Slime Immortal.

Chapter 188 The Spreading Rift

In the forest, several figures moved swiftly between the glowing shirts and rocks like agile nocturnal animals. The glow illuminated one of their slightly tired faces—it was Lyon, panting heavily.

He held his knees, his chest heaving, his gaze involuntarily fixed on the swift figure ahead.

Arno, a knight, how did he manage to be so agile?

It's unbelievable.

In addition, the knight's stamina far surpassed that of the assassin; after chasing for several minutes, he was only slightly out of breath.

Before Lyon could think further, he caught a glimpse of more Stoneborn converging from all parts of the forest.

Even Max was drawn to the shadowy creature darting through the trees, and popped out from behind a rock to join the chase.

"Leon, what are you doing here?" Max asked, looking at him with surprise as he continued running.

"Let's... let's not worry about that for now!"

Leon gasped, "Chase... catch up and we'll see. That dark figure... it's very likely a shadow creature."

"Heh heh... I'm so tired... I don't know what kind of magic potion Arno took to run so fast..."

Max had originally intended to say that the knight had strong explosive power, and it was normal for him to outspeed an assassin who hadn't used any skills in a short period of time if he wasn't wearing heavy armor.

But after only a few minutes, Max finally understood what Leon meant.

The figure in front of them not only showed no signs of slowing down, but actually moved further and further away.

He wore the same incredulous expression as Leon.

Damn, how does he manage to run so fast all the time?

"No... I can't... I can't run anymore..."

Lyon was the first to give in, abruptly stopping, his hands on his knees, panting heavily.

"This shadow creature... let whoever wants it have it... I... I don't have the strength to fight for it..."

The Stoneborn, who had also come from the edge of the forest, were mostly exhausted and stopped to catch their breath against the rough tree trunks.

Strangely, it seemed that upon seeing the Stoneborn give up the chase, the shadow creature stopped running and stopped on a collapsed temple covered with fluorescent moss.

Then it revealed a massive, jet-black body, like a mammoth, but if viewed from the side, the shadowy creature appeared much thinner from the side than from the front, like a piece of paper standing there.

“Leon, it’s stopped running! Look!” Max’s tone instantly turned to surprise. He endured the soreness in his muscles, turned back, and reached out to pull the almost limp Leon.

“Max…” Leon gasped for breath, looking at him helplessly, “Didn’t we agree that we’d be rivals once the trials started?”

Max was taken aback, then forcefully pulled Leon up: "Never mind all that. The trial is all about luck. If it takes a liking to you, you're yours; if it takes a liking to me, I'm mine."

Leon gestured for him to look towards the ruins: "Have you forgotten Uncle Arno? I'm afraid even if the two of us were tied together, we wouldn't be enough for him to beat with one hand."

The crowd gradually gathered in the open space surrounding the collapsed temple and saw that Arno had already arrived there, looking up at the enormous shadow beneath the ruins.

Arno looked at the huge thing and was a little troubled.

Nelly didn't teach him how to communicate with shadow creatures.

He hesitated for a moment, then tentatively picked up the glass bottle hanging from his waist and shook the powder inside at the huge shadow above.

Other Stoneborn who arrived one after another also took a chance and took out the potions, bone fragments and other items they had prepared. Some even began to chant ancient tunes that were said to soothe the shadows.

To everyone's surprise, the shadowy creature actually reacted, staring blankly at Arno with its empty eyes. Its several shadowy "legs" moved independently, with strange gaits, as if it wanted to get closer to Arno.

"It...it has its eye on Arno!"

"Uncle is about to succeed!"

The remaining Shi Yi's faces were immediately filled with disappointment.

A duel with Arno? They knew they didn't have the ability, so they could only watch helplessly.

Arno felt a little nervous. He slowly took a step forward, opened his arms, and made a harmless gesture, afraid that any movement he made would scare away this seemingly clumsy big guy.

"Om-"

However, before he could move forward, a figure materialized under the shadow of the luminous cedar, stretching its shadow between Arno and the shadow creature, blocking their path to approach.

"what happened?"

Why did our ancestors suddenly get involved?

The onlookers, including Shi Yi, looked at each other, puzzled.

