Dragon King: Throne of Demons and Gods
Chapter 113: Heart of Ruin

Chapter 113: Heart of Ruin

The sky howled.

Malgeirith screeched above, wings wide, its huge body tearing through the clouds. Bel took a breath, steady and sharp, fire already curling around his boots.

Wind. Obviously. Like every other elemental boss he fought, it gave out its element right from the start.

That screech, the way the dungeon trembled, the thick pressure in the air. Wind, no doubt.

Which meant...

Fire should work just fine.

Bel ignited his sword. Flames danced along the black blade, burning hotter with every passing second.

His aura flared up around him.

Malgeirith beat its wings, and a massive tempest exploded across the field. The gust hit Bel like a battering ram, forcing him to dig his feet into the cracked stone.

He narrowed his eyes, squinting into the raging wind.

[Pressure Ineffective]

Bel clicked his tongue. No surprise there.

Fine. Plan B.

[Bolt Mode]

His feet left the ground with a crackle of electricity.

He shot up like a bullet, rising above Malgeirith in a flash. His sword slashed downward, carving into the monster’s left wing.

The beast roared, thrashing.

Bel flipped, gathering fire into his hand, and blasted a massive wave straight into Malgeirith’s back.

The explosion lit up the dungeon in a burst of red and gold, the air shimmering.

But before Bel could follow up—

FWOOSH.

A spear of wind shot down from above, faster than a bullet.

"Tch!"

Bel twisted at the last second, the attack missing him by inches.

It slammed into the ground with an devastating boom, leaving behind a crater digging through the whole land.

He didn’t even get a second to breathe.

A spiral of wind burst from the flaming wreckage, right in front of him.

Bel barely managed to dodge again, feeling the rush of air tear past his face.

The spiraling wind slammed into a cliff far behind, digging a hole right through the solid stone like it was paper.

Bel landed hard, knees bent, hand brushing his side... Wet.

He pulled his hand back and stared at the purple blood staining his hand.

He looked down.

A huge gash ran from his left chest all the way down his ribs. Deep, horrifying and bleeding fast.

"...Tch."

Above, Malgeirith hovered, wings wide, looking completely fine.

Already healed.

Bel’s mind raced. Regeneration? Just like that? How fast was it?

He gritted his teeth. This thing was strong, and visibly it was also built to wear enemies down by healing through any normal damage.

But...

He smiled faintly.

He had counters for that. And he already knew he could reach it.

Malgeirith roared again, trying to mock him. It circled proudly, like a predator sure of its kill.

Bel didn’t flinch.

Instead, he chuckled.

"You’re not the only one who can heal from fatal wounds."

His wound began to close, flesh knitting back together, muscle sealing itself with burning heat.

Malgeirith paused in midair, clearly annoyed. It roared louder, summoning another massive tempest around them.

The wind whipped even harder, howling through the floating ruins.

Bel straightened his back, feeling his fire churn hotter inside him.

"If you want to get serious," Bel muttered, raising his sword, "then fine."

The blade shimmered and melted back into the Void Orb.

His aura burst outward, a dome of roaring fire pushing against the gathering storm.

The orb morphed again, reshaping itself into a gauntlet, thick, clawed, glowing with blue fire. The claws themselves flickered purple.

Scales started forming along Bel’s arms, his shoulders, even up his neck.

His heart pounded louder in his ears.

Malgeirith screeched from above, the winds going crazy.

Bel exhaled slowly, his breath mixing with the storm.

No more playing around.

He moved.

A flash of lightning tore across the battlefield as Bel vanished.

Malgeirith screeched above, wings tearing through the sky.

Bel’s flames erupted from his sword, a direct blast aiming for the oversized bird.

But the wind hit back harder.

Malgeirith screeched once, and the fire twisted in the air, turned around like a snake, and nearly swallowed Bel himself.

"What the—?!"

He twisted just in time to dodge his own flames. They hissed past his cheek and smashed into the ground beside him, exploding in a mess of smoke.

"Alright, fire doesn’t fly in this storm. Got it."

No more ranged spells. Not in this hurricane.

He launched forward, pushing through the wind. The boss screeched again, claws swinging.

Bel used his Bolt Mode and moved in a flash, got one clean hit on the wing, sliced it.

Good.

But a counter-blast of wind threw him back like a ragdoll.

He hit the ground and skidded.

"Tch. This is going to burn my mana fast if I keep using Bolt Mode like that."

He couldn’t afford that.

"It’s just the first floor. I can’t afford to waste my energy here."

The Bolt Mode was probably his strongest trump card, but the one he had to use more cautiously.

He didn’t even need to use it permanently around the field. Just use it smartly.

Sparks of energy focused in the legs. Not full throttle, just a pulse.

He moved forward, clean, fast. Hit the boss again.

[BURN]

The beast roared.

Bel rolled as another gust nearly tore him in half. He was adjusting. Calculating.

’Less energy... More precision.’

He blinked. His eyes glowed faintly now.

His perception widened. He wasn’t teleporting anymore with lightning, he was adjusting parts of his body.

