Death… And Me

Chapter 3772: Umbral Field

Xian looked around, concerned. After all, it was quite far from the tunnel. He wondered if some other Umbra had seen Rean and Roan.

However, the twins weren’t worried. Rean made sure to use his Light Bending Skill to hide himself. Besides, they also kept their Divine Senses spread, even if they couldn’t extend more than a few kilometers. The twins only attacked because they were sure they weren’t being watched.

”Ah!” Rean slapped his face. ”I forgot that Tissal probably had a lot of Shadow Energy. I should have captured him and let Xian absorb everything from the guy. Sorry, Xian.”

Xian shook his head. ”I-It’s fine... I wouldn’t dare ask for a Level Two Umbra’s Shadow Energy.”

”We should leave this area,” Roan instructed. ”Even if we were careful, you never know if some other Umbra noticed something and is coming our way.”

The two nodded, and they left the area straight away. They flew in the direction Xian initially intended to bring them earlier. He wanted to show the twins how the shadows became part of the buildings.

On the way, he also warned. ”Seniors, there are usually quite a few Umbras around those places, so make sure to stay hidden like you did. I also covered you with more of my Shadow Energy to make sure your souls and intentions couldn’t be detected.”

The twins did as Xian asked, and even flew slower. After an hour, they indeed began to see more of the Umbras, although most of them in this area were all Level One Umbras, just like Xian.

Of course, just because they were level one, it didn’t mean they had the same personality. There were plenty of them who attacked others for their energy. Rean and Roan found it quite ridiculous. ”What’s the point of them fighting each other if those at Level Two will appear to take whatever they got in the end?”

”This is the norm here,” Xian explained in a low voice while Rean also kept him hidden. ”That’s why Calanti’s death is bad for us since he provided some level of safety. The Level One Umbras are much more numerous. If you are lucky enough to avoid the Level Two Umbras that come to the borders, you might accumulate enough Shadow Energy to increase your level.”

”Above all, Calanti only absorbed enough to increase his reserves, but he usually left us with a little bit to survive and accumulate more shadow energy again for him. Those who don’t live in an area dominated by a single Umbra like Calanti’s area have a big chance of being sucked to the point they themselves disappear.”

”So that’s how it is...” Rean’s view changed a little. Even the Level One Umbras in this area were desperate to survive.

Roan could see further. The Umbras Calanti had in his tiny area were all very weak Umbras, those with power equivalent to Initial Stage or at most Middle Stage Space-Time Realm experts. He knew that Umbras with a power higher than that could actually cause trouble, so he likely didn’t let any of those live in his area.

”Here we are,” Xian stopped, and Rean and Roan halted right behind him. A few kilometers ahead, there was another one of those spheres... no, it wasn’t the same. It resembled a gigantic pillar with an even bigger sphere placed on it. From this vantage point, the black sphere seemed to be made of black glass, rather than the rocky texture of the other spheres and walls, which felt different.

There wasn’t anything happening around, so the twins were curious about what that sphere pillar had to do with the constructions around. Xian told them to wait, and they would see it soon.

Sure enough, Xian was right. A few minutes later, an Umbra approached that sphere pillar, and that caught the eyes of the other Umbras around. He had no expression, just flying to the sphere pillar like a moth to the flame. No one tried to stop the guy from approaching the sphere pillar, though. Some even looked to shake their heads in disappointment. Xian, too, didn’t look very happy to see that.

When the Umbra approached the sphere pillar, the sphere on top of it seemed to react, and black energy came out, grabbing the Umbra. The twins saw how the Umbra’s energy transformed and got absorbed by the sphere pillar.

At the same time that the Umbra’s energy was taken away from him, a blacker energy escaped the sphere, entering the black walls surrounding it. Some even reached the nearby floating spheres that some Umbras used as home.

Rean concentrated his Divine Energy on his eyes, looking at one of the floating spheres that took some of that Umbra’s transformed energy. It wasn’t much, but Rean was able to perceive that the floating sphere increased in size, even if just so slightly. ”So that’s why you say this entire installation is also you. Those sphere pillars transform the Umbras into a slightly different type of Shadow Energy that is absorbed by the constructions.”

Xian nodded. ”Yes... But that is not by choice.”

Roan agreed. ”Indeed. It looked like the Umbra going there didn’t even know what he was doing. I also didn’t see the expression of excruciating pain that the Umbras show when their Shadow Energy is taken away. It was more like that Umbra wasn’t even awake.”

Roan looked at Xian. ”What do you call those things?”

”The Constructor Orbs,” Xian answered. There was no Umbra who didn’t know about it.

”Alright... Constructor Orb, so be it.” Rean had another doubt, though. ”But why did that Umbra give himself up to that thing?”

”A time limit,” Xian said as he turned around, preparing to return to his area. ”After a Level One Umbra is born, he has around three hundred years to reach Level Two. If he fails, he will be summoned by that Constructor and will become part of this place. I’ve seen five of my elder brothers and sisters being taken away by the Constructor.”

He went silent for a moment as he flew back. Then, he noticed. ”Now that I think about it, I haven’t told seniors yet what we call our home, have I?”

Rean and Roan nodded, waiting for Xian to tell them. ”We call this place the Umbral Field.”