Chapter 465 - 454- The Shadow’s Evolution

From this distance, Grey could make out several things clearly.

The first was the overwhelming swarm of mutated creatures and beasts surging toward them like relentless waves crashing upon a beach.

Their numbers were simply uncountable.

Grey’s brows furrowed into a deep frown as he stared at the seemingly endless horde. When they had first arrived in this place, their numbers had been nowhere near this terrifying. In fact, there had been fewer than a hundred mutated creatures prostrating themselves reverently before the Heavenly Vine.

Yet now, their numbers had increased to such a staggering degree that they seemed to stretch endlessly into the distance.

Slightly farther away, Grey could see the shadow fighting against the countless mutated creatures surrounding it.

With every attack, numerous beasts were crushed beneath its terrifying power. Some were torn apart, while others were reduced to puddles of rotten flesh beneath the shadow’s attacks.

And although the shadow was clearly excited about the treasure and eager to reach it before everyone else, it did not leave the corpses of the creatures it killed to waste.

After almost every kill, it would immediately devour the corpse.

Nothing was left behind.

Not even bones.

Not even scraps of flesh.

As it continued devouring more and more mutated creatures, an increasingly dense amount of corrosive substance began filling its entire body. At the same time, a strange pressure slowly began to form around the shadow.

At first, the pressure was so faint that it was almost impossible to notice.

But after several more kills, it gradually became more apparent.

It was as if a faint layer of incredibly heavy corrosive substance had begun forming around the shadow, enveloping its entire body like an invisible mist.

The air surrounding it began to sizzle.

Nearby beasts started to erode and decay merely from approaching it. Their flesh withered, their bones became brittle, and their bodies began deteriorating without the shadow even directly attacking them.

Even the plants and ground around it suffered the same fate.

They were being affected by the corrosive substance radiating from the shadow.

It was almost identical to what would happen if an object that was originally pure were placed inside a Corroded Zone. In a matter of moments, the terrifying corrosive substance would begin infiltrating the object, gradually contaminating and tainting it until nothing remained of its original state.

But what was happening here was both the same and completely opposite.

The shadow was not being tainted by the world.

It was the one spreading its taint into the world.

It was no longer merely absorbing the corrosive substance around it. Its very existence was beginning to influence its surroundings, turning everything nearby into an extension of the corruption within its body.

Grey’s frown deepened as he observed this development.

He could clearly feel that the shadow was becoming increasingly stronger.

More importantly, it was approaching its limit.

At any moment, it could potentially break through.

Grey did not know what would happen once the corrosive substance within the shadow reached its critical point and it finally evolved. However, he had a strong feeling that whatever emerged from that evolution would not be something good for him.

Although the shadow had remained obedient so far, Grey could occasionally sense the malice and greed hidden deep within its eyes.

It was subtle.

Most people would probably overlook it.

But Grey had always been extremely sensitive to danger, and he could clearly feel that the shadow’s obedience was not absolute.

There was something lurking beneath the surface.

"I’ll have to suppress the shadow after it breaks through," Grey muttered, his expression calm despite the faint wariness in his eyes. "I can’t stop it now. Its evolution has partially achieved what I was hoping for."

Although Grey was apprehensive about the shadow, he had to admit that it had been useful.

Aside from helping him absorb the corrosive substance within his body, there were not many situations where the shadow could provide him with a significant advantage.

However, if it evolved and became powerful enough that its very presence could influence the outcome of a battle, then it would be a solid gain for him.

It would give him another trump card.

And Grey never minded having more trump cards.

"Just a few more."

A strange glint flashed through Grey’s eyes.

He raised both hands and rapidly performed several hand seals.

Immediately, small inscriptions appeared in midair.

The inscriptions flickered briefly before exploding outward.

A wave of powerful spells was instantly blasted in all directions.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The mutated creatures surrounding Grey were caught completely off guard by the sudden barrage.

Many of them were torn apart on the spot. Some were blasted into the air before their bodies were reduced to pieces, while others were engulfed by the violent power of the spells and instantly lost their lives.

Grey did not even bother turning around to look at them.

He had already accomplished what he wanted.

Retracting his gaze, Grey looked toward the towering Heavenly Vine in the distance.

Without hesitation, he took another step forward.

His body instantly disappeared.

When he reappeared, Grey was standing directly behind the shadow.

At that moment, the shadow was greedily devouring the flesh and blood of a mutated creature it had just killed.

Its entire body seemed to be immersed in the pleasure of consuming the corrosive substance within the corpse.

But the moment Grey appeared, the shadow immediately sensed him.

