Chapter 38: Second‑Rank Shadow Rune Ring Staff

The hall was icy cold and spacious.

Ga— ga…… ga— ga……

On the bone railings outside the glass windows, solitary undead ravens perched there.

Their undead soul‑fire gave off a pervasive green glow.

It let Ta Ke see the surroundings clearly enough with normal vision.

In front of Ao Bu Li, Ta Ke dared not casually activate his precise vision.

After all, this place they came to was Lord Ao Bu Li's private 'Supernatural Treasure Vault'.

There are many things; if you don't look, nothing happens, but if you do look, trouble follows.

Even if there are no legendary 'Forbidden Items' here.

But those strongly contaminating substances with special supernatural properties also cannot be casually looked at.

"Ka…… ka……"

Lord Ao Bu Li pushed open the magical door inside the hall's mural.

Ta Ke glanced at it.

Inside, to his surprise, was a monster treasure chest the size of a suitcase.

It is said that on some plains deep in the ashen lands, wild monster treasure chests exist.

And this monster treasure chest before them was clearly being raised by Lord Ao Bu Li.

From its constant licking of teeth and lips, Ta Ke saw that the monster treasure chest's fangs and tongue were suffused with traces of demon gold.

"This guy certainly hasn't been skimping on demon gold," Ta Ke thought to himself.

With Lord Ao Bu Li's incantation,

the power of 'shadow' began to permeate around the monster treasure chest.

This time, one of Ta Ke's requests to Lord Ao Bu Li was a second‑rank shadow ring staff.

The power of 'shadow' is not easy to master.

Continuous use of shadow power continuously drains source energy.

Moreover, frequent use of shadow power easily provokes beings of the shadow dimensional layers.

So!

Truly, few are willing to master and come into contact with shadow power.

Even among the supernatural sequences, the shadow sequence is rare.

The 'shadow' power that others shy away from happens to be, over this period, Ta Ke has been continually exploring and developing, the most suitable staff medium for him to wield his power.

Shadow power is not easy to control.

For Ta Ke, this is practically a match made in heaven.

With the SSS Extreme Precision‑Correction, there is nothing Ta Ke cannot steadily control.

Exerting shadow power continuously consumes energy.

Ta Ke's 'Primordial Dark Sea' can easily sustain the consumption of shadow power.

As for prolonged use of shadow power, it will provoke the 'ambush' of shadow‑dimensional beings.

Ta Ke felt that changing those two words 'ambush' to 'suicide mission' would be more apt.

After resolving many drawbacks,

The nature of 'shadow' will multiply in Ta Ke's hands.

Not long after, the monster treasure chest spat out a mass of black shadow.

At the same moment the black shadow appeared,

"Hum!"

A tremendously rich shadow‑rune power descended with a thud.

Ta Ke now is no longer the 9th‑level apprentice wizard he once was.

Faced with the suppression of this unawakened rune power, Ta Ke can easily withstand it.

But the type of this rune power made Ta Ke's heart twitch slightly.

"Shadow rune?"

"All I wanted was a normal shadow ring staff. How did it turn into a rune‑shadow ring staff?"

"This will probably cost extra."

A staff that binds shadow power is already rare and expensive.

Plus a powerful shadow‑affinity rune.

That is not something Ta Ke can afford.

Vast numbers of dense shadow threads and tentacles sprouted and crawled rapidly along the ground.

Walls, floor, stone pillars, glass……

Light was swiftly drawn away, and the dimension of shadow spread.

Outside, the undead ravens sensed the indoor anomaly, emitted a sharp 'ga‑ga' cry, and flapped their wings to flee.

Shadow, imminent.

Ta Ke glanced at the undead sorcerer Ao Bu Li.

But he found that Lord Ao Bu Li had no intention of making a move.

Ta Ke felt a slight enlightenment in his heart and immediately prepared to act.

He had thought, since you wield shadow, I would counter with light.

But after recalling Lord Ao Bu Li's earlier orders, Ta Ke restrained the idea of using holy light witchcraft in front of the undead sorcerer.

Ta Ke was about to move, but he discovered that the shadow tendrils and threads on the ground had already submerged up to his calves.

Ta Ke frowned slightly, then exerted force suddenly.

