Myths Reawakened

Chapter 363 (2): Tame the Darkness and the Sky

The partial thoughts of Ines, the Goddess of Darkness, had endured a month before finally succumbing to the corruption and being reshaped. Just like the fate that had befallen Senna, there was no turning back for the thoughts, unlike Anastasia, who could still occasionally pretend to reject Wayne.

The partial thoughts were only thoughts, though, and they didn’t have a physical form. Wayne had blended his white foam with them, after which, due to the Goddess of Darkness’s inherently powerful life essence, the black heart formed.

The skin belonged to Darkness, while the interior was in essence an Astral life. It was hard to say if the goddess had evolved or if She had gone down another path after being assimilated by the white foam.

From Wayne’s perspective, it was assimilation followed by evolution; from the goddess’s perspective, it was another possibility.

The heart had an irresistible appeal to the Goddess of Darkness, more so than Wayne’s genes. Black light writhed as black foam splattered like a fountain, forming a captivating figure in a black robe before Wayne.

Black long hair as dark as the night sky ran down her shoulders, smooth like silk and glinting faintly as the wind rustled the strands. There was an eerie, enchanting rhythm to it. Standing tall and slim, she appeared regal and frosty.

On her stunning face, the deep eyes of darkness contained infinite allure, eliciting the conflicting mix of adoration and fear.

!

At the end of the day, Little Wayne never lied. Wayne had remained human rather than throwing himself at the ancient god’s embrace mostly thanks to Little Wayne. Its contribution could not be denied.

Ines’s lips curled into a captivating curve, yet the smile didn’t reach her icy gaze, combining an aloof allure and a blatant warning.

Wayne silently appreciated her looks. As expected of the one and only disciplinary teacher, her effect on problem students was immediate and lethal.

When Wayne beckoned her over, Ines sat down by his side with a look of distaste, looking at him like she was looking at the most lowly existence in the pecking order of evolution. While she despised him, she had no choice but to submit to him.

She knew Wayne too well.

“You got what you want, Wayne,” Ines said in a frosty voice. “But don’t celebrate just yet. You’ve only locked up part of my thoughts. One day, you’ll pay for this.”

While speaking a frosty line with a repulsed expression, she rested her head on Wayne’s shoulder, looking frustrated as if she was being forced to do so. Wayne rubbed his hands together and patted her side.

“Go stand there in the corner. Who told you to sit down?”

“You’ll regret this!”

Ines shot up to her feet and fled toward Wayne, standing right before him.

“You’re standing too close and blocking my view...” Wayne pushed her away. He didn’t deny her appeal, but he wasn’t in the mood now. He said bluntly, “Ines, how much memory does this part of your thoughts possess? How much power do you have?”

“Most of my memory is gone, and I’ve forgotten the important secrets. As for my power...” Ines lifted a hand and swung her slim finger in the air. The power of Darkness that she easily drew on was terrifying.

She’s strong!

But she was only around Darienne’s level, not as strong as Wayne had expected. Considering her advanced existence, though, she was certainly a rank above the chosen knights. If a fight broke out, Darienne would be the one to be locked up in a basement.

“Do you remember anything about the inner world?”

“Some.”

“Stop. I’ll check myself.”

Wayne narrowed his eyes, his thoughts flooding into Ines. She displayed all her memories for his perusal. After some exploration, he winced in disappointment.

The Goddess of Darkness had clearly implemented a countermeasure. Knowing that she wouldn’t be able to escape his eventual corruption, she had cleared her browser history to preserve her dignity in the human world. The thoughts were nothing but a decoration, serving no purpose but to be pretty.

Well, she could also crush a demigod!

Good news, Wayne had gained an incredibly powerful trump card. Bad news, the trump card could never meet the Goddess of Darkness, or the goddess would be able to take it back at any time.

Ines didn’t know any of the secrets Wayne wanted to know. Her great collection of memories was all about unimportant trivia. The taboo information on gods had been completely erased.

Wayne looked at the dark elf in resignation. The combination of an enforcer and a cream puff was quite attractive, but what he needed was a knowledgeable teacher. Besides, the cream puff was using part of his body. If he did anything to her, it would be the worst case of narcissism.

The bathroom door opened then. Anastasia’s smile froze when she looked into the bedroom. Realizing that she had intruded on the tryst between her two supervisors, she quietly shut the door.

And then she opened it again.

It wasn’t a tryst, but danger!

Anastasia blanched. She knew the relationship between Wayne and the Goddess of Darkness well. The goddess wasn’t messing around with a human like Ivan thought. Wayne and the Goddess of Darkness had been fighting both on the table and under the table, each holding leverage against the other. Moreover, Wayne was the weaker party.

His only advantage was the fact that the Goddess of Darkness couldn’t descend to the human world.

The goddess had descended. Wayne no longer had any advantage. Tonight, he was probably going to—

“Ana, come here. I’m introducing a younger sister to you.” Wayne beckoned her over, interrupting her spiraling thoughts.

(눈‸눈)

Who am I? Where am I? Did I pass out and start dreaming?

The Holy Maiden moved over with the bedsheet wrapped around her. One of them was her former supervisor, and the other her current one. She didn’t even know how to speak anymore.

“Why is she my older sister?” Ines scoffed. “She’s nothing but the vessel for my descent to the human world. Now that the vessel has been tainted, she has lost the last of her value.”

