The Shadow of Blood did not respond.
It simply stood there silently, its hollow eyes fixed on Jiang Lin.
Jiang Lin turned to look at the hundred or so Blood Demons.
With a thought...
All the Blood Demons simultaneously let out a piercing screech.
The Shadow of Blood moved.
Its figure turned into a streak of blood-colored light, pouncing on the nearest crimson claw-wing.
The Shadow of Blood’s fingers plunged into its body, and the devouring began.
The crimson claw-wing didn't even have time to scream before its entire body melted away, turning into wisps of blood qi that surged into the Shadow of Blood’s body.
The Shadow of Blood’s aura began to climb at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Level 12.
Level 13.
Level 14...
It pounced on the next one, and then the next.
With every Blood Demon it devoured, its power grew stronger.
The devouring speed grew faster and faster—so fast that even Jiang Lin was slightly surprised.
In just fifteen minutes.
Thirty rank-2 Blood Demons had been completely devoured by the Shadow of Blood.
By now, the Shadow of Blood’s aura had reached the peak of the 1st-rank!
Its figure appeared a bit more solid than before.
Jiang Lin could feel that it could continue devouring.
The devouring continued.
As one rank-2 Blood Demon after another was consumed...
Soon, it finally reached the limit of the 1st-rank and broke through the 1st-rank life shackles!
Then, its level began to soar like a rocket once again...
Level 20.
Level 21.
Level 22...
Finally, it reached the limit of the mount contract.
Which was the peak of the 2nd-rank!
Level 30!
However, it was still some distance away from the actual limit of the 2nd-rank.
These hundred or so rank-2 Blood Demons were not enough to sustain it to a higher level.
When he had time later, Jiang Lin could have it devour more Blood Demons to build up its foundation.
First, it would reach the limit of the 2nd-rank.
Then, it would wait for him to break through to the 3rd-rank, at which point the Shadow of Blood would break through along with him.
As for whether it could be like Jiang Lin—fighting across two major ranks, dominating most peak 4th-rankers, or even maneuvering with ease among 5th-rankers—that would depend on its own development.
If it could replicate or devour some powerful biological entities, it should be able to fight two ranks above its own.
But for now, the strongest creature it could replicate was still Jiang Lin himself.
After all, Jiang Lin had yet to encounter an opponent of the same rank who was a match for him.
He wondered if he could have it replicate his master, Loren, in the future.
If the replication succeeded, then when he encountered powerhouses who knew his master, they might be so terrified by the sight of the Shadow of Blood that they wouldn't dare to move.
After pondering for a moment, Jiang Lin had the Shadow of Blood possess him first to replicate his current self.
The Shadow of Blood had not yet updated its data on his recent growth.
“Return.”
With a thought from Jiang Lin...
The Shadow of Blood turned into a streak of blood-colored light and merged into his body.
In the next moment, a very faint blood-colored halo appeared around Jiang Lin’s body.
That halo intertwined with his Holy Light and ice soul power, flowing endlessly across his skin.
Three powers, three completely different origins.
They now coexisted within his body.
Jiang Lin looked down at his hands.
His palms were still as fair as jade, but on the backs of his hands, blood-colored patterns were faintly visible, spreading like veins.
This was the Shadow of Blood replicating his current form.
“Let’s go.”
Jiang Lin looked at Ed, his voice calm.
“Continue leading me to ‘Ember’.”
Ed gritted her teeth and finally turned to continue forward.
The two of them traversed the ruins, encountering several scattered groups of Aberrants along the way, but Jiang Lin dealt with them all swiftly with thunderous force.
Ed gradually fell silent, simply leading the way and occasionally warning him about terrain traps or dangerous, polluted plants.
Meanwhile, Jiang Lin’s understanding of this world continued to grow.
Many of the abandoned buildings were made of reinforced concrete.
It was evident that before the so-called “Great Cataclysm,” the level of technology in this world far surpassed that of his previous world.
About half an hour later, the two arrived at the entrance of a half-collapsed underground parking lot.
Ed walked to a seemingly ordinary piece of concrete wreckage beside the entrance. She pressed her crystallized right arm against the surface, and a dark red light began to flow.
Fine rune patterns emerged on the surface of the wreckage, which then slid open silently to reveal a staircase leading downward.
“Keep up,” Ed said in a low voice, stepping inside first.
Crystals emitting a faint blue light were embedded in the walls of the passage, providing meager illumination.
