Through the thick black smoke and debris, Elder Vyom's divine energy suddenly flared once again.
He had not given up.
With a sharp motion, Vyom raised both hands and hurled the golden-white Divine Barrier upward.
The barrier shot into the sky like a missile and slammed directly into the dark shadow hovering above.
CRACK!
A brilliant golden streak split across the sky, tearing through the darkness for a brief moment.
The shadow was forced to retreat slightly.
Vyom steadied himself.
Blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth, and his entire body felt like it was breaking apart. Using what little divine energy he had left, he began healing his wounds. Sweat ran down his forehead.
For someone born without divine energy, controlling it is truly difficult, he thought to himself.
I should have brought my magic staff… but—
Before he could finish the thought, the dark energy surrounding the area thickened around him.
The air turned cold.
The smell of ozone grew stronger.
Right behind Vyom, another dark shadow slowly emerged from the darkness.
Vyom sensed it instantly.
But before he could turn around, the shadow placed its cold, decaying hand against his back.
BOOM!
A violent shockwave exploded.
Elder Vyom was thrown hundreds of feet through the air. His body flew straight toward the massive, terrifying tree that stood near the entrance of the underground chamber.
The tree's branches stretched out like the fingers of a monstrous creature, ready to swallow him whole.
Even while falling, Vyom gathered his divine energy and shaped it into a Divine Spear.
With a shout, he hurled it toward the tree.
The spear struck the trunk and exploded with a thunderous blast. The upper part of the tree ignited in flames, and its branches recoiled violently.
Vyom twisted his body in midair and landed roughly on the ground, sliding across the dirt before finally stopping a short distance away from the burning tree.
He struggled to stand, breathing heavily.
At that moment—
The first dark shadow rushed toward him again.
Its rotting arms stretched outward, extending like streams of black smoke as they lunged toward Vyom.
But Elder Vyom refused to surrender.
Gathering the last of his strength, he raised both hands and unleashed a barrage of golden Divine Energy rays toward the shadow.
Once again, the battlefield erupted with explosions, flashes of light, and the clash of darkness and divine power.
---
"No," the dragon said, taking a heavy breath. "Lucian carries both Hell and Heaven energy—dark and divine—within him. That spirit has somehow suppressed his divine energy, breaking the dam that was holding back the power of hell."
The dragon's voice grew darker.
"If this continues, your brother will not die…"
"He will become an evil monster himself."
Lyra's heart sank.
Her face turned pale.
"Then we have to go down there right now!" she said anxiously. "We need to separate my brother from that evil spirit as quickly as possible."
The dragon began moving toward the other side of the pit.
"Listen carefully," it said.
"Even though the seal of the evil spirit has weakened, it has not completely broken yet. If it had, we would have already been turned to ashes."
It paused before continuing.
"But that does not mean fighting it will be easy. That spirit is extremely dangerous."
"You will stay behind until I say otherwise."
"No!" Lyra interrupted immediately.
"Why should I stay behind? You're going to face that dangerous evil sprite!"
The dragon growled in annoyance.
"I'm not going there to fight. I'm going to free your brother."
"Right now, that spirit's full attention is on Elder Vyom. While it is distracted, I will pull your brother out of there."
"I can do this alone. You just keep a safe distance."
Another thunderous explosion echoed across the battlefield.
Lyra heard it clearly, but she forced herself to stay calm. She carefully considered the dragon spirit's words.
---
The explosion on the battlefield was so powerful that its echo traveled for miles.
When Finn heard the sound while running, he immediately realized where everyone was.
He pushed himself even faster.
Sparks of lightning flashed beneath his feet as he accelerated.
---
On the battlefield, Elder Vyom took advantage of the brief opening.
As soon as the dark shadow staggered back and its feet touched the ground for a moment, Elder gathered every last drop of his remaining Divine Energy.
He raised his hands and traced ancient symbols in the air.
A series of Ancient Runes began forming around the shadow.
The glowing words burned with golden light.
Chains of light burst from the runes and spread around the dark shadow like a net.
But the cost was severe.
Blood began flowing from Elder Vyom's nose and eyes.
Because of the Divine Backlash, his body felt like it was burning from the inside. Holding the seal together required tremendous effort and time.
