Chapter 31 – Low Gray Core

After sending the Brutus, perverted uncle, Queen Ruby tried to send a healer to help Ender but he instead asked first rest back at Scarlet's mansion. His injuries seemed stable enough to walk so after a while Queen Ruby relented to send the healer later that evening. Ender did not refuse her insistence to have a healer in the afternoon.

Queen Ruby also profusely apologized and would investigate the matter regarding the incident. He would also insure that Brutus would under house arrest if not under constant eye. Ender nodded knowing that all the information he provided were the truth in one way or another. Before Queen Ruby left Ender got up before handing her a key. Ender explained that the key had fell out when Brutus was putting on the prison cuffs so he took them. In truth Ender stole the key when Brutus was unconscious but no one besides himself needed to know that.

Queen Ruby knew what the key was and thanked Ender before promising to keep the key safe. Queen Ruby then left the group as she needed to report this matter to King Wild. This was too large of an issue to swept under the rug.

Ender left with the group of Scarlet, Sarah, and Millie. Each girl was saddened by how Ender had been. Scarlet was thinking that her elder brother Brutus must be a pig and think much if her if he would attack her friends. Sarah was thinking of telling the other maids of Brutus new hobbies of snatching young boys from the restrooms while also talking about Ender's valiant struggle that he survived through without dying or being touched. Millie was not associating with noble trash like Brutus and her husband Ralph was 100 times better with his honest nature… wherever he is.

…

In a distant land Ralph in wagon sneezed for some reason.

…

After a walk back to the estate Ender chose to take a bath then nap before asking to be treated as most of his injuries were internal. Before anyone could offer help Ender shut himself in his room. The reason for this is because Ender already had plans for when he entered his room.

His fight with Brutus made him realize that his Pinnacle Black core was still to low. Brutus was already stronger than him with his basic strength. The only way he survived so long was because he could use ether at a young age and Brutus could not at the time. The Black Core level for the Demon King's Cultivation Technique focused on strengthening the body but beyond the Black Core the ether in the body takes a higher precedent and than the body.

Ender needed to be able to use ether more of higher quantities and quality levels. The higher the core level the more difficulty advance will be. Recently though Ender found a way to increase his cultivation rate. In his recent breakthrough to Pinnacle Black Core is by visually and picturing the attribute inside his body from small to large the absorption efficiency increases. The efficiency also increases exponentially if Ender uses his ether on difficult unknown variants attributes.

Ender had been using two different attributes as of lately: Gravity and Space. Ender had been using Gravity within his body to strengthen his body while Space was used to quicken his ether use and understanding. Ender's gravity attribute had plateaued recently due not being able use higher quality ether and reached 2.0 g's (gravity). Ender's Space attribute however had made greater improvement from the initial unstable outer to a slightly stable space ether attribute inside his body.

At first Ender use of space ether in his body almost caused his body from rupturing from the inside out however using ether within his body was actually more stable then outside. The reason for this is because outside World's Energy was constantly interfering with the stability of external space attribute. While the inside of Ender's body had a barrier from the outside world caused from his initial energy strengthening using his ether. This allowed for Ender to be more proficient with ether as long the attribute was inside his body.

Ender had been able to rapidly climb the ether amounts to reach the border of Gray Core. Gray Core is also a major leaping point for the Demon King's Cultivation Technique. Many techniques would be unlocked allowing him to have a larger repertoire to use. The only down side would be that Ender would have to train all techniques so he could be able to use them properly. Also, Gray Core would be when Ender would have to start practicing all of his attributes he had discovered to a certain proficiency so that later Core ranks would not suffer.

However Ender first needed to breakthrough to Gray Core rank. Ender decided to use this opportunity of being injured by Brutus to explain his later injuries.

After ensuring that the door was locked Ender sat down on the floor of his room cross-legged. Ender started by using his ether to create a gravitic-space attributed ether on the outer most layer of the inside of his body. The ether was formed to stop any ether from escaping his body later on. Ender next started using the left-over ether in each core to smash upon their own barriers so he could advance. Each hit was like a sledgehammer smashing upon him on his core locations. Ender felt like his feet and hands would be smashed into mush, his heart and stomach were being pulverized, all while his head had bells ringing constantly. Ender still continued to smash into the barrier known as Gray Core. Ender also knew that he was enduring 7 times the amount of pain a normal person would exhibit when advancing due to him having the seven cores.

The only thing that kept him going was the crack like look on his Cores symbolizing that he was advancing. Each advancement always cracked the outermost layer that would later be grown back. The Cores would also become larger with each advancement.

Click and Crack sounds could be heard from inside Ender's body as each push brought him that much closer. After 2 hours of excruciating pain Ender was able to break through the final barrier. When the barrier did break the last of the Pinnacle Black Core ether wanted to be forced out but was stopped by Ender's gravity-space ether last control.

Ender was able to use his high proficiency of ether to induce his Demon King's Body. Slowly Ender grew more pale while with a slight gray tone. Ender's hair stuck up while the front part became white while just below his hair line what was two lumps became two small horns. Ender's Black eyes had their inner irises have a crimson hue added. Ender's finger tips became slightly elongated creating claw like appendages that emitted a sense of death. While Ender's Demon King's Body was activated, he was able to mitigate the final damage from breaking through to feel like thousands of ants being on his skin instead. The reason Ender could not use the Demon King's Body before was due to his Core rank being to low to hold for long periods of time, so brief use would be the best he could do.

Ender was able to quickly focus on controlling his ether under control and slowly releasing the ether so there would not be a large disturbance. Ender's control allowed for this process to be expedited for now. Once all the ether was expelled, he looked down to see that his body was truly bruised and battered this time compared to before.

Ender mused to himself, "Jumping from one rank to another creates more damage than between internal ranks." Ender got up in his Demon King's Body and went to bathe. His body still ached from his breakthrough so he decided bathe in his stronger body form. Ender took a quick bath since he knew he had taken a long time already. Ender really came to enjoy baths as of late. Especially the hot kind in which he could laze while soaking.

The warm waters slowly heated Ender's body allowing him to not worry of his troubles if not temporarily. Ender looked at his battered body and his seemingly worsened internals as he asked for forgiveness from that perverted uncle, he meant Brutus.