Chapter 23: Freedom

Koda had never absorbed so much spiritual essence in a single sitting.

The battlefield stretched before him, littered with the remains of the elven army. Hundreds of faint lights hovered above the fallen, while others had already begun to disappear. Each sphere represented the remnants of a life, carrying traces of the strength, memories, and emotions that had once belonged to its owner.

Koda could not afford to waste them.

He extended his hand, and the Devouring Origin within his body stirred.

A faint suction spread through the surrounding air. The nearest spheres trembled before being drawn toward him, dissolving into streams of spiritual essence that entered his palm.

The moment the energy reached his body, Koda directed it toward his Core Seed.

The response was immediate.

A dark, condensed mass of infernal energy rested deep within his core, surrounded by swirling currents of refined essence. It was not yet a complete Demon Core. Rather, it was the foundation from which one would eventually form.

Until now, its development had been painfully slow.

Hunting weak creatures yielded limited essence, while fighting stronger opponents carried the risk of serious injury or death. Even when he won, the energy he absorbed required time and effort to refine before his Core Seed could use it.

This battlefield was different.

The sheer quantity of available essence allowed him to feed his Core Seed continuously.

The condensed mass began rotating.

Faint cracks of red light appeared across its surface before disappearing beneath the dark layers of energy. Each rotation drew the newly absorbed essence inward, compressing it and gradually strengthening the seed.

Koda felt the difference.

His Core Seed was becoming denser.

Not enough to trigger an immediate breakthrough, but enough to make the progress he had struggled to achieve over several days occur within a much shorter period.

He continued absorbing the remaining spiritual essence.

The fallen elves possessed more than ordinary physical strength. Their lifeforce and spiritual energy had been shaped by years of cultivation, combat, and experience. Although death had stripped away much of their original vitality, the remnants still contained valuable energy.

Koda’s Devouring Origin did not distinguish between the different forms of essence. It drew them into his body, separated the useful portions, and refined what his Core Seed could safely absorb.

Infernal essence strengthened his demonic foundation.

Spiritual essence supplemented his reserves.

The remaining traces of lifeforce helped replenish the energy his body had lost during the battle.

However, Koda maintained control over the process. Absorbing too much unrefined energy at once could destabilize his core, and he had no intention of damaging his foundation merely to obtain a temporary increase in strength.

He had already seen what happened to demons who pursued power without considering the consequences.

The senior officer had sacrificed an entire army in pursuit of victory.

Koda would not make the same mistake with his own body.

After collecting the remaining energy within reach, he finally withdrew his hand.

The battlefield became noticeably quieter.

He could still sense faint traces of spiritual essence scattered among the distant corpses, but most had already dissipated. Pursuing every last fragment would require too much time, especially with the elves likely to return.

Koda closed his eyes and examined his Core Seed.

The improvement was undeniable.

Its surface had become smoother, its rotation more stable, and the infernal energy surrounding it more concentrated. The seed was still within the Demon Awakening Realm, and he had not advanced to a new stage. Nevertheless, he had strengthened the foundation necessary for his eventual breakthrough.

A satisfied smile appeared on his face.

Now that’s a worthwhile harvest.

He had nearly died beneath a wyvern’s acid breath, but the risks had paid off.

Still, the battle had revealed something important.

Strength alone would not guarantee his survival.

He had survived the Meteor Shower because he had remained at a distance. He had escaped the dragon’s attention by concealing himself beneath corpses. He had avoided the elves’ pursuit because they had assumed the surviving demons were either dead or fleeing alongside their commander.

Every success had depended on positioning, timing, or an opportunity he had recognized before his enemies did.

If he wanted to survive the coming battles, he needed more options.

Koda examined his body and considered his abilities.

His retractable bone talons were effective at close range. His physical strength had improved steadily, and his Devouring Origin gave him a method of replenishing his energy by consuming suitable sources.

His wings, however, were still inefficient.

They allowed him to fly, but sustained flight consumed considerable strength. Their current structure was adequate for short journeys, not for rapidly crossing a battlefield or pursuing a fleeing enemy.

More importantly, he lacked a reliable way to escape when surrounded.

His encounter with the elves had made that weakness painfully clear.

Koda looked toward a broken pillar several dozen meters away.

His current combat style required him to approach enemies before his talons could become useful. Against opponents who relied on ranged attacks, that limitation could be dangerous.

What he needed was a way to cover short distances almost instantly.

Not ordinary movement.

Something closer to a brief displacement.

He concentrated, allowing the infernal energy surrounding his Core Seed to circulate through his body. His Devouring Origin responded, drawing a small amount of energy inward before releasing it through his limbs.

Koda attempted to compress the energy around his body.

The first attempt failed.

The second produced a violent gust that scattered ash across the ground.

He frowned and tried again, changing the flow of energy and concentrating it around his feet rather than his entire body.

This time, the space around him seemed to distort for a fraction of a second.

His body lurched forward.

Koda stumbled several steps before regaining his balance.

He looked back at the place where he had been standing.

The distance was small, barely a few meters, but the movement had been different from an ordinary dash. For an instant, he had felt himself slipping through a narrow gap in the surrounding energy before reappearing farther ahead.

He tried to repeat it.

The second attempt carried him several meters to the side.

The third failed completely, leaving him with a sharp ache in his core.

Koda immediately stopped.

Whatever he had stumbled upon, it consumed more energy than he could safely spend experimenting with it.

He had not mastered teleportation, nor had he developed a reliable spatial technique. At best, he had discovered the beginnings of a short-range displacement ability.

That was enough for now.

A technique did not need to be powerful to be useful. If he could eventually use the movement to evade a fatal strike or bypass an enemy’s guard, it might save his life.

He would develop it properly after leaving the battlefield.

Koda then considered a different problem.

Even if he escaped the elves, he still had to deal with the senior demon officer.

The officer had abandoned his own soldiers without hesitation. If Koda became inconvenient, there was no reason to believe he would receive better treatment.

He needed the officer dead.

But he could not afford to challenge a high-ranking demon alone.

The elven commanders and their wyverns were already pursuing him. If they managed to kill the officer, Koda might finally escape the Demon Lord’s sphere of influence.

However, he could not depend entirely on that outcome.

If the officer escaped, Koda would need another opportunity.

He would observe the pursuit and intervene only if he discovered a weakness he could exploit. There was no point in risking his life for a plan that had not yet become necessary.

Koda checked his remaining energy and slowly rose to his feet.

The harvest had strengthened his Core Seed, improved his reserves, and given him the beginnings of a new movement technique. Yet none of those gains made him invincible.

He remained a demon at the peak of the Demon Awakening Realm.

His foundation was stronger, but his rank had not changed.

That distinction mattered.

Koda had no intention of rushing his breakthrough simply because he had acquired an unexpected supply of essence. A poorly formed Demon Core could cripple his future cultivation, and he had spent too much time surviving Hell to ruin his progress through impatience.

He would continue strengthening his Core Seed until the conditions for advancement were right.

For now, he had a more immediate objective as he looked toward the distant horizon.

The senior officer had fled in that direction, with the elven army and its dragons in pursuit.

Koda intended to follow at a safe distance.

If the elves succeeded, he would gain an opportunity to escape the Demon Lord’s territory. If they failed, he would need to reconsider his options.

Either way, he would not allow another demon to decide his future.