Finally Kai returned to the unnaturally darkened mine that had stymied all Krysal. He was stronger, thanks to his ordeal against the Myogenecon, but more importantly this time he had Zae Zin Nim and Omilaena with him.

The mine was still a pit of darkness wafting upward like smoke. Omilaena had moved closer to examine it while the others got ready to fight. At least that was the plan, but truthfully Kai didn't know what else he could do to get ready. They were all healed and sharp, so they'd have to hope that would be enough. Zae Zin Nim seemed to be in a similar situation, just seated beside him meditating.

"The qi is gone." She opened her eyes and frowned toward the darkness. "Normally the ore should have low levels of qi, but everything is empty, even the bigger crystals."

"You think the monster is draining it?" Kai asked.

"I am not sure. This effect is different from anything I've seen."

At that moment Omilaena turned back to them, pulling her goggles up to her forehead. "I have a tiny sliver of good news holding up all the bad news," she said. "If we get a good hit on this 'Shadow of Death', I think we can kill it. But it's emitting that dark mist just as a byproduct of existing, meaning it can do worse. The darkness exists on a physical and spiritual level, so no normal defense is going to work against it."

"Sounds dangerous." Kai turned to face her. "You think we shouldn't try?"

"I think it's a lot of risk for little reward, but it isn't suicide. Hopefully."

Kai glanced down to Zae Zin Nim, but she was already getting back to her feet. No, this was their best chance. Maybe he could fight it months or years later, when the risk wasn't so extreme, but there was no way to know. He might need to leave, or war could break out, or someone else could attack the mine. Besides, Omilaena didn't know just how much power he might be able to gain from a monster like this.

"So long as we can avoid being suffocated by the darkness," Kai said, "I say we do it now."

"I have an idea for that." Omilaena took a small object out of her pocket - it looked like a bright green garlic clove - and rubbed it together with a stone. After several seconds she tossed the result down into the mine. It dwindled in the darkness until it struck the bottom, then it began to gush green smoke. "There. that should give us a safe space to fight."

Since he trusted his defenses most, Kai jumped down into the area filled with green smoke. To his surprised it smelled like incense and wasn't unpleasant. Omilaena joined him the next second, rubbing another clove. By the time Zae Zin Nim came down, she had set up an area with six green fires that burned with some alchemical energy, putting out enough green smoke to ward off the darkness.

"Some of the smoke is mixing," Zae Zin Nim observed. "Is that going to be a problem?"

Omilaena shrugged. "That depends on just how potent this is."

If they were really fighting the thing that produced all this, they were taking a much bigger risk than a little experiment. Kai stepped out of the alchemical fires and took a shallow breath of the darkness. Immediately he stepped back on instinct. His throat and lungs felt ice cold, and Behemoth's Heart was pumping intensely. He could survive touching the darkness, but it was absolutely not a wise idea.

"It's dangerous," Kai said, "but..."

He trailed off as he realized that the women weren't listening to him. Instead they stared in the opposite direction, focused on a new power emerging from one of the mine shafts. It looked like a shadow given dimension, dark even within all the smoke.

<

Monster: Shadow of Death

Threat: ???

>

His spiritual senses struggled to fixate on it, and even then he couldn't tell its threat level. Definitely high, but it was too late for second thoughts.

Zae Zin Nim acted first, releasing a qi bolt directly into the darkness. It illuminated the shadowy mist for several paces and then flickered out, well before reaching the figure.

Kai took a heartbeat longer gathering all his strength in a Tyrant's Claw, then stepped to the edge of their space and unleashed it. The force pushed through the shadows, forcing the mist away... and when it reached the Shadow of Death it passed through, leaving no more than a ripple.

"Was that an active defense?" Zae Zin Nim asked. But Omilaena was already acting.

She threw a needle, which passed through the shadowy figure harmlessly. It was followed by three more needles, and just when Kai was about to ask her why she was wasting her strength, one of the needles glowed blue and spun. The shadows pulled away, melting into the darkness.

"I don't think it can be hurt by physical force," Omilaena said grimly. "Most likely any form of energy can harm it, but all of this darkness is that thing's energy."

Suddenly the Shadow of Death loomed to their left. Darkness billowed out of it, pushing back the green smoke and driving them back. As the shadows rolled over one of the alchemical fires, it spluttered out and the darkness increased. Kai realized that the mist was closing overhead, trapping them within an unnatural night.

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When the shadow moved toward the next light, Zae Zin Nim leapt to attack it. This time her assault was more intense, qi flowing down her arm in a focused assault. The phantom slid away, but instead of retreating it sent out a roiling line of smoke.

The Coldfire Corona lit up around Zae Zin Nim and she passed through unharmed. In a flash she'd closed the distance and prepared another qi technique.

But the Shadow of Death was faster. From his distance, Kai could see that it shifted and unleashed more darkness the instant Zae Zin Nim dropped her corona. She had no time to react as the darkness flooded over her and he could just barely see her form slump.

"Zae Z-" Kai cut off with a growl and threw himself into the darkness.

This time he hurled his own mana and qi outward, not so much a technique as a desperate attempt to fend off the monster. His lungs were freezing by the time he scooped up Zae Zin Nim and leapt back to the area protected by green smoke.

She lay still, her body already unnaturally cold, but he could sense the life in her. Omilaena hovered with brief concern before she stepped away. One hand slipped from her pouch and she lit up another green clove, waving it wildly at the edges to ward off the monster.

"Messed up..." Zae Zin Nim coughed and weakly crawled into a sitting position. "I need... to purge it..."

