“I'll have to trouble you again.”
After finishing today's Forging lesson, Ethan went to sleep, handing his body over to the biological armor transformed from Zoe's clone.
Through his clone, Zoe took control of Ethan's body, stepped out of the cave they were hiding in, and erased all traces both inside and outside.
“Awoo!”
Ella rubbed her eyes, whined a couple of times, and went to sleep.
Watching Ella fall asleep, Zoe used his main body to cover hers.
Then, just like his clone, he transformed into a biological armor, wrapping her inside his body to use her as a mana battery.
Normally, Zoe had no chance of doing this when Ella was awake.
Ella's constitution was quite extraordinary; she was born with an immensely massive amount of mana.
This wasn't an influence of the High Demon Rosovali, but rather Ella's own innate talent.
It was either some kind of bloodline inheritance, or perhaps a throwback to an ancestral trait resulting from the fusion of a dragon's bloodline.
Feeling the abundant mana coursing through him, Zoe and his clone continued their flight westward.
Now that both Ethan and Ella were asleep, Zoe had one more matter to attend to.
And that was to make a soul deal with the High Demon, Rosovali.
That's right, he was going to exploit a demon.
After his accidental death in his previous life, he had confirmed that even if he died, demons had no way of taking his soul.
Zoe didn't dare make a deal with Kupiyana.
After all, Kupiyana had interacted with Zoe in his previous life. Zoe's current horizon of knowledge was too narrow, and he couldn't be certain whether his soul remained identical across every reincarnation.
Thus, he had to fleece a different demon instead.
This was extremely dangerous, so Zoe didn't want Ethan or Ella to know.
Composing his thoughts, Zoe began to utter strange, bizarre syllables.
They were none other than the pronunciation of the demon's true name.
“Rosovali. High Demon, Rosovali. From the material plane, I call upon your gaze with my soul.”
As he uttered the true name, Zoe could sense the air around him shifting.
The atmosphere became stagnant, as if an illusory sensation was leaking into reality.
It was as though everything around him had become ethereal.
Vaguely, he saw a clump of pitch-black shadow appear before his eyes.
It was an extremely beautiful Dual Shadow. Its pitch-black body was as deep as the starry night sky, a literal black hole.
The churning shadows projected a very alluring silhouette.
Zoe's aesthetic standards as a Dual Shadow told him that this was an exquisitely, spectacularly beautiful Dual Shadow.
To beguile creatures of the material plane, demons usually transformed into the shape of their target's species.
Moreover, their appearance would be incredibly attractive.
If Zoe were a human, the demon would have transformed into a sexy, beautiful human.
“Dual Shadow, your call has been heard by me, Rosovali.”
Rosovali spoke in a sweet, soft voice.
Wait, even the voice is tailored? High Demons these days are way too dedicated to their craft.
And why do you think my preference is this kind of voice? What if I prefer mature, dominant women?
Zoe's random, chaotic thoughts flashed past for only a split second before he quickly got down to business.
According to his understanding, demons could not lie.
However, they would use ambiguous and misleading words to distort the truth, all while doing everything in their power to get you killed so they could claim your soul as early as possible.
Of course, demons were not omnipotent. Every demon with a true name excelled in a different domain.
Within their respective domain of expertise, they would fulfill your requests and grant your wishes.
They would evaluate the worth of your soul. The moment they felt your demands exceeded the value of your soul, they would start plotting your death to collect it.
“What is your area of expertise?”
Zoe asked.
“My most expert domain is life.”
“Life, huh...”
“In that case, I wish to obtain an unparalleled talent for learning!”
Zoe made his wish.
The beautiful Dual Shadow before him rippled its shadows.
While it was rather abstract, in the world of Dual Shadows, this movement was equivalent to a display of voluptuous curves.
Zoe desperately wanted to strangle his own Dual Shadow aesthetics.
He was terrified that if he kept reincarnating like this, his tastes would expand to a point of no return.
“Your wish is granted, Dual Shadow.”
“I shall claim your soul upon your demise. Please sign this soul contract.”
The voluptuous Dual Shadow lifted a portion of its shadow, and an ancient parchment made of human skin drifted over to float before Zoe.
The contract detailed the rights and obligations of both parties.
Under this covenant, Zoe could contact Rosovali at any time to seek assistance.
However, seeking any additional assistance required trading his lifespan.
Knowledge, power—everything could be exchanged for lifespan. This was the cost of adding extra terms.
Zoe's sole mandatory obligation was simple.
Upon his death, the ownership of his soul would belong entirely to Rosovali, and his soul could not offer any resistance to them.
This time, Zoe genuinely found Rosovali to be incredibly agreeable and easy on the eyes.
Without any hesitation, he signed his name upon the scroll.
Dual Shadow.
There was no way he would sign his true name.
Rosovali did not care what name Zoe signed; as long as he was the one who signed it, the contract was valid.
“The contract is established. You shall receive the power of the High Demon, myself, Rosovali!”
[Ding! You have obtained the talent skill, Scholar of Life (C-grade).]
[Scholar of Life (C-grade)] Your learning ability is increased, allowing you to memorize and acquire knowledge faster. Your comprehension of life is deepened, and talents related to life are vastly boosted. (This talent is only available for this reincarnation.)
The moment he obtained the new talent, Zoe instantly felt as though his intelligence had jumped up another notch.
Not only that, he felt his shadow-constructed body seemingly sprout actual flesh and blood.
[Skill: Dragon Body Fusion Lv.2 (B-grade) Proficiency +10]
The proficiency of [Dragon Body Fusion], which had not budged in a long time, increased once again.
The operations of his clone and main body controlling Ethan and Ella also became noticeably more seamless and natural.
“It appears you have already felt the enhancement of your talent.”
Rosovali spoke at the right moment.
Zoe, however, was calculating in his mind.
Is my soul only worth a single C-grade talent? Did Rosovali not try to lowball me?
Speaking of which, how exactly do they determine the value of a soul?
Zoe was not a demon, and he wasn't sure how they evaluated the worth.
If I reincarnate as a demon in the future, maybe I can work with them as colleagues and get a clearer picture of things.
“Indeed.”
“Thus, the contract is finalized. Rosovali shall await your call at any moment.”
“Remember, in times of peril, do not be stingy with your lifespan, or it will be too late for regrets.”
Rosovali enticed Zoe with a gentle tone.
The underlying message was: burn through your lifespan as much as possible, preferably dying within ten years.
Under normal circumstances, the soul of a Dual Shadow was undoubtedly an exceptionally high-quality transaction.
Even taking thirty years to drive them to their death would still yield a massive profit, so they had to make sure Zoe died within thirty years if possible.
They wouldn't even need to waste effort or energy to plot Zoe's demise; if Zoe spent his own lifespan and died within ten years, it would be the absolute best outcome, enough to make Rosovali wake up laughing from their dreams.
“I couldn't agree more with you on that, Rosovali.”
“Lifespan is like a brick when it just sits there—a complete waste. Lifespan only holds value when it is in active circulation.”
Zoe originally had a lifespan of 180 years, and his recent breakthrough to mid-tier had added another 30 years to it.
Which meant he had plenty of lifespan to burn, far too much to ever run out.
“...You are correct. You possess great wisdom.”
Rosovali fell silent for a brief moment before responding.
This Dual Shadow seemed to have a screw loose. They had initially thought they would have to put in real effort to persuade and beguile him.
Now, it seemed entirely unnecessary.
“So, let's start with a small sample today. Give me one year's worth of lifespan in exchange for knowledge in the domain of life.”
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