The Devourer of Gods

The Hidden Dragon Returns

Chapter 2:

"Stop right there, cripple," a mocking voice boomed from the torchlit archway of the city gates.

Austin paused, his head bowed, deliberately letting his long, dark hair shadow his eyes. Standing in front of the massive iron gates was his younger cousin, Gavin, flanked by four armored guards. Gavin wore the luxurious silver robes of the clan’s inner circle—robes that Austin’s achievements had paid for.

Gavin took a slow, arrogant sip from a golden goblet, staring down his nose at Austin’s torn, blood-stained clothes. "Well, well. Look what the blizzard dragged back. The Patriarch threw you into the Ashen Graveyard to die, Austin. How dare a clan outcast crawl back like a diseased rat? You’re blocking the view."

"I am returning to my ancestral home to collect my mother’s relics," Austin said, his voice flat, perfectly mimicking a man broken by despair.

"Your mother's relics?" Gavin threw his head back, laughing hysterically. He stepped forward and deliberately poured the sticky, sweet red wine from his goblet right onto Austin's head. "Everything your bloodline owned now belongs to the Tiger Clan alliance! You have no cultivation, no beast soul, and no right to breathe our air. Guards, break his legs again and throw him back into the snow."

The four enforcers drew their heavy iron broadswords, their low-grade Iron Bear beast souls flickering across their skin. They stepped forward, grinning cruelly. Austin didn't move. To the guards, he was a defenseless lamb.

Deep inside Austin’s soul space, the tiny Void Slime opened one dark, microscopic eye.

TARGET IDENTIFIED: 4 LOW-GRADE BEAR SOULS. 1 LOW-GRADE FALCON SOUL.

SYSTEM ASSESSMENT: SUB-PAR SOULS, BUT OPTIMAL FOR SLIME NUTRIENTS.

ACTIVATE SKILL: ABYSSAL DOMAIN (CONCEALED MODE).

Suddenly, an invisible, crushing gravity field snapped shut in a ten-meter radius around the gate. The snow falling from the sky violently slammed into the dirt and flattened. The four guards instantly dropped to their knees, their broadswords shattering against the cobblestones from the sheer, unseen atmospheric weight. Gavin’s knees buckled, his golden goblet flying from his hand as he was violently pinned face-first into the mud.

Austin stepped forward, completely unbothered by the gravity, his footsteps silent.

But as he raised his hand to initiate the devour sequence, a massive, brilliant blue flash illuminated the top of the city wall. A defensive array—the Sky-Net Formation—had detected the sudden, massive spike in spiritual gravity.

WARNING: MUNICIPAL SECURITY ARRAY IS SCANNING THE AREA.

IF YOU DETONATE THE GUARDS' SOULS NOW, THE HIGH ENERGY SIGNATURE WILL TRIGGER A SECTOR-WIDE LOCKDOWN.

TIME UNTIL TOTAL FORMATION SCAN: 15 SECONDS.

If Austin backed off, Gavin would realize he had hidden power and alert Vivian and the Patriarch. If Austin used raw force, the entire city’s elite army would descend on the gate within seconds, exposing him to the Upper Realm assassins before his seven-day preparation window was up.

The red scanning light of the city wall formation began sweeping down, inches away from Austin’s boots.

00:14...

00:13...

Gavin, pinned to the mud, could barely lift his head. Through his blurred vision, he saw Austin’s glowing, pitch-black eyes. "Y-You... what did you do?!" Gavin gasped, choking on mud. "The Patriarch will flay you alive!"

Austin didn't speak. Instead of retreating, he reached down, grabbed Gavin by his silver collar, and dragged him directly into the dark shadow beneath the gate archway, right where the security array's blind spot sat.

"Your Patriarch won't hear a whisper," Austin whispered in Gavin’s ear.

With a flick of his finger, the tiny Void Slime leaped off Austin's shoulder and dissolved into a pool of shadow beneath the guards and Gavin.

SLURP.

In a fraction of a second, without a single drop of blood being spilled, the beast souls inside the four guards and Gavin were cleanly ripped out of their bodies through their shadows. The men didn't explode—their eyes simply rolled back as their cultivation bases instantly dried up, reducing them from arrogant warriors to frail, powerless mortals in the blink of an eye.

DEVOURING COMPLETED.

SLIME EXPERIENCE EXPANDED. CULTIVATION STABILIZED AT GOLDEN CORE (STAGE 3).

MUNICIPAL SCAN COMPLETED. STATUS: CLEAR. NO HIGH-ENERGY CULTIVATORS DETECTED.

The security light passed over them harmlessly. Gavin and his guards lay unconscious in the dirt, completely ruined, their lifespans permanently cut in half.

Austin stepped over their limp bodies and walked through the open city gates, entering the bustling streets of the capital.

But as he walked past the first crowded tavern, he heard the loud, boisterous voices of mercenaries inside discussing the town's biggest news.

"Did you hear? The Tiger Clan is hosting a massive Grand Auction tomorrow night! Young Master Leon is selling off all the old assets of the ruined Austin clan to celebrate his engagement to Lady Vivian. They’re even auctioning off the sacred Spirit Tree from Austin’s family courtyard!"

Austin’s eyes narrowed into terrifying, icy slits. The Spirit Tree contained the sealed soul of his ancestors. A dark, predatory smile cut across his face.

Tomorrow night, the top elites of the entire city would be gathered in one single, enclosed room, carrying all their highest-grade family heirloom beast souls under one roof. It wasn't an auction. To Austin, it was an all-you-can-eat buffet.