SSS Ranked Shadow Monarch: Summoning Infinite Shadows-Chapter 266: Taken Down
"Who is this awakened that’s summoning an army." A voice came from one of the floating balls of light that surrounded a floating platform in the void.
On this platform, Elton and several other angels stood, as they were the ones watching over the trials, and as for the lights that shined in the void, they were each one for a god.
Elton looked at the light that had shined, she balled her fist tight, clenched her teeth, and stepped forward.
"He is an anomaly." Her voice was calm, hiding her nervousness and anger.
"Hmmm, an anomaly?" One god asked, his light pulsing.
"And why have you not gotten rid of this anomaly?" Another asked.
Elton wanted to explain her failure, she felt anger rushing through her veins, she wanted to kill Aren more than anything right now, but she wasn’t able to.
"Because I wanted him to stay." Loki’s voice cut through the air as he appeared right there on the platform, standing with full swag and a smile on his face.
The moment the gods saw a true god standing here, they all immediately shut up, no one wanted to have to deal with a true god, especially Loki.
"I’ve taken a liking to this anomaly, and the past trials have all been boring, so I want him alive for now. If he proves to be too much of an issue, then I personally will handle him, but as for now, no one is permitted to do anything to him, or try to touch him." Loki warned, his voice resolute.
[... ]
"If you are going to come at me, come at me." Aren yelled as he flew in on the back of his wyvern, he leaped off the back into the air, sword in hand as he swung for the head of the wyvern that was attacking him.
The wyvern spun mid-air, dodging the attack, rolling out of the way fast and diving down, it used its tail to slam into Aren, throwing Aren back into the air.
Aren landed back on the back of his shadow while the wyvern made a turn in the air and attacked, its claws coming for Aren’s head.
"Can’t be that easy now, can it?" Aren asked before launching off his shadow, barely dodging the claws of the wyvern, he grabbed onto the leg of the wyvern and then swung up into the air, Aren was suspended in the air for a moment in a position where the wyvern would not be able to attack him, but he would be able to attack.
Aren wasted no time, unleashing a claw strike right at the opening, the wyvern couldn’t dodge the attack and the claws dug deep into the flesh, blood gushed out instantly.
RAAWWWWWRTRRRRRRRRR!
It let out a terrifying roar in pain, turning around mid air to attack.
Aren didn’t even get back on his shadow, he allowed himself to free fall through the air toward the ground. He had already pissed off the wyvern a lot and now it would go through every method to ensure that it killed Aren now.
But Aren was unbothered, as soon as he got closer to the ground, tendrils shot from the ground and wrapped around him, helping him reach the ground safely, he looked up and the wyvern was coming in hot like a meteor, its face carried a whole lot of rage, it wanted to rip Aren apart as fast as possible.
Aren looked up at the wyvern and then lifted his hand.
He unleashed hundreds of shadow blades, ripping through the air all at once, each one targeting the wyvern. The creature twisted and maneuvered, dodging as many as it could, but it couldn’t evade all of them. Several blades pierced through its tough, scaly hide, digging into its flesh.
But the damage wasn’t enough.
The wounds were shallow compared to the first strike Aren had landed earlier.
He clicked his tongue.
"You’re a stubborn bastard, aren’t you?" Aren muttered.
As if responding, the wyvern opened its mouth.
A dark energy gathered within, far denser and more dangerous than anything the smaller wyverns had used.
Then—
It fired.
The blast tore through the air like a falling star, rushing straight toward Aren.
But Aren didn’t panic.
He moved.
Fast.
He dashed backward while keeping his eyes locked onto the wyvern. The blast slammed into the ground where he had just been, exploding on impact. The earth shattered, splitting apart as a massive shockwave spread outward, sending debris flying in every direction.
None of it touched him.
He landed smoothly.
And when he looked up—
The wyvern was already there.
Right in front of him.
Its jaws wide open, fangs glinting as it lunged to bite him whole.
Aren’s eyes sharpened.
"You think that’s going to work?"
He activated Flowing Winds.
His body became light, responsive, every movement calculated through his shadow sense.
At the exact moment—
He stepped aside.
The massive jaws snapped shut, missing him completely.
Aren pivoted and drove his fist forward.
Boom!
His punch broke the sound barrier as it slammed into the side of the wyvern’s head. The impact twisted its long neck violently, snapping its head to the side. Scales shattered, blood sprayed into the air, and fragments of teeth and saliva flew from its mouth.
The wyvern roared, rage flooding its eyes.
It lunged again.
But Aren was already gone.
He dodged cleanly and created distance between them.
He knew better.
In terms of raw power, the wyvern had the advantage.
But this wasn’t his first fight against monsters like this.
He didn’t wait.
He raised his hand.
Fire and lightning twisted together around his arm, building into a violent, condensed force.
Then he fired.
Like a cannon.
The blast tore through the air, breaking past layers of resistance, creating sonic booms as it surged forward.
Boom!
It hit the wyvern head-on.
The massive creature was thrown backward, crashing into the ground and rolling for dozens of meters before finally coming to a stop.
For a moment, it didn’t get up.
It stayed low, its body trembling as it endured the pain of the attack.
Aren could sense through his shadow sense that the wyvern was down.
The attack had done serious damage, he was sure of it.
So he approached.
But the moment his foot got close—
The wyvern’s tail snapped.
It moved at blinding speed, cutting through the air and wrapping around Aren before he could react. In the next instant, he was lifted and slammed straight into the ground.
Boom!
The earth shattered beneath him, cracks spreading like a spiderweb.
Aren groaned, pain shooting through his body.
He opened his eyes—
Just in time to see the tail coming down again.
He forced himself to move.
Rolling out of the way despite the pain, he narrowly avoided the strike. The tail smashed into the ground, cracking it even further.
Aren looked up—
And found himself staring straight into the wyvern’s mouth.
It unleashed another blast.
Point blank.
Aren reacted at the last second, crossing his arms.
The blast hit.
Boom!
The force sent him flying through the air like a ragdoll. He crashed into the ground and rolled across it, dust and debris scattering everywhere.
When he finally came to a stop, he lay there on his back, staring up at the sky.
A flicker of shock crossed his face.
He wasn’t badly injured.
Not because the attack was weak—
But because he had barely managed to raise his guard and activate his shadow armor, which absorbed most of the impact.
Even so...
That had been close.
His shadow sense flared again.
The wyvern was already rushing toward him.
No time.
Aren pushed himself to his feet immediately, eyes locking onto the massive creature as it charged like a high-powered jet.
"They really want to push me, huh..." he muttered.
Then, He moved.
He charged forward as well, leaping into the air.
His fist pulled back.
"All right... let’s see how you take this."
A grin spread across his face as he activated the soul within his Wolf Guard.
The gauntlet glowed.
Power surged.
His arm accelerated with explosive force, like a wolf lunging for its prey.
Then—
He struck.
Boom!
His punch slammed into the wyvern’s head, the impact releasing a shockwave that rippled through the air like a sonic boom. The very atmosphere trembled from the force.
The wyvern’s body collapsed.
Boom!
It crashed into the ground, dust exploding upward.
Aren landed shortly after.
He shook his hand slightly, feeling the lingering force from the impact, then looked at the wyvern.
It wasn’t dead.
But it couldn’t move.
That punch had completely broken its ability to fight.
Aren glanced down at his hand.
A faint smile formed.
He could feel it clearly now, the level he had reached. He had just brought down a peak-evolved monster on his own.
Which meant one thing.
Whatever came next would have to be even stronger.
