When this happened, the minds of the dead men passed with the cores, entered Asura's head, and began to cause havoc in his spirit palace.
Asura was not protected against mental or spiritual attacks because he was not a mage or knight. In the warm embrace of Mu Xue, his body became energised as she kissed him and filled his body desperately, like before.
Her warm stream of mana slowly formed droplets of purified mana and began to quench the thirst of his dehydrated husk of a body. Yet his mind was trapped in chaos!
Asura was forced to slaughter those three men repeatedly before devouring their bodies.
A disgusting and twisted scene.
Each time his blade reaped their lives, and his fangs devoured their essence, their bodies grew dimmer, and with each murder, the monoliths marked [Devour] and [Devil] started glowing the dark light now close to the first indentation.
With the words he could now read,
"Stage One."
With a violent slash, Asura cut down the chubby bandit for the last time in his mind. He could now feel that he was back in the carriage and resting his head on Mu Xue's soft lap.
'I should return... Mu Xue is worried.'
The slightly brighter spirit form of Asura made of red light faded instantly upon that thought. Although he never wondered why his spirit was crimson, and theirs was blue.
***
[Unknown Knight's POV]
The carriage was covered in the blood of the bandits, and many of the men were surprised that their Young Lord had killed enemies alone despite having no core.
He was the leading knight on this journey and was especially proud because he had watched the growth of the Young Lord for many years and felt that his will and desire had vanished.
"Our young Lord seems motivated to surpass himself. No matter his path, I feel happy to see him finally taking a step forward."
Glade Estan, a tall male with short grey hair and a slight beard wearing dull silver armour bearing the Fenix family emblem, rode beside the blue carriage with a focused look.
"It seems there is still a chance for our land to recover."
Everyone knew about Lord Asura's excellent mind, but because he was lethargic and didn't care about his physical state, many of the retainers and knights were anxious.
Glade's eyes turned towards the distant capital of Silvara, as they were now only a few hour's ride away. His eyes were filled with determination.
"I will support Lord Asura. First, I must speak with those two old corpses."
"Let's spread the news and hope to form a supportive net for the young Lord."
He was not optimistic because he killed those men.
The men were unranked warriors. Nevertheless, Glade felt something when he watched the Second-Rank Blade Knight kiss her Lord.
'There was a strange but definite power. It was weak, but it was real!'
Lord Asura was emitting a strange pulsing power that was different from magic. Something that made Knight Glade believe in him.
[Glade POV End]
***
Mu Xue's beautiful eyes sparkled with blue icicles as she peeked at the sleeping face of her Master, stroking his cheeks with a gentle touch, a warm smile on her face as she pinched him.
"Silly Asura..."
"Why ask to marry me then go do such dangerous things?
"I was so worried! Seeing you covered in blood and weak made my heart almost explode."
Mu Xue poked Asura's cheek, listening to him groan as he shifted uncomfortably, turning in his sleep while she laughed before continuing to pinch his cheeks.
"You better marry me now. Kissing me so many times... My brother will be so angry if you abandon me—my status cannot be your true wife. But you promised!"
Mu Xue pouted, puffing her cheeks while Asura slept, unaware of her teasing as she began to poke his nose, pressing the tip while he squirmed again.
"Ughh. Stop poking me."
Asura groaned, grasping her delicate wrist as Mu Xue gasped before blushing as his eyes slowly opened, revealing a pair of dark red pupils gleaming like crystals in the sunlight.
"You're awake!" She smiled, cupping Asura's cheeks as he leaned up, rubbing his eyes while glancing out the carriage window to see the passing scenery of the lush green forest.
"Did something happen?" Asura yawned, stretching his arms, pulling Mu Xue to his side and hugging her tight, resting his head against her soft bosom as she blushed, looking away shyly.
"Master killed bandits, then collapsed in my arms." Mu Xue muttered, playing with Asura's hair before grabbing his chin and tilting his face upwards as she inspected his face—seeing her pouting was a novel sight.
"I'll marry you. I promised, haha."
"I don't care! Hmmph... Don't get hurt; that's all I ask, Master." Mu Xue hid her face, resting her chin on Asura's head as he felt the rapid heartbeat thumping in her chest, giggling while hugging her tight.
"I won't promise, but I will try."
The carriage bumped up and down along the uneven road as Asura enjoyed Mu Xue's embrace, closing his eyes again and listening to the sound of her beating heart as his consciousness drifted in and out of his mind, reading the monoliths to understand what the usage of his unranked devour and devil choices gave him.
A strange black tablet around one metre high and half the width with strange runes written. At first, he thought it was a tomb or grave.
However, the black marble tablet had his name, age, and something like numbers linked with physical and mental attributes a person might have.
It gave him a strange title—like Mu Xue was a Second Rank: Blade Knight, he was currently an Unranked: Devouring Devil.
"Xue'er, If I can become stronger, it might be a dark and harsh path. Would you still help me? No matter what it takes...?"
Asura asked quietly, opening his eyes as Mu Xue gazed into his ruby-red pupils, nodding without hesitation. "Of course-"
"I don't want you to accept because you are my knight, Xue'er."
