Dark Beast (New book seeking support)

"We are leaving immediately, as soon as the sun sets!"

Xiu stood up and paced back and forth, her movements restless.

The manic look on her face made Lin so frightened she nearly burst into tears.

"Okay, Aunt Xiu, you rest for a moment. I'll go get some things. We can't skip today's food ration, or they'll get suspicious."

Aike nodded and walked out of the small cabin.

Xiu forced herself to suppress the mania in her heart and sat down cross-legged.

As she meditated, her breathing gradually steadied. Looking at Lin, she suddenly felt that the girl was different from her usual self.

"Lin, come here!"

Xiu beckoned.

To her surprise, Lin did not approach, but instead retreated in fear.

Xiu stood up, lunged forward to grab Lin, and suddenly pulled back her sleeve. On the little girl's tender arm, a black tattoo was clearly visible.

"This is..."

Xiu felt her hair stand on end.

"Wuu wuu..." Lin began to cry loudly. "Aike told me he would become a great man, and that you would make excellent firewood... wuu wuu..."

"I was careless..."

Xiu's heart was filled with regret. She had been so immersed in the study of the extraordinary path these past few days that she had completely ignored how a half-grown child like Aike might be influenced among a group of cultists.

"Damn it, he must have gone out to report us."

Xiu pried up the floorboards, strapped on her backpack, grabbed Lin, and turned to run out of the house.

After leaving the house, her pace grew faster and faster, and she soon reached the edge of the town.

At the edge of the town, there were usually patrol squads led by the Son of Burning. They were often already at the second stage and possessed the power to control flames—opponents Xiu did not want to face.

However, if she could ambush them, there might still be a chance.

After all, the others thought she was a fellow believer, and because she had intended to escape, she had become a familiar face to the patrol squads.

But this time, Xiu's luck was terrible.

She saw the Black Sun cultists gathered at the town gate. The leader was none other than the High Priest, and he was holding a child by the hand—it was Aike!

Xiu's heart sank. She quickly chanted a mysterious incantation, summoning black winds that seemed to possess a life of their own.

"Are you using the incantations I taught you to attack me, Xiu?"

The High Priest's lips moved, and the black wind vanished into nothingness.

Xiu's heart plummeted straight to the bottom.

Aaron watched this scene calmly.

He knew that until he found a way to interfere with this world, he was powerless to do anything about it.

In the end, Xiu surrendered. After all, she still had Lin with her; if a battle broke out, she might accidentally hurt the girl.

Furthermore, in the face of such overwhelming strength, resistance was meaningless.

"Tell me, what does 'firewood' mean?"

When she was being tied up, Xiu finally couldn't help but ask.

"You will see."

The High Priest revealed a faint smile.

Aaron suddenly had a feeling that he was about to touch upon the core secrets of the Black Sun Church.

Two days later, at the transition between day and night.

In the town square, Aaron saw the pillars where people had been tied up.

At their feet lay complex and exquisite ritual patterns that looked like works of art.

"Numerology and divination have confirmed that this moment today is the best choice to please our Lord."

The High Priest took off his hood, revealing a head covered in tattoos and incantations. "And you, too, shall become my firewood, to share in the charm of this high-level ritual. It is called—the Eclipse!"

Aaron suddenly recalled the High Priest's first sermon: "Darkness is the symbol of destruction and sublimation; it allows us to remain unburnt. To awaken the spirit of darkness, one must first burn oneself, sacrifice our flesh and blood, cross the three gates, and undergo the Eclipse Ritual. Those who complete it will be stripped to the bone, and this, too, is a great achievement!"

"It seems the three gates refer to the three stages: Unburnt, Son of Burning, and Dark Seeker. Can the Eclipse Ritual only be performed by someone who has reached the pinnacle of the Dark Seeker stage?"

Aaron stood among the crowd, quietly watching the High Priest put on his show.

The High Priest's face was slightly flushed, clearly excited to the extreme. "Mortals have their limits. After completing the ritual, I will shed this mortal body, obtain a brand-new form of life, and draw closer to my Lord. I will step into a whole new stage! Now, the time has come!"

Whoosh!

Following the command, the Black Sun cultists on the perimeter chanted in unison.

Amidst the eerie sound of the incantations, clusters of pitch-black flames suddenly ignited upon the ritual patterns, swallowing the sacrifices one by one.

Xiu even saw Soren, the former traitor of the sanctuary, also transformed into 'firewood'!

He screamed, his body melting away like a wax figure.

Within the ritual, wisps of something inexplicable seemed to be summoned and drawn, converging upon the High Priest.

"Offer everything to the Lord of the Eclipse, sublimate within the flames, receive the favor of darkness, and become a Dark Beast!"

The High Priest roared, or perhaps shouted, as black flames ignited upon his own body as well.

The inferno quickly engulfed his form, and within the raging fire, a brand-new shape seemed to be gestating...

As expected... the dark spirituality between Black Sun Cultists can be stripped and devoured by one another... this is why the High Priest constantly recruits, proselytizes, and even teaches without reservation.

Their spirituality... is all 'firewood', all sacrificial offerings, all nutrients for the growth of a Dark Beast!

Aaron watched coldly from the sidelines.

To this scene, those Black Sun Cultists seemed accustomed, and the eyes of the few Sons of Burning were filled with longing.

They were far more powerful than the Unburnt, yet for that very reason, they were ill-suited to serve as sacrifices.

"So that's how it is..."

Aaron murmured; at this moment, the Black Sun Cult held no more secrets in his eyes.

Or rather, he had grasped the highest esoteric teaching of the Black Sun Cult!

"Auntie Xiu!"

Outside the grounds, Lin cried out, but was held tightly by Aike, who covered her lips.

"Auntie Xiu has ascended to a higher Light Realm; she is one step closer to the Black Sun."

Aike whispered into Lin's ear, his tone a mix of comfort and hypnosis.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, the firewood within the ritual had been completely incinerated, and the black flames gradually died out.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a monster with the body of a hound and the head of a man, burning with pitch-black flames, leaped out from the ashes.

It was the High Priest!

He had successfully executed the Eclipse Ritual, transformed his life form, and become a Dark Beast!

Night fell.

The reveling Black Sun Cultists were either still celebrating or had fallen into a deep sleep.

In Aike's cabin, the door creaked open.

Lin lifted her head, gazing at the bright starry sky: "Auntie Xiu... sob... I miss you so much, I'm sorry..."

She looked at the crimson moon, recalling the legends of her homeland.

The souls of the departed would ascend to the moon, watching over everyone in the mortal world.

And tonight, the moon seemed particularly full...

"Mother..."

Lin immediately thought of her own mother, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Perhaps it was a hallucination, but through her tear-blurred vision, she seemed to see a giant tree upon the moon, one woven entirely from flesh and blood...