Chapter 128: Demon King's Power and Extreme Enhancement
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"It doesn't seem impossible," Aoki muttered, tapping the table with a thoughtful expression.
After devouring Muzan Kibutsuji, his gains were far greater than what was displayed on the system panel. There were many benefits that weren't explicitly stated.
Aoki studied his new abilities for a while. While his strength hadn't directly increased, many of his abilities had undergone a profound transformation.
Simply put, he had evolved from an ordinary demon into the King of Demons. The title "King of the White Walkers" was not given at random; he was now a true demon king. He possessed almost all of Muzan Kibutsuji's abilities—and was even stronger.
First, his regenerative ability had increased significantly, reaching or even exceeding Muzan Kibutsuji's level.
Second, his physical stamina was now almost infinite, allowing him to regenerate endlessly unless special means were used. While Muzan had been weakened by heavy poisons and had been afraid of Yoriichi Tsugikuni's red sword and sunlight, Aoki had already conquered the sun, making him even more invincible than Muzan.
The damage caused to demons by the Ninchirin Sword and Red Sword essentially came from sunlight. Since he had overcome the sunlight, he no longer had any weaknesses. None of the known forces in this world could cause him substantial harm; they could only try to deplete his stamina, and his stamina was practically limitless. Even if Yoriichi Tsugikuni were reborn, Aoki doubted he could defeat him now.
Third, his body control abilities had also been enhanced. He could now alter his limbs and torso at will and had a multitude of tendrils sprouting from his body. Unlike Muzan, he didn't have as many tendrils, but he possessed a unique bone whip that extended from his spine and protruded from his back, ending with a coldly glowing bone blade. This feature was somewhat similar to Tanjiro's transformation into a demon king. The whip seemed to be standard equipment for a demon king and would add more variety to Aoki's attack methods, though it would require him to adjust his fighting style.
While the tendrils could be put aside for now, the bone whip seemed worth developing. However, this would be more challenging than creating the Aoki Style. Although his strength was vastly different from ordinary humans, their body shapes, attack methods, and logic were similar enough to draw inspiration from. But with the bone whip, he had no frame of reference; he'd have to study and master it on his own. The talents acquired under the "Martial Artist" role weren't quite suited for this, and integrating the whip into his combat system would require significant effort. Fortunately, what he lacked least now was time.
Fourth, he had acquired the ability to mimic others. As long as they were human, he could imitate their body shape, appearance, and even gender. After the transformation, even his smell would change, which was quite astonishing. This ability extended to clothing as well.
Fifth, he had inherited Muzan Kibutsuji's ability to split his body to escape, though this held little use for him. His "space shuttle" ability made escaping far more efficient than mere body splitting.
Sixth, and perhaps most significantly, Aoki could now use his own blood to create demons. "If the Demon Slayer Corps knew this, I wonder if they would regret working with me," Aoki mused to himself. However, he had no intention of creating a horde of demons to devour humans, like Muzan Kibutsuji. In fact, he didn't intend to use this ability in most situations.
The reason was simple: the system's power was the only thing allowing him to resist the urge to consume humans. The demons he created would be no different from those created by Muzan Kibutsuji; they, too, would live by eating humans. There was no way he could do such a thing.
Still, having this ability brought two advantages. First, he wouldn't have to worry about starving. He could only consume demons, but with none left in the world, he couldn't exactly devour Tamayo or Yushiro, could he? Now, he had a solution: if things ever got desperate, he could turn a deserving person into a demon and eat them. This was fundamentally different from cannibalism; though it was a bit distasteful, he was not someone who couldn't adapt for the sake of survival.
However, Aoki wasn't really worried about this issue. Muzan Kibutsuji had survived for nearly ten thousand years, and he had only felt somewhat weaker for it. Compared to Muzan Kibutsuji, Aoki was now stronger in all aspects and should be able to last even longer. In other words, he could likely go without food for at least tens of thousands of years.
Ten thousand years from now, perhaps the secret of demons would have been cracked, and he might no longer need to consume humans or demons. He could potentially eat like a normal person.
The most important function of this ability was that it allowed him to continue leveling up. He could create demons himself and then kill them to gain experience points. Yet, Aoki also felt a sense of unease.
When he was level 18, there were very few demons left that provided more than 5 experience points. Now, at level 20, having advanced to the "King of the White Walkers," how many demons could still provide experience? Would he have to create high-level demons?
Not to mention how rare it would be to find individuals with the talent to become upper-level demons; they would still need to consume humans to grow. If he did this, he would become another Muzan Kibutsuji, causing even greater destruction.
Aoki shook his head, silently dismissing that idea, and looked at the system panel again.
There was also a reward for completing "The Road to the Demon King": the option to choose any skill and enhance it to its ultimate level. He studied it and soon figured out what was involved. The four skills eligible for extreme enhancement were "Demon Blood" and others, excluding "Soul Shock."
The effect of extreme enhancement was essentially to elevate a skill that had reached its current limit to the next level. All four skills held great potential.
"Demon Blood," for example, was the core of the "White Walker" class; each upgrade increased all attributes slightly, enhancing every aspect of his demonic nature. Now, having overcome sunlight and become the Demon King, what would happen if this skill were pushed to its ultimate limit?
"Demon Devourer" embodied the "otherness" of the "White Walker" class: the first upgrade increased attribute points, the second increased skill points—what would a third upgrade offer?
The possibilities for "Space shuttle" and "Transparent World" after their extreme enhancement were also thrilling to consider.
As he stared at the system panel, Aoki hesitated to make a decision. Unlike before, this was not a matter of choosing the order for upgrades; this was a unique reward, likely a one-time offer. Even if he encountered another ultimate mission, it would likely apply to another class.
With four skills that all held promise and only one chance to enhance them to their peak, he needed to choose carefully. After much deliberation, Aoki decided to put this option on hold for the time being. He had no urgent needs at the moment—the enemies were all dead, and his combat capability was unrivaled in this world. He didn't need to rush into a decision; he had plenty of time to think it through.
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