My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 1016 - 1018: Splinter

From amidst the fallen bodies, Mugu opened one eye, surveying his surroundings. He had managed to escape the hold. However, safety was still a distant prospect.

The slavers lined the railing, unceremoniously heaving corpses overboard. Below, the sea churned ominously. As Mugu observed, pale forms surfaced—elongated, sleek entities equipped with an abundance of fins and teeth. They fell upon the dropping bodies before they could even submerge. This was a familiar route for them. The sea creatures had grown accustomed to the schedule.

Mugu’s gaze subtly shifted, his head remaining still. A small vessel was suspended by the ship’s side, held by two sturdy ropes. Within it lay two oars and a modest sail. It was within reach—so close that with precise timing, he could make his way to it. If he could sever the ropes, he could disappear into the waves. The primary challenge was navigation. Soltheon. He possessed no compass, no map, and no water. His throat felt parched, like rough sandpaper.

He drew a slow, silent breath. "The west... Soltheon is located west of Centros. If I steer west, I will reach land before encountering anything else." The decision was made. His eyes narrowed as he tracked the movements of the slavers. The pile was diminishing. They would soon reach him.

Precisely as anticipated, a pot-bellied slaver seized Mugu’s arm, intending to lift him. Mugu reacted. His hand darted to the dagger at the man’s hip. In a fluid motion, he plunged it into the man’s throat. Hot blood spurted onto his hand. Before the second slaver could react, Mugu delivered a powerful kick to his chest. The man staggered backward over the railing, plunging into the ravenous sea with a scream that was abruptly silenced. Mugu rolled off the heap of bodies and sprinted towards the suspended boat. Shouts erupted behind him.

He sliced at the first rope. Then the second. The boat dropped. Mugu leaped with it. They struck the water forcefully. The impact sent a jolt through his bones, yet he quickly regained his footing, tearing away the sail. The wind immediately caught it, propelling the small boat forward. A slaver leaped after him from the ship’s edge, landing near the stern.

Mugu snatched an oar, channeled mana into his arms, and swung with all his might. The wood shattered against the man’s skull, sending him flying sideways into the sea. The creatures below finished the job. For a fleeting moment, a hand clawed at the boat’s edge before it too vanished beneath crimson foam. Mugu pushed it away and focused. He cleared the ship’s shadow. But they were not finished with him.

Harpoons sliced through the air. Arrows followed. Bursts of arcane energy impacted the water around him, aiming to splinter the boat or drag him back. They preferred he perish rather than escape. Then— The wind shifted. It howled. The sky rapidly darkened as clouds obscured the sun. Waves began to swell like moving mountains. The slavers ceased their pursuit of Mugu. They were now screaming at the sky.

"Cloud dragon!" This was no ordinary tempest. Lightning tore across the heavens as a colossal form coiled within the clouds—a serpentine entity composed of vapor, thunder, and wind. The storm moved with purpose. Mugu struggled to comprehend what he was witnessing, but he noted the sailors frantically lowering their sails. He did the same. He secured himself to the boat just as a massive wave surged behind the slaver ship like an insurmountable wall. Daylight vanished. The world became consumed by the storm.

— Damon’s astral form lingered nearby, observing Mugu with evident astonishment. He was no longer the innocent village boy. Ashcroft, however, gazed into the clouds. "I see... so the cloud dragon Aethergon was active this early. This is not the territory I associate him with." Damon looked at the furious sky, lightning starkly illuminating the sea in blinding flashes. "The great dragons are indeed calamities in their own right," he murmured.

"Do not be so awestruck," Ashcroft replied casually. "During my zenith, I once attempted to subdue Ashergon." Damon glanced at him. "Right... you attempted that. Or so the tales go." It was no jest. In his time, no one could oppose Ashcroft. His downfall was solely due to the direct intervention of the Goddess of Doom herself. Yet even then—he had not met his end.

Ashcroft contemplated the storm with a thoughtful expression. "I often ponder the true origins of these great dragons." Their beginnings were shrouded in mystery. As far as Damon understood, they emerged sometime between the Zero Epoch and the First. Ashcroft spoke as if revealing a fundamental truth. "The Abyss." Damon turned abruptly. "What?"

"The sky continent Vuldren... that is where dragons first appeared. They emerged from the Abyss that formed subsequent to the demise of a deity you would recognize all too well." Ashcroft imparted this knowledge without reservation as the winds intensified and the sea undulated like a living entity beneath them. "I am acquainted with numerous deities," Damon responded, squinting into the tempest. "I presume you are not referring to the True Gods, given your mention of death." Suddenly, Damon felt himself pulled back into Mugu’s body. Wind shrieked past his ears.

He cast his gaze downwards, observing the body he now inhabited, noticing its marred, emaciated, and thin state. His ribs were faintly discernible beneath the skin, which bore the harsh marks of relentless journeys and brutal beatings.

Nevertheless, he compelled himself into motion.

He reinforced the bindings securing the oars and meticulously inspected the sail ropes. Adjusting his stance to a lower center of gravity, he planted his feet firmly on the deck's wooden planks, bracing himself as the vessel pitched violently beneath him.

"By 'god,' you mean Lazarak, don't you?" Damon bellowed into the tempest's roar. "The deity of Serenity and Shadow."

"So, my divine essence was indeed perceived by you after all."

A subtle wave of vexation washed over Damon. Lazarak was definitively deceased. Utterly finished.

"Yes. I witnessed it. I conducted my own independent inquiry into the Zero Epoch."

A low, derisive chuckle echoed, carried by the howling wind.

"You seem remarkably intent on uncovering the truth."

Damon swiped at the rain and brine streaking his vision with the back of his hand, just as a flash of lightning bleached the surroundings white.

"First, you must survive Aethergon," Ashcroft stated with composed assurance, "and subsequently, I shall reveal all."

Damon lifted his head.

The storm exhibited more than mere ferocity.

It ripped open.

The clouds tore apart as if torn by a monstrous maw, and from its depths, a torrent of devastation erupted—countless bolts of lightning interlaced into a solitary, blinding torrent.

This cataclysmic beam descended directly upon the slaver ship.

The ship didn't merely catch fire.

It disintegrated.

Wood, metal, and flesh were instantly pulverized into dust and vapor. The concussive sound followed a moment later, a thunderous boom so immense it felt as though the very fabric of existence had fractured.

Where the vessel had once stood, there was now an absolute void.

Completely nothing.

Damon's breath hitched in his throat.

Every soul aboard was obliterated.

Mugu, however, remained.

And the true horrors were only just beginning their grim unfolding.