The clone sat as its body slid down the hole. At the end of the hole, its body landed on a pile of bones. Ryan felt sending the clone here was a mistake.
This place was like a cave, and there were many piles of bones. At the end of the cave, a giant robe-wearing skeleton sat on a throne. What made him surprised was that a robe-wearing skeleton stood and approached the clone.
“Sigh, another monster. It is hopeless. No one can save me,” the skeleton said.
“Waaa, the skeleton is talking!” the clone shouted.
The skeleton backed down and shouted, “Waa, the chicken monster is talking! Wait, you can talk?”
“I can?” Ryan, who controlled the clone, was surprised too. He didn’t think he could communicate with people using clones, too. No, something was wrong. “Wait, you can understand my chicken language?”
“B!tch, who do you think I am? Wait, you can understand my language? What are you?”
“That’s my line, Mr. Skeleton. What are you? I can’t see your stats.”
“What did you say, Brat? Let me tell you, this daddy was an old powerhouse! Anyway, what are you?”
“Uh, I don’t know. I woke up and found myself in a chicken form today.”
“Oh, wait. I think I know. You are the so-called otherworlder.”
“Otherworlder?”
“I will tell you if you get your main body here.”
“No, you are suspicious. No offense.”
“What? How dare you! What is so suspicious about me?” The skeleton pointed at the clone, but as if realizing something, he looked at his body and crouched on the ground. “That’s hurt, Bro. I was a handsome human in the past.”
“Uh, I am… sorry.”
“Never mind.”
“How do you end up in your current form, anyway?”
“Hmm, I guess I have to tell you about myself.”
Outside of the cave, Ryan finally reached the end of the tunnel. He looked around first before running to the gap between the boulders. He could see the hole and sat beside it.
Inside the hole, the skeleton talked about his life. His name was Thanatos the Snapper. He was one of ten heroes on this planet called Linx.
The ten heroes fought the demon king and won many years ago. However, before his death, the demon king exploded himself. One hero used a teleportation ability and teleported the ten heroes across the continent. The explosion destroyed a large island, and unfortunately, the heroes took the damage before they got teleported.
Thanatos was lucky his friend teleported him with his wife, the Lady of Death. She was an immortal necromancer. She could survive despite the injury she sustained from the explosion, but she saved the dying Thanatos. Thus, Thanatos lived and became a lich.
From Thanatos’ story, Ryan concluded that the man was suspicious as hell. If the Lady of Death really had saved him, there was no way he would end up in his current form.
The clone stood after listening to his fake story and stepped back slowly to the hole behind.
“Wait, why are you backing away as if you want to leave this place?”
“Nothing, I just want to check out the outside. My main body is outside, you know.”
“Wait, I know you want to leave. Please don’t leave me.” The skeleton crawled through the pile of bones and approached the clone. His movement was so fast that he already arrived before him and caught his feet.
“Please wait, I am not telling a lie. You are a clone anyway, so you can at least hear me out until the end. After that, it is your decision to believe me or not.”
Ryan thought that what the man said was logical, so he calmed down. However, what made him decide to hear him out was because the skeleton emitted green light from the start. He wasn’t a threat at the moment.
“What I said was the truth, but I hid some things from you. It seems I have to reveal it all to gain your trust.” The skeleton changed his position to sit. “She really saved me completely and healthy. I could leave whenever I wanted it. She always loved me the most, even more than our unborn child. Yeah, she was pregnant.
“She could save herself and our child, but she saved me. Her decision enraged part of me. When she died, our child would die too. So when she was about to die, I forced her to use the technique that used up my vitality to save our child.
“My wife fed my child with my vitality, and I became like this, an undead. My wife died too, but with her technique, the child in her belly would survive until the birth time. I waited for months until it was the time, and I—I sliced my rotting wife’s belly. It was my darkest time.
“After that, I held a proper funeral for my wife and I raised my half undead child alone. I was just a lich, but I was still strong. Then, I became weaker, and it was my child’s turn to raise me, but one day, he went away and never came back to see me.
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“I am still alive now, but I don’t have the strength to survive outside here. I never held a grudge against him. I just want to leave here and see if he is still alive. I hope he is fine and well. He is half undead after all. He has a long life.
“So after hearing that story, do you want to help me? That was my darkest history. I told no one about it, not that I had a chance too.”
Outside of the hole, the real Ryan teared up. This was the first time he knew that a chicken could cry. He never had a child, but he understood love. He wanted to see his wife again, so he could relate.
Without hesitation, Ryan jumped to the hole and entered the cave. He met his clone and Thanatos. He extended his right wing to the man as if asking to shake hands.
“Let’s go find your son together.”
Thanatos’s body shook as he welcomed his wing. Ryan bet if he could cry he would. He didn’t let go of Ryan after a long time and he laughed. “I’ve got you! Now, you won’t escape!”
“Drop the joke, Old Man. If you don’t, I will leave you here.”
“Ah, sorry.” Thanatos scratched his skull awkwardly. “Living here is so boring. I just want to crack a joke. By the way, now that you agreed to help me, let me gift you something.”
Thanatos walked to his throne and looked for something behind it. He came back with a purple core. Ryan could read the information from the screen above it.
[Nether King’s Core]
Type: Spirit
Attribute: [Spirit]
Rarity: Legendary
A core that is dropped from a famous demon.
