My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 869 - 870: Products

With a smile, she raised her hand, gesturing toward a skull that drifted in the air.

"I didn’t—he... ehm. It did."

Damon shifted his focus to follow the direction of her finger.

The object suspended in the void was clearly a human skull, its surface bleached to a stark white and spiderwebbed with ancient cracks. A dim, pale light flickered within the hollow eye sockets, shifting with a subtle intelligence as if it were observing him in return.

After observing the specimen for a silent moment, Damon finally spoke.

"And what’s that supposed to be?"

Before a response could be given, the sound of approaching footsteps resonated from around the corner.

"Oh, you’re back."

Lyn appeared, wearing a grin that was both broad and unrestrained.

"We’ve been waiting for you."

He approached with rapid strides, his movements fueled by visible excitement.

"Come on, we have so much to show you. You won’t believe what we’ve been up to—oh, and you should see Maw."

Grabbing Damon by the arm, Lyn began to pull him forward while Sithara added a gentle pressure to his back, ushering him along. Damon didn't resist, allowing their momentum to lead him deeper into the subterranean vault.

As they ventured further inside, a piercing screech tore through the air above.

Damon’s pace faltered as he tilted his gaze upward.

Peculiar cocoons were fastened to the ceiling in dense clusters. From their exteriors, a thick, sticky fluid seeped out, falling in slow droplets onto the stone floor. There were fewer than ten in sight.

His expression soured.

"What the hell happened while I was gone."

Lyn looked up as well, his smile suggesting the sight was perfectly normal.

"Yeah, the newborns aren’t ready yet. We only have a few hundred so far. They’re not that strong—simple drone sentinels at best."

The explanation was secondary to what Damon felt: a faint, crawling sensation of connection, like spectral threads pulling at the fringes of his consciousness.

They escorted him further until the corridor widened into a massive hall.

The first thing to catch Damon's eye was movement.

A familiar entity was circling Matia as she stood composed at the center of the chamber.

It was Maw.

Without warning, the creature lunged at her.

Matia merely adjusted her footing and nonchalantly swatted it away with a barrier, the sound of the collision booming through the room.

Even with the physical transformations, Damon recognized it immediately.

Maw had grown significantly. Though it remained an amorphous blob, several new maws were opening and closing across its flesh, flexing as if exploring their own functions. The organism seemed restless, perpetually shifting its shape.

Damon scanned the rest of the room.

Scores of floating skulls and wandering shades drifted throughout the space.

However, it was the knights that truly commanded his attention.

Figures clad in armor stood in a rigid, motionless formation, resembling statues forged from cold steel.

It was then that Damon sensed life.

A subtle connection tugged at him, both familiar and eerie. Yet, within these beings, there was no spark of selfhood.

There was only raw instinct.

"Hm."

The grunt escaped him involuntarily.

"Those are the second type of drones," Sithara explained softly. "Humanoid models. We had Maw intentionally shape them to resemble humans, only on the outside. Under those helms, they are anything but."

Lyn folded his arms, looking immensely satisfied.

"We’ve been experimenting. We made a significant breakthrough. Maw is an excellent specimen. These drones are the same ones you saw in the cocoons. They’re the weakest combat type Maw can produce, but they’re born quickly; low quality corpses are enough."

Damon listened to Lyn speak; the man’s tone was measured and his confidence was that of a veteran researcher from a prestigious magical academy.

Then again, Lyn was destined to be one of the founders of Lysithara.

Sithara moved closer, offering a meticulously written report with both hands. Her eyes searched Damon’s face, lingering expectantly.

He paused, momentary confusion crossing his mind.

Then, he realized.

Iris used to have that exact look.

It was the look of someone craving validation but too proud to ask for it.

While Iris had been defined by fire and sharp edges, Sithara was her complete opposite.

Damon reached out, resting his hand gently on her head.

"Good job, Sithara. I’m proud of you."

Her expression brightened instantly.

Regardless of her status as a prodigy, she was still just a child.

"As you can see," Lyn went on, "we tested their combat capabilities. They’re around first class advancement, slightly weaker individually. But their hive mind allows coordination, which makes them far more dangerous."

Damon moved toward the knights. They appeared to be outfitted in silver plate armor, clutching swords in their grip.

He reached out to tap one of them.

The resulting sound was hollow and wrong.

The armor was not a separate piece of equipment.

"They’re like bugs," Lyn noted, his quill scratching against parchment, "except instead of an exoskeleton, they possess a biological carapace resembling magical metal."

"Try hitting one," Lyn suggested with a gesture.

Damon did not hesitate.

He swung a casual strike.

The drone was launched backward, crashing into the wall with enough impact to fracture the stone. A splatter of red fluid stained the surface.

Slowly and with an unnatural jerky motion, it stood back up.

Damon’s brow furrowed.

That blow had real weight behind it—enough to kill a standard first class combatant instantly.

Lyn’s grin grew even wider.

"They adapt to damage. The initial models had blue blood and poor durability. After Matia destroyed them repeatedly, the hive learned. Maw created improved versions. The blood color was changed so they could blend in with real people."

Damon began flipping through the pages of the report.

The early iterations were monstrous and barely humanoid. The current versions were polished, efficient, and unsettlingly lifelike.

Matia walked over and gave him a brief nod, remaining silent.

Damon acknowledged her with a faint smile.

"There’s a limit, though," Lyn added, his voice turning grave. "High-end models are costly. The better the food Maw receives, the better the result. That means powerful corpses and massive amounts of organic material."

Damon closed the report and surveyed the vast chamber.

"Then it should be possible to create specialized models. Winged units for the sky. Mining variants. Dragons, wyverns. Ground tanks shaped like drakes. Sea serpents. An army that never tires and never hungers."

Sithara nodded slowly in agreement.

"Yes. It’s possible. But extremely expensive. We fed Maw millions of corpses during testing."

Damon nodded.

"I see. I assume these drones aren’t your best work."

Lyn’s smile became almost boyish.

"I’m glad you asked. Lazarak is in the inner chamber, working with our best creations. I can’t wait for you to see them. By my analysis, even you will be impressed."

Damon looked toward Matia.

She gave a single, firm nod.

If Matia found them impressive, then Damon was genuinely intrigued.