The air was slightly fresher than on the surface, but the smell of pollution—a mixture of rust and a sickly sweet scent—was still present.
After descending about a hundred steps, a heavy metal door appeared ahead, equipped with an observation window and a communication device.
Ed pressed the call button.
“Outer scout Ed, Designation E-17. I am bringing a... newly discovered communicative individual. Requesting entry to the outpost.”
An eye appeared behind the observation window. The pupil was a murky gray-blue, and the white was covered in fine blood vessels.
A moment later, the metal door made a heavy mechanical grinding sound and slowly opened inward.
Behind the door was an underground space about the size of a basketball court. Several blue lights powered by pollution energy hung from the ceiling.
Fine dust floated in the air, looking like tiny stars under the lights.
Twenty or thirty people were scattered around, either sitting or standing. Most wore ragged protective suits or cloaks, and almost all of them exhibited some degree of mutation.
One person’s arm had the texture of rock, another had small crystal clusters growing from their neck, and another’s eyes were completely filled with dark blue light, with no pupils visible.
The moment Ed and Jiang Lin entered, everyone’s gaze shifted toward them simultaneously.
“Ed, you’re alive!”
A middle-aged man whose right face was completely crystallized walked over quickly, his voice raspy.
“We received your emergency signal about the Aggregate and were preparing to organize a rescue team...”
When they had encountered the Aggregate earlier, Ed had sent a message to this outpost.
However, what no one expected was that the Aggregate would be dealt with by a single person.
“The Aggregate has been dealt with.” Ed interrupted him, stepping aside to reveal Jiang Lin. “He took care of it.”
As the words fell, the entire room lapsed into a brief silence.
Everyone’s gaze shifted from Ed to Jiang Lin—scrutiny, doubt, vigilance, and a hint of curiosity intertwined in the air.
Jiang Lin stood calmly at the door, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.
He could clearly feel the fluctuations of pollution energy from these people.
Most were at the 2nd-rank level, with a few reaching the 3rd-rank, but none of their auras were particularly strong.
More importantly, their “mutations” were very real. Similar to Ed, their flesh coexisted with crystals, rocks, or plant tissues, forming a twisted life form.
In contrast, Jiang Lin—intact and even radiating a faint, holy aura—seemed like an anomaly here.
“What’s the deal with this guy?”
The man with the crystallized face frowned.
If he still had eyebrows, that is...
“Ed, you know the rules. You can’t just bring unidentified people into the outpost, especially...”
“Especially someone who looks like an ‘Old Human,’ right?”
A slightly sharp female voice rang out.
A woman about thirty years old stepped out from the crowd. Her left eye had been completely replaced by a deep blue crystal, with tiny points of light swirling inside.
She sized Jiang Lin up.
“I’ve seen this look in ancient archives... the ‘Old Humans’ from before the Great Cataclysm.
“Ed, which stasis pod did you dig him out of?”
Ed took a deep breath and was about to explain when Jiang Lin stepped forward.
“My name is Matthew.”
His voice was calm, yet it carried clearly through the room.
“It seems I have indeed been asleep for a very long time, and for some reason, I’ve lost part of my memory.
“Ed provided me with some help. In return, I helped her deal with the Aggregate. I hope to temporarily join ‘Ember’ to learn about the current state of this world.”
“An Aggregate? You dealt with it alone?”
The man with the crystallized face looked at Jiang Lin skeptically, then back at Ed.
“Ed, you know the consequences of reporting false intelligence.”
Ed took the deep red crystal from the lead box at her waist and held it in her palm.
The fluctuation of pollution energy radiating from the crystal caused several people nearby to change expression simultaneously.
“An Aggregate’s core crystal, ten standard units.”
Ed’s voice was low.
“There’s a large amount of crystal dust left at the scene. If you don’t believe me, you can send someone to the coordinates to investigate.
“As for how he dealt with it...”
She paused.
“He took care of it with a single sword strike.”
Silence fell over the room once again.
This time, the doubt in many of their gazes lessened, replaced by a deeper wariness.
The man with the crystallized face and the woman with the crystal eye exchanged a glance, and the latter nodded slightly.
Only then did the man look at Jiang Lin, his tone softening slightly.
“I am the temporary head of this outpost. You can call me ‘Stone Face’.
“Since Ed is vouching for you, and you did indeed bring back an Aggregate’s crystal...
