Chapter 65: Giant 2

The giant, swaying unsteadily, touched the fresh blood on his head, still not comprehending what had just happened.

Rhode had already used a chain to swing himself like he was on a swing.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

His body rotated in mid-air due to inertia.

The bullets fired from his weapon, Fury of the Storm, shattered one giant's head after another.

The moment he landed, he performed a sacrifice.

An invisible force spread from his hand, instantly devouring all the giant corpses.

"Boom!"

The power from sacrificing more than a dozen giants surged madly into his body, and boiling blood energy emanated from Rhode.

The nearly tangible blood energy burned like flames around him.

Rhode, enveloped by this blood energy, looked like a demon that had just emerged from the depths of hell.

A layer of blood-red armor cloaked his body.

Rhode tilted his head back with a satisfied expression, and as the blood energy gradually subsided, faint chain-like patterns appeared on his skin.

The power of more than a dozen giants had all merged into him.

He wasn't even sure how powerful his physical body had become.

The power was so great that it was already pushing his body to its limits.

If he used this power recklessly, he would destroy his own body before anything else.

The patterns on his skin were, in fact, a natural restriction formed by his body to prevent his immense internal power from running rampant.

Of course, with just a thought, he could release this sealed power.

"So, is this a blessing or a curse?"

Rhode murmured quietly, looking at the surviving giants.

He slowly extended his hand.

Crack!

In an instant, the chain mark wrapped around his arm shattered and disappeared.

Rhode watched as his arm began to swell rapidly, becoming the size of a giant's arm in the blink of an eye.

Boom!

With a simple squeeze, the sound of bones breaking echoed in the air.

The surviving giants had their bones shattered all at once.

"Whoa!"

Rhode looked at his arm returning to its normal state, an intriguing expression on his face.

He hadn't expected that, upon fully releasing his restraints, his body would turn gigantic, like a giant itself.

Now, it was as though he were a giant-sized sponge forcibly compressed into the shape of an ordinary person.

Underneath his human appearance, he was hiding the essence of a giant.

This giant was now merely sealed within his body.

Whenever he wished, he could awaken the beast slumbering within.

"Transformation, huh?"

An audacious idea suddenly flashed through Rhode's mind.

He extended a finger and released a portion of his power.

The originally normal-sized finger instantly expanded and thickened.

It worked!

Rhode raised an eyebrow, a look of pleasant surprise on his face.

It was just as he imagined.

If he completely released his seals, his body would transform entirely, growing into a giant dozens of meters tall.

However, if he only lifted part of the seal, releasing a small portion of the sealed power, he could control the partial giant transformation of his body within a limited range.

This had many potential uses.

Rhode rubbed his chin, a sly grin forming on his face. Someone was in for a treat.

He couldn't help but imagine the future, where the women around him would surely enjoy this benefit.

"I wonder how many more giants are in this castle?"

Rhode narrowed his eyes as he looked toward the enormous castle in the distance.

Given the size of the castle, there must be many giants within.

If he sacrificed all of them, it would greatly enhance his power.

Of course, having already sacrificed so many giants, his physical strength had increased tremendously.

Sacrificing ordinary giants wouldn't yield much now—at least not enough for qualitative changes.

It was similar to when he had sacrificed many werewolves in the past.

As his power exceeded certain thresholds, the energy required increased exponentially.

Moreover, higher-grade energy was now needed.

Sacrificing ordinary giants would bring minimal benefits; he'd need to find stronger beings to achieve rapid growth.

Rhode slowly walked into the castle.

Inside, the tall buildings were arranged along both sides.

Apart from being larger than an ordinary castle, everything seemed identical to a human castle.

Could a group of brainless giants have constructed this?

Rhode frowned as he looked at the marks on the walls.

These architectural techniques were more reminiscent of human craftsmanship rather than something produced by the clumsy brains of giants.

"Slaves, perhaps...?"

In ancient times, humans weren't yet the dominant species in this world.

Races with powerful magical abilities often kept humans as slaves.

It wasn't impossible that a group of giants had enslaved humans to build this castle.

But now, it was clear that the humans on this floating island had all been eaten by the giants.

Perhaps there were still survivors hiding in some obscure corner of the island, living like rats.

However, that was hardly any better than death.

"Human!"

A surprised cry suddenly interrupted Rhode's thoughts.

In the distance, a giant over twenty meters tall was drooling as he gazed at him with greed.

"Couldn't you have just stayed hidden?"

Rhode sighed helplessly, flexing his body, his expression indifferent.

Since he was discovered, it was time for...

Slaughter to begin!

Pfft!

The cold blade pierced through the giant's forehead.

Rhode pulled out his Chaos Blade, the chain-wrapped twin blades dancing like a storm, tearing everything around him to shreds.

Every giant that emerged upon hearing the commotion—all of them, without exception—were slaughtered.

There was only one exit from the giant castle, so he needed only to block that route and keep moving forward, clearing as he went.

He could slaughter every giant in the castle.

Rhode wielded both Chaos Blades, slowly but methodically clearing the giants around him.

As he sacrificed each giant, he initially felt his power increase.

However, as time went on, the power gain from killing each giant became negligible.

Fortunately, there weren't many giants in the castle—at most, only a few hundred. Within a few hours, they were all wiped out.

"There's just one left."

Rhode's gaze fixed on a luxurious palace at the center of the castle.

He had cleared every part of the castle except for this place.

No mercy, no survivors.

Since he had already killed, he might as well kill them all.

"A species should be united, after all."

Rhode's voice carried a hint of melancholy.

The giants were unintelligent, violent, and enjoyed eating humans.

Creatures like that were of no use, merely a plague.

It was best to eradicate them entirely.

Boom!

The palace's large, tightly closed door was kicked open.

A figure, small as an ant beneath the massive doors of the palace, slowly walked in.

His gaze pierced through the thousands of meters of hallway and locked onto the figure sitting on the throne at the end.

This was... the king of the giants?

Step, step, step!

Heavy footsteps echoed through the silent palace.

Suddenly, the melodious sound of a harp reached Rhode's ears.

Music?

There was someone here who appreciated music?

Rhode raised an eyebrow, looking at the increasingly clear figure ahead.

Unlike other giants, who only used animal skins and leaves to cover themselves—or simply roamed naked—this figure wore a large, draped robe, leaving one shoulder bare.

He exuded an aura of elegance and nobility.

Thirty meters tall, he was larger than the average giant even while seated, with muscular build.

On his neck rested two heads of different sizes.

One head had sharp teeth, a fierce expression, and appeared emaciated.

The other head was larger, human-like, with a typical square face, finely groomed golden hair, and amber eyes that gave an impression of wisdom.

At first glance, he looked like a learned scholar.

The giant king held a golden harp, gently plucking its strings.

The beautiful melody originated from the harp.

"Human!"

The giant king looked at Rhode, covered in blood, and stopped strumming.

His gaze seemed filled with nostalgia.

"It has been so many years since I've seen a human."

"How nostalgic."

Nostalgic?

Rhode tilted his head, watching the scholarly face of the giant king.

It was hard to believe that "scholarly" could describe a giant's face.

"You say you like humans, so why aren't there any here in the castle?"