The rift in space was a mesmerizing, terrifying sight.
It was a violent tear in the world, a swirling vortex of deep purples and angry reds, edged with crackling black energy that hissed like angry snakes.
The air around it grew cold, and a low, humming sound filled the room, a deep thrum that vibrated in Neraxis's bones.
Lilian instinctively took a half-step back, her dark wings flaring slightly. The rift radiated an aura of pure, chaotic power that felt alien and hostile. Even Jasmine , the mighty Diamond-rank dragon, lowered her head and let out a soft growl, her golden eyes narrowed as she studied the anomaly.
Neraxis, however, felt a strange pull towards it. It was dangerous, yes, but it was also his only real option.
His territory was now a beacon for every ambitious Lord in the region. Staying put, even with Jasmine 's power, would mean facing a constant siege. His seven-day protection period was a ticking clock, and every second he wasted was a second his enemies could use to close in on his location, to set up their own plans and ambushes. He couldn't afford to wait. The rift was his chance to escape their notice, to grow stronger in a place where no one could watch him.
"This is the Rift of the Grave-Ape Tyrant," he said, reading the keystone's description again to bolster his own courage. "It will be dangerous, but the rewards should be worth it. It's how we get strong enough to face what's coming."
He looked at his companions. Lilian's expression was a mixture of apprehension and unwavering loyalty. She was afraid, but she would follow him anywhere. Jasmine 's mental voice echoed in his mind, calm and steady despite her initial caution.
'My Lord. Where you go, I shall follow.'
Her confidence was reassuring. With a Fallen Angel and an Ancient Grove Dragon at his side, he wasn't walking into this challenge alone.
"Alright," Neraxis said, taking a final look around his wrecked but empty territory. He used his remaining wood and stone to hastily board up the broken doorway. Anyone who came looking would find a sealed, silent territory. With luck, they might assume he was cowering inside, and it would buy him some time. "Let's go. Stay close."
He stepped forward, the Sentinel's Vigilance armor feeling heavy and solid around him. As he approached the swirling vortex, he could feel the air pressure change, a strange tugging sensation as if the rift were trying to pull him in. He took a deep breath, clenched his jaw, and stepped through the veil.
The transition was instant. One moment he was in his stone room, the next he was somewhere else entirely. The sensation was one of falling and being turned inside out simultaneously. For a disorienting second, his senses were overwhelmed by a chaotic jumble of color and sound. Then, with a sudden lurch, his feet found solid ground.
He stumbled forward, catching his balance. The air here was thick and heavy, smelling of decay, damp earth, and old stone. The sky, if it could be called that was a bruised, sickly purple-grey ceiling of churning clouds, with no sun or moon to be seen.
A faint, creepy glow seemed to lit up from the ground , casting everything in a pale, ghostly light.
They were standing on a narrow, crumbling stone path that snaked its way through a vast, ancient graveyard.
All around them, as far as the eye could see, were leaning tombstones, broken mausoleums, and skeletal trees with claw-like branches.
A thick, low-lying fog clung to the ground, obscuring the bases of the graves and giving the impression that they were floating on a sea of Fog.
The silence here was different from the silence of the Immortal World.
Lilian appeared beside him a moment later, her dark wings allowing her to land silently. She immediately drew herself up, her violet eyes scanning the oppressive landscape. "This place... it feels weird, myLord. I can sense an astonishing amount of death energy."
A massive, graceful shape materialized next, as Jasmine emerged from the rift. The pocket dimension seemed to groan and protest at her arrival, the very air shimmering around her powerful form. The instant she appeared, the small, harmless-looking flowers on her scales wilted, and the healthy green of her bark-like hide seemed to dim slightly.
'The life energy here is thin and stagnant', she communicated, her mental voice tinged with discomfort. 'This realm is poison to beings like me. I can sustain myself, but I will be weakened the longer we remain'.
Neraxis's heart sank a little. His greatest asset was on a timer. It seems the energy present in this place counteracts Jasmine's energy, it was perfectly suited to undead or demonic creatures, but toxic to a being of pure nature. They had to be fast.
The rift they had entered through shimmered behind them before snapping shut with a sound like tearing fabric, leaving no trace of its existence. There was no going back. The only way out was forward.
As they began to move cautiously down the crumbling stone path, the ground began to tremble. From the thick fog, skeletal hands clawed their way out of the damp earth.
"Rawwww!"
Dozens of them clashed out of the ground. They were followed by bony shoulders and grinning skulls with points of red light burning in their empty eye sockets. Clad in scraps of rusted armor and wielding chipped, ancient swords, a small army of skeletons pulled themselves from their graves.
[Undead Soldier - Iron Rank]
"It seems the residents are awake," Neraxis said, his hand resting on the hilt of a short sword that came with his armor. "Lilian, Jasmine , kill!"
Jasmine needed no further encouragement. With a snort of disgust, she stomped a massive foot on the ground. A wave of green energy pulsed outwards from her.
The moment the energy touched the skeletons, it didn't break them, it infused them with a torrent of life energy they could not handle.
The dry, ancient bones began to sprout green shoots and thorny vines, which grew with explosive speed, tearing the skeletons apart from the inside out in a series of sharp cracks and pops.
Lilian took to the air, a graceful silhouette against the purple sky. She fired a volley of Dark Bolts into the remaining ones, the spheres of shadow magic blasting through heads and shattering skulls.
The battle was over almost before it began, their combined power far too much for these low-level mobs. But as the last skeleton crumbled into a pile of vine-covered bones, a new figure emerged from behind a large, ornate mausoleum at the end of the path.
It was actually another player.
He was a tall, powerfully built man with short-cropped blonde hair and a square jaw. He was equipped in shining, golden plate armor that seemed to glow with its own inner light, and he carried a massive, two-handed greatsword that rested on his shoulder. He wasn't alone.
Two other players, a nimble-looking woman with a bow and a robed man holding a staff, stood behind him.
The man in gold armor had an arrogant smirk on his face, and his eyes were fixed on Neraxis. "Well, well," his voice booming with confidence. "Look what we have here. I saw the announcement about the Diamond Chest and figured I'd pop into this rift for a little training myself. Never thought I'd find the lucky little rat right here."
He pointed his greatsword at Neraxis. "I am Lancelot. Hero Class. My talent gives me a nice little boost against those who are weaker than me. So, hand over whatever you got from that chest, and I might let you and your pets leave this place alive."