Chapter 144

Chapter 144

"Demon Soul?"

Kirk glanced over and immediately recognized the thing in the bundle.

They hadn't created this Dark Energy. When they felt the suppressing force, they went looking for James, but he was already gone. They followed the source and found him here.

Chris looked at the stiff young men and tilted his head. "Those outfits... mages?"

Joe lifted his chin and snorted. "We're students from Void Academy. We've always fought Dark Cultivators. You're strong, so we can't argue. But even if you kill us, Void Academy will hunt you forever."

He shut his eyes, ready for whatever happened.

The other four trembled but stayed quiet.

James's eyes narrowed as he studied them, deciding whether to let them go. The attention wasn't from his Dark Energy itself, but from the Dark Cultivator aura that leaked when he separated it. He'd have to make his team absorb it fast, or more trouble would come.

He shook the bundle and said calmly, "Your lives aren't worth much. Void Academy? Doesn't matter to me. I'm taking the Demon Soul."

Joe stepped forward in panic, then stopped short. "No! Demon Soul is our academy's greatest treasure. We can't hand it to Dark Cultivators like you!"

James pointed at himself and laughed. "Evil Dark Cultivators? First time I've heard that one."

Roy took the bundle from James, voice flat. "Want it back? Earn it. Talking won't change our minds."

Joe clenched his fists inside his sleeves, staring at the bundle with red eyes. "If you take Demon Soul, you'll have to walk over my corpse."

The other four disciples moved beside him, forming a wall.

Roy waved a hand, and all five flew backward, slamming to the ground.

He looked down at them. "Stubbornness means nothing against real power."

Terrence spoke quietly. "Let them go."

His words were careful. Dark Cultivators still existed, yet Void Academy sent these low-level kids. Even if the world fell, they might not notice. Maybe they had other plans.

James had no patience for them. He glanced at the struggling disciples and said coldly, "Tell your leader the source of Dark Cultivators isn't here. Don't waste time looking. As for Demon Soul, it's mine now."

He stood and walked out, heading straight to his room. Kirk and the others followed, picking up Manuel on the way. They gathered in James's room.

The robbed Void Academy disciples sat filled with anger and shame. They were the academy's top talents, sent to fight Dark Cultivators, only to lose their first fight and their treasure.

Joe stayed on the floor, dazed. A disciple named Finnian helped him up and whispered, "Joe, notice anything? The compass pointed at them, but when they attacked, there was no Dark Energy."

Joe paused, thinking back. From what they knew, Dark Energy should corrupt wounds and drain power. Yet the group had only used pure Spiritual Energy pressure.

He let out a breath. "That doesn't fit. If they were Dark Cultivators, they'd fear Demon Soul and wouldn't touch it. So they're not Dark Cultivators—just another group of strong people. Contact the dean. This could help him."

In James's room, Manuel examined the blue stone. "The feel matches the records for Demon Soul."

He placed it in the bundle, then added a round storage bag. The Demon Soul's aura vanished at once.

Kirk took the bag, curious. "What's this? I can't feel anything."

Manuel said, "A special storage bag I made. It blocks all auras. Whatever goes inside loses its power for a while."

He turned to James. "This thing must affect you a lot, or you wouldn't have taken it."

James smiled. "It's too good to leave behind."

Terrence added, "You actually know their dean."

James raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

Terrence nodded. "Void Academy is a family force built to hunt Dark Cultivators. The current dean is Sean Gray."

"Sean?" The name sounded familiar, but James couldn't place it.

He remembered Sean as the one who tried building a Dark Cultivator group inside the Hidden World before getting kicked out.

War was coming, yet Sean sent people to Novaria instead of keeping them back. Was there another reason?

Everyone went quiet. James knew that if they hadn't grabbed the Demon Soul today, a surprise attack later could have hit him hard.

Even though he used Spiritual Energy, his Dark Energy had fused with it and wasn't suppressed—Demon Soul could sense it on him but couldn't hold it down.

Sean should know fighting Nightmare would ruin the academy. As dean, he'd have some sense. Still, the disciples would report everything, and Sean would try to take Demon Soul back eventually.

Kirk said, "We need an excuse to send them away before more problems start."

James answered, "The Hidden World's leaders, except White Owl and his close people, all need replacing. If we're doing it, we do it clean."

Terrence had one demand: Ronnie Ford had to be handed to him.

Back in their mercenary days, Terrence was the former leader's favorite. His rival was Ronnie. They were complete opposites—Terrence was easygoing and had plenty of friends.

At the time, James and Manuel were rising fast in North America and were friends with White Owl. They fought together. But once White Owl joined the Hidden World, everything changed.

Now White Owl was the figurehead, while Ronnie held real power. Ronnie turned White Owl into a puppet and made everyone follow him. The old leader had wanted Terrence as successor, and Ronnie knew it. Jealousy led him to scheme behind the scenes.

James spread out a map and pointed to an island far from Novaria. "Forget how many experts are in New York or elsewhere. We only need to watch their base. This island is where the Hidden World's leaders stay. White Owl should be there."

James was sure that even if the world's top ten cultivators teamed up, they still wouldn't beat him. The real unknown was Donny. The man controlled Dark Energy, but James could handle it without showing everything. If people learned Ghost Wolf had two powers and had been in Uruguay, they'd tie him to Umbral Infusion and cause trouble.

James knew Donny's appearance would likely shift the whole world's balance.