Zain prowled the Abyss's lowest floor, obsidian scales blending with shadows from crimson fissures. The air was heavy with sulfur, heat pressing against him, but his golden eyes burned with focus. His plan: hunt demons, gather souls, and improve his fighting until he could sacrifice 250 souls to become a Low Level (Low) Demon. The alcove was his safe haven. He checked his balance.
Current soul balance: 30 souls.
He set a routine, venturing out as the crystals' pulsing quickened, signaling the Abyss's rhythm. The first few days, he targeted newborns—weak demons with dull, cracked scales, clumsy movements. Zain stalked them with precision, instincts guiding him. On the first day, he spotted a newborn near shattered eggs, its eyes darting. He crept closer, using shadows, and hurled a Fireball at a rock, the explosion sending shards flying with a crack. The newborn turned, confused, and Zain lunged, enhanced strength driving his sharpened claws into its throat. It gurgled, dissolving into ash.
Soul obtained: 1.
Current soul balance: 31 souls.
Every soul counted. Over three days, he hunted seven more newborns, refining his instincts. He anticipated their panicked strikes, using Enhanced Stamina to outlast them. On the third day, a newborn's claw scraped his arm, drawing black blood. Pain flared, but Zain slashed its chest, ending it in a spray of ash.
Soul obtained: 1.
Current soul balance: 38 souls.
Progress was slow. He needed stronger targets. On the fifth day, Zain ventured deeper, where the air grew hotter, roars echoing through the Abyss. He spotted a Low Level (Low) Demon—lean, with spiked limbs and orange eyes, scales shimmering. Zain crouched behind an outcrop, observing. The demon's movements were deliberate, spikes glinting with heat. Zain needed an edge.
He opened the System Mall, browsing the options
Available skills: Shadow Step (25 souls), Iron Scales (30 souls).
Zain chose mobility over defense.
Purchase confirmed: Shadow Step acquired.
Souls consumed: 25.
Current soul balance: 13 souls.
Zain tested it, vanishing and reappearing ten feet away, claws scraping the ground. A grin spread across his fanged maw. Time to hunt.
He approached the demon, using Shadow Step to close in silently. It sensed him, its spiked arm slashing. Zain vanished, reappearing to its left, and drove his claws into its side, enhanced strength pushing through its scales. The demon roared, spikes flailing, one catching Zain's shoulder, drawing black blood. Pain burned, but Zain twisted his claws deeper into its core. It gurgled, collapsing into ash, the ground scorched.
Soul obtained: 10.
Current soul balance: 23 souls.
The stronger reward fueled Zain's resolve. Over four days, he hunted three more Low Level (Low) Demons, each fight testing him. On the seventh day, one's fiery claw swipe charred his side. Zain stumbled, pain searing, but flanked it with Shadow Step, blinding it with a Fireball, then slashed its throat. Its fiery essence faded into ash.
Soul obtained: 10.
Current soul balance: 53 souls.
On the tenth day, Zain tracked a Low Level (Mid) Demon, its body wreathed in faint shadows, eyes glowing with a cold malice. As a newborn, Zain knew this fight would be evenly matched as he had system skills which other demons did not have, but the soul was worth the risk. The demon attacked, shadowy claws slashing with deadly precision. Zain dodged with Shadow Step, the claws cracking the ground where he'd stood. He retaliated with a Fireball, the explosion lighting the cavern, but the demon's shadows absorbed the heat. Zain growled, charging. The demon's claws grazed his leg, the dark energy searing like acid. He pushed through, stamina fueling him, matching the demon's speed. They clashed, Zain's claws meeting the demon's shadowy strikes, each blow a test of endurance. The demon's strength was greater, but Zain's agility kept him alive. He needed an opening.
Zain baited an attack, dodging as the demon's claws shattered a boulder. He used Shadow Step to teleport behind it, claws aimed at its back in a sneak attack. The demon turned, a claw hitting his shoulder, pain exploding as the dark energy burned. Zain gritted his fangs, landing his strike, claws tearing into the demon's core. It wailed, its body dissolving into ash, the air warming.
