The mist began to disperse, revealing a fifty-metre-tall, grotesque humanoid figure.
Thick, dark-grey spikes jutted from the edges of the monster's colossal head to its crown; its face was stiff, crisscrossed with cracks.
Its entire body was woven from serpentine bodies that gleamed like black metal. Two enormous snake heads sprouted from its shoulders, their mouths disgorging countless smaller serpents that twisted into arms ending in four razor claws.
At the knees, two more snake heads gaped, while behind them a longer black tail swayed.
The instant the monster appeared, its rigid face turned toward Jiang Yan. "Master!"
Jiang Yan studied the hideous creature and sank his consciousness into his mind to inspect its information.
Great Serpent: a monster from another world, its might overwhelming beyond measure!
Energy Ejection: can extend a dragon head to unleash diverse energy attacks!
Form Shift: the Great Serpent possesses multiple forms, each unleashing terrifying power and unique moves!
Replication: the Great Serpent learns at super-speed, mastering an opponent's techniques in moments! (Physical martial moves only)
Hyper Regeneration: the Great Serpent recovers at fearsome speed; as long as it isn't reduced to ash on the spot, it can absorb life and energy to heal!
Gaia Cannon: unlocked only in ultimate form!
'So many abilities…' Jiang Yan gazed at the Great Serpent, eyes glittering; on paper, its strength was clearly formidable.
"Try an energy beam on that distant hill," Jiang Yan said, pointing at the lone hillock a dozen kilometres away.
The hill was only a few hundred metres high; from here it looked like a tiny peak.
At his order, the Great Serpent turned toward the spot he indicated.
Woom! Its back writhed, and a black dragon—body fused to the serpent, head draconic—emerged. The dragon's maw opened, crimson light gathering within.
Shoo! A scarlet energy beam shot toward the hill, leaving a long red trail across the sky.
Rumble! In an instant the beam struck; a violent explosion swallowed the hill in red radiance.
A dozen kilometres away, Jiang Yan felt the ground shudder slightly. Where the hill had stood, only a vast crater remained; he nodded in satisfaction.
'Not bad power.' He looked the Great Serpent's grotesque frame up and down, liking it more every second.
The star seal on his hand flashed as he contacted the Blood Master to deliver soul crystals… Night fell; pale moonlight bathed the land in cold silver.
During these days, wild beasts, insects, and birds had vanished from the great mountain below. Within it, a patch of white mist lingered.
Tap-tap-tap!
Footsteps echoed from the mist. Under the moon, a figure in an Eternal Church black robe stepped out.
Harold's eyes were vacant, his face deathly pale and slack.
He stared at his surroundings, dazed, showing no reaction at all.
"Chee-chee-chee!" Only when distant birds cried did his eyes flicker slightly.
Thud! Harold dropped to his knees, tears streaming. "Aaaah!!"
He wailed, utterly broken, no trace of the arrogance he once showed ordinary folk.
A fellow human, he had watched his companions dissected before his eyes, the monstrous horrors and bloody scenes pressing in—knowing he might be next on the slab.
That he hadn't gone completely mad spoke of hard-won experience: he had killed before and possessed a tougher mind than most.
He wept for a full half-hour before finally rising and sprinting wildly ahead.
He would never stay in this hellish place again; he would report to the Church and have its Transcendents avenge him… Twenty-one days passed since Jiang Yan last summoned the Great Serpent.
Jiang Yan stood on the plain, consciousness sinking into his mind.
pearl of the abyss: 3.96 billion / 3.96 billion
"Negative-emotion value full. Summon?"
'Summon!'
Woom! A mass of violet-black mist appeared on the open ground, swelling to twenty metres across.
Rumble! For over an hour the roiling within continued before the noise finally ceased.
As the mist faded, an enormous golden doorframe stood before Jiang Yan.
Twenty metres tall and ten wide, its edges writhed with golden arms, and atop the frame an old man's golden face grinned, golden nostril-hair bristling, pupils of pure gold.
"Ohhh, greetings, Master! Your loyal Elder Gold greets you!" the golden face cried joyfully.
Jiang Yan stared at the frame, for a moment unable to divine its purpose.
He sank his consciousness inward to inspect it.
Elder Gold: a special being from another world! (of extreme rarity)
gold stone: a stone that gathers souls; collect enough and you can connect it to Elder Gold's body! (as soft as ordinary gold; Elder Gold produces only one per month)
Gold Soul Rite: sacrifice souls to Elder Gold and open a portal that ignores distance and space! (portal strength depends on souls offered; Elder Gold will indicate what can pass through)
Only two abilities, yet Jiang Yan's eyes lit up: 'Ignore distance—so it can open in another world?'
Who would have thought this plain golden gate could solve his cross-world travel problem.
He drew a soul crystal from his robe and tossed it toward Elder Gold a few metres away. "Absorb this."
"Yes, Master!!!" Elder Gold's eyes went wide; the golden arms along the frame stretched out to snatch the crystal.
Under Jiang Yan's gaze, the arms retracted and stuffed the crystal straight into Elder Gold's mouth.
'I'm almost at my summoning limit; it's time to move on Nanwu Country.' Jiang Yan's eyes gleamed.
So far, the summons had consumed roughly 7.9 billion emotion points. The next would need 7.92 billion—unless he slaughtered the planet again, Blue Sphere's remaining population couldn't supply it.
With that thought, he glanced at the pearl of the abyss progress bar.
pearl of the abyss: 46.33 million / 5 billion (cap now fixed at five billion; future summons will always cost five billion)
"It changed—fixed at five billion," he murmured, eyes narrowing.
The ever-doubling cost had troubled him; left unchecked, he'd need to depopulate the universe before long.
'Still, five billion is steep but manageable with time.' He raised his arm.
The star seal flashed; now fully stocked, he would gather his forces and strike Nanwu Country.