“Hah! Dream on if you think I’ll betray the Shadow Clan!” Hamen gritted his teeth, attempting to put on a defiant front.
“Hmm, still playing tough, are we?” John smirked, a playful glint in his eyes. With a flick of his finger, he summoned a flare of Golden Lotus Hellfire that wrapped itself around Hamen.
“Aaagh…” The room filled with Hamen’s agonizing screams as he writhed in pain on the ground.
John frowned, unsure if Hamen was merely putting on a show or truly suffering.
Considering the guy was only a weak demigod, he didn’t want to accidentally burn him to a crisp.
He dismissed the Golden Lotus Hellfire and spoke again, “Tell me what is the Immortal Herb Garden?”
Hamen knelt on the ground, tears in the corners of his eyes, trembling with terror. This time, he didn’t dare hesitate.
John’s methods were far more terrifying than the soul torture inflicted by the Hunters’ Brood Mothers.
“Immortal Herb Garden is where the Shadow Clan cultivates spirit herbs,” he said quickly. “Those herbs are used to make various potions. They’re an extremely valuable resource for the Shadow Clan.”
John nodded in satisfaction and continued, “Are there any races there from the Skyline Continent?”
“Yes!” Hamen answered immediately, not daring to pause. “Mostly elves and some humans from the Skyline Continent. They all follow my orders…”
As he spoke, he grew animated, eagerly recounting how he helped the Shadow Clan torment and control the elves.
John’s gaze turned icy, a murderous glint in his eyes. “Oh? And you’re proud of that?”
With a flick of his hand, he reactivated the Golden Lotus Hellfire.
Hamen’s screams of agony echoed again as he rolled on the ground, his forehead drenched in cold sweat.
It dawned on him then that John was allied with the elves.
Begging for mercy, he stammered, “My lord, I understand now-I won’t harm the elves anymore, I swear…”
“Hmph!” John scoffed, withdrawing the Golden Lotus Hellfire and pressing on, “What are your daily tasks? Be honest.”
“Yes, yes,” Hamen scrambled up, still trembling as he spoke. “My daily duties are simple-I oversee the worthless slaves and the esteemed elves as they harvest spirit herbs, tally the count, and hand it over to the Shadow Clan.”
“Good.” John nodded. “One last question-if I were to disguise myself as you, what details would I need to know?”
“W-what?” Hamen looked bewildered, struggling to comprehend what John meant.
“Answer!” John’s voice was cold and commanding. “Describe every detail of your daily routine.”
“Yes, yes!” Hamen responded quickly, rising to his feet and starting a comical performance of his own actions.
“Every morning, I first greet the village chief.” He mimicked a deep bow, nodding ingratiatingly toward John.
“Then, I enter another novice village, gather the laborers, and organize their entry into the Immortal Herb Garden to start the day’s work…” He explained each task while acting out his every move, bowing and gesturing as he went through his routine.
At that moment, John’s eyebrow twitched involuntarily. He regretted disguising himself as this character.
This guy was a spineless slave to his core-fawning over the Shadow Clan while strutting around, full of bluster, in front of the elves.
Such behavior was far beyond anything John could bring himself to imitate.
But without this disguise, he had no way of entering the Immortal Herb Garden or getting close to the elves.
For Bonnie and the others’ sake, he had to tolerate it.
“Very well!” John took a deep breath, forcing himself to swallow his anger, and said coldly to Hamen, “Today, I’ll take over your duties.”
“Huh?” Hamen stared blankly, eventually snapping out of it. “But sir, the Shadow Clan will recognize your true identity.”
“What about now?” John activated his god-level disguise talent, transforming himself into an exact replica of Hamen, down to the last detail, even matching his aura.
The one thing he couldn’t replicate, though, was that cringing, servile expression.
Hamen gaped, looking John over, then reflexively touched his own face, exclaiming, “Wow, sir, you’ve even got my good looks!”
John felt as if he’d swallowed a bitter pill.
Hamen continued, “So, my lord, now that you’re disguised as me, what should I do? Just stay here?”
“No. I have a much better place for you.” John’s eyes glinted with lethal intent.
“Where, my lord?” Hamen asked, his curiosity piqued.
“Hell!” John responded coldly. The power of the laws surged around him, and before Hamen could react, he was reduced to dust, his soul completely obliterated.
“Damn, that’s much better.” John exhaled in relief.
He had thought the Shadow Clan were the lowest of the low, but now he realized he’d been mistaken; there were indeed creatures even more contemptible.
Hamen had been a hundred times more revolting than the worst of the Shadow Clan.
Returning to Hamen’s hut, John took on his likeness, grabbed the signal stick from the bedside, and waited for dawn.
…
Meanwhile, chaos erupted in several Shadow Clan cities.
A gathering of city lords took place.
“What’s going on? There’s been a disturbance on the Shadow Continent-someone is devouring the Shadow Clan’s resources!” One of them scanned the room, addressing the
others coldly.
