"Damn it!"

"Damn it!"

Sollivan, who was crawling backward helplessly, stared at the shadowy humanoid figure. A faint black mist was emanating from the shadow's fleshy body, forming a dark cloud around it that made its appearance even more mysterious. As Sollivan was drenched in sweat, his eyes met the cold, red eyes that were moving across the shadow's body.

Those eyes were just glowing points like jewels, without any whites around them. But what was most terrifying was how they moved; they slid across the shadow's black skin, shifting from its featureless face to its head, neck, and other parts of its body, giving it a comprehensive view of its surroundings.

Sollivan felt a sense of foreboding. His heart pounded violently, and he wanted to stand up and run, but he was unable to move. Time seemed to freeze before his eyes, and he saw the shadow slowly moving toward him.

Out of sheer fear, he involuntarily closed his eyes. At that moment, he felt an intense cold spreading rapidly through his body, starting from his hands. He forced himself to open his eyes and saw a layer of dark, sticky blackness covering his skin and clothes, forming an incomplete cocoon that was crawling to cover the rest of his body. His soul trembled with fear, and his body convulsed.

"Get away!"

To his surprise, he found that he could move his limbs relatively smoothly despite the black layer covering him. With all his might, he slowly moved his uninjured hand, as if underwater, and grabbed the black layer, trying to pull it away. But it was like sticky rubber, stretching intensely but not breaking, remaining firmly attached to his skin.

"Damn it!"

He cursed loudly and reduced the force of his pull. But at that moment, the black layer melted and flowed through his fingers like water, then reattached itself to his skin. His eyes widened, and he snorted air through his nose like an enraged bull, frantically pulling at the sticky substance and scratching it with his nails. But his struggle was futile, and all he managed to do was hurt himself. His blue blood flowed profusely, covering his body and the black cocoon over him, which emitted more black smoke.

Thump!

Suddenly, a dark feeling overwhelmed him, and the cocoon around his body expanded rapidly. He felt his blood leaving his body quickly, making his consciousness blur for a moment. But he didn’t give up and continued to pull at the black layer despite the intense resistance.

"Ah..."

After a brief struggle, he managed to remove part of the black layer, revealing a portion of his blood-covered skin. But he was surprised to see his blood being pulled by an invisible force, greedily consumed by the black substance. Before he could realize what was happening, the blackness expanded again and covered the exposed part of his skin.

His thoughts dimmed, and a look of despair appeared in his eyes. The seconds passed slowly, and within moments, the black cocoon covered eighty percent of his body, leaving only his head and part of his back. His hands froze, and he could no longer move them as smoothly as before. He slowly turned his head and examined his condition with a desperate look, then let out a long, melancholic sigh. He no longer struggled or thought, and all he did was lie there with an empty gaze, letting the black cocoon cover him.

He regained his composure, and his thoughts became clearer. He accepted his fate and no longer wished to engage in futile struggle. As a final, honest look from a dying man, he turned his head and looked at the blurry figures around him, noticing the expressions of the few people nearby. Then he muttered in an emotionless voice.

"What a strange look they’re giving me."

After voicing his thoughts, his brows furrowed again. 'Their gaze is very strange, as if they’re not seeing someone being devoured by a monster. Their gaze is more like...?!' He stopped his thoughts, slowly raised his head, and quickly scanned his body.

At the same time, he tried to move his limbs, and unexpectedly, they moved smoothly. Even his hands, which had been restrained earlier, moved naturally. His eyes widened, but he didn’t overreact and lay back down calmly, muttering, "I’m fine."

Due to his previous panic and desperate struggle, he hadn’t thought about his situation properly. Now, having regained his composure and clarity of mind, he realized that the shadow around his body hadn’t harmed him. All he felt was a vague sense of stickiness and a dense tickling sensation, as if thousands of insects were crawling over his body without biting him.

After understanding his situation correctly, he was no longer in a hurry or afraid.

He took a deep breath, turned his head again to look at the blurry figures around him, 'None of them moved to save me. Either they’ve lost hope, or my situation isn’t as dire as I thought.' Then he looked at the blackness around him and asked in a mysterious tone.

