One hour later...
The formation was finally complete.
Annabelle slowly withdrew her hands from the runic array.
The final symbol glowed brightly before settling into the floor.
The entire chamber suddenly became beautiful.
Thousands of tiny runes illuminated the walls.
Blue light flowed across the ancient stones like streams of water.
The powdered shards beneath Annabelle and Audrey shimmered with different colors.
The entire formation looked almost like a gigantic constellation.
Audrey stood.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"It's done."
Kelvin immediately looked toward the staircase.
His expression became serious.
"Finally."
Jade remained several steps behind him.
He watched carefully.
Kelvin approached the first stair.
He placed one foot on it.
Nothing happened.
He waited.
Nothing.
Kelvin took another step.
Still nothing.
Another.
Nothing.
He continued climbing.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Kelvin reached the eighth step.
He stopped.
His body looked exactly the same.
His breathing hadn't changed.
His appearance hadn't changed.
Not even a single strand of hair had aged.
Jade stared.
He couldn't help asking Audrey,
"How on earth is he not aging?"
Audrey turned toward him.
"It's simple."
Jade raised an eyebrow.
Audrey pointed toward the stairs.
"He's practically walking on another layer of space."
"What?"
"The stairs aren't really touching him."
She gestured toward the runes surrounding them.
"Think of it like a space tunnel."
"The stairs exist here..."
"But Kelvin is actually moving through a separate layer of space connected to them."
Jade's eyes widened.
"So he's technically climbing..."
"...without actually climbing them?"
Audrey nodded.
"Exactly."
Jade looked at Kelvin.
That explained everything.
His lifespan wasn't decreasing because the stairs weren't truly affecting his body.
Kelvin wasn't experiencing the passage of time inside the staircase.
He was moving through a separate spatial layer.
Jade muttered,
"That's ridiculous."
Kelvin glanced back.
"You sound jealous."
"I am."
Kelvin smirked.
Then he looked toward the altar.
The enormous structure was still waiting at the end of the chamber.
Kelvin took a deep breath.
"Let's finish this."
He reached the altar.
Both hands pressed against the crystalline stone.
His muscles immediately tightened.
Dark essence surged through his body.
"Come on..."
The altar didn't move.
Kelvin gritted his teeth.
His arms trembled.
The veins across his hands became visible.
"Move!"
The altar shifted.
Barely.
A few centimeters.
But it moved.
Kelvin's eyes narrowed.
He pushed harder.
BOOM!
Darkness erupted beneath his feet.
A massive wave of black essence spread across the floor.
Then—
Something rose from the ground.
A giant mass of darkness.
It had no clear shape.
No face.
No recognizable body.
It simply looked like condensed darkness given form.
The mass wrapped itself around the altar.
Kelvin's eyes flashed.
"Good."
The dark mass tightened.
The altar slowly lifted.
Stone cracked beneath it.
The enormous structure rose from the ground inch by inch.
Jade stared.
"So that's your strength?"
Kelvin didn't answer.
He was too focused.
The darkness continued pulling.
Higher.
Higher.
Until finally—
The altar was completely separated from the ground.
Kelvin exhaled.
"Finally."
Before anyone could say anything else—
A tiny black blur shot toward the altar.
Jade's eyes widened.
"Little Black!"
The cat landed directly on the altar.
Its paws touched the crystalline surface.
Its eyes immediately sparkled.
The enormous amount of essence contained within the altar seemed to attract it like a treasure chest.
Kelvin stared.
"...What?"
Little Black looked at him.
Then at Jade.
Then back at the altar.
Its tail flicked proudly.
Jade immediately understood.
He had already made a plan with the cat.
Little Black also had the ability to store things in his Soul Sea.
If it could store objects inside it...
Then the altar didn't need to remain here.
Jade silently communicated with the cat.
Now.
Little Black nodded.
Its body suddenly released a powerful wave of mental energy.
The space around the altar distorted.
Then—
The altar disappeared.
Completely.
Kelvin froze.
The dark mass collapsed.
The pressure vanished.
Silence filled the chamber.
Jade tried his best to maintain a neutral expression.