“According to the rules of ‘Ember,’ you may stay temporarily. However, you must undergo a basic screening and follow all the outpost’s regulations.”
“No problem.”
Jiang Lin nodded.
He also wanted to see the specific situation of this world.
He followed Stone Face through the outpost’s crude corridors, with Ed following half a step behind him.
The interior of the outpost was more spacious than it had looked from the entrance, but the desperation of resource scarcity was evident everywhere.
Most of the lighting crystals embedded in the walls were dim. The purification system’s exposed pipes emitted a piercing hum, and the air was thick with the smell of sweat, rust, and the pungent odor of some kind of disinfectant.
“This way.”
Stone Face pushed open a rusted iron door and led them into a room of about twenty square meters.
In the center of the room was a long table made of welded metal, surrounded by several chairs of the same material.
Several sealed metal boxes were stacked in the corner. The labels on the boxes were blurred, and Jiang Lin couldn’t recognize the script.
The woman with the crystal eye had already taken a seat at the table. Her intact eye scrutinized Jiang Lin, while her crystal left eye emitted a faint blue glow, as if it were collecting data.
“Sit.”
Stone Face gestured for Jiang Lin to take a seat and walked to the opposite side of the table to sit down.
“Since Ed is vouching for you, we need to understand some basic facts according to the rules.
“Even if you say you have amnesia, tell us what you can.”
Jiang Lin nodded and sat down.
The metal seat was icy, carrying the cold, hard texture unique to this era.
“Where did you come from?”
Stone Face went straight to the point.
“I don’t remember,” Jiang Lin answered honestly. “I woke up in the ruins of the Silent City and then encountered Ed.”
“What is the power you use?”
The woman with the crystal eye interjected.
“The power system you use doesn’t seem to belong to any power we know.”
Jiang Lin was silent for a second.
“As I said, I may have been asleep for a long time. My power system... is a bit different from yours.”
“Different?” Stone Face frowned. “In what way?”
They couldn't help but probe deeply into this question.
If they could learn the power system he used, it would be a massive help to their entire world.
Ed spoke up at this point:
“Stone Face, when he uses his power, he is almost unaffected by pollution erosion.
“I saw him kill the Aggregate with my own eyes. After the battle, there were almost no traces of pollution on him.”
Jiang Lin said:
“However, I don’t think you can learn or use my power system.
“I can feel the ‘pollution’ in the air.
“Unless you completely resolve the source of that ‘pollution,’ you will never be able to solve the problem of mutation.”
Hearing this, everyone fell silent.
Eliminate the source of the pollution?
If they could have done that, they would have done it long ago.
But that source of pollution was practically immortal and indestructible.
It was not something they could solve.
Stone Face stared at Jiang Lin for a full ten seconds before finally dropping the subject.
He leaned back in his chair and let out a long breath.
“Alright.
“Since Ed is vouching for you and you did indeed bring back an Aggregate’s crystal, you may stay temporarily according to the rules.
“But I must warn you.
“In this outpost, anyone could be a threat. If you do anything to jeopardize the security of the outpost, we will eliminate you at any cost.”
“Understood.”
Stone Face nodded and began to introduce the basic situation of “Ember” to Jiang Lin.
“Ember” was not a strictly organized group; it was more like a loose alliance of countless survivor settlements.
They were scattered across every corner of this polluted continent, staying in touch through special communication channels to share resources, intelligence, and research results.
The core of the organization was the “Ember Headquarters,” located deep within the eastern “Ash Mountains.”
It housed the most complete technological records and pure resources from before the Great Cataclysm and served as the supreme command center for the entire organization’s fight against the “Devouring Abyss.”
Below the headquarters, there were three levels:
“Emberflame”: The organization’s core combatants, at least 3rd-rank or higher, responsible for the most dangerous clearing missions and strategic operations. They had the purest resource supply and the most advanced technical support, but their level of mutation was also the deepest.
“Emberfolk”: Mid-level backbone members like Stone Face and the woman with the crystal eye. They managed the various outposts, organized defenses, trained newcomers, and collected resources. Their degree of mutation varied, but all were within controllable limits.
“Ashes”: The ordinary survivors at the bottom. They had no combat capability and were responsible for logistics, farming, maintenance, and so on. Their mutation levels were generally low, but they were also the group most vulnerable to collapsing under pollution erosion.
“In addition to that, there are three other factions we need to be wary of.”
...
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