The dark shadow, now trapped within the net, struggled violently, trying to break free from the forming seal.
Elder's grip was weakening.
But then—
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning tore through the darkness.
The lightning struck the shadow directly.
The powerful impact shook the dark figure violently, weakening it for a brief moment.
Elder Vyom didn't waste the opportunity.
Gathering the last of his strength, he forced the seal to close completely.
"Aaaaargh!"
The dark shadow released a horrifying scream that echoed throughout the forest like a tormented soul.
Elder's blurry, blood-stained eyes immediately turned toward the direction from which the lightning had come.
Through the smoke and dust, a boy was running toward them like a madman.
Finn Ashwood.
He had finally arrived.
---
Lyra understood that right now she would only become a burden to the dragon.
"…Alright," she said quietly.
"But promise me you'll bring my brother back safely."
"And don't put yourself in danger. If something goes wrong, call for me. I'll come immediately."
The dragon lowered its head in agreement.
It gently placed Lyra at the safe edge of the pit.
Then, the dragon moved silently toward the depths below.
The dragon gathered the rainbow-colored energy surrounding his body and condensed it into a thin layer of black smoke. His presence was now almost completely hidden within the overwhelming dark aura.
The air inside the underground chamber was rotten. With every breath, the sharp smell of blood and decay filled his lungs.
The atmosphere here was a hundred times more terrifying than the forest above.
As the dragon moved forward, he realized that the dark energy in this place was not normal.
It was heavy.
Ancient runes carved into the ground—runes that once protected this place—were now shattered and scattered. The air had become unbearably dense and hot, as if the gates of hell had been left open.
Suddenly, the dragon stopped.
His glowing eyes fixed on a corner of the darkness where the strongest energy was coming from.
There—
A boy was kneeling on the ground.
Lucian.
His head was lowered, and his long hair covered most of his face. His entire body was bound by chains that looked like solidified black blood. Those chains were not just restraining him—they were embedded into his flesh, as if they had merged with his veins.
And then—
The dragon's gaze shifted to Lucian's stomach.
From Lucian's stomach, a deep red and black energy—like something straight out of hell—was pouring out.
The moment the dragon took a step forward, a violent surge of that energy pushed him back. Even the massive dragon staggered under that pressure.
This boy… he is no longer human, the dragon thought to himself.
Lucian had become a living source of destruction.
Like a beating heart.
With every pulse, that hellish energy burst outward and spread through the entire chamber.
The dragon tried to step forward again—
but immediately stopped.
His eyes suddenly shifted to the figure standing in front of Lucian.
A twisted shape was bound by several dark chains. Black blood—like pure dark energy—was flowing from its eyes and body. Yet it remained completely still, like a lifeless puppet.
The chains emerging from Lucian's stomach were piercing straight into the chest of that evil spirit, draining his hell energy.
The dragon spirit instantly understood that his guess had been correct.
If this continued, the evil spirit's seal would completely break very soon.
He had to separate Lucian from that spirit before it was too late.
But freeing Lucian from those chains without drawing the evil spirit's attention was impossible.
To break them, he would have to launch a powerful attack.
---
Above the surface, Elder Vyom had used all his strength to seal the black shadow.
But it didn't feel like a victory.
The sealed shadow was screaming violently from inside the seal.
The entire ground trembled.
A terrifying soul pressure spread in every direction, making it difficult for Elder Vyom to breathe. It felt as if his very soul might be torn out of his body at any moment.
Finn created a ring of lightning magic around himself so he could withstand the overwhelming pressure. Then he rushed toward Elder Vyom.
"Elder! Is everything alright? Where is Lyra? Where is Lucian? And what is that black thing? Did we win? Why do you look so exhausted?" Finn fired off a barrage of questions in a single breath.
Elder Vyom spat out blood mixed with saliva and said irritably, "Quiet, Finn! Do you never know how to stay calm while working?"
Finn quickly turned his head. The moment his eyes fell on the sealed shadow, the color drained from his face.
"W-what… what kind of monster is that?"
Vyom's expression turned serious. "We must keep it sealed here until we go down and destroy the real evil spirit. Come on, Finn. We're going down."
Finn couldn't stop himself from asking another question.
"Do you know what happened to Lyra? I think that dragon sprite was with her—the one who caused that terrifying explosion. Do you know where she is?"