Little Black appeared beside him a moment later.
The cat casually licked its paw.
Kelvin stared at it.
Then at Jade.
Then at the empty space where the altar had been.
A slow smile appeared on his face.
"So..."
"You know, don't you?"
Jade's instincts immediately screamed danger.
He didn't hesitate.
Obsidian Vine Shadow erupted from his body.
Dark crystalline vines wrapped around his chest, shoulders, arms, and legs.
The black armor formed around him in seconds.
Jade summoned his crimson greatsword.
Its blade appeared in his hand with a violent red glow.
His stance lowered.
"I knew you were a Necromancer."
Kelvin's smile widened.
A sword made entirely from darkness slowly materialized in his hand.
The blade was long.
Thin.
Completely black.
Even the light around it seemed to disappear whenever the weapon moved.
Kelvin gripped it tightly.
"Grit."
The sound of his teeth grinding together echoed through the chamber.
"So that makes my job a little easier."
Jade's eyes narrowed.
But another question immediately came to mind.
"Then answer me one thing."
Kelvin didn't respond.
Jade tightened his grip.
"Why does the System call you a Jadeborn?"
Silence.
Kelvin's expression didn't change.
For the first time...
He didn't answer.
Instead—
The entire chamber became darker.
The light from the ancient runes began disappearing.
One after another.
Darkness swallowed the walls.
Then the floor.
Then the ceiling.
Jade's instincts exploded.
Something was coming.
Five enormous coffins slowly emerged from the darkness.
They appeared from nowhere.
Their surfaces were covered with black runes.
Chains wrapped around them.
The air surrounding each coffin carried the scent of death.
Jade's pupils contracted.
"Five..."
The coffins landed.
BOOM!
The chamber shook.
Then—
One coffin opened.
CRACK.
A pale hand emerged.
Another coffin opened.
CRACK.
Another hand.
Then another.
One after another...
All five coffins opened.
Five men slowly stepped out.
Their bodies were covered in ancient armor.
Their faces were pale.
Their eyes were completely empty.
Yet their presence...
Was terrifying.
Jade immediately recognized their class.
Awakened Mythic.
Five of them.
Jade's expression became serious.
Without hesitation—
"Ant Demon."
A swarm of black ants erupted from his shadow.
They rapidly gathered together.
The towering Ant Demon appeared beside him.
At the same time—
"Titian Devora."
A gigantic roar shook the chamber.
The Titan Devourer emerged from Jade's shadow.
Its enormous body slammed into the ground.
The five Awakened Mythics slowly turned toward them.
Kelvin smiled.
"You are a Jadeborn."
He raised his dark sword.
"So stop pretending..."
"...as if you don't know."
Jade's expression hardened.
Before he could ask what that meant—
Kelvin vanished.
BOOM!
His dark sword slashed toward Jade.
Jade's crimson greatsword appeared in front of him.
CLANG!
The two swords collided.
A violent shockwave exploded through the chamber.
Jade's feet slid backward.
One step.
Two.
Three.
The stone floor cracked beneath him.
His arms trembled.
Jade's eyes narrowed.
The difference in strength was obvious.
Kelvin was stronger.
Much stronger.
Kelvin pressed forward.
Jade gritted his teeth and pushed back.
The dark sword suddenly twisted.
Kelvin changed direction.
Jade barely blocked the second strike.
CLANG!
The impact forced him backward again.
Jade immediately activated his healing flames.
Warm crimson fire wrapped around his body.
The wounds from the previous battle began closing.
At the same time, his two shadows wrapped around his greatsword.
The weapon became heavier.
Denser.
Sharper.
Jade's body began glowing red from the flames.
He roared.
Then swung.
BOOM!
The crimson greatsword tore through the air.
Kelvin stepped directly into the attack.
Jade's eyes widened.
Kelvin's dark sword pierced forward.
SHINK!
The blade stabbed directly into Jade's chest.
Blood exploded across his armor.
Jade staggered.
But his healing flames immediately surged.
The wound began closing almost instantly.
Kelvin's eyes narrowed.
Then Jade's greatsword continued moving.
