Chapter 381: Mythical Grade

Chapter 381: Mythical Grade

Nox was unsure if she should trust the words floating before her. It claimed Ashlock needed her to make a decision, but it used too many terms that she had never heard of.

SSS-grade? Mythical being? Netherworld Wraith? Nox raised her hand, and it effortlessly passed through the floating golden words, but they did shimmer in reaction to her Qi, meaning they were likely carved out of divine energy. Is another diving being trying to tempt me away from Ashlock? It just seems too suspicious.

"Nox, accept the system message." Ashlock's voice, along with his presence, surged through the ethereal roots connecting her tree body to the root network. His tone was filled with urgency. Whatever this system message thing was, it seemed important.

"Oh—okay! I accept." Nox said without another thought. If Ashlock needed her to do something, she had no reason to protest.

The golden words swam through the air to rearrange themselves into a new message.

[Which soul do you wish to sacrifice?]

"Sacrifice?!" Nox's eyes widened. Was she talking to a demon? She was willing to do almost anything to repent for her past life's sins, but while she was lonely, she still enjoyed living. Sacrificing her soul was a bit...

[You have two souls of comparable strength. While your memories are linked, you are essentially two separate entities. Pick which one to sacrifice]

Nox glanced at her tree. It was true; she had used her family's most difficult technique, Shadow Soul, to divide her soul in two so she could create this dryad form to give herself mobility and the ability to talk to people. While being a tree had advantages, she had lived too long as a human to not desire a humanoid form. By using Shadow Soul, she could live the best of both worlds.

But as the message had said, her memories were linked. While possessing two distinct vessels, she was still one. If either her dryad or tree soul were to perish, she would become half of the person she once was. Memories would be lost, and her personality would completely change.

"What exactly do you mean by sacrificed?" Nox understood Ashlock seemed in a hurry, but this was still a big decision, and considering she was given a choice in the first place, maybe she could say no?

[On the scale, your soul is currently at the level of an S-grade being. The reason I say sacrificed is because I will be trying to implant your soul into an SSS-grade being, which is incomparably stronger than you, and Netherworld Wraiths are known to devour souls... it's their only food source. So there is a high probability of failure, resulting in the Netherworld Wraith consuming your soul]

"Right..." Nox nursed her head as she re-read the words floating before her three times. "If it's so incomparably stronger than me, do I even have a chance of success?"

[A slim one, yes. The Netherworld Wraith is egoless, meaning the vessel acts purely on instincts. If it had an ego, taking it over and achieving soul dominion over it would be utterly impossible for you. Also, it's currently in the process of manifesting, meaning it's in a weakened state]

"You're our best bet," Ashlock added, "The Netherworld Wraith seems to have aspects of shadow Qi, meaning your shadow Qi law can overpower it. You also have a good grasp of soul dao, and your cultivation level is among the highest in the sect."

"I see..." Nox sighed and looked at her peaceful field of flowers, "And dare I ask, what happens if I say no?"

"We might all die. If the Netherworld Wraith finishes manifesting without an ego I can control, it will begin feasting on any soul within range. Even if we all came together, I'm not sure we could stop it. SSS-grade is a level of power that is likely beyond Monarch Realm..."

"Meaning nothing on the 9th layer of creation can defeat it," Nox bit her lip. "So, hypothetically, if I succeed at taking control of this Netherworld Wraith, would that make me the most powerful being in the realm?"

[Potentially, yes. Though it's unlikely that you will be able to unleash the full potential of a Netherworld Wraith from the start. While the vessel will be at the Mythical grade, your soul will still be at the S-grade. A soul can't jump multiple realms of power and not implode]

Nox nodded in understanding. So I will have the body of a super powerful being, but I will be limited to outputting whatever level of techniques my current Nascent Soul Realm soul is capable of. That's crazy... with Tartarus and Ashlock's ability to invade pocket realms, I can cultivate my soul to catch up to the Netherworld Wraith quickly. But I still don't understand just how strong I can be...

"What does Mythical grade mean if SSS grade is so powerful that nothing in the realm can stand against it? Does that mean I'll be like a god once my soul can utilize its full potential?" Nox asked. She assumed these strange terms Ashlock and these floating words were using were some kind of knowledge or way of categorizing things only known between divine beings. It was relatively intuitive, but she did have to wonder if a snake god came up with the naming scheme, considering how many S's were being thrown around.

[Mythical grade is undefinable. However, it would be impossible for a Mythical grade being to use their full strength down here on the 9th layer of creation without earning the ire of the heavens]

Nox was starting to get the full picture. They wanted to put her soul into an egoless vessel that had a high probability of eating her. But should she succeed, she would gain a new body at a level of strength unreachable for another on the 9th layer of creation.