Elder Vyom kept walking forward, his face filled with exhaustion. In an irritated, heavy voice he said,
"I don't have time to explain everything to you right now, Finn. But I saw Lyra here earlier. She probably came with the dragon to save her brother. I'm not worried about her—the dragon sprite is with her, so she should be safe. But we need to go quickly and help them. They can't handle that thing alone."
The two of them had barely taken a few steps when suddenly—
BOOM!
A violent surge of hell energy suddenly exploded.
Black smoke swallowed the entire battlefield.
As the smoke slowly cleared, Elder Vyom's old eyes widened in shock.
The seal… was gone.
The black shadow now stood freely before them.
Elder Vyom clenched his teeth in frustration. He couldn't believe that someone had managed to break a Divine seal.
Beside him, Finn's face twisted with a mixture of fear and anger.
"Seriously?! We just sealed it a moment ago! And it's already out again?" Finn groaned. "What are we supposed to do now? I really don't want to fight that thing… but it looks like we don't have a choice!"
He pulled his lightning sword out of its sheath.
Then—
A terrifying roar echoed from deep beneath the ground.
It was the howl of the evil spirit.
The voice was so powerful that even the black shadow standing before them began to tremble.
The form of the shadow started to distort. Its energy became unstable, and its shape slowly began to fade.
Elder Vyom's face turned pale.
He understood immediately.
"Something is wrong below… that spirit is furious."
Elder turned to Finn and shouted, "Finn! I don't know what's happening down there, but we must hold this shadow here!"
Inside his mind, however, another thought surfaced.
Lyra… I think you will save your brother after all.
You carry the blood of Ravencrest.
You can do it.
At the same moment, Finn swung his sword and unleashed a Lightning Flash toward the black shadow.
---
Down in the underground chamber, the dragon condensed his divine energy into something as sharp as a needle and struck directly at the main chain binding Lucian.
That strike was what made the spirit scream.
The dragon pushed with all his strength, trying to break the chain.
Then—
Lucian's lowered head slowly lifted.
His eyes…
They were no longer silver.
They had turned completely black, like a bottomless abyss.
Lucian's lips moved, and a voice came out—one that did not sound human.
"It's too late…"
In the very next moment, a violent burst of hell energy exploded from Lucian's body, engulfing the entire underground chamber.
The violent shockwave sent Lyra flying through the air. She crashed hard into a pile of broken stones several meters away. The tiny firefly sprite slipped from her hands and was thrown somewhere into the darkness.
Lyra's vision began to blur as darkness crept into the edges of her sight.
Then suddenly—
A terrifying mass of dark energy began forming around her.
The oppressive aura spread rapidly, so heavy that even the dragon's radiant presence started to fade under its pressure.
Lyra struggled to breathe.
The dark energy wrapped around her body like a tightening cage, slowly seeping into her.
Pain shot through her chest and limbs as the crushing pressure intensified.
Within moments, her consciousness began slipping away.
Everything went black.
She collapsed, completely unconscious.
At that exact moment, the entire chamber began to tremble violently. Deep cracks spread across the walls, and massive chunks of rock broke loose from the ceiling, crashing down onto the ground.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield above—
Finn's lightning-charged sword sliced through the air and struck straight through the black shadow.
The blade passed through its body without any resistance.
Finn quickly steadied himself and launched a rapid series of sword strikes, each one faster than the last.
But it was useless.
The force of his attacks carved deep craters into the ground, yet the mysterious shadow remained completely unharmed.
Not even a scratch appeared on its form.
Finn leaped back, breathing heavily.
The lightning crackling around his body was beginning to fade.
The pressure of the dark energy in the air had grown so intense that every breath felt painfully heavy.
It was becoming harder and harder to even stand.
Damn it… why isn't any of my attacks working? Finn cursed in his mind.
My soul energy is running out… At this rate, I'm going to collapse. And this dark energy… it feels like it's just waiting for me to fall.
Staggering slightly, Finn stepped toward Elder Vyom, keeping his eyes fixed on the shadow.
"Elder! Do you know how to destroy this thing?" he shouted. "None of my attacks can even touch it!"
Elder Vyom remained silent.
