Rebirth of the Shadow Warrior

5 - A Special Collection

Thaddeus raised his hand and shadow energy followed his movement and slowly twisted into a spiraling shield of dark energy that met the descending horn mid-impact.

Thaddeus gritted his teeth as pressure flooded through his arm. The shadows held but barely.

The beast growled loudly as it used its claws to ram the shield repeatedly, causing the shadow around Thaddeus's hand to flicker.

Seeing this, Thaddeus changed the form, using the dark energy to wrap around the beast’s horns like binding chains.

The beast reacted immediately, trying to pull away with brute force. Instead of resisting, Thaddeus followed the motion, using its own strength against it and released his grip.

The beast was thrown off balance and crashed into the darkness. For the first time, the creature’s four eyes widened slightly as it gathered itself up and growled at Thaddeus and charged at him again.

Thaddeus clenched his hand, waiting as shadow energy condensed around his arm, compressing till it formed a huge arm around his hand.

Then he waited. At the exact moment of impact, Thaddeus jumped into the air, twisting sideways between the outstretched claws and turning his body just enough for the horns to graze past him instead of impaling him.

That was all he needed as his gaze focused on the exposed heartbeat above the beast’s skull.

In that split second, his fist drove forward, landing on the point where all four eyes converged between the horn and skull.

The punch struck like a crashing meteorite, bypassing the hardened mass of the beast's body and damaging whatever sustained it.

It paused in mid-motion for a second as its sharp teeth stopped inches away from Thaddeus’s face.

For the first time, the beast staggered as its body convulsed violently and a low growl escaped from its throat.

Thaddeus collapsed immediately after the strike, his body giving up before he could even confirm what had happened.

The beast stumbled again before collapsing a short distance away. Its limbs twitched as its massive body was locked in a convulsion.

It attempted to stand but failed. Its four burning eyes dimmed in pain as it let out another cry.

Thaddeus slowly stood over it, barely conscious and shadow energy flickering weakly around his trembling hand.

He forced it to condense into a spear, barely held by what remained of his cultivation.

With his last strength, he slowly raised it above the beast to end it but he stopped when he saw the beast's teary eyes.

It felt different in a way he couldn't explain.

What he saw was something that had only consumed and was now facing the end of its own existence and did not understand it.

Thaddeus’s grip tightened on the spear.

His instincts screamed at him to finish it, to end the threat but he couldn't bring himself to do it.

“…So this is what you are,” he said quietly, looking into the beast's eyes.

The beast’s head shifted weakly, its gaze finding him again. There was no longer hunger in it or aggression except a fading instinct to live.

Thaddeus took a step closer.

The creature tensed and let out a whimper.

He stopped just within reach as he stared at the beast.

He could end it here... easily and that would be the end but he couldn't.

It had done nothing wrong, only serving the purpose it was made for.

He looked into the distance as it reminded him of the betrayal of his men.

He could still recall their laughter as he gave up the ghost.

He had done nothing wrong, yet they took his life for serving the purpose he was made for.

A short, dry laugh escaped his lips.

" How ironic..."

He slowly let the spear dissolve and he collapsed onto one knee beside the creature, closing his eyes, waiting for the guardian to arrive.

Then, suddenly, without Thaddeus noticing, the creature's body began to break into fragments, rearranging.

Its massive presence folded inward, shrinking, losing its overwhelming size till what remained in its place was a small creature.

A small bear, no larger than a cub.

Its form was stable, but faint traces of unnatural presence still lingered around it like something powerful had been sealed into something harmless.

Thaddeus took each breath one after another and slowly opened his eyes. And when he looked back, the creature that had nearly crushed his soul moments ago had vanished. In its place, something far smaller struggled to stand.

Thaddeus’ breathing became tense as he stared at the impossible sight before him.

It looked no larger than a young white bear and the burning intensity of its eyes had faded into a softer glow.

It looked at him with recognition and took a few unsteady steps toward him, as if adjusting to its new existence, then stopped before his leg.

Thaddeus barely reacted, too exhausted to resist even if he wanted to.

For a moment, it hesitated then it leaned forward and pressed its head lightly against his leg, letting out a quiet, relieved sound as it licked his leg cautiously.

Despite his terrible state, Thaddeus looked down at it and found himself smiling.

He suddenly felt a bond between him and the little creature. He never had a pet before and it was the first time he had ever bonded with one.

He tried to chase the cub away but the creature stayed close, as if drawn to him.

Thaddeus let out a soft sound that sounded like a laugh.

" You can go wherever you want, why come to me?" He said tiredly.

The cub whined and licked his feet again.

Even as he smiled, he could feel his life force slipping away.

It was the same way he felt before his previous death.

Still, the small creature remained at his side, wiggling its tail.

Just when Thaddeus thought it was all over, a panel of light appeared before his eyes.

It chimed.

[TRIAL COMPLETED: WORTHY]

The words slowly appeared as though they were being typed.

" What now?" Thaddeus said quietly as the next lines followed.

[ Host did not fulfill the primary objective: termination of target.]

[Host achieved an alternative outcome through alternate choice. ]

The words faded.

Thaddeus watched slowly as the next text reshaped itself.

[Since the host has claimed victory over the trial, the target entity has lost its original purpose and has now bonded with the host.]

Thaddeus’s eyes lowered briefly to the small bear resting quietly beside him with a smile then back to the panel.

The notification continued.

[ENTITY REGISTRATION CONFIRMED]

[ENTITY CLASSIFICATION: SPIRIT BEAST ]

[STATUS: UNIQUE ACQUISITION]

[This entity has been added to Host’s SPECIAL COLLECTION.]

[ADVISORY: Repetition of this method on other creatures is not guaranteed to succeed.]

The words displayed fully and the panel went blank.

Thaddeus let out a cold breath, understanding the weight of what had just occurred. At his side, the small creature shifted slightly, curling between his legs.

Thaddeus smiled slightly and placed his hand on the cub and as he rubbed the bear's fur, a new set of lines appeared again.

[USAGE CONDITION: This entity will only manifest in extreme threat scenarios.]

Another text followed.

[Trigger conditions]

[ Host’s life endangerment beyond recovery threshold]

[ Encounter with high-tier existential threats that exceed Host's capabilities.]

The small spirit beast shifted again at his side, enjoying his warmth and also gaining Thaddeus's attention in the process.

Thaddeus exhaled slowly, caressing the bear's fur .

“…So I only see you when things go wrong,” he murmured.

The system didn't add more. Instead, it concluded its evaluation with a final line.

[Host status updated: WORTHY.]

With that, silence returned to the space and the panel dissolved with one final message.

[SYSTEM LINKED TO HOST.]

The moment it chimed, an immense pain struck Thaddeus, it was as if something inside his soul was being pulled open.

He tried to hold on to something, but his strength was gone as his body fell into the void.

As he fell, a new interface unlocked inside his vision.

[SYSTEM ACTIVATED]

[PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: ELIMINATE THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR DEATH]

[SECONDARY OBJECTIVE:ELEVATE HOST TO THE HIGHEST POWER IMAGINABLE.]

The pain grew with each notification, causing him to cry out.

[REBIRTH INITIATING]

Thaddeus’s vision blurred instantly as he lost consciousness. The last thing he saw was the glowing interface pulsing inside his vision.