Chapter 100 - Dark Hymn
Dyon appeared in a world of darkness. The only light came from the cracked soil beneath his feet that seemed to glow a blood red. The sky had no stars, there was only the faint outline of a tower in the distance that glowed its own red color.
The air was heavy, and the sense of danger made Dyon’s hairs stand on end. The space around him was filled with what looked like the outlines of trees. But, when Dyon used his aurora to inspect them, he was startled to find that they were made of charred bone rising to such a height that even with the help of his Aurora, Dyon couldn’t see the top of.
If it wasn’t for them being so thin and sparse, he would have never seen the tower in the distance.
‘What kind of world is this?…’
From his master’s memory, Dyon was fully aware that every world of legacy left behind by an expert was different. However, one thing stayed the same: each and every one was a test to find the best successor.
‘For this world to be so dark and blood thirsty… what kind of expert created it…’
Dyon immediately decided to travel atop the charred bone trees. With his eyes as an advantage in the dark, he wouldn’t need to rely on the glowing soil. He couldn’t be sure if the other geniuses had eyesight boosting treasures, so he would still need to take precautions. Also, he would have to refrain from using arrays – they were too flashy in such a dark world.
‘The best bet for now is to make it to the tower…’
RRROOOOOAAARRRRR!
Dyon froze atop a thin branch, holding his breath. A few hundred meters to Dyon’s right, he heard a horrible beast crashing in his direction.
Dyon smiled bitterly, ‘Of course they wouldn’t let it be so easy…’
The charred bone trees snapped as a massive creature rushed for Dyon.
It was disgusting. Its head was too massive for its 4-meter-tall body, glowing a sickly grey color. Its body was naked and covered in pasty skin. It ran on all fours, carrying a sword that was broken in many places along its edge, giving it a sinister feel. But, what was the most shocking, was its distinctly bald human-like face.
Dyon jumped before the creature could break the tree he stood on, grabbing his sword from his back and grasping the branch of an adjacent tree.
Dyon looked down as the creature raged at him, ‘Since you want to die, I guess I’ll have to help you out?’
Dyon took no chances, slashing out with his full power.
The roar of the beast painted a picture of agonizing pain. It was so harsh and grating that Dyon almost felt pity for it.
He immediately let go of the branch, falling towards the injured creature. Dyon’s steps flashed, executing his celestial movement technique and appearing right below the neck of the creature and immediately slicing upwards.
Dyon skipped backwards watching the creature writhe on the ground, rapidly losing blood.
‘What the hell is that thing… it was only at the peak of the Foundation Stage, but I actually needed to use my sword to kill it… what’s going on…’
Dyon didn’t get time to think as more roars sounded around him. The ground rumbled as larger and larger creatures began running towards him.
Dyon smiled bitterly, ‘How could it be possible for me to not use arrays and do this at the same time …’
Dyon froze as a sad song began being sung by the creatures. It tickled his eardrums, plucking the strings of his heart with a solemn melody. He felt as though he had sunk into a mysterious state, his blood pumping wildly.
“Darkness prevails over all
The blood seeps into the ground
The strong slay the weak and stand tall
While the unfortunate are silenced without a sound
The sage of the demon empire is supreme
Unmatched and unprecedented
Unchallenged and without flaw
Immortal and esteemed
He leaves his legacy for only those as evil as he
Only those as ruthless and heartless
Cast away your humanity for strength
Drench the soil in the blood of your enemies
Plant the seed of your life within it
Become the next sage of the demon empire ”
Dyon had been about to slash and kill his next creature, but he felt something within him change. He shook his head, ‘Something’s wrong…’
‘Human-like creatures? A sage and yet a demon? Cast away humanity? Blood on the soil? What the hell?’
Dyon did something that would have made sense to no one else. He immediately sprinted to the dying creature and pumped as much of his Aurora and Celestial will into it as he could. It was much more difficult to heal this creature than it had been to heal Eli because its cultivation was so much higher than Eli’s.
However, even outside of Dyon’s expectations, something magnificent began to happen. Slowly, the once ugly creature became a young man. The wound on his neck slowly closing as Dyon spent more and more to heal him.
Dyon suddenly felt enraged. It was as though someone had been trying to lead him by the nose. It wasn’t just that, but rather the fact that it was actually for the purpose of making him commit such a heinous act.
‘You want me to throw away my humanity just for this piss poor amount of power? You’re imprisoning people in this god forsaken darkness? For how long exactly? Yet, you have the audacity to call yourself strong?’
The young man remained unconscious, but Dyon immediately sent him into the world within his ring before pulling Little Black out.
Looking into the little creature’s adorable black eyes, Dyon spoke, “Little Black, I need your help. We need to cleanse these people of the demonic qi that’s afflicting them. I need your celestial will.”
The truth was that Dyon had no idea how powerful Little Black was. When he first met him, he was faster than even his Aurora could keep up with – an Aurora that could clearly see Oliver attacking him at full speed. Yet, it seemed like the little guy was only getting stronger as time went on.
Little Black jumped out of Dyon’s arms, washing over a radius of 50meters with his celestial will and leaving him stunned.
‘Wow… His Celestial Will has already evolved into a first level intent… Wait, that’s not it… It’s a level 7 will, but he’s using his bloodline and crystal will to boost it. So, crystals and body cultivation can be used like that too?’
Dyon’s Celestial will was only at the 3rd level, so it was much more efficient for Little Black to do most of the work as he placed the unconscious people into his ring. Every time he ran into a creature, he repeated the same process.