Arno also stopped in his tracks, his face full of confusion, not understanding why his ancestor wanted to stop him.

The figure uttered some incoherent murmurs that sounded like sleep talking, as if they were addressed to him, or perhaps as a warning to the shadowy creature ahead.

After being blocked from approaching, the shadow creature became restless and trembled all over. Suddenly, its shadowy body split open, revealing a ferocious side, as if it had opened a jagged mouth.

"Watch out!" Everyone was startled and shouted immediately.

Just as the jagged mouth that occupied half of the body was about to fall, before Arno could dodge, the figure in front of him seemed to become a portal, and a head popped out from inside.

"Auntie's here!"

Facing the hideous shadow monster, Nelly continued to lean out half of her body, her right hand already gripping a short, jet-black blade, which she casually swung forward.

"Tear--"

The terrifying shadow monster, like a fragile piece of cloth torn apart, was neatly split in two, losing all its vitality, and lay limply on the ground.

Only then did Nelly fully step out of the portal of shadows, flicking the black dagger in her hand, which then disappeared as if it had merged into the shadows.

"Done." She clapped her hands, as if she had casually swatted a buzzing insect to death.

But before everyone could breathe a sigh of relief, a tadpole-shaped shadow suddenly darted out from the corpse, emitting a sharp, piercing screech, wagging a short tail, and frantically trying to escape the scene.

Nelly simply crossed her arms and calmly watched the "little tadpoles" darting around without stopping them.

The next moment, the shadows cast around the open space began to fluctuate violently as if boiling, and condensed into figures.

They remained silent, forming a wall of shadow that encircled the entire open space, trapping the "tadpole" inside.

"nailed it."

"Don't just stand there, come with me."

Nelly nodded in satisfaction, then waved to Arno, who was still somewhat dazed.

Arno strode over to Nelly's side, looking at the restless shadow and couldn't help but ask, "Auntie, what exactly is it?"

Nelly crossed her arms and said, "The Heart-Stealing Shadow is said to be the shadow left behind after the death of some demons, which was later created into shadow creatures by the Shadow Dragon Erin."

"They are natural enemies to other normal shadow creatures, able to parasitize them while also harming the shadows of living things."

"However, risks are often accompanied by opportunities. For shadow magicians and assassins, Mind Flayer can be considered a good partner."

She glanced around at the young stone people around her and raised her voice: "So, anyone who wants to come up can come up and try, otherwise it will be Arno's turn."

Upon hearing this, the other Stone Descendants quickly shook their heads and took a half-step back.

"Forget it, Auntie, let's look for something else..." "This thing is too strange, we can't handle it..."

Arno asked in confusion, "Then how do I form a contract with this guy? What if it bites me as soon as I get close?"

Nelly's gaze fell on the glass bottle in his hand, and she shrugged.

"It's simple. Just sprinkle the shadow powder on yourself. This stuff will give you the ability to come into contact with shadows temporarily. As for how to tame it, that's up to you."

Arno was taken aback. He looked down at the bottle of powder in his hand, which he had previously suspected was a "fool's trick." He was surprised by its magical effect and finally decided, "Okay, I'll give it a try."

Just as Arno was preparing to tame the Heartbreaker, Chen Yu, who had followed, had already hopped to the side of the torn shadow corpse.

He reached out his tiny gel hand and touched the shadowy substance that seemed to exist nowhere.

Hmm? It seems... edible?

With the spirit of pioneering new slime recipes in mind, Chen Yu opened the gel, and the gel body generated a suction force.

"Suck it-"

He quickly inhaled the shadowy remnants into his stomach, then let out a satisfied burp.

Looking into the gel at this point, you can see what appears to be a constantly flowing, dark substance inside the body.

And you know what? This shadow is really edible.

It had no flavor at all, and the texture was like chewing a big wad of cotton, but it did make his stomach feel a bit round and full.

A few seconds later, the shadow dissipated, and the panel popped up.

[Devour Digestion Lv.7 triggered - Shadow creature characteristics fully recorded, gain talent: Shadow Travel Lv.1]

Huh?
Nili's same skill?
What a good thing!

I'll study it carefully when I get back.

He suppressed his joy, jumped back onto Nelly's shoulder, and focused his gaze on the center of the field.

