Chương 8: Chapter no.9 Survive?!

Zhongli looked around him for a second -he was in a barely lit semi-circular room with three corridors starting from it- before his eyes fell on the cloaked, dragon-masked figure.

The dark skinned boy could feel a weird pressure settled on his shoulder and his heart once again started to beat too fast as his mouth dried up. For the first time, the shadow was making the boy extremely uncomfortable and Zhongli distractedly wiped the palm of his hand on his shirt, trying his best to get his renewed nervousness under control. The figure's presence was simply frightening.

"Lord Dragon," saluted the dark skinned boy after an audible a gulp.

Zhongli knew his usual attitude of laziness toward discipline would not be tolerated here. Or rather, his little finger was telling him testing the limits would be an awful idea and would end in an awful result.

"As I said, you made your first step toward the Shadow Corps." The shadow declared evenly in his distorted, genderless monotone. The figure fished for something within his cloak and held a round, featureless mask a second later in front of Zhongli.

The dark skinned boy observed the mask for a second and wondered why it was completely blank save for a symbol on its forehead. Zhongli paled vaguely when he read it: endure.

"The second step, if you so wish to take it, is to don this mask. But I warn you. The moment you wear it, you will be absolutely forbidden to remove it without my express order or in the secrecy of your cell. No one but me may see you without it. If anyone else does, you will be immediately removed from here. Do I make myself clear?" Dragon explained, his voice taking a cutting edge.

Zhongli nodded but the Shadow Corps member barked, startling the boy. "Do I make myself clear?!"

"Yes, Lord Dragon."

The cloaked shadow nodded. "Good. Once you don this mask, you will officially be considered as a recruit in training after you pass this test. Do you accept it, Xingchen?"

Zhongli looked intently at the white, blank mask and gulped. It was a mask made so he would disappear behind. Zhongli's thoughts swirled once again in a maelstrom of confusion, much to the boy's annoyance.

Was he willing to plunge into the unknown for his revenge? Yes, he had already made his mind, he was too far in to back up!

When the mask would come off, he would probably never be the same.

Zhongli's blue eyes hardened and he gritted his teeth.

Zhongli undid his headband, grabbed the face mask, and fit the straps around his head resolutely, tired to argue with himself.

"Welcome to Shadow Corps, Recruit. I am general Dragon."

Zhongli did not start at the dismissal of his real name. He accepted it silently and nodded. He had just accepted to disappear after all. Zhongli saluted as he was taught. "At your orders, general!"

Dragon observed the salute silently. It was sloppy and unpracticed but one could not expect much more from an orphan straight out of the Academy. It would be drilled, like many other things.

"Shadow Corps is a family that thrives in the night so that the Immortal Demon Sect may see another day. We deal with threat a conventional force may not deal with. Much like a family, the Shadow Corps supports its members. But there is one difference with a traditional family," said Dragon in his monotone. "Can you guess what this difference is, Recruit?"

Zhongli thought for a second before answering. "I have to prove myself, general."

Dragon nodded. "Excellent thinking Recruit. The Shadow Corps is a family whose members deserve to be part of. They won their place. It is up to you to do the same." The cloaked shadow snapped his fingers and suddenly, three new shadows joined the figure.

"Recruit, this is team Rho. They will oversee your training and test you. They will be the harshest taskmasters you will ever encounter but they will be absolutely fair, that I can guarantee you. If they can accept you, then the Shadow Corps can as well." The general explained while motioning towards the three masked members who had just appeared.

"But you have to pass the test before you are an official recruit."

Zhongli's eyes curiously bore into the man who answered his unspoken question.

"Yes, recruit, the test you will have to endure is the formation of a special grade martial. Unlike most sects, the Shadow Corps only allows those with the Ossuary Basilisk's Martial Skeleton to join."

Zhongli raised his hand as Dragon queued him to speak.

"General, doesn't the cradle of shadows give various martial skeletons to the first year ?"

"A valid question recruit, but you are mistaken, the cradle of shadows allows individuals to take a test to determine their martial skeleton but the formation of the martial skeleton takes places as their graduation test. Only those with potential and talent are taken into the shadow corps with the first test being, the same as their graduation test, the formation of the martial skeleton."

"Before I allow you to go take the test, here is a riddle that was given to us by our founder, one each recruit must solve." Dragon continued, staring intently at the masked Zhongli who felt himself sweat. "Love, or power? Reflect on this riddle, Recruit. Now go."

All three masked individuals saluted and Zhongli did a second later. "Hai, general!" They all chorused.

Dragon nodded once and departed in the rightmost corridor, leaving three seasoned Shadows and one little masked newbie for them to break. Zhongli shuddered; he could feel all three shadows smiling behind their masks and they all were giving off more or less wicked vibes.

"Let us begin," said a distinctly male, monotonous voice as the tallest of the three individuals approached Zhongli. "What's your name."

The boy was ready to answer with a "Zhongli Xingchen" but the orders of Dragon rang in his head and stopped him. Not only had the man made clear Zhongli was not to remove his mask but the moment he had put his mask on, the general had ceased to call the boy by his name and had immediately switched to "Recruit".

His identity was part of the mask. Zhongli gulped. As long as he was wearing this mask, he was "Recruit".

"I apologize…" Zhongli searched quickly for a sign that would give him the rank of the shadow but he could find none of the classical one taught at the Academy. "Officer, but I'm not supposed to reveal my identity," said the boy, bowing.

The shadow nodded. "You catch on quick," said the man while keeping his voice neutral.

"But you aren't an official recruit until you survive the formation of a martial skeleton."

"Survive?!' Zhongli thought with a silent gulp.

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