"Stupid." Mu Xue teased
"You saved me! When my body was filled with scars, my core was damaged almost beyond repair after being sent to fight a losing war."
"When your family rejected me because I was a member of a defeated Eastern Warrior Tribe..."
"Only you accepted me."
"Nurtured me to health..."
Mu Xue held Asura's face in her hands, gazing into his eyes as the carriage bumped up and down along the rocky road, jostling them around while he listened carefully.
"Even when you could barely move after their harsh training on your body, I was desperate for them to accept you and to complete their tests and trials."
"For an entire year, you endured, sharing your meals and warm bedding with me. A strange woman ten years older than you."
"Master is stupid, naive, and kind."
"That's why I am loyal and fell in love with you."
"Not because you are handsome and a noble who saved me from death, but because you never changed." Mu Xue smiled, leaning forward to kiss Asura's forehead as he blushed, unable to reply before she rested her forehead against his own.
"So, I don't care—use me as much as you need. Whether for mana or anything else, I will give you everything!" Mu Xue spoke with a powerful voice.
Then, playfully sticking her tongue out and kissing Asura's lips, she sealed them as he closed his eyes, melting in her warm embrace while she hugged him tight.
Asura wasn't sure why, but he felt comfortable and relaxed, enjoying Mu Xue's soft lips as he pulled her closer, parting his lips to allow her sweet tongue to slide against his own, intertwined in a passionate dance.
Mu Xue's azure frost mana entered his body again, his warm flames melting it slowly before pumping around it, returning his vitality as Asura felt his strength surging through his weakened limbs, embracing her tighter.
'I will use and love you until our deaths. Mu Xue.'
Asura parted his lips, kissing Mu Xue more passionately as she moaned softly, squeezing her thighs together before biting his lower lip, pulling it gently with a playful smile.
"Naughty Master~"
"Naughty fiancée~"
Their lips locked again as Asura enjoyed the sweetness of Mu Xue's breath, his hand moving behind her back as she squealed in surprise, kissing her neck and stroking his hair gently, giggling softly.
"Master, I won't let that woman have you."
"Even if she is a duchess, any other woman is fine, even your twin sister. But not her!"
Mu Xue's eyes were radiant blue, with ice dancing around their bodies.
"She looks at you like garbage and dirt... Nothing about her gaze saw my wonderful Master!"
Asura chuckled, kissing Mu Xue's neck as she chuckled before pushing him back and pinching his cheeks with a mischievous grin.
"If she dares approach you, I will freeze her legs and chop them off; feed her to my snow wolves!"
The carriage slowed to a halt as they were outside Silvara City.
Inside the carriage, Mu Xue was guarding him. As their kiss ended, she began to slap his hand away and insisted they remained serious. Although she adored Asura, she needed to ensure she didn't become too loose.
His life wasn't always safe and the territory wasn't as prosperous as it was several years ago. However, he insisted she let him lean against her while they continued their journey to the capital.
Asura sat to the side, leaning on Mu Xue's shoulder. The pair seemed to have taken a short nap due to the long journey as his fingertips stroked through her hair, waking her from her slumber.
"We are here."
"Hmm... Master~ I shouldn't have slept... Forgive me." Mu Xue rubbed her eyes, sitting up before fixing her hair, as Asura reached into his spatial ring, taking out a comb before helping fix her messy hair.
"Don't worry about it, nobody saw."
"Thank you, Master." Mu Xue smiled, kissing Asura's cheek before opening the carriage door.
A gust of crisp morning air blew inside as the huge silver walls and glorious battlements of Silvara came into view of the couple.
Mu Xue entered knight mode, stepping from the carriage—she held the door open and bowed lightly to Asura.
"Young Lord, please exit."
"Okay, thanks for the protection, my knight."
Asura chuckled, stepping down before stretching his arms and legs as Mu Xue closed the door and knocked on the roof twice, alerting the driver to prepare their entrance.
Ahead were the massive gates of Silvara City, guarded by hundreds of armoured soldiers and knights, their eyes looking curiously at Asura and Mu Xue, recognising them both.
Many people whispered to each other, pointing at the pair with gazes of pity and scorn.
"Look, isn't that the failure of the Fenix family?"
"Haha, despite being so handsome, he's useless and cannot use magic!"
"Isn't he very smart, though? I heard that his paper was ranked first."
'It looks like things won't change so rapidly—I need to get stronger before the first term ends.' Asura smiled with a slight bitterness.
His handsome face and raven hair danced in the strong afternoon wind, ignoring the whispers as Mu Xue looked angered by them, walking closely to Asura with an icy expression.
"Don't worry—I am used to their words and gazes." Asura smiled while whispering as they approached the gate.
'Oh?'
He didn't expect Glade Estan, a Third Grade Shield Knight, to kneel before him with a respectful gaze; in his past life, he was distant and always seemed to be filled with regrets, even in the last moments of Asura's death.
Estan's voice was the only one shouting for justice.
It surprised him, who was never valued as more than a hindrance in the background before...