Chapter 14: The Soul Chain Core & The Shadow Legionnaires
[The Veinous Core]
The Soul Chain Core pulsed on the floor of The Immortal Sepulchre, its deep, venous-red light dominating the warehouse's internal indigo glow. It was a concentration of raw, captured soul essence—a terrifying energy that had no place in the structured, clean world of the Stellar Halo.
Rudraunsh felt its pull, a siren call to the deepest parts of his Undying Authority. This was not the stable earth mana of the Ossuary Fragment; this was volatile, spiritual energy, capable of corrupting and transcending the physical.
Sera stood a respectful distance away, monitoring the localized mana readings. Her face was pale, not from fear, but from the sheer power radiating from the artifact.
"This is a Grade 4 catalyst, Rudraunsh," Sera cautioned, her voice barely a whisper. "The energy required to integrate it will be exponentially higher than the Ossuary Fragment. You will risk mana burnout, or worse, a spiritual backlash."
"The risk is calculated," Rudraunsh replied, his eyes fixed on the Core. "The Steelbone Warriors are absolute in defense, but they lack speed and the ability to fight spiritual threats. The Shadow Legionnaires need to be C-Rank, and that requires the power of the soul."
He focused his intent. The first step was preparation. He pulled both Steelbone Warriors from the Immortal Sepulchre, their obsidian forms standing in the pool of red light.
They were magnificent D-Rank figures, armored in dense, dark bone, but they were slow—bound by the limits of their physical reality. The next stage required transcendence.
[The Ritual of Spiritual Binding]
Rudraunsh knelt, placing his hands on the dusty floor and channeling his entire reserve of Undying Authority. The indigo light of the Sepulchre's internal law surged into him, stabilizing his core.
"Evolve," Rudraunsh commanded, the word a low, resonant wave of pure will.
The Soul Chain Core lifted from the floor, spinning rapidly. It didn't melt or dissolve; it shattered, fracturing into hundreds of microscopic, shimmering red threads of energy. These threads instantly shot out, piercing the obsidian armor of the two Steelbone Warriors and burrowing deep into their core essence.
The Warriors began to shriek—not a sound, but a deafening spiritual resonance that shook the very foundations of the warehouse. The spiritual agony was immense, as the raw soul essence forced its way into the stable earth-mana constructs.
Rudraunsh felt the agony in his own core. The drain was immediate and catastrophic. His internal mana bar plunged—80%, 60%, 40%—all within thirty seconds. He was pushing past his E-Rank physical limits, drawing on the metaphysical reserves of the Dao itself.
He focused on the ultimate goal: The Necrotic Sovereign must possess an army capable of dominating spiritual and physical reality.
The obsidian bone of the Warriors began to steam, vaporizing the water in the air. Their frames became impossibly thin, stretched and elongated by the raw spiritual power. The density of the Ossuary material was being overwritten by the spiritual elasticity of the Soul Chain.
The transformation was agonizingly slow, lasting nearly five minutes. Sera, watching the mana fluctuations on her scanner, saw Rudraunsh's life force drop to a critical 15%. She bit her lip, resisting the urge to intervene with even her weak, nascent Light Mana, knowing any interference would doom the process.
Finally, the terrifying screeching ceased. The red threads faded, completely consumed by the constructs.
[The Ascent to C-Rank]
Standing where the rigid, obsidian warriors had been were two figures that were taller, sleeker, and utterly silent. Their armor was no longer obsidian but a smoky, perpetually shifting black—like liquid shadow contained by bone. They possessed a terrifying, agile grace.
Attached to the wrist of each summon was a faint, venous-red wisp of energy—the Soul Chain—that terminated invisibly into the air.
Rudraunsh, sweat slicking his pale face, managed to check their status before collapsing back onto the floor.
> [Summon Status: Shadow Legionnaire (x2)]
> Rank: C-Rank (Elite)
> Core Material: Necrotic Earth Mana + Soul Chain Core
> Primary Ability: Undying Authority (Grade 2) - Physical and low-grade Spiritual damage is instantly repaired. Shadow Phase ability: Can briefly become incorporeal.
