Chapter Forty-Nine: The Pact Signed

A harmonious radiance suddenly appeared in the sky, then transformed into a beam of light that descended, bathing Judah in its brilliance. Judah’s expression was filled with reverence as he knelt respectfully on the ground, receiving the blessing and grace bestowed upon him by the supreme will.

Cold Sky’s gaze never left the spot where the beam had manifested; he was eager to see what method the so-called supreme will would use to forge a contract between the Shadow Demon and himself.

At the very pinnacle of the beam, where it first appeared, a vague eye slowly opened, its blood-red iris embedded within the peaceful light. Witnessing this bizarre sight, Cold Sky was reminded of a story from his childhood—a wolf disguised in sheep’s clothing, deceiving the gentle lambs before devouring them mercilessly. The serene glow paired with the crimson eye naturally brought the tale to mind.

Judah kept his head bowed, kneeling motionless on the ground, not daring to look up at the changes unfolding in the sky, patiently awaiting the supreme will’s decree.

The blood-red eye, following the beam, stared directly at Judah below. As the enormous eye blinked, a scarlet sigil appeared within its depths. The sigil detached from the eye, descending slowly along the beam. Though it seemed slow, it was merely an illusion; in the span of a single breath, it reached Judah’s crown.

Time seemed to freeze, space was transcended—the supreme will indeed acted in a manner that defied all imagination. In that instant, Cold Sky sensed the wondrous alteration of time and space.

The scarlet sigil rotated above Judah’s head, its crimson light penetrating his mind and extracting his spiritual essence. The sigil gradually shrank, merging into his soul.

Cold Sky stood aside, observing it all. He could not move; from the moment the giant eye appeared, a force had bound his body so completely that only his eyelids could move, while all other parts were immobilized—even his spiritual consciousness could not stir.

Once the sigil fused into Judah’s soul, all motion ceased; only his essence remained suspended above his head, unmoving, until after a few breaths, a blood-red light began to seep forth.

A solid, palm-sized, crimson rune emerged from Judah’s soul, spinning as it floated toward Cold Sky. As it approached, it continued to shrink, until only a thumb-sized rune remained before Cold Sky’s forehead.

Without pausing, the rune embedded itself in Cold Sky’s brow. He felt a coolness in his mind, then nothing more, yet a faint stream of information clearly entered his consciousness.

This information detailed the link between him and Judah; the scarlet rune had branded Judah’s life mark, giving Cold Sky the power to control Judah’s freedom at any time, or even to imprison him. However, he could not kill Judah, as their souls now shared life—this was why the rune had merged into his mind.

After absorbing all the information, Cold Sky felt the urge to curse. Shared life—meaning, if the Shadow Demon perished, it could resurrect by borrowing his vitality; but if he died, relying on the Shadow Demon’s peculiar life force, revival was utterly impossible!

Once the blood-red eye had completed its work, it vanished within the beam, and the peaceful light enveloping Judah dispersed into nothingness.

Cold Sky regained his freedom at the same moment. The first thing he did was unleash a furious kick at Judah’s crotch. Yet, despite his rage-fueled strike, his foot passed straight through Judah’s body, meeting no resistance.

“Boss, what are you doing? I’m your little brother! We just became sworn brothers, and you’re already treating me like this!”

Judah’s shadowy form leapt high, fleeing far away to avoid another attack from Cold Sky.

“Explain yourself! What’s going on here? How are our lives bound together—is this your doing?”

Before Cold Sky finished speaking, he appeared before Judah, aiming another kick at his face, but again struck nothing but air.

Judah dodged nimbly as soon as Cold Sky’s foot moved, whining pitifully, “Boss, I didn’t do anything to provoke you! Too much anger is bad for you!”

Seeing Judah’s tone and expression only fueled Cold Sky’s nameless rage further. At his command, thunder roared across the sky, shaking the air with deafening blasts.

“Heh, it seems I, Judah, still outsmart you! No matter how powerful you are, you can’t escape my scheming. From now on, as long as you live, this demon shall be eternal!”

Judah was delighted—though the contract was bestowed by the supreme will, he was the real protagonist, with Cold Sky passive and himself active. Thus, he could make subtle modifications to the contract.

Just as he was rejoicing, the thunder jolted him from his reverie. He looked at Cold Sky, feeling a chill run down his spine. Judah thought to himself, “That smile could terrify even demons! Something’s wrong—I’d better…”

Before he could finish his thought, a bolt of lightning engulfed him. No sooner had it faded than another struck, followed by thick, arm-sized bolts crashing down one after another, completely obscuring Judah from sight.

