Lord Of The Lost

William reached the end o the mine.

The air was thick with frost, the rocks coated in a glittering layer of ice that seemed to hold time itself captive. The dim light from Flying Spaghetti's torch behind him cast faint, flickering reflections on the frozen walls, creating a crystalline glow.

And then he saw it, the demonic figure buried deep in the ore and soil.

The creature's massive upper body was embedded in the rock wall, its grotesque form jutting out like a nightmare carved into stone. It resembled something from an Ukiyo-e painting of evil spirits, grotesque yet mesmerizing.

Its sheer size was intimidating, even in death. Its muscular frame was enormous, with two spiral horns protruding from its head and a ferocious, twisted expression frozen on its face. Thick, knotted muscles bulged from its torso, and its massive arms stretched outward as though it had been in the middle of a violent struggle when its life ended.

A massive wound gaped across its abdomen, nearly tearing it in half. The injury was old, yet frost had claimed its body, sealing the demon in ice.

As William stood there, the faint scent of sulfur wafted through the air, growing stronger with every passing moment.

---

[Hint: You have encountered Deliora]

[Deliora: A high-level demon from the underground abyss. Died in its slumber, frozen to death by the Blizzard Knight as it began to awaken.]

---

William's sharp eyes scanned the creature carefully. Despite its terrifying appearance, Deliora was undoubtedly dead. The only lingering presence was the faint traces of its demonic energy, which had seeped into the mine and corrupted the creatures within.

Even so, William approached cautiously.

There was a saying: "A centipede dies, but its body remains intact."

High-level beings like Deliora often held mysteries that transcended human understanding. Messing with such entities could have catastrophic consequences, especially for someone not yet strong enough to fully grasp the implications of their actions.

William's instincts told him not to disrupt the balance.

Standing before Deliora's frozen corpse, William stripped the pure demonic characteristics that lingered, his movements methodical and efficient. Once the extraction was complete, he turned without hesitation.

He had no intention of provoking Deliora. Even in death, the demon's power could spell disaster. If the ice were to break, would Deliora's strength begin to coalesce again?

But something nagged at him.

As William ascended the tunnel, his thoughts lingered on the situation. "Could it be," he muttered to himself, "that the black magicians came here and simply set up a golem array to guard this place?"

It made sense. The black magicians were likely interested in Deliora itself, not the demonized creatures or the mine. A Sequence 9 transcendent on the demonic path would barely warrant their attention. Their true goal was far greater, far more dangerous.

The presence of the golem confirmed one thing: the black magicians were careful, secretive, and deliberate.

Even with players frequently exploring the mines, no one had noticed their presence. This showed their caution, they didn't want to make any moves that would draw attention. For now, they remained like vipers hidden in tall grass, watching silently, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

If they ever acted openly, William knew, no one in the border town would be able to stop them.

---

Just as William reached the edge of the chamber and prepared to leave, something strange happened.

A flash of realization struck him like lightning, halting his step mid-air.

In his mind, he envisioned the depths of the mine bathed in moonlight. The silvery light pierced through the thick ice, illuminating Deliora's frozen form.

And then, beneath the frost, one of the demon's eyes slowly opened.

A dead demon's eye, flickering with unnatural light, staring directly at him.

The image sent chills down William's spine. He froze, his instincts screaming a warning. The stillness of the mine suddenly felt alive, as if he were being watched by something that shouldn't exist.

He didn't dare turn back. Whatever Deliora was or wasn't, it was no longer just a frozen relic of the past. Something was stirring, and William had no intention of being the one to wake it.

With a steely resolve, he strode forward into the darkness, his footsteps echoing through the frozen chamber as he disappeared into the shadows.

William suddenly turned back, his sharp eyes cutting through the darkness like lightning.

But the scene before him was unchanged. Deliora remained sealed beneath the thick, unyielding layers of ice. There was no movement, no sign of life.

It was as if the vision he'd just experienced was nothing more than a hallucination.

The chill wind howled in his ears, a lingering remnant of the Blizzard Knight's frozen power. Yet William couldn't shake the feeling of unease.

"The Demon Wolf's premonition," William thought. His instincts, tied to the Demon Wolf, often gave him glimpses of truths that lay beyond the ordinary.

