The Incubus System Chapter 1178. New Look, New Skills, Same Hate

The Incubus System Chapter 1178. New Look, New Skills, Same Hate

The rift tore like flesh, splitting open into a jagged red maw above the city skyline. Lightning licked the edges of the wound—black and red bolts snapping against the clouds like a warning bell from the hell itself. The temperature dropped, but the heat of demonic energy rolled over me like a wave of boiling tar.

Zatan hovered in front of me, wings outstretched. In his hand, a massive cleaver-like blade materialized, pulsing with a bloody aura. It looked like it was made from obsidian and molten bone, carved from the corpse of something ancient and furious.

‘Observation…’

[Weapon Identified: Bloodrender – Weapon of Carnage]

[Passive: Every successful hit increases Strength by 2% (Stacks: 20)]

Of course. Of freaking course.

“You’re grinning too much for someone about to get his ass kicked,” I said, flexing my fingers.

He tilted his head, that smug grin not leaving his face. “Oh, Your Highness… I’ve missed this.”

Then he came at me like a meteor.

I raised my hand just in time—Shadow Barrier flared to life, crackling as Zatan’s blow slammed into it. The force sent shockwaves across the battlefield below, shattering glass and knocking over nearby demons like bowling pins.

“Shit—he’s fast!” I grunted, flipping back and landing mid-air with a flare of my wings.

I countered with a wide arc of Demonic Spikes, hundreds of black lances launching in a split-second—Zatan weaved through them, a blur of red and flame, dodging most but catching a few in the side. Blood dripped, sizzling like acid on the wind.

“I can do this all day,” he hissed.

“Oh yeah?” I raised my hand. “Let’s escalate, then.”

I summoned it.

‘Nightmare.’

A black shockwave exploded as my sword formed in my grip.

Zatan’s eyes flared. “Finally.”

He dove again.

We clashed midair—Nightmare met Bloodrender with a BOOM that lit up the entire sky like demonfire fireworks. The impact rattled the clouds, shockwaves rippling through the rift like shattered glass reforming.

Sparks flew. Black lightning coiled around us. The pressure of both our auras grinding together could’ve collapsed a smaller city.

But I didn’t let up.

I spun mid-strike, catching his flank with ‘Radiant Slash’, the holy energy burning a deep gash into his ribs.

[Critical Hit!]

[You have slashed Zatan for 5123 HP!]

[Burn Applied – Holy Damage Over Time Active (5s)]

Zatan stumbled back mid-air, wings jerking out as he tried to stabilize. His mouth opened in a silent snarl, breath ragged, eyes wide with disbelief.

He looked down at the scorched gash burning across his ribs, golden light still flickering on the edges.

Then his gaze snapped up to me.

“You…” he growled. His voice was rougher now. Less cocky. More confused. “You’ve changed.”

“Thanks,” I said, rotating Nightmare in my hand like it was part of me. “New look. New skills. Same hate for your face.”

He ignored that. Still staring at the burn sizzling across his body.

“It seems… it wasn’t just your form that changed,” Zatan muttered, disbelief mixing with caution. His eyes narrowed. “You’ve got holy power now.”

I smirked. “Surprise.”

He bared his fangs. “Half-demon, half-angel… I thought it was just a bloodline fluke. But you—” he snarled, voice rising. “You’ve actually awakened that side. Fused it.”

“Yeah,” I said, stepping forward in midair like the sky itself obeyed my footing. “And I’m gonna use both sides to send your ass back to the pit.”

He snarled and countered with an upward swing. I parried, sparks raining, then kicked him in the chest and launched Smite Bolt point-blank into his face. It exploded, sending him tumbling backward through a building’s rooftop with a shockwave that broke windows for six blocks.

[You have hit Zatan for 1023 HP!]

“You good up there?!” Puriel shouted at me.

“Peachy,” I replied, voice strained.

Zatan erupted from the wreckage, wings outstretched. He looked pissed.

“You dare use light against me?” he roared, eyes blazing. His next move was fast—he vanished.

Teleport.

I spun—and barely caught the glint before he appeared behind me. I twisted fast, instincts kicking in, and slammed my hand toward his chest, activating.

“Hell Thunder!”

But Zatan was already gone.

He vanished again, his form blurring like smoke through wind. The bolt shot out of my palm with a deafening crack, tearing through the sky like a goddamn lightning spear, but it missed—just barely. The thunder roared across the battlefield, disintegrating three lesser demons in its path and carving a molten scar into a nearby building.

Zatan reappeared above me, grinning like a maniac. “Too slow, Your Highness.”

“Yeah?” I shot back, flipping midair to face him. “I’ve got plenty more.”

He dove first, swinging Bloodrender with the strength of a wrecking ball wrapped in murder. I met him halfway, Nightmare igniting with demonic-black flame as I swung up to intercept.

-CLAAAANG!

Steel clashed. Sparks exploded. The shockwave of the impact sent a rippling wave of dark energy outward, shaking the very air around us. I twisted, pushing forward with a brutal follow-up slash aimed for his gut—he ducked and came up with an uppercut swing that nearly clipped my chin.

We traded blow for blow mid-air, like a storm within a storm—our blades grinding, ringing, slamming against each other faster than most mortals could blink.

I pivoted and brought Nightmare down in a brutal overhead swing. He blocked it just in time, the force of it knocking him back a few feet.

Zatan snarled, wings flaring wider. “Still using that old weapon.”

“And yet you’re struggling,” I smirked.

He launched forward again, blade spinning in a vicious arc—I parried, sidestepped, and then twisted around to aim a backslash at his side. He caught it with his gauntlet—barehanded—and kicked me square in the chest.

[You received 1560 damage!]

I flew backward, catching myself mid-air, flipping once and digging Nightmare into the air to slow the momentum like an anchor against gravity.