In a daze, Chen Yu's bouncy consciousness seemed to be sucked into a fragment of ancient, shattered memory.
He saw an enormous, pitch-black dragon, its body so vast it seemed capable of blotting out the sky, plummeting with a mournful cry from a sacred and glorious unknown kingdom.
Its form tore through churning black clouds, scales flaking off, raining down a shower of shadowy blood as black as ink. Finally, with endless resentment and fury, it crashed down amidst a range of pitch-black, continuous mountains.
The dragon's remains rapidly decayed and disintegrated, merging with the mountains, ultimately transforming into a pool that continuously churned with a viscous, shadowy liquid.
In the long ages that followed, this pool seemed to become the source and breeding ground for shadow creatures, giving birth to countless shadow lives of bizarre and varied forms.
And that shadow wraith he had devoured had indeed emerged from this Shadow Pool.
In fact, its power stemmed not only from the unyielding will of a certain hero but also, more deeply, inherited part of the essence and legacy left behind by that Ancient Shadow Dragon.
And now, all of this had become part of his own power.
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty! Are you... feeling unwell anywhere?" Count Bran tilted his head, carefully looking at Chen Yu whose gaze seemed somewhat vacant, his beady black eyes filled with concern.
Chen Yu shook his gelatinous body, snapping out of that brief memory. He hopped forward onto the wide expanse of frozen ground.
With a thought, the faint shadows cast by the Gray Gravel Crystal's light onto the frost-covered ground around him began to boil like ink brought to a simmer.
【Create Shade】
The boiling shadows rapidly rose from the ground, gradually coalescing into over a dozen hunched humanoid figures. They then slowly approached him, kneeling on one knee in unison like loyal guards.
They bowed their heads, uttering low, indistinct murmurs that seemed to come from a distant place. While the specific words were unclear, their submissive will was palpable.
Chen Yu realized these Shades were not simple magical summons.
They possessed a degree of self-awareness. As long as he didn't actively dismiss them or they weren't harmed, they could exist for a long time, just like real living beings.
Nilly was stunned for a moment, then also saw through the nature of these Shades. Her eyes instantly lit up as if she had discovered a treasure trove.
"These... are all shadow creatures?!"
She rubbed her hands together, her burning gaze sweeping over each Shade as if calculating how many excellent Shadow Assassins these ready-made 'seedlings' could cultivate for the Belmont family.
Creating shadow life... this talent was indeed special, with immense potential. But Chen Yu still felt the legacy left by the Ancient Shadow Dragon couldn't be that simple.
Beside them, Count Bran eagerly proposed, "Caw! Your Majesty, this Count believes this is essentially a magic for creating shadow life, but the 'raw material' used here to mold life is too ordinary."
"If we could use 'raw material' shed from a high-tier shadow creature, or something even better, to mold shadow life... perhaps we could give birth to even more special Shades."
Count Bran's words reminded Chen Yu.
He carefully observed the Shades molded from ordinary shadows before him.
Indeed, while they possessed consciousness, they had neither special powers nor developed any of the traits a high-tier shadow creature should have.
If we could use higher-tier shadow material to mold life... perhaps something truly remarkable could be born.
But the problem was, where to find high-tier shadow material?
Bubbles of thought popped within Chen Yu's round body. Suddenly, he remembered a talent he had gained after devouring that mysterious shadow manipulating the vampire clan during the Evernight Domain battle in the Dark Realm not long ago—a talent he hadn't really used much: Shadow Split.
A bold idea bubbled up from Chen Yu's gelatinous head.
What if I used my own split shadow to mold life?
Your own shadow should be quite special too, right? What kind of creature would be born then?
A Shadow Slime?
【Shadow Split】
Chen Yu decided to give it a try. With a concentrated effort, his whole body trembled slightly. The plump, round shadow cast by the Gray Gravel Crystal's light onto the frosty ground behind him began to writhe as if it had a life of its own.
Then, under the watchful eyes of Nilly and Count Bran, that shadow actually split down the middle, transforming into two slightly smaller, rounder patches of darkness.
"Caw!" Count Bran's little eyes widened in shock at this sight, his beak hanging open.
"Your Majesty, where did you learn this?"
