“That’s it!”
Shen Ye’s gaze swept across the ground.
—The human officer Roman had left him a single-soldier combat pack, and he hadn’t had the chance to look through it yet.
He opened the brown leather combat pack.
Inside was a brand-new set of undead soldier armor, a nightmare crystal, a flask of fresh water, and some dry rations.
Crushing the nightmare crystal, a series of faint whispers filled the room:
“The Brotherhood has set up an intelligence relay point where the army camps. If you see a tent marked by three upright daggers, you may deliver tasks there.”
“—The Shadow Hand awaits your report.”
Shen Ye felt a twinge of disappointment.
This crystal contained only a few recorded messages—nothing of real value.
So Roman must have mistaken him for a member of the “Shadow Hand”?
That explained it.
Roman had seen the mask in his hand at the time and left behind the combat pack.
Shen Ye quickly caught on and asked, “Hey, big skeleton, what’s the origin of this centurion mask you gave me?”
“Picked it up on the battlefield. How would I know?” replied the big skeleton.
“Where exactly? Can you still find that spot?” Shen Ye pressed.
“Near a hidden passage. I can’t remember the exact spot—it was chaos back then. But are you really planning to disguise yourself as a scout or a human assassin and show up on the battlefield?” the big skeleton asked skeptically.
“I’d rather not draw attention again. So, do you have any human equipment? This time, let’s skip the undead disguise and just go as a human soldier,” Shen Ye said.
“Wait a moment; I think I have something that might help,” the big skeleton replied.
After a brief pause, the ring on Shen Ye’s finger moved, and a pile of items tumbled to the ground: a tattered and crude leather vest, a blood-stained soldier’s helmet, a broken spear, a shattered tower shield, and another nightmare crystal.
“See the blazing hound emblem on the tower shield? That’s the symbol of the human border territory of Rhine. Our kind wiped out the entire domain,” the big skeleton remarked.
Shen Ye yanked at the tower shield but couldn’t budge it.
Adding 4 attribute points to his strength, he pulled hard and finally lifted the shield.
“So, I can disguise myself as someone from that territory?” Shen Ye asked.
“Some soldiers from Rhine followed the lord’s orders and left the territory to seek help elsewhere. They were intercepted and killed.”
“You can pretend to be one of them.”
“—Since all of Rhine’s people were wiped out by the undead, no one will suspect your identity.”
Shen Ye turned his attention to the nightmare crystal.
“Is this a distress crystal?”
“Yes, it’s a plea for help from Rhine’s lord. It also serves as proof of identity. You might find it useful when you head out,” the big skeleton explained.
“Wait, why are you suddenly so invested in helping me?” Shen Ye asked, suspicious.
“Because you saved me last night,” the skeleton said.
“Tell the truth,” Shen Ye demanded.
“We have a fair trade contract. I must repay your kindness.”
“If you don’t tell the truth, I’ll cut off your calcium supplements,” Shen Ye warned.
“I need you to establish a foothold in the nightmare world. That way, you can buy advanced materials to heal my injuries,” the skeleton finally admitted.
“Now we’re talking,” Shen Ye said with satisfaction.
He walked to the wall and pressed his hand against it.
A door quietly appeared.
Looking through the glass window on the door, he saw the hidden passage had returned to silence.
Not a soul in sight.
A perfect opportunity!
“Are you sure the mask was picked up nearby?” he confirmed again.
“I swear it was around here—though I can’t recall the exact spot. The battlefield was chaotic,” the skeleton replied.
Dressed for action, Shen Ye pushed open the door and followed the hidden passage to its end.
Outside the passage, the battlefield lay in ruins, corpses strewn everywhere.
A few human soldiers patrolled the area slowly.
When they spotted undead that could still move, they would approach and finish them off.
If they found wounded human soldiers, they blew whistles hanging from their necks to summon medical teams with stretchers to carry the injured away.
“Anyone alive?”
“—Is there anyone alive?”
The soldiers called out loudly, gradually spreading out across the battlefield.
The nightmare world’s sky grew darker.
Taking advantage of the night, Shen Ye rolled out of the passage but bumped into a corpse, halting his movement.
It was a massive undead giant, nearly three meters tall.
Half its body had been sliced off, exposing a grotesque chest cavity. Yet, it still gripped a heavy stone hammer tightly.
Shen Ye coughed lightly and lowered his voice, asking, “Do you know where this mask came from?”
“Shadow Whisper” activated!
The undead giant’s soul re-entered its corpse. It opened its eyes, scanned the mask, and replied in a hoarse voice, “I dunno.”
Shen Ye froze in shock.
—This tone of speech… Could it have transmigrated from Earth too?
“Does ‘The sky covers the tiger, the earth swallows the dragon’ ring any bells?” Shen Ye probed.
“?”
“To each transformation, remain steadfast?”
“??”
