---
They had no more nights.
Sleep became impossible after the last test. Dreams were no longer safe.
Because the Revenants had found a new trick.
> [New Condition Added – Revenant Echoes]
Any sleep beyond 30 minutes now invites the Revenants inside your dreams.
Damage received inside dreamscape will carry over to reality.
Lian's group hadn't slept for two days.
Their eyes were red.
Their skin, cold.
The Mirror Graveyard behind them hissed like a sea of whispering memories, and ahead?
A mountain-shaped temple.
Made entirely of bones — some bigger than any building they'd ever seen.
A black bell hung at the center.
It began to toll.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
Each ring sent waves of agony through their spines — as if the bell could shatter willpower itself.
Then came the next prompt.
> [Revenant Hunt Dungeon – Opened]
Name: The Bell of Endings
Description: One must ring the bell willingly.
Cost: One soul shall not return.
---
Jayce clenched his teeth. "We don't even know what this dungeon gives us. This is a gamble with death."
Korran, eyes bloodshot, muttered, "No… it's not a gamble. It's a test of despair. That bell rings when people give up."
Elyra whispered, "Or when they choose to keep going… alone."
Lian stared at the towering structure and stepped forward.
> [Dungeon Condition – Party Leader must choose 2 to accompany him. The third will be left behind to face the Echoes alone.]
It was a damned choice.
Go into a death dungeon…
Or leave someone behind in a nightmare that eats your mind.
There was no right answer.
---
Lian chose.
Jayce, because his resilience had become a fire that kept them alive.
Elyra, because her magic and her fury made her invaluable.
That meant Korran would be left outside.
He didn't argue.
He smiled — an old, tired smile.
"I've been alone before. It's what I do. Just promise me something, Lian…"
"What?"
"If I start screaming — don't come back for me."
---
Inside the Bell of Endings
The moment they stepped in, time fractured.
Lian's system flickered like a dying lightbulb.
The first room held a circular arena made of living flesh — a dozen Revenants writhing from the walls, whispering each of their deepest regrets back at them.
> "Lian, you let your world die." "Jayce, your sister called your name the night she was taken. You slept through it." "Elyra, you didn't just enjoy killing — you still do."
They fought.
No, they bled.
The Revenants were different now — faster, smarter.
Elyra's spells backfired.
Jayce's balance was off — his missing arm throwing off his weight.
And Lian?
His strength was weakening by the minute.
The Revenants weren't feeding on their bodies.
They were feeding on hope.
Until…
Lian activated it.
> [Shadow Runner – Unlocked]
Blood Pact Cost Paid – 1 Soul: Jayce's Past
Suddenly, Jayce's memories of his sister were ripped from his mind.
He staggered back, clutching his head.
"Why… who was she…?"
Lian stared in horror.
He didn't mean to.
But the system had taken what it wanted.
They escaped the first chamber — barely alive.
Jayce didn't speak for the rest of the dungeon.
---
Outside – Korran's Trial
The Revenant Echoes came in a flood.
They didn't just attack Korran's mind.
They showed him every version of himself — from every timeline.
Each one had failed.
Each one had let his friends die.
"Why do you keep trying?" the Revenant whispered.
Korran grinned, even as his body convulsed under psychic pressure.
"Because in this timeline… I'm going to burn you alive."
And then he bit down — and swallowed the Revenant's eye.
His scream became a roar.
And something inside Korran… changed.
---
Dungeon Core Room – The Choice
Lian's group reached the end.
A Revenant Queen stood before them — half-shadow, half-beautiful woman, wrapped in a wedding veil of skin.
She offered a deal.
> "Kill the one who carries regret… and I'll give you the soul you lost back. Plus triple coin rewards."
Jayce looked at Lian, broken.
He couldn't remember who he'd lost… but he knew something was missing.
Elyra aimed her staff.
Lian clenched his fists.
And then — he struck the Queen himself.
Not for a reward.
Not for redemption.
But because no one else would carry this weight.
The battle lasted twenty-five minutes. The Queen used illusions, twisted time, and consumed spells.
Elyra lost two fingers.
Jayce was nearly torn in half.
But in the end…
Lian stood over her bleeding corpse.
His knuckles broken.
His mind fraying.
But alive.
---
Reward Screen
> Dungeon Cleared: Bell of Endings
Soul Fragment Returned: [Jayce – 40% Memory Recovered]
Coins Gained: +15,000
New Title Unlocked: "The One Who Refuses To Break"
New Talent Acquired: Revenant Marked
• Immune to mental illusions
• Able to hear Revenant whispers
• Increases damage to soul-type enemies
---
They emerged from the dungeon…
Only to find Korran standing in a field of dead Revenants.
Eyes black.
Veins glowing red.
He grinned.
"I figured out how to kill them back."
---
Chapter End
---
Chapter 47 Summary:
The group enters a deadly Revenant Dungeon: The Bell of Endings.
Lian is forced to sacrifice part of Jayce's past to activate a powerful vehicle upgrade.
The group barely survives, but they come out changed — mentally and physically.
Korran undergoes his own transformation while left outside.
Lian gains a new title and a unique Talent: Revenant Marked.
---