Chen Yu found Count Bran's reaction odd and briefly explained the battle that had occurred in the Evernight Domain.
Unexpectedly, Count Bran's reaction became even more intense. The entire bird seemed about to puff up, its wings flapping wildly.
"Caw! Your Majesty, you... you devoured one of those troublesome 'Shadow Scions'?!"
"Shadow Scions?" Hearing this term, Nilly's gaze also turned peculiar.
Crossing her arms, she racked her brain, then explained, "It's said that in an era so ancient it's hard to trace, after the 'Shadow Dragon' Eryn fell from the divine kingdom into the Shadow Mountains, its massive body decayed and crumbled, becoming the source shrouding the continent's shadow aspect... And from the decaying remains and scattered divinity, countless 'Shadow Scions' were born."
"They are lives born from the remnants of a deity, innately possessing the power of shadow and Eryn, but also filled with chaos and madness. Over the long ages, they fought, killed, and devoured each other, vying for the power Eryn left behind... Until now, truly powerful or active Shadow Scions rarely appear openly on the continent."
Hmm?
So, without realizing it, he had devoured an offspring born from the remains of a fallen deity?
"Will there be any consequences?" he asked instinctively.
"Caw..." Count Bran thought carefully for a moment, his beak opening and closing a few times, his tone becoming uncertain. "Shadow Scions are all over the deep parts of the Shadow Mountains. Eating one... they probably wouldn't be so petty as to specifically come looking for trouble with you, Your Majesty... probably... maybe..."
His voice grew softer and softer, clearly lacking confidence himself.
"Ahem!" Count Bran cleared his throat, trying hard to put on a serious expression. "Anyway, Your Majesty, in the future, please, please do not easily reveal this power in front of outsiders. Even though this power seems... caw, to have no major use for now, it is, after all, derived from part of the essence of the 'Shadow Dragon' Eryn. It could very likely attract unnecessary trouble."
Chen Yu bobbed his round body up and down to show he understood.
Well, he'd already devoured it and couldn't spit it out. If they really came looking for trouble... he'd just eat them all.
Holding onto this simple, brutal, gluttonous mindset, Chen Yu quickly tossed that bit of worry to the back of his mind.
His attention returned to his own split shadow.
【Create Shade】
A force that seemed capable of distorting the boundary between reality and shadow descended. This patch of shadow, as if infused with life, rapidly changed its contours, 'standing up' from the ground.
In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a round, bouncy slime, but one that was pitch-black all over, as if made of the purest shadow.
This newly born "Shadow Slime" curiously hopped once on the ground, making a soft 'squelch' sound.
It seemed curious about everything around it. One moment it hopped to the side, picking up an icicle to play with happily.
The next moment, it scooted over to the Gray Gravel Crystal, lowered its head, and began nibbling on the shadow cast beneath the ore. As it ate, its inky body seemed to swell slightly, its color deepening a bit.
Once it had eaten its fill, it finally hopped and bounced back to Chen Yu's side, affectionately rubbing its round shadowy body against Chen Yu's shadow cast on the ground, as if expressing dependence and closeness.
Chen Yu watched all this in amazement.
This Shadow Slime didn't seem like a simple clone or summon.
It was more like an independent life, yet connected to him, and completely obedient to his commands.
He seemed to have genuinely created Zeyerra's first Shadow Slime.
What surprised him even more was that, although this little guy was still very weak now, it had inherited some of his characteristics and could grow by devouring shadows.
If he just let it eat and eat and eat, devouring enough shadows, what kind of colossal behemoth would it grow into? Chen Yu couldn't help but imagine.
Shadow and reality are usually two parallel lines that rarely intersect. Pure shadow creatures have difficulty directly affecting the material world of reality.
But among shadow creatures, there also exist special individuals, or those who, by forming contracts with Professionals from the Prime Material Plane, can directly interfere with reality.
What would happen if a constantly growing Shadow Slime formed a contract with a Stone Descendant?
It seemed he had inadvertently opened another path to the Extraordinary for the Stone Descendants.
Nilly, who had witnessed the birth of the Shadow Slime beside him, seemed to have realized this as well.
Her breathing became rapid, her gaze fixed tightly on that lively little black creature, her eyes sparkling with excitement and longing.
