forward.
Then stopped.
"No."
I clenched my fist.
"I decide."
The hunger roared.
DEVOUR!
My expression hardened.
"I said..."
My aura erupted.
"...I decide."
Forcing the hunger down wasn't easy.
But I had learned something.
The ability itself wasn't the problem.
The problem was allowing instinct to control me.
If I could master it...
Then Devour might become one of the most terrifying abilities I possessed.
I looked into the crater.
The creature was still alive.
Barely.
It struggled to rise.
Its Energy fluctuated violently.
I slowly raised my hand.
The surrounding demonic Energy began moving.
Not toward the creature.
Toward me.
The creature's eyes widened.
It attempted to retreat.
Too late.
WHOOSH!!!
Its Energy was pulled from its body.
The creature roared.
Its body trembled violently.
I could feel the Energy entering me.
But this time...
I controlled the process.
I didn't allow everything to enter at once.
I filtered it.
Controlled it.
Devoured it in small amounts.
The hunger screamed for more.
But I ignored it.
Slowly...
The creature's Energy weakened.
And my own strength increased.
A strange sensation spread throughout my body.
The demonic Energy wasn't simply increasing my reserves.
It was being broken down.
Consumed.
Converted.
The Bloodline Devouring System was doing something far more complicated than ordinary absorption.
It was transforming the Energy into something my body could use.
I looked at my hands.
Interesting.
The hunger was still there.
But now...
It felt different.
It wasn't controlling me.
It was responding to me.
A faint smile appeared.
"So that's the trick."
I wasn't supposed to eliminate the hunger.
I was supposed to master it.
My eyes turned toward the distant horizon.
There were countless Energy signatures out there.
Thousands.
Perhaps millions.
Neraphyx was filled with life.
But unlike Zeraphyx...
Most of that life wanted to kill me.
My smile widened.
That wasn't a problem.
I had come here to become stronger.
And now I had discovered the perfect environment.
A world filled with endless Energy.
Endless enemies.
Endless opportunities.
My body suddenly trembled.
THUD!
My left heart beat.
THUD!
My right followed.
The two rhythms gradually synchronized.
For the first time...
They didn't feel like two opposing hearts.
They felt like two halves of the same beast.
My eyes narrowed.
Then the System appeared.
> [Devouring Complete.]
> [Target Energy Successfully Converted.]
> [Bloodline Energy Increased.]
> [Host Physique Strengthened.]
I stared at the notifications.
Then another line appeared.
> [Warning.]
My expression changed.
A final message slowly appeared.
> [The more you devour, the stronger the Hunger becomes.]
Silence.
I stared at those words.
Then slowly smiled.
"Then I'll become stronger than the hunger."
I turned toward the horizon.
My body lowered.
Energy gathered beneath my feet.
The red stripes across my body burned like flames.
The crimson tiger phantom appeared behind me once again.
Its jaws opened.
But this time...
It wasn't roaring.
It was smiling.
I looked toward the endless wilderness.
There were countless enemies ahead.
Countless dangers.
Countless secrets.
And somewhere beyond all of them...
Was the reason I had been brought to Neraphyx.
I took one step.
BOOM!!!
The ground exploded.
I vanished into the horizon.
The first hunt...
Had only just begun.