Ryo lay on the ground, his body aching from the relentless battles. The last phase had pushed him to his limits, forcing him to rely solely on brute strength and instinct. He had barely finished catching his breath when the system's voice echoed once again.
[SYSTEM NOTICE: Phase 6 will now begin.]
Ryo groaned, rubbing his temples. "What kind of twisted challenge is it this time?"
He had already fought massive hordes of monsters, endured exhausting restrictions, and barely scraped by in some phases. The uncertainty gnawed at him—what would the system throw at him now? How long would this phase even last?
[Phase 6 Conditions: Only 'Blood Rampage' is permitted. All other abilities will be locked.]
Ryo blinked, then sat up. "Wait… only Blood Rampage? That's not too bad—I've used it before."
Blood Rampage was one of his most powerful skills, vastly increasing his physical abilities when activated. If he could only use it, then this phase wouldn't be as limiting as the last.
Then the system spoke again.
[Objective: Defeat 100,000 monsters using Blood Rampage.]
Silence.
Ryo blinked twice. Surely, he had misheard.
"Did I… did I hear that wrong? I swear I heard an extra zero in there." He laughed nervously.
[Phase 6 – Starting Now.]
Ryo turned his head as the air vibrated with an ominous presence. A deafening roar shook the battlefield, and suddenly the ground trembled violently. A vast sea of monstrous entities emerged from the darkness, stretching beyond the horizon.
There were titanic war-beasts, serpentine horrors with a hundred eyes, shadow wolves that flickered in and out of existence, and grotesque, towering abominations stitched together from countless corpses.
His smirk faded.
"Oh… so there really are 100,000 monsters this time." He groaned, rolling his shoulders. "Of course. Why wouldn't there be?"
Ryo inhaled deeply. If this was the trial, then he would have to face it head-on.
"Blood Rampage—Activate!"
A surge of crimson energy erupted from within him. His heartbeat pounded like a war drum, and his muscles expanded, filled with raw, overflowing power. His irises turned deep red, veins glowing with a dark crimson hue as the transformation took hold.
Then, massive crimson and pitch-black wings burst from his back, their presence radiating raw power.
Dark energy intertwined with his blood aura, and with a mere thought, crimson weapons materialized around him—swords, spears, daggers, and, most notably, a massive crimson scythe with a pitch-black handle.
"Alright then… let's go wild."
The Massacre Begins
The first wave came crashing down upon him—a legion of skeletal giants, each wielding colossal bone clubs.
Ryo vanished from his spot, reappearing instantly within their ranks. His fists blurred as he punched straight through the first giant's skull, causing it to explode into bone dust.
Another swung its club downward. Ryo dodged and retaliated with a devastating uppercut, launching the giant high into the sky before it shattered into fragments.
More enemies swarmed in.
A serpentine beast lunged at him, its fangs dripping with black venom.
Ryo twisted mid-air and grabbed the creature's jaws, ripping them apart with brute force before crushing its skull under his foot.
As the battle raged, the true horrors began to emerge.
From the darkness came a monstrous abomination, its limbs made of fused corpses, its eyes glowing with twisted malice. It let out a guttural shriek and unleashed a tidal wave of wailing undead, each seeking to tear Ryo apart.
"Tch… annoying."
Ryo stomped the ground, creating a shockwave that disintegrated the lesser undead. With a burst of speed, he charged at the abomination, weaving through its flailing limbs before delivering a bone-shattering punch to its core.
The creature shrieked and ruptured, exploding into a rain of flesh and bone.
Another hundred monsters rushed toward him—wolf-like demons, floating wraiths, and armored war-beasts.
Ryo roared and smashed through them like a storm incarnate, his fists ripping through flesh and armor alike.
With a flick of his wrist, he summoned his crimson scythe, its edge gleaming with deadly intent. Spinning it effortlessly, he carved through the monsters in an elegant, brutal dance of destruction.
Blood splattered across the battlefield as the ground became littered with the bodies of the fallen. He moved like a blur, his blows capable of leveling entire sections of the enemy forces.
Minutes passed. Then hours. But the enemies showed no signs of stopping.
Ryo's body ached, but Blood Rampage kept his strength surging. However, he could feel it—the strain of fighting at this intensity was starting to take its toll.
Then, something massive approached.
From the horizon, the sky darkened as a colossal beast emerged. It had six glowing red eyes, wings that eclipsed the battlefield, and a form wreathed in abyssal fire.
[Catastrophe-Class Boss Detected: The Abyss Tyrant.]
Ryo exhaled sharply. "Oh great… a boss now?"
The Abyss Tyrant let out a bone-rattling roar, causing the very air to vibrate. With a single flap of its wings, a hurricane of black flames engulfed the battlefield, incinerating even the lesser monsters.
But Ryo remained.
His eyes locked onto the beast. His blood surged with untamed fury.
The Abyss Tyrant swooped down, its claws large enough to crush an entire mountain. Ryo clenched his fists and launched himself upward with explosive force.
They collided mid-air.
The impact created a shockwave that obliterated the surrounding monsters, sending their bodies flying like ragdolls.
Ryo unleashed a relentless barrage of punches, striking the beast's armored hide repeatedly, each impact causing cracks to spread across its body.
The Tyrant roared in pain, swiping at him with its colossal tail. Ryo barely dodged but was grazed, sending him crashing into the ground with immense force.
Coughing up blood, he stood up, his eyes burning with rage.
"That all you got?"
With a mighty leap, he soared once again, appearing above the Abyss Tyrant. Channeling every ounce of power from Blood Rampage, he clasped his fists together and delivered a devastating hammer strike to the beast's skull.
A massive explosion followed, the force tearing the sky apart.
The Abyss Tyrant let out one final wail before its head caved in completely, its massive form plummeting to the ground in a catastrophic crash.
Phase 6 Ends
[SYSTEM NOTICE: Phase 6 Completed.]
Ryo exhaled deeply before collapsing onto his back. "I swear… if Phase 7 is worse than this… I'm quitting."
For now, he had earned his rest.