Chapter 599: The Three ( Bonus - )

Chapter 599: The Three ( Bonus Chapter )

For a moment, the Dreadmaw Sovereign felt as if all the blood in its body had turned cold.

How?

Why could a human keep a Demon’s energy inside his own body?

Had he found a treasure that belonged to a Demon?

Had he made a contract with a being of that rank?

Or did another thought cross its mind.

But before it could finish that thought, Lian raised his left hand as well.

Inside his body, the End Core reacted.

A very small amount of End Energy moved along his fingers.

Unlike Eclipse Energy, no black light formed around this hand.

Instead, part of the mana flowing out of the Sovereign’s body became disconnected for a moment as it approached Lian’s fingers.

A strand of red mana that still remained around the monster’s injured shoulder came into contact with that energy.

And then, without an explosion, without burning, and without even leaving scattered particles behind, the rest of its structure was cut off.

It was as if it was never supposed to exist beyond that point.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign held its breath, its gaze moving between the two hands of the young Vorhelm.

The energy in his right hand was wearing down the structure of mana.

But the energy in his left hand? That one was something completely different.

And even more terrifying.

Its instincts gave it the same warning again.

Another demonic nature, but not from the same source as the previous one, it was something else.

Two independent natures, two different sources, and both belonged to ranks far above its own existence.

The monster felt its spine turn cold.

"No..."

Its voice barely came out.

"Impossible..."

Lian looked at it.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign instinctively moved backward, but its injured body did not allow it to move very far.

"You..."

Its lips were trembling.

"You’re using the power of two Demons?!"

The young Vorhelm said nothing, but his silence felt heavier to the monster than any answer.

The Sovereign moved its gaze from the young man’s two hands to his face, it could no longer believe what it was seeing.

A human could not withstand two different demonic natures so easily.

Even many powerful monsters could damage their own existence structure and be destroyed if they absorbed incompatible energy from a Demon.

But this young man was not only alive, he was also controlling two different sources at the same time, without his body falling apart, without his mana going out of control, and without the slightest sign of pressure.

The monster slowly moved its head back, and a terrifying thought formed in its mind.

Perhaps...

Its gaze remained fixed on Lian’s human face... perhaps he was not human at all...!

It had spent thirty years searching for a human who could withstand its monster power, thirty years looking for a way to obtain human skin and enter the Seven Regions.

But now, a being stood in front of it who had a human appearance while keeping two different demonic powers inside his own body.

Could he be a Demon?

This possibility made all its pride collapse for a moment.

If the one standing before it was truly a Demon in human form, then it had never stood a chance of winning.

Even Unholy Last Blood would mean very little against a being of that rank.

"What... are you, really?" the Sovereign asked in a trembling voice.

"Someone who came to see you for the second time." Lian tilted his head slightly, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

That was all.

He gave no further explanation, revealed nothing about the origins of the Cores, and did not even try to correct the monster’s misunderstanding.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign remained motionless for several seconds, it still did not know the answer to its question, but for the first time, it felt that perhaps it was better not to know.

The young Vorhelm controlled the Eclipse Energy and End Energy, there was no reason to use any more of the energy stored in the two Cores.

That short display was enough.

He lowered his hands and stood in front of the Dreadmaw Sovereign again.

"Well, have you changed your mind?"

No answer came for a while.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign looked at the broken rocks around it, at the place it had once considered its sacred hall.

At the remains of its black throne, and at the cracks spread across the mountains after its thirty-year plan had been destroyed.

And finally, at the two humans standing in front of it.

Seris held her sword beside her body.

No pressure was coming from her skill anymore, but the monster knew that if it made even the slightest hostile move, the girl could react before its attack reached her.

Lian was also standing calmly, but it could no longer say with confidence that this young man was truly human.

Damn him.

How could everything have changed like this?

There had been a time when it was close to killing these two with a single movement of its finger.

Now, even after releasing all its abilities and activating Unholy Last Blood, it had failed to seriously injure them.

