CHAPTER 874: 871: THE THIRD NIGHT (9)- BONUS

BOOM!!!

The sky trembled as the beam of pure shadow energy collided with the colossal wall that had risen from the depths of the Dying City.

A titanic wall made of the Dying City’s earth had surged up in less than a second. It was hundreds of meters high and wide enough to blot out entire districts of the ruined city.

Corey’s chest heaved slightly as he felt a minor strain on his already strained Celestial Mana Veins.

’Probably should have used another skill instead. Causing the ground to rise up to almost a kilometer high is not really the best thing to do.’

He grimaced as he felt nearly twenty percent of his mana vanish in one go.

Although it might seem like it was just twenty percent of his mana, the entire Thirteenth Dawn did not possess up to twenty percent of his mana combined.

If an average Tier 6 were to use the amount of mana he used in one go, suffering only a loss of consciousness would be a blessing to them.

As for why he decided to use such a large scale skill, it was because he needed a distraction... A massive distraction.

He could have created a much smaller earth wall, but he chose not to for several reasons.

And one of them was that he also wanted to obstruct the view of the colossal shadow.

’It’s shadow beam has a homing ability. And if that beam touches her, it would have disintegrated her bones before her body even notices the pain.’

And the wall did its job.

For a few seconds.

Cracckkkkk!!!

The titanic earth wall fractured, and then the fractures grew.

Then it shattered.

The beam of shadow pierced through like a hot knife through wax, and the explosion that followed was enough to flatten the nearby landscape.

Winds howled.

Rubble flew.

What remained of the nearby buildings were tossed into the air like the debris of a child’s tantrum.

Chunks of the shattered wall rained down like boulders, and the streets below cracked from the impact. Dust and fragments created a massive storm on the ground.

Although the wall did not last long, it was more than enough for Rhea to avoid the beam.

The second the wall was hit, she dived.

Using the fraction of time the colossal shadow spent obliterating the wall, she twisted her body midair and pushed her wings against the air in a violent burst. Her body curved into an upward arc, then she spun sharply to the left. Her wings folded inward then flared out in less than second.

But despite moving so quickly, the size of the beam was immense and its speed was horrendously quick.

The beam grazed the tip of her tail feathers, and a line of smoke trailed behind them.

Corey quickly used Dreamfire to burn all traces of shadow energy in her before it rooted itself deeply into her body, and then he used Dream Healing

to heal her body.

"This thing is catching up!" Rhea’s voice snapped through the chaos, and her voice was still like that of a young girl despite the urgency.

Corey remained flat against her back with one hand pressed into her feathers, and the other clasped against his chest.

"I know."

He could see it. The colossal shadow entity was no longer struggling to keep up. Its speed was drastically faster, and despite Rhea burning up her reservoir of spirits to drastically increase her speed, the colossal shadow was faster.

The absorption of the shadows of the Dying City had granted it a terrifying boost. Besides, it was a Tier 6 and Rhea was just a Tier 3 like him.

"Corey," Rhea snapped. "Do something. I can’t keep on running like this forever. I’m going to burn through every single spirit I’ve been able to get through you."

"Three minutes."

His voice was calm as it resounded in Rhea’s mind.

"I need three minutes. I have to remove the shadow energy in my body. My instincts are telling me not to ignore it in the slightest."

Rhea swerved to the right, dodging dozens of boulders the colossal shadow had thrown at them.

"Three minutes! Not a single second more!"

Corey closed his eyes, and gave no response.

The focus of his Eyes of Omniscience shifted from his surroundings to only him. Or to be more accurate, the insides of his body.

A realm of darkness lit up by stars, glowing threads, starlit consciousness, and flowing rivers of mana all flashed in his eyes before he focused on the inconsistency in his body.

The shadow energy was like oil in water. It was like a foreign substance that slithered through his celestial mana veins and wrapped around his nerves and blood.

It corroded and interfered.

It was not enough to kill him, but it was enough to dull the response of his body. And he hated being dulled.

In fact, any lag in response in a battle at his level was extremely detrimental because it could be the difference between life and death.

’I need to flood it with so much mana that it would be diluted, and then I’ll use Dreamfire to burn out the remnants.’

Just as he was about to start the cleansing process, two Stars of Consciousness pulsed, and then they brought his attention to something.

A book.

Two books to be precise.

One was from the Archive, and another was a time he had recorded from the Central Library of the Underworld.

Both of them glowed in his mind, and both of them had information on shadow energy.

They opened simultaneously, and Corey began to read.

’Shadow is not just absence of light. It is the echo of form. The silent twin that follows you, knows you, and mimics you. Its memory made manifest. A reflection born from light, not the lack of it.’

’Shadow Energy is the living essence of these echoes. It lingers where death has walked, where silence has ruled, where the unseen has festered. It is subtle and invasive. It does not clash. It creeps.’

Corey raised a brow.

’In combat, Shadow Energy can be used to conceal, to strike from unexpected angles, to create phantoms or distort forms. It is favored by assassins, deceivers, spiritmancers, and the likes.’

’Shadow Energy is powerful, but it has its cost. It is not truly yours. It feeds on intention, emotion, and clarity. The more you use it, the more it will know you. And if you let it linger too long... it will replace you.’

Corey frowned deeply. ’Replace?’