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Night spread like ink, enveloping Memphis.
The daytime's prosperity had long faded. The streets were empty and silent, as if an invisible force had suppressed even the wind, making it afraid to make a sound. Only the steady flow of the Nile River could be heard in the distance, like the pulse of the earth itself.
Yet, within this deathly stillness, the darkness was not motionless.
The shadows pouring out of the Sun God's temple were moving.
They were hunting.
Before an abandoned shrine in the western part of the city, a boy of about ten trembled uncontrollably. His clothes were thin and his face was covered in grime—he was clearly an abandoned orphan.
He had only planned to hide under the shrine for the night and search for food at dawn.
But he did not know he had already been marked.
A merchant seeking to hide a scandal in his household had deliberately left the child on this secluded path leading to the temple, thinking, "People have been disappearing lately anyway. One more won't be investigated."
The night wind howled. The brazier before the shrine had long since gone out.
Suddenly, the shadows on the ground began to twist.
One... two... three...
Several shadows gathered from all directions, converging like blood-scented hyenas.
The boy curled into himself in terror and tried to run, but his legs failed him.
"Don't... don't come closer!"
The shadows showed no mercy. They lunged together and surrounded him completely.
The light of life was forcibly drawn from his body and transformed into thin streams that flowed into the shadows. His cries grew weaker until they became faint whimpers, and then they vanished entirely.
The shadows merged into one another, forming a large mass like flowing ink and swiftly drifting back toward the temple.
Outside the ritual array, the priests knelt solemnly, chanting ancient spells.
At that moment, the first shadow entered through the ventilation opening at the top of the chamber and transformed into a streak of crimson light that merged with the embryo.
Its glow intensified slightly.
Then came the second shadow, then the third, each carrying a thread of life essence. The embryo's pulsing grew stronger and stronger. Its aura shifted from pale gold to crimson red, like a sun on the verge of awakening.
The priests' chanting grew louder.
"With blood as the guide, with souls as the offering, with life as the fuel..."
"Awaken the sleeping god, reshape the Lord of Light..."
"O Ra, through this new vessel, return to the Human Realm!"
Cracks appeared across the embryo's surface, not as signs of breaking but of growth. Its shape gradually became clearer. Limbs formed and facial contours emerged, bearing a striking resemblance to the legendary statues of Ra.
A faint yet pure divine aura began to spread through the chamber.
Upon hearing their words, Ian finally understood what they were attempting to do.
Meanwhile...
The shadows that had not yet claimed a life continued their hunt.
Deep within an eastern alley, a drunkard slumped against a wall, clutching a half-empty clay wine jar. Bearded and ragged, he hummed an ancient fisherman's song through drunken breaths.
"The sun rises... Ra bless us... hic..."
His blurred eyes failed to notice the shadow slowly writhing at the alley's entrance.
A dark shape emerged silently from the corner like smoke taking form. It had no face or limbs, only a distorted, glowing outline as if torn from the Underworld itself.
It drifted closer.
The drunkard seemed to sense something and suddenly looked up, fear filling his eyes.
"Who... who's there?"
The shadow did not answer. It lunged downward like a gaping maw and engulfed him entirely.
A brief scream tore through the night, then stopped abruptly.
The shadow began to feed.
It did not consume flesh; it extracted life itself. Threads of pale golden light flowed from the man's mouth and nose and were completely absorbed by the shadow.
Within moments, the drunkard's body withered like dead wood. His skin turned gray and his eyes became hollow; life was utterly extinguished.
The shadow slowly withdrew. Its form had become more solid, with a faint, blood-red light flickering along its edges.
Without lingering, it dissolved back into darkness and sped toward the temple.
The same scenes unfolded elsewhere across the city.
Although Memphis's residents knew the night was dangerous, there were always unfortunate souls stranded outside for various reasons.
Drunkards were the most common victims.
It was only natural; when a city grows large enough, there will always be a few careless individuals. As the saying goes, in a vast forest, every kind of bird can be found.
Behind the "Golden Date Palm" tavern on the Nile, shattered pottery and spilled palm wine glistened stickily under the moonlight. A potbellied brewer named Taka lay sprawled beside a pile of garbage, still clutching a half-empty, two-handled jug.
Moments earlier, he had argued with the bartender about whose beer tasted better, and he was thrown out the back door by several equally drunk companions.
They likely had not intended to harm anyone... but harm had been done nonetheless.
"Damn it..." Taka drunkenly raised his bottle toward the moon. "Just wait until I become guild master..."
The brewer suddenly shivered. Slowly and sluggishly, he turned his head just in time to see a black shadow unfurl like silk.
The sound of the bottle shattering was drowned out by the wet sucking noise as the shadow wrapped around his head.
Taka's obese body convulsed violently. The fat beneath his skin melted away.
This was the hunt of the night. It was also the terror of the city's residents.
Of course...
Now that everyone had silently acknowledged the city's strange reality, aside from a few careless victims, ruthless individuals used the chaos to commit perfect murders and crimes.
After all, everyone knew the temples turned a blind eye to the shadows hunting people.
No one would investigate such matters.
Thus, crime and murder flourished.
In a white-stone villa in the noble district, a steward wearing a golden collar directed two burly men to toss a sack into the street.
"Madam has spoken," The steward said, flicking imaginary dust from his linen robes. "Since this girl dared to seduce the young master, let her experience the nights of Memphis."
The struggling inside the sack gradually weakened. After the footsteps faded, the sixteen-year-old weaving slave finally forced the sack open.
Her terrified eyes reflected the entire noble avenue.
Similar sacks lay in front of every villa. Some were still writhing. Others were already still.
Shadows seeped out from drainage grates.
Like rising black tides, they slowly yet irresistibly submerged each sack. As the slave girl desperately backed away, she felt her spine touch something cold.
She turned stiffly.
On the second-floor balcony of a nearby villa, the young master and his mother stood, holding crystal goblets and calmly watching the scene unfold. Beneath the lady's malachite-painted eyelids, her eyes gleamed with unnatural brightness.
"Mother, will this really protect our family?"
"Shh. The more offerings there are, the more the new god will favor us."
The slave girl's final question vanished forever as shadows poured into her seven orifices. Between her withering fingers, a bloodstained strand of linen thread fluttered gently in the night wind.
Many shadows had already found their prey.
When they returned to the temple like a flock of crows to their nest, the embryo had grown to the size of an adult human. Countless golden veins beneath its semi-transparent skin formed patterns resembling a solar disk.
Clearly, it was growing brighter as it absorbed more life energy.
The way the shadows merged with the embryo was nauseating. First, they spread into thin membranes that wrapped around it; then, they seeped inside like liquid absorbed by a sponge. Each fusion caused a blurred human face to briefly bulge across the embryo's surface before smoothing out again.
Inside the chamber, the air grew heavy and still.
The priests held their breath, staring at the embryo.
Its light was no longer faint; it shone like a rising sun, dyeing the underground chamber crimson.
Each pulse resembled the heartbeat of heaven and earth.
Each pulse carried divine pressure.
Though it had not yet opened its eyes, it could already perceive the outside world.
It "heard" the priests' prayers, "felt" the life force brought back by the shadows, and "devoured" the souls of the innocent.
It was growing.
It was awakening.
All of this was built upon the extinction of countless lives.
The night in Memphis remained silent. No one knew that, deep within a temple, the embryo of a false god was quietly gestating.
It was not Ra.
But it was about to become him.
Suddenly, the embryo convulsed violently. Dozens of fist-sized bulges swelled across its semi-transparent surface, rising and falling rhythmically as if countless hands were pounding from within the membrane.
The air throughout the temple resonated in response. Hanging bronze censers collided with one another, producing a hum like a funeral bell.
"Not enough... still not enough..." A hoarse whisper exploded inside everyone's minds.
The embryo floating at the center of the magic circle pulsed slowly. With each beat, it released waves of invisible will. At first, it was faint, like an infant's murmur. Soon, however, it grew intense and urgent, even tinged with greedy hunger.
This was not sound but intent, an influence acting directly on the soul and crashing like tides against the minds of every priest present.
The scepter priest immediately threw himself to the ground before the altar, scraping bloody marks across his forehead.
"O Great Lord of Light! Your humble servant will at once... "
Before he could finish...
"Stop. That is enough for today."
The black-robed woman's voice wasn't loud, yet it cut through the embryo's mental fluctuations like a blade of ice.
She stepped forward slowly. As the hem of her rune-embroidered robes swept across the ground, the dry, shadow-drained dust automatically parted before her.
Moonlight filtered through the lotus carvings on the dome above, casting web-like shadows across her face.
"Tonight, seventy-nine people have already been sacrificed."
She lightly touched the embryo's surface with her fingertip. Wherever she made contact, a scorched black fingerprint appeared immediately.