More importantly, the young man standing before it probably possessed the power of beings whose ranks were far above its own.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign gritted its teeth, its hatred of humans was still there, and the same old anger remained deep inside it.

But now, another question occupied its mind.

If he really was a Demon...

Among monsters, differences in rank meant a great deal, serving a weak human was humiliating to it.

But serving a being of the Demon rank? That was completely different, even if that being had a human appearance.

It felt that the being standing in front of it only wore the appearance of a human, but was actually a Demon!

On the other hand, if it died now, all its efforts to evolve would also come to an end forever.

But if it survived, perhaps it would still have a chance to grow stronger.

Perhaps, under the command of this unknown being, it could reach a level it had only dreamed of before and take its revenge.

Of course, thinking this way did not mean its pride had disappeared.

It still hated surrendering, but death no longer seemed like an easy choice as it had a few minutes ago.

Besides, surrendering to a Demon... did not seem that humiliating, perhaps it could even be an honor?

"If I accept... what will happen?" the monster finally asked in a hoarse voice.

Lian gave a faint smile.

"You’ll obey my orders. You’re not allowed to harm innocent humans, take anyone’s heart for your experiments, or do the same things you were doing in these mountains again."

His gaze grew colder for a moment.

"And if you think I’m forgiving you for your past, you’re wrong, I’ve only decided to use your power instead of killing you, but this chance won’t last forever."

The monster slowly breathed out, and for a moment, its gaze fell on Seris.

The girl said nothing, she simply waited for its decision with the same cold gaze as always.

The Sovereign looked at Lian again.

"And what if I want to disobey you one day?"

"You can’t." The young Vorhelm replied, he did not explain the exact reason, but naturally, it was because the Colony would not allow such a thing.

Silence lasted for several seconds.

The monster could understand what this meant, if it accepted the bond, it would no longer be free as it had been before, and if it dared to disobey, this superior being, this Demon, would kill it.

Lian’s main commands would become binding on it, but in return, it would survive.

And perhaps it would have a chance to continue evolving.

The Dreadmaw Sovereign lowered its head.

For several seconds, the only sound was the cold wind passing through the mountain ruins.

Then, its large lips slowly moved.

"I accept."

"Good."

Without delay, he activated the [Colony Sovereign] Talent.

A flow of mana formed around the Dreadmaw Sovereign’s body.

The monster raised its head for a moment, it felt strange.

It was as if invisible threads were forming deep within its existence and connecting it to a point far beyond its physical body.

But unlike what it had expected, this force did not seem to be trying to erase its identity.

Its memories remained, and its hatred of humans did not disappear either, it was still itself, but a new bond was forming in the deepest part of its existence.

A bond that established Lian’s position as its ruler and god.

At that same moment, a blue window appeared in front of Lian.

[ Colony Sovereign Talent Activated ]

[ Target: Dreadmaw Sovereign ]

[ Level: 20 ]

[ Rank: Unholy ]

[ Target has accepted the special colony member bond ]

[ Current Special Member Capacity: 2/5 ]

[ Forming New Bond... ]

He waited for several seconds.

The mana around the monster grew denser, and the Dreadmaw Sovereign gritted its teeth.

A deep pressure passed through the structure of its existence, but this time, it did not try to resist.

It had made its own choice, and there was no longer any chance to change its decision.

[ Special Member Bond Successfully Established ]

[ Please assign a name to the new member ]

Lian looked at the kneeling creature, the Dreadmaw Sovereign, the monster that had considered itself the god of the mountains for thirty years.

The same monster that had once been so much stronger than him that he could not even resist a single movement of its finger.

But now?

That proud Sovereign was no longer even the master of its own fate.

Lian thought of the other two special members of the Colony.

One.

Two.

The corner of his mouth rose slightly.

"From now on... your name is Three."

The Dreadmaw Sovereign raised its head.

"Three...? This majesty is named what?"

But before it could protest, the system’s final window appeared.

[ Third Special Colony Member Registered ]

[ Name: Three ]

[ Special Colony Members: 3/5 ]

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(A/N: The bonus Chapters for the castles are finally over.)