Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 1228: Doppelganger Beast

Among the countless horrors lurking in the forgotten lands of Mabi, few inspired more fear than the doppelganger beast.

Grey-skinned and ape-like in form, this was a creature that not only fed on the flesh, but also the essence of its prey. Its power lay in its ability to steal thoughts, memories, and appearances, leaving its victims hollow and broken while it walked away, wearing their lives as its own.

To lose one’s memories was to lose oneself. The victim would collapse in utter shock and madness, unable to comprehend the void inside their own heads, while the doppelganger beast walked away wearing their face, their mannerisms, and even their personality.

This was the terror of the doppelganger beast.

Adam had never taken into consideration that, out of all the fantastical beasts on this planet, he would encounter the doppelganger beast right when he was on the cusp of achieving victory.

He had gone through so many trials and tribulations, endured so much suffering, prepared painstakingly for so long, schemed so deviously in the shadows, all so he could accomplish his objective here on this island.

Everything he had hoped to achieve and set out to do was well within his grasp, but at the last possible moment... they slipped away.

For a brief moment, confusion engulfed Adam’s mind. But soon, the chaotic sound of battle echoed in his ears, snapping him back to his senses. He looked around, slightly puzzled, wondering where he was.

It was dark all around, and in the near distance, a mysterious cube rose from the ground. Gazing at the black structure, Adam’s lips curled into an excited grin.

”That’s right,” he murmured as he quickly paced towards the cube. ”The entrance to the portal!”

His objective lay right before him, and his heart couldn’t help but be filled with excitement. Finally, he would be able to leave this forsaken land filled with ferocious beasts.

More than two years had passed since the Battle of Ravenfell, and in that time, he had suffered greatly. But now, his suffering would come to an end. Finally, he was able to see the light at the... end... of the... tunnel...

His footsteps slowed down, his charred face engulfed in confusion once again. He couldn’t quite put a finger on it, but he felt like he was... missing something...

”What’s wrong?” he muttered under his breath.

The Laughing God continued to whisper, and Adam continued to listen. His lips slowly curled into a wide, exaggerated grin.

”What’s wrong with me?” He asked himself.

Right at that moment, the strangely familiar voice belonging to the white-robed Adam echoed directly inside his mind, his tone carrying a grim weight.

”Something’s not right,” he said. ”It feels like... we’ve done this before?”

”The hell are you talking about?” Adam frowned. But for some reason, he couldn’t help but come to believe his fractured self’s words.

”I don’t know...” said the white-robed Adam. ”Just be careful.”

Adam’s expression turned solemn. He looked around, but found no one in the darkness enveloping the bottom of the crater.

It was just him and the cube.

No, there was something else... someone else!

Through his Sphere of Resonance, Adam sensed another person in the vicinity. It was a lanky, ape-like figure with gray skin, sitting at the edge of the cube. When Adam realized the identity of this beast, he couldn’t help but involuntarily shudder.

”Doppelganger beast!” he muttered in alarm.

His back drenched in cold sweat, he quickly retreated a few meters away from the cube. In the next heartbeat, he summoned the Staff of Calamity and got ready to fight. His heart was gripped by terror, yet his lips formed a brilliant grin.

As his senses settled on the gray-skinned aberration sitting on the cube, he recalled the information about this deadly creature.

Its unsettling form was humanoid but warped with ape-like proportions. Its face lacked definition, with features that shifted and blurred as if sculpted from a mysterious type of clay that never settled. Its eyes were pits of pale light, cold and empty. And currently... it was staring right at Adam!

He finally realized where the sense of emptiness came from. He finally realized why he felt like he was forgetting something. It was because the doppelganger beast had stolen something from him!

”My thoughts, huh?” Adam’s grin threatened to stretch beyond his face. ”Bastard, how many times have you stolen my thoughts?”

The doppelganger beast remained silent. It tilted its head ever so slightly, then it replied in a hoarse voice, one eerily similar to Adam’s:

”My thoughts... huh? Bastard, how many times... have you stolen my... thoughts?”

Adam’s heart sank. The next moment, under his observation, the doppelganger beast finally made its move. It jumped off the edge of the cube and landed on the ground. Then, it thrust its hands forward, clentched at something unseen, then pulled them back.

Once again, Adam felt like something left his body. But this time, he didn’t find his mind turning sluggy or his thoughts wavering. No, instead, something profound had shifted.

What happened next caused him to tremble in fright.

The doppelganger’s grey form rippled and shifted, muscles and skin squirming unnaturally. Its features blurred and contorted, reshaping itself in an eerie manner.

Within moments, it took on the shape of Adam—charred flesh, acid-scarred skin, and hollow, empty eye sockets. Every burn and mark was mirrored perfectly. The figure now stood as a grotesque imitation of Adam.

But... something was wrong.

The doppelganger beast turned his head from one point to another, seemingly confused. Then, it raised its charred hands and tried to look at them. But that was the thing... he couldn’t look at them at all.

Just like Adam, it, too, was blind now!

When the doppelganger had stolen Adam’s appearance, it had stolen every facet of his appearance, including the inability to see. So now, when it was unable to see anything, it couldn’t help but become greatly confused and... terrified.

Sensing the lapse in his enemy’s judgment, how could Adam miss this opportunity to kill?

The next moment, his figure turned into a blur. He raised his staff over his shoulders, aiming to pulverize the identity-thieving bastard. In but a split second, he had appeared right before the doppelganger beast.

But just as he was about to viciously bring down his staff on the beast’s head, it subtly reached out with his hand and stole something again.

Adam’s action froze mid-air, as if time itself had come to a stop.

It was only a split-second later that he realized that the doppelganger beast had stolen his very thought of attacking!

But by then... it was already too late.