Chapter 4: The Shadow's First Call
The deeper Zayn ventured into the second floor of The Hollow Graves, the more the atmosphere changed. The air grew thick with a miasma of decay and ancient magic, a suffocating fog that would have choked a normal human. To Zayn, however, it felt invigorating. Every breath of the tainted air seemed to fuel the dark furnace burning in his chest. The walls themselves seemed to pulse like a living throat, covered in a slick, black moss that fed on the mana of the dead.
After devouring the Abyssal Guardian, Zayn felt a newfound weight to his steps—not the weight of fatigue, but of concentrated power. His muscles felt dense, and his senses were so sharp that he could hear the skittering of insects hundreds of meters away in the dark.
[Level: 15]
[Status: Satiated (Temporary)]
[Abyssal Armor: Active]
As he moved, Zayn tested his new trait. He ran his obsidian claws over his forearm; the skin looked human, but it felt as hard as the dungeon's bedrock. He was no longer the fragile F-Rank scout who had to hide behind the heavy shields of the 'Silver Dawn' guild. He was no longer the bait. He was the hunter.
Suddenly, the crimson system screen flickered before his eyes, pulsing with an urgent, blood-red light.
[System Notification: Hidden Boss Area Nearby!]
[Warning: The 'Lich of the Sunken Crypt' has sensed your presence.]
[Objective: Defeat the Lich to unlock the first tier of the Sovereign's Throne.]
Zayn slowed his pace. A Lich. In the hierarchy of the undead, Liches were masters of shadow and soul manipulation. They didn't fight with brute strength like the Guardian; they fought with thousands of puppets and dark hexes. For a normal party of A-Rank hunters, a Lich was a nightmare that required a specialized holy-magic priest to defeat.
The corridor ahead opened into a massive, circular chamber. In the center sat an altar made of human skulls, and standing before it was a tall, hooded figure. It held a staff crafted from a human spine, topped with a pulsating violet gem that cast long, flickering shadows across the room.
"A living soul... in the Progenitor's cradle?" The Lich's voice was a rasping whisper that didn't travel through the air; it echoed directly inside Zayn's skull. "You smell of the predator, boy. You have eaten the Guardian... but here, I am the one who harvests."
The Lich raised its staff, and the ground began to churn. Skeletal hands, bleached white and brittle, clawed their way out of the dirt. One by one, an army of undead soldiers rose—hundreds of them, their hollow eye sockets glowing with a sickly green flame. They formed a wall of bone and rusted steel, a tide of death meant to drown any intruder.
Zayn didn't flinch. He felt the 'Absolute Predation' skill thrumming in his chest, reacting to the massive amount of mana radiating from the Lich's soul.
"You talk too much for a corpse," Zayn said, his voice carrying a predatory growl.
He lunged. Instead of dodging the skeletons, he tore through them like a hot knife through wax. With his increased Strength and [Abyssal Armor], the skeletons' rusted blades snapped against his skin without leaving a mark. He was a whirlwind of violence, shattering ribcages and skulls with every punch. He didn't need a weapon; his body was the ultimate tool of destruction.
[DING!]
[Lesser Undead destroyed. Experience gained...]
[Lesser Undead destroyed. Experience gained...]
The experience bar was moving, but it was too slow. Zayn realized that killing these mindless puppets wouldn't give him the evolution he craved. He needed the source. He needed the soul behind the staff.
He leaped into the air, using a skeleton's head as a stepping stone, and propelled himself toward the Lich. The undead sorcerer hissed, conjuring a wall of bone-chilling frost and dark mana to stop him.
"Freeze and shatter, mortal!" the Lich roared, the violet gem on its staff glowing intensely.
Zayn felt the cold biting at his skin, trying to slow his blood, but his [Monster Sense] caught a glimpse of a weakness—a flicker in the Lich's mana shield where the energy was unstable. He twisted his body mid-air, channeling his Mana into his right claw until it turned a deep, light-eating black.
"Eat this," Zayn growled.
He slammed his hand through the frost wall. The dark energy of his predation shattered the ice like glass. Before the Lich could teleport away, Zayn's hand closed around its spectral throat, and his claws buried into the Lich's chest.
[Skill Activated: Absolute Predation!]
[Devouring Soul Core of the Sunken Lich...]
"No! This power... it belongs to the King! You cannot—" the Lich's scream was cut short as its form began to dissolve into black smoke, being sucked into Zayn's palm.
As the Lich's essence flooded his system, Zayn felt a cold, sharp pain in his mind. Information, memories of ancient wars, and dark spells swirled in his consciousness. His shadow began to stretch and writhe on the floor, independent of any light source, growing larger and darker until it seemed to swallow the chamber.
[DING!]
[Level Up! Level Up! Level Up! Level Up! Level Up!]
[Current Level: 20]
[Hidden Requirement Met: Defeated a Soul-Type Monster.]
[Unique Skill Unlocked: 'Shadow Extraction' (Rank: S).]
[Shadow Extraction: Level 1]
[Description: You can pull the shadows from the corpses of your enemies to create loyal, undying soldiers. Your shadow is no longer a reflection; it is your legion.]
Zayn stood in the now-silent chamber, surrounded by piles of shattered, lifeless bones. He looked at his own shadow. It was darker than the surrounding abyss, pulsing with a life of its own.
"Rise," Zayn commanded.
From the pool of shadow beneath him, a tall, hooded figure emerged. It was the Lich, but transformed—made of shifting black smoke and violet flames. It knelt before Zayn in absolute submission.
Zayn looked at his first shadow soldier and then up at the ceiling, his mind picturing Ryan's arrogant face.
"The hunt is no longer a solo journey," Zayn whispered. "I'm coming for all of you."