At the second abyss, in a cave, at a giant mountain…
An 18.5-meter-tall demon gradually stood up. Looking at the familiar scene of magma rivers flowing into a sea and feeling as if he were in cool weather left Void flabbergasted. Void had felt how hot the abyss was from a human's perspective.
As a demon, Void kept thinking about his parents, their blood, the cold feeling he felt when he touched the capsule, Earth, and his friends. But no matter how much Void thought of them or imagined them, he didn't feel a thing. He didn't feel sad, in pain, or grief-stricken... he didn't even miss them. In fact, Void felt like they were strangers to him. Void stood still in the cave for 5 minutes, gathering his thoughts while listening to the magma gushing out like water and the chaotic battle outside. The demons' cries and howls echoed during this period, accompanied by a pungent smell of blood that revealed the tragic situation outside. Finally, Void sighed and started moving toward the exit.
"Since I am now a demon, then I accept and will live as one from now on…"
Boom…
Like a signal, a huge torrent of information rushed into Void's mind. All Void could do was hold his head and growl in pain. At last, Void couldn't hold on anymore, and he lost consciousness.
**********
A day later…
Void groaned and woke up. He felt filled with power, his body refreshed, and everything… was bigger now. Void was about to check his stats when he recalled the huge surge of information. The reason why everything seemed bigger now was that Void and the other demons were smaller. For a Rank 0 demon, their height ranges from 1 meter to 5 meters. A peak Rank 0 demon would be 5 meters tall.
Additionally, the former universe integration had been completed ahead of schedule. This was because the massive death toll of the natives and players on the first day created the required energy for the integration to finish. Because of this, the level system was directly discarded due to energy loss, and a new, better system was implemented. That's why Void felt filled with energy.
Among all races (players), humans were the only ones able to revert to their former selves. This new universe was just created, so the top races hadn't been determined yet, leaving most races at the starting line—at least those with Rank 3 existences. For now, all races with Rank 3 existences were called "supreme races." The demon race alone had 250 out of the 1,000 Rank 3 existences, making them one of the top races. However, they couldn't dominate or utilize this advantage since they were simultaneously fighting every race.
All races had unique abilities, such as those of the demon race.
The demon race was born with ridiculously strong bodies, capable of competing with chaos beasts born in the middle layer of space. Demons had two unique traits. First, the demon race was eternal. Yes, the immortality that all other races sought was given directly to demons. A demon's lifespan was eternal, and they couldn't die of sickness. Demons died only if killed by stronger beings. The second unique trait was that demons had access to all worlds, dimensions, realms, planes, universes, multiverses, and the beyond through the abyss.
Despite their eternal lifespan, demons were the race known for having the highest death rate. The number of demons dying in a single day was so large that, if combined, all other races' yearly deaths (excluding wars) wouldn't even equal 1% of the demons' daily death toll.
This made the demons the most populous race. It had only been a day since the creation of this universe, yet the entire universe already knew about demons because they were fighting all races simultaneously.
For the players (the races from the last universe), their system had undergone massive changes. The game-like system was gone. Now, they only had a system to identify things, and they were connected to each other, enabling trade without being limited by their new races.
Void also knew that creatures from Rank 0 to Rank 2 could have different sizes depending on their races, but for demons, their size range was constant. Void quickly used the identification system to check his stats.
********
{Ding…}
{Host: Void | Race: Demon | Rank: 0}
{Strength: Low | Stamina: Low | Speed: Low}
{Skill: None | Element: None | Height: 2.5 meters}
{Soul: 10,000}
********
Seeing his stats, Void was amazed. Everything had changed. Now, all creatures were divided into early, low, middle, high, and peak stages per rank. Early meant the creature had just broken through to that rank. For demons and all existences, one could become early, low, middle, high, or peak when all three stats were at the same level. If only one stat reached the next level, the creature would become invincible and unbeatable against its peers. If two stats reached the next level, the creature was in the quasi-state.
