It resembled that indescribable shadow he had glimpsed deep within the Abyss Caverns of the Azure Star Sea.
Moreover, Lu Sheng could distinctly sense from its aura that this shadow was the very entity standing on the fifth layer—the one whose schemes he had repeatedly thwarted.
Had it not been for Lu Sheng, the number of survivors returning with Sarl would likely have been at least double.
Lu Sheng stared at the shadow, unsure if it was watching him back.
By now, the battlefield had descended into chaos. Sarl and his group clashed with numerous Level 11 and Level 12 powerhouses.
At this moment, Sarl fully unleashed the terrifying might of one who had absorbed five galactic laws. He was simply too powerful.
Apart from the two guides, who could barely hold their own against him, no one else could withstand even a single casual strike from him.
Facing seven or eight powerhouses wielding two or three rules or more, the group—assembled from elites of over a dozen star sectors—collapsed into disarray within moments.
Some had already begun planning their escape.
"Swish—"
A sinister orange light sliced through the void as Sarl abruptly materialized behind a fleeing Level 12 powerhouse.
Empowered by five rules, he barely needed to exert himself. With a casual reach, he seized the man's throat and hoisted him up.
A formidable Level 12 martial artist, yet in Sarl's grasp, he struggled helplessly like a defenseless chick.
"Enough..."
Sarl held the man in one hand, striding back through the void with the bearing of a sovereign.
Surveying everyone below from above, he smiled and spoke: "Truthfully, there's no absolute conflict between us. There's absolutely no need for violence."
The crowd froze.
Then they watched as Sarl actually released the person he'd been holding.
He leaned closer to the man and asked gently, "Tell me, why did you enter the Battlefield?"
The man Sarl had just released clutched his throat, his face ashen, eyes still haunted by terror.
Clearly, the hostage situation had left Sarl with an almost invincible reputation in his mind.
Under the gaze of Sarl's eerie crimson eyes, he managed to stammer out, "Stronger."
"Right."
Sarl nodded with a smile, then turned to the others.
"I suppose we all share similar goals. Since we're all here to grow stronger, and the chance lies right before us—why not take it?"
With that, Sarl swept his hand. The vast number of beast crystals he had tossed earlier clattered into the air, swirling toward the man.
"Take them. Take as many as you want. They're all yours."
A peculiar light flickered in Sarl's eyes as he murmured to the man.
"If you're willing... to join us."
The man froze instantly. The crowd below also fell silent. No one had expected Sarl to proactively recruit them.
Not being hunted down to the last man, yet still having the chance to obtain vast quantities of beast cores—could there be a better option?
Moreover, everyone had witnessed the dramatic shift in Sarl and his companions' strength.
To say they weren't envious would be a lie.
If joining them meant their own power could surge as dramatically in such a short time... Many eyes flickered at this thought, hearts stirred by the possibility.
The man formally recruited by Sarl hesitated only a few seconds before he was about to speak his acceptance.
"I'm willing to jo..."
"Idiot!"
A sharp rebuke cut through the air, instantly snapping everyone out of their thoughts. It was the Guide.
Both men's expressions darkened. This time, it was the round-faced, stout one who spoke.
"Do you even know what he wants you to join? Does anything in this world come for free? Use your brains and think!"
The guide's rebuke made everyone freeze, then snap back to reality.
Right. Up until now, Sarl and the others hadn't mentioned what they'd experienced during their disappearance. Why had their power surged so dramatically? And what exactly did this group represent? Why had they turned hostile the moment the guide mentioned waiting for Lord Haiji Dao—a Level 13 powerhouse—to arrive before confirming their return?
This realization snapped the previously tempted group back to clarity. Their gazes toward Sarl and the others now held suspicion and alarm.
The Level 12 powerhouse who had been ready to agree stepped back slightly, creating distance from Sarl, his mouth tightly shut.
The smile on Sarl's face faded bit by bit as he stared expressionlessly at the two guides.
"How can you two be so damn annoying?"
He spoke coldly.
The round-faced fat man wore a dark expression, his gaze toward Sarl complex and hard to define. He spoke slowly,
"In the Battlefield, all mistakes can be forgiven. Except for one..." He paused, then uttered each word with a rough voice: "Soul-plunging into the abyss, being human yet willingly becoming a beast's lackey!
Sarl, are you truly not going to regret this?"
The moment the guide uttered these words, the entire scene felt as if a hurricane had swept through. Many faces revealed expressions of utter shock and disbelief.
Saya's eyes widened as he whipped his head toward Lu Sheng beside him.
Only now did he grasp the meaning behind Lu Sheng's earlier words about a "contract of servitude" and "corruption."
He never could have imagined. That Sarl and his group would choose...
...to abandon their humanity.