Looking closer, Shen Ye noticed the giant’s mouth had been slashed, creating a gap.
—That must be why its voice sounded strange, making him misinterpret it.
“Alright, back you go,” Shen Ye sighed in relief.
The undead giant’s head slumped to the side, falling silent once more.
Shen Ye rolled a few more times, stopping in front of a human knight’s corpse. He whispered, “Hey, buddy, ever seen this mask?”
The corpse revived, glanced at the mask, and said, “Nope.”
“Off you go.”
The soul departed, and the corpse stilled.
Shen Ye continued rolling forward, pausing before a wolf demon’s corpse. Gasping for breath, he held up the mask and muttered, “No job is too tough, only brave dogs persevere.”
The wolf demon’s soul returned to its body and let out a low growl:
“I’ve seen that mask. It belonged to a centurion, 20 meters to your left, the corpse with only one arm remaining.”
—Well, I’ll be damned. The dog nailed it!
“Thanks.”
Shen Ye rolled 20 meters to the left and stopped.
“What’s the holdup? You found it, didn’t you?” the skeleton urged.
“I’m dizzy from all the rolling,” Shen Ye replied, clutching his head.
It took a while before he regained his composure.
He finally snapped out of his daze and turned his gaze toward the so-called corpse.
Calling it a “corpse” was generous—it was merely a severed arm.
But where was the rest of the body?
Shen Ye glanced around.
The corpses in this area were all mangled beyond recognition.
“This must’ve been caused by large-scale magic bombardments,” the skeleton explained.
“All that’s left is an arm. Can my Whispers of the Abyss still work on it?” Shen Ye asked.
“Not sure.”
“You don’t even know?”
The skeleton spoke in a tone laced with strange amusement.
“I have profound knowledge of sacred remains and the mechanics of undead revival. But this is the first time I’ve seen someone use Whispers of the Abyss this way.”
“Forget it. I’ll just try.” Shen Ye crawled closer to the arm and whispered, “Hey, buddy, you there?”
The arm twitched a few times, slowly lifting itself. It folded its middle and ring fingers inward while extending its thumb, index finger, and pinky.
Shen Ye immediately understood.
—Roman, the human officer, had used this hand gesture too.
This must be the signature signal of the “Shadow Hand.”
No mistake about it!
This was the owner of the mask!
“Hey, buddy, anything you can tell me?” Shen Ye asked.
The arm shifted and pointed in a specific direction.
Following its gesture, Shen Ye spotted a battered leather boot lying quietly in the grass.
Could there be some secret hidden in the boot?
Shen Ye crawled toward it and, upon nearing the boot, suddenly pinched his nose.
—The smell was atrocious!
There was no choice; the clue was right in front of him. Holding his breath, Shen Ye grabbed the boot and shook it hard.
A cloth pouch fell to the ground.
There really was something inside!
Tossing the boot aside, Shen Ye picked up the pouch and opened it.
Inside was a round emblem and a crumpled letter.
Before Shen Ye could examine further, a faint glow suddenly appeared next to the emblem.
—When Shen Ye awakened his Gate ability, he had also gained an innate ability to identify items, which allowed him to recognize the items provided by the skeleton.
Now, this ability activated again:
“Shadow of the Night Emblem.”
“Blue Grade (Exceptional).”
“The emblem contains detailed inscribed magical runes, capable of activating specific weapons.”
“—Without its matching weapon, it’s just a useless trinket.”
A weapon?
The emblem began to stir, as if drawn by an invisible force, nudging toward Shen Ye.
Could it be…
Shen Ye quickly pulled out the Dagger of Dusk.
Like a magnet, the emblem attached itself to the dagger’s hilt with a crisp “ding,” settling into a recessed groove.
—So, it was for this dagger!
When Shen Ye first awakened his Gate ability, a voice from the Nightmare World had immediately contacted him.
That voice explained the curse of the King of Fallen Evil Spirits.
And later—
This Dagger of Dusk was also given to him by that voice!
All this time, he thought the dagger was simply proof of his identity. Who would’ve guessed it held such a secret?
After the emblem embedded itself, the dagger vibrated slightly, as if something within it had been activated.
Shen Ye raised the dagger.
Rows of glowing text appeared beside it:
“Dagger of Twilight.”
“Exclusive to human assassins.”
“Blue Grade (Exceptional).”
“Attribute: Sharpness (Advanced).”
“Attribute: Penetration (Advanced).”
“Attribute: Bleeding (Advanced).”
“This is an assassin’s blade imbued with the blessing of shadows by the Hand of Shadow Brotherhood. Only high-level assassins are permitted to wield it.”
“Shadow’s Blessing: This dagger emits a unique energy, signifying your identity and enabling you to complete tasks for the Hand of Shadow Brotherhood and earn appropriate rewards.”
“—The shadows protect all who seek justice.”