"What are you? I heard them call you a shadow, but you’re too gentle to be evil. What’s your name?" He stared at the shadow with curiosity, but he received no response. The shadow continued to silently and greedily consume his blood. At that moment, a strange idea occurred to him, and he remembered some texts he had read before.

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"Only blood seals the pact, and only blood opens the gate."

The same sentence he had read in the black book suddenly came to mind. He didn’t understand why, but he felt a vague sense and an obscure idea about his situation. He focused his mind with all his strength, organizing his thoughts in search of an answer.

Time passed slowly, but in reality, it was only a minute. During that time, the shadow continued to absorb his blood, and the more it drank, the more solid and cohesive its body became.

Within this minute, the shadow expanded to cover his entire body except for his head. But, contrary to expectations, Sollivan wasn’t disturbed or reacting violently. He remained lying there with a lost gaze. Suddenly, he smiled faintly and let out a mysterious hum, like a sarcastic laugh filled with strange happiness. He looked at the stone ceiling above him and muttered more clearly, "I’m really an idiot."

He reviewed his memories and recalled everything he had read, and after a short period of searching, he understood his situation. All the remaining tension in his body disappeared, and he relaxed indifferently. He raised his hands, covered in the black layer, and moved his sticky black fingers naturally. Then, calmly, he extended his fingers and forcefully inserted them into his wounds, reopening them and causing blood to flow profusely. Despite the pain, his gaze remained steady, and his faint smile didn’t disappear.

Gulp!

The blood flowed and touched the black shadow, which drank it greedily without stopping. Without any sign of stopping, the shadow began to expand rapidly, and within a few seconds, it completely covered Sollivan’s body, making him look like a black mass with a mysterious humanoid shape.

The seconds passed quietly, turning into long minutes. But the black cocoon didn’t move, remaining stationary like a lifeless object.

...

Near the black cocoon, the Supreme Leader and the others stood watching silently. No one spoke or moved from their spot, not out of fear of disturbing Sollivan, but because they felt no need to. The well had calmed, and the priests had completed its seal. As for the High Priest, he walked to stand beside the Supreme Leader. But, unlike the others who watched with curiosity, his face showed a dark look and deep resentment. He hated the shadow intensely and wished to tear it apart and turn it to ash, but he didn’t dare do so in front of the others.

While the High Priest was burning with anger, Blear walked up to him and greeted him politely, "Greetings, High Priest."

Otieno composed himself and showed a gentle smile, "No need for your respectful greeting, young leader."

Contrary to his usual politeness, Blear didn’t pay much attention to the priest’s response, and his gaze remained fixed on the black cocoon. He asked with intense curiosity.

"What happened, High Priest?" His question was like a bell that alerted everyone. The Supreme Leader and Fredrick turned to him with furrowed brows that didn’t hide their anger.

The priest pretended not to see the displeasure on their faces and answered innocently.

"I don’t know, Your Excellency. As soon as we arrived in the hall, his blood leaked unexpectedly, causing the well to react, and the abyssal beasts began to emerge. Although we contained the Thorny Salamander that tried to escape, we neglected to defend against the shadow, which took the opportunity and attacked the hybrid."

Despite his attempt to shift the blame to Sollivan, the Supreme Leader and Fredrick’s anger didn’t subside. They stared at him for a moment before turning their gaze back to Sollivan.

Suddenly, the black cocoon surrounded by black mist moved. It pulsed strangely, and it seemed as if a dark blue light spread through it, starting from the chest area.

Thump!

Thump!

The Supreme Leader sighed and shook his head helplessly, saying in a mysterious voice that reached everyone’s ears. "So this is the power of primal blood." He couldn’t hide the slight tone of shock and respect in his voice.

Then he continued without hiding his amazement. "This is the first time I’ve seen someone form a contract with an abyssal beast without fulfilling any of the required conditions. The soul lineage is terrifying, as the rumors say." His voice softened, and his gaze became more mysterious, as if he were deep in thought.

At that moment, Blear stood beside him and asked curiously, "What is this beast he contracted with, Father?" His question didn’t contain any tone of reverence for the Supreme Leader, and it seemed like just a son asking his father.

