With Lucia and Rose watching from the cliffs above, Max descended alone into Dragon Death Valley.
The moment he crossed the boundary of the outer region, he felt the difference immediately.
The air grew heavier, as though every breath carried hidden weight. The ground beneath his feet was dry and fractured, covered in black stone veined with crimson lines that pulsed faintly like sleeping blood vessels. Strange winds moved through the valley in sudden bursts, cold one moment and burning hot the next.
Even sound behaved differently there.
At times the valley was silent enough to hear his own heartbeat. Then, without warning, distant roars, scraping noises, and echoes of battle would surge from nowhere before vanishing again.
Max's eyes narrowed.
"This place truly deserves its reputation," he muttered.
