Assassination

The monster on the ground, though humanoid, was little more than a beast. Its feet were like hooves, its face resembled a dog's, and it possessed sharp claws. Its skin was a grayish, gelatinous mess covered in disgusting fungi, with a tattered rag wrapped around its waist to hide its private parts.

It was pinned to the ceiling of the cavern by Lu Li's shadow, which had pierced straight through its body. It let out a sound like weeping, its mouth stretching wide in agony to reveal a maw full of fangs. Its entire visage became even more dog-like; in fact, the habits of this creature were indeed identical to those of a hyena.

Lu Li did not know that this creature was called a Ghoul. Long ago, they had been human, but they came to believe that the human body held immense energy. Through ritualistic consumption—eating the corpses of their own kind—they sought to gain great power. Over time, their human identities mutated, transforming them into these monsters known as Ghouls. They gained immense strength and long lives, but they became hideously ugly and developed a fear of sunlight. Since this society was dominated by humans, they were forced to hide in the shadows, mostly lurking in city sewers or caves in the wilderness.

Lu Li, however, had no need to know what these monsters were. Ever since that accident, he had been largely unable to feel negative emotions. Yet, these emotions had not simply vanished into thin air; they had been suppressed and piled up. The memory from the water earlier had intensified Lu Li's negative emotions, and after being secretly manipulated by the witch, that sense of irritation became a fuse. Lu Li's negative emotions were ignited instantly.

A portion of his shadow surged into the air, enveloping the Ghoul. It poured into the creature's mouth and nose before morphing into crisscrossing, long spikes that pierced the Ghoul from the inside, turning it into a blooming flower of thorns. Dark green blood dripped from the Ghoul's wounds. Without the shadow to support it, the creature fell from the ceiling and crashed to the ground in front of Lu Li. Due to years of ritualistic feeding, its vitality was incredibly tenacious. Its dog-like mouth let out rapid, weeping cries, as if it were trying to convey some message. These monsters possessed intelligence, after all...

Lu Li stepped over the Ghoul's body and continued forward. The shadow inside the Ghoul underwent a secondary transformation, crushing its body like a discarded sack. The shadow then reverted to a flat pool and returned to Lu Li's feet.

Past this point, the cavern widened. Sounds of running echoed from ahead. Two Ghouls were sprinting on all fours, emitting rapid cries. Their eyes, filled with hatred, stared fixedly at Lu Li as they roared and lunged toward him. Their black-red claws were constantly exposed to corpses and fungi; if a human were scratched, the wound would become infected, potentially even passing on Ghoul traits. Upon death, the victim's body might even resurrect as a newborn Ghoul. This was one of the ways Ghouls were formed, though the success rate was extremely low.

Lu Li did not stop, continuing his steady pace forward. Two Shadow Assassins appeared abruptly behind the Ghouls, their hands twisting to reverse-grip their short blades, stabbing them into the Ghouls' hearts from behind. Then, with identical movements, the two assassins released their blades and, with eerie footwork, vanished from the Ghouls' side in an instant.

Two short blades were embedded in the exact same spot on the backs of both Ghouls. After the Shadow Assassins departed, the blades shattered instantly, dissolving into shadow. Dark green blood erupted directly from the wounds. The two Ghouls' running momentum faltered, and they collapsed in front of Lu Li. As they struggled to lift their heads to look at the man who hadn't slowed his pace, spikes erupted from the shadows on the ground, piercing them through the throat and killing them outright.

The Shadow Assassins' weapons were originally meant to be generated by imbuing them with steel or similar materials, but Lu Li had used shadow instead. While the resulting Shadow Blade was not as hard as a steel weapon, it was incredibly sharp and could be dissolved back into shadow to return to the Shadow Assassins' hands.

The Shadow Assassins submerged into the darkness once more. They did not emit a single sound or trace of presence. Their stealth capabilities had been further enhanced by their shadow-based bodies; if Lu Li didn't have a secret connection to them, he likely wouldn't have been able to detect their positions either.

The commotion coming from within the cavern grew louder, and Lu Li finally began to take things seriously. His footwork turned eerie. A mass of shadow rose from the ground, wrapping around Lu Li and leaving only his eyes, ears, and nose exposed. A moment later, Lu Li vanished completely, leaving behind no traces or aura.

The Shadow Assassins' stealth was not a matter of mysterious techniques, but rather a specific way of moving. With Lu Li's control over his own body, he could easily mimic and learn it. With the aid of his shadow, he would be no worse than the Shadow Assassins—perhaps even better, as his control over himself and his intellect were superior to theirs.

An unknown number of Ghouls were running about. Some stood upright, others moved on all fours, emitting rapid, labored breaths. Their dog-like noses searched for scents in the air, and their night-vision eyes scanned the surroundings constantly. Unfortunately, Lu Li was wrapped in shadow, and he had even forced the pores on the small exposed parts of his body to close, leaking not a shred of aura. He moved without making a sound, blending into the darkness. Even with their night vision, the Ghouls could not find him; they could only roar in frustration at the spot where Lu Li had last disappeared.

Silently and without a trace, Lu Li moved behind a Ghoul. Between one moment and the next, he transitioned from non-existence to existence. A violent surge of negative emotions was unleashed. Even though he was in the darkness, that moment felt incredibly conspicuous. The shadow wrapping Lu Li's hand morphed into a spike, stabbing through the Ghoul's ear and instantly destroying the monster's brain. Dark green blood bloomed. Stepping back to avoid being splattered by the gore, Lu Li vanished once again.

The Shadow Assassins also struck repeatedly, assassinating these monsters. The pack of Ghouls acted as if they were blind; an invisible enemy was constantly killing their kin. They were terrified and panicked, but it was all in vain. The enemy from the shadows would not stop his advance.

As the last Ghoul fell, the shadows turned into tentacles and returned to Lu Li's body. The shadow that had covered him flattened out. Some dark green blood, left behind by the vanishing shadow, dripped onto the ground. There were many Ghouls, and toward the end, Lu Li couldn't always avoid the spraying blood. In truth, there was no need to avoid it anymore, as the area was already drenched in Ghoul blood; even if he were stained, the scent would not expose him.

Although the Shadow Magic within him was constantly replenishing due to the dark environment, maintaining the actions of two Shadow Assassins had consumed more than half of his reserves. Once he confirmed that the Ghouls were all dead, the Shadow Assassins dissolved into black smoke and returned to Lu Li's shadow.

Happy Children's Day. From now on, Xu Ming will post author notes in the chapter comments to avoid disrupting the reading experience. Xu Ming's Qidian name is: Xu Zhi Zhuan Lun. Also, for readers who have creative ideas regarding the protagonist's ability development and skill combinations, feel free to join the reader group: 578342111.