Soul obtained: 20.
Current soul balance: 73 souls.
Zain staggered, shoulder throbbing, black blood pooling. He was closer—73 souls, 177 away. His body ached, but victory pushed him forward. He returned to his shelter, resting, dreams haunted by the demon's cold eyes.
Over the next six days, Zain hunted relentlessly, taking down four more Low Level (Low) Demons.
Souls obtained: 40 (10 each).
Current soul balance: 113 souls.
His Shadow Step became fluid, strikes precise. He also hunted three more Low Level (Mid) Demons, each fight a grueling test. On the fourteenth day, one demon's fiery breath scorched his side, burning through scales. Zain roared, the fight even, their strengths matched. The demon's claws slashed at him, and Zain countered with his own, each blow a test of will. He couldn't win head-on. He lured it near a fissure, destabilizing the ground with a Fireball. The demon stumbled, off-balance, and Zain used Shadow Step for a sneak attack, striking its back, claws sinking deep. It collapsed into ash, heat searing Zain's claws. He used the same strategy for the other two, each fight even, each victory earned through cunning.
Souls obtained: 60 (20 each).
Current soul balance: 173 souls.
On the sixteenth and seventeenth days, Zain tracked down two more Low Level (Mid) Demons to close the gap. The first demon wielded molten claws, its strikes leaving trails of lava. Zain matched its ferocity, their battle a dance of fire and shadow. The demon's heat burned Zain's scales, and its claws grazed his chest, pain searing. Zain's stamina held, but he couldn't overpower it directly. He vanished with Shadow Step, reappearing behind it, claws aimed at its molten core in a sneak attack. The demon turned, its claw grazing his leg, blistering scales, but Zain drove his claws through the core, twisting until it shattered. The demon dissolved into ash, heat dissipating.
Soul obtained: 20.
Current soul balance: 193 souls.
The second demon was cloaked in a fiery aura, its roars shaking the cavern. Zain fought evenly, dodging its fiery blasts with Shadow Step, countering with his own Fireball. The demon's aura scorched his side, and its claws nearly caught his throat, but Zain's agility kept him alive. He baited it into overextending, then teleported behind it, striking its core with a precise sneak attack. The demon collapsed into ash with a final roar.
Soul obtained: 20.
Current soul balance: 213 souls.
Zain needed just 37 more souls. On the final day, he hunted two more Low Level (Mid) Demons, using the same strategy—fighting evenly, then winning with sneak attacks. The first demon's icy claws chilled the air, each strike slowing Zain's movements. He countered with Fireball to melt the ice, matching its strikes, then used Shadow Step to strike its back, ending the fight. The second demon's lightning-charged claws crackled with energy, shocking Zain with each graze. He endured, baiting it into a trap near a lava pool, then teleported for a fatal strike.
Souls obtained: 40 (20 each).
Current soul balance: 253 souls.
Zain collapsed, trembling, black blood pooling, chest and leg throbbing. He'd done it—253 souls. He limped back to his shelter, each step agony. The crystals pulsed faster, sensing his triumph. He collapsed in the alcove, breathing ragged.
Zain summoned the Will of the Abyss, its presence oppressive, air growing cold, crystals dimming.
"I offer 250 souls," he rasped, voice echoing, defiant.
The Will accepted, a shadowy tendril drawing out the souls, a sensation like ice against his core.
Souls consumed: 250.
Current soul balance: 3 souls.
Promotion confirmed. Rank: Low Level Demon (Low).
Power surged, scales darkening, claws lengthening. Wounds healed, pain fading. The Abyss's blessing burned within, making him stronger, faster. Zain grinned, eyes blazing. The Abyss had acknowledged him, but this was the beginning. Higher floors, Archdemons, and worlds beyond awaited. Zain would meet them as a demon on the rise. The Will would see him conquer—or die trying.