91 Stargate

Inside the castle, my devil avatar was sitting at an altar, along the altar were 30 people tied up and gagged. They were all guards of the castle, that came from the Silent Sword's guild. I stood up and walked around the altar as I made hand seals releasing various vivid runes onto the ground.

As I walked around the runes created a path of 9 blue lines each inscribed with devilish power. The runes hummed with nomological fluctuations releasing spatial energy around it which warped and distorted the light into impossible angles.

It seemed as though the area inside the circle became isolated from the rest of the world. This was Spatial Sealing runes I developed based on my magical acceleration restrictions. With the area sealed I approached the altar and a golden black flame crackled in my eyes.

"Underworld Flames." I coldly intoned as the flames ignited in my palm, and I cast the magic onto the altar, the flames instantly blazed along the altar into a sky-high fire.

"Arghh!" The guards screamed out as their flesh started to sear into ashy smoke. They started to die smelling their burning skin, fully conscious of their refinement with incredible pain. Their writhing figures inspired a strange sort of artistic appreciation in me.

Slowly the screams subsided as 30 deep red globs emerged from their ashen and crisp bodies. Part of me felt a little dissonant, this was the first time an experiment of mine truly killed. Before it was just on some immortal goblins who could only die from old age.

But now I have done it on living breathing human beings with only 1 life to live. Such a fact was rather easy to live with for me now that I had changed and become more powerful. This was what was necessary to survive in a world like this.

As the 30 globs of blood assembled into one massive glob. My hands flashed with increasingly faster hand seals releasing endless restrictions on top of the blood. For the next step, I would need various assurances I thought with apprehension. The restrictions formed together as my eyes flashed with a cold light.

"Subzero." I intoned as I used the rest of my magic power to form an exquisite shard of ice, and traced along it a spell circle.

This was my Vessel Art, that I developed for the school to seal magic power. I sent the ice shard into the glob of blood, as it perfectly fused completely hidden. The glob of blood revolved rapidly as it decreased in size and increased in purity.

When it reached the size of a single drop of blood, it pulsated with intense blood vitality. I released my underworld flames, and further refined the impurities out of it. Then it became a golden blood drop with profound runes along it.

I looked at it admiringly, this was sacrificial blood! Humans are all blessed by the gods, and when those blessings are gathered and well refined like so. They can generate a wisp of Divine power, a completely different type of magic power that only high-level prophets can use.

With my impressive refinement skills and underworld flames, I was able to create a wisp of the Divine's blood. But even that would work spectacularly with my plans but I felt some desire in my heart. I realized though that the blood could only have negative effects on my path.

"Power from beyond the stars. The flowing Astral River, and the devils within. I call to Ye with the power of the Divines." I chanted as the restrictions around the room shined and released a massive stream of spatial energy into me. I directed it onto the altar as it started to condense together.

"Come, Astral Devil Daemon!" I roared as the spatial energy condensed into a dark gate and a river flowed out of it. Within the sealed space appeared the night sky, with glimmering stars. Then in the night sky, space ripped open like an eye! Various tentacles emerged from the eye, as it stared at me and released sinister laughter.

"It has been a long time since I have been summoned." The eye laughed as it stared me down, I showed no fear as I stared back.

"Daemon, it has been a long time," Drrak said from inside my shadow, and then he emerged into a 100-foot noble dragon form. His intimidating shadow force pulsated as shock came from the eye.

"Drrak?!? You died in the War of Ancients..." The eye said with apprehension, it knew Drrak back in his time as an Astral Devil. He was the most terrifying Astral being ever seen, he had God, Devil, and even Demonic powers. Some said if he mastered all three paths, he could have ascended into a true divine!

"Well as you can see I am alive, but that's not why you were called here," Drrak said chuckling as the eye waited for a response.

"You're here because I called you." I coldly intoned, my position in this exchange is that of a lesser. But to dismiss based on my current power would be a grave mistake.

"Oh, and what do you want mortal?" Daemon coldly said.

"I have a matter I want you to help with," I said as I released a bundle of devilish sword intent that I filled with various memories.

This was one way that knights communicated information. By unraveling the intent one can receive the memories, which was how the First King communicated with me, it's called sword memories. The devil absorbed the sword intent as the eye closed to quickly process the information then flashed back open. It looked at me with shock as it couldn't but re-evaluate me.

"Such a sinister plan, who are you?" Daemon asked with concern, the plan that I concocted was a gamble but also a well thought out and laid plan.

"Just a mortal." I chuckled as runes appeared in my eyes. I scanned over the devil, looking for my vessel. I could feel it's presence, and it seemed I wasn't found out. That was just insurance in case anything happened to me.

"But I think you know more, especially after you watched me back then." I chuckled as I remembered the presence that watched me as I first activated my Shadow of Providence.

Right after my spatial rift expanded I felt something watching me and I was unsure of what it was. So I never told Drrak or anyone else. But now I noticed that the energy signature between that presence and this devil was the same.

"You senses are rather acute, can't fool one with magic eyes it seems." The eye chuckled as it felt further apprehension at the prospect of working together with me.

"What will it be?" I asked expectantly, the offer I proposed gave both parties major benefits. He was very unlikely to refuse.

"I accept these terms, on the condition of a spatial energy monopoly," Daemon said affirmatively.

"I will require a certain amount for myself. I'll take 20%, you can have the rest." I replied, in my heart, I knew that I couldn't trust Daemon to keep to the deal unless I gained more strength. But the moment my plan works out I would have terrifying power.

"I can agree to that," Daemon said as the astral energy in the room faded. The stars disappeared and the gate closed, making the castle return to its previous state. Except the guards were still only ashes left on the altar.

"Lucas, are you sure you want to deal with that devil?" Drrak asked concerned.

"I have no choice, I don't have the power to fight back. But I can add another competitor to make things harder for them." I said uncertainly, I still need more assurances to go through with the plan.

"What else do you want to do then?" Drrak asked expectantly.

"I just need to upgrade my eyeless bugs to starbugs. Then set up phase 2 of the plan by fusing my avatars back together. I have already improved all my sword intents to the required level." I replied to Drrak, the entire goal of phase 1 was interrupting the gathering of the materials.

I could take away the offering they were going to use for their Stargate to make my own smaller one. That way I could also attack their chief officers and gain further knowledge of this conspiracy. Then finally with all my knowledge I can make my starbugs and infiltrate them.

In all this, I developed my avatar's sword intents to such a high level that I could fight true knights and combined my power far surpasses the power of an average knight.

Only mid or high ranking knights can go to combat with me in my true form! But none of that is satisfying, my need for power far surpasses knighthood and the magus path. I am in desperate need of true power if I want my vengeance in this life.