After finishing his thoughts on the mana of the world, the mana from his Infinity Crystals, and what Qi was.
He shifted his attention to the last two terms that had caught his attention on the screen.
Plague King Hive and Gu Path Domain.
He had been focusing on the Death Qi part of the definition for so long that he hadn’t truly taken the ti to go through the last two words properly.
Corey knew that the two terms were important, but he did not understand what either of them ant in the slightest.
However, he had his suspicions.
He took a slow breath, then exhaled gently with his gaze still fixed on the translucent screen floating in front of him.
The words did not change. They did not explain themselves.
So he began to think.
The word "Hive" was not strange to him. It signified a collective, a colony, a unified swarm that operated as one.
Hives were not chaotic. They were extrely structured, and was either ruled by a Queen or a King. It did not matter what race or type of creature a hive was made up of, they always had structure.
So the mont he saw the words, Plague King Hive, Corey’s mind did not jump to chaos. It jumped to order. To hierarchy. To power.
He took another breath.
Then the first word which was Plague.
It ant disease, rot, death, and decay.
But it also ant more.
Plagues did not spread without purpose. They infiltrated. They adapted... And they evolved.
The combination of those three words- Plague. King. Hive- was terrifying in its implications.
Did it an that his Maledro’s Gu would beco a sentient hive of diseases? Did it an that they would operate under a collective mind? Did it an one of them would beco a king? Or would they all beco kings in their own right?
Or worse...
Would he beco the King of the Hive?
Corey knew that the connection between him and his Gu was on a soul level because of how he had tad them.
This connection allowed him to control them however he wanted, and they could not disobey him or harm him because of that.
However, Corey had a feeling that if he beca their King, it would be a different feeling and experience.
He was currently using his soul and spiritual energy to manipulate the Maledro’s Gu, but if he was their King, he had a feeling that he would not need to use any of that to control them and give them instructions.
In fact, he had a feeling that his Maledro’s Gu might start acting out on their own to protect him in so instances.
The difference might not seem like much, but if he was right, the difference was sothing he could not ignore.
’If I’m to compare... I’ll say that I’m currently their master and they’re my slaves that have no choice but to do my bidding.’
’They obey , but not willingly.’
’But if I was their King... They would not only co to obey and respect willingly, they would do things that I wouldn’t even command them to do... Things that they believe would be for my benefit or protection.’
’That’s the difference.’
Corey’s gaze narrowed, and then his mind went back to the term once again.
’Plague King Hive...’
He was no stranger to horror. He had seen death occur all around him, almost experienced it himself. He had fought nightmarish beings that could shatter mountains, flatten cities, and split the seas. He had walked through storms of blood and laughed as monsters clawed at his skin.
But this?
The thought of becoming the ruler of a hive composed of Gu born from plague and death?
There was a strange thrill in his chest.
Not fear.
Not disgust.
But fascination.
This feeling might seem strange to others, and it even seed strange to him at first. But when he thought about it... It made sense, in a way.
He was a Poison Warlock. His mana was toxic in nature.
His body had adapted to poisons and venoms that could kill Tier 4s and Tier 5s with a single touch. His very presence if he truly unleashed it, radiated a sort of natural repulsion to purity.
So why not?
Why not beco a Plague King?
’No...’
His eyes glowed slightly.
Not just a Plague King.
The Plague King.
A soft and brief chuckle escaped his lips when he had this fleeting thought. He tilted his head slightly, and the smile that curled at the edge of his lips was neither amused nor cruel.
It was calculating.
Then his gaze drifted to the next terms- Gu Path Domain.
It was just as vague. Just as mysterious, and it was a new term that Corey was just hearing for the first ti.
’Path Domain’
He has encountered the word Path several tis in the past, and it was not sothing that people threw around carelessly
He went through the books and scrolls he took from the Archive, and also the recorded books of the Underworld.
In so of the texts he found, most especially the books of the Archive, he ca to realize that Paths were everything.
To walk a path was to forge an identity. To create a path was to define your destiny.
He saw several paths in the books of the Archive. For example, Martial Paths, Dao Paths, Blade Paths, Blood Paths, and so on.
He did not completely understand what a Path was since he was combing through tens of thousands of books at once to find things related to Paths.
Although he didn’t understand much, what he found was enough for him to have an idea about what Paths were.
He found nothing about there being a Gu Path, and he could guess why.
The path of poison was a path very few chose because of how it was perceived and the stereotypic view people had on it.
And there were even so organisations that disdained poison users or even branded them as evil despite not committing any evil act.
Although he had not gone through all the knowledge he gained from the Archive, so he might still find sothing on poisons, the path of poison, and most especially... The Gu Path.
Corey was fairly certain that the Gu Path was a branch of the Poison Path, and if he was correct, it was most likely a path that few walked because of its... intricacies and dangers.
For there to be a Gu Path, it ant that there was a system. A sequence. A progression. A Way of the Gu.
And to Corey, that made it dangerous to a certain degree. Although this was just him overreacting.
Why did he believe that it was dangerous?
Because if there was a Gu Path, and if there was a Gu Path Domain, then it ant that there were beings... powerful beings that were most likely beyond Tier 7s, Tier 8s, and the likes, who had created, studied, evolved, and walked this Path.
It ant the Path had depth.
It ant the Path had a legacy.
And the Universal System was saying that if he used the Maledro’s Gu Evolution Catalyst, he would unlock that Domain.
Although he had no idea what a Path Domain was, he could guess that it was sothing significant.
As for how significant?
He had no idea.
He only just hoped that walking this path would not limit him in anyway.
His goal was to reach the heights of the Paragon Ancestor and Supre Ancestor, maybe even surpass them, and he just hoped that the Path Domain he would unlock would be imnsely helpful to the end.
A Domain was not a simple thing. It was not just an area of effect. It was an embodint of understanding. A projection of one’s will into the world. A Domain was the territory of a master.
And now he was being offered a Path and a Domain tied to Gu.
He was curious.
What sort of powers would that bring?
Would it allow him to command all Gu? Would it allow him to manipulate plagues like strings? Would his control expand to not just his Gu, but to every poisonous insect, parasite, and disease that walked the world?
The thought alone sent a chill of excitent down his spine.
’Is that what the Plague King Hive truly ans?’
’A mobile domain of sapient Gu that evolve and adapt... built on death and decay?’
’Will I be able to use them more than weapons? As soldiers? As spies that could communicate back to ?’
’Will I beco a walking calamity?’
’No... a creeping one.’ He chuckled inwardly.
He rembered how he had once thought of poison as his secondary weapon.
But this?
This was a path, a form of power he could not ignore.
This was poison given structure. Poison given thought. It was the evolution of his power into sothing that was truly deadly.
And if the Gu gains sapience...?
Then they could learn.
They could grow.
They could worship.
A twisted thought word through his mind, and a wry smile appeared on his lips.
If the Gu worship him, what would he beco?
Not just a Plague King.
But a Plague God.
’Well... I don’t think I want to beco a Plague God.’ The corners of his lips twitched.
Corey exhaled once more, and then he looked at Maledro’s Gu that was still feasting on Eidolon’s corpse.
He could feel so of them going through a change, and then they would fall into a deep sleep.
Whenever they fell asleep, he sent them back into his Poison Infinity Crystal, and he observed them for so ti before shifting his attention to the last reward.
Death’s Key
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