The Ultimate Awakener

Inside The Shadow Realm

Elion’s eyes gradually opened, and before him stood a snowy mountain, towering as though it touched the clouds. The entire environment was engulfed in thick mist, and the cold was unbearable.

Elion pulled his hands over his body. The stinging cold was hard for him to handle. This was his first time in the Shadow Realm, and he had never expected the environment to be this cold.

Which way could lead to the castle?

Elion stared around, but it was hard for him to see anything ahead. The mist was too thick to see through.

If only that man had given me a clue, then this wouldn’t be so hard.

Elion’s life depended on this currently, and he had promised his mother he would achieve his dream as a hunter. If only Sheldon had told him what to do, things wouldn’t be this hard.

Sheldon had only mentioned one thing, which he didn’t even complete, and this left Elion perplexed as he tried to figure out a way toward the location where Sheldon had stated he could awaken his core.

“Castle… that was the last word he had mentioned.”

Elion stood up from the ground and began walking forward, though it was no different from wandering because he had no clue where he was heading, and at the same time, he couldn't stay in one place. He needs to get to a shelter so he won't freeze to death. Though everything here feels real.

He had heard so many things about the Shadow Realm—how it swarmed with chantless demons and how one would die if they ended up encountering any of them. Worse, if killed in the Shadow Realm, one would die in the real world.

After a long walk, Elion arrived at a specific location where a little rock was carved, forming a small hollow where he could rest.

He walked toward the rock, but then he began to hear voices from behind it.

Who could they be? Could there be other awakeners heading to the same location as the castle?

He questioned himself as he carefully tried to check for himself.

When he peeked his head out, his eyes met something so horrifying that it made him instinctively stumble and fall to the ground.

This drew the attention of the men whose voices he had heard.

They swiftly turned and saw Elion.

“It’s a kid. What could a kid be doing in a place like this?” one of the men spoke and tried to step forward, but another man gripped his hand and yanked him backward.

“What the hell are you trying to do? How sure are you that he’s human?”

What Elion had seen was a swarm of dead bodies—not monsters, but human corpses. The men standing before him were scavenging valuable items from the dead.

The men were five. They all looked injured and were armed with swords.

“If we’re doubting whether he’s human, why don’t we just kill him? We can’t afford to get killed. What if he’s a monster?” another man with long, curvy hair said, gripping his sword tightly.

Among them, a man stepped forward. He looked much older. He gazed at Elion, then turned to his colleague. “Can’t you see? He’s just a kid. Look at his face—he’s scared and might be lost just like we were.”

The men slowly lowered their blades and no longer saw Elion as a threat.

The man who had just saved Elion’s life walked toward him and squatted.

“What’s your name, boy?”

Elion hesitated to speak. His body was quivering. Not only had he seen a pile of dead bodies, but he had also seen the men’s intention to kill him.

The man sighed. “Kid, I know you’re scared. But we mean you no harm. We’re also lost, and the bodies you see over there are slaves. We’re slaves too. Not only that, but we were attacked by a creature, and we’re the only survivors. So I’ll ask again—what’s your name?”

“Elion.”

Elion finally replied. The man seemed friendly and didn’t look like he meant him any harm.

After hearing his name, the man smiled.

“Very well. My name is Derick.”

He then gestured to the men behind him before continuing. “And over there are Ziko, Brian, James, and Caspian. We’re all friends. We work together to survive.”

After the introduction, the men waved at Elion with smiles, trying to act cool.

Suddenly, a roaring sound thundered from the mountainside, and the men’s faces instantly went pale.

The man standing in front of Elion stretched out his hand to help him up.

“We have to go now. If not, we’ll end up as a snack for those creatures.”

Elion felt fear rise within him as he heard the roar. The mountain was towering, yet the sound cut through the wind and reached their location, showing just how massive the creature could be.

Elion stood up, and the six of them made their way toward the east.

Still confused about where he was heading, Elion shifted his gaze to Derick and asked in a calm, polite tone,

“Where are we going?”

Derick looked down at Elion before answering. “For now, we don’t know. But the main priority is to move east, away from the monsters.”

Elion nodded, accepting the reply, but his heart was still unsettled. He knew that any mistake in this realm would lead to sudden death in the real world.

After a long walk that seemed to last forever, they came to a halt at a rock carved into a cave, curvy enough to shelter them for the night.

They managed to make a fire so they wouldn’t freeze from the scorching cold.

Derick shifted his gaze to Elion. He bit into the meat he had just roasted over the fire before handing it to him.

“Take it.”

Elion shook his head dismissively and smiled before replying,

“No, thank you, sir. I’m full.”

Derick persisted, but Elion refused to take the meat. He barely knew these men, and it seemed only one of them was calm toward him.

After a few seconds of silence, while the others devoured their portions of meat, Derick suddenly asked, his gaze gently fixed on Elion,

“Are you here to awaken your core?”

Elion was stunned by the question. The man wasn’t supposed to know that. Additionally, humans weren’t supposed to be in the Shadow Realm—except hunters—and the slave story Derick had told him wasn’t making any sense.