"Power... so strong..."
Awakening after Benimaru were Shion and Shuna, who had recently been receiving Rin's grace.
[Shion]
Race: Oni God
Magicules: 4.2 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Tyranny, Susanoo (Mid-tier Ultimate Skill)
[Shuna]
Race: Oni God
Magicules: 3.8 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Day, Hime Miko (Mid-tier Ultimate Skill)
Lord of Night, Kaguya-hime (Lower-tier Ultimate Skill)
"Shuna's Ultimate Skill..."
Rin remembered that in the original work, Shuna had never awakened as a True Demon Lord and had always remained in her Oni form.
He didn't believe it was because Shuna's aptitude was inferior to Shion and the others.
As the princess of the Oni race, Shuna definitely had the potential to awaken.
And that was proven here.
Shuna successfully awakened, not only evolving from Oni to Oni God, but also gaining two Ultimate Skills—one Mid-tier, one Lower-tier.
[Lord of Night, Kaguya-hime]
Rank: Lower-tier Ultimate Skill
Effect: Designate an area, transform it into a night-based domain, and manipulate the changes in space-time within it.
"A time-based ability?"
What surprised Rin even more was the formidable power of this Lower-tier Ultimate Skill.
Any skill involving time, whether Extra or Unique, possessed overwhelming effects.
Although Lord of Night was only a Lower Ultimate Skill, that didn't mean it was limited to that level.
Of course, Kaguya-hime's time abilities might be able to suppress unawakened Demon Lord Seeds, but would likely be limited against those who had entered the Demon Lord Domain.
Compared to pure time-based authorities, Lord of Night might not be as powerful.
"Still, having it is better than not having it."
Shuna's two Ultimate Skills clearly revealed her future potential.
And with Rin's support, her limits certainly wouldn't stop at one Mid-tier and one Lower-tier skill.
"Rin-sama!"
At that moment, Shion excitedly ran over.
She held up her gourikimaru and said with joy, "Look, look, my Gourikimaru got upgraded too!"
[Gourikimaru]
Grade: Divine Weapon
Effect: Increases the wielder's EP by 1.4 million
An incredibly direct and powerful effect, increasing magicules by 1.4 million.
This meant that once Shion equipped gourikimaru, her EP would leap from 4.2 million to 5.6 million.
5.6 million, even higher than Benimaru's 5 million.
In a roundabout way, Shion, equipped with Gourikimaru, had become the second-highest in the Oni race in terms of base stats—second only to Ogerpon.
"Am I the fourth to awaken?"
After the three, the next to awaken was Souka.
[Souka]
Race: Dragon King, Ancient Dragon
Magicules: 8 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Azure Sky, Uranus (Upper-tier Ultimate Skill, Quasi-seven deadly sins level)
Souka's magicules were astonishing, already close to the 10 million mark of the Calamity-class Domain.
However, this didn't necessarily mean her potential exceeded that of the four Oni.
Rather, as a Dragon Species, massive magicules had always been their trademark.
Dragon Species, Dragon King, Ancient Dragon.
Further up were True Dragon Species and Dragon Gods.
Due to their massive dragon bodies, Dragon Species rarely suffered from magicule shortages, making them natural artillery among monsters.
"I didn't expect Souka to acquire an Upper Ultimate Skill comparable to the seven deadly sins."
"A-ah, I was just lucky..."
Souka was a bit nervous. Her position in the Monster Nation had always felt unstable.
Like a newcomer joining a company and suddenly being promoted and entrusted with major responsibilities.
So when facing her seniors Shuna and Shion, Souka felt extremely uneasy, afraid of doing something to offend them.
"How about a spar later?"
Shion didn't think too much. She simply wanted to test out her newly gained power.
Coincidentally, Souka made a perfect sparring partner.
"Now that I think about it, I've never fought a Dragon Species before."
"I'm kind of looking forward to it!"
Shion's carefree personality made Souka freeze up even more.
"Alright, don't trouble San Souka."
Shuna noticed Souka's unease and stepped in to mediate.
"No, no!"
Souka quickly waved her hands. "It's an honor to spar with Senior Shion."
Rin silently watched their interaction, with no intention of intervening.
He understood Souka's situation well.
But it couldn't be helped.
The Dragon Species had only just joined and had only recently rendered merit. Rin used this as a reason to let Souka awaken, which was already a great favor.
Souka's cautious and respectful behavior showed her awareness.
This was something all those valued by Rin shared.
Even Shion, the most carefree and simple of them all, understood where her strength came from.
She didn't know how to curry favor.
A simple-minded woman like her wasn't that sharp.
The only thing she knew was to listen to Rin.
If Rin said fight, she'd fight. If he said retreat, she'd retreat. That was all.
"So many have awakened already?"
"Am I the last one?"
"The last one should be me, right?"
Geld, Hoshiga, and Souei awakened nearly simultaneously.
When they opened their eyes, they were greeted by Benimaru and the others, whose auras had drastically changed.
They understood that the four had already awakened successfully.
But they too were now the same.
From this day onward, all seven of them were no longer just Demon Lords, but Awakened Demon Lords who had truly stepped into the Demon Lord Domain.
[Souei]
Race: Oni God
Magicules: 3 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Moon Shadow, Tsukuyomi (Mid-tier Ultimate Skill)
[Geld]
Race: Demi-human King, Earth Spirit God
Magicules: 2.38 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Gluttony, Beelzebuth (Mid-tier Ultimate Skill)
[Hoshiga]
Race: Starfang Species, Star Beast
Magicules: 3.2 million EP
Ultimate Skill: Lord of Elements, Komukamenpus (Quasi-Upper Ultimate Skill)
Among the three, Geld had the lowest magicules.
However, his Ultimate Skill was by no means weak.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)