As the golden-haired, golden-eyed man finished relaying his orders, he formed a series of hand seals with practiced precision before slamming his palm onto the ground.
The earth trembled violently.
A deep rumble echoed beneath the hall as the ground split apart, revealing a spiralling staircase descending into darkness.
Without hesitation, the man picked up an ox-shaped mask and draped a black cloak over his shoulders before calmly walking downward.
At the bottom of the staircase lay a massive underground chamber.
The hall was dimly lit yet meticulously arranged, with ancient symbols carved into black metallic walls that seemed to absorb light itself. At the centre stood a large circular table forged from an unfamiliar dark alloy. Hovering around it were eleven shadowy figures, each cloaked in black and wearing different animal masks.
As the newcomer approached, the figure wearing a snake mask leaned back slightly and spoke with annoyance.
"Levi… why have you called this impromptu meeting?"
Levi ignored him entirely and took his seat at the table.
The snake-masked man snorted coldly but said nothing further.
After a brief silence, Levi finally spoke.
"I called this meeting because both a great opportunity… and a great disaster… have arrived."
The atmosphere immediately changed.
Even beneath the masks, Levi could sense the mixture of excitement and unease radiating from the others.
"Everyone here has heard of the Tomb of the Hollow Saint, correct?"
"We have," several voices answered.
Levi slowly nodded.
"What none of you know… is that it was never a tomb."
A brief pause.
"It was a prison."
The room instantly fell silent.
"That," Levi continued, "is also the reason our elusive leader assigned me to this energy-deprived region in the first place."
The snake-masked man spoke again.
"If it's merely a prison, why should it concern us?"
Once again, Levi ignored the interruption.
"That prison holds The First Fallen."
The room exploded into commotion.
"Wait… you mean—"
"Veyrath the Heretic?!"
Levi nodded calmly.
"Yes."
Shock spread through the chamber.
"So Veyrath the Heretic… was actually the Hollow Saint?"
"That's impossible," another figure muttered. "The Hollow Saint existed long before the rise of Veyrath."
Levi shook his head.
"The Hollow Saint was once revered as the greatest alchemist and soul engineer of his era. A peerless genius. He believed the heavens themselves were flawed — that weak flesh, unstable meridians, sickness, aging, and limited lifespans were merely defects in divine design."
His voice grew heavier.
"But his obsession drove him beyond reason."
"He began experimenting with corpse refinement, beast-gene fusion, forced spiritual mutation, and forbidden bloodline grafting."
The room became deathly quiet.
"Entire kingdoms were transformed into grotesque hybrid armies. Men became monsters. Beasts became abominations. Even souls themselves were twisted."
"From that day onward, the Hollow Saint ceased to exist."
"Only Veyrath the Heretic remained."
Levi folded his hands together.
"Nine ancient powers united to destroy him. Yet even together, they failed to kill him completely. In the end, they sealed him inside a sub-dimensional prison hidden beneath the Black Mountain Range."
The figures around the table exchanged uneasy glances.
"The reason this history was erased should already be obvious to all of you," Levi said coldly.
Then his tone darkened further.
"But the truly terrifying part… was Veyrath's final words before the seal closed."
Levi slowly looked around the table.
"When the door opens again… humanity will either evolve… or be harvested."
Even the snake-masked man fell silent this time.
Levi continued.
"Our leader's orders are simple."
"Ensure Veyrath remains dead."
"Retrieve every treasure, inheritance, and technique within the NecroGenesis Vault."
"And if Veyrath still lives…"
He paused.
"…then we abandon this continent immediately."
Several heads jerked upward.
"Because if that monster returns… this continent is already doomed."
A heavy silence descended.
"Send your people to cooperate with mine," Levi continued. "The twelve heads of the Mollock Syndicate will begin preparing a full retreat route in case the worst happens."
The snake-masked figure finally spoke again.
"Levi… we all know how loyal you are to the leader. Stop hiding things."
"What is the real value of this vault?"
The others nodded in agreement.
Levi leaned back slightly.
"The true prize is control of the entire NecroGenesis Vault."
"Whoever passes all Five Trials… becomes its master."
The room instantly heated up.
"Then why don't we enter ourselves?" someone demanded.
"Because only cultivators within the Mortal Realm can step inside," Levi replied calmly. "Anyone beyond that level will be drained dry the moment they enter."
"That restriction was specifically created to prevent Veyrath's followers from rescuing him."
"And after all these centuries…"
"It still remains active."
The snake-masked man narrowed his eyes.
"How do you know so much?"
Levi's golden eyes glimmered beneath the mask.
