My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 938 - 939: Venom From A Cage

Damon swallowed hard, his throat constricting with dread. He had nearly uttered the name of Obamion out loud just moments ago.

His fingers jerked at his sides.

He was aware of several true beings' names. Among them, the Unknown God stood as the most horrifying. Besides him, Damon recalled Muses, the deity of inspiration. That name had appeared to him during his death. The System had pronounced it back then, in a tone both chilly and detached.

He had always refrained from voicing it.

At this moment, he felt even greater relief for his caution.

Next came Minerva, the Goddess of Doom. It seemed improper to invoke a god's name casually, yet this realm belonged to her. He had mentioned her name on multiple occasions.

These deities appeared unconcerned about concealing their identities. Solely the Unknown God’s name had vanished, wiped out by Doom herself. Or maybe it was erased because even he despised it.

A certain poem touched on that subject.

Damon pulled his mind to the now and advanced, his boots crunching through the powdery bone remnants.

"What do you plan to do with us?"

The directness in his voice caused the group to stiffen. Terror hung in the atmosphere like a rancid stench. How could it be otherwise? Seras had been compelled to kneel simply by echoing a name that Damon had almost blurted out thoughtlessly.

"I intend no injury to you," Morticai answered fluidly. "I merely detected the mark I had set on a vanquished foe activate. It was nothing more than a spark of interest."

Damon’s gaze tightened.

Mark.

He looked toward the luminous inscriptions etched into the massive bones surrounding them.

"What mark?"

Seras gradually stood up next to him, her complexion still ashen. She brushed the perspiration from her forehead using the back of her hand and regulated her breaths.

"Certain entities persist in their rebellion," Morticai went on. "In earlier encounters with them, I would inquire about their reasons for opposing the gods."

A brief hesitation.

"They invariably fought back. Never offering a satisfactory response."

Damon’s eyes wandered over the cave walls, tracing the bending spine that vaulted above like a temple of mortality.

"Did you slay this entity?"

Quietness prevailed.

Then the illumination on the bones intensified, as if the chill in the air deepened.

"Yes. Indeed, I did. This was among those inferior beings who couldn't emerge without a monster core. They extracted their mana core and shed their monstrous essence, the destiny assigned at birth. Afterward, they pretended to belong to the favored races that naturally lack a monster core. They boldly altered their soul's essence and defied the divine will."

The scorn in his words was unmistakable.

Damon instinctively looked toward Wendy.

Her fingers clenched faintly into the fabric of her sleeves. Her features grew even whiter.

She had formerly existed as a monster. The Unknown God had excised her core. That intervention transformed her into something different. Neither completely human nor entirely beastly. A hybrid in between.

The quietness drew out tautly.

Morticai gave a soft throat-clearing.

"Pardon my words. I merely harbor a stronger aversion to such beings than to ordinary monsters who embrace their role in the omniverse. A soul and its inherent nature should remain unaltered. Particularly for base monsters."

Damon’s jaw clenched.

"Is that your view," he questioned steadily, "or your god’s?"

"My god remains indifferent to such minor matters," Morticai shot back without delay. "We Puritans handle the necessary actions."

A subtle sigh resonated across the cavern.

"Regrettably, I am confined within this jail by a particular loathsome demon, preventing direct intervention."

Damon’s stare grew keen.

A vile demon.

Was he alluding to Mugu?

Confirmation was essential.

He moved ahead a bit, dropping his tone and infusing it with scorn.

"Do you mean that despicable rogue? The fiend who proclaims himself the Wicked Prophet? The vermin who betrayed the goddess. The individual called Mugu."

He ensured the animosity in his voice rang true.

"I perceive you know his name well," Morticai stated icily. "Correct. He is the culprit. The betrayer. To imagine that some of us once deemed him tolerable. Ultimately, what else from a lowly realm outcast."

Damon maintained a composed facade, even as his mind honed itself.

That settled it.

An intruder from elsewhere.

The identical contempt. The same arrogance displayed by Ittorath. Regardless of their composed or polite demeanor, they were aggressors pursuing their own agendas.

Seras drew in a measured breath and stood erect, although a subtle shake persisted in her hands.

"If so," she declared calmly, "you hold no dealings with us. We will proceed onward."

The radiance throbbed once.

"Quite right. I hope your travels remain secure. Yet the route before your group appears perilous. I suspect you prefer not to confront an undead of the seventh advancement class."

A few expedition members grew rigid. One fellow gulped noticeably.

Still, Seras held firm.

An undead, no matter its seventh-class status, proved better than facing Rexagon, who continued his fury beyond.

"We pursue a mission that will transform our realm eternally," she affirmed, raising her head. "Should our lives be required for our people's ultimate benefit, then let it be."

The luminescence converged, compacting.

"Such valor. Your goddess surely delights in followers so loyal."

The sheen expanded, bending the space in front of them.

"You appear bound for the sea. Permit me to aid you."

Reality twisted. Skeletal remains and shadows withdrew like drapery, exposing the far-off gleam of the waters.

"Go ahead. This represents the extent of my capability with the fragment of myself left here."

Seras paused. Her gaze shifted to Damon.

He probed outward with his perceptions warily.

No overt hostility registered.

He offered a minor nod.

Nevertheless, they verified it. A mage inscribed a rock with enchantment and hurled it across. No reaction occurred. No blast. No warping.

They crossed one after another.

Until Damon and Wendy lingered behind.

Wendy approached the gateway.

The gleam wavered.

It quivered.

"Hold on. What... you are a—"

Damon allowed no completion of the phrase.

With one push, he propelled Wendy ahead and bounded behind, hauling her completely across as the aroma of brine and decay invaded his nostrils.

From behind, Morticai’s tone warped, shedding its silkiness.

"Vile creature posing as a female. I condemn you. You presume much. It was you. You were the presence I detected."

The passage closed abruptly, like a door banged shut.

Damon instinctively yanked Wendy aside, positioning himself marginally ahead of her as the last reverberations arrived.

"I condemn you all. I condemn you."

The ocean breeze roared. The skeletal crest had vanished.

Seras gazed at the vacant spot the gateway had occupied, bewilderment marking her expression.

A curse.

She creased her brow slightly.

"Hm."

Damon exhaled gradually.

Pity for Morticai.

Bound and impotent, he could only hurl bile from his enclosure.