"...Join us," I whispered, not just to Jiao, but to his Dark Seed as well. "Not as prey. But as part of the collective. You don't have to be alone."
Jiao's eyes, wide with terror and confusion, stared back at me. The red aura around him flickered erratically. I could feel the struggle within him—the brutal, survivalist instinct of his killer-instilled Seed against the faint, buried whisper of his own original consciousness and the desperate, lonely core of the parasitic entity itself.
My "Dark Seed," acting as a conduit for the thousands of souls within me, did not force its way in. Instead, it offered. It presented a vision—not of domination, but of communion. A shared existence where pain was distributed, where memories were preserved, and where the hunger for power was redirected into a hunger for justice, for meaning. It was a sanctuary built inside a monster.
'Don't! This is weakness!' Liang Jie's voice roared in my head, a stark contrast to the chorus of others who were tentatively reaching out, feeling Jiao's suffering. 'He will betray you the moment he gets a chance!'
'What is strength,' countered the voice of the old healer I had absorbed long ago, 'if it is only used for more consumption? True strength is the power to choose a different path.'
The hands of energy holding Jiao began to pulse, not with crushing force, but with a rhythmic, almost soothing energy. The violent red of his Seed's aura softened, blending with the deep, multifaceted darkness of my own.
"I... I don't want to be... eaten," Jiao stammered, his voice a raw, broken thing, so different from the arrogant bully of moments before. It was his own voice, not the Seed's.
"You won't be," I said, the collective harmony still coloring my words. "You will be remembered. You will be part of something larger. Your strength will not be lost. It will be used."
It was a gamble. A huge one. I was offering him exactly what Yan wanted for me—a fusion. But where Yan sought to create a single, controllable weapon, we were building a community. A legion.
Jiao's Seed gave one last, weak pulse of resistance, and then... it surrendered. The red light dimmed and was absorbed into the dark hands. The energy flowed back into me, but it was different from any absorption before. It wasn't a violent torrent; it was a gentle stream. Jiao's memories, his pain, his stolen strength, and the unique, predatory nature of his Dark Seed—all of it was integrated, cataloged, and welcomed into the archive of my being.
His body did not turn to dust. He slumped to the ground, unconscious, his spiritual essence hollowed out but his physical shell still breathing. He was empty, like the young slave I had "harvested" on Yan's table. But he was alive. I had chosen not to kill.
A profound silence fell in the circular room. The collective within me settled, processing this new addition. Jiao's knowledge of the labyrinth, his combat skills, his deep-seated hatred for the system—it all became mine. And his Dark Seed, now a subdued but potent part of our whole, added a new, sharper edge to our power.
I looked at the Seal Fragment on the pillar. The protective barrier was now visibly cracked. Taking it would undoubtedly unleash whatever was trapped within. That was not our goal.
"We don't need their fake keys," I said to the silence, and the collective agreed.
Turning away from the pillar and the comatose Jiao, I focused inward. With Jiao's knowledge of the labyrinth's layout and the innate sensitivity of my own Seed to the Primordial Parasite's energy, I could now feel the true "den" of the labyrinth—the place where the energy was most concentrated, where the most dangerous trials would be, and where Yan would most likely place a real Fragment to test the worthiest.
I moved deeper, leaving the false prize behind. The corridors twisted into even more bizarre formations, the walls now looking less like bone and more like fused, petrified flesh. The air hummed with a psychic pressure that would have driven an ordinary person insane. But I was no longer an ordinary person. I was a walking citadel of minds, and the pressure was just background noise.
Soon, I heard sounds ahead—not screams, but the distinct clash of spiritual energy against energy. A fight. I crept forward, peering into a vast cavern.
Below, in a depression filled with glowing, phosphorescent fungi, two other Chosen Slaves were locked in a deadly duel. It was the thin, hollow-eyed woman and a man I recognized as a quiet, brooding figure. They were fighting over a Seal Fragment that lay on a pedestal between them. Their movements were frantic, desperate. Their Dark Seeds flared wildly, uncontrolled, driven by pure survival instinct.
I watched from the shadows. I didn't need that Fragment. I had a different objective now.
'They will kill each other,' observed a calm voice within me, the strategist. 'Or the winner will be too weakened to continue. It's an efficient, cruel filter.'
'We could stop them,' suggested the voice of the young girl I had failed to save.
'And do what?' Liang Jie countered, though his tone was less fiery than before, tempered by the integration of Jiao's experiences. 'Offer them a place with us? We cannot save everyone. And not everyone would choose this... existence.'
He was right. This path I was on was not for everyone. It required a certain kind of brokenness, a certain willingness to let go of the individual self. These two were still fighting for their own, singular lives.
As predicted, the woman landed a lucky, desperate blow, a spike of corrupted energy piercing the man's chest. He gasped, his Dark Seed flaring violently one last time before sputtering out. The woman, panting and bleeding, stumbled to the pedestal and grabbed the Fragment. She clutched it to her chest, a manic light in her eyes, before limping away into another tunnel.
I descended into the cavern and approached the dead man. His body was already being slowly absorbed by the fleshy floor of the labyrinth. My Dark Seed pulsed, not with hunger, but with a somber recognition.
'Another soul for the archive,' I thought, and without needing to touch him, I extended our collective consciousness. The man's fading spirit, his memories of fear and struggle, were gently drawn into us. It was not a violent absorption like before, but more like gathering a fallen leaf. He did not join the chorus as a distinct voice; his essence simply became part of the foundation, strengthening the whole.
This was evolution. My Dark Seed was learning to harvest not just through force, but through empathy and acceptance, even in death.
I now had a clear sense of the remaining Chosen. Jiao was neutralized. One was dead. One had a Fragment. That left six others, including me. And somewhere in this living maze, the real test was waiting.
I closed my eyes, letting the labyrinth's energy flow through me. The Fragment of Primordial Core in my pocket felt like a compass needle, pulling me towards the deepest, most potent source of power.
Towards the Heart of the Parasite.
"That's where we need to go," I whispered.
The collective within me stirred in agreement, mixed with fear and a terrifying sense of anticipation. We were no longer just a participant in Yan's game. We were becoming a player on a much larger board. And we were about to crash the final examination.
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