"Because the master trusts me."
Then he added coldly,
"And listen carefully."
"The chaos about to unfold will spread far faster than you imagine."
"We'll spread rumors that a supreme treasure has appeared within the Black Mountain Range. Let the greedy fools flood the area."
"They'll buy us time to prepare our escape."
His voice became chillingly ruthless.
"It doesn't matter whether we gain anything."
"But no one else must obtain that power either."
"Only the Mollock Syndicate deserves to wield it."
—
Far away, deep within the Black Mountain Range, Drakey suddenly stopped moving.
Something felt wrong.
The atmosphere itself had changed.
At first, he couldn't understand what was happening.
Then he saw it.
Thin wisps of black mist rising from the earth.
Not from one place.
From everywhere.
Drakey's pupils shrank.
Almost instantly, he attempted to contact Raqin through their connection—
—but something blocked it completely.
His expression changed drastically.
He let out a thunderous roar that shook the surrounding camp.
"Pack everything immediately!"
"This place is no longer safe!"
Jill hurried over nervously.
"Big Brother Drakey… what's wrong?"
Drakey stared into the distance, his sharp eyes filled with dread.
"Death…"
"…is coming for all of us."
Jill didn't fully understand his words, but seeing the expressions on everyone else's faces was enough to frighten her.
Then Drakey noticed something strange.
Only the core region of the Black Mountain Range was untouched by the black mist.
His heart sank.
The most dangerous place in the Black Mountains… has now become the safest.
Meanwhile, throughout the mountain range, hordes of undead creatures emerged from beneath the earth.
Beasts, cultivators, and ordinary living creatures were attacked relentlessly.
Anyone who died quickly rose again as part of the undead horde.
The infection spread at an alarming speed.
—
Completely unaware of the chaos outside, Raqin stepped through the golden gate.
What greeted him left him speechless.
A colossal black palace towered before him like a skyscraper from his former life. Endless stairs stretched upward toward massive obsidian doors.
The moment Raqin stepped onto the first stair—
his cultivation vanished.
A terrifying pressure sealed his entire spiritual core.
If not for his monstrous physique, he doubted he could have even taken a second step.
"Damn… this is insane," he muttered while gritting his teeth.
"Is this really some kind of inheritance trial?"
Hours passed before he finally reached the top.
The moment he did, dark energy gathered before him, condensing into a floating humanoid figure.
Its outline was visible, but its face remained completely obscured.
Even its gender was impossible to determine.
Then it spoke.
"Welcome… to the NecroGenesis Vault."
"The realm is divided into Five Trials of Ascension."
"Each trial was personally designed by Veyrath the Hollow Saint to create a successor capable of surpassing him."
The voice echoed unnaturally.
"Failure does not merely mean death."
"The realm recycles failed participants into new undead lifeforms."
A cold chill ran down Raqin's spine.
For the first time in a long while…
he genuinely felt fear.
But after speaking those words, the figure became silent once more, floating motionlessly in place.
Raqin turned around instinctively—
only to realize the staircase behind him had vanished.
He had been transferred into another space entirely without noticing.
The silence became suffocating.
Raqin slowly sat down, trying to figure out how to begin the trial.
But the figure never moved again.
It simply hovered there like a silent watcher.
—
Outside the Black Mountain Range, countless groups were rushing toward the unfolding chaos.
Among them was a seven-man team bearing the symbol of a snake devouring its own tail — the mark of the Mollock Syndicate.
Six of them were at the Eighth Level Mortal Realm.
Their leader had already reached the Ninth Level.
One of the members spoke nervously.
"Boss… this is already the third undead wave we've fought through."
"Physical techniques barely work unless we completely destroy their bodies."
"Only elemental or soul-based attacks seem effective."
"If another wave appears…"
"I'm not sure we'll survive."
The leader sighed heavily.
"We don't have a choice."
"All we can do is grit our teeth and move forward."
Then he reached into his storage ring and pulled out seven foul-smelling green pills.
"Take one each."
The group obeyed immediately despite the disgusting odor.
"These pills will alter our aura to resemble that of the undead," the leader explained.
"The downside is that we cannot use Qi while the effect remains active."
"The moment spiritual energy leaks from our bodies, the disguise will collapse."
"So, from this point onward…"
"We proceed carefully."
"Understood?"
"Yes, Boss," the group answered in unison.
Elsewhere, countless cultivators fled desperately through the mist-covered mountains.
Some were hunted down by undead hordes.
Others died screaming…
only to rise moments later as undead themselves.
And with every passing minute—
the Black Mountain Range descended deeper into chaos.