The first bundle of black chains didn’t go far. It circled around Lith’s body, revealing the presence of the souls that still possessed enough reason to cling to his body. It was their icy touch that Lith had experienced after Leegaain had lifted the barrier.

Their ethereal mass weighed on him like a long shroud made of spectral bodies.

Normally, wandering souls had no substance or ability to interact with the world, not even with Lith. Yet here was different. The destruction of the secret lab had released the Forbidden Magic sealed inside the containment arrays that Raum had carefully laid.

The sudden influx of life force and corrupted world energy was the perfect nourishment for the vengeful souls that the Eldritch had unwittingly spawned by claiming countless lives for his experiments.

It had given the lost souls strength, and, in time, it would have also turned them into Abominations if the Father of All Dragons hadn’t cleansed the area from the lingering corruption with his Origin Flames.

The wandering souls were now trapped in the middle, too close to the world of the living to move on but without the strength to take physical form and vent their anger.

All they could do was trash and scream around, hoping that someone would hear them and come to their aid. From so close, Leegaain heard every scream and understood the few words that made sense, but he had already tried everything he could and failed.