But he found that the shadow power was as firm as a boulder, firmly locking his legs.

Ta Ke slightly squeezed his right hand.

The Crimson Flame Ring Staff's own power began to manifest.

Using a ring staff to counter a ring staff is an excellent way to store a ring staff that possesses some spirituality.

A ring of red light appeared, and the flames quickly expanded.

The shadows were swiftly driven away.

But this thoroughly enraged the shadow power.

Vast shadow power quickly accumulated, forming a huge shadow tide.

Intending to extinguish those flames in one fell swoop.

This rune‑etched shadow ring staff is not just spiritual; it's practically becoming a spirit.

Ta Ke dared not delay.

Treading on the rapidly writhing, pervasive shadow, he covered three steps in two and arrived beside the second‑tier rune‑etched shadow ring staff.

Ta Ke suddenly reached his hand into that mass of dense shadow.

Spiritual Touch Perception.

At the instant of contact, Ta Ke's pupils were instantly occupied by shadow.

The shadow's countless threads kept pouring out from Ta Ke's ears, eyes, nose, and mouth.

Beside him, the undead mage Ao Bu Li stood still, calmly watching this scene.

His precondition for acting was that Ta Ke be completely submerged in shadow and dragged into the Shadow Dimension.

And before that, he would not act.

Darkness……

Endless…… darkness……

Sinking……

Endless…… sinking……

Ta Ke only felt himself sinking into endless darkness, continually falling downward.

Any normal transcendent would likely lose himself here.

But Ta Ke, on the contrary, was intrigued by everything around him.

"Hmm…… Shadow Dimension!"

"In the place where reality and darkness intertwine, here there is only black and white, which stands out as a bizarre abstraction."

"But…… quite interesting!"

Numerous fragmented images surfaced in Ta Ke's mind.

Those were all fragmented images of the rune‑etched shadow ring staff dragging unlucky souls into the Shadow Dimension.

Even the shallow Shadow Dimension is something an ordinary transcendent cannot contend with.

Before advancing to intermediate transcendent and condensing one's transcendent form.

Dimensional walking is a highly dangerous undertaking.

Numerous fragmented images soon collapsed, and Ta Ke quickly found the spiritual consciousness deep within the shadow ring staff.

And that spiritual consciousness, upon realizing it had been discovered,

it immediately manipulated a mass of shadow, crashing down upon Ta Ke's body.

"Whoosh……"

Like a solidified shadow tide, it burst apart with a boom.

Leaving only a faint lapping of waves striking the ground.

Thereafter, all shadow power in the hall was swiftly drawn away and gathered.

Finally, it condensed on Ta Ke's left wrist.

Forming a rune‑etched shadow ring staff made of condensed shadow, with faint shadow runes visible flowing across it.

"I admit you're strong, but in the end I still controlled you with my precise infiltration."

Feeling the rune‑etched shadow hand ring on his wrist, Ta Ke pondered.

Beside him, Ao Bu Li's eyes narrowed slightly as he watched Ta Ke with interest.

He originally thought Ta Ke would fail.

In the end, Ta Ke still gave him a surprise.

Moreover, compared to that forcible suppression and storage,

that shadow spirituality…… seemed to have completely submitted to Ta Ke.

"Quite unbelievable!"

He was slightly curious, but Ao Bu Li did not ask further.

But at that moment, Ta Ke spoke up.

"Teacher Ao Bu Li, this thing is too expensive; I'm afraid…… I can't afford it!"

"Just stick to the previous price, 120 magic gold."

Ao Bu Li gave Ta Ke no chance to haggle, directly slamming the mural door shut.

"Thank you, teacher!"

Ta Ke bowed in gratitude.

The Shadow Ring Staff itself is rare.

What's more, it is also a Rune Shadow Ring Staff.

More importantly, this ring staff also possesses its own spirituality.

The price of 120 magic gold, rounded up, is basically no different from getting it for free.

The other thing you need will be delivered by the raven tomorrow.

Also, remember: that thing is immensely powerful, and once used, even the high tower might come to investigate.

If you can avoid using it, try not to use it!

If you use it, flee immediately.

Yes!

Ta Ke nodded solemnly.

(End of chapter)