Lang Qingyue was staring at a young boy who looked to be 10–11. This boy had an earthly appearance with facial features exceeding perfection. His hair was blackish-purple, his eyes a mixture of blue and green, and his nose straight and upright like a grounded sword.
In one word, Necro was…
"Beautiful…" Lang Qingyue mumbled in a daze. "Big Brother Necro, you're so pretty!"
Without a doubt in her mind, she knew this strange pensive boy was Necro. And with just as little thought put into her actions, she hopped over to him and hugged him like an affectionate elder sister would.
"But wait…" Lang Qingyue paused. "How have you turned into a human!?"
'You're only just now thinking about that…?' Necro exhaled deeply. 'What a weird girl.'
"Big Brother Necro?" Lang Qingyue peeked down at the boy squished between her milky-white breasts. "You listening? Helllooo??"
"Hush," said Necro as he placed a finger up to her lips. "And go get me something to wear."
"...Something to wear…?"
That was when Lang Qingyue realized that Necro was in his birthday suit. She blushed a little, with this sort of obliviousness unbecoming of a lady like herself.
"The clothes?" Necro repeated.
"O-Oh yes, of course!" Lang Qingyue sputtered before skedaddling in the direction of a wooden home. "Where were they!? Oh yes, here they are!"
She scrambled back in a hurry. In her hands was a tunic of sorts as well as a pair of trousers.
The two items didn't really match, but they'd have to do.
With an expressionless face, Necro dressed himself with the random assortment of clothes. His long, uniquely-colored hair was tied into a ponytail, allowing his unparalleled facial features to fully unveil themselves.
Lang Qingyue was at a loss for words over his young beauty. In her mind, she was already imagining the sexy hottie he'd turn into whenever he reached maturity.
"Hmm? That reminds me, Big Brother, why have you taken the form of a child?" Lang Qingyue stuck an index finger up to her chin. "Can you not become an adult??"
Necro nodded while adjusting himself to the odd feeling that came along with the wearing of clothing. "That's correct. This is my current limit appearance-wise. But as I become stronger and undergo more Evolutions, I'll eventually mature and reach a full adult form."
"Woww!" Lang Qingyue's eyes sparkled as she circled the unbelievably cute Necro. "You know, it's said that only Monsters and Demon Beasts that ascend to the Nascent Soul Realm and become Immortal are able to transform into their humanoid forms. This must mean you're very, very special for achieving the same thing so early, Big Brother!"
Necro stared blankly at the curious woman.
"P-Please, Big Brother, if you stare at me like that, I'll become embarrassed…" Lang Qingyue averted her gaze, unable to hold Necro's intense childlike stare any longer. "On second thought, I don't know if I like this new change of yours… Can you switch back…?"
"I can," replied Necro. "But I'd prefer not to right now, as it would attract far too much attention."
"You were absolutely humongous before, so that makes sense." Lang Qingyue humorously agreed. "But Master, if you're going to keep this form for now, does that mean you're planning to leave the Great Forest of Jagga??"
Necro nodded.
Lang Qingyue interlocked her fingers with his, excitement bubbling up. "We have to tell the others; they'll definitely want to hear of this!"
"The others?" A string of thought formed in Necro's mind as images of his Shadow Tree Soldiers resurfaced. "Yes, I have to show them something else as well."
Lang Qingyue wasn't sure what he was thinking about, but she still dragged him toward the rest of the residents of the Devastation Woods. They all lived within walking distance and were quickly called together for a group get-together.
"Lord Necro?" Bai Ning wondered as she took cursory irked glances at the giggling Lang Qingyue.
"First off, I can now transform into a human-type creature," Necro began with the most obvious announcement. "This means I'm no longer limited by my large size and restricted mobility. I imagine you're all bright enough to figure out what will come about from this change in situation."
"!!!" "!!!" "!!!"
'Venturing further out into the world!?'
Even though the Shadow Tree Soldiers and the Necrotic Valkyries often traveled outward for up to hundreds of thousands of meters, that was barely anything in the grand scheme of things. Such a small area didn't even cover the Great Forest of Jagga, let alone the rest of the Blue Ring Region and the Skyriser Kingdom which they resided in.
"It's time we begin moving further north along the coastline," Necro announced, sending waves of surprise through the Necrotic Valkyries and Shadow Soldiers. "You're all at least of the Qi Condensation Realm, so I know you can handle the arduous journey that awaits us. I have faith that you'll all prove your worth in the difficulties that we are soon to face in this vast unfamiliar world."
