Sunny collapsed to the ground, agony coursing through his entire being. The excruciating pain was centered in his bones and spine, replacing the very marrow of his essence. His fingers felt as though molten iron was being poured through them. Unable to move from the torment, Sunny lay crumpled on the ground… but then, what he had feared most began to unfold.
The Bloodweave flared violently after finding strength and support in the Boneweave. It sought to take control of Sunny's body—after all, there was another presence it shared this vessel with… one that had once humiliated and defeated it. With murderous fury, the Bloodweave surged toward the Lineage of the Shadow God, determined to annihilate it and assert its dominance over Sunny's body.
"You bastard… calm down!"
But the Bloodweave did not calm. It crashed into the Lineage of the Shadow God and, with its newfound power, began devouring it. At first, they were evenly matched—the Lineage held its ground, steadfast and immovable. Yet with each passing second, Sunny's body absorbed more of the Boneweave, strengthening the Bloodweave further and further. Gradually, the Bloodweave began to consume the Lineage once more, bit by bit. The Spell of Recognition whispered solemnly to Sunny:
[You have acquired A New attribute: Boneweave]
[Your Attribute has evolved: Bloodweave]
[Your attribute has evolved: Flame of Divinity]
As the pain of the Boneweave faded, it was replaced by the agony of the battle raging within his body—two lineages clashing for dominance. Sunny clenched his teeth, and with a flash of inspiration, he dove into His soul sea. He looked at the shadows watching him, then spoke in a pained voice:
"Domain… I need Will."
The stronger shadows did not respond. But a ripple of invisible force spread across the weaker ones—shadows of beings that were weaker than sunny himself, the Mountain King, and Awakened creatures of his Rank. A small wisp of shadow flew from each of them and entered Sunny's body, forming a lesser shadow around him.
Refocusing on the internal struggle between the two forces, Sunny spoke in a commanding tone filled with undeniable authority:
"Stop!"
The Lineage of the Shadow God froze and retreated. The Bloodweave hesitated for a moment—then resumed devouring with even greater madness and hunger. Despair flooded Sunny. He knew he was going to lose the Lineage of the Shadow God.
A voice came—not from afar, but from within.
With a long, weary sigh, it spoke:
"So… you failed to maintain the balance… well, sometimes we all carry more than we can bear. But not anymore… let me help you."
The voice was surreal, yet real. Ethereal, yet strangely familiar. It carried the weariness of someone burdened with sorrow, and yet its charm was strangely magnetic—eliciting sympathy from anyone who heard it.
That was Sunny's last thought before he froze, drenched in cold sweat.
A wicked, overwhelming Will descended—so absolute, it resembled the decree of a god. It struck inside Sunny's body, paralyzing the Bloodweave with fear and a sense of guilt it had never known before. It was as if it had been caught committing an unforgivable sin by a merciless god.
Sunny lost consciousness. The idea shattered into a thousand fragments. A thousand thoughts splintered into a million. His mortal mind couldn't grasp or comprehend what had just happened—it simply couldn't endure the horror.
________________________
"Ah… my head… It's broken…"
Sunny clutched his nose and wiped away the blood dripping from it. He summoned the memory of a handkerchief and began wiping the corners of his eyes and ears, which were also bleeding.
"Damn… I forgot what happened!"
All he remembered was the despair when he realized the Bloodweave would devour the Shadow God's Lineage… and the terror that came after. Then he blacked out.
He didn't know how long he had been unconscious—hours, maybe days—but at least, he had survived. He looked at his runes to check his Attributes.
[Fated] [Flame of Divinity [Master of Shadows] [Blessed by the Shadow God] [Death] [Blood weave] [Bone weave]
"Did I succeed?! Did I really suppress that rampaging beast called Blood weave?"
Apparently, he had—though it was hard to believe. Sure, he never doubted himself, but he knew his limits… and suppressing Blood weave with Will power alone was far beyond what he could do It was a desperate decision that he made in a desperate moment.
"…Ah well. Some things are better left unknown."
Sunny pressed his palm to the floor and lifted himself, glancing around for the Saint—but she was nowhere to be seen.
"She left me like this? Where's the loyalty and affection we built between us?!"
As Sunny shouted, the Silent Knight appeared from the stairs leading to the third floor, staring at him with disdain.