More precisely, it sensed the suppressive intent emanating from Grey.

The change was instantaneous.

The shadow froze.

The creature it had been devouring slipped from its grasp and dropped heavily onto the ground.

"M-Master... I-I can..."

The shadow stuttered, its voice filled with fear and surprise.

Grey glanced at it calmly.

There was no anger in his expression.

"En. Continue evolving as you were doing."

After saying those words, Grey turned his gaze toward the decimated area around them.

The ground was littered with corpses, while the air was filled with the faint stench of corruption.

Without saying anything else, Grey’s figure blurred.

He left the shadow behind and rushed toward the distant female corpse.

For several moments, the shadow remained completely motionless.

It seemed almost as though it could not believe what it had just heard.

Then its body trembled slightly.

Its master had actually approved of its evolution.

The excitement within the shadow was almost tangible.

It even stopped devouring the corpses for several breaths, remaining frozen in place as if it were processing Grey’s words.

But very soon, it regained its senses.

A strange and sinister excitement appeared in its eyes.

It immediately returned to killing and absorbing the corrosive substance contained within the mutated creatures and their rotten flesh.

However, there was now a noticeable difference.

The shadow was eating faster.

Much faster.

Its attacks became more violent, and every time it killed a creature, it immediately devoured the corpse without wasting even a moment.

It was as if Grey’s approval had removed the final restraint within it.

Grey did not pay any attention to this.

Instead, he continued rushing forward to meet the female corpse, which was still barreling through the countless mutated creatures in the distance.

Even from quite a distance away, Grey could already hear the coarse laughter of the Captain, mixed with the wailing of beasts and their agonizing cries.

The battlefield ahead was an absolute mess. Roars and screams continuously rang through the air.

The ground trembled from the violent clashes. When Grey finally arrived close to the female corpse, his eyes narrowed slightly.

He could see numerous injuries covering her body.

Some wounds were deep enough to expose the bones beneath her flesh, while others had nearly torn her body apart.

Yet despite the severity of those injuries, they did not remain for long.

As time passed, the wounds slowly closed. Her flesh regenerated and her bones were restored. The blood that had spilled on the ground also vanished.

In the blink of an eye, her body returned to exactly the same condition it had been in when she first arrived. It was as if the injuries had never existed.

The Captain also noticed Grey’s arrival and a loud, coarse laugh immediately erupted from ahead.

"Hahaha! This is why I like doing things with you, Grey. You make everything so much more interesting whenever you’re around!"

Violet’s voice rang through the battlefield after her laughter. Grey did not respond immediately. He simply coldly snorted.

"If possible, I wouldn’t even want to involve myself in the major events you always somehow manage to drag me into."

"Hehe."

Violet laughed lightly. "Don’t lie. You enjoy doing big things with me." Her voice carried a hint of madness as she continued.

"Not to mention the massive gains we’ll get once we succeed. The greater the risk, the greater the reward!"

Grey could almost hear the madness hidden within her final words.

It was as if Violet possessed a completely different definition of danger from ordinary people.

To her, if something did not involve an extremely high chance of death, then it probably wasn’t risky enough.

Grey’s expression remained indifferent as he looked ahead. After spending so much time with Violet, he had already learned one important thing.

Whenever she said something was going to be dangerous... It usually meant that they were already standing with one foot inside the grave.

"Hehe, there’s no turning back now. The divinity within the Heavenly Vine is about to emerge."

Violet’s voice suddenly rang out.

The moment Grey heard her words, his eyes narrowed into sharp slits, a strange glint flashing within their depths.

Divinity!

The word alone was enough to make his heart tighten.

Before Grey could even ask what she meant, a sudden and drastic change occurred in the distance.

The towering Heavenly Vine began to tremble violently.

Every single leaf attached to its enormous branches shook as though an invisible force was coursing through them. The trembling quickly intensified, and for the briefest instant, the entire Heavenly Vine seemed to be dyed in a deep, crimson-red hue.

It was as though blood had suddenly begun flowing through every inch of its massive body.

At the tips of the vine’s leaves, the small sacks of blood and flesh that contained the various organs of the mutated creatures began to shake violently.

They writhed.

They twisted.

They convulsed.

The tiny sacks bulged outward repeatedly, as if something was trapped inside and desperately struggling to escape.

The sight was grotesque enough to make even Grey’s expression turn solemn.

Then Violet’s voice rang out again.

"Prepare yourself, Grey! Call back your Mosasaur and the Life Demon phantom. They won’t be able to withstand the gaze and power of divinity!"