Shadow Slave

Luckily, Sunny managed to slide down the hill and escape into the mist before Devouring Beast noticed him. Still, he didn't dare to leave the embrace of shadows for a while.

'Effie...'

Effie's Aspect had always been uniquely powerful - which was no surprise, considering its Transcendent Rank. Even on the Forgotten Shore, there had been few people more capable than her. Some, like Caster of Han Li Clan, had been superior to the solitary huntress in certain facets of physical combat, but none had been as well-rounded. That was one of the reasons why Effie had survived years of hunting the Dark City abominations alone.

Her Aspect was all about battle and physical prowess... so, Sunny was not sure that Devouring Beast even had means of destroying his intangible form. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry.

...His heart was cold and heavy.

'How do I fight something like that?'

Effie's Dormant Ability granted her a powerful and, more importantly, comprehensive physical augmentation. She was inconceivably strong, fast, enduring, resilient... now that Sunny was a Tyrant, the gap between them was not vast, but she was still superior to him in certain aspects.

The same went for her Awakened Ability. It basically made her skin as tough as steel... Sunny, on the other hand, had his Marble Shell. The two could be compared, but although the Shell was more versatile, it was not as stalwart in terms of pure defensive potential.

Of course, he had Shadow Step instead, making him much more mobile and elusive on and outside the battlefield. He had Shadow Manifestation, as well, while Effie's Ascended Ability was meant to empower her allies.

So, there was no question about who would win in a duel. No matter how much Sunny admired his boisterous friend, he knew that she stood no chance in a fight against him. With Shadow Dance, it would not even be close... much more so if his Shadows were involved.

But that was Effie. Devouring Beast, on the other hand...

Was a Defiled Saint. Her Transformation was to become a towering giant, and that giant inherited the benefits of her other Aspect Abilities, as well - all of them elevated to a higher Rank. The strength of a dozen men, the skin of steel. Her gargantuan figure would also be much more visible on a battlefield, making it so that entire armies would be able to see her and benefit from her Ascended Ability.

'What a monster...'

Sunny was already terrified at the thought of having to face the mist wraith in a battle. The bestial giant... was, in a sense, even more harrowing.

'Damn it! Damn it! Since when do I have to fight Saints on a constant basis?! And how did the Plagues all Transcend, anyway?!'

Fang was supposed to be

return to his human form. Diving out of the shadows, Sunny leaned

a certain weight of inanimate objects into Shadow Step... but perhaps because of the staff's divine nature, it had taken a lot of effort to carry it

not back to the tower. For a few moments there, Sunny

hesitated for a bit, then thought about the bestial giant. The radiance

how Cassie had described getting the sacred staff

'Come on... really...'

concentrated and

Miss Guiding Light, can you

foolish Sunny felt, the staff did not react. Its workings were really

head, Sunny thought about Nephis. The radiance of the soul crystal changed, pointing back to where

'Strange.'

commanded Nightmare to emerge from the shadows, climbed into

as dangerous as Sunny had imagined it to be. There were many harrowing abominations trapped in its fog, certainly - but not as many

three reasons

had been caught by the vortex and managed to reach the island over the centuries were still here,

and lucky the members of the cohort were, they would inevitably die under the onslaught of

Dark Butterfly he had found in the bone orchard

remained, many were already

been broken, and bloodied remains of devoured Nightmare Creatures littered the ground. That was where

not a single wound visible on their bodies. That was where

the prisoners of Wind Flower, making the island safer for the members of the cohort in an ironic twist of fate. Without

terrible creatures, using Nightmare's speed to escape them.

Sunny still failed to find

chasm barred the way forward. Not knowing how long it was and not wanting to prolong the journey by riding around it, Sunny reluctantly dismounted and climbed down. His hope was to reach the bottom of the chasm,

of monstrous black millipedes was waiting for him in the moist darkness. Much

the tide of worm-like creatures, but he was forced to move deeper into the chasm to escape them, eventually ending up in a system of caves below the surface

setting because the enchantment of the Crown of Twilight suddenly activated, replenishing