It shocked Ryan to see such rarity of an item in front of him. He had absorbed a [Tome of Basic Knowledge], so he gained a better understanding of this world. There were seven item rarities in total: common, uncommon, rare, unique, myth, legendary, and immortal. However, the lowest core wasn't common but rare rarity. Common to uncommon cores didn't exist. The one in Thanatos’s hands was legendary.
“The advantage of absorbing a high rarity core is you will get a stronger ability from the start. However, there is always a con behind a pro. You can’t upgrade your ability until you reach a certain rank, but that’s okay. I assure you the ability you will get from this core is the best of the best.”
“How do you have that core, Old Man? Didn’t you say you have become weak?”
“Ah, this is not mine, but my wife. The reason behind my wife’s immortality was because she had the ability to split her souls and put them inside items. As long as those items were fine, she was immortal. Well, of course, she had severed her connection with those items to heal me, otherwise, she would be alive, and this core was one of those phylacteries. Well, aren’t you lucky?”
“I guess?”
Thanatos dropped the core on the ground and told Ryan to absorb him.
Ryan gulped and approached the core. As if scared Thanatos would change his mind, he immediately touched the core with his beak. The core emitted light and entered his body.
You have absorbed [Nether King’s Core]. Progression to Awakened Rank has increased to 50% (2/4) Cores.
[Spirit]: 1/5 [Spirituality, No Attributes, No Attributes, No Attributes, No Attributes.
The attribute of the core is [Spirituality]. Your [Spirituality] attribute has increased.
[Spirituality] 1/5 Cores: [Mortal 1]
Your race is compatible with the core. You have gained the right to choose one of abilities instead of getting a fixed ability.
1. Nether King’s Aura (Morning Star)
* Lifesteal to recover [HP] and [MP] at will
* Turn the dead into undead with lifesteal property
* Allies get lifesteal property
2. Soul Shock
* Stun an opponent for one second
3. Lifesteal Touch
* Lifesteal to recover [HP] and [MP]
4. Spirit Animal
* Summon a spirit animal. It can’t attack.
“Old man, do you know what Morning Star means?”
“It is a rank several times higher than mortal.”
“How many times higher?”
“You don’t need to know for now. I will tell you when the time comes. You are now facing ability choice, I suppose. Just pick the one with Morning Star.”
Ryan nodded. Other abilities didn’t have the Morning Star mark. The first ability should be really strong. “I choose number one.”
You have picked [Nether King’s Aura]. [Nether King’s Aura] is now available on your ability list.
[Nether King’s Aura]
Rank: Morning Star (Experience is Locked)
Usage: Passive
This ability alters your mana aura. Your aura will resemble that of nether creatures.
Purple aura clad Ryan’s body, and he felt brimming with power. He tried to peck the bone below him. His destructive power was still the same, but when he attacked, a purple aura spread to the bone.
“Your attacks contain [Nether King’s Aura] now. This ability is very convenient for beginners like you,” Thanatos said. “Now that you have agreed to help me, I want you to do a favor for me.”
“What is it, Old Man? If it is something within my capability, I will repay you.”
“My wife did something to my body. I have the ability to transfer myself to another body for once. I want you to bring me a dead human body, so I can revive myself.”
Ryan fell into deep thought. If he brought a dead body to him, that meant he had to kill someone. He didn’t know if he could bring himself to do that. However, his current life was different. Maybe in the future, he would face the situation where he didn’t have a choice but to kill humans.
“I accept, Old Man.”
“Good. I only accept male by the way.”
“Understandable.”
“Preferably if he is handsome and popular amongst women.” Thanatos realized Ryan shook his head in disappointment when he heard that. “Okay, that was just a joke, but please give me a powerful body.”
“I will try to do it.”
“Also, I guess you still know little about this place and this world, so let me give you important knowledge.”
Thanatos pointed his index to his skull, and he pulled out a small purple ball that looked like a firefly. He made it float to Ryan. “Your system should be treating this as a consumable item now. Sigh, how much I envy otherworlders with their system.”
Thanatos was right. Ryan could see information above the tiny orb.
Do you want to consume [Thanatos’s Piece of Soul]?
Ryan didn’t hesitate and let the orb enter his body. A stream of information flowed through his mind. Unlike when he first absorbed [Tome of Basic Knowledge], he could withstand this one.
“How do you feel?”
“I am fine,” Ryan said. “Have you experienced a sudden stroke of fortune? In the past, my father got an inheritance from his deceased uncle. We suddenly became rich, but we didn’t know what to do with our fortunes. That’s how I feel right now.”
Thanatos laughed. “I can relate. You will get used to it. Now, that you have gained new knowledge about this world and area. I want you to strengthen yourself in a suitable place for you. You can search your mind where it is located.”
“Alright, but are you fine in here?”
“What are you talking about? I have waited forever for someone to help me. Waiting a little more won’t hurt me. Be strong, Lad. Then, save me.”
“Then, this isn’t a goodbye, Old Man Thanatos. I will come back and fulfill my promise.”
Thanatos didn’t have a skin to form a smile, but Ryan sure he would smile in this situation. “Heh, you better be.”
“Then I will go immediately. Every time I laze around, the longer you are forced to wait.” Ryan and the clone turned and walked to the hole, but Ryan stopped and looked back. “By the way, I haven’t given you my name. My name is Ryan Alfa Edison. See you later.”
“Good luck, Young Ryan. I will tell you more about otherworlders on your next visit.”