An overwhelming presence crashed into the chamber like an invisible tide.
Almost instinctively, the three of them turned back in unison.
A dark figure slipped past them, too fast, from blurring as he rushed forward. Before their eyes could fully register him, he was already standing at the front line, directly before the oncoming sea of magma.
He stopped.
The figure planted his feet into the ground.
The stone cracked.
Whoosh…
The raging magma froze mid-surge.
In a single breath, heat vanished. The roar of molten waves died instantly, replaced by a sharp, suffocating cold. Frost exploded outward from the man's position, swallowing the chamber in crystalline white. Ice raced across walls and ceilings, locking everything in place.
The magma golems didn't even have time to roar.
Their molten bodies stiffened, flames extinguished, and in the blink of an eye, all three were sealed inside a massive iceberg, trapped like insects suspended in amber.
The temperature dropped so suddenly that breath turned to mist.
The three nearest raiders landed heavily on the ground, barely keeping their footing. None of them moved. None of them dared to.
The presence pouring from the stranger was unbearable, sharp and suffocating. It felt as if a predator far beyond their league had entered the room.
Sisiliya's eyes widened, her pupils trembling.
'This pressure… this is absurd.'
Her chest felt tight.
'It's coming from him. How can a human release something like this? No.. this isn't human. This presence… it's refined. Murderously refined.'
Her instincts screamed a single truth.
'That man is a killing machine.'
Eirena's grip tightened around her sword as she shifted her stance. Draven raised his wand slightly, mana instinctively gathering at its tip. Both of them were veterans, but even they felt it.
'Who is he?' Draven thought grimly. 'He only slammed his feet, and froze magma? Golems too? And that only took seconds. At my level… I can't even imagine replicating that.'
For the rest of the raid members, it was worse.
Some began to sweat uncontrollably. Others found their legs refusing to respond. A few couldn't even breathe properly.
Every single one of them felt it.
They had encountered a man who devoured monsters.
Confused voices erupted from the rear.
"Who… who is that?"
"How did he get in? The entrance was sealed!"
"Did you see that? He froze everything like it was nothing!"
Students whispered frantically, fear and awe mixing into chaos.
Both Narasha and Ashan's shadow clone smiled faintly.
"He came at the right moment."
Aren, Silas, Garrick, and Sheliya stood frozen in disbelief.
"The chamber was completely sealed," Garrick muttered. "Then how did he…"
"Raid members seem afraid of him."
Unlike the others, two people immediately recognized that back.
Sorin covered her mouth, her body stiffening.
"It's him… it's really him."
Garrick turned sharply. "You know him?"
Her eyes were wide, almost shaking.
"The masked one. The person we met before."
Her words carried through the shared online conference, catching the attention of both Sheliya and Silas.
"You know him? Who is he?" Sheliya asked.
Back at the academy, even S-rankers were reacting.
"What an unbelievable ability," Magnar muttered. "That was definitely a skill. If those three were touching the ground, they'd be frozen too."
Elarith narrowed her eyes.
"Control, scale, and speed… terrifying."
Nearby, Rowan stiffened.
Roswayn noticed instantly and turned toward him.
"What…"
She gasped.
Rowan's face was twisted with fury. His hands trembled violently, veins bulging.
"That strange-eyed lunatic," he growled. "That damn bastard. How did he enter a dungeon sealed with a high-grade barrier?"
Other S-rankers stared.
"Strange-eyed?"
"You know him?"
Inside the dungeon, the masked man finally turned.
Ashan faced the raiders.
Black robes fluttered faintly. The mask concealed his face, but it couldn't hide the pressure leaking from him. Cursed energy overflowed his body like black smoke, warping the air itself. Beneath the mask, his Mangekyou Sharingan glowed scarlet.
Hidden from view, another pair of eyes, Byakugan, remained active.
'This…' Ashan thought calmly. 'This is the true beauty of the cursed mode.'
'Another pair of eyes. Two dojutsu at once.'
Eirena recognized him instantly. Her teeth clenched so hard it hurt.
'That thief. The one who stole mana pills. The one who attacked me.'
'He dares to show his face here?'
Ashan's gaze swept across the chamber.
"It seems no one has died," he said calmly. "If you had relied on physical strength from the beginning, you would've defeated them already. Overdependence on spells often leads to the worst situation."
He stepped forward.
The pressure intensified.
Raiders staggered. Breathing became labored. Some nearly collapsed.
Draven's eyes widened.
'This isn't dark mana… it's worse. More twisted.'
He raised his wand fully.
"Don't take another step," Draven warned. "Move again, and we attack."
Ashan stopped.
'Interesting,' he thought. 'They can feel cursed energy. Awakeners really do have sharper senses.'
'No wonder they're panicking. I resemble the King of Curses.'
He exhaled lightly and reined in his output. The crushing pressure eased immediately.
"It appears I made you uncomfortable," Ashan said. "My apologies."
Boom!
Before Ashan could speak another word, cracks raced through the massive ice mass behind him. The frozen prison shattered violently as three magma golems tore their way free, chunks of ice and steam exploding outward. Their bodies reignited instantly, molten veins blazing as they threw their heads back and roared, the sound shaking the chamber like rolling thunder.
Ashan turned slowly.
He didn't raise his guard. He didn't move at all. He simply looked at them.
The scarlet glow of his Sharingan burned through the dim chamber, sharp and merciless. The effect was immediate. The golems' roars faltered mid-bellow, their massive frames stiffening as if seized by instinctive fear. One by one, they took heavy steps backward, molten fists clenching defensively.
They understood.
The human before them was not prey. He was the threat.
At that moment, a translucent window materialized before Ashan's eyes.
—------------------------------------------
New mission..
Clear the First Gate of Apocalypse and destroy the key.
Dungeon Structure:
- Total Sections: 4
- Bosses: 3
- Final Boss Rank: S
-You will receive rewards upon clearing each section.
-The first section has already been cleared.
Rewards-
<> Mahoraga's Wheel of Adaptation
A sacred mechanism that activates upon injury. With each rotation, it enables progressive adaptation, ensuring no attack may defeat its bearer in the same manner twice.
<> System Points- 2500
—------------------------------------------
Ashan's lips curved upward beneath the mask.
'The wheel, huh… That's one hell of a reward.'
His gaze shifted back to the three towering constructs.
'But if there are three of them here… which one is the boss?'
The Byakugan activated silently. The world peeled apart into layers of clarity as Ashan scanned each golem with ruthless precision. Mana pathways, structural weak points, regeneration circuits, nothing escaped his sight.
Then he saw it.
An orb, buried deep within the head of one golem, pulsing faintly but steadily.
Ashan clenched his fists, cursed energy humming eagerly around him.
'There you are.'
He relaxed almost immediately after.
'Doesn't matter which one it is. I'll just destroy all three.'
Before anyone could react, Ashan vanished.
Not blurred. Not dashed.
Gone!
Sisiliya's breath caught as her eyes widened in pure disbelief.
So fast… Is that teleportation? No.. there was no mana fluctuation. I didn't even see a path.
Her thoughts shattered a heartbeat later.
Ashan reappeared directly above one of the golems, suspended midair for the briefest instant. His body twisted, cursed energy compressing into his right leg. The kick came down like a divine judgment.
Boom!
The impact was catastrophic. The golem's head detonated instantly, its entire body following a split second later as the force tore straight through it. Molten stone and fragments of hardened magma blasted outward, raining across the chamber.
At the center of the explosion, the core cracked.
Then shattered.
The remains collapsed lifelessly onto the frozen floor, never once attempting to regenerate.