My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Chapter 1167: Chapter 1168: What Comes Next

"..."

Damon immediately ordered the shadow drones to retreat.

There was no point sacrificing them.

He spread his wings and shot upward, allowing the raging winds to carry him higher and higher.

The flock gave chase.

When he reached the heart of the storm, Damon suddenly turned.

He stretched out his hand.

Black flames erupted from his palm like a volcanic eruption.

The inferno collided with the raging winds.

The next instant...

A colossal vortex of black fire was born.

The flaming cyclone swallowed everything in its path.

The rocs shrieked in agony as feathers ignited and flesh blackened within the burning tempest.

Damon himself was blasted away by the violent shockwave, smashing through a mountainside before crashing into the rocks below.

Inside his mind, the familiar voice of the System echoed repeatedly.

[You have slain Roc of the Anarchy Mountains.]

[You have slain Roc of the Anarchy Mountains.]

[You have slain Roc of the Anarchy Mountains.]

[You have slain Roc of the Anarchy Mountains.]

The notifications continued to ring through his mind as burning carcasses fell from the sky like meteors.

Evangeline was losing patience with each passing day.

Once again, she stood before the barrier surrounding the Anarchy Mountains.

Yet...

She could not cross it.

The mountain barrier rejected anyone above the Third Class.

Well...

She could force her way through.

However, the moment she tried, the mountain itself retaliated, pushing her back outside.

There was some abstruse law governing this place.

One even she couldn’t comprehend.

She wasn’t the only one waiting outside.

For whatever reason, Renata and Lilith had also arrived.

Apparently, they had come to meet Damon...

Only to miss him.

Fortunately, they possessed one of Lazarak’s contingency devices.

Damon had taken control of it and entered the mountains through possession.

Evangeline still hadn’t gotten over the fact that Damon could simply possess things.

Eventually, she stopped questioning the parts of Damon that made absolutely no sense.

"You really need to relax."

Lilith Astranova’s gentle voice came from behind her.

When Evangeline turned around, the pleasant aroma of fresh tea and pastries drifted toward her.

Renata and Lilith sat at a small table beneath a large tree, calmly enjoying tea while watching the mountains in the distance.

"We can’t go in."

"It won’t do anyone any good if we worry."

"This is Damon."

"There’s no need."

Renata lifted her teacup and took another sip.

Evangeline let out a dry laugh.

"That’s exactly the problem."

"This is Damon."

"I have every reason to worry."

"Yes, he’s competent."

"But he’s also the unluckiest person I’ve ever met."

"He has an uncanny ability to stumble into the most dangerous situation imaginable."

Lilith fell silent.

Unfortunately...

That was true.

Damon was practically an instrument of misfortune.

Even now, he still possessed Deathless.

True...

It hadn’t acted up in quite some time.

Yet that only made Lilith more uneasy.

Whenever it remained quiet...

The disaster that followed was always far worse.

Deathless was a skill that constantly threw Damon into danger so long as he desired to live.

And if he ever desired to die...

It would do everything within its power to keep him alive.

To Lilith, it was a constant reminder that choice was real.

But not every choice was entirely our own.

Sometimes choices were shaped by despair.

By fear.

By greed.

By love.

By hatred.

Push someone far enough...

And you could guide the choices they believed they made themselves.

Perhaps...

That was what the Unknown God truly represented.

"That may be true..."

Lilith finally said.

"But worrying won’t help anyone."

Beside her, Renata frowned at the communication device in her hands.

Her fingers trembled ever so slightly as she tried once more.

Nothing.

"I still can’t reach Damon."

"It seems his communication device has been compromised."

There was obvious frustration in her voice.

Evangeline sighed before finally taking a seat opposite them.

"I knew bringing Ranar here was a bad idea."

"But she insisted."

"And Damon kept talking about some prophecy Sylvia saw."

"Something about Ranar making a friend."

She rubbed her forehead.

"From what I’ve seen..."

"It was some wild child."

Renata slowly raised an eyebrow.

A tiny twitch appeared at the corner of her eye.

"What exactly do you mean by that?"

"I mean..."

"I shouldn’t have let her chase after that wild child."

"You can’t just call a child wild."

Renata’s tone sharpened noticeably.

"What?"

"How can you assume he’s a wild child?"

Evangeline blinked.

"Well, for one he..."

She suddenly paused.

"...Wait."

"I never said it was a boy."

"How did you know that?"

Renata froze.

"..."

"An educated guess."

Lilith answered smoothly before Renata could.

"The probability of it being a boy was higher."

"So I made the same assumption."

She smiled politely before setting her teacup down.

"That said..."

"Renata is right."

"Every child is precious."

"Even if they seem a little wild."

Evangeline narrowed her eyes.

"You’re both getting awfully defensive."

"I called him wild because he was carrying extremely high-grade magical equipment."

She crossed her arms.

"I suspect his identity isn’t simple."

"It was far too suspicious for a child like that to appear beside Ranar."

"What if someone arranged all of this beforehand?"

Her expression grew serious.

"Think about it."

"Ranar is Damon Grey’s daughter."

"He has countless enemies."

"Many of them are more than capable of raising a child solely to get close to his daughter."

She lowered her gaze.

"House Brightwater has no shortage of enemies either."

"We may be powerful..."

"But we can’t stop someone willing to throw everything away for revenge."

After a moment, she exhaled slowly.

"I bear the child no ill will."

"But my responsibility is to act in Ranar’s best interests."

Lilith didn’t answer immediately.

From the outside...

It really did look suspicious.

After all...

Damon himself had arranged everything.

She quietly sipped her tea.

Damon...

I certainly hope...

...you don’t regret letting Ric leave the tomb.

There was simply too much about Ric that had to remain secret.

Lilith had a bad feeling about all of it.

Too many things didn’t add up.

Too many doubts lingered in the back of her mind.

Especially with the way events had been unfolding lately.

The Outsiders had entered the final stage of their plans.

The siege of Lysithara would begin soon.

So much rested upon what happened next.

Far too much was at stake.