It looked like she was cultivating in the middle of battle, but he could feel the freezing darkness slipping out of her. Hopefully she would be fine, they just needed to defend her. He tried to move beside Omilaena while still staying close, in case the Shadow of Death went in for the kill.

"It's slippery," Omilaena said grimly. "If I had infinite resources, I'd try to flood the mine with these. But I'm running out, and these won't last forever."

"I have something I can try." Kai waited until the Shadow of Death tried to extinguish another of their defensive flames behind them, then whirled on it.

As he did so, he drew on Void Gaze. Not simply the freezing he'd used in battle, its full spiritual power. He was relieved to see the dark mist pause, roiling back on itself instead of sliding in. The Shadow of Death hesitated... and then the top of the shadow twisted, as if it was looking toward him. He had a terrible sense that a dark hand was reaching out...

Omilaena stepped in and blew a cloud of blue smoke. Unlike the green, the new cloud pushed hard into the darkness, as if moving according to her will. The poison wrapped around the Shadow of Death, pressing it on all sides. For a moment he could see the phantom as more than a vague presence, like a stick thin figure wrapped in shadows.

That darkness faltered, then came roaring back with a vengeance. It poured out faster than before, utterly overwhelming Omilaena's poison. She was still spent, having just expelled the cloud, and her movement backward was sluggish. In another moment the darkness would sweep over her.

Kai grabbed her from behind and pulled her back, just before the darkness swept in. The movement required him to grab her around the hips and torso, and he was sure that in another context she would have teased him or leaned into it. Instead she stared out into the mist and tried to catch her breath.

The Shadow of Death loomed over another alchemical fire and snuffed it out.

"I'm immune to most poisons," Omilaena said, "but not that. My Physique can resist for a while, and you're unnaturally resistant. We should put everything into one strike."

"You mean accept absorbing some darkness and try to hit it?" Kai asked.

"No, surround it. We can't let it go, we need to suppress it or-"

"Wait." Zae Zin Nim rose to her feet, an inner fire burning within her. "The Coldfire can resist the darkness completely, if not for long. I should strike the blow."

He wanted to argue, but the Shadow of Death was drifting around their little island of green within the darkness. Wherever it passed, more shadows flowed, pressing their defenses inward.

"I can give you a little boost, but you'll have to trust me." Omilaena had drawn another syringe, this one filled with what felt like raw chakra. "There's no time for arguing."

"Will the monster flee?" Zae Zin Nim asked. "I can't last for long."

"It might. Kai, we need you to keep it in place. That's going to be rough, but..."

"Got it." Kai turned away from them and went to face the Shadow of Death.

As soon as he reached the edge, he fixed his Void Gaze on the monster. It stared back eyelessly, darkness rising. Kai knew that he couldn't match this thing's raw spiritual power, and if he hadn't included the Shademonger in Behemoth's Heart, he wouldn't have a chance. Even now, he could feel his legs getting cold as the darkness closed around him.

There was so much smoke in the way, would Zae Zin Nim be able to do anything? Kai forced his jaws to open, drawing in a painful chill, then bit down. A massive chunk of the darkness disappeared, consumed by invisible jaws. It didn't get far enough to reach the Shadow of Death, which loomed higher.

Most of his body was numb now, and Kai could no longer see any light. He was operating on pure instinct when he lashed out, sending Tyrant's Claws into the darkness. They dispersed the mist a little, never touching the enemy, which only looked more real as everything else faded. If this continued...

Then he heard Zae Zin Nim give a soft gasp.

The next moment she whirled forward, spinning within a tornado of blue flame. Her Coldfire Corona burned away the darkness and the Shadow of Death started to move back. Kai desperately returned his focus to Void Gaze, holding it in place just a moment longer.

When Zae Zin Nim arrived, she slapped her palm against the ground. Blue fire exploded in all directions, briefly eclipsing the Shadow of Death. Something dark and flimsy fluttered to the ground as all around them the dark mist began to dissipate.

No longer caring who saw, Kai leapt forward. His entire body was numb, but his monstrous instincts guided him to the slip of darkness. His hunger knew that was the core of the monster and he consumed it in a single ravenous bite.

Immediately he realized that might have been a mistake and he had no idea how Omilaena would react. But when he turned back, he saw that Omilaena was looking toward Zae Zin Nim instead.

"Well, now that we're safe, Kai yelled something very interesting back there." Omilaena tapped a fingernail against her lips. "Now, 'Zae' is a common name, but how many Zaes would attract the attention of the Brightwind sect?"

"Don't," Zae Zin Nim said thickly. "You kept your word, and I might not have been able to do this without your help. Don't do this now."

"Oh, very well, don't let me finish." Omilaena threw up her hands. "I'll keep your secret, because why wouldn't I? Just don't expect me to keep pretending you're poor Hanelay Cloudspire."

"I can live with that... I guess we all live."

They remained quiet as they left the mine through the fading mists, but as they got back into the daylight, their mood lifted. There was something about just existing in the normal world after being in that shadowy hell that made Kai want to laugh. Omilaena became more playful and Zae Zin Nim even smiled sometimes instead of scowling.

Since the monster had been their only objective, they piled into the diamond star to return. There was no argument about Omilaena having to walk this time. It looked like they'd have a pleasant trip back, so Kai examined his soul briefly.

Monstrous Hunger had risen another rank and Direboar's Strength had risen right along with it, as if it was still fueled by consuming the Myogenecon. For once one of his experiments with his soul had worked out properly the first time. He let himself laugh with the others and relax for a while, since things were looking up.

Before they got back, a messenger met them in the air.

"War," the worker gasped heavily. "The game is up. They know. The revolution has already begun."