Chapter 27: Obtaining the Heart of Darkness!

The ice crystal shattered.

The Dark Guardian, still cloaked in stealth, vanished once more.

“I’ve figured out how to counter you, you stitched-together abomination!” A confident light flickered in Wang Chen’s eyes. He crushed a magic scroll in his hand.

“Wildvine Ward—Silver Grade!”

Thick vines burst from the stone wall and coiled layer upon layer, enveloping Wang Chen like a massive eggshell.

The lurking Dark Guardian let out a snapping sound, as if mocking Wang Chen for repeating his old trick. This was its domain, after all, and the human was nothing but an intruder. Here, it could rest at its leisure, while Wang Chen’s resources would only be depleted with each passing moment.

When he had exhausted everything, that would be the time for his death.

The Dark Guardian’s remaining four eyes writhed within its flesh, fixed on every movement along the rock face. It confirmed Wang Chen was not aiming or preparing to attack, then sank lower, urging its muscles to accelerate through the mire, before it burst forth in a sudden charge.

The layered vines snapped apart under its impact, leaving a breach. Yet the surrounding vines immediately writhed and wove themselves to fill the gap. This strike relied on brute force alone, without employing any skills from the corpse-beast, so the Dark Stalker felt no disappointment. It leaped along the wall, preparing to sink into the mire once more and plot its next ambush.

But Wang Chen would not let it have its way.

“Now’s the time!” Wang Chen burst from the side of the vine barrier, tore another scroll, and fixed the spell’s effect squarely on the lurking foe.

“Windstride Spell—Silver Grade!”

A howling gale erupted, sweeping toward the Dark Stalker.

It assumed this was another attack and hastened to draw the hardened parts of its tumbling flesh to the surface, forming a shell to resist.

But it hadn’t anticipated that the wind, upon reaching it, would merely swirl around and lift it bodily into the air. Throughout, the wind caused it no harm, only a raucous din.

What is this human up to? The creature puzzled in its limited intelligence, thinking perhaps the man had panicked and made a mistake.

It flexed its flesh, preparing to break free from the whirlwind. One of its eyes, fixed on Wang Chen out of instinct, suddenly caught two blinding flashes of light.

One was a searing, violent white—sharp as a lance.

“Lightning Spike—Silver Grade!”

With a wave of Wang Chen’s hand, another scroll shattered, and then came another flash, this one hot and oppressive, like molten lava.

“Flameburst Bomb—Silver Grade!”

The twin beams, parallel and swift as a tempest, struck the Dark Guardian in rapid succession.

A dazzling explosion lit up the air.

It was like a grand midsummer firework.

Waves of heat rolled outward in all directions, the sound carrying far and wide.

Wang Chen retreated into the vines, shielding himself from any stray shrapnel.

Then—

A melodious notification chimed:

[Dark Guardian slain. Current state prevents experience gain. Please complete your second-tier class quest as soon as possible.]

It was done.

Of course Wang Chen hadn’t made any panicked mistakes—every move had been meticulously planned.

The Windstride Spell was a semi-defensive wind magic. Its effect was to conjure a gale that would lift the caster from the ground, allowing for brief flight or escape from danger.

But Wang Chen had taken another approach—he used it as a controlling spell, lifting the Dark Guardian into the air, denying it the use of its Mire Stealth skill, then bombarded it with destructive magic.

At first glance, this seemed feasible, but on closer inspection, there were many risks.

First, the wind conjured by the Windstride Spell was not meant to imprison a target. Had the Dark Stalker reacted quickly enough to escape, Wang Chen would have been left without recourse.

And to attempt the tactic a second time? A wary Dark Guardian would hardly give him another chance.

He’d considered using his own controlling skills, but doubted they’d be strong enough. Combining them with the Windstride Spell also seemed too difficult to time perfectly.

Left with no other choice, he tried it—and, fortunately, it worked.

Had he failed to finish the Dark Stalker, he would have had no choice but to retreat and reconsider his next move.

Emerging from the vines, Wang Chen gazed at the drifting black ash, as a sphere radiating a stifling aura floated gently toward him.

He caught it and inspected it:

[Heart of Darkness]

[Description: The core that transformed a heap of biological remains into a Dark Guardian. Capable of channeling and absorbing dark energy. Can be used as an offering in certain sacrificial rituals (required class: Dark Warlock), or as a material for crafting flesh golems (required class: Flesh Animator).]

“Yes, this should be the one. Two more and I can break the seal on the Spring of Vitality!” Wang Chen examined the black heart, its surface crisscrossed with grotesque veins.

He also noted the other possible uses mentioned in the description.

Sacrificial rites could be set aside for now.

But if flesh golems referred to creatures as powerful as the Dark Guardian, it might be worth considering how to make one.

Wang Chen pondered a moment, then slowly shook his head.

Both the Dark Warlock and Flesh Animator classes were unheard of to him, and likely extremely rare.

Judging by their names, neither sounded like professions embraced by decent folk—more likely, these individuals were forced into hiding, hunted by society.

How to strike a deal without being duped was one concern. But to work with such people might well earn him the stigma of heresy, making him a target for all the righteous.

Besides, the Dark Guardians were hardly easy prey.

If he could simply gather three Hearts of Darkness and complete his second-tier class quest, he’d count himself truly fortunate.

With that in mind, Wang Chen tucked the Heart of Darkness into his storage ring and pressed on through the mire.

…

Meanwhile—

Skinny Monkey was utterly baffled by Fu Yunsheng’s words.

“Boss, what are you saying? I’m standing right here, alive and well. How could I be dead?”

He grinned. “I get it! You’re all in on some prank together. Alright, I admit it, you got me. I’m scared. Now quit fooling around!”

He peered closely at Fu Yunsheng, hoping to spot a telltale hint of amusement in his expression.

But Fu Yunsheng’s face was grave and impenetrable, not a trace of jest.

“Boss, what’d you send Bald Biao off to do? Isn’t the top priority to loot that kid? But first, don’t we need a brother to lure away the Dark Guardian?”

Skinny Monkey’s agitation grew, though he couldn’t fathom why his chest felt so tight all of a sudden.

The other scavengers said nothing.

During the heavy silence, Bald Biao returned, carrying someone slung over his shoulder.

The man was short and scrawny, smeared with mud and ash as if unearthed from the ground.

Bald Biao dropped the body at Skinny Monkey’s feet.

“Take a look—do you recognize that face?” Fu Yunsheng asked.

Skinny Monkey stared down for a long moment.

“Isn’t that…me?”

He looked up, bewildered.

“So I…was already dead?”