Shepherd and the Ouroboros Ring

In an instant, the surging Shadow Power roared out, pushing the Olive backward.

The overflowing Shadow Power spread instantly, and an invisible wind extinguished all the candles in the Small Chapel.

The shadow spread rapidly outwards from the Candle Holder Cathedral.

No fierce winds arose; instead, the spreading darkness swallowed all light. The two sides, who had been locked in battle, were forced to cease fighting because they had all been blinded.

What happened?

Such powerful shadow forces...

The consultant suddenly felt uneasy.

Lancelot I ...shouldn't he be a knight of the Path of Authority? Why does the ritual to resurrect him sound like something from the Domain of Revenge ...?

[Revenge] That is the power of the Domain of Love, the authority wielded by Shadow Angel, just like a shadow.

The Shadow of Avalon... if this is the power belonging to the Shadow Angel.

Could it mean that when Lancelot I is resurrected... he will no longer be the original Lancelot?

While the terminal ceremony here was being activated, another magic circle in Eagle Cape Village was also lit up.

The Ritual Array over there was far more complex than that in the Small Chapel —forty or fifty overlapping arrays, symbols, and extraordinary materials formed an incredibly precise, yet complex, system that was difficult to maintain. As they began to operate, another Ritual Array hidden within them was also activated.

At this very moment, in the Dream Realm, in the Shadow Land.

Lancelot, wielding his spear, moved with lightning speed and swung his weapon three times in quick succession, knocking the longsword from the burly man's hand. Then, with a spear thrust like a dragon, he pierced the man's throat and heart in an instant!

As he retrieved his weapon, the burly man he had killed revived.

"Oops, I made a mistake..."

The burly man, shirtless, was somewhat unwilling, but still smiled cheerfully, "But your skills are quite good—who did you learn them from?"

He tossed Lancelot a jug of wine. "Never mind all that. Try this; it's an offering my descendants have recently made for me!"

"OK."

Lancelot smiled, sheathed his spear, and took the wine jug. "Very good, it's a pity my descendants don't know how to send something here..."

What should I give you?

The man said irritably, "You're alive, we're dead. Don't say such unlucky things."

"In some ways, I'm not much different from the dead..."

Lancelot said self-deprecatingly, sitting down next to the man with a wine jug in his hand.

It's always gloomy here, neither day nor night. There's no sun or moon in the sky; dark gray clouds roll in and lightning flashes, but it never rains... It's depressing.

However, the lively atmosphere on the ground was the opposite of the gloomy sky.

Not far away, Hunter were hunting giant demonic boars—these boars would revive after death, but their meat could be taken and roasted. Nearby was a banquet, and beside the banquet, two warriors were locked in a bloody battle.

People ate meat and drank wine while watching and cheering. After they finished this meal, the next wave of fleeing and fighting would begin.

They were all dead men, those who were belligerent, greedy, jealous, and skilled in killing. They were the bravest, strongest, and most handsome warriors chosen by the Shadow Angel.

There's no work to do here, and the dead don't need to eat. The dense black bushes produce large, black strawberries that can be used to brew wine; and all sorts of Magic Creature in the Shadow Land are reborn after they die. The witches and fairies are in charge of brewing and cooking, and the rest of the people spend their days drinking, eating, and killing each other.

And each time, the last survivor gets to spend the night with the Queen of the Shadow Land —in this sense, these brave and strong warriors can even be considered the harem of the Shadow Angel, just like the witches and fairies.

The Shadow Angel control the realm of betrayal and revenge, so witches and fairies occasionally seduce these passionate warriors—and are naturally punished by the Shadow Angel when discovered... but this is also First Ring of the game.

However, compared to the absurd, cruel, and depraved Blood Domain, the gameplay here is already quite conservative.

Just then, Lancelot suddenly froze. His spirit body crackled and trembled, blurring for a moment.

He heard... someone calling his name.

"...ah."

He sighed, a sense of loss washing over him, and lamented, "Is it finally... finally going to end?"

"Oh? You're leaving?"

The burly man beside him laughed heartily, urging, "Hurry up, drink some more! Drink some more! Once you're resurrected, you won't be able to drink this underworld wine anymore!"

"Who knows, I might come back again. But when I do come back... I might be White Knight clad in silver armor."

Lancelot smiled and downed the wine in one gulp.

Amid the burly man's complaints, "Leave some for me!", he returned the wine bottle to the man and tossed him his spear as well.

His body twisted and disappeared, as if he had been sucked out.

At this moment, the howling shadows grew even denser and spread even further.

The vegetation withered, the flames went out, and the metal rusted.

Olive clutched his chest in discomfort and backed away—his body was too old to withstand this level of shadow. The grapes tried to protect themselves with the rock walls, but they too could not stop the all-pervasive winds of shadow.

If you look down at Avalon from above, you can see visible ripples of shadow spreading outwards from the Glass Island.

The rivers became murky, the fruit on the trees developed black spots, and the stored grain was contaminated.

The shadow continued to spread steadily and slowly.

Apart from the moonlight, all other light sources were completely swallowed up and blocked. The whole world seemed to have returned to the primitive era, and people hid in fear at night, afraid to go out.

The war was forced to a halt. No one could see where the enemy was, or where their allies were. Even the vision of the superhumans was blocked by this veil of shadow; any flames that were lit would flicker and extinguish instantly, as if in a strong wind.

Inside the coffin, Lancelot I suddenly reached out and grasped the dagger embedded in his chest.

Then, he instantly pulled out the dagger! In an instant, his face, which had already entered old age, became younger at a visible speed, as if it were being inflated, and he returned to looking like he was in his thirties.