The Supreme Leader glanced at him and answered, "It’s a shadow. Although it’s not a strong beast and is of the middle tier, it’s very useful due to its supportive role and extreme rarity."

Blear nodded in understanding. "I see."

His gaze remained fixed on the strangely pulsating cocoon. Then he heard his father say again. "I read in an ancient record that someone who possesses a shadow as a contracted beast is like someone with a second life."

Crack!

He turned his head and was about to say something, but he suddenly heard a loud cracking sound that made him quickly turn and look at the cocoon.

The black cocoon began to crack strangely, emitting a loud cracking sound. Then it started to crumble, falling to the ground and over the human body lying like a corpse.

There was no trace of the humanoid shadow left, and all that remained was Sollivan, most of his clothes eroded, leaving only some tattered rags covering parts of his body. His chest rose and fell, and his wounds stopped bleeding, as if they had received some kind of basic treatment.

The Supreme Leader looked at him for a moment, then turned and said to Blear.

"He’s lost a lot of blood and is unconscious. Take him to one of the stone rooms to rest."

"Yes, Supreme Leader." Blear gently touched his chest this time and walked slowly to stand beside Sollivan, who was lying on the ground. He quickly scanned his body, his lips twisting with complex emotions.

Then he reached out and grabbed Sollivan by the shoulder. But at that moment, Sollivan, who had been unconscious, opened his eyes in anger, and with the remaining strength he had, he delivered a powerful punch to Blear, who was caught off guard and didn’t react properly.

Bang!

"Ughhhh!"

A muffled groan spread, making everyone in the hall quickly turn to look at them. Their expressions twisted, and their minds went blank. But the muffled groan didn’t stop.

Blear bent forward, holding his groin with a distorted face while resisting the urge to scream. His eyes turned white, and his pupils disappeared upward, making him look like a ghost. His twisted lips curled as if he had swallowed a sour lemon. He touched his groin with extreme fear, and after confirming they were intact, some color returned to his face, and his pain lessened.

The damage he received wasn’t enough to prevent his lineage from continuing, but it made him suffer greatly and experience the feeling of childbirth.

As for Sollivan, who had almost destroyed Blear’s future, he fell unconscious after his punch and didn’t move again, like a lifeless corpse. No one in the room knew if he had truly lost consciousness or if he was pretending to avoid the consequences of his actions.

...

Amid the strange chaos caused by Sollivan, the Supreme Leader remained indifferent. With pride, he walked toward the stairs. As soon as he placed his foot on the first step, he stopped and turned to look at everyone with sharp eyes full of power.

His stern gaze made everyone present regain their composure and stand firmly. Even Blear, who was looking at Sollivan with dagger-like sharpness, stood straight and set aside his anger.

Then the Supreme Leader spoke, "Give him a nutritious meal when he wakes up, and ask the Keeper of Secrets to treat him." He paused for a moment and hesitantly added.

"Give him proper training. Fredrick, guide him until he starts training."

Everyone’s eyes widened in shock, and even Blear forgot his pain and anger for a moment when he heard his father’s words.

The Supreme Leader’s words weren’t empty or random; they carried one unambiguous meaning—he was interested in the hybrid they had captured.

...

The High Priest stood behind the Supreme Leader, staring at his back with sharp, knife-like gazes, as if silently stabbing him. He clenched his teeth, took a deep breath through his nose, and cursed inwardly.

'Damn that bastard, he’s playing with me! He’s trying to cut off all paths to this hybrid.'

His frown suddenly eased, and his gaze quickly turned toward Sollivan, who was being carried by Blear.

'Just wait... I won’t let this golden opportunity slip away. I didn’t want to resort to this option, but you’ve forced me to.'

He reached under his robe and felt something hidden in a small inner pocket. At that moment, a mysterious look appeared on his face, while his physical tension gradually eased, and his angry feelings turned into pure mockery toward the Supreme Leader.

The High Priest remained standing in place, his gaze outwardly calm and clear, but behind the cloth covering his mouth, he was bitterly sneering. His twisted smile reached a point where his overly delighted teeth were on the verge of shattering. Yet, he continued to silently curse the Supreme Leader, immersed in dark thoughts and boundless hatred.