My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Damon glanced at Xander, who stood before him like a colossus, unmoving and unchanging, his expression cold beneath his helm.

There was a sensation of danger that covered Damon’s body like a shroud, but he did not move either. Deep within his shadow, he heard the faint stir of the great dragon Aethergon, whom he had imprisoned there years ago.

Finally, he held his dagger in his hand. The broken sword gleamed with darkness, and surrounding its blade was a thick fog of darkness, shadows, and souls. This sword was sharp enough to damage the soul. It was a deadly weapon bound to Damon’s own soul, an extension of who he was.

Xander kept his eyes on Damon as his armor slowly shifted into its Sovereign Mantle form. Thick, heavy plates of metal surrounded his body, while his helm completely covered his face and his aura grew stronger.

Damon knew words were pointless here, so he did the same for his armor.

”Tell me, when you killed my brother, did you think it would end like this?” Xander’s voice seemed to echo beneath his helm.

”Yes, I did. And if I could go back to the past, I would still kill your brother.”

His reply did not faze Xander.

The chaos of the battlefield and the rampaging nightmares did not come anywhere close to them. The only person in the area was Ashcroft, and he made sure no one interfered.

”I will have the honor of killing you,” Xander whispered.

”You will find none from my death.”

Damon took a stance, and the moment their weapons clashed, streaks of light flashed through the air. Tall waves of shadows rose and fell around them as gravity compressed and exploded. Their forms rose into the air, leaving fractured rifts in the sky, while in the distance, a crazed and insane Rot-filled creature that looked like an abominable phoenix burned through the air, seemingly wishing for its own death.

Like a meteor, something came crashing into the ground. The impact made the earth collapse beneath them as a large cloud of dust rose high into the dull grey sky that had been covered in smog and death.

Damon flipped out of the way of a spear that created a miniature black hole where he had just been, but even after avoiding the attack, he coughed up blood.

He was in worse shape than ever. The contract had given Xander a fair chance to kill him, which caused Damon’s stats and combat ability across all levels and parameters to be reduced until they were fair to Xander. But another unfair advantage had been given to Damon in the opposite direction. He was exhausted and covered in injuries. To put it simply, Xander had just been given a perfect opportunity to kill him. Damon had a feeling that if Xander’s spear pierced him anywhere lethal, he would die instantly.

The spear tip came toward him again, but Damon twisted his body to the side and narrowly dodged it. Before he could react, Xander slammed the shaft into his stomach, pushing him backward and creating the distance he needed to thrust the spear into Damon’s body and kill him.

Damon’s legs buckled, but he gritted his teeth as shadows scattered in all directions. As the spear passed through the space where he had been, he Flash Stepped forward and grabbed Xander with both arms, trying to crush his windpipe. Xander immediately parried one of his arms to the side before driving a punch into his gut.

Damon rasped as he raised his second hand and imbued it with gravity, then rammed his fist upward into Xander’s chin.

A shock wave sent dust and earth flying in every direction, and Damon’s body followed the momentum as he shot into the sky.

Xander soared after him with a sonic boom.

Damon spread his wings and turned in midair before bringing his hands together. A large torrent of immolating black flames erupted from his body and fell upon the world like countless meteors.

At least he could still use this particular skill. Some of his skills were unusable.

Xander’s form burst through the flames, making Damon’s eyes widen.

His body had resisted the Ashborn Flames.

Xander slashed his spear toward Damon, who blocked with his sword, but the sheer weight behind the spear forced his hand downward, causing the spear’s tip to slip across his shoulder.

Damon felt the pain immediately.

He rasped and raised his hand toward Xander.

”Dominate.”

Xander barely had time to react before the space around him exploded. A huge chunk of his armor was ripped away.

Damon grabbed his head and slammed it into Xander’s helm.

A deafening ring filled Damon’s ears, but Xander merely shook off the attack.

”Lightning Dominate.”

Countless bolts of lightning weaved through the air above them before Damon grabbed Xander and hurled his body toward the center of the storm.

Damon allowed his own body to fall.

Purple and white light flashed across the sky as Xander was covered in countless bolts of lightning.

Then Damon heard a sonic boom.

Xander came falling toward him with his spear in hand and his armor still intact.

”You’ve always been a meat shield.”

Damon was certain he could not match Xander’s durability, but so what?

He could match his speed, and then some.

[5x]

He activated the skill and added the buff to his speed before diving into the enormous branches of Ythar that covered the battlefield for miles on end, using their shadows to disappear from sight.

Xander landed on the ground. Corpses covered the earth, and the scent of blood and fear hung heavily in the air as he slowly looked around.

”Come out and face me, you coward! Stop running away!”

Damon was hidden behind a large branch. A grimace crossed his face as he lifted his armor slightly. Blood had soaked through it, and he poured several high-level healing potions over his wounds. Normally, they should have healed him almost instantly, but now they felt no different from using low-level potions.

”You know, Xander, I underestimated you.”

Damon’s voice echoed through the trees.

Xander turned toward the direction of the voice and fired an invisible ball of energy. It shattered a wide swath of branches, causing several nightmares hiding there to rush toward him.

Before they could reach him, they exploded.

”You didn’t underestimate me. You just thought less of me.”

That was Xander’s reply.

”You are really good at hiding in the shadows. Come out and face me in the light. Perhaps you are afraid.”

”Why would I be?”

Damon’s voice echoed from another direction.

”I’m right behind you.”

The moment he said that, Xander turned around, and an arrow shot toward him.

He blocked it.

Several more arrows came from different directions, forcing Xander to spin around before he created a wave that sliced through everything within a circular radius.

”Cheap tricks.”

Just as Xander muttered those words, he looked down.

He noticed the runes carved into the ground.

He raised his spear and stabbed it into the earth, creating a barrier just as an explosion erupted from several miles away.

The force of the explosion tore through the battlefield.

Now the trees were gone, and the entire radius was empty.