Part 1: The Will of the Hidden Dragon
In the gloom of the cave, the Celestial Roulette spun, each click echoing like a heartbeat of doom in Samael's mind. The Dark Red Aura (Mythic) was so close… but the momentum died in the Golden (Legendary) zone.
Click… click… click…
The needle stopped. [Result: "Imperial Golden Lion Guard" (Legendary Grade).] (Description: 50 defensive soldiers. Potential limited to the Saint Realm.)
Samael clenched his teeth, frustration burning his throat. "Trash!" he growled to himself. "I don't need shields, I need assassins. I'll never wipe out two clans before the Valois arrive like this."
Then something rumbled under his skin, in the very marrow of his bones. It wasn't the Void: it was older, more absolute, an innate tyranny in his unknown blood.
[ALERT! Variable Detected: [Primordial Blood ???].] [Host's Will rejects the inferior destiny.] [Forcing the Roulette…!]
An invisible force jolted the needle, breaking its orbit. It jumped, disobeying fate, and fell into the dark red abyss.
[MYTHIC LUCK STRIKE!] [Successful Summon: "Legion of Silent Shadows."]
The ground whispered, opening with an unnatural crack. No light emerged, but a liquid darkness, thick as tar, vomiting a cold that froze the breath in the cave. In absolute silence, figures emerged from the puddles: black hoods, claws of solid smoke, nonexistent faces. Each brought with them an echo of forgotten death.
There were one hundred specters. At the front, a colossal figure, two meters of terror wrapped in chains of smoke and holding a rusted scythe, knelt.
[Unit Leader: Malak, the Reaper of Silence.] Rank: Mythic (unlimited growth potential). Current Level (Malak): Transcendence Stage 9 (Peak). Legion Level: Qi Sea Stage 9 (Peak). Restriction: Limited by the Host's current cultivation.
Samael felt the bond. They weren't servants: they were his own shadows, his will with claws and fangs.
"Rise, Malak," he ordered. "Tonight, the Chen Family will learn to fear the darkness of the Morningstars."
Part 2: The Mist Strategy
Kael and Seraphina approached, tense at the icy silence left by the Legion.
"We have 48 hours before the North makes a move," Samael said, his voice ringing like a decree. "Malak and his shadows will clean the mansion. Kael, you are the outer wall; if anyone escapes, cut them down before you count to three."
Kael swallowed hard, his eyes fixed on where Malak had disappeared.
"Patriarch, those things… they're unnatural. They smell like a desecrated grave."
"They are our invisible protection," Samael affirmed. "The Legion will be the Morningstar's hidden dagger: no one will know they exist until a claw is at their throat."
Samael reviewed his new technique: ["Dimensional Slash": a cut that ignores distance by folding space. Cost: 40% of Qi. Risk: tearing the meridians after repeated use.]
"Only two or three attempts," he murmured to himself. "Absolute precision. If I fail, I die."
Part 3: The Carnage at the Chen Mansion
Night fell on the Chen Mansion with unusual weight. The guards felt their skin crawl, the air dense with foreboding. The torches burned smaller, as if afraid of whatever lurked.
Patriarch Chen drank tasteless tea, alongside the Ancestor (Transcendence Stage 7). Both feigned security, but fear floated beneath the surface.
"Relax," said the Ancestor, his voice a whisper of arrogance. "My spiritual sense covers half a kilometer. If Samael approaches, I'll disintegrate him."
But death did not come through the door.
From the walls, the Legion's shadows slid forth, a silence so absolute that hearts stopped to listen.
In the tower, a guard yawned. A black hand emerged from his shadow, grabbed his ankle and dragged him away. The wet, crunchy sound of bone and flesh was devoured by the shadow itself before the scream was born.
In the barracks, the shadow slithered under beds, transforming into ethereal blades. Throats, tendons, and eyes were cut in a blink. Blood splattered the walls, but there were no screams: the specters absorbed the sound along with the last breath.
