The moment the ice falcon sealed the mark inside Ceug's body, that Risen Lord felt the interference and tried to reverse it at all costs — but failed.
But as soon as the ice shattered, urgency took over and he sacrificed part of his soul to use the mark and take control of Ceug's body.
He opened his eyes, then felt the fragment of his heart pulse, but it was badly damaged. Without delay, he stabilized it. But the damage would take time to heal.
Even with him here now, those injuries to the fragment were a major limiter. He snorted, and instantly, the entire abyssal nest froze over.
With a thought, he clearly sensed a presence unlike anything or anyone else. He turned in that direction, and it was like their gazes locked.
They could both feel each other easily. A twisted smile appeared on that face, he clenched his fists, and a large mass of black power was drawn toward him. It was the remains of the Risen Commanders, who had kept resisting to the very last second.
All Risen were created by and connected to some Risen Lord. But they could never even dream of resisting a different Risen Lord.
After absorbing everything, he decided to take a look.
His body was covered in darkness. With a single step, in an instant, he appeared hundreds of meters ahead.
Darian and the others only saw a pair of red eyes and a mass of black power suddenly approaching. That figure gave off the purest presence of death.
He stopped in front of Niara like distance meant nothing. His eyes locked onto the slug.
"Hm? The Celestial Shadow created you?"
A cold, guttural voice echoed.
And in the next second, he answered himself:
"No… your soul's tied to a mediocre mortal… looks like a Spiritual Guardian, but also an Invoker... How do you have the Celestial Shadow's power?"
Darian felt the pressure on his soul ease a little. But he was already practically doomed, and the despair started to take over.
He took a deep breath and calmed down. No matter the situation, he had to fight to the end.
"I don't know what you're talking about… it's just my blessing," he replied, trying to hide his emotions.
"Your blessing? That's impossible. Our power comes from the Celestial Shadow, an entity that transcended the heavenly laws. Blessings might twist reality, sure, but they've got limits. They don't break the most basic rules."
He explained calmly, like it wasn't any kind of secret.
"Our power absorbs people's karma energy. Sounds simple, but that energy affects fate and life itself — it can be devastating… or the complete opposite. When we absorb everything, the heavenly laws are forced to burn their own power to give that energy back to people in another life. Losing energy means weakening the universe. If that goes beyond the natural recovery limit… the universe can die."
His eyes narrowed.
"Get it? What we do goes completely against the most basic laws. It can't be a blessing."
Darian already had some idea about karma and the heavenly laws. It all came from that book. Now, getting confirmation that his power wasn't exactly a blessing, he didn't know what to think. He'd just awakened part of it as a kid… but why?
The Risen Lord noticed the confusion in his eyes and scoffed.
"If you don't know, then it doesn't matter. The Celestial Shadow once said: Sometimes, Heaven's Will subtly interferes with things. But it never acts directly. Mortal problems should be solved by mortals."
He took a step forward and went on:
"Since we're somewhat alike, we don't have to be enemies. This universe has nothing to do with you. It's just a place to get stronger, remember? We could benefit from each other."
His cold eyes locked onto Darian's.
But Darian felt an overwhelming hatred and fear. And it wasn't his.
It came from Niara.
That figure continued calmly, "I'll eliminate all the Risen and destroy this nest. Then I'll flee, taking a large amount of resources with me. With that, you and I could—"
"Fuck off."
Darian cut him off without hesitation.
The red eyes locked on him, the figure's presence becoming sharper and even more threatening. Still, it stayed composed and continued:
"Don't be reckless. Are you afraid of what that summoner of yours might do? Don't worry. Her power is similar to mine. I could teach you to—"
"Fuck off." Darian interrupted again, not even willing to listen. "I was summoned here and I agreed to help them in this fight. As long as my partner and all of them trust me, I won't betray them. I don't care what benefits I'd get or how much pain I'd go through. I might even die here, but I won't go back on my word."
The figure snorted, like he'd just heard the dumbest thing in the world.
"What sentimental nonsense. You just made a deal with them. As long as both sides gain something, it's fine. I guarantee your gains would be much bigger with me. The Celestial Shadow only wants loyalty—"
"Cut the crap. You're just a puppet of another bastard."
Darian spat the words, his voice full of a hatred even he didn't understand. Something inside him burned at the mention of this "Celestial Shadow."
It didn't come from Niara. It came from him. A deep, gut-level disgust, like he'd gone through something like this before… but there was no confusion — only the urge to destroy anything that tried to force him to submit again.
Suddenly, the entity started radiating a thick, black miasma. The entire nest began to collapse again, just from his overwhelming will.
"Well…" his voice grew more distorted. "None of that matters. I'll have all the time in the world to study you. You know, it's funny… You really think you're gonna die and just go home? Hahahaha…"
He raised his hand, and Ceug's body began to crack, like it was shattering from the inside. Black fissures spread across his skin, leaking a pulsing darkness.
The entity watched the process for a moment, testing the limits of that body. Then, he snorted. The cracks stopped growing.
He had very little power and few options left. He couldn't afford to waste more time.
Darian, meanwhile, was thinking a mile a minute, trying to find a way out.
Then, the sound of a heartbeat echoed. The entity scoffed, and a dozen shadowy, ethereal hands burst from the body, rushing straight toward Darian.
'Huh?'
For a split second, something stirred inside him. Those hands… that energy…
Niara was frozen. Everyone behind her was the same — they couldn't even breathe. That thing moved toward Darian, and panic took hold of her…
But…
He moved by instinct and waved his hand.
And everything froze, just inches from his body.
The entity's eyes widened.
"What…?"
Darian was stunned for a moment too. Those hands were identical to the karma energy he used to manipulate and pull toward himself. The only difference was the crushing density… maybe he only managed it because Ceug's body and this entity's power weren't even 0.1% of the real deal.
Could this thing really control it properly with just a sliver of its power?
He tested it.
It worked.
Then he smiled coldly.
"You wanna mess with me using this?"
The figure narrowed its eyes at the challenge. Meanwhile, everyone behind Darian stared wide-eyed in disbelief.