The Broken Halo

Chapter 1041 - 1040: Another Method

Simon explained the evolution to all four of them before making any arrangements.

He began with the Bloodline Origin Path.

They would be reaching into their ancestry, confronting powers far greater than the bloodlines they currently possessed. How far they could advance would determine the bloodline they awakened. Entering the path did not mean they would reach its end, and wanting a Royal bloodline would not make them capable of enduring one.

He described the pressure, the need to remain conscious, and the danger of allowing fear or pain to disrupt their circulation of demonic energy. While they struggled along the path, their physical bodies would be changing as well.

His support could help them begin and sustain the process. It could not replace their own strength.

”Go as far as you can,” he told them. ”But know when to stop. A stronger bloodline won’t help you if you die trying to reach it.”

The Bloodline Extinction Tribulation would come afterward. Becoming a Daemon was not the end of the danger.

Akaza listened without interrupting. Sonya had stopped making comments about the house, while Virella and Ammor paid particular attention whenever Simon explained what could go wrong.

The more they listened, the more they realized how dangerous evolving their bloodline would be.

However, neither Akaza nor Sonya changed their mind.

Simon then explained why only Akaza and Sonya would undergo the evolution for now. Helping them would already consume a considerable amount of his blood essence and energy. Attempting all four would leave him dangerously weakened, perhaps unable to remain conscious.

He still had the Sovereign’s mission to consider.

”I’ll help you both later,” he told Virella and Ammor. ”But I need to see how much the first two take from me.”

Virella glanced at Ammor before nodding.

They were disappointed. Simon could see that much, though neither tried to persuade him to continue beyond what he considered safe.

There was also another reason why he did not choose to evolve their bloodlines.

He needed to observe them more and see if they were trustworthy to a certain extent.

Right now, he could only evolve four demons into Daemons.

Each spot was precious and he needed to choose right.

He answered their remaining questions, then left them to prepare themselves while he contacted Enigma.

The communication talisman was among the supplies delivered to his study.

It was a flat piece of black jade, small enough to fit in his palm, with silver lines running around a smooth central surface. A brief inspection revealed a stored energy imprint bearing Enigma’s name.

The Fourth Lord had arranged to have his contact added to the talisman before delivery, then apparently forgotten to explain how the device worked.

Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult.

Simon fed demonic energy into the talisman and directed his attention toward the imprint. The silver lines brightened. After a short pause, Enigma’s voice emerged.

”Blackmoon?”

”I need to speak with the elders.”

There was a moment of silence.

”What? So soon? You just got to your house and I doubt you’ve even gone around it.”

”I know.”

Enigma asked what had happened, and Simon explained that Sonya and Akaza intended to evolve into Daemons. He needed permission to use somewhere suitable for their tribulations.

The silence that followed lasted considerably longer.

Enigma had seen both of them only a short while earlier. Neither had shown signs of an approaching evolution. There hadn’t even been a noticeable partial awakening for him to mistake for something more.

Simon eventually clarified the part he had left out.

”I’ll be helping them evolve.”

”You can do that?”

”Yes. That’s why I need to see the elders.”

Enigma didn’t immediately answer.

When he finally spoke again, he told Simon where to meet him.

Before leaving, Simon put on the robe delivered with his other supplies.

The black cloth fell neatly around him, its sleeves narrowing at the wrists and its divided hem leaving his movements unrestricted. Dark-crimson edging followed the collar. The Abyss’s insignia was embroidered clearly over his chest.

There was no defensive formation woven into it.

He adjusted the cuffs over his wraps, left the four at the residence, and went to meet Enigma.

The Fourth Lord studied him upon arrival because of the way he now looked wearing the robes of the Abyss.

On their way to the Council Hall, he questioned Simon again. He wanted to know whether the two had already begun changing and whether Simon was certain he could help them.

Simon answered without explaining the method.

By then, Enigma had sent word ahead.

An ordinary Inner Member would not have been able to arrange another audience with the council merely because he had thought of something else to discuss. Enigma made that clear.

