Chapter 21: Syzygy
"Yo, bastards."
Under the effects of Full Assimilation, Shin instantly dispatched five Demons.
Swiftly moving around while abusing Rewarp, Shin steadily increased the kill count.
Eight..
Twelve..
Fifteen…
Nineteen..
Twenty…
"New record."
He had reached the Ninth Wave after a year stuck in the Abyss.
The difficulty increased twofold as Demon-fiends started to appear.
In the Ninth Wave, there were a total of 400 Demon-fiends and 600 Demons.
But due to Shin becoming a Third Star Ascender, the difficulty was cut to a half if he uses Assimilation.
But currently, Shin was under Full Assimilation.
The five minute timer of Full Assimilation instantly became fifteen minutes until his mana core was drained.
His mana core had greatly increased over the year he spent eating Demons and drinking the Abyss Water.
Grinning and laughing, as Shin swiftly killed the Demons that obstructed his path while constantly Rewarping.
[Shin, your mana core is rapidly depleting, stop the Assimilation]
"Shut up, Noct. Can't you see how fast they're falling before me?"
[Don't say I didn't warn you.]
"Relax, I've got it under control, watch."
First Form: Hollow Blade
Instantly, the blue-blazing ember enveloping Yamato surged forward, striking down the demon in its path.
Shin had become nearly insane as he started naming random moves.
Even Noctis couldn't help but cringe.
But Shin on the other hand…
He was having fun.
Killing Demons welled up joy in him, it was his only form of entertainment in the Abyss.
He didn't even care about clearing the waves anymore, he just wanted to kill as many Demons as he could every Assimilation phase.
He had started treating it like a game, trying to beat previous records.
[Shin, three minutes left.]
"I know, now shush, it's time for the grand finale."
As the Demons surrounded Shin in a circle, he strode forward, unaffected.
'Syzygy'
[Wait, Shin, stop!]
Blue-smoky wisp enveloped Shin like an aura. His eyes continued to glow an azure hue, as his mid-length hair gradually started turning white.
This was a new form Shin developed after the Seventh Wave.
It was a higher tiered branch of Full Assimilation. With Shin's current mana core, he could maintain this form for two minutes, given his mana core was full.
But…
His mana core was nearly empty.
Hence he could only keep this form for thirty seconds at best currently.
"Like I said, Noct, relax."
Slowly, Shin raised Yamato above his head with one arm.
.
Slash!
Slowly striking down, blue-blazing embers enveloped the area around Shin in a ten-meter radius.
Shin continued to laugh, as the Demons surrounding him began to disintegrate. No body, no bones were left in the destruction that ensued, as they all turned into ashes.
With twenty seconds left on the timer, Shin constantly Rewarped with the stones he planted within the area until he reached the cave.
Exhausting his mana core to the brim, Shin slumped down, his vision hazy.
[You're actually crazy, you know that?]
"Hey, I think I was crazier as Artorius, don't you think so?"
[I've never actually met you when you were Artorius, so I can't say. But if you think you were crazier back then, you must've been a tyrant or something.]
At those words, Shin narrowed his eyes.
"Not cool, I treated all my subjects with respect. Don't you dare call me a fucking tyrant."
[Okay, okay… calm down, I was just joking.]
"Good. Those bastards that started a coup and killed me must be suffering now. During my time, the Kingdom was actually prosperous."
Shin wasn't lying, during his time as Artorius, the Kingdom under his rule saw a significant economic boost.
Shin was a benevolent ruler, but merciless to his enemies.
But he was still unable to comprehend why his subjects conspired against him.
'I don't care, what's done is done. I'm now happily living as Shin Nocturn.'
Suddenly, an excruciating pain welled up from Shin's mana core.
"AGHHH, Fuck. Not this again."
[I told you so.]
Exhausting his mana core to the brim until there was none left, took a massive toll on Shin.
His body started heating up, and an intense migraine began to ache in his head.
Grabbing his face, Shin gripped it tightly, as if trying to tear down the migraine.
Then, a sense of vertigo washed up over him.
Shin was weak to vertigo as he is to motion sickness.
Gagging and clutching his stomach, Shin retched.
"BLURGH!"
Sprawled on the ground, Shin's complexions started to pale.
.
.
After thirty minutes, the pain subsided, and Shin lay on the ground, the area around his cheek soaked with vomit.
"Ahh… fuck."
[You look so pitiful right now, you know that?]
"Yeah, yeah… Shut… up…"
Overtime, Shin was able to endure the drawbacks of Full Assimilation. But he would still be rendered immobile.
Despite becoming a Third Star Ascender, his body was still unable to keep up.
Lifting himself up, Shin gestured toward the pile of dead Demons he had stored in the corner.
The cave had a pungent smell due to the concentration of Demonic Miasma, but Shin has gotten used to the smell, to the point where he couldn't smell it at all.
Shin cut a piece of its arm and began boiling it in the pot to clean off its miasma.
After making sure it was clean, Shin threw away the water and began heating up another pot.
Once the water was at boiling point, Shin placed the Demon meat inside the pot.
Stirring it around until it was fully cooked, Shin cut off a piece and brought it to his mouth.
Demon meat had a chewy texture, similar to pork.
"After a year eating the same food, it still tastes fucking disgusting."
But Shin had stopped gagging. He had gotten used to the taste.
Staring outside the cave while 'enjoying' his meal, Shin thought to himself.
"I wonder how my Family is doing. I bet Aspen is already attending the Academy."
The whole time Shin stayed in the Abyss, he would always think about his Family.
The thought of being able to return to his Family soon was the only force that drove Shin to continue, while trying to keep his sanity.
'I wonder how Alea is doing too. That little girl must be popular in the Academy by now.'
Shin still saw Alea as a little girl. But he could admit that she would grow up to become a beauty.
'Souzen too, that old man must still be kicking.'
Shin could consider Souzen as a best friend. After all, he was one of the people who would be close to him in age.
"Haa… just two more waves left, and I'm out of here."
Currently, the Ninth Wave has about 600 hundred Demons left.
Shin was already informed by Noctis that the Tenth Wave would have 2,000 Demons.
After finishing his meal, Shin stood up.
"Alright, time to get back to work."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone