Chapter 407
Contract Broken
“…Demons can actually evolve.”
Lixia, with blood still streaming down her face, murmured in surprise, “I thought that was just a legend.”
“It’s pretty much like a legend,” Agnes sighed. “I haven’t seen a demon complete an evolution in my entire life, let alone you.”
Theoretically, demons could indeed evolve. After all, the power system of the Mark of Sin was right there, and maintaining a constant form was contrary to the fundamental nature of change within the Transcendent Path.
“Because a demon’s evolution often requires accumulating a vast amount of Path Power, which necessitates consuming numerous souls and a very long period of time,” Eivass, hearing their discussion, replied while tending to his own injuries. “If we extend the time span to five hundred years, then demons that have independently completed their evolution still exist.”
After all, in this world, even harvesting the souls of mere mortals was quite dangerous.
According to the rules of this world, after all life forms with souls perish, those souls enter the Dream Realm and are channeled into one of the nine rivers based on their strongest Path adaptability.
After undergoing a dual screening by the Nine Pillar Gods and all Heavenly Envoys, any soul unclaimed by a deity would reintegrate into the world, serving as material for the souls of newborns across various races. These souls would gradually grow stronger with the maturation of personality and intellect. Thus, after an old person dies, their essence could create nine infants. Through this cycle, the number of living beings in the world would steadily increase.
In other words, every soul in existence was accounted for. They could not be arbitrarily misappropriated.
Creating a Disciple required a portion of one’s own power to be diverted, and all nine rivers needed to be infused with souls. Otherwise, it could lead to an imbalance in the world. If a particular Path consistently failed to return souls to the world, the proportion of that Path within the souls of newborns would undoubtedly dwindle.
Consequently, the influence of that Path in the Material Realm would diminish. Heavenly Envoys leaning towards other Paths would then find opportunities to exploit.
From this perspective, the souls returned to the world could also be considered a form of “tax.” Once the tax was paid, the remainder was one’s own, and the paid tax was used collectively by all.
—Yes, even the lofty gods in this world had to pay taxes.
Numerous Dream Realm wars had occurred between Pillar Gods and among Pillar Gods and Heavenly Envoys, and between Heavenly Envoys themselves. The direct catalysts for these wars were often problems in the distribution of souls.
Perhaps Candlemaster favored someone to become a Disciple, only for them to be poached by a Heavenly Envoy of another Path before death. Or perhaps a soul destined for the Blood Realm might be secretly branded with a Mark of Sin and turned into a demon.
Even the direct destruction of a soul was akin to its soul returning directly to the world, and most deities would not be particularly displeased. At most, the Pillar God or Heavenly Envoy who had pre-booked that soul would be angered.
However, to steal a soul, especially one favored by a Pillar God or Heavenly Envoy, was an undoubtedly grave offense.
—It seemed like merely stealing a soul, but in reality, it was equivalent to preemptively killing a Disciple and hijacking a soul that might have belonged to another Path towards the Transcendent Path.
This was an act of “imbalance.”
Therefore, only under specific contractual terms — that is, when the other party had previously agreed to “surrender their soul” and actively accepted the transaction, would the responsibility shift to the party who signed the contract.
“It’s one thing for Phantom Demons of other Paths, but demons of the Transcendent Path must possess a fervent desire for advancement. However, they themselves lack flesh and blood, existing only as Phantom Demons in the Dream Realm. Thus, unlike creatures in the Material Realm, they cannot strengthen themselves through Path Power alone.”
“So, demons can only acquire extremely valuable souls by signing contracts. The Transcendent Power emitted by the host can slowly enhance the demon’s strength; demons can also find ways to complete the contract and directly consume souls to gain a significant amount of Transcendent Power.”
Eivass gave a simple analogy: “It’s like eating an egg versus eating the hen that lays it. Although the latter seems less cost-effective, if there are other fearless hens willing to take over, it’s not impossible to betray them and jump ship.”
Precisely because of this, very few demons could gather enough power to complete their evolution. It would typically require at least four to five hundred years of activity in the Material Realm to accumulate the power needed to support evolution—and the entire process must be completed without a complete death. Otherwise, if they were to be reborn as Phantom Demon Eggs, their power would have to start from scratch.
Eivass had few recollections of demons who had clearly completed their evolution.
For example, the Giant Prince’s brother, that Eyeball Demon—it absorbed a tiny bit of power during the Ouroboros Ring ritual and evolved into an Eyeball Demon Lord.
This was one evolutionary direction, and the simplest one.
Eivass’s Shadow Demon could also directly evolve into a Shadow Demon Lord. This merely strengthened its own template without altering its skill set or form, essentially providing a comprehensive enhancement on the original foundation. The race remained unchanged; it simply transformed from an elite monster into a lord monster. However, this was still not considered a high-tier Phantom Demon.
In addition, the Shadow Demon possessing the “Wrath” Mark had another true evolutionary path.
That was to become the “Flame Demon,” a high-tier Phantom Demon.
The Flame Demon also belonged to the Mark of Wrath system and was a very powerful high-tier Phantom Demon.
The Flame Demon was also the only demon among demons that wielded the power of the Path of Devotion—by consuming souls, Flame Demons could infinitely split themselves to create numerous Disciples, and they could also forge “Demon Equipment” equivalent to the “Sacred Relic” level of deep purple.