However, he did not completely transform into the historical Lancelot; instead, he became black-haired and black-eyed. The Shadow Power coalesced into battle markings on his face, and his pupils were blackish-purple, like ripe grapes.

The extremely intense pressure startled Iver.

His aura was even stronger than that of the Night Demon—his mere presence made the surroundings feel so discordant. It was as if the art style was completely different from the surroundings...a 3D character suddenly appearing in a 2D environment, as eerie as that.

The Shadow Power that had surged forth has now spread beyond the Glass Island. And now, it is flowing back at several times the speed, as if time has reversed, continuously entering his body. However, what was already corrupted before is now corrupted again.

Light returned in an instant.

The candlelight suddenly shot up and flickered violently, illuminating the chapel once more. Even the three candles atop Iver's crown were lit.

Lancelot I opened his eyes and slowly sat up from the coffin. His bones crackled and popped, and his aura gradually transformed from that of a stone statue and corpse into that of a living person... He slowly began to breathe life.

"Children, I'm back."

He opened his eyes and said in a friendly, serious, and earnest manner, "Is there anything I can do for you?"

A miracle of coming back from the dead.

Not only that—it's even a miracle of rejuvenation.

Upon seeing this, Iver paused slightly, as if he had thought of something. But the inspiration was fleeting, and he couldn't grasp it immediately.

... Strange, it actually succeeded?!

How could it have succeeded?

Iver was somewhat confused for a moment.

He had just prepared to backstab the advisor and kill him.

Shouldn't they have just summoned Shadow Angel directly? Or is it that in this timeline, Grandfather didn't tamper with the Shadow of Avalon?

If the Shadow of Shadow of Avalon Ritual is Ouroboros Ring, then the one summoned should be the Shadow Angel. And if Lancelot I is indeed resurrected, how could his mission possibly include "ensuring the survival of civilians"? Was the officiant just trying to scare him and test his courage?

"...Um?"

At that moment, Lancelot I suddenly paused.

He looked at Iver and frowned slightly.

"Have I seen you somewhere before?"

"... How could you possibly have seen me?"

Iver was somewhat helpless, but could only reply to His Majesty's inquiry, "I am Iver Moriarty, a descendant of Mordred... but we are all adopted children, so I should not have any blood relation with that Knight Mordred."

"Of course it's not Mordred..."

Lancelot I murmured softly, "I've spent too long in the Shadow Land; my memories of my past life are somewhat hazy. Let me think..."

Suddenly, his eyes widened.

It wasn't that she had thought of anything, but rather that she clutched her heart, which had just been pierced, and showed a pained expression.

He suddenly reached out and tore his clothes to shreds. Above the pierced chest, a thin snake emerged—it coiled around the wound, biting its own tail to form a ring.

A purple glow shone on Lancelot, and an extremely strong power of transcendence suddenly spread outward.

"Is this the Ouroboros Ring?!" Upon seeing this, Iver suddenly realized.

All the doubts were resolved! It turned out that the resurrected Lancelot I was merely a sacrifice to complete the Ouroboros Ring Ritual! Completing the Ouroboros Ring Ritual requires a transcendent being of the world's highest level as a sacrifice... although Iver still didn't understand how those who summoned the Fallen Angel managed to do it...

However, Lancelot I had just been resurrected and returned from the Dream Realm, undoubtedly met this condition! Thinking of this, Iver suddenly had an impulse, an idea.

Lancelot I was himself a transcendent being on the Sixth Level of the Path of Authority! The Celestials and Apostles of the Path of Love were unreliable and uncontrollable. The Celestials of the Path of Authority were somewhat better.

Alternatively, they could bring down the apostles of the Silver Crowned Dragon... They were all Lancelot's former comrades-in-arms, so perhaps they would be more under control.

So Iver reached out and placed his hand on Lancelot's chest.

—The Ouroboros Ring, I can do that too! He can directly modify the target of the Ouroboros Ring —preventing the Celestials of the Path of Love from descending, and only allowing the Apostles of the Path of Authority to descend.

If they were apostles of the Celestials, then they could still fight, which would be better than fighting the Shadow Angel; if they were apostles of the Silver Crowned Dragon, then there would be no need for a fight at all! The preliminary preparations for the ritual had been completely completed by his grandfather, so Iver was able to start the ritual in an instant.

Strangely, Iver suddenly discovered that something within his body had been activated by the ritual.

That is...

"... The Art of Shepherding?!"

Lancelot suddenly realized, "I remember now, you are the Shepherd!"

... What? Iver was stunned for a moment.

But he had no time to ask or explain. As the art of Shepherding Method operated on its own, the Ouroboros Ring Ritual was subtly distorted.

In an instant, the purple light transformed into a scarlet ring.

It was like a magic circle, spreading out around the two of them, enveloping them completely, and completely blocking out the view from the outside world.

If Iver had the chance to see what this magic circle looked like, he would have discovered that it was exactly the same as the magic circle he used to seal the Great Sin Beast, as well as the magic circle on the Book of Law! "Wait!"

The consultant was just about to ask what had happened.

But then he suddenly felt a pang of fear—

The Flame Butterfly that had been perched on Iver's shoulder had somehow transformed back into "Lia".

She was looking at the consultant with a cold expression, but she seemed eager to try.

"... Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Did I just do something wrong, or say something wrong?" The advisor probably realized something, but still wouldn't give up. "I have something important to say to Bishop Moriarty... it's very important..."

He refused to believe until his death that Iver was an Ascended.

"You guess?"

Lia's lips curled up slightly.

She raised her hand to the consultant.