The undead Horn Lizard King raised his massive cudgel above, shaking the air around it vehemently as it brought it down with terrifying momentum.
Just as the cudgel could hit the black, crimson flame, it happened.
Boom!
The black-crimson flame suddenly exploded.
It did not erupt outward like an ordinary explosion, nor did it produce a wave of destructive energy that swept across the tower.
Instead, the entire mass of black and crimson fire suddenly collapsed inward for a fraction of a second before exploding into countless tiny sparks that scattered through the air like burning stars.
Thoren’s eyes widened.
"What?!"
The undead Horn Lizard King froze in place; its massive cudgel still raised above its head.
The ancient symbols carved into the ground flashed brilliantly.
The strange tendrils connected to the Holy Son and the upper echelon of the Slave Trade Guild snapped apart.
And then, they vanished.
Every single one of them disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving behind nothing but the countless sparks slowly drifting through the air.
Thoren stood motionless.
His deep blue eyes stared at the empty ritual formation while his mouth remained slightly open, unable to process what had just happened.
He had rushed here.
He had crossed the endless desert without rest.
He had slaughtered his way through the Slave Trade Guild’s hideout.
He had chased the three directors through the stone maze.
He had fought the endless Weeping Blood Stonemen.
He had climbed the ancient tower while his undead fought an army of enemies that simply refused to remain dead.
All of it had been to stop the Holy Son and prevent whatever ritual they were performing.
Yet, in the end, he had still arrived too late.
His fingers slowly curled and a strange heaviness settled inside his chest.
Fear.
Regret.
Doubt.
Anger.
All of them surged through his mind at once.
’If I had been a lot faster...’ His teeth clenched.
’If I had not wasted so much time...’
His fist tightened until his knuckles cracked. He stared at the empty space where the Holy Son had stood.
’If I...’
His breathing became heavier.
’If I...’
The thought refused to finish.
There was nothing he could do about it anymore as the ritual had happened and whatever the Holy Son wanted, he had apparently achieved it.
Thoren’s expression became increasingly ugly as he stood there, his mind replaying every moment that had brought him here and every possible decision he could have made differently.
While he was lost in thought, going down the rabbit hole a sudden sound echoed throughout the ancient tower.
Rumble!
The entire tower shook to its core.
Instantly, Thoren awoke from his rabbit thoughts and his expression changed.
The deep rumbling sound travelled through the ancient structure, growing louder with every passing second until the stone beneath his feet trembled violently.
Crack!
Next, a long crack suddenly appeared across the floor, one after another.
The ancient walls began splitting apart as pieces of stone broke loose and crashed down the staircase.
Boom!
A massive section of the tower wall collapsed.
Thoren immediately looked downward and he saw it was collapsing.
"Not good." His voice was low.
Without wasting another second, Thoren turned around and rushed down the staircase.
"Return."
Through his mental connection, he immediately recalled all his undead on the staircase.
Boom!
Another section of the staircase collapsed.
Thoren leapt over the broken section and continued downward, his expression remaining cold despite the chaos surrounding him.
The tower was becoming increasingly unstable.
Massive cracks spread across the walls like veins while pieces of ancient stone rained down from above, crashing onto the staircase and disappearing into the blood river below.
By the time Thoren reached the foot of the tower, something immediately caught his attention. The resurrected members of the Slave Trade Guild were gone.
Every single one.
Worst of all, there was not even a corpse left behind.
The blood-covered staircase that had previously been packed with their bodies was now completely empty.
Thoren’s eyes swept across the area and now, that was not his highest priority. Whatever had happened to them was no longer his immediate concern.
With the ancient tower collapsing, if he remained here any longer, he might be buried beneath it.
Looking over the blood river, the stone slabs that had previously formed a path across the surface were sinking.
One after another, they disappeared beneath the calm crimson water.
Thoren’s expression was grim and without hesitation, he leapt onto the nearest stone slab.
It sank slightly beneath his weight but managed to hold on for a second and that was all he needed.
Swiftly,, he jumped toward the next and then, the next in one motion. Behind him, the ancient tower continued collapsing.
BOOM!
Just then, a massive section of the ancient tower crashed into the blood river, sending enormous waves of blood surging outward.
Sensing the shockwave, Thoren did not look back as he pushed his speed to the limit.
His body moved rapidly across the sinking stone slabs while his thoughts were everywhere.
To his confusion, the blood river beneath him remained strangely calm despite the destruction happening around it, which somehow made the entire scene even more terrifying.
Finally, Thoren reached the opposite bank as his feet landed firmly against the ground.
For a brief moment, he stopped and took a deep breath. But before he could even process what had happened next.
Thump.
His heart suddenly skipped a beat and his entire body stiffened while the hairs on the back of his neck stood upright.
An indescribable sensation crawled across his skin.
Thoren slowly raised his head.
His deep blue eyes widened.
Something had changed.
Something that should not have been there before was now standing in the distance.
And the moment Thoren saw it, the complicated emotions inside his heart were completely replaced by a single thought.
’What... is that?’
***
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