Spiral of Madness: Ascension of the Villainous Dragon Prince-Chapter 123: Heart, Spirit, And Will [2] — The Spiral Of Sadism
{The Spiral Of Sadism}
["When the tyrant laughs and enjoys the suffering of the weak and poor, his very soul is tainted by the darkness of humanity’s sins, forming A Spiral of Sadism. Those who walk this path are the most human, as they embrace human nature without hesitating."]
[A common Spiral born from the joy of a tyrant that enjoyed seeing his people suffer in agony over his rule. A Spiral born for those that have accepted themselves for who they are and are the most honest of them all. Inflicting pain onto others, returning what they inflict upon you, and more. This is all what the Spiral of Sadism is and more. An acceptance of oneself, and also a shield against a much crueler world.]
[You have inherited {Sadism}, born of joy and self-acceptance of one’s wicked nature and the embrace of humanity and its sins. You are the most human of all.] 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
[You have attained the Ninth Spiral, the Murderer.]
[You have awakened the Spiral Incarnation: Psychopath.]
[You have acquired the Ability {Blood Feast (Tier 9)}: Return 30% of the direct physical damage you take, 5% otherwise. Absorbed Damage can be used to grant short boosts of attack power. When murdering, part of this absorbed power becomes permanent.]
[Your Vitality and Strength have increased by +150]
[Your Intelligence and Dexterity have increased by +100]
[Your Maximum Fantasium has increased by +1000]
[Your Fantasium Affinity has increased to 90%]
[Your Madness Index has increased to 50%]
"Hahah...!"
Louis laughed while the power of a new Spiral coursed through his Fantasy Heart. Only... something else happened a moment later.
"Huh?!"
Within his Fantasy Heart, a giant white serpent emerged from nowhere and devoured the new Spiral, swallowing it whole.
"Wait... What is this?!"
Louis didn’t understand, but he remembered seeing that strange creature when his father tried to scan his Spiral in the previous regression.
It had been there the entire time—watching, lurking, waiting for the right moment to intervene.
At first, he felt no change. The Ability remained. The stat boosts remained. The Incarnation remained. He wondered why Kael’thas hadn’t used it, then found the answer in the absorbed memories: the commander had been unable to control the Psychopath Incarnation—it became more enemy than ally—so he kept it unsummoned most of the time.
But the bigger question remained: why had his own Spiral devoured the other? Was it some jealous creature that refused to let Louis touch any Spiral besides its own?
"There are many possibilities but... I don’t have time for this..." Louis sighed. He slowly stood and consumed raw Fantasium Cores to recover his energy faster.
He walked toward Tisha and the others. They had slain the demonic beast-mutated Vultarn High Dominion soldiers.
"How did it go?" he asked.
"It’s all fine, my lord," Tisha said, sighing with relief and smiling. "Y-You’re strong! Amazingly strong! What was that?!"
"I just did everything at my disposal to kill that man," Louis replied plainly, eyes focused. "I still wonder how he turned these people into demonic beasts..."
"Likely the power of one of his spirits," Pekorine said as she approached. "Perhaps his Ashen Phoenix..."
"Spirits, huh?" Louis mused. He realized the man had carried a Spirit Orb. Using Shadow Hands, he retrieved the corpse from his Shadows, plunged his hand into the chest, and pulled out an apple-sized green orb—the Spirit Orb.
"W-Wow, brutal," Elises muttered.
"Lord Louis really doesn’t know when to be... well, a little less rough," Fernand sighed.
"Silence," Louis reprimanded them. "Pekorine, tell me what this holds. Are the spirits inside alive?"
Pekorine, undisturbed by the gore unlike the knights, examined the blood-covered orb with her eyes. "A Rank 3 Spirit Orb capable of harboring three spirits... Yes. Umbra Serpent, Ashen Phoenix, and the Abyssal Warden."
"The Warden was that giant living armor?" Louis asked. "It was incredibly tough."
"Indeed. They’re now dormant but will scatter after some days," she said. "I suggest using it for something specific. Trying to implant it into your body won’t work... but it can be excellent material."
"Hm..." Louis rubbed his chin. "I could attempt to refine it into a Soul Gear, but if I fail, the spirits die instantly. Or... maybe using it as material for Gungnir wouldn’t be so bad."
"Gungnir? Your Soul Weapon?" Pekorine asked.
"Yes. It has reached max growth, so it can Rank Up," Louis said. "Well, I might as well."
Louis wasted no time. While regrouping with the others, helping survivors, slaying Entities, and evacuating people, he summoned Gungnir and prompted it to evolve. The spear glowed brightly, absorbing his Fantasium. He threw the orb inside. The Soul Weapon began to absorb it slowly.
FLASH!
To the awe of Louis and everyone around him, Gungnir’s golden form remained—but new red and black streaks appeared across its long blade. A small red orb formed at the center, covered in golden runes.
"Huh..."
Louis’s eyes gleamed as he held Gungnir. He felt her power surge through his arm, then reach his body, heart, and soul. Within that orb, he sensed something—as if his spear had now gained a Spirit Orb of its own.
"I think they survived... but they might have changed as well," Louis said.
"T-They did?!" Pekorine gasped. "This is unprecedented, Prince Louis...! I’ve never seen a Spirit Orb’s Spirits survive being transformed into material for another piece of equipment or a weapon..."
"Maybe because Gungnir is very different, it worked," Louis explained. "Whatever the case... Release."
Spiritual Energy surged from within Gungnir, manifesting into three Spiritual Figures—to the shock of everyone present.
A serpent of golden chains forged from holy light.
A phoenix of nirvana flames.
A living armor of white salt.
"Incredible! Their nature has been warped by the Spear and their attributes completely reversed!" Pekorine was fascinated by what she saw. "Would you mind if I rename these Spirits, my lord?"
"...Go ahead," Louis said. She was the expert.
"Then the Umbra Serpent is the Celestial Serpent!"
"The Ashen Phoenix is the Heaven Phoenix!"
"And the Abyssal Warden became the Salt Warden!"