“Boss, could you give me a few strikes as well? Heh heh…”

Cold Sky turned to Maximus. “What, is being struck by lightning that exhilarating?”

“No, I just want to temper my scales with lightning. We golden dragons are born able to absorb lightning to refine our bodies!”

“That’s quite the ability! Well, there’s plenty of lightning to go around.” Cold Sky smiled warmly, and with a wave of his hand, lightning rained down. Maximus lay on the ground, seemingly enjoying the sensation.

Cold Sky was quite satisfied with Maximus—so this journey to the Ancient Realm included benefits for him as well. At the very least, bearing the title of Dragon Warrior shouldn’t be wasted on a weak reputation.

“Boss, please spare me! I’ll never do it again! I haven’t done anything to wrong you—I’m innocent!” Judah howled like a slaughtered pig in Cold Sky’s mind.

After a while, Cold Sky’s anger had mostly faded. Hearing Judah’s pleas, he withdrew the lightning. The flashes gradually receded, revealing the miserable figure within.

Seeing Judah’s condition, Cold Sky was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, doubling over in amusement. Judah’s face was dark and bitter, his green eyes full of grievance.

“Yes, that’s it—the more aggrieved, the better. Otherwise, this fellow will keep probing about the contract. I must be careful; he’s a fickle one.”

Judah thought to himself, squeezing out two tears and standing there, gazing at Cold Sky in anguish.

Cold Sky laughed so hard because Judah’s transformation was simply too much—a sight both absurd and comical. Once tall and imposing, Judah had now become a dwarf, with short limbs and a stout waist. His deep green eyes had narrowed to slits with a glimmer of tears, looking like a second Strongman. How could Cold Sky not laugh?

“Who would’ve thought lightning could have slimming effects! How did you end up like Strongman? Well, at least you two can be companions. Heh heh…”

Cold Sky grinned mischievously. After laughing, he grew stern and said to Judah, “Drop that pitiful look, or do you want to be condensed even further?”

“Oh, boss, please no more—I can’t take any more punishment!” Judah fidgeted, twisting his fingers.

“Hurry up and come over here. Tell me how to exit the spatial corridor!”

Judah’s expression instantly turned to delight. His short figure twisted in a ghostly manner as he appeared close to Cold Sky, grinning. “Boss, why don’t we collect all the Shadow Demons?”

“Look at that sneaky face—you’re planning to betray your own kind!”

“Boss, you see right through me! Here’s the plan…”

Judah floated to Cold Sky’s ear, whispering cautiously.

After he finished, Cold Sky flashed away, leaving Judah floating alone in confusion.

Boom!

A bolt of lightning sent Judah flying. Cold Sky’s cold voice reached Judah’s ears as he tumbled through the air.

“From now on, if you have something to say, just say it. If you keep sneaking around, I’ll zap you into a tiny bean!”

Cold Sky was truly angry—Judah rivaled Strongman in sneakiness. If not for the shared-life contract, he’d have struck him dead already.

“Come here—follow me out. Put on a good show, or I’ll make you bathe in lightning again!” Still, Cold Sky was quite pleased with Judah’s earlier trap.

Judah hurried back, “Let’s go, boss!”

He said this as he merged into Cold Sky’s brow, and Cold Sky left the Inferno with a faint smile.

Within the spatial corridor, several Shadow Demons gathered around a crimson sphere, discussing among themselves.

“Brothers, does anyone know what this is? Ever since that human disappeared with Judah and his brothers, this thing appeared here. I’ve studied it for ages and found nothing suspicious!”

The speaker was the same Shadow Demon who had previously witnessed Cold Sky’s disappearance with Judah and his brothers. After Cold Sky entered the Inferno, he discovered it nearby.

He’d studied it for a long time, unable to discern its nature. He tried to devour the Inferno, but no matter how hard he tried, an irresistible force repelled him.

If the divine being who forged the Inferno knew, he’d likely traverse endless time and space to strangle him!

Actually, Cold Sky had not yet mastered the Inferno’s functions. He could have transformed it into a speck of dust, imperceptible even to the divine senses of a Saint. The main issue was that Cold Sky’s cultivation was too low, preventing him from further control.

Martial Peak 49—Chapter Forty-Nine: Signing the Contract, update complete!