My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 927 - 928: Gravewing

When consciousness returned to him at last, the group was already in motion. The vast overhead cover of the Evil Forest came into view first, along with its immense trees reaching skyward. Rays of sunlight now and then filtered through the foliage, touching his eyes with gentle, splintered glimmers.

Damon quickly realized he lay upon a stretcher. Acting on instinct, he pushed himself upright, causing the carrier to sway irregularly across the uneven, rolling ground of the woods. He marveled at how he hadn't tumbled off amid all those rises and valleys they'd navigated.

The vegetation in this area of the forest appeared thinner, while sections of the earth turned rugged, interrupted by areas of bare rock jutting out.

His sudden movement drew Renata's notice. She stayed close beside his stretcher, where four knights bore him forward.

Damon looked her way as her smile appeared.

"Ohhh, you’re awake. That’s good... can you move?"

Her statement came across as ordinary, yet Damon struggled to pinpoint the reason for her hushed tone rather than a regular voice.

He hesitated, scanning the area around them. No unusual threat registered beyond the typical heavy aura emanating from the Evil Forest.

Damon possessed the wisdom to hold his tongue until he'd assessed the situation fully. Under what circumstances would Renata resort to whispering?

She offered another smile, nodding her head gently from side to side.

"It's nothing big. There isn’t a horror nearby. We just decided it would be better to keep our voices down while we move..."

Suspicion lingered faintly in Damon. Still, it amounted to little concern. His injuries had mended, and the ache in his chest had vanished... temporarily. With death evaded, he harbored no grievances.

’Ha ha ha... hehe... heh... hehe hehe haha. Damn, deathless. You thought you could kill me with a ticking time bomb in my heart?’

Inwardly, he chuckled over his escape, grateful that his demonic nature... or partial demonic side... stayed hidden. All remained ordinary — as ordinary as existence got within the Evil Forest.

A faint rumble stirred from his belly.

That noise reverberated across the quiet woods, making those close by jolt a bit and lower their heads, bracing for some dire outcome.

Damon's gaze sharpened with doubt.

"Wait a minute... something ain’t right."

Up ahead, Seras signaled with a wave, pressing the group to continue onward.

Wendy, drawing nearer to him, shook her head in response.

"Anyone ever told you how paranoid you are?" she whispered.

"Yes... a lot actually. Apparently it’s delusional paranoia."

Folding his arms, he descended from the stretcher and planted his feet firmly on the dirt.

"So we are dealing with something. I reckon it’s a horror that forces us to whisper, right? Well, I get it. These types of creatures are simple. As long as you follow their rules, you’d be fine... in fact, it’s advised not to engage."

His words drew from hard-earned knowledge, shared deliberately for Wendy's benefit.

The young woman with copper-toned skin rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her ample bosom.

"Yeah right. That’s why you engaged the previous one. I don’t really care if you die, but if I don’t have my children back before you do... you better not dream of a peaceful afterlife."

Damon clenched his jaw and swiftly clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Shush—shush... we agreed to keep what happened between us quiet. And it’s not my fault... I tried my best. Stop making things difficult for me. Besides, it was a one time thing. You caught me at a bad time..."

Wendy shoved his arm aside, fixing him with a fierce stare.

"You better keep your word or else... the world will know what happened in your room that night."

"You can’t just blackmail me..." Damon muttered.

"I just did." she replied calmly.

Irritated, Damon lashed out with his foot at a stone embedded halfway in the earth.

The initial sensation was a subtle quiver in the soil, though the stone stayed put. Soon after came a piercing, pulsing ache in his toes.

The entire group halted, all eyes turning to him.

Damon gave a casual shrug, bouncing lightly on one leg as he clutched his sore foot.

"What?"

Briefly, stillness reigned.

Silence.

Seras exhaled gradually in relief. Approaching him, she seized his ear and pulled.

"Stop making noise."

Letting go, she returned to the lead position, gesturing for the advance to resume.

The expedition team pressed on with their trek.

Then...

The grains underfoot started to stir.

They swelled and subsided in languid, rhythmic waves. Moments later, the surrounding trees quivered, and nearby hills dislodged solid stones that rolled down their inclines.

Deep noises boomed, intensifying steadily, as though the land below breathed heavily.

Seras went rigid.

Not a soul stirred.

Complexions drained of color, save for Damon, who still puzzled over the unfolding events.

Right then, a fierce prickle raced across his scalp while fear flooded through him.

The trees lifted upward.

Earth split and sank as clouds of dust billowed skyward. The group staggered, footing lost. A far-off hill then tilted faintly, with sand pouring from it while a golden glow emerged...

But the glow winked.

It shut.

Then parted once more.

That's when Damon understood: a gigantic eye stared straight at them.

Staring back, he sensed the flow of ages, pulled into a timeless era beyond human grasp.

The eye sealed shut.

Next, the encircling hills stirred to life.

"Run!" Seras bellowed, her poise crumbling as she directed them to a mound ringed by vibrant blossoms.

"Hurry! We need to reach the displacement flowers!"

The beast hoisted its head from the soil, sending plumes of grit and granules exploding outward. Boulders rained down. Vast swaths of trees over miles tore free as a huge depression yawned under its ascending form.

A structure akin to a modest peak ascended toward the heavens — or so it appeared. Truthfully, its speed terrified.

Even its exhalation whipped up fierce winds, hurling foliage, stones, and wreckage airborne effortlessly.

Before completing its ascent, it peered downward, its focus locking onto Seras, the strongest in their midst.

And upon beholding its scales... its wings... its enormous, timeless frame—

Seras stiffened.

Her mouth quivered as she breathed the dragon's title.

"Rexagon... the Gravewing."