Within the dark cave,
At this moment, 36 tiny dark glyphs covered in crimson sheen were gathered on Jacob's left breast, and surprisingly those glyphs were arranged in the exact pattern as the ritual array formation.
All of a sudden, those glyphs started to be absorbed within his chest, and one after another, they started to brand the infinity symbol, vanishing thereafter.
When the last 36th glyph got branded, the crimson sheen on Jacob also vanished, and thereby, the new infinity heart started to beat, and with every beat, it discharged a red glow.
Thereupon, clarity started to return in Jacob's blank eyes.
Assorted emotions shimmed within those amber eyes before anger took over. However, he was startled when he found he could move his body, and the cave was completely dark.
Before he could investigate the situation, he felt his entire body sour; a sudden feeling of emptiness and exhaustion washed over him, and his eyes turned extremely heavy. He wobbled a bit before he fell backward, and without realizing it, he was sound asleep.
Immortika's impetuous eerie voice suddenly rang, "Heh, this ought to do it…"
---
After an unknown time, Jacob's eyelids trembled before they were opened, revealing his confused eyes. But the confusion was only fleeting before they regained clarity.
'Rubmleee…'
He was caught off guard by powerful rumbling in his stomach before he felt extreme hunger wash over him, which was as terrifying as he remembered it to be.
He quickly picked himself up but was shocked when his hand literally pushed into the stone floor like it was made out of wet clay.
'My strength has increased!' Jacob's eyes shimmered as he was using exact same force he was used to before.
He then controlled his strength again before he was able to pick himself up, and without wasting time, he started eating the Wyvern meat.
But he was soon astonished when he found the meat no longer gave the feeling of burning his internal organs, nor could he feel the fiery energy within anymore.
There was nothing but gentle energy flowing throughout his body within his body at this moment, and the speed of digestion was far faster than before. It was as fast as when he consumed a rare tier of meat.
'Don't tell me I need a terrifying amount of energy again to make my body compatible with my heart again, just like in the injection process.' Jacob grimaced as he thought about it while eating.
The more he ate, the more he knew it was likely to be the case. Because the hunger was slowly getting subdued, but it wasn't anywhere near quenched despite him eating over five pounds of Wyvern meat which was enough to keep him functioning for weeks before.
Still, Jacob didn't stop, as he could visibly feel it getting stronger with every passing second. He also noticed that his eyesight was getting better and better as he could now vaguely see in the dark cave, and his hearing and other senses were also increasing.
The strangest thing he noticed was his heart because, for some reason, his heartbeat had changed, and it was simply too vague, and his control over his heart rate somehow reached a terrifying level.
Because after he tried, he could completely stop his heartbeat with a thought, but for some strange reason, his blood flow wasn't disrupted, and he didn't feel any danger despite his heart getting stopped.
He could even breathe normally, which was completely abnormal. It was like his heart was a completely different organ of his body which was now completely under his control.
The scariest thing that had changed was the fluid acceleration because Jacob could now enter in 7X acceleration and exit it within a second.
'Just what of change had happened to my heart? My entire body seemed to work perfectly despite me stopping it for a whole minute!' Jacob had an appalled yet excited expression.
However, he didn't dare to test the limit of this heart-stopping ability since he might really die without being able to start his heart again.
Afterward, he continued to eat until there was nothing left of Wyvern. But Jacob still felt slightly dissatisfied. But the feeling was now very faint, and he reckoned that 95% of his body was now perfectly matched his newly strengthened heart.
Yet it was still shocking that even after eating a tier-6 extraordinary Wyvern, his body was still not perfected.
Nevertheless, Jacob was feeling boundless strength coursing through his veins.
'I'm clearly in the rank of extraordinary physiques now. But why the hell I still can't feel magic? Won't Immortika say no one can enter extraordinary rank without a 3-star magic core?' Jacob thought with uncertainty.
"Cursed Immortality!" He tried summoning the book since he didn't know how much time had passed since he fell unconscious.
But he was hoping for the book to appear since he wanted to confront it about that strange 'dream' since he knew it was too real to be a dream.
Furthermore, he had to commit suicide before he was awakened from that dream which was evident that it was some kind of illusion, not a dream.
Not only that, but he had the feeling that nothing would happen to him even if he jumped from a fifty-story building, or he would never dare to try committing suicide.
But for some reason, he trusted that feeling even to put his life on the line, and in the end, it played well in his favor.
Still, he wanted to know what was that and why it happened right in the middle of the ritual.
Lastly, the first stage of the first phase had been completed, so he wanted to see the requirement for the next stage.
At this moment, Cursed Immortality appeared afloat in front of Jacob, and his eyes shone with anticipation as he opened the first page.
______
[Cursed Immortality: Cursed Immortal Physique (Nine Phases)]
[Current Phase: First Phase]
---
-First Phase: Body Transformation
-Stages of Body Transformation: Three
-First Stage: Cursed Heart Emergence (Compete)
-Second Stage: Cursed Blood Condensing (Current)
-Third Stage: Compete Second Stage
---
-Inheritor: Jacob Steve
-Current Phase: First (Body Transformation)
-First Stage Progress: Complete
-Second Stage Progress: 0%
---
-Lifespan: 250 Years (All Youthful)
______
Jacob's squinted his eyes when he saw the new stage, 'First heart and now blood? Well, it won't be too painful as the heart, at least I hope so.'
But when his eyes fell on his lifespan, happiness filled his heart, '250 and all youthful? Is this the effect of completing the first stage?'
Whichever the case was, Jacob was thrilled to see his lifespan increasing, which was all he wanted. He felt all his suffering was worth it.
Jacob then quickly flipped the page to see the Cursed Blood Condensing Stage's requirements.
______
[First Phase of Body Transformation: Cursed Blood Condensing (Second Stage)]
-Cursed Blood Condensing Progress: 00.00%
[Description: Convert your blood into Cursed Blood until it reaches 100% completion by Absorbing the Heart Blood of Legendary Beings or their decedents.]
--
-Completion of this stage will result in 500 Years of Lifespan
pαпdα`noνɐ1`сoМ ______
'Legendary Beings' heart blood or their decedents? I should've seen this coming…' Jacob pulled a bitter smile when he saw the requirement.
Although this stage didn't have any levels since something called a legendary being was involved, Jacob knew this stage was going to be even harder than the first one.
He then flipped the page before his expression turned frosty as he said, "Before the explanation at this stage, I want to know what that dream was, and don't even try to pretend you have no idea about it!"
"Oh, is there something wrong? I clearly have no idea what you are talking about." Immortika wrote.
Jacob frowned, "I fell into an illusion where I see my old family, but somehow 'my heart' told him they were not real and I should just die to escape that place before it was too late.
"I know you knew something since you said the fourth phase will depend on me. So, stop pretending and out with it!"
Jacob won't believe for a second Immortika didn't know what it was. He knew this book was like an omniscient existence, hiding terrifying secrets.
However, Immortika still denied it, "That might be some sort of dreaming effect you experience because of the pain. Still, I'm shocked you have the guts to commit suicide…hahaha…"
Jacob gnashed his teeth since he knew it was impossible to make this book talk, so he could only drop the subject. But a seed of doubt had been planted within his heart, which won't go away no matter what.
He then inhaled deeply before he asked, "Then what's the deal with my heart, and why can it be stopped while my body works just fine, and what's the limit? Lastly, how strong am I?"
"Before that, I have good news for you. Just like before, after you complete the first stage, my summoning time has been increased from 1 hour to 3 hours.
"Lastly, the infinity pendant's ten cubic meter space has been increased to 25 cubic meters!"