SSS Transmigration: I Can Extract And Evolve Overpowered Shadows-Chapter 3: A Boring Mysterious Head Wants Me To Start Gambling?! (1)
Even though Hinata had just lived through hell, he still couldn’t wrap his head around what had unfolded. Not only had he survived a group of superpowered freaks, he had killed them without hesitation.
Noticing that his hands weren’t shaking and his heart remained steady, Hinata suddenly remembered—he wasn’t normal.
Before he could dwell any further on his nonexistent morals, his body lifted into the air against his will, hovering three feet above the altar.
"Wait! Why am I flying?!"
Hinata braced himself for another wave of enemies, only for black mist to pour out from his clothes. The mist thickened, coiling around him in lazy spirals, until it formed a pitch-black barrier around him.
Hinata strained his eyes to catch anything moving in the darkness. Then the mist churned slightly, knitting together the head of a pale, ghostlike being. What creeped Hinata out even more was that no matter how much he stared at the head, he couldn’t understand its form, shape, or even gender.
As he stared at the head, a deep, ancient voice echoed directly into his soul.
<Assimilation with the Shadow God’s Core: 100% complete.>
<System has fully synchronized with user.>
<Shadow God System has successfully awakened.>
Black-golden text burned across his vision, like those status panels in manhwas and novels back on Earth.
<Long-term objective has been generated: Become the eighth god of this world, the Shadow God.>
Hinata’s lips curled into a slow, dangerous grin. "Yeah? Good luck with that. I don’t give a fuck about who you are or what your goals are. I just want to go home, not become a tool or a source of entertainment for you."
Before he could finish speaking, a new panel unfolded in his mind like a perfectly drawn map.
<Do you think you can make it alone?>
Hinata tilted his head from left to right since this time he didn’t hear or see the creepy head.
"No, I can’t. If I could, do you think I could have taken the stinking core?"
Like a real ghost, the head appeared in front of him again, which made Hinata’s face go white.
<If you know you can’t survive without me, why fight against such a great destiny or act so nonchalant about everything?>
Hinata hovered there for a long moment, staring at the being in front of him. It was clear this wasn’t the Shadow God, so what was it?
"Answer me." He asked cautiously. "Who exactly are you?"
A few fingers appeared from the face’s side as it pointed at itself. <Me?>
It laughed. <Well, you could say I’m causality, or maybe something close to that.>
"Causality?" he thought with a scornful expression. "And you expect me to believe that?"
The head moved like it was shrugging. <Believe it or not, that is who I am. Being causality isn’t that big of a deal to begin with. When there is a cause, there will surely be an effect, and I am the one who brings about that effect.>
Hinata tilted his head. ’So he’s a guy that makes sure your actions have their consequences?’ He studied the face for a moment. ’But what does this have to do with me?’
Since it hadn’t even been an hour since he came to this world, Hinata knew there was no way he would have triggered a cause and effect. However, if one was left behind by the core he took, then everything would make sense.
The head suddenly smirked. <Seems like you understand it. That core you took was that of an unborn god. If it was a real god, whether weakened or not, you would have died. And that very unborn god has a longer history than one would think at first glance. Now that you’ve absorbed it, you have also inherited all that history, including the powers, and its causality.>
Hinata stared at the head with obvious disgust. "What the fuck are you saying?"
The head moved closer to him, forming a finger and placing it on his forehead. <See, host, we don’t have all day. You don’t necessarily need to understand me, though I can promise you, and even swear on my existence, I don’t and will never hurt you.>
"You expect me to believe the words of a talking head?"
<Well, no. But I just said I would swear on my existence, and that’s one thing that cannot be broken, or I’ll die.>
"Then do it," Hinata said with a serious expression.
<What?>
"I said swear on your existence and bind that contract to me. If you want me to agree to your terms, then swear it. You can never order me, hurt me, scheme against me, or lie to me. In exchange, I’ll listen to everything you have to say and try to finish your mission. But if I finish my task before then, you’ll have zero right to stop me."
The head went still. <I don’t know how I should take such a proposition.> It sighed. <I don’t have a choice here, so let’s make the deal.>
Hinata shut his eyes as the head suddenly turned golden, illuminating the dark space.
It began speaking words that seemed foreign, yet Hinata could understand them. The words it spoke flowed around them, then turned into a golden chain that linked them together.
When it opened its eyes, it asked, "Happy now?"
Hinata narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but that suspicion soon faded. Somehow, he could feel deep within him that the head had formed a contract with the exact terms he stated, and there didn’t seem to be a hidden clause.
In an instant, the black mist faded away, and Hinata landed on the obsidian ground again.
The air that was stuffy before now felt fresh, like he was sieving out the harmful things from it.
Ding!
<Host has successfully bonded with me, the Shadow God System.>
Hinata read the text carefully. He didn’t yet trust the system, so watching for any hidden phrases was the only thing he could do at the moment.
"Damn, that wasn’t dramatic at all."
<Host, do you wish to view your stats?>
Hinata held his breath and answered, "Yes."
<Warning, host: due to the fact that the Unborn Shadow God died before forming an inheritance for a successor, you have earned no bloodline ability.>
"Bloodline ability?"
<Scanning for Talent, Gift, or Authority type abilities...>
<404 Not Found>
<Generating Shadow God System from scratch...>
A long silence filled his head. Then:
<Welcome, fledgling god. Before your stats are revealed, you must create your own inheritance and bloodline.>
<Host’s Bloodline Grade: Unholy>
<Host’s Talent Grade: Divine>
<Host’s Gift Grade: Primordial>
<Host’s Authority Grade: Transcendent>
<New Ability Type Has Been Formed>
<Transcendent Bloodline — Grade: Unholy One>
Hinata’s eyes widened as the floating texts filled his vision. He was just about to speak when light exploded from everywhere, and a large spinning wheel formed out of nothing.
<As the agent of causality, I have to make this as fair as possible, so, user...>
He paused deliberately.
<I hope you enjoy gambling.>