Arno was already prepared. He pulled out the cork and poured the gray-black powder inside over his head.

The dark dust fell, as if draping him in a thin, illusory veil of shadow.

The moment the powder touched his body, he felt as if the world around him had changed. The shadows that were originally just cast on the ground or objects now seemed to become tangible entities in his eyes.

He instinctively reached out and caught a ray of shadow that had fallen through the gaps in the leaves, feeling the strange sensation of touching the skin of a living thing on his fingertips.

He could hear clearly the murmurs of the seemingly silent figures around him.

"The Stoneborn Knight... interesting..."

"Your agility is not bad..."

"If he succeeds, he might become the first knight in the family's records to wield the power of shadow, but that doesn't align with the Shadow Lady's preferences..."

"Hehe, times are changing, and someone always has to bring about new changes."

"Don't forget, before Grand Duke Castor rose to power and established the path of the assassin, Stoneborn warriors were not uncommon..."

Is this the voice of our ancestors?

Arno composed himself and walked up to the Heart-Stealing Shadow that was constantly emitting sharp screams.

He tried to soften his tone, as if soothing a frightened animal: "Don't worry, little one, no one will hurt you anymore."

The Shadow Demon ignored him completely, and even set its sights on his shadow, opening its serrated mouth to bite him.

Arno, seeing that he couldn't communicate with it and that it was trying to bite him, also got angry. While dodging the bite, he grabbed its tail.

"Listen to me." Arno punched him, instantly shattering the shadow and stunning the Heart-Stealing Shadow.

Several seconds later, the shadow struggled to re-form a blurry head outline.

"Ah—!!!" It had just regained consciousness and started struggling again.

"Snapped!"

Arno slapped it.

"Will you listen to me? Will you listen to me?"

Arno completely switched to "physical persuasion" mode, punching Duoxinying again and again, causing her to wail incessantly.

After a while, Arno finally stopped, still feeling somewhat unsatisfied. For a moment, he felt that beating this punching bag was actually quite enjoyable.

"Are you satisfied?"

Duo Xinying was completely speechless at this moment, curled up into a ball, trembling and whimpering.

Seeing Arno clench his fist again, it quickly shook its head up and down to show its submission, and then, like living ink, it quickly wrapped around the back of Arno's hand, eventually solidifying into a teardrop-shaped black line.

The effect of the shadowy dust had barely faded when that strange sensation returned.

It was as if all the shadows around him had become physical, and even more strangely, it seemed that he could control his own shadow at will.

In Chen Yu's vision, the moment Arno successfully formed a contract with the Heart-Stealing Shadow, a light screen appeared above his head, its light flickering.

-

Reputation Title: Shadow Follower

Acquisition Requirements: Humans with a connection to the shadows must compete to find a shadow partner willing to form a pact, witnessed by an elder of the shadows or a shadow creature, and successfully adapt to the power of the shadows.

Title effect:

1. Reputation Mark: The name "Shadow Follower" circulates among shadow creatures and shadow sorcerers, bringing either recognition or vigilance.

2. Shadow Synergy: Can share some of the talent abilities with a contracted shadow, gaining enhanced shadow vision and stealth.

3. Initial Formation of Shadow Body: Initial mastery of one's own shadow, capable of simple shape changes.

Note: This is the first step into the world of shadow. When humanity learns to coexist with the shadow, it finds its own path between light and darkness.

-

Arno finally passed the trial.

Before Arno could fully experience and explore this newly acquired magical ability, Nelly came over.

"Congratulations, but let's get down to business first."

"Ask your new companion how it got deep into the fluorescent forest?"

Upon hearing this, Arno focused his mind and communicated with the Heart-Stealing Shadow.

At first, Duoxinying was somewhat hesitant and resistant, but under Arno's patient threats, she intermittently revealed the reason.

"It says there is an unstable dimensional rift deep in the forest, from which it entered, and that this rift is connected to the rift controlled by the vampires."

Then, Arno's gaze unconsciously turned to Chen Yu, who was perched on Nelly's shoulder, and he thought to himself, "Boss, it seems to have said that the rift also leads to the swamp."

(End of this chapter)