But Simon was not an ordinary newcomer, and the Fourth Lord had described the matter as important.

Permission to enter the Council Hall arrived before they reached the hall.

Standing before the twelve elders again, Simon found that their expressions resembled Enigma’s more than he had expected.

They had already questioned him, rewarded him, and sent him to the treasury. Now he had returned before even settling into the residence they had provided.

Grand Elder Night Widow watched him from behind her veil.

”So, what is it that you need from us?”

”A place where two of my companions can evolve into Daemons and face the Bloodline Extinction Tribulation.”

Ancestral Elder Bone Prophet raised a brow.

Golden Tyrant’s fingers stopped moving against the arm of her seat.

Enigma had remained outside after bringing him to the door. There was nobody else in the chamber to interrupt the silence.

”You intend to use that ritual here?” Bone Prophet asked.

His gaze shifted briefly toward Grand Elder Dread Crown.

The materials required for the ritual alone made that difficult to believe. Simon had given them the method only recently, and nothing about his request suggested he was asking for help obtaining its sacrifices.

”No,” Simon said. ”I’ll be using another method.”

Several elders exchanged glances.

He let them.

On the way here, he had considered whether to conceal the process and offer only enough information to obtain a location for the evolution.

The more he thought about it, the less useful that seemed.

The Abyss would matter to him beyond this visit, beyond the treasury, and beyond whatever reward the Sovereign’s mission brought.

He would fight gods. There were also beings above them, beings whose strength he still couldn’t judge properly.

Even if he became powerful enough to face one himself, what about the others? What about the people he couldn’t protect while occupied elsewhere?

Having a force behind him would be useful.

The Abyss already had experienced Daemons, accumulated knowledge, and resources he could not easily gather alone. What it lacked was enough strength to make him confident about the enemies they might eventually face.

Helping it grow would benefit him too.

He hadn’t forgotten Lilith’s warning. Sharing a faster method could cause problems, but he had spoke to her beforehand and this method was not the method she was talking about.

It was limited and not enough to give a substantial growth to the Abyss.

But the elders were already interested in him. He would rather give them a reason to support him than spend every conversation denying something they would eventually discover.

That didn’t mean trusting every member with his life. He could share a useful method without revealing Lilith or the secrets of his blessing.

The Seeds of Sin placed their own limits on the technique. Knowing how it worked wouldn’t allow every member of the Abyss to start creating Daemons.

Those capable of using it, however, could become far more valuable to the organisation.

And the person who gave them that knowledge would be difficult to overlook.

”What other method?” Grand Elder Golden Tyrant asked.

Simon met her gaze.

”I’ll give you the details afterward. You can watch me use it first.”

Her brows rose slightly.

”You’re inviting us to observe?”

”Yes. I need a suitable location, and I thought you would want to see whether it works.”

Dread Crown regarded him for a moment.

”Are your companions aware of the danger?”

”I’ve explained it to them. They still want to proceed.”

Simon also made it clear that he intended to help them one at a time. He would assess his condition after the first awakening before beginning the second.

The elders listened more closely as he mentioned the strain on his blood essence and energy.

But none dismissed the request.

Their attention moved between one another before returning to Dread Crown.

”We have a place,” the Grand Elder said.

The Abyss had witnessed demons become Daemons before. Such occurrences were rare, but rare did not mean unheard of.

An isolated site had been set aside for those awakenings, away from the inhabited districts. Its formations protected the surrounding area from the destruction that accompanied them.

They did not remove the tribulation or guarantee the survival of whoever stood within it.

Simon hadn’t expected them to.

He needed somewhere that wouldn’t become a disaster for everyone nearby, with people capable of keeping outsiders away while he and his companions were vulnerable.

This would do.

He nodded calmly.

”Then I’ll bring them.”

His gaze passed over the twelve seats.

”And I can assure you, The Abyss will soon gain two immensely talented Daemons.”

A small smile appeared on his face.

”Both more talented than Joren.”