She rubbed her hands together sheepishly, crouched down, and leaned close to Chen Yu, grinning as she said, "Our respected and great Slime Majesty, you know I have always been loyal to you, dedicated to the Kingdom, body and soul, without a second thought..."
Chen Yu ignored her declaration of loyalty. He was busy trying to split more shadows.
Once, twice, three times...
Only when he split out the third patch of shadow did he feel he had reached the current limit of his Shadow Split's level.
Then he directed these four pitch-black, bouncy Shadow Slimes to hop over to Nilly. Two of them even boldly jumped right onto her, sticking to her with their shadowy goo.
"These four little ones are in your care now."
"Help them find suitable Stone Descendant partners and form contracts. This is also a good opportunity to establish a Shadow Royal Guard that can protect the Kingdom from the shadows, preventing any more rogues from infiltrating in the future."
"Nilly, you will be the captain of this Shadow Royal Guard."
Chen Yu was quite satisfied with this arrangement.
Choosing Nilly had no other reason than that she was trustworthy and, besides Yano, the Stone Descendant he knew and understood best. Entrusting this important royal guard force to her was the most appropriate choice.
Nilly clearly understood his intention and trust. This time, she didn't decline or act flippant. For her, what mattered more now was seizing this rare opportunity for the Belmont family.
Because this opportunity could very well determine the family's future.
After discussing a few more details on the spot, Nilly carefully cradled the four Shadow Slimes, who were full of curiosity about her and occasionally nuzzled her, and hurriedly returned to Gore.
The incident of the demon invasion of the snowfield was temporarily concluded.
As Yano had not yet returned from Smaragdon in Jade City, and concerned that uninvited guests might still appear in the snowfield, Chen Yu left Arthur behind to guard the Fissure.
As for Count Bran... it absolutely refused to linger in this icy, snowy wasteland for another moment, insisting on following Chen Yu back to the warm Slime City.
Though Chen Yu suspected it was actually afraid of Olivia.
Two days later.
After the slimes' unremitting construction efforts, sturdy small outposts and monitoring Magic Formations were finally established near every known planar rift in the snowfield.
Over at the Stone Descendants, after internal discussions within the Belmont family, they selected three candidates for the Shadow Royal Guard.
To Chen Yu's surprise, those selected were actually the trio of Stone Descendants he and Yano had encountered when they first entered the Dark Realm: Leon, Elara, and Max.
They might not be the most talented among the younger generation of Stone Descendants, but for political considerations and balance, they were the most suitable choices.
By the time Nilly led Leon, Elara, and Max to report to Slime City, those four Shadow Slimes had noticeably plumped up a whole circle.
As soon as they saw Chen Yu, they immediately hopped over affectionately, rubbing their cool shadowy bodies against him, emitting cheerful 'squelch' sounds.
Their originally pitch-black bodies now seemed even more profound. Clearly, they had been well taken care of by the Stone Descendants and hadn't lacked for good food.
After briefly hearing Nilly's report, Chen Yu arranged for the three to follow Nilly out for training.
Of course, the main purpose of this so-called training was to let these four little guys devour enough shadows to grow.
Standing on the highest balcony of the Slime Palace, his round little belly protruding, Chen Yu gazed into the distance at the swamp forest tinged with autumn colors, watching the four depart. His gelatinous head gradually sank into contemplation.
Everything in the Kingdom was developing in an orderly manner now, but secretly, it still faced significant crises.
Casaric... that Demon Lord of the Burning Capital probably wouldn't give up just because one assassination attempt failed.
Chen Yu understood the nature of demons clearly, especially a Lord of the Abyss who coveted his crown. Since he had already taken notice of the Slime Kingdom, he would only use more, and more covert, methods against him, against the Slime Kingdom.
The current Slime Kingdom was like a seedling breaking through the soil, full of immense potential, but also exceptionally fragile.
If Casaric mobilized more Demon Legions, or allied with other forces within the White Horse Kingdom to launch an attack... given the Kingdom's current defensive strength, it would likely be a tremendous struggle.
Perhaps... it was time to return to the Void Abyss for a visit. This thought became clear in his mind.
It would be a good chance to let these demons see for themselves what power from beyond this world truly meant.