One hundred, two hundred men fell. Suffocated, dismembered, crushed in the gloom. The spirit dogs tried to howl, but were decapitated before the sound emerged.
In less than ten minutes, the mansion was a silent slaughterhouse. Only the smell of iron and despair remained, thick as foul mist.
Part 4: The Price of Arrogance
In the main hall, Ancestor Chen's eyes snapped open, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Blood!" he roared, his voice between panic and disbelief. "The smell is unbearable! Where are the guards?!"
BAM! The doors burst open. Samael strode atop a carpet of black mist, the Obsidian Fang dripping fresh blood. Behind him, Malak floated, his scythe distilling pure terror. The candles went out, devoured by their presence.
"Good evening," Samael said, ironically. "I've come to collect what is owed in blood."
Patriarch Chen trembled, retreating until he tripped over his own dignity.
"Ancestor, kill him!" he screeched.
The Ancestor unleashed his pressure. "Demonic brat! Spear Technique: Heaven Piercer!"
A blue Qi spear shot through the air, crackling, able to split steel. Samael didn't move. Malak intercepted.
CLANG! The clash of scythe and spear made the building tremble. Malak, Stage 9, didn't even flinch.
"Stage 9?!" The Ancestor paled, terror breaking his voice. "How do you have a servant stronger than you?!"
"Malak, hold him. Don't kill him. He's mine."
Malak dissolved into smoke, enveloping the Ancestor. Black chains burst from the ground, piercing shoulders and thighs, pinning him like a broken puppet.
The Ancestor screamed, his Qi erupting in vain. Samael took a deep breath, the Void burning in his veins, his pulse throbbing with pain.
"Sword Art: Dimensional Slash."
With a slash in the air, space groaned. A black line appeared on the Ancestor's neck, ignoring armor, distance, and fate.
Samael collapsed to his knees, the world spinning, half his Qi evaporated instantly. But the slash was absolute. The Ancestor's head slid off slowly, falling silently to the floor.
Part 5: Harvest and Warning
Patriarch Chen, seeing his protector beheaded and Malak approaching, fell to his knees in his own urine.
"Mercy! I'll give you the mines! I'll give you my daughter! Whatever you want!"
Samael wiped the blood from his lip, looking at him with a mix of contempt and fatigue.
"I don't need what you can offer. I'll take everything."
He placed his hand on the Patriarch's head. A torrent of golden light burst forth, swirling like a hurricane. Samael felt foreign memories, a glimpse of childhood, fears, the bitter taste of defeat… And then, nothingness. The Patriarch aged decades in seconds, reduced to a dry, gray mummy.
[Mission: Progress 50%.] [Chen Family: EXTERMINATED.] [Luck harvested: +4,000 points.]
Samael stood, staggering, the smell of blood sticking to his skin. "Malak, clean the corpses," he ordered, his voice barely a whisper. "Make it look like they vanished. Let the City Lord only find emptiness."
He went out to the gardens. The air was heavy, each breath bitter. Kael waited, his sword still dripping.
"Patriarch?" Kael supported him when Samael faltered.
"I'm fine. The Dimensional Slash… it's costly. But it works."
He looked toward the Liu mansion in the distance. "We'll rest for an hour. Then, the Lius. Before dawn, Golden City will have two voids where once there was power."
Author's Note (VoidScribe):
The Legion of Shadows has proven terrifying and perfect for eradicating common enemies, but true bosses require Samael to risk body and soul. The price in Qi is real—and time is pressing.
Current Status: Family Luck: 8,800 points Samael's Condition: 60% Qi remaining Time: 40 hours
But the Liu Family has already called the North. Alaric Valois knows something is happening.
In the next chapter: The City Lord awakens. Samael must confront the Lius and avoid the attention of the Origin Realm. Will Malak be able to hide the presence of the Dragon before an expert of such caliber?
If the shadow massacre gave you chills, leave "Blood" in the comments and share your Power Stone.