“That many resources disappearing so quickly? Only an Overseer could pull that off. Could it be one of those outsiders from another Lord God realm?”
“Impossible. Our master made an agreement-they’re only permitted to hunt spirit beasts, and they’re forbidden from plundering the continent’s resources until the endgame.”
The group muttered darkly amongst themselves.
A bald man idly turning a Spirit Stone in his hand finally spoke. “Perhaps you’ve forgotten, besides the Overseers from the other Lord God realms, there is one more.”
“Godslayer!” The group gasped.
The man seated at the head of the table frowned deeply. “Quick, notify the village chief. Have
him check on this Godslayer immediately and report back to me at once.”
“Yes!” A Shadow Clan soldier replied respectfully, breaking through a spatial rift and
disappearing.
Seconds later, he reappeared.
“Well?” the others asked eagerly.
The soldier bowed before reporting, “The village chief checked personally. The Godslayer has remained in the straw hut, under constant watch by guards. He hasn’t left their sight for a
moment.”
“So it’s not this human?” The group’s expressions turned grave.
“Could an Overseer have truly broken the agreement?” The bald man gripped the Spirit Stone
in his hand tightly, his gaze filled with murderous intent.
“It’s possible,” another added. “Overseers have protection from the Laws of Heaven-Lord Gods can’t intervene directly. These beings really think they’re untouchable!”
The man at the head of the table frowned, speaking calmly, “I still feel this has something to
do with that Godslayer.”
“My lord!” Another soldier hurried in, bowing deeply before continuing, “It’s been confirmed -all the stolen resources are Shadow Ores. Sixteen mining sites have been completely emptied, and every guard there has vanished. Even the Hunters’ Brood Mothers, who share a soul link with those stationed, are unresponsive. It’s likely they’ve been killed.” “This has to be the work of an Overseer!” someone slammed a fist on the table angrily.
“I’ve had enough. If any Overseer dares to enter my domain, I won’t let them walk away!”
another declared heatedly.
“Nor will I!” others quickly voiced in agreement.
“Silence,” the head figure commanded, frowning. “This situation isn’t so simple. To
eliminate so many peak upper-tier gods without a trace would require at least a two-star
Overseer. Don’t act rashly; I’ll report this to the Lord God first.”
With that, he vanished instantly.
…
Meanwhile, in the novice village where John’s main body resided, two Shadow Clan elites who
had been watching him withdrew.
John barely took notice.
Soon after, the distant roars of Hunters’ Brood Mothers echoed, accompanied by waves of
soul-based attacks.
John stepped out of the straw hut and noticed Dumas emerging, looking equally exhausted.
Everyone around bore expressions of despair, trudging heavily toward the square. Under the
old village chief’s supervision, they were teleported to the mines to begin another day of
grueling labor.
While the guards near John had been pulled back, the number of soldiers surrounding the square had noticeably increased.
He guessed that the raid on the mines the previous night had been discovered, though it seemed no one suspected him.
A question nagged at him—could there be other powerful beings on Shadow Star aside from
himself?
John smirked; it seemed Shadow Star had its own conflicts.
For him, though, that was a welcome complication.
He joined the others, taking the lift down into the mine to resume the endless task of
transporting ore.
Meanwhile, his Beast Clan avatar.
Now disguised as Hamen, left the wooden hut, holding the signal stick.
He forced himself to adopt a submissive demeanor, bowing as he greeted the novice village
chief.
“Hamen, you seem down. Have those elves been giving you trouble?” The chief observed him keenly, curious.
John was taken aback by the old man’s perceptiveness, but he quickly forced a strained smile. “Yeah, those lot are becoming more defiant, and their insults keep getting worse.”
The chief clapped him on the shoulder with a sympathetic nod. “No problem-if they openly
challenge you, feel free to make them suffer. And if you happen to kill one, I’ll cover for you.”
John’s eye twitched, though he maintained a grateful expression, nodding and thanking the chief profusely.
“On your way, then.” The village chief, satisfied, opened a teleportation array and waved him
through.
A surge of Spatial Power enveloped him, filling the air with a rich spiritual energy and the scent of fresh herbs.
John surveyed his surroundings: he had arrived at a sprawling garden filled with a subtle fragrance of grass and herbs, creating a tranquil and revitalizing atmosphere.
“Amazing place!” he thought, genuinely impressed. There was no trace of bloodshed or
violence here—this felt nothing like Shadow Star.
It made sense to him now why the Shadow Clan had assigned Hamen to manage the Immortal
Herb Garden.
The atmosphere here was almost incompatible with the Shadow Clan.
It making it easier for him to act.
“Move it!” A harsh shout sounded from afar as a group of elves and humans from Skyline
Continent were herded into the garden.
John’s eyes lit up, recognizing the leader of the group-it was Bonnie.