Chapter 149 - Come Back

(Another long chapter ? Recently they’ve all been long chapters :p sorry for those with low SS v.v.)

Whenever Dorian Evolved into a new, stronger form, his Energy Level would rise. In terms of added strength, the rise would not be purely linear, however.

A part of the Energy Level that any Bloodline reached through natural growth consisted of energy devoted to increasing the strength of one’s Soul Spell Matrix. For Dorian, whose Soul Spell Matrix was already very strong, most of that energy would have little effect.

Thus, while he gained a significant amount of strength from gaining his Balance Demon Form, the increase was not a direct addition of the Demon’s Energy Level.

Slowly, but surely, Dorian was growing his physical form towards one of the strongest in existence, without counting Laws or Law energy.

Dorian’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the dead Solar Garden Deer.

Most of his focus was still on reveling in the Law Energy and the remnants of the Baptism of the Laws he had experienced, taking in every bit of energy he could. Therefore, he remained still, unmoving as he leaned against a tree. (A/N: Capitalizing Baptism from now on)

thud thud

The sounds of feet pounding on dirt rang out as first one, and then a second, figure burst into view.

Two youths wearing brown leather hides, each armed with a fine looking bow that appeared to be made out of metal.

–

Species: Shade

Class – Sky Class

Maximum Energy Level: 31

–

Species: Shade

Class – Sky Class

Maximum Energy Level: 33

–

Dorian stared at them.

‘Wow. Energy Levels of 33 and 31? Was I that pitifully weak at one point?’ Dorian shook his head. The Shade Race Bloodline could grow, naturally, to Sky Class. To grow beyond that, however, one needed to study a Mystic Martial Art or study Magic.

“Salma, we got it!” The first of the two youths looked slightly reedier than the other, with short brown hair and pale green eyes. The dark essence that floated off his hands, the tell-tale sign of the Shade Race, rose slowly in the air.

“Nice! Solar Garden Deer may be weak, but they can sell for a ton at the Normal Auction. We’ll make enough off this to live like kings for at least a month!” The other youth jumped up and down in joy as he ran up to the corpse.

Dorian studied them quietly, still immersed in the feeling of the Law of Mercy, and residually, the Law of Greed.

The two boys quickly trussed up the corpse with a set of sticks and ropes, instead of putting it in any type of Spatial Ring or Pouch. Their movements were quick and practiced, as if they had done this many times before.

They also, he noted with amusement, completely failed to notice the heavily armored Balance Demon that was leaning against a tree just a couple dozen meters away, meditating.

The duo promptly began to leave.

WHOOSH

The air around Dorian stirred slightly. The Law of Mercy caused a very short Baptism of the Laws of the Universe. Dorian finished it completely then, gaining all he could by active focus and meditation.

‘Status.’ He called to mind his status, eager to check his progress.

–

Dorian – Soul Status

Soul Stage: Lord Class (Pseudo-King)

Health: Perfect

Energy: 138,825/162,112

–

He grinned, clenching his fists with excitement.

His efforts had borne fruit. His Energy Level now well exceeded the typical norm for a Pseudo-King Class fighter or Wizard, moving into the range of the abnormal ones like Vice-Head Taemin.

And with 4 different Laws to draw upon to power his Soul, Dorian had no intention of stopping that growth.

Laws were the bedrock of power in this universe. Dorian had realized that firmly as he saw stronger and stronger beings carrying with them unbelievable strength.

‘The only person I know that studied multiple Laws is the Demon Emperor.’ From the memories he used to have, Dorian had become aware that Yukeli had sensed multiple Laws, but only chose to fully use and study the Law of the Absolute.

According to legend, the Demon Emperor mastered all Seven of the Seven Great Laws of the Demon Race. This made him a nearly unstoppable force of nature that required the efforts of the greatest geniuses in the Universe to defeat.

No one actually knew the real details of that final battle. Only that the Five Great Heroes had proven victorious, but promptly afterward, two of the Five, Ausra and Kaladin, had disappeared.

‘Well, Ausra didn’t just disappear. Yukeli killed her.’ Dorian mentally corrected himself, his eyes dark.

‘Anyway. I’m kind of on a similar path to the Demon Emperor, aren’t I?’ Dorian realized, not sure how much he liked that idea,

‘I’m also studying several Laws that are part of the Seven Laws of the Demon Race. I’m also studying several contrasting Laws. I guess you could say they are opposites of the Seven Great Laws of the Demon Race. If the Seven Laws of the Demon Race are the Seven Sins like they seem to be… Then these would be the Seven Virtues.’ He rubbed his chin, processing the thought,

‘Well. Laws are just a tool.’ He shrugged,

‘Just because I am using a Law that centers around a Sin does not mean I am evil. It is the choices you make that prove what you are, not your abilities.’ He nodded sharply,

‘I will always try to do the right thing. In this universe, I will fail at that unless I have power.’ His eyes narrowed,

‘And the path to power… I see it.’ He grinned fiercely,

‘Not even you can stop me now, Yukeli.’ His eyes flashed as he made a mental resolution.

