God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Cain connected his mind to the {Dark Soul} and scoured the entire place...

'There are a total of twenty-two corridors. Placing two bombs at both ends of each corridor will be a good idea.'

Not only was he planning on keeping all the goblins and a majority of the trolls out of the central area, but he wanted them all dead as well. He also didn't know if they had secret entrances he didn't know of, so it was best if he closed all possible options for interference.

The {Dark Soul} continued to swim in the darkness of the cavernous corridors. All of these corridors were long, and some were complicated, branching into numerous pathways.

However, there were exactly twenty-two entrances and twenty-two exits.

'Perhaps those small vermin made it this way intentionally.'

Once he had seen, enough, he turned to stare at Evangeline. His black eyes seemed even darker than the surrounding darkness.

Evangeline stared right back at him, her ruby eyes glinting in the darkness.

Without saying a word, he shifted closer until he could hear her breathing, which seemed a bit agitated. He reasoned it was just her nerves because they were about to begin executing their plans.

Stretching his hand out, he began taking all the explosive {Dark Eggs} within his inventory out.

"Your shadow manipulation makes you the best for the job."

Cain gave her the lowdown on all the things she needed to do. He told her about the {Dark Soul} and how it would be the one to lead her around to all the places she would need to place the bombs.

Nodding, Evangeline had a dull expression as she asked,

"And what will you be doing around this time?"

Cain flashed her a grin,

"I'll try learning as much as I can about their chief."

Nodding, Evangeline said nothing more and melted into the darkness. Cracking his neck, Cainblet his tired muscles relax a bit. He still hadn't gotten any rest despite being stuck doing nothing but making bombs for the past month.

Realizing an entire month had passed made him realize he had spent a long time in this strange place already and he still hadn't even come close to achieving his goal.

He let out a tired sigh...

Pushing himself up, he slinked through the darkness.

***

His back against the now very familiar boulder, he watched the chaos goblins and trolls go about their day.

'Seems like they have forgotten all about me, huh...' Cain thought to himself.

The creatures didn't seem affected by what his presence had done to them. And to some extent, they weren't their population had been barely affected even though he had killed hundreds of them.

Their hunts had been successful, and their women were giving birth rapidly to recoup the few losses. One could say the extra caution even helped them conserve their numbers. Cain didn't doubt at all that very soon, their influence would spread from just this side of the mountain range to the entire mountain, the entire island, and finally over the fragmented lands.

Just thinking about it made a shiver run down his spine...

He then shifted his attention to the chief. The chief was smaller than the two four-headed {Chaos Trolls} that always stood by his side. However, he was bigger than the three-headed ones. His body was also more toned, with leaner muscles. His being radiated a sense of power Cain had only ever seen in one other creature.

'No doubt about it. It has a Nexus of Ki.'

It was dressed in animal fur, and the black obsidian weapons that were tied around its waist were simply terrifying to look at. Two small battle axes, a giant great-axe that rested beside its throne, two daggers, and three lances made from an unidentified creature's bones.

They were also more sophisticated than the weapons of the normal creatures.

Cain stared at it, trying to figure its secrets out...

'The main strength of these creatures is their ability to negate magic. If the goblins are immune to that level, then I'll assume my spells will do little damage to that thing. It will be for the best if I only use magic to bolster my physical capabilities. But...'

Cain was confident in his abilities, but trying to compete in strength with a creature like that was just plain madness in his eyes. He would have to be backed by {Burning Spirit} and {Azure Burst} if he wanted to even measure up with the damned thing for a while.

The good thing about {Burning Spirit}, was that it would last for as long as possible, so long as he did not deactivate it personally...

Its boosts were also very reliable. The only downside was the drawbacks...

By using his mana to boost his physical abilities, or just simply to cause inconveniences for the creature, he would be able to control the direction of the battle very well.

So he was confident in his chances. However, the only way he would be sure is if he had a chance to see the creature's stats.

His hideout was too far away, so the system would not be able to bring its information out, especially with there being so many other creatures around.

After observing fit a while, he came to the conclusion he was already aware of. Just as he thought, the Cheof of the Chaos creatures was infallible. The only thing it did all day was copulate and eat, but Cain could tell. It was a seasoned warrior. It knew how to fight, and it had more than a few kills on its belt.

With these thoughts in mind, he knew he needed to come up with something that would give him an edge in the fight.

'Hell's Nexus and Rakshasa will be very useful, but they still aren't enough. What I need, is an active way to use my Ki.'

Cain's mind spun even as he turned around and walked back to his base. There, Evangeline was already seated beside the campsite.

Sensing Cain, she turned to face him,

"Is it time?"

Cain shook his head, "No, not quite yet. We need to learn everything we can if we want this to work."

Evangeline just nodded dryly and went back to what she was doing. In her hand, there was a red orb glowing faintly in the darkness. Cain sat down opposite from her and started.

The first thing he was able to notice, was that the glowing Lord was made completely from Ki. Cain was baffled,

"Is that?"

Evangeline spoke coldly, "Don't speak. You will distract me."

Cain blinked, then clicked his tongue in annoyance, 'Honestly, her mood changes far too quickly.'

Cain then continued to stare without a word. However, as he continued to stare, he realized something,

'Her control over her energy is exquisite... Immaculate... Incredible!'

Cain was stumped for words. The orb of Ki changed shape in her hands. It turned into a knife, then liquified and turned into a caricature of a {Chaos Goblin}. Then it turned into a pyramid. It continued to transform into other shapes, and then finally, back into an orb.

Cain wanted to ask how she did it, but he remained silent. He could sense that she was in complete harmony with the energy surrounding her. Her body was filled with power and seemed on the verge of exploding.

However, the handle she had over that power made it so that he didn't doubt she was in perfect control of the situation.

The Ki was as volatile as water, but she made controlling it look easy. Soon after, the orb of Ki was absorbed back into her body. She exhaled sharply, then opened her eyes. Her jewel-like eyes bore straight into his soul as she stared into his.

"What?" She said, her voice flat and hoarse, just like it usually was.

"How did you do that?" Cain asked, his voice filled with curiosity.

Evangeline threw him an odd look, "Do what?"

Cain rolled his eyes, and stared at her with a bitter look,

"Your control over your energy is simply incredible. How do you do it?"

A look of realization appeared in her eyes. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips,

"Could it be you want to ask me for some tips?"

Cain could feel his eyelids twitch,

"When you put it like that, I suddenly don't think it would be a good idea."

Evangeline chuckled, "What, are you too much of a man to ask for help from a delicate lady like me?"

Cain gritted his teeth, "Whatever..."

He was a bit vexed, so he turned away, intending to ignore her...

"Energy is like a volatile and viscous liquid. To control it, you have to implement the vessel technique."

Hearing that, his interest was piqued. However, he still struggled with his pride. The shadows that formed before him suddenly stirred, and a grinning Evangeline arose from them.

Without even waiting for his protests, she continued,

"Your mind is the vessel, and your energy is what is contained within. By manipulating the vessel, you also manipulate the shape of the liquid."

Then she paused momentarily...

"However, the vessel doesn't affect the nature of the liquid. It can't... That is what the plundering techniques are for. Each ki plundering technique is unique in its way. No one is similar to another, so I cannot give you tips concerning yours. However, the secret lies in your ki plundering techniques.

If you want to harness that power, then you will need to understand what it is first."