"Guh!!"
"You can count on us, Lord Necro!"
Necro nodded at everyone's enthusiasm. He waved his hands, causing over a dozen shadowy spots to materialize around him.
"I may have confidence in your capabilities, but having a larger military force is a necessity," he said. "Thus, I'll be summoning 15 additional brothers that'll be joining us from here on out."
15 Brothers!?
Did that mean…!?
"Guh!" "Guh!" "Guh!"
15 Shadow Tree Soldiers were conjured from shadow spots, each one very short and merely of the Skin Refinement Realm. They were intimidated by all the big people around them, especially those of their own kind.
However, within seconds of their conception, Necro dumped a ludicrous amount of Evolution Points into the advancement of their cultivation.
*Ding!*
[You invested 50,000 Evolution Points into the cultivation of 15/25 Shadow Tree Soldiers!]
[All of your Shadow Tree Soldiers are now in the 3rd Layer of Qi Condensation!]
After the breakthroughs concluded, Necro properly welcomed the new Shadow Soldiers to the group. Of them, he noticed one that stood out as peculiar to him.
"This one… It seems very valiant…"
It was like Necro was staring at a lion-like being with a proud and courageous countenance. He figured this one was similar to Lazy, in that they were both outliers.
"You," Necro said to the strangely confident Shadow Tree Soldier. "Come here."
As soon as this specific Shadow Soldier heard the command, it became appalled. However, when it saw who it was that was ordering it around, it quickly turned subservient.
"Mas…ter…"
Necro raised a brow. "So you can speak the human tongue already? I do wonder what's wrong with Lazy then."
Lazy appeared deeply offended.
"Guh! Guh!" 'Master, he's cheating!! Haxxx!!'
"No matter," said Necro as he focused on the confident Shadow Soldier. "Since your personality is exuding an innate sense of pride, you shall henceforth be called… 'Escanor.'"
Escanor's hollowed eyes flashed with gold, illuminating the area and signifying the birth of a true creature of pride.
Bai Ning, Lang Qingyue, and the Necrotic Valkyries were more than a little shocked by the crazy aura emanating off of Escanor. It was akin to the sun, blazing and all-encompassing.
Lazy felt many grievances right now. He thought about his own powers of laziness, only to become even more aggrieved.
Why were his so much lamer than those of this gloriously hateful bastard before him!?
"Escanor." Necro spoke up with a calm voice that dispersed the dazzling gold energy swirling around his 2nd Unique Shadow Soldier. "From now on, you will head any expeditions or major operations that involve the future expansion of our faction."
Escanor nodded as he adjusted to his newfound strength. He stood in at just about double the height of the other Shadow Tree Soldiers, but also had the specialized ability to change his size at will. It was the same ability Lazy had—seemingly something exclusive to the Unique Shadow Tree Soldiers.
"Your combat ability is very high, and appears to have the perk of climbing even higher in the heat of battle," Necro commented as he appraised the radiant existence kneeling below him. "I have big expectations for you."
"Thank you, Master." Escanor cupped his woody hands in veneration.
"Guh Guh!?" 'What about me, Master!? What about me??'
Lazy was seeking attention, but Necro couldn't even be bothered to directly acknowledge his existence. This caused Lazy's heart to sink deep in his chest, his life all but over in his mind.
"Guh…" 'I'll just go find a hole and jump in it. This world isn't yet ready for Lord Lazy…'
"Now then, let us get down to the main matter at hand," Necro began. "The Human Settlements to the East are becoming increasingly wary of our existence. There's no doubt in my mind that they'll soon be sending powerhouses at the Peak of the Qi Condensation Realm to weed us out before we're able to grow any more."
Everyone's expression turned serious, containing slight traces of graveness.
In recent times, even Lang Qingyue and Bai Ning—humans—had been attacked by Qi Condensation Realm Cultivators swarming in from the East. Worst of all was that the quantity of invaders was only multiplying, with the tension between their two sides surely about to reach a boiling point.
"If we want to avoid extermination, then we have to venture further north along the coastline," Necro continued. "Specifically, toward the Sub-Zero Mountain Range."
'Sub-Zero Mountain Range…'
Lang Qingyue was particularly reactive to the announcement of their destination.
After all, it was the same place she planned to head over to in order to seek out the assistance of the Shamans…
The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!