WHOOSH

The air around him shivered as he thought that, as if him making that promise had an impact on Fate itself.

‘Still… with that said… what should I do now?’ Dorian glanced off to the side, where the two Shade boys were weaving through the trees, still in eyesight. They appeared to be painfully oblivious to the fluctuating energy around Dorian.

“Hmm.” He said aloud, tapping on a ring he wore.

In his Spatial Ring, Dorian still had one Pill left that he had yet to use on Helena.

His Shorn Soul Repair Pill.

It was a Pill he had originally planned on using on Will’s soul in case of an emergency when he was trying to repair it, but hadn’t ended up needing due to being able to use Veritas’ body.

The Pill drew heavily on the energy of the surrounding world, forcibly healing a soul that was injured. It operated quickly, taking little time to function.

The downside of the Pill was that it had negative side effects, according to the Alchemist that had made it for him, Lord Ru. It could repair a soul quickly, but by doing so, damage the ability of that soul to sense the Laws of the Universe for years.

It was the price the Pill paid to grant ultra fast regeneration of the soul.

The side effects went away, eventually, with time, according to Lord Ru. And, for Dorian, it had sounded ideal at the time.

He would only use the Pill if it looked like he was going to fail and needed to protect Will’s soul. He didn’t think Will would complain, considering how he would be dead otherwise.

For Helena, however, such a repair could cripple her Ability to use her Law of Might for years to come. That wasn’t something Dorian wanted to have happen.

“Lord Ru mentioned the negative side effects could be mitigated if I obtained a Lord Class Healing Bell Pill, though…” Dorian muttered quietly, his eyes flashing.

Perhaps it wasn’t such a bad idea to mingle with other beings after all.

Dorian stood up, shaking out his body. He felt strong. He was strong.

He turned and jumped, landing on a nearby branch of the tree that was holding Helena. He looked down at her resting form, sleeping on a makeshift bed created out of folded up clothes.

He frowned. She deserved much better. His eyes roamed her resting form. Even with the disfigured wrinkles and withered appearance, Dorian still thought she looked beautiful. The corner of her lips was upturned in a smile and he could feel that fierce, proud nature.

He reached out but then stopped, looking at his armored, clawed fingers. He frowned again as he stared at this and then back at her. He sighed.

‘Ausra, I still have a Shade Bloodline stored, correct?’ He queried.

‘Yes.’ Ausra gave a terse and short reply.

‘Evolve me into a Shade.’

WHOOSH

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

“Hup! Careful now, dove.” Dorian carried Helena carefully, balancing her body on his arms as he walked through the forest. He followed the trail of the two Shade boys that had been out hunting, carrying their prized carcass.

He bore the appearance of a normal human, for the most part, save for two Dark Points on the top of his hands.

He was a Shade.

–

Shade – Sky Class

–

Maximum Energy Level: 36

Ability: Weak Dark Sense, Weak Shadow Sense

–

The Shade Race is a mere shadow of the greater, Shadoir Race. They are a lesser subrace that holds none of the powerful Abilities that made the Shadoir one of the greatest Ancient Races in the 30,000 Worlds, and a contender against the Ancestral Vampires for rule tens of thousands of years ago.

The Shade Race completes their natural growth at the Sky Class. They possess a weak but innate ability to use Shadow and Dark Magic. The Shade Race also possesses a unique characteristic known as a Dark Point on the top of each wrist. For practitioners of Shadow or Dark Magic, this Dark Point can enhance the power of either type of Magic significantly if used as the focus for a Spell. As a result of their affinity for Dark and Shadow Magic, Shade blood is black in color.

–

‘Not the most useful Class for me, but whatever. At least it was cheap to upgrade fully.’ He shrugged.

“I got you, I got you.” Dorian muttered quietly as he put his full focus on keeping Helena safe. His running and jumping through the forest was controlled and quiet. He made sure to move in smooth motions, not risking her being jostled.

Helena slept peacefully, snuggled up against Dorian’s chest as he moved forward.

Dorian had drawn up a rough game plan for the future.

First, he needed to figure out where he was. Right now, seeing as he found two Shade boys randomly hunting in a forest, he figured he was near or within the Shade Commune.

