SSS Ranked Shadow Monarch: Summoning Infinite Shadows-Chapter 192: Who Are You?

"Why would anyone try to awaken a monster that caused so much destruction that an entire mega city became desolate?" Luka asked.

"Hmm, very important question," the priest said. Then a smile formed on his face, one so creepy it would give a child nightmares for days.

"Because humans have lost sight of what the trials were for. In the beginning, they were created to ensure that humanity was kept in their place by the gods, and those that rose would become the beacons for humanity.

It ensured that balance was kept, and all would remain in their predestined fates. But now, the narrative has changed." His demeanor got darker as he spoke. He looked at them like they were somehow at fault.

"Humans are growing too strong, the creation of true borns, genes enabling people to awaken high level abilities, it is all wrong. Humans were not supposed to start becoming a powerful race like that. Everyone that reached power was meant to be there from the beginning of time, but now it’s not so." As he finished talking, he took a deep breath, as if calming himself.

"You opened your mouth and a lot of garbage flew out," Luka stated. His words caught the priest off guard.

"Took the words right out of my mouth, Luka," Aren said. He looked at the priest with disgust and pity. "And who made you judge and executioner to dictate how people should live?

You bad guys need to start having better reasons for your actions. If you are schizophrenic, you should see a doctor and not try to kill thousands."

The priest frowned. "Nothing you do will stop it now. Instead, you’ll be the first blood fed to him."

"Tch, I’ve heard enough," Aren said, summoning Ancient Devourer and his way of guard.

"Hahaha, come at me, and I’ll show you what true power looks like," the priest said, oozing with confidence.

"I’ve seen him use that melting ability. I don’t know if it’s his main, but regardless, I’ll have to be extremely cautious."

Right when Aren was about to attack, the roof caved in, and hundreds of the mutated awakened poured into the tomb.

A smile, as curved as the crescent moon, formed on the face of the priest. "It has begun," he declared and bolted for the door. He ran so fast they could barely believe it.

"Go after him, leave the mutated to us," Luka said.

Aren nodded, but before moving, he summoned his shadow ants, wolves, and salamanders. They all rushed out to aid the fight.

He even summoned Riker and Fang.

"Riker, help them here." He stayed and then got on the back of Fang.

"Let’s go."

Immediately Fang bolted like the wind, dodging the attacking mutants left and right while Aren used tendrils to throw them off.

The priest was running in the direction of the door, probably to find a way to open it, but there was no way that he could outrun Fang.

He seemed to realize this, and then pumped the brakes, turning around and pointing his hands at Aren. A dark purple gas poured out of his palms and filled the air. The next moment, he took out a match, lit it, and tossed the flame into the purple gas.

It created an instant explosion that rushed toward Aren. It was extremely hot, reaching thousands of degrees instantly. One contact and Aren would become roasted food.

Aren immediately unleashed his domain. It consumed everything in its path and nullified the flames. The priest saw this. He let out a deep groan but kept running.

Aren had only used the domain momentarily. He didn’t want to try and capture the priest in it because he didn’t know what level the priest was yet or whatever he could possibly have inside his ability set.

"Fang, attack."

Fang unleashed an attack, the lightning and flames rushing through the air for the priest, who then stomped his foot into the ground. In an instant his shoe glowed gold, and a barrier of light formed around him, blocking the attack.

BOOM

The walls of the tomb shook, dust falling from the ceiling.

"His shoe is a soul weapon?" Aren muttered.

"Hahaha, everything on me is a soul weapon, blessed by our pope, created in ways you’ll never understand." The priest then took off the chain around his neck. The eye on it suddenly turned real, opened, and began looking around.

Aren wasn’t sure what this man wanted to try, but he kept watching.

Then the priest started swinging it from side to side, and before Aren knew it, the world started spinning. It started slow and then got faster.

It got so bad he lost his balance and fell off Fang, hitting the ground hard. The twisting walls soon turned into twisting faces all around.

Each face was a different face of Aren at a certain stage of his life. He even saw multiple of the kid that murdered the guards.

"He doesn’t even know who he is?" one said in a mocking tone.

"Look at him, Aren, Nathan, he isn’t even sure he is called Nathan."

"Buried his own past so deep that even his heart forgot, despicable."

"He is scared of himself." The voices all started mocking, calling out Aren’s greatest fears.

"Stop, stop," Aren muttered, his tone rising as he spoke. He grabbed his head on the ground.

"Surrounding himself with some people, trying to make this his new identity, pathetic."

"You don’t belong here, you don’t belong anywhere, because you don’t even know if you truly exist."

"Just what are you? Can’t you even answer that question?"

The voices got louder with every passing moment. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"Arghhhhhh," Aren growled in pain. He tried to fight them off, but the louder they got, repeating those words over and over again, his mind was breaking.

Flo, seeing the situation, knew that she had to do something, so she forcefully summoned herself.

"This is a terrifying illusion," she muttered in shock. What stunned her more were the faces. There were over four to five different faces speaking, yet all of them were somehow Aren.

"Are these all how he sees himself?" she wondered. She saw the kid that had killed someone, she saw the Aren that lived in the slums and fought to survive, she saw the Aren that first met the group, cold and detached, she saw the Aren that accepted the group, desperate for love, and she saw the Aren that she knew, the untouchable leader.