His hardened eyes were locked onto the black shadow, as if he were searching for something hidden within it.
Finn glanced at him with frustration.
"Elder! Do you even know what this thing is? I can't keep fighting like this!"
Elder Vyom took a slow, deep breath. The blood flowing from his wounds had already begun to dry.
"You did well, Finn," he said quietly.
"Elder! I'm not asking for praise!" Finn snapped. "Just tell me how we're supposed to kill this thing!"
But Elder Vyom didn't respond.
The shadow still stood there like a lifeless statue.
Gritting his teeth, Finn tightened his grip on his sword and prepared to launch one last attack.
Just as he was about to move—
A sharp voice rang out from behind him.
"Stop, Finn!"
Finn immediately lowered his sword toward the ground. He was breathing heavily.
Turning back with irritation, he said,
"Now what, Elder? Why did you stop me?"
"Finn, step back," Elder Vyom said. His voice was calm now—cold and serious.
Finn shook his head in irritation and walked back to stand beside him, muttering under his breath.
What's wrong with this old man now…? Why is he silent again?
Elder glanced at him and asked quietly,
"Did you notice something? When you attacked it… it never fought back. That thing is powerful enough to kill you in an instant, yet it didn't even try. Do you understand what that means?"
Finn frowned, making a confused face.
"What… what does that even mean?"
"I'm not entirely sure either," Elder replied.
Finn was about to curse in frustration, but Elder continued before he could speak.
"It seems something is happening below. The Evil Spirit must have lost its connection with this shadow. This is our only chance to destroy it in one strike."
"Elder! I've been shouting the same thing this whole time! None of my attacks are working on it!"
Elder interrupted him sharply.
"Step back. Ordinary magic or soul energy won't work on it. To destroy that thing… we need Divine Energy."
Elder Vyom gathered the last remnants of divine power inside his body and concentrated them in his palms.
Within seconds, a brilliant sphere of pure light condensed between his hands.
Gritting his teeth, he poured every bit of strength he had into it and hurled the glowing sphere straight at the black shadow.
The shadow did not move.
It stood there like a lifeless statue.
The moment the sphere of Divine Energy struck it—
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion echoed through the battlefield.
For an instant, it looked as if a small sun had risen inside the darkness.
Blinding white light swallowed everything.
And then—
A horrifying scream echoed through the air.
The black shadow began to break apart like smoke.
Its form trembled, tore apart, and slowly scattered into the wind.
Within moments, it completely vanished.
The enemy was gone.
But the moment the shadow disappeared, Elder Vyom's body finally gave out.
Blood suddenly burst from his nose, ears, and eyes.
Trying to cover his mouth with shaking hands, he collapsed onto his knees.
The overwhelming release of Divine Energy had been suicidal for his aging body.
That power had burned him from the inside.
"Elder!" Finn shouted.
He rushed forward and caught him before he could fall completely. Supporting him with his shoulder, Finn gently helped him sit down.
But Elder's condition was getting worse with every passing second.
He could no longer control the divine energy flowing through his body, and the surrounding dark aura began circling him like hungry wolves.
Panicking, Finn tried to heal him using his own magic energy.
But nothing worked.
Elder coughed weakly before speaking.
"Don't… worry… I'm fine. I'm not going to die that easily. I'm just… a little tired."
He took a slow breath.
"That shadow could only be destroyed with Divine Energy. My old body just couldn't handle that much power. Magic won't work here, Finn… the dark energy here contains traces of Hell Energy. It neutralizes normal healing."
Tears had begun streaming down Finn's face.
Elder Vyom wasn't just his teacher.
He was like a father to Finn and Maisie—the one who had raised them since childhood.
Seeing him in this condition felt like a nightmare.
Elder gently placed his hand on Finn's head and spoke softly, almost like comforting a child.
"Don't cry… We still have to go down there and help the others. I'm recovering. Help me up… take me inside."
Finn hesitated.
"No… your condition—"
But he stopped mid-sentence.
His eyes widened in shock.
The deep wounds on Elder's body were slowly beginning to close on their own.
Finn had no idea how this was happening, but relief flooded through him.
Carefully, he helped Elder stand.
Supporting him firmly, Finn began walking toward the entrance of the underground chamber.
Their steps were steady.
The real battle… was waiting below.