I stared into the void, and as soon as I focused my mind, strings of silver light manifested, forming familiar and complex words before my eyes.
Name: Song Orion.
True Name: —
Rank: Aspirant.
Soul Core: Dormant.
Memories: —
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Flame of Divinity], [Beast], [Hybrid Blood], [Beast Eyes], [@#--)&^%], [Dreamspawn].
Aspect: [Hollow Beast].
Aspect Description: [You are a being who possesses many great abilities, all wasted because of your body, your weakness, and your misfortune. You were born with great blessings but were sentenced to perish.]
"Hmmmm... six attributes?"
Although I didn't know what was considered 'normal' at this stage, possessing six attributes in the First Nightmare was completely abnormal. It would have been wonderful if I weren't certain that half of them were currently useless. I focused my gaze on the attributes to reveal their descriptions:
[Flame of Divinity]: Attribute Description: "Your soul is aflame with the light of divinity."
[Beast]: Attribute Description: "You have inherited the lineage of beast God."
[dreamspwan]: Attribute Description: "You are born of two worlds, belonging to both, but welcomed in neither. Your soul exists on the edge between nightmare and reality."
[@#$%^&]: -----------------
[Hybrid Blood]: You possess absolute authority over your own blood.
[Beast Eyes]: You have inherited the most defining trait of predators... their eyes.
"Alright..." I analyzed the situation calmly. Four of my attributes belonged to my original soul, while two belonged to this body. I had expected an attribute related to my transmigration, but it seemed the Spell was incapable of even describing it. As for [Dreamspawn], it was another attribute confirming my crossing between worlds, while [Beast] and [Flame of Divinity] were the legacy of my lineage from the Beast God.
My survival in this hell would depend entirely on the two attributes I gained from this body; neither my appearance nor my personal traits would be of any use here. Speaking of the nightmare... despite my hesitation, I couldn't help but think of one place.
"The Forgotten Shore... Dammit! Of all places, it had to be this one."
With my known rotten luck, I was certain the Spell would send me here during the Winter Solstice, but to face it as a First Nightmare? I wished the Spell had sent me further back in time, to the moment of the Nephilim's fall.
"Hehehehe... it would have been glorious if I were the one to kill it. A Sacred Great Titan! What kind of Memory would I have received? Or would it be an Echo?" I shook the thought from my head; let's focus on getting out of this hell first.
I focused on the [Beast Eyes] attribute, and soon the world was dyed in different hues. I could see in the darkness with perfect clarity, and... nothing else.
"To hell with you! Is its only function night vision? am I truly cursed?"
I began to feel anxious about testing the other attribute; what if it was just as stupid and useless? [Hybrid Blood]... blood control. I closed my eyes, focusing on the pulse of my heart and the flow of the red liquid in my veins. Suddenly, a strange sensation washed over me; I could feel every drop moving inside my body.
I tried to slow the flow... and it slowed. "Hahahaha! It worked!"
Although I found no immediate use for slowing it down, the opposite was exhilarating. I tried to accelerate the flow... and suddenly, a wave of pure power surged through me. I felt my body operating at double its efficiency, as if every cell had suddenly awakened.
I opened my eyes and stopped concentrating, only for a crushing exhaustion to hit me, nearly knocking me down. "Ah... so that is the price."
But I noticed something else; my divine lineage was reacting to this attribute with a strange harmony. Good, this will serve me well.
Now, I must understand the goal of this nightmare. Is it to stop the seven heroes of the Forgotten Shore and prevent them from creating a sun? "Stop them, my ass!" I scoffed at the thought. If my predictions were correct, they were likely all [Ascended], and among them was that Stone Saint... the ancestor of the Saint we know. An [Ascended] with seven soul cores and the [[Battle Master]] attribute? Suicide is more merciful than trying to fight them.
"However, I am not without ideas."
I need to know when the sacrifice ritual will take place; for whatever the goal is, that moment will be the climax where the nightmare ends. There is also a woman I must meet... and if I am lucky enough, perhaps I will have the honor of killing her.
Speaking of killing, I remembered that stupid egg perched atop the Blessed Tree; the offspring of the Vile Thieving Bird. I wondered curiously: would I obtain a drop of [Ichor of the Daemon of fate] if I killed it within this nightmare? Most likely, the answer is 'no', but killing a Great Demon would certainly grant me something worth the effort... perhaps it isn't a Great Demon yet.
I stood up quietly and brushed the dust off my clothes with care. After a few minutes, when I felt my appearance was polite enough, I turned and set out of the alleyway.
"Step one... information gathering."