The Outcast God System: Rise of the Cursed Heir

The Art of Swallowing Pain

The giant axe slammed into the black crystal floor with a deafening thud, creating a shockwave that sent his body flying into the air. He spun, crashing into a bone pillar that instantly shattered into sharp shards. Fresh blood sprayed from his mouth, staining the crystals beneath him in a contrasting shade of red.

"Is that all?" he shouted, trying to stand even though his collarbone felt like it was jutting out. "You call yourself the guardian of the gods, but your blows feel like a baby's caress!"

"Worm of a human!" the Guardian roared from behind his iron helm. "You can still talk after I crushed half your ribs? You truly don't know when to die!"

Warning! the system's voice echoed sharply. Physical integrity below 40%. Pain Conversion Engine reaching peak load. Immediate retreat advised.

"Retreat? Don't joke with me, System!" he growled. He spat out a glob of black blood. "Increase the conversion. He wants every inch of this pain to become the fire that burns through his veins!" Command accepted.

Activating Overclocking on the Pain Conversion Engine. +2500 EXP... +3000 EXP... +5000 EXP... The Guardian stepped forward, his axe dragging across the crystal, producing a nerve-grating screech. "Why are you laughing, boy? Have you gone mad with fear?"

"Fear?" He wiped the blood from his eyes. "No, he is enjoying this. You know, in the upper world, people like you always looked down on him because he had no Spirit Meridians. But here, in this hell, every time you hit him, you give him a power they could never imagine!"

"Then I shall give you the power to go to the afterlife!" The Guardian leaped, his axe glowing with soul-hungry black flames. "Bring it on!" he challenged.

He did not dodge. As the axe slashed his right shoulder, he actually stepped forward. The axe blade split his flesh, chewed through his shoulder blade, and stopped right near his lungs. The pain was so intense that the world around him momentarily went pitch black. The system's voice became a cacophony, like thousands of alarms ringing at once.

Emergency Warning! Fatal damage detected! Activating Art of Swallowing Pain protocol! "Now, System!" he screamed amidst his own internal shrieks. "Eat all of this suffering!"

Suddenly, a frigid surge of energy exploded from his Void Meridian. The blood that should have poured out stopped abruptly, freezing in mid-air, then spiraled back into the wound. He could feel his muscle fibers being forced to reconnect at an impossible speed.

"What... what is this?!" The Guardian gasped. He tried to pull back his axe, but he gripped the iron arm with his left hand. "You gave this to him," he whispered. His voice now sounded layered, as if another entity were speaking through his vocal cords. "This pain... it is the fuel!"

Synchronization process 90%. Unlocking hidden technique: Instant Abyssal Regeneration.

He wrenched the axe from his shoulder with a violent jerk. The Guardian stumbled back, his fiery eyes bulging in disbelief as the wound on his shoulder closed in seconds, leaving only a thin, pulsing black line.

"You... you are not human," the Guardian hissed, his voice now carrying a slight tremor. "You are a monster wearing human skin."

"He already told you," he said as he stepped forward, letting a dark purple aura envelop his entire body.

"The human named Ravian Arbian died at the bottom of this abyss. The one standing before you now is merely an instrument of vengeance."

"Don't be arrogant, trash!" The Guardian swung his axe repeatedly in a whirlwind motion. "You might be able to heal, but let's see if you can recover if I cut you into a thousand pieces!"

The world around him turned into a storm of steel and black fire. Every slash of the axe tore his skin, severed his veins, and shattered his defenses. However, he no longer felt pain as a burden. He felt it as a rhythm. Chest slash: +800 EXP. Regeneration active. Thigh gash: +1200 EXP. Regeneration active.

"More! More!" he screamed like a man possessed. "Give him more pain! Let him feel it down to his very marrow!"

The Guardian began to panic. His once-ordered attacks became wild and uncontrolled. "Why won't you die?! Why are you laughing?!"

"Because every time you wound him, he becomes faster!" He vanished from sight, moving with a speed driven by the burst of energy from the pain he had just received. "Every time you break his bones, they grow back harder than steel!"

He appeared right in front of his face. His hand, shrouded in Void energy, slammed into the iron helm with full force. The helm cracked, revealing a face made of shadow and fire.

"This is the pinnacle of the art you taught him, old man," he said, staring directly into his eyes. "Regeneration isn't about healing oneself. It's about consuming destruction to create a new existence."

Level Up! Host has reached Spirit Gathering Stage - Perfect Level.

Instant Abyssal Regeneration Technique: Fully Mastered.

He felt a total transformation within his soul. The pain he had felt earlier did not vanish; instead, it remained there as a constant energy reserve. He no longer needed to wait for an enemy's attack to activate the conversion. His body was now an eternal machine powered by every suffering he had ever experienced.

"You have lost," he said flatly.

"Not yet!" the Guardian roared, attempting a suicide attack by detonating his core energy. "If I must be destroyed, you will come with me into the void!"

A massive explosion of black energy devoured the entire crystal field. Its light was so blinding that it swallowed the darkness of the abyss. His entire body was disintegrated into dust in the blink of an eye. He could feel his consciousness drifting in the midst of nothingness.

Yet, in the middle of that void, the system's voice remained calm. Initializing Final Stage Regeneration. Using all pain from the explosion as a resource.

In an instant, the dust gathered once more. Bones formed, muscles knit together, and skin covered everything. He stood tall in the center of the massive crater left by the explosion, without a single scratch on his body. Before him, the Guardian was gone, leaving only his broken and fading giant axe.

He looked at his hands. The black lines on his skin now crawled up to his neck and face, forming a terrifying yet beautiful pattern. He clenched his fist, feeling a god-like power surging within him.

"System, is he still human?" he asked softly, staring at his reflection in a remaining shard of crystal.

Analysis in progress... the system's voice sounded slightly different, heavier and more authoritative. Humanity status: Minimal. Outcast God status: Active. Host has crossed the point of no return.

He gave a thin smile, one that no longer held any warm emotion. "Good. He doesn't need humanity to destroy the Arbian Clan."

Suddenly, the giant gate in front of him began to tremble. The golden chains sealing it started to crack one by one, releasing an aura of holy light that felt disgusting against his skin. A voice from behind the gate called out to him, a voice he knew all too well.

"Brother... did you really come?"

His heart pounded, but not out of love rather, out of a sharpened killer instinct. He stepped toward the slowly opening gate, but his steps halted as a new warning appeared on the system screen in blood-red.

Warning! Detected a presence behind the gate that is not your sister. This is a God-level trap. "What do you mean?!" he shouted.

Before the system could answer, a giant hand of blinding white light shot out from the gap in the gate, grabbing his neck and lifting him high.

"So, you are the new vessel they speak of?" an arrogant, heavenly voice echoed from behind the light. "A pity, you must die before you even get to see the sun."

The pressure on his neck was so strong that his Void Meridians began to scream. He was choking, but at the same time, a wild grin appeared on his face.

"This pain..." he hissed through gasping breaths. "Thank you... for the dessert!"