Anastasia lowered her head, not understanding what was happening. She asked Wayne with her thoughts, eager for an answer.

She looked pitiful with her head lowered, which Wayne wasn’t going to tolerate. He patted his thigh, telling her to sit on him instead. Then he turned to Ines and demanded, “This is your master’s order: from now on, you’ll do everything Ana says. Whatever she tells you to do, you do it.”

He gave Anastasia a look, explaining everything mentally.

Learning that her faith had tamed part of the Goddess of Darkness’s thoughts, Anastasia looked at him with admiration. However, it was too difficult for her to order her former supervisor around. After all, she had followed the goddess for close to a century, and she still held respect for Her.

“Wayne, why don’t I descend through her to show you the happiness of conquering Darkness?” Ines said with narrowed eyes that glinted with cold light. An outsider would think she was making a threat!

“Um, that...” Wayne blinked. He had to admit that he had wavered for a second. “Nah, the Goddess of Darkness might descend through Ana at any time. If your thoughts enter her, you’re likely to be taken back to Her Divine Realm for research.”

“I could pick another Holy Maiden.”

“You’re not that petty.”

“You sure?”

Wayne couldn’t answer, but he still shook his head after a moment. Though he was tempted, he wasn’t going to do it, not until he became corrupted one day.

“Good, you can resist temptation. Your despicable image improved marginally in my mind.” Ines made a gesture with her thumb and index finger a mere fingertip apart, her tone dripping with sarcasm. At the same time, she glanced at Little Wayne.

“...” x2

Anastasia turned to him. Boss, are you sure that the thoughts belong to the Goddess of Darkness? She hasn’t been swapped, has she?

I’m not so sure myself. Wayne frowned, turning to Ines.

When he first locked up part of the Goddess of Darkness’s thoughts, he had considered it a great victory, but looking back, it seemed like the goddess had purposefully bitten the bait for an unknown scheme.

Thinking of a possibility, he asked, “Ines, can you sense the Divine Realm of Darkness? Could the Goddess of Darkness take you back at any time?”

“I was banished by myself and could not enter the Divine Realm. As for whether She could find me...” Ines glanced at Wayne and warned, “Do not underestimate any deities, especially when you aren’t as powerful as they are. I’m pretty sure the other me is already plotting against you.”

“What would the Goddess of Darkness do?”

“I don’t know. My memories about you have been modified, and my memory loss has led to a defect in my thoughts and logic. It’s difficult for me to answer the question with certainty. If I have to give you an answer...”

She glanced at Wayne derisively. “Though you are trash and the lowliest of all lowly creatures, you have some worth. If I could have you, I would pay whatever price necessary.”

Enough already. Stop doing it.

Wayne broke into goosebumps. He strongly suspected that this was part of the Goddess of Darkness’s way of taming him.

Suddenly, he remembered something. He got up and put on his clothes. “Follow me to the Western District Great Cemetery. I picked up the remains of a previous Darkness Knight. You might be able to take over it. Your current body... it makes my head hurt.”

“Aren’t you worried that I would descend suddenly and take away the thoughts, leaving you with nothing?” Ines asked with a smile.

“I can’t be concerned about a thief every day. Besides, She’s a god.” Wayne put on his clothes with Anastasia’s help and pinched Ines’s face. “I’ll play the game with Her. One day, She will become you.”

Ines’s breath quickened, and her face became flushed. “I want you more and more, Wayne.”

Wayne frowned. He confirmed that she wasn’t the Goddess of Darkness by scanning her with his thoughts before putting aside his suspicion.

***

Western District Great Cemetery.

Thin mist permeated the air as phosphorescent light shimmered in the Death energy. The gloomy atmosphere was unnerving to the living.

Anastasia couldn’t bear the sight of Ines, so she didn’t follow. Wayne walked up to an unmarked tombstone and tapped it. A coffin emerged from underground, opening to reveal the remains of the former Darkness Knight.

From Ines’s memory, Wayne had learned of the knight’s name: Vichy.

Ines remained as haughty as usual, dissatisfied that she was to take over a chosen knight’s body. She expressed her willingness to subject herself to the tainted, used body of Holy Maiden Anastasia.

Wayne rolled his eyes and ignored her, urging her to hurry with a wave.

Black foam peeled away and fell to the ground, turning into rotten black sludge. Ines’s thoughts entered the knight’s remains and reforged her blood and flesh with her thoughts. When she molded the face, she retained Vichy’s appearance, which showed her approval of the former knight.

The former Darkness Knight looked cold and even more frosty than Darienne. Both had an aloof, impassive face that kept people at arm’s length. Because Ines now inhabited the body, the aloofness gained a hint of mystique and arrogance. When she turned to Wayne, her gaze was charismatic and suggestive.

“Enough with the staring. She was a chosen knight who once served you. Put on some clothes first.” Wayne turned away, looking at the northwest part of Londan. “Tonight’s surprise never ceases. Another goddess is joining me.”

“Who?”

“The Goddess of Sky, Seleucia, your old friend. Because of your plotting, she finally made up her mind.”

Wayne remembered Seleucia’s face. She was stubborn and not terribly intelligent.

Once the prideful goddess left the prison, he wondered, would she notice that the God of Storm and Thunder did not exist in this world?