Bolt Mode in pieces.

His arm shimmered. His eyes sharpened.

And suddenly, the battlefield slowed.

Not frozen, but slowed.

He saw everything. Wind trails. Rock shifts. The subtle twitch before the boss moved.

"I see it now."

He dashed.

Slipped between bursts of wind like water. Every move measured. Minimal mana, maximum result.

He reached Malgeirith again and this time, rested his palm on the beast.

[ETERNAL ICE]

Frost erupted from his hand.

Malgeirith shrieked as it froze mid-flight, its left wing locking up.

Then Bel raised his other hand.

[Abyssal Fire]

Blue flames engulfed his gauntlet. He slammed it into the boss.

The result was chaotic.

Frozen flesh expanded with the heat, then shattered.

Steam burst from deep inside the cracks. The pressure built, tissues collapsed.

Every second became a war between combustion and crystallization.

Malgeirith couldn’t hold.

It cracked, split and burst.

Chunks of burning ice scattered through the sky.

Bel landed, panting.

The wind stopped, and the sky calmed.

[QUEST COMPLETED: You have slain the Floor Guardian - Malgeirith, the Titan of Hollow Winds]

Bel straightened up, chest rising and falling heavily.

He looked around, watching the burning chunks of frozen beast scatter and shatter across the battlefield.

A faint smile crept onto his lips as he glanced down at his own hands.

One was still flickering with abyssal fire, the other frosted with eternal ice.

"Heh," he murmured. "I’m... a little too strong now, right?"

His eyes quickly shifted toward a glowing object floating above the ground.

The boss’s drop, shining and swirling softly, a Wind Core.

Bel walked toward it casually, letting the broken stones crunch under his boots.

He reached out.

The moment his fingers touched it, the core settled in his palm, warm, vibrating slightly.

The final step, the last piece.

"I’m finally here," he muttered, raising the core toward his mouth.

His jaw unhinged slightly, shifting, stretching wider in a way no normal human’s could.

He bit down.

The surface of the core cracked with a soft pop, like breaking a bubble made of lightning.

A rush of wind exploded down his throat. It didn’t hurt — but it wasn’t pleasant either.

It felt like a hurricane was trying to tear through his lungs from the inside out.

He staggered, his whole body locking up as the core dissolved into pure energy.

And then it hit.

An eruption of raw power flooded through him.

Bel’s arms trembled. His bones ached. His blood felt like it had turned into rushing storms.

The air around him distorted, swirling faster and faster, until his clothes and hair whipped like he was standing at the center of a cyclone.

He lifted his head, letting the storm rage around him.

A new screen flickered in his vision.

[New Element Acquired: Wind]

[New Skill Acquired: Greater Wind Mastery (Passive)]

Significantly enhances wind-elemental attacks and defenses.

Slightly reduces damage from wind-based abilities.

[New Skill Acquired: Sky Strider (Active)]

Enables controlled flight using wind currents.

Consumes stamina. Speed and agility improve with Wind Mastery.

A deeper, heavier notification flashed brightly:

[Conditions for Evolution Met: Storm Core, Elemental Fusion] [Initiate Evolution? Y/N]

Bel’s thoughts raced as he considered evolving, but suddenly his aura burst out wildly, catching him completely off guard.

[Quest Completed: Heart of Ruin] [Reward Activated: Heart of Ruin Awakening]

A thick black smoke seeped from Bel’s skin, swirling chaotically around him.

His veins darkened, glowing black through his skin, pulsing.

[Heart of Ruin Activated]

New Mana Pool Unlocked: Demonic Essence

Passive Effect: Absorbs ambient chaos and emotional trauma, converting it into usable energy.

[New Skill Unlocked: Demonic Authority - Fear Induction]

Inflict crippling fear on weaker creatures, overwhelming their senses and breaking their will.

[New trait Unlocked: Demonic Authority - Commander]

Issue absolute commands to lesser demonic entities, compelling immediate obedience.

Bel’s vision blurred as his eyes turned completely black.

A heavy, oppressive aura enveloped him, isolating him from the world.

For a brief moment, he couldn’t even sense his body... or rather, he sensed too much.

Every part of him seemed vividly clear, yet strangely distant. It was chaos; pure, cold chaos.

He felt a strange emptiness where his heart should be, a disturbing sensation of existing and not existing simultaneously.

Like he was there, yet nowhere. A silent panic crept through him before slowly fading as the oppressive aura lifted.

Blinking, Bel stared at his trembling hands.

A flicker of darkness sparked around his fingers, and he let his arms drop heavily to his sides.

He pressed a hand to his chest, brow furrowing deeply. Something beat within, slow and steady, yet oddly disconnected from him.

What the hell was that?

Troubled and confused, he glanced upwards, desperate for answers that wouldn’t come from inside.

The familiar glow of the system’s message appeared before him.

[Condition for Evolution Met] [Initiate Evolution: Y / N]

Bel sighed, shaking off the lingering unease. "Alright then, let’s get this over with," he muttered.

[Y]