This was roughly equivalent to a low-end version of a Fallen Heavenly Envoy—not turning people into demons, but turning people into Disciples; at the same time, Flame Demons could empower others… although it was through equipment, equipment could certainly be considered a part of power.
—So, guns don’t count as combat power?
Don’t tell me having a gun makes your combat power 5, and without it, you can’t even reach 5!
But undoubtedly, if Eivass’s Shadow Demon were to become a Flame Demon, Eivass would not be able to sign a contract with her as a Beast of Sin. Because the Butterfly, also being of the fire attribute, would overlap with the Flame Demon.
And there was another problem.
That was, Flame Demons were very ugly.
Perhaps some players might find it imposing, but Eivass simply thought it was revolting.
The form of a Flame Demon was a scorching, fiery creature composed of flames, magma, and red-hot metal. It looked like a burly giant… let alone being unable to interact with Eivass, even its mere presence, with its high temperature that could easily melt the earth, would be unbearable for nearby creatures.
Furthermore, if the Shadow Demon truly transformed into a Flame Demon, all the power she had accumulated in the Path of Love would become void. She could still use some Shadow Power, but not much—after all, she would need to accumulate a significant deviation towards the Path of Devotion to possibly complete her evolution.
However, Night Demons were different.
Night Demons, as demons of the Mark of Envy, had Mirror Demons as their corresponding lower form. The essence of envy was comparison and imitation; imitation was the essence of ritual. Therefore, Mirror Demons were purely Transcendent Path demons, and evolving into Night Demons across Paths was quite difficult.
But as it happened, the Shadow Demon’s Mark of Wrath had changed to a Mark of Envy. If she evolved from Shadow Demon to Night Demon, she could retain a considerable portion of the Shadow Demon’s power while also acquiring the Night Demon’s new template.
—A high-tier Phantom Demon of the Sixth Tier!
In terms of sheer status, it was already the power level of the current version’s final BOSS.
“Brother,” Yulia frowned slightly, “you were too reckless just now…”
She didn’t want to blame Eivass, nor did she want to dwell on what had already happened. But she had been genuinely terrified just now.
What if Eivass did something like this again?
What if the demon betrayed him next time?
—That’s a demon! A demon inherently prone to betrayal!
“Don’t worry, I will only raise Viness, and no other demons… others will be Phantom Demons of different Paths, not dangerous demons,” Eivass reassured her. “I understand Viness very well; she will never betray me. Moreover, the Transcendent Desire Viness obtains from me is purer and more delectable than the souls of vulgar beings. It’s like the nutritional value and deliciousness of an egg surpassing that of the hen itself…”
…So she won’t harm me, don’t worry.
Eivass wanted to make a joke to help Yulia relax.
But looking at her reddened eyes and her silent gaze fixed on him, Eivass flinched and didn’t dare to say it.
—Eivass’s intuition told him that if he said that, Yulia might explode.
Janis quickly changed the subject: “I remember that if demons devour other people’s souls, they could also be discovered and punished by the Hourglass’s agents.”
“Mm,” Eivass nodded and immediately picked up the thread, “Although the Hourglass meddles a bit… it is indeed the Pillar God most concerned with maintaining the balance between the two realms.”
“Limiting Pillar Gods and Heavenly Envoys from descending into the Material Realm and capping the World Tier to protect the Material Realm are all thanks to the Hourglass. And when Heavenly Envoy Fragments fall into the Material Realm, increasing the power concentration of the corresponding Path, it diligently raises the World Tier of the corresponding Path again to bring the two realms back into balance.”
“Without the Hourglass, this Equilibrium Master, this world would be in grave danger—”
This was a heartfelt statement.
Imagine the Nine Pillar Gods and all the Heavenly Envoys walking freely in the mortal world without any restrictions, capable of launching world-scale wars at any moment… Eivass couldn’t even fathom how chaotic that scene would be.
…Of course, the Hourglass was also the most meddlesome Pillar God by far.
If a Phantom Demon summoned from the Dream Realm’s contract expires, it prevents these Phantom Demons from lingering in the Material Realm. If someone steals souls in the Material Realm, it dispatches agents to handle it. If a war in the Material Realm lasts too long and causes widespread suffering, it intervenes to mediate. If a wild high-tier Phantom Demon in the Material Realm becomes too powerful, it sends them back to the Dream Realm…
When the Ouroboros Ring ritual begins, the Hourglass will become the busiest Pillar God.
Players will receive targeted blessings from the Hourglass when challenging Heavenly Envoys, allowing them to strategize—this is the normal mode.
If players choose to forgo the Hourglass’s blessing and forcefully challenge a Heavenly Envoy and succeed, they will achieve another high-difficulty achievement. This is considered the hard mode.
In the game setting of “Ouroboros Ring,” mechanics like guaranteed pulls in gacha, pseudo-random critical hit rates, inventory detection, and difficulty balancing—these game-level designs also fall under the Hourglass’s purview. At least, that’s what the official sources say.
…Hmm?
Just as Eivass thought of this, his expression suddenly changed, and he clutched his chest. The Night Demon, who had transformed into a crow, suddenly shifted back.
“…Wait?”
He felt something within his heart seemed to be cracking, *crackle*.
—It was the contract he had signed with the Shadow Demon on the night he awakened his past life memories.
