Chapter 30:

Killing all the opposition was easy work for Nero, the feeble resistance only lasted a few hours before the remaining men either ran or died by his blade. Nero was also unusually aggressive. His calm death dance turning into a barbaric slaughter as his anger peaked and his heart ached. Some part of him even regretted coming here.

Nero burned everything down after he saw what they were doing in here. Although Nero was cruel he also had a strange soft spot for those with potential or kids, not enough to stray him from his goals if need be but if it were up to him he would never taint since he knew how blissful being a kid was, he always held on tightly to those memories.

So when he saw what these men were doing to children, after looking around Nero bearly found anybody over the age of 15 and all of them were tortured to the point of breaking and becoming nothing more than breeding objects from what he could see. Little girls bearly at the age of puberty had white fluids running out of every orifice in their body. Some already had bulged stomachs and would birth kids of their own. Nero couldn't forgive this, he could carry out murders, kill out of nessesity and enjoy a good fight but enjoying such haneous acts was going past the line he had drawn for himself. Hence why he never even entertained the thoughts of having a woman or children, how would they love a monster. In some way he knew he was being a hypocrit but he didn't care, some things were too much in his eyes and this was one of them.

Looking down on the burnt and deformed corpses below his feet as he finally killed the last scum, Nero shook his head and looked around for nearest person. Although his methods were also not the most benevolent or even ethical he wouldn't reduce humans to such a degrading state were even death was better than living.

In fact his cruelty was a form of trail, a trail that when passed would ensure that Nero knee the person better than they knew themselves. In moments were death, suffering or despair arose, the human eyes would open a whole new world to peak through and he always hoped to see one of three reactions.

Acceptance, defiance or a crippling fear. Some simply accepted their deaths and simply gave in to the prospect of eternal rest they didn't want to die but wouldn't struggle to live either.Nero believed those who simply waited to die to be weak, no matter how unsightly no matter if he had to eat dirt or crawl through mud Nero would never accept death with open hands.

Other people were like Nero, they fought with all their might in the face of death. They exhausted every little option to survive, not out of fear but they simply wanted to defy the commonly accepted finality that was death.

Then the third group, the cowards, men who would willingly lower themselves in fear of death, but unlike those who defy out of spite they are fearful of the eternal darkness of death.

There was a fourth reaction towards the prospect of death, the rarest but also the saddest reaction of all. Those who wished for death, those who were far too broken, too warped and abused to go on living.

Right now before Nero those types of people lay down, some crippled and starved, others whipped and disfigured and others were simply used as objects to release the pent up lust of thousands of men. In both mind and body they were broken. And looking into their empty abbyslike eyes, no luster of light shone through them.

Nero approached a little girl, no older than 13, she didn't even register his presence until he kneeled right beside her.

"Don't you want revenge for what they did, can't you find the strength to keep on living?" Nero asked, although calm his voice also held a certain desperation.

The girl shook her head, her vocal cords probably torn from screaming as the savages that once lived here defiled her. Nero nodded in understanding, he placed his arm on her chest and as gently as possible started absorbing her chakra until she died with a peaceful smile on her face.

Nero looked at her and couldn't help but quiver a little, for the 20 years of his life he had always feard ending up like the little girl. His free will taken and abused before slowly he was broken and felt as if death was a release.

'Can't you find it in yourself to go on?! How can you let despair win!?' He bit his lower lip in frustration and let out a sorrowful sigh.

"You may take my life one day, but not today death. I swear to the heavens and the earth that I shall make you my bitch." Nero declared with anger in his voice, this was one of the few times where he lost all his composure. Moments where his childish self resurfaced and moments where he briefly question if he is on the right path.

As if accepting her challenge, the sky's rumbled as clouds converged above him. Alarms rang out as his suit's sensors blared at the unnatural amount of energy gathered above him and thunder rumbled showing their retaliation as his declaration.

Nero briefly saw an image of a translucent, gaunt spectre with a demonic visage. It looked much larger than an average human, possessing long, shaggy, white hair, from which two red horns protrude, as well as purple-coloured skin. It wore large white kimono and carried a set of prayer beads.

Nero felt his soul shake as the being stared at him, his hair stood on edge and his instincts told him to run. But he stubbornly looked right at the spectre, defiance clear in his eyes as he resolved to fight no matter how futile.

The shinigami let out a shrill laugh that scraped painfully on the ears of those who heard it. Blue energies left the bodies of all those who lived and entered it's mouth, Nero also felt a painful tug on his soul.

At first nothing but a warm feeling before it slowly turned into billions of tiny needles that assaulted every individual cell. He screamed in agony but refused to succumb to the feeling that encroached the back of his mind. It told him to rest, that he didn't have to suffer anymore all could end if he just slept.

Nero however slowly raised his hand, he folded his fingers and showed a fuck you gesture at the all powerful being causing it to stare at him in intrigue. It smiled and soon left, leaving nothing but a silent wasteland where there was once a settlement.

Nero also passed out from the intense pain and didn't even hear as the system started speaking after a very long time of silence.

DING!!

[Host's soul has been tempered with mana levels rising, scanning for damage.

10%.....40%...70%.....100%

No damage found host's soul has experienced a growth.

New abilities unlocked, latent nanites activated abilities are being forcefully evolved nanited are being forcefully evolved due to oversaturation of mana. Mana levels stable abilities evolved by two ranks. Scanning host again

10%..15%.....50%...100%

new energy found, new energy being absorbed. Warning!!

New energy too powerful, reinforcing nanites. Reinforcement completed.

Converting energy.] The system operated tirelessly for the entire night as it forcefully underwent changes to increase Nero's survival.

.....

Heheheh....I don't know what's with me today but I feel oddly motivated...also I've realized that I may have made my mc a tad bit too evil so I wanted to use this chapter to sort of show that there are some lines he won't cross. Such as rape, meaningless killing of humans, his soft side for children and his hatred for death and the concept of there being an end to something. Also stay tuned to see if I will release another chapter today or will my motivation finally end.