‘But how deep?’ He thought, slightly worried. Hopefully it wasn’t too far.

After all, the Shade Commune was at war with the Vampire Families, as Dorian had learned. Even worse, Dorian had beat up and almost truly killed the Holy Prince of the Church of Light, someone that was an extremely important figure to the Shade Race.

If they found out he was here… Well. It was best to avoid that.

‘After I find out where we are, I’ll decide what to do from there. I either need to hurry up and escape to safer lands, or search for a Lord Class Healing Bell Pill or some other Pill that can help heal the soul.’ If he was close enough to the Aurelius Family controlled Worlds, he would just leave for them immediately. They would be able to treat and heal Helena, and would likely spare no expense.

‘It all depends on where you two lead me.’ His eyes flashed as he focused back on the present, looking at the two boys that were hurrying through the forest. Shade’s grew older, and matured, at a slower rate than humans, with an average lifespan ranging from 200-300 years of age.

This didn’t take into account how having a stronger soul meant you could live for hundreds or even thousands of years longer than normal, but only considered the average of regular people.

The two boys must’ve been, in human terms, 16 or 17 years old. Not yet men, but old enough to take care of themselves.

They quickly moved through the forest, following a slightly worn trail. The forest wasn’t thick, yet Dorian discovered there was a myriad of flora and fauna moving about. He saw several Grass Deer, Silver Oak Boars, and a few other species that all looked quite unique. At the least, not like anything he had ever seen before. All the creatures here seemed to be related to plants somehow.

‘Can I absorb a plant? Can I become a plant?’ Dorian paused for a moment as he looked at one of the large oak trees that dominated this forest.

‘Yes, you can absorb certain species of plants that have gained sentience and possess a Soul Spell Matrix.’ Ausra cut into his thoughts, informing him.

‘Oh. Good to know.’ He hadn’t even really considered it. Maybe there were some weird trees or flowers out there with unique Abilities that could help him.

‘Even weak creatures can have useful or unique Abilities. I should cycle through my old, unused Bloodlines and see if there is anything there I might like.’ He made a mental note of it, deciding he’d look into it when he got free time.

Finally, after 15 more minutes of travel, with Dorian’s thoughts rambling all over the place, they arrived at a clearing where the forest ended. A large, spread out grass plain extended beyond the forest.

A long, earthen road could be seen leading to the forest. The two youths began jogging down this path, moving at a fast pace.

Dorian stalked and followed them, staying several hundred meters away. With his powerful senses, as a Pseudo-King Class expert, he could still easily keep track of them.

Minutes slipped away as the youths travelled forward. Soon, Dorian could make out a set of city walls in the distance, towering a dozen meters high.

The path they were traveling had a few other Shades moving on it. Most of them appeared in similar wear as the Shade youths, obviously all hunters.

After a couple more minute of travel, with those great walls growing large in the background, the boy’s easy travel was interrupted.

“Oh, now what do we have here?” A gruff, grouchy voice echoed out as a trio of Shades noticed the duo carrying their deer down the road. The leader of the trio was a taller, athletic looking Shade that carried himself with authority. He wore a set of simple, plain leather armor, similar to what the two boys wore. Behind him were two slightly overweight Shades dressed in fine looking white silk.

Despite the difference in attire, the two overweight Shades clearly followed the younger, leather-armor clad Shade.

–

Species: Shade

Class – Master Class

Maximum Energy Level: 61

–

‘Oh, he’s Master Class.’ Dorian noted. For a Shade, that meant he had practiced Magic or, more likely from his appearance, a Mystic Martial Art enough to upgrade his Soul Spell Matrix. The increase in energy level was nearly double the boys, but in physique, a Master Class Shade would be much stronger than a regular Sky Class Shade.

Still, anything before Grandmaster Class wouldn’t have touched upon true strength, not yet.

“Darvo. We already paid our dues to the Guild, just like last time.” The speaker was the slightly reedier Shade youth, Jasol.

This was, apparently, a regular occurrence for the two youths. Dorian frowned when he saw it, but didn’t take action. He couldn’t take care of everyone. And besides, it wasn’t like he had full knowledge of the situation. Perhaps the Guild here was one that provided real benefits or protection in return for whatever dues the kids paid.

“Yes, you two have. I’m aware. I commend you for supporting the local economy.” Darvo said as he walked forward, his eyes shining as he looked at the strung up deer and continued,

“But what is this, here? Is that a Solar Garden Deer?” His voice was full of interest.

The other Shade youth, Salma, stepped in front of the body of the deer, blocking Darvo’s vision.