Was it because the Demon Wolf shared some connection with demons? Or was it something else entirely?

Whatever the cause, William had seen it, a fragment of a future where Deliora, shattered and stripped of self-will, somehow awakened. Under the glow of a certain moon, it would rise again, its dead demon's eye wide open.

He couldn't ignore the signs.

William began to inspect the mine carefully. His keen eyes scanned every detail, and soon he uncovered something troubling.

The golem array wasn't the only magic at work here. Hidden lines, delicate and precise, were etched across the mine, scattered throughout like veins of dark power.

The entire mine was part of a massive magic circle.

And at its heart was the deepest chamber, Deliora's frozen resting place.

Under the influence of this circle, the mine's energy was gradually being drawn inward. The faint demonic power left behind after Deliora's death was flowing back, concentrating.

"This isn't good," William muttered.

He immediately took action, using his spear to destroy several of the circle's key nodes. Sparks erupted as the magical flow was severed, halting the energy's return. For now, the cycle was broken.

But William knew this was only a temporary fix.

He couldn't stay here forever to guard the mine, and the black magicians who had set this up could return at any moment to repair the damage.

William turned to Flying Spaghetti, who was still standing nearby, busily gathering the magic ore dropped by the Iron Golem. Each chunk of the glowing ore was precious, valuable for crafting high-quality weapons or even enhancing ordinary equipment into something extraordinary. For Flying Spaghetti, this was a small fortune.

"If you see anyone suspicious, tell me immediately," William said sternly.

Flying Spaghetti stopped collecting ore and nodded quickly, clutching his loot like a prize.

William felt slightly reassured.

Unlike ordinary players, transcendent beings like William didn't benefit from the experience-point system anymore. Killing monsters no longer leveled him up. Instead, his growth came from interpreting and mastering the extraordinary abilities within his body.

For Flying Spaghetti, however, the monsters here were a perfect opportunity to grow stronger at his own pace. William didn't need to compete for the experience or loot, so he left the area to him.

---

The path of a transcendent was entirely different.

Each new ability added to a transcendent's body was like growing a new organ; something foreign and powerful. Ordinary people couldn't adapt to these changes quickly. The strain on their bodies and minds often caused outbursts or even loss of control, as they struggled against the overwhelming force of their abilities.

The only way to stabilize this power was by improving their core attributes; physical, mental, and spiritual. Only then could they suppress the raw instinctual chaos of their abilities, master them, and integrate them fully into their being.

William didn't know how others felt after becoming transcendent.

For him, though, the six abilities of the Demon Wolf Path felt endlessly complex, each one layered with mysteries and challenges. They weren't just powers; they were living forces he had to wrestle with, tame, and make his own.

The road ahead was clear but treacherous. William could only press forward, one step at a time.

According to Metatron, significant changes often occur when a Sequence 9 transcendent advances to Sequence 8. This progression isn't just about leveling up, it's about transformation, and the stakes are high.

For William, it felt like hitting a multi-billion-dollar lottery. The real challenge now was figuring out where to spend his newfound "fortune."

His six defining traits [Energy], [Secret], [Super Sense], [Desperate Situation], [Self-Healing], and [Devouring] each offered a wide range of possibilities. But to unlock their full potential, he needed to decide where to focus first.

Take [Energy], for example.

Previously, William had acquired a skill called [Dark Magic Mastery], a racial ability exclusive to demons or those with demonic blood. But as a Demon Wolf, William could also wield this power effectively.

This skill allowed him to manipulate the energy within his body to:

- Create a black fog to obscure himself.

- Blind his enemies by depriving them of their vision.

- Launch explosive dark energy balls in combat.

Right now, these abilities felt more like "parlor tricks" useful but not yet powerful enough to turn the tide in a serious fight. Still, William saw their potential for the future.

Then there were [Stealth] and [Super Senses], two abilities whose boundaries he was still working to define. While they seemed similar on the surface, William was certain they held unique applications that he had yet to fully understand.

The final three traits [Desperate Situation], [Self-Healing], and [Devouring] were much clearer in their paths of development. These abilities were raw, primal, and directly tied to survival and combat, making them some of his most reliable tools.