If I can wield such power, I can keep my promise of protecting the Ashfallen Sect from almost any threat. Nox's eyes flared with determination. If I'm so valuable to the sect, there's no way I will be left alone to guard an empty pocket realm anymore.

"Okay," Nox balled her fists, "You can take my soul inhabiting this dryad body as I assume a soul used to a more humanoid body will fare better?"

[Netherworld wraiths aren't known to have any fixed shape. They are soul-devouring spiritual beings that exist on a plane between realities that shouldn't even exist, so either of your souls would be fine, but I agree the dryad one is the better choice]

Nox thought about it for a moment but was sure she wanted to keep her tree soul around. It was the body Ashlock had given her, and she wasn't about to sacrifice it.

"Alright, I'm ready," Nox said after sitting down cross-legged in the field of white flowers.

[This will be an excruciatingly painful experience, and it will take all your willpower to hold your ego together. You will be walking a thin line between success and soul death. There is no margin for error]

Nox glared at the words, "I already said I was ready. How is this supposed to motivate me?"

[The Netherworld Wraith has no tangible form to decay. It's a spiritual being]

Ashlock sighed. "This is cheating."

[That's an SSS-grade summon lured here with an insane amount of gathered divine energy for you. In a twisted way, we should be glad we didn't accidentally summon another deity. I don't think they would have taken your attempts to control them lightly]

"I guess there is some good to be found in every bad situation," Ashlock was now even more glad he had given Nox a second chance at life, and he began to wonder if karma existed. He would be facing doom if he had simply devoured her for credits.

Nox was, ironically, his ray of light in the darkness right now.

"Come on, Nox. I believe you can do it." Ashlock quietly cheered as he intently watched. Minutes passed, and he began to lose hope. The tiny ball of darkness that was Nox's soul began to flicker like a dying flame.

[We should start preparing for the worst. If the Netherworld Wraith finishes forming without Nox being in control, its soul pressure alone will lock everything in place, including Larry and Anubis. There will be no way to save them]

"Not yet," Ashlock replied. "Nox is still alive, if barely."

[Ashlock, if she fails...]

"She won't." Ashlock dared not take his eye off her, "Besides, if she fails, it's over for us." As a tree, he could not move. He was stuck here, and if there was an undefeatable foe, it was only a matter of time before the Netherworld Wraith floated to Red Vine Peak and killed him.

A house near the castle suddenly exploded. It happened so fast that Ashlock hadn't caught the shadow tendril that was now jutting out of the swirling chaos. The destroyed house's tiles hadn't even finished shattering on the ground when another shadow tendril shot out and took out two multistory buildings this time.

"Is that Nox's doing?" Ashlock sure hoped so.

[I don't think so...]

The system trailed off as more shadow tendrils emerged from the chaos with dead mortal maids skewered on them. There were... hundreds. The shadow tendrils extended into the sky, putting them all on display.

"What is happening?"

[The Netherworld Wraith is preparing for a Soul Harvest]

"A what—" All at once, the corpses withered to dust that fell and drifted off in the wind. The shadow tendrils that had once supported the corpses slammed down, obliterating the surrounding area, including what was left of the castle. The swirling, corrupted divine energy began to condense, and something rose from the chaos.

It was a tall, wraith-like woman with a body made of twisted roots and ghostly branches. Even through his Evil Eye, Ashlock struggled to keep her in focus. Her form shimmered between reality and somewhere else. The woman looked around with translucent, glowing white eyes. Atop her head was a crown of dark wooden antlers that radiated the chill of death as she rose into the air, giving Ashlock a better look at her ethereal body that trailed a cape of shadowy tendrils as if she needed to stay connected to the ground that was now far below her.

The Netherworld Wraith continued to rise until she was right below his Evil Eye, gazing through a rift.

"I can finally see what you truly are." The wraith cracked a smile.

"Nox?" Ashlock asked apprehensively. The voice certainly didn't sound anything like her.

The wraith nodded, "It's me."

[SSS-grade summon deemed successful]

[What was once an egoless being known to devour wandering souls between realms has become capable of critical thinking. In light of this, a new variant of the Netherworld Wraith has been registered as Netherwood Wraith due to Nox's unique appearance and given the grade of Mythical]

[Summons list updated...]

{Netherwood Wraith: Nox [Mythical]}

{Herald of the Divine Ash: Larry [S]}

{Midnight Ink Lindwyrm: Kaida [B]}

Ashlock dismissed the system messages. They had avoided the worst-case scenario, but he wasn't out of the woods yet. He wasn't sure what Nox had seen, and more importantly, was Nox still an ally?