My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 840 - 841: New Shadow

Intricate magic seals covered the floor and walls, pulsing with a rhythmic light that resembled veins throbbing beneath flesh.

A pair of youths, a boy and a girl, navigated the complex formation with extreme caution as they monitored the ongoing process. Their hair was matted with perspiration, and dark rings were etched deeply under their eyes from exhaustion. Occasionally, one would pause to wipe their brow with a shaking hand before silently resuming their duties.

Damon had previously ignored the work Lazarak was doing with Lyn and Sithara. That changed in this moment.

Witnessing the staggering complexity of the arcane network, he finally understood how far beyond his expertise this truly was.

Their grasp of magic operated on a completely different plane. While Damon viewed magic solely as a tool for efficient slaughter, they treated it as a craft, a structured language. They perceived its true nature rather than just its capacity for destruction.

A cocoon sat at the heart of the array, distorted and covered in layers of shimmering seals that seemed to breathe in the dim light.

Lazarak moved toward it. Though he appeared to be a handsome ten-year-old boy, his sunken eyes and messy hair spoke of extreme fatigue. His dark robes, crafted from concentrated darkness, billowed even though the air was still.

He came to a halt before the cocoon.

"It was a long process," he whispered. "This represents the peak of our efforts. Extra time wouldn't have allowed us to improve it further."

Leaning toward the cocoon with crossed arms, he let out a weary breath.

"Matia served as our blueprint. We even seized a standard fairy to analyze the soul differences in hopes of replicating the method. However, our findings were limited."

He bit his lip, a flash of irritation crossing his features.

"Each soul is entirely unique. They might share a similar structure, but the actual execution is worlds apart."

Damon gave a slow nod. He didn't entirely grasp the technicalities, and he was fine with that.

"So, what is the procedure?" he inquired.

Stepping aside, Lazarak pointed at the central cocoon.

"Just thrust your hand inside and discharge every bit of your mana and shadow energy."

Damon’s brow furrowed. "That is all?"

He had assumed he would need to help reshape the soul.

"I will handle that part," Lazarak said bluntly, as if sensing his thoughts. "You are far too much of a brute for such delicate work."

Damon gave a small shrug and sighed.

With no further delay, he pressed his palms against the surface of the cocoon. His eyes widened as he unleashed a massive torrent of mana. Dark ribbons of shadow energy surged out immediately after, saturating the cocoon like black ink spreading through clear water.

The reaction from the seals was instantaneous.

They turned a deep, abyssal black while tendrils of shadow rose from the floor. The cocoon began to bloat, its exterior shaking violently as the entity within fought to break free prematurely.

Lazarak reacted swiftly, moving to the far side of the magic circle.

"Keep going," he shouted. "Maintain the flow!"

Dropping to one knee, he touched the seals and began chanting under his breath. Damon couldn't tell if it was a standard spell or an ancient tongue; he was too preoccupied with the task at hand.

A piercing shriek erupted from the cocoon.

Damon nearly recoiled to cover his ears, but he forced himself to stay, shoving his hands harder against the vibrating shell.

Warmth trickled down his skin.

Blood began to seep from his ears, then his nose. Before long, he was bleeding from every orifice.

Lazarak was in a similarly grim state.

Despite the toll, neither of them broke their focus.

Minutes passed like hours before the internal resistance suddenly vanished.

Damon started to exhale in relief, but then a powerful sensation hit him.

A violent suction force latched onto his arms.

He was being drained.

The force was savage.

It began consuming his mana and shadow energy without limit. Damon attempted to pull back, but his limbs were effectively fused to the cocoon.

The object was drinking his very essence.

His shadow energy was the first to go. Since his reserves were already low, his shadow hunger flared up dangerously as it disappeared. The cocoon turned into a solid, pitch-black mass of shadow.

The drain continued.

Damon fell to his knees as his shadow energy plummeted below ten percent. His physical form flickered, shifting into a ravenous shadow entity. Before he could regain control, his mana was sucked away just as ruthlessly.

For the first time in ages, he caught a glimpse of the bottom of his mana pool.

The cocoon began to contract as it devoured everything he had.

Then, his mana hit zero.

Damon slumped over.

With his shadow energy completely gone, his body returned to its human state. Agony surged through him as his health points began to drop, and system alerts flashed crimson before his eyes.

[Shadow Energy Depleted]

[Shadow Energy Depleted]

He fought for air. Hearing those warnings again filled him with a cold dread.

His vision began to fade into darkness.

Instinctively, his heart of shadow activated, pulling in minuscule amounts of shadow energy from the environment. Taking a ragged, trembling breath, he forced himself to stand, though he remained unsteady.

He was facing a serious problem.

While his heart of shadow could replenish shadow energy, mana was a different matter. As an outsider, he was physically incapable of absorbing ambient mana from the world. That was an unbreakable law.

He could only recover by using mana cores.

He looked toward the cocoon, which was now pulsing as the shadows solidified into a physical form.

"Was it successful?" Lazarak asked hoarsely from the ground, his face stained with blood.

Damon remained silent.

The system had not yet provided a notification.

Then, a gentle chime rang in his mind.

[You have created a shadow.]

Damon’s strength nearly failed him.

He felt a piece of his soul being wrenched away, forced into the cocoon to serve as its spark of life.

A sharp crack filled the room.

The cocoon burst apart, sending shards of shadow flying in every direction. Damon raised his arm to protect his face.

When the dust settled, the center of the formation appeared empty.

Only jagged remnants of shadow lay scattered on the floor.

He squinted, searching for the result.

He saw nothing.

Crunch. Crunch.

A subtle noise broke the quiet of the chamber.

Damon moved toward the sound.

Something small was stirring amidst the debris. He pushed a large shard of shadow aside.

Tucked underneath was a creature no bigger than a house cat.

It was a round, featureless blob of shadow. It lacked eyes but possessed a wide maw filled with needle-like teeth. It was currently preoccupied with happily munching on the fragments of its own cocoon.

Damon stared in disbelief.

"This," he whispered, "is supposed to be one of the most dreaded entities to ever exist."

He let out a sigh, recognizing the classification immediately.

It was a growth variant.

"Well," he said, rubbing his tired eyes, "I suppose I will just have to conquer the world with your terrifying cuteness."