My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 1046 - 1048: Pulled In

Descending into a cave after dispatching a wyvern, Damon's boots skittered against the stone, sending pebbles tumbling into the unseen depths below.

He surveyed the cavern.

Beneath him, the walls shimmered with the fiery glow of volcanic embers as a colossal dragon consumed the last of a Midas-like hoard. A jolt of avarice surged through Damon upon witnessing the spectacle, his eyes blazing with desire.

He hadn't anticipated Ashergon possessing such an immense fortune, and this was merely what he'd observed being swallowed.

Slowly, Ashergon pivoted its massive head, its gaze falling upon Damon, who stood transfixed. The realization dawned upon the dragon: escape was impossible. Damon blocked the only exit, and his spatial storage was undoubtedly laden with untold riches.

A heavy silence stretched between them.

Damon felt a tremor of fear towards Ashergon, dreading immolation. He pondered if this primal fear was genuine or merely an echo of the curse afflicting him.

Regardless, the thought of his daughter becoming an orphan spurred him onward.

He braced himself, his heart hammering against his ribs under the immense pressure emanating from Ashergon. Standing in such proximity, he felt as insignificant as a pebble beneath a mountain.

Ashergon, meanwhile, was experiencing its own turmoil.

Fragments of devastating memories, of Ashcroft's brutal dominance, replayed in its mind. Rage simmered, then morphed into fear, evolving into despair, and finally solidifying into deep-seated trauma.

It seemed even dragons were not immune to post-traumatic stress.

Ashergon recoiled, taking a hesitant step back.

Damon advanced, mirroring the dragon's movement.

Neither realized the terror the other harbored, both shifting simultaneously.

Damon maintained a façade of courage, his mind racing through a myriad of disastrous scenarios.

Ashergon, however, had already succumbed to envisioning failure, despite no overt action taken against it.

A pregnant pause followed. Damon deliberately raised a hand, his eyes flicking towards Ashergon.

"We meet again, Ashergon. Many moons have waxed and waned since our last encounter."

He aimed for an imperious tone, attempting to emulate Ashcroft's demeanor.

Ashergon responded with a guttural growl, retreating further.

"Cease your provocations, fiend. I am the inferno. I am oblivion. I am Ashergon."

Its voice thundered within the cavern, dislodging small rocks from the ceiling.

Damon swayed, nearly succumbing, but forced himself to remain upright, managing a choked reply.

"You sound like an edgelord."

He then spread his arms, placing a hand atop his head.

"Flee, Ashergon. Where will you run? You know as well as I. There is no defeating me, and now, escape is beyond your grasp."

A thin, forced smile touched Damon's lips.

"However, I am prepared to extend an offer. Surrender half your hoard and depart this continent eternally."

Ashergon was poised to unleash another roar when it abruptly halted.

A sigh resonated from within Damon's mind, belonging to Ashcroft.

"This is the sort of avarice spoken of in ancient texts."

Unfamiliar with the concept of such texts, Damon sensed he had misstepped.

Ashergon ceased its trembling.

"You engage in negotiation. It is perplexing why you would parley when direct conquest is a viable option."

Ashergon's eyes narrowed, flooded with intense suspicion.

"You. What are your true intentions? No. I understand. Yes. It must be. You are truly weakened now. You have devolved into a common vermin."

A subtle shift towards arrogance colored Ashergon's tone, and involuntarily, Damon felt his body hairs stand on end.

"Silence, you solitary wyrm. I was showing consideration for a creature destined to be my steed. You mistake my magnanimity for weakness."

Damon, a master of deception, knew how to escalate. The sheer volume of his shout almost convinced him of his own superiority.

Ashergon shifted backward once more, as if preparing for flight. It fixed Damon with a prolonged stare, its colossal eyes narrowing.

"You have yet to attack. My suspicions are confirmed. You are a charlatan. A mongrel unworthy of facing me."

Ashergon opened its fearsome maw, then paused, its gaze returning to Damon.

"You return diminished from your previous state and even attempted subterfuge against this great entity. However, my wisdom is boundless, and I have seen through your guile. I shall not be deceived further. Hahahaha."

Its laughter echoed through the cavern, causing the very mountain to tremble.

"I shall feast upon your entrails and exact retribution for the humiliation suffered in ages past."

It opened its maw anew, radiating palpable heat that began to fill the cave.

Damon let out a sigh, placing a hand over his chest.

"Phew. That was close. You arrived just in time."

Ashergon remained bewildered by his cryptic words.

Damon's gaze was fixed beyond the dragon, on a young lady with shimmering golden hair.

With a flourish, Damon reached into his shadow, his voice resonating with equal arrogance.

"Wail, you foolish reptile. You have incurred my wrath. You will not depart this place by your own volition. I, Damon Grey, shall be your undoing."

Ashergon was utterly confounded by the mortal's nonsensical pronouncements, deeming him utterly insane from despair.

It was at this precise moment that Damon revealed the book clutched in his hand.

The pages were a deep, inky black, as if crafted from myriad slumbering shadows. This tome emanated no discernible aura. It appeared as a colossal book, its pages utterly blank, devoid of both words and images.

Ashergon observed Damon directing the book toward him.

Then, Damon commanded.

"Light."

One of the two individuals positioned behind Ashergon lifted a hand.

Ashergon had been aware of their presence for a considerable time. He simply paid them no heed. Even if they were to launch an assault, their efforts would prove futile.

Evangeline did not initiate an attack. Instead, she conjured a brilliant luminescence that pervaded that section of the cavern. This light enveloped Ashergon's immense physique, projecting his colossal shadow directly onto Damon.

The instant that shadow made contact with the book, a solid barrier of darkness erupted from its pages, coalescing into a swirling vortex that hurtled towards Ashergon.

The colossal dragon had absolutely no opportunity to react.

The encroaching shadows completely enveloped his entire being.

As this happened, the likeness of a dragon materialized upon one of the book's stark pages. The Book of Shadows began to tremble uncontrollably within Damon's grasp.

Damon swiftly deposited it into his shadow storage before Ashergon could break free from its hold.

This, indeed, was the legendary Book of Shadows.