(48) First trial, third door [2]
Fine lines formed on Jagrel's face looking at Mangrel's unpredictable actions.
A foe with undefeatable might was right before them, but Mangrel ignored it and instead killed an important ally viciously.
"What are you hesitating for? I thought you were a smart person." Mangrel gazed at Jagrel with an indifferent smile.
"....!" Jagrel bit his lips in frustration, with a gloomy realization drowning in him.
He had no choice!
Trying to fight the beast behind him would be suicide no matter how Jagrel thought.
'All the five groups made in the demonic inauguration face the same trial. They won't make the trial easier just cause we are the last group, the weakest. That's the cruelty of the demonic cult!' Jagrel was filled with despair.
However, in that instant, a voice reached him.
"Be steadfast." (Be steadfast)
It was Mangrel's voice mixed with Jagrel's father's voice. The overlapping voice made him bite his lips.
Breaking out of the sudden despair, Jagrel's eyes shone with determination.
"I will follow you!" Jagrel decided to follow Mangrel.
"Hehehe, You won't be disappointed in your choice. Make a way for us to move to the other side." Mangrel pointed at the artificial wall with his chin, holding Fereim's body over the shoulder.
"Alright." Jagrel resolutely began activating his art to break the wall.
On the other side, the surviving cultivator ran from the beast that appeared before them. They began retreating without a care in the world, they had all seen the atrocious strength of the beast. Despair caused them to lose all their hope and rationality.
Bang!
Mangrel retracted his gaze listening to the loud impact beside him. They both moved into the path exposed before them.
"Hope stays beside the demons so long as despair spreads around them. Do you know why they have such a saying?" Mangrel questioned Jagrel with a smile.
"I don't know..." Jagrel's face darkened looking at Mangrel's face. 'He is crazy! How can he still smile in such a situation?'
Mangrel's smile deepened by a layer seeing Jagrel's reaction.
"Because demons don't fall into despair, that is why they always have hope. Become crazy enough to not fall into despair, only then you can live a long life." Mangrel placed the corpse down and began circulating his origin essence into the corpse and soul.
Jagrel's mouth opened and closed hearing Mangrel's words with no voice coming out. He couldn't deny his way of looking at life, they were cold-hearted truths in the end.
Mangrel's eyes grew redder as he used his origin essence; the eight rings of death couldn't keep up with him. His face grew paler with color draining away from it too.
Following Mangrel's will, a circle formed around the corpse from blood.
"Huff! Pour all your origin essence into this circle!" Mangrel spoke, getting out of the circle with weak steps.
Jagrel broke out of his daze hearing Mangrel's voice and did as he was instructed.
'An array! For him to have such a rare technique, his background must be very terrifying too.'
Jagrel felt chills sensing the evil presence of the array, but he continued pouring his origin essence.
The dim rays that were released by the array grew brighter and brighter, before beginning to pull all the corpses from the surrounding.
'Puppet path — death soldier array. It's not a rare array in the higher realm as the puppet can't grow stronger. Number 807 was a rank zero spiritualist, so the puppet's strength would be comparable to a rank zero peak cultivator at most.'
Mangrel came to such a conclusion by calculating the time array could absorb the blood and flesh.
A wave of death energy spread to the surrounding area as the array sucked in the corpses from the surroundings. The sound of the corpses dissolving was as if a beast chewed them. Making Jagrel's face grow pale in fright.
Growl!
Feeling the intimidating presence from the array, the beast's attention shifted to them.
"That damn troll bull...!" Jagrel cursed, feeling that the array had not reached its limit yet.
"Activate it," Mangrel instructed, not surprised by the troll bull's action.
"What...?"
"Just activate it, your origin essence must have filled the array by now. So you are the owner of the array right now, just send your will into the array, and it will activate." Mangrel spoke faster, realizing the troll bull was heading toward them.
"Alright." Jagrel didn't know much about arrays, hence he did what Mangrel told him to do.
With a blinding light made up of dead energy, acting like a signal of the obnoxious existence being born, a body began forming in the middle of the array. A mark signifying the ownership of the puppet formed on Jagrel's palm too.
The Mark was in a round shape, forming a bloody eye shining menacingly.
Mangrel had brought along Jagrel for this reason, he wanted him to be the owner of the puppet. Pursuing multiple paths at once is impossible for a reason.
From now on, the palm that received the mark will not be affected by his cultivation technique. In other words, it would remain weak till the mark was removed. The mark would get in the way of performing martial arts too.
And most importantly, Jagrel would die if he tried to ascend to rank one cultivation without removing that puppet's mark.
'Jagrel might consider it a blessing at first, but it wouldn't take him long to realize it is a curse. The danger in cultivation is endless, especially for beginner cultivators like him.' Mangrel's eyes flickered with cold light as he watched Jagrel's back.
It didn't take long for the troll bull to break past the wall and reach before them.
"Order the puppet to attack fast! The array will continue providing energy to the puppet for a while!"
It was as Mangrel had spoken, the array continued absorbing the corpses even though the puppet was already created.
"Go!" Jagrel ordered with blood vessels visible on his face, he had pushed himself by providing the origin essence for the array.
As the puppet got out of the array, exposing its visage. Nothing but a bare skull with blood sticking around it extended from the bone armor covering its body. A Claymore made of bone was held in both of its hands.