The invincible or level-jumping heroes, devils, protagonists, antagonists, sons of destiny, or villains of destiny were at this level. That was why they were invincible within the same realm or capable of jumping…
(PS: Author, for those who don't understand... For example, an existence with strength at the middle level and speed and stamina at low will beat the hell out of those below it—those with all three stats at the low level. Let's use Chinese novels as an analogy: those invincible within the same cultivation level, like just breaking through the immortal realm but capable of defeating those at the peak of the immortal realm, fall into this category. Now, an existence with speed and stamina at the middle level but strength at the low level are those who can jump levels to fight higher realms—like an immortal fighting a land immortal or Golden Immortal. This novel will rank everyone where they are. You can't jump levels here because this is an anime-verse, comic-verse, and movie-verse power ranking using real-time characters and placing them accurately. Like I said before, drop your favorite characters, and I will read their novels, watch their movies, or read the comics or manga if I have to and rank them or visit their world. Please ensure the character is complete or has progressed far, or the ranking won't be accurate. The gap between each rank is huge, and the differences within early, low, etc., are also significant. This applies across all worlds, so the gap must remain vast. Thank you, guys.)
The Abyss is the mother/creator of all demons and will automatically inform them of what they need to know when they reach the appropriate rank.
Void is lucky because, as a demon, the soul is meant to be consumed directly. However, he can store it. By Rank 2, demons will be able to create a soul for themselves because shattering space is easy at that level, but having one now is advantageous. Also, Void can specify which stats to increase, but others cannot—except for players and characters with systems.
To advance to the middle level requires 1,000 souls per stat. So, for a demon to progress from a low-level Rank 0 existence to a middle-level one, they must collect 3,000 souls.
(PS: You think this is easy, right? Well, no. These are 3,000 low-level Rank 0 existence souls—not ordinary souls. Humans aren't even Rank 0 existences.)
"Add all my souls to all my stats and prioritize strength stat."
{Ding}
{Host: Void. Race: Demon. Rank: 0}
{Strength: High. Speed: Middle. Stamina: Middle.}
{Skill: None. Element: None. Height: 3.5 meters. Soul: 2,000}
Void was satisfied with his stats now. He prioritized strength because evolving into a high-level Rank 0 demon requires 5,000 low-level souls or 500 middle-level Rank 0 ones per stat. Also, strength is not only about physical force but also covers defense. Speed encompasses reaction time and physical movement, while stamina covers endurance and the rate of body recovery.
Void felt the surging power in his body and realized he could easily crush his former self to death or step on him like an ant. He had no problem fighting thousands of his former self or hundreds of middle-level Rank 0 existences. This was because he had one stat at the high level. Imagine how strong he would be with another stat at the high level or when he reaches high-level Rank 0.
Void walked out of the cave by blasting a new path.
...Boom...
A loud crumbling sound was heard, and the demons fighting life-and-death battles outside turned around.
Slowly, footsteps echoed, and a black demon emerged. Looking at the 3-meter-tall demon, the other demons fled.
Void glanced at the hundreds of demons running and grinned before chasing them.
Five hours later, Void was covered in demon blood and licked his lips.
Void had killed 500 demons before stopping. Ready to move to another world, Void closed his eyes and sensed the nearest portal. Moving in that direction, Void frantically used his identification skills to avoid stronger demons and slaughtered weaker ones. He used every moment to grow stronger.
Ten hours later, Void reached his destination. Looking at the 5-meter-tall portal, Void was disappointed.
In the second Abyss, there are three types of portals, varying in color: white, black, and red.
A white portal signifies that only a demon can pass through, and the world is weak—only a Rank 0 existence would overwhelm it.
A black portal signifies a middle-level world. It might be the most dangerous because no demon has been there, and the natives summon you. You might enter and be captured or enslaved directly, worshipped as a god, or summoned by creatures seeking to experiment on you.
A red portal is the most desirable for a demon. It indicates a war between demons and the creatures of a world, meaning a Rank 2 or higher demon is present. Entering it means signing a contract with a high-rank demon and fighting in a chaotic, dangerous war. However, it's the fastest way for a demon to level up.
Void, as a demon capable of rational thought, was curious about what world he was going to. The time difference between the Abyss and other worlds added to the intrigue. Only two days had passed in the Abyss (200 hours, with 100 hours of day and 100 hours of night illuminated by three giant red suns and seven giant purple moons), but it could have been thousands or millions of years on the other side.
Void didn't waste time and stepped into the portal. After he entered, it slowly disappeared.
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Author here. Special thanks to my friend Alayot—his name means "beginning." He helped me with the novel title and continues to support me. He's been a great help. Shout-out to the person who added my novel to their collection—you're the best, bro. Thank you, guys, for reading. Please support the author and promote the novel!