Elders encircled the arena floor—ten grim reapers in black-gold robes.
Sect Lord towered center stage, golden aura thick as blood mist. Level 30+. Unbelievable.
Crowd hush fell heavy. Boos died.
Sect Lord raised hand. Arena trembled.
"The cursed heir... Lian Xue."
Voice boomed—qi-amplified thunder.
"Perfect Forge clear. Bloodline awakened."
Murmurs exploded. "Impossible!" "He's trash!"
Hate Meter: 310 → 325
Post-trial farming. Love it.
Concubine slipped beside me, fan fluttering. "Play nice," she breathed. Eyes gleamed hungry.
Elder spat: "Bloodline's still tainted! Soul furnace NOW!"
Sect Lord silenced him—finger flick. Elder choked mid-air.
[MALICE DOMAIN DETECTED ON ELDER]
Passive Fear Aura: +5 Malice → 330/400.
System sniffing bosses too? Based.
Sect Lord paced slow. Golden boots clicked obsidian.
"Twenty years. No qi. Mocked. Beaten."
Paused. Eyes locked mine.
"Yet beasts kneel. Disciples shatter. Golem crumbles."
He snapped fingers. Arena arrays pulsed.
New formation locked.
"Prove loyalty. Face my Shadow."
Dark mist swirled center floor.
Figure materialized—perfect mirror of ME.
Level 12. Jade shard copy. Venom Slash ready. Despair Mirage primed.
My exact build.
[DUAL QUEST: Defeat Shadow Self]
Reward: +75 Malice, Bloodline Secret.
Mirror match? F**king genius.
Shadow-me grinned—my grin. Twirled shard mockingly.
"Trash gonna trash trash?" it taunted—my voice.
Crowd roared laughter.
Hate Spike: +15 → 345
Sect Lord watching close. Testing me.
Shadow lunged—identical sidestep.
I mirrored back.
Clash! Shards sparked.
"Copycat much?" I sneered.
It laughed. "Original's just beta."
VENOM SLASH! Identical arcs collided—poison clouds bloomed.
[STALEMATE: 0 Malice gain]
This guy's me. Knows every trick.
Shadow feinted throat. Aimed ribs instead.
Dodge pattern read.
DESPAIR MIRAGE! My clone split left.
Shadow-me split identical—double standoff.
Four mes now. Arena spun chaos.
Sect Lord nodded faint approval.
Psych game time.
"Hey shadow—your real self's watching Huo Kai's corpse rot."
Shadow flinched—micro-second.
HATE CRACK! +8 Malice → 353
Real opening. MALICE SPIKE! Black lance grazed shoulder.
Shadow hissed—first damage.
"Feeling real now, fake?"
It roared. SPIKE BARRAGE!
Ducked two. Third clipped arm.
HP -8%. First real hit taken.
Pain sharp. He's good.
Clones clashed clones. Real vs real circled.
"You die first," shadow hissed.
"Nah. I'm the final boss."
DOMAIN MAX! Arena air crushed.
Shadow slowed. I didn't.
Perfect read—THROAT SLASH!
GUSH. Black ichor sprayed.
Shadow staggered. Glitched.
"Impossible..."
FINAL SPIKE! Heart pierced.
Shadow dissolved—mist sucked into my dantian.
[SHADOW ABSORBED]
+75 Malice → 428/450.
Bloodline Evolution: 55%.
New Passive: Shadow Sense (Predict enemy moves 0.5s).
Shadow me stronger now. Eat your heart out, Naruto.
Arena gasped.
Sect Lord clapped slow.
"Perfection."
Stepped closer. Golden hand extended.
"Join my personal guard. Tonight."
[B-RANK OFFER DETECTED]
Options: Accept (Safe).
Decline (High Risk, High Malice).
Concubine tensed beside me.
Trap or throne?
His smile didn't reach eyes.
[TO BE CONTINUED]