Ezekiel hadn’t gone far before reaching what he knew was the next trial. Once more he walked through an opening that led to an open cavern, but unlike the one with the golems, this one wasn’t nearly as large. Nor was it a complete dome.
“This sucks...” Ezekiel said before dipping his foot into the semi-circular pool of water in front of him. Roughly ten meters away from the edge of the water was a solid stone wall.
Looking into the icy depths, he could see that there was a staircase leading downward. It was only ten steps, but it was more than enough to bring him well beneath the surface of the water. Just beyond the bottom he could tell that there was an opening going even further.
‘I can already tell what we're going to be facing this time,’ Shine said in a bland tone. ‘Do we actually have a means of staying underwater for a long period of time?’
“Not easily, but we should be able to last long enough to get to wherever we need to.” Taking a deep breath, Ezekiel donned his Spirit Armor and stepped forward into the water.
Even through his armor the water was chilling to the touch. It nearly shocked him into coming to a halt. The fact that the temperature was so distinct to him could only mean that it was imