Have you ever tried to remember what it felt like before you were born? That's what the white void was like, except worse. Because I still had consciousness. Still had thoughts. But all control was gone. No sensory input. No motor output.

Status Effect: Sensory Deprivation - Level ??? Status Effect: Spatial Disorientation - Level ??? Warning: Neural interface stability compromised Error: Unable to determine player location Error: Unable to determine player status

The system messages flickered at the edge of my consciousness, but even they started to fade, becoming ghostly afterimages in the endless white. I tried to focus on them, to use them as anchors, but they slipped away like water through cupped hands.

In such an environment, all I could do was wait, and wait and wait. Was this the end for this character? I came so far and it was all for naught. Some part of me wondered.

Somewhere in that void, I thought I heard Estella calling my name. Or maybe it was just memory. Or hope. Time meant nothing here - it could have been seconds or centuries since the light had consumed everything.

"Do you see it?" The blademaster's voice echoed through the void. This time I was sure I heard it, though 'hearing' might not be the right word. The voice seemed to bypass my senses entirely, appearing directly in my thoughts.

"What is this?" I managed to form the question, though I couldn't tell if I was speaking or thinking.

"The flood of light." He replied. "This is what awaits at the end of all paths. When the God of Light's power grows unchecked, when the balance tips too far..." He paused, letting the endless white emphasize his point. "Light will overwhelm all other elements, consuming everything until only pure, endless radiance remains. No darkness. No shadow. No life."

"The First King saw this future," the blademaster continued. "In his wisdom, he understood that light unchecked becomes not salvation, but annihilation. This is why he built the Undercity. Why he gathered those who could wield shadow and darkness. Not as evil to fight good, but as necessary balance against catastrophe."

The system notifications were completely gone now. Even my gaming interface had dissolved in the white void. I tried to process what he was saying, but thinking felt like trying to catch smoke with bare hands.

"So this trial..." I struggled to form the thoughts. "It's not about proving our worth?"

A sound that might have been a laugh echoed through the void. "Worth? No. This is about understanding. About experiencing what happens when one force dominates all others. The Church preaches that darkness must be eliminated, that pure light will bring paradise." Another pause. "Now you have touched that paradise. How does it feel?"

The endless white pressed in around me, simultaneously empty and suffocating. No sound. No sight. No sensation. Not even pain remained. Just... nothing.

"This is what our king fought against," the blademaster's voice grew stronger. "Not evil, not darkness, but the death of balance itself. And now you understand why."

"Remember this void," he commanded. "Remember what awaits if balance is not restored. Remember why the night must return."

The last words seemed to echo forever in the emptiness: "Now... wake up."

The white void shattered.

Color, sound, and sensation crashed back into my awareness. I gasped, lungs burning as if I'd been holding my breath for hours. My hands pressed against cold stone - the tomb's floor. Real. Solid. Present.

I blinked, vision slowly returning to normal. My teammates were scattered around me, all similarly recovering. Estella was the first to her feet, chakrams ready despite her shaking hands. Tirion helped Lysa up, his shield arm trembling slightly. All of us had touched that void, that terrible empty whiteness.

The blademaster stood before us.

"You have witnessed the sixth path," he said. "You have seen what light becomes when unopposed." He sheathed his blade. "Now witness their strength when in unity."

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Path of Unity: World's End

Six overlapping circles appeared in front of him. Each circle blazed with a different elemental energy - earthen brown, wind white, flame red, ice blue, shadow purple, and finally brilliant gold.

He drew his blade in a quick slash, slicing apart all six circles. The six elements collapsed inward, merging together into one beam. Each power flowed into the others, earth's stability supporting wind's freedom, fire's change protected by ice's structure, shadow and light dancing in endless balance.

"This is it," I thought as the beam filled the chamber. No roll or dodge could avoid something this massive. I raised my arms up in hope that would help dampen even a bit of the beam but honestly, what good would that do.

Then I saw Tirion move. Time seemed to slow as our tank stepped forward, silhouetted against the approaching wave of elemental unity. He turned back to face us and smiled.

"Lysa," he said softly, his eyes meeting his partner's. An entire conversation passed between them in that split second. I saw Lysa's hand reach out, then drop back to her side. He gave her a thumbs up.

Skill Activated: All for One Ultimate Tank Ability: Redirect all damage taken by party to user

The beam hit.

The impact was... indescribable. Like watching a star being born and die in the same instant. Tirion's form became a dark outline against pure white, his shield raised not in defense but in defiance.

Critical Hit: 999,999,999 damage Warning: HP threshold exceeded Warning: Fatal damage detected

But Tirion didn't fall.

Skill Activated: Bulwark of the Earth Defensive Stance: User becomes immune to all damage for 10s Cooldown: 168:00:00

The elements raged against him, trying to break through his stance. His shield arm trembled but held firm. Behind him, we were in a perfect safe zone, watching as he took the full force of what should have been our collective death.

"I can only use this once a week," Tirion said through gritted teeth, his voice strained but steady. "So let's not make this a habit, okay?"

Status: Bulwark of the Earth - 9s remaining Status: HP locked at 1 Warning: Shield structural integrity critical

Lysa's hands were glowing with healing magic, ready for the moment his immunity faded. Estella had moved to support him if he faltered.

The beam finally dissipated, leaving Tirion standing, his shield finally gave way and crumbled into pieces. He swayed slightly but kept his feet.

Status: All defensive cooldowns activated Status: HP critically low Achievement Unlocked: The Immovable Object

Impressive," the blademaster's voice cut through the aftermath. "Few have ever withstood the Path of Unity. Fewer still would sacrifice themselves for their companions without hesitation." He bowed slightly to Tirion. "The First King would have recognized such courage."

Lysa was already moving, her healing magic wrapping around Tirion like a protective cocoon. She didn't say anything - she didn't need to. The way her hands trembled as she worked said everything.

"But alas," the blademaster's voice carried an edge of amusement, "it appears your gimmick would only work once." He raised his blade again, and I felt my stomach drop. "How now will you survive a second round?"

“Swift as the wind”

The air pressure dropped again. His swords began to dance around him, carried by invisible currents. Every sword planted in the chamber had torn free of its resting place, forming a deadly cyclone.

"Scatter!" I shouted, but my teammates were already moving.

Estella moved like she was dancing through raindrops, each step precisely timed between the spinning blades. When a blade came too close, she'd deflect it with her chakrams.

"Tirion! Down!" Lysa's voice cut through the chaos. A shadow tendril yanked Tirion flat against the ground as three blades scissored through where his head had been.

I ducked under one blade, sidestepped another, then had to throw myself backward as a third nearly took my nose off. The wind was getting stronger, making each dodge more difficult as it tried to push us into the blades' paths.

"He's starting over," I said, mind racing through calculations.

"We need to stop him," Estella finished my thought, her voice tight with urgency. "Before he reaches the sixth path again."

I opened my mouth to respond, but that's when I saw the blades begin to ignite. The wind path was ending.

The fire path was beginning.

"Burn like fire." The blademaster was already moving into his next stance.

The whirling swords began to ignite, creating a tornado of burning steel. We had maybe seconds before the ice path would follow, then shadows, then...

"I can't tank another unity beam," Tirion admitted through gritted teeth. “We need to stop this now.”