“Guild rules state you can’t interfere with members of the Guild on business. We hunted this deer fair and square, so buzz off.” Salma crossed his arms imperiously. The reedy looking Jasol nodded, crossing his arms in solidarity.

“That they do… But we aren’t in Guild territory, no? I usually check for dues outside the city proper, we’re still several miles distant from that. Running into you two must’ve been a random twist of Fate.” Darvo smiled in a pleased manner, clapping his hands together.

Dorian, in the background, turned and whistled to himself guiltily, looking away as if he had nothing to do with this.

‘Damn it, soul! You cause enough trouble for me, don’t just bring trouble to random people as well.’ He had no doubt that his soul was at fault for this.

“And out here in the wilds… the mighty rule, while the weak give way.” Darvo’s body blurred as he jumped forward, grabbing ahold of the Shade youth named Salma.

Dorian’s eyes flashed darkly when he heard that expression, sounding very similar to something he’d heard Arial say, in what felt like so long ago. He frowned, instantly making a decision.

‘If I save those two boys, I should be able to get reliable information and have two temporarily allies in this strange land.’

Energy flowed around his arms, crackling as he put his full focus on what was in front of him.

‘I don’t have to show off my full strength. But I also don’t need to hide anymore…’ He smiled coldly,

‘I am no longer weak like I used to be. I can face threats head-on.’

Dorian leapt forward, swinging his arms into a guard position as he appeared, roughly a dozen meters away from the two Shades. An air of justice appeared around him, as if he was a brave knight doing a good deed.

“Unhand those youths, foul villain! I’ll have you know that this Godly Shade shall-oh-my-god-Helena-no!-I’m-so-sorry!” Dorian’s monologue cut off as his eyes widened, realizing he had forgotten something.

He instantly hurled his body forward at full strength as he spun about.

‘Perfect Body, Activate!’

‘Energy from the Law of Valor, quickly!’

‘Thundering Winds: Flush Gale!’

Dorian unleashed his full strength as he dived head first towards the ground.

Specifically towards the body of Helena that he had accidentally forgotten he was holding when he jumped forward. As he swung his arms, he had inadvertently tossed her off to the side and up into the air. He had been so completely focused on the situation at hand that he hadn’t noticed.

BOOM

A small crater formed in the ground as Dorian smashed down onto the grass plain, just barely managed to catch the still sleeping Helena. Dirt and rock debris fluttered into the air, grass flying about as a small burst of wind shot out at the impact.

“Hey? Are you okay?” Dorian heaved a huge sigh of relief as he looked at her, noting that she seemed to be in the same condition as before, her health unchanged by his lapse.

“Did you notice that at all?” He whispered quietly, eyeing her.

Helena didn’t react.

Dorian carried her carefully, using his left hand to wipe a sheen of sweat of his forehead. The dark essence that rose off the Dark Point on his wrist blinded him temporarily, something he would have to get used to.

Dorian then turned his focus back to the now stunned group of Shades.

They were all staring at him as if he was insane.

He stared back, this time glaring.

“None of you saw that, do you hear me? I absolutely did not throw her into the air and almost drop her.” The air around him rippled intimidatingly with power from the Law of Valor.

All of the Shades stood frozen, staring at Dorian in mute terror. They nodded back quietly.

“Good, good.” Dorian smiled in a satisfied manner.

“Oh, right, where was I.” He gathered his bearings. Once more, a proud, justice-full demeanor appeared and wrapped around him once more.

“Ahem.” He coughed and then yelled aloud mightily,

“Unhand thos- oh, you’re not holding them anymore. Well.” He cut himself off lamely as he noticed that the Martial Artist Shade had let go of the youth hunter, backing up several steps.

“Uhh.” He rubbed his chin, looking down as he tried to think of a response.

“I got it!” He snapped his fingers, looking back up with a smile.

“Do you dare to- hey! Wait! Hold on!” Dorian sputtered aloud as he looked at his charges.

“Don’t run away! I wasn’t finished! Come back!” He yelled aloud as he saw the youth hunters and the Martial Artist and his two goons sprinting away at full speed. The two youths kept hold of their deer corpse loot, their bodies shaking with exertion as they fled, while the Martial Artist Shade ran adeptly, his movements smooth.

“Dammit! I’m not done with you! Get back here!” Dorian began to chase them, running slowly as to not jostle Helena awake.

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For those that missed the added note in the last chapter:

(Minor correction made. Dorian’s Soul was at Late Lord Class, and just now reached Pseudo-King Class. Chapter 136 and others have been corrected to show this.)

None of the notes in this chapter will affect SS price. All were edited in after.

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