"Oh hey, beautiful… how about we get out of here?"
The Saint didn't answer. Instead, she turned and went to the third floor. Sunny quickly followed her. Together, they passed through the third level and climbed to the fourth.
The central hall of the fourth floor had been transformed into a vast, somber shrine. At its center stood an altar carved from black agate, and behind it… an unbelievably beautiful statue of a young woman wearing a loose jacket, her face hidden behind a veil. She held a star in one hand and a bolt of lightning in the other—this was the Goddess of Storms.
Sunny passed the fourth floor with disdain from Neather. He ascended to the fifth floor carefully, eyes closed, relying on his shadow sense to navigate. This wasn't for fun—no, the walls of the fifth floor were inscribed with runes bearing forbidden knowledge and enough corruption to Corrupt his soul if he gazed upon them. But curiosity still tugged at him.
So, he summoned Weaver mask and looked at the map.
It was a map of the Dream Realm. At the center, a mist-covered mountain range was depicted. South of it, an island floated above fire, with the silhouette of a noble pagoda. Further south, a great fortress stood, separated from the pagoda by a vast void. In the far west, a snowy peak sat beside a burning volcano, with an arched bridge between them.
To the southwest, a strange ship floated on ghostly waves. Southeast of the mountains, divided by a long ribbon of nothingness, stood a symmetrical pyramid carved into a wall of obsidian stone.
And finally, far to the north—beyond all other images—was a familiar shape: a terrifying mask crowned with three horns, staring directly at Sunny. The map displayed the domains of the Seven Demons.
Groaning from staring too long, Sunny moved on to the sixth floor after satisfying some of his curiosity. Entering the arched stone chamber, the pressure on him eased. He removed Weaver mask.
Relieved, Sunny rubbed his temples to ease the headache, then looked at the arch. It was tall and made from the same material as the rest of the Ebony Tower. It resembled a doorframe—but with no door.
Sunny took out an ugly jar containing white flames. He approached the arch and placed the jar on the stone.
The shadow essence was fully absorbed. The gate did not open, but the runes surrounding the arch began to glow faintly, with a beautiful shimmer.
"Ah… this will take a while, huh? A day or two, maybe?"
After a day and a half of feeding the arch with shadow essence until it brimmed with power, a crack appeared in reality at the center of the room. Though it was a different scene—clear blue skies, sunlight, and the sound of wind playing with leaves.
Sunny stepped into the gate and emerged onto soft grass. The gate vanished behind him. Looking up at the sky with longing and anticipation, he knew—he had recovered the Bone weave. Now all that remained was to descend.
But first, he needed to verify a certain seed.
Sunny turned to the beautiful, magnificent ivory tower behind him. With a crooked smile, he glanced at the skeleton of a massive creature. Then he walked around the tower to a clear lake, crossed it, and headed farther until he reached the tower gates.
Inside the ivory tower, Sunny wandered the halls, feeling sleepy. He stayed alert, knowing this was the effect of the Nightmare Seed inside. At the center of the hall were seven broken chains etched with rune symbols.
Sunny stepped back from the tear in the fabric of reality itself—where the Nightmare Seed lay—and returned the way he came. He had only wanted to check on it, not stay close to it.
He grabbed one of the vertebrae of the dead dragon's tail and began pushing it toward the edge of the island, then climbed inside it. The Saint appeared outside and kicked the bone down.
Sunny hid in the shadows within the bone. As it fell into the Crushing Depths, the bone began to crack and splinter—but somehow, it held.
It continued to fall and shatter while Sunny twisted within the shadows, dodging sunlight until the pressure became bearable. Then, he emerged in physical form and wrapped his six shadows around him. The Bone weave reinforced his bones incredibly, and with the support of his six shadows, he endured the crushing force until he neared one of the islands and stepped into its shadows.
"I'm back! Where are the humans? I need someone to talk to—I'm going insane!"
Sunny moved toward the nearby Noctis Sanctuary—he had landed on the Iron Fist Island. But just as he approached the sanctuary, someone appeared before him.
It was Master Roan, smiling gently.
But when Sunny looked into his eyes… he saw emptiness. A void. A nothingness that should not have been there.
Something was wrong.