Novels by Chan Aang

"Rise for me."Tarn knelt beside the corpse of the Slag Shell Matriarch, his right palm facing the cracked obsidian shell. Pitch-black blood still dripped from the monster's neck, pooling on the pulsing resin floor. Behind him, Null stood with its greatsword raised, its red eyes sweeping the room with caution."Extract," Tarn ordered, his voice low and sharp.The shadow beneath the Matriarch's corpse began to spin. Thin black vapor seeped from the cracks in its shell, struggling against the physical world, but this time, the process was different. The vapor did not form a shape right away. It swirled wildly, like a snake trying to break free from a trap, refusing to solidify.[Warning: The target's soul resists the extraction process.] [The soul power of a Rank-E Elite exceeds the Player's standard capacity.] [Do you wish to force the extraction? Warning: Failure will result in permanent damage to the Player's mana pathways.]Tarn did not hesitate. "Force it."The black vapor screamed

The acid dripped upward.Tarn hovered in the air, twenty centimeters above the head of the Slag Shell Matriarch, with no footing, no way to change direction, and nothing except the greatsword in his hand and the shrinking gap between the tip of his blade and the monster's exposed neck. The Matriarch's jaws opened wide, its six eyes locking onto Tarn with a burning intensity, and the corrosive green liquid flowed from its lower jaw to its upper, forming an expanding umbrella of poison."Shard!" Tarn shouted, his voice cutting through the unnatural silence of the air. "Out! Now!"Black vapor exploded from Tarn's shadow, forming the dog-sized obsidian beetle hovering in the air with him. Shard did not ask. It did not hesitate. It just stared at Tarn with its glowing pale purple eyes, waiting for the command."Get into its mouth," Tarn whispered, time seeming to slow down around them. "Fly straight down its throat. Do not stop until you feel its heart."Shard did not blink. It just nodded

The nest was breathing.The black resin walls lining the underground switching station expanded and contracted in a slow rhythm, like a giant pair of lungs digesting its prey. In the center of the room, the Slag Shell Matriarch did not move. It sat upon the throne of compressed steel rails, its six venom-green glowing eyes staring straight at Tarn without blinking."Null," Tarn whispered, his fingers still wrapped around the hilt of the smoking greatsword. "Advance from the front. Draw it out of the nest."The shadow of the Tomb Warden nodded silently, then stepped forward. Its shadow greatsword dragged across the resin floor, leaving a silver scratch that faded instantly."You are too slow, Null," Tarn muttered, his eyes narrowing. "It's not moving. It's…"The Matriarch moved.It did not jump. It did not charge. Its massive jaws opened with unnatural speed for a creature the size of a horse, and a burst of thick green acid shot out like a fountain forced by underground pressure."Nul

"Clear the tracks."The command had barely left Tarn's lips when his shadow exploded outward. The pitch-black fluid surged across the concrete platform, defying the laws of light, and coiled into an eight-foot silhouette. Null materialized in a flash of pale violet fire. The phantom Tomb Warden wasted not a single second; it drew its massive smoky greatsword and dropped off the platform edge straight onto the dark subway tracks below.Boom.The heavy impact echoed through the tunnel just as the first wave of monsters broke through the dim light. They were not goblins. These were Slag Shell Crawlers—the size of large dogs, their carapaces gleaming with a dark metallic sheen, and their jagged mandibles clicking like rusted shears.Null swung the greatsword in a brutal horizontal sweep. The heavy blade cut through the first three beetles, crushing their iron shells and spraying thick greenish ichor over the ballast stones.[Your shadow soldier 'Null' has defeated Slag Shell Crawler.] [Ex

"It will make the collection that much sweeter."Tarn stepped deeper into the dark throat of the alley, his voice swallowed by the hum of an ambulance speeding across the street. He rested his shoulder against the damp brick wall, his eyes never leaving Stellan.On the makeshift stage of the plaza, the performance reached its climax. A reporter with a slim tablet and a microphone bearing the Aurelian Vanguard logo pressed closer to the barrier tape."Commander Stellan, rumors say this anomaly held a mutated Boss. Is it true that the Rank-E casualty, Tarn, went rogue and triggered the collapse by defying your orders?"Stellan paused, wiping the corner of his eye with a handkerchief. He let out a heavy, well-practiced sigh. "We are still investigating the exact sequence of events. That Tarn... was overly eager. Sometimes, those lacking raw talent try too hard to prove themselves. I repeatedly warned him to stay in the rear support formation, but..." He shook his head, letting the silenc

"My turn," Tarn whispered into the dark.Those words had barely left his lips before the Tomb Warden recovered, its steel boots screeching against the gravel as it stabilized its massive frame. The red embers inside its empty helm flared with a cruel light. With a guttural roar that shook the loose stones in the cave ceiling, the monster swung its rusted greatsword upward, aiming to split Tarn from crotch to chin.Tarn did not back away. The raw, heavy pressure that would have frozen his limbs ten minutes ago now felt like a gentle breeze. He slipped to the left, the jagged edge of the greatsword whistling past his ear so closely that he could smell the ancient copper and rot clinging to the metal.As the blade cleaved empty air, Tarn stepped right inside the monster's guard. His left hand shot out, grabbing the thick steel arm of the Warden, while his right fist—still wrapped in a shifting, smoky violet aura—slammed straight into the cracked iron plate covering its throat.Crack.The