"If this continues, Memphis will descend into complete chaos before the new god is even born."
At her words... The scepter priest immediately stepped forward in rebuttal.
"He is calling," he said in a low, reverent voice. "It is still not enough. He requires more life force to fully take form."
Turning, he issued orders to the surrounding priests.
"Bring more offerings! Create new shadows. Find thirty more people tonight, strong ones, rich in vitality. When the new god descends, he must have the power to dispel all darkness!"
The priests were about to obey when, when the black-robed woman raised her hand.
She pointed toward the pulsing embryo.
"We are creating a new guardian, not a destroyer. But if you continue to feed it with the lives of the innocent, it will no longer be a god of light. It will become a monster that devours everything. If the remaining citizens sense the spreading danger, they will flee. Our city will become a place that no one dares to live in."
Her voice was calm yet unmistakably clear to everyone present.
Suppressed gasps echoed around the altar. A young priest carrying a jar of incense trembled and dropped it onto the floor. The container shattered, and dark red powder spread like spilled blood.
The embryo seemed to sense the disturbance. Suddenly, a crack split open across its surface, revealing a molten, gold-like fluid within. A sound emerged from the fissure, somewhere between an infant's cry and a beast's roar.
The scepter priest's face instantly turned pale. He staggered back two steps, his staff scraping harshly across the ground.
"A monster?" If Ra is not revived, then who will protect this city when the true catastrophe arrives? Who will resist the erosion of the Underworld? Who will preserve the order of faith? When that day comes, it won't be three deaths but the destruction of all Memphis!"
Though unwilling to concede, he restrained himself due to the woman's high status, grinding his teeth in frustration.
He stepped closer and pointed his staff at her.
"If your obstruction prevents the new god from awakening in time and disaster falls upon us, all that blood will be on your hands alone."
The woman fell silent for a moment, her gaze unwavering.
"I understand the consequences," she said slowly.
"But I understand even more clearly that if we revive a god through evil means, what returns will not be a god, but demons wearing a god's skin. Faith built upon fear and slaughter will inevitably collapse."
She looked around at the priests and spoke in a stern tone.
"Today's sacrifices are enough. End the hunt."
Her command held the weight of an invisible law. The priests halted their actions at once, none daring to disobey.
The scepter priest's face darkened with fury. After a long moment, he let out a cold snort.
"Fine. We'll do as you say."
He glared viciously at the others. "Are you all deaf? Clean up the altar!"
With that, he turned and left. Before leaving, he muttered in a low voice,
"You may be saved today, but not tomorrow. Disaster is coming. One day you will understand, mercy is the greatest sin."
The black-robed woman silently watched the priests scramble to obey. When the last attendant withdrew from the inner hall, she suddenly pressed her entire palm against the embryo's crack.
"Are we truly resurrecting Ra?"
She whispered softly, as if questioning herself or confronting the unborn existence. As a servant of the sun god Ra, her voice carried a faint hesitation that she did not notice herself.
The embryo's pulse was powerful.
Yet, the echoing will in her mind carried a distorted hunger.
The molten gold substance within the membrane suddenly solidified. After a moment of absolute silence, a brittle, cracking sound like shattering glass echoed from deep inside the embryo. All the golden patterns on its surface turned dark red simultaneously.
The woman withdrew her hand instantly.
Black matter crept backward across the runes carved into her palm, attempting to erode them as if trying to turn her into its servant and replace the power granted to her by the Sun God Ra. A seductive whisper echoed faintly from the embryo.
But the black-robed woman remained unmoved.
Her faith was unwavering.
She severed the invading force immediately.
Outside...
Within the shadows of the eaves, the raven's pupils shrank to needlepoints.
Ian could see what the woman could not. And he now believed her fears were justified.
The reflection on the embryo's surface was not the sun.
Rather, it was a composite structure of countless pupils, like the compound eyes of an insect.
Even more terrifying was that every one of those pupils had turned toward the black-robed woman, staring hungrily at her bleeding palm.
From his vantage point as a raven, Ian witnessed everything. Gradually, several shocking truths began to fall into place.
These people were using magic to create a divine life form.
The reason, was that the Sun God Ra might already be dead. Ian had never even heard rumors about that.
Their strange actions suddenly made sense. The fall of Ra had driven them to create an artificial replacement Sun God to face an impending catastrophe.
But what catastrophe could possibly require such desperation?
(End of Chapter)