The blade passed directly through Kelvin's body.
Yet—
Nothing happened.
Jade's eyes widened.
Kelvin's body had become intangible.
The sword passed through him as though he were made from smoke.
Kelvin stepped backward.
Jade immediately understood.
"Annoying..."
Meanwhile—
Ant Demon and Titan Devourer had already engaged the five Awakened Mythics.
The battle was brutal.
Ant Demon moved like a shadow.
Her massive sword carved through the air.
One Mythic blocked.
Another attacked from behind.
Titan Devourer intercepted it.
BOOM!
The two creatures collided.
Titan Devourer was thrown backward.
It slammed into the wall.
Another Mythic attacked.
Ant Demon blocked.
A third struck her from the side.
She was launched across the chamber.
The five Mythics worked together perfectly.
They weren't mindless corpses.
They moved with terrifying coordination.
And with five of them...
Even Ant Demon and Titan Devourer were struggling.
Then—
A small black cat appeared.
Little Black.
It landed on the floor.
Its silver eyes immediately sharpened.
The cat transformed.
Its body expanded.
Its fur became darker.
Silver stripes appeared across its enormous body.
Its muscles grew.
Its aura erupted.
In seconds—
A gigantic Heavenly Tiger stood inside the chamber.
Little Black roared.
The sound shook the walls.
But this time...
Its usual mind attack wasn't as effective.
The five Mythics were dead.
Their minds were already almost empty.
There was little consciousness for Little Black to manipulate.
Still...
It had another target.
Kelvin.
Little Black's eyes narrowed.
It activated its Mind Attack.
A wave of invisible mental energy shot through the chamber.
It passed through the nearest Mythic.
Then another.
Then another.
The attack continued traveling.
Until—
It reached Kelvin.
Kelvin's body suddenly froze.
His eyes widened.
His expression changed.
He staggered.
"Ah..."
He grabbed his head.
The mental attack struck directly at his mind.
For the first time...
Kelvin's concentration broke.
Jade immediately saw the opening.
His body exploded forward.
The crimson greatsword ignited.
Blood-red flames wrapped around the blade.
Jade swung with everything he had.
BOOM!
The sword slammed into Kelvin.
The dark elementist was launched across the chamber.
He crashed into the stone wall.
The entire wall cracked.
Dust exploded outward.
Kelvin fell to the ground.
For several seconds...
He didn't move.
Jade breathed heavily.
Little Black's giant tiger form stood beside him.
Its silver stripes glowed faintly.
Even though its mind attack had been weakened against the dead Mythics...
It had still managed to affect Kelvin.
The five coffins remained open.
The Awakened Mythics continued attacking.
Little Black released another roar.
Its aura spread through the chamber.
The pressure wasn't enough to completely overwhelm the Mythics.
But it slowed them.
Their movements became slightly heavier.
Their reactions became slightly slower.
That tiny difference mattered.
Ant Demon immediately took advantage.
Her sword flashed.
One Mythic's armor split.
Titan Devourer charged another.
BOOM!
The chamber shook again.
Jade looked toward Kelvin.
The dark elementist slowly pushed himself back to his feet.
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
Yet he was smiling.
A terrifying smile.
He wiped the blood away.
Then raised his dark sword.
"Interesting..."
His eyes locked onto Jade.
"You've become much stronger."
The darkness around his body began increasing.
Tendrils of black essence crawled across the floor.
They wrapped around Jade's legs.
Jade looked down.
"Again?"
The tendrils tightened.
Jade's muscles strained.
Kelvin slowly walked forward.
His smile widened.
"Time to finish this."
The darkness beneath Jade's feet suddenly exploded.
Countless black tendrils shot upward.
Wrapping around his legs.
His waist.
His arms.
His entire body.
Jade gritted his teeth.
His healing flames flared violently.
The vines of darkness continued tightening.
Kelvin raised his sword.
The five Awakened Mythics surrounded Ant Demon and Titan Devourer.
Little Black stood between them.
The chamber was completely filled with darkness.
Kelvin's eyes glowed.
And then—
He stepped forward.
"Let's end this."