> Secondary Trait: Soul Chain Link - Creates a temporary spiritual link to a damaged enemy, binding them and accelerating the Necrotic decay of their mana core.
> Sustained Mana Consumption: 10% per Legionnaire (Up from 8%, but justified by massive power increase)
>
The cost was only slightly higher, but the power leap was staggering. Rudraunsh now commanded two Elite C-Rank units, capable of fighting B-Rank threats, with the added advantage of phase-shifting and spiritual attack.
He dismissed them instantly back into the Immortal Sepulchre, where the ambient indigo mana of the base immediately began the slow process of replenishing his depleted core.
Sera rushed to his side, bypassing the dangerous residual mana. She knelt, checking his pulse and mana readings.
"You pushed it too far," she chastised, her voice laced with worry. She produced a refined Light Mana potion—a high-end item only the Stellar Halo's best could afford—and pressed it into his hand. "Drink this. It will accelerate the balance."
Rudraunsh shook his head. "No. Your light mana will poison the authority. I must recover through the Sepulchre's process."
Sera didn't argue, but her concern was evident in the way her hand lingered on his shoulder—a simple, deeply personal gesture that transcended their professional alliance.
[The Siren of the Shadow]
As Rudraunsh lay there, absorbing the dark mana of his base, Sera's security terminal screamed a new alert—not a general alert, but a targeted, localized code.
"The price for the evolution," Rudraunsh muttered, knowing what was coming.
Sera checked the code, her eyes widening in genuine alarm. "That massive energy surge when the Core shattered—it was too great. It registered not as a general dark mana spike, but as a signature anomaly in the Global Mana Network. The Stellar Halo Central Command has identified the energy source."
She turned the screen toward him.
> [TOP PRIORITY — S-RANK SECURITY ALERT]
> Target Designation: Unclassified Entity (U-RANK).
> Last Known Location: Dongdaemun Sector (Immortal Sepulchre Area).
> Active Hunter Deployment: A-RANK ELITE PATROL: THE RADIANT BLADE.
> Mission Objective: Immediate Neutralization and Retrieval of Forbidden Artifacts.
>
"A-Rank," Sera whispered, the color draining from her face. "They skipped B-Rank entirely. They aren't investigating anymore; they are moving to military action. The Radiant Blade is the most feared anti-Dark Mage unit in Asia. Their leader, A-Rank Paladin Jaewon Lee, is obsessed with purity."
Rudraunsh slowly rose, his core already beginning to stabilize thanks to the Sepulchre. He felt the cold pressure of the threat, but also a deep, competitive thrill.
"The Stellar Halo has finally learned not to send boys to do a man's job," Rudraunsh said, testing the strength in his legs. "We have less than twelve hours before they arrive."
Sera looked at him, her light mana trembling slightly around her. "We can't fight an A-Rank, Rudraunsh. Not yet. We have to run, abandon the Sepulchre, and disappear into the global shadows."
Rudraunsh shook his head, looking toward the sub-basement where the C-Rank Mana Core was anchored.
"No. This base is my core. If I run now, I am admitting defeat to the system. We use the Sepulchre as a weapon."
He met Sera's gaze, his eyes reflecting the deep indigo glow of the base. "The Shadow Legionnaires are C-Rank, but they are immortal. A-Rank Paladin Lee will be defeated not by overwhelming power, but by endless exhaustion and the horror of fighting what cannot die."
"You are going to challenge an A-Rank?" Sera asked, her voice laced with a mixture of terror and awe.
Rudraunsh walked over to his cloak, retrieving the burner phone. "No. I am going to make the Stellar Halo pay an A-Rank price for a C-Rank artifact. We will show them that even their elites can be broken."
He had two C-Rank Legionnaires, the power of an Undying Sepulchre, and the loyalty of the S-Rank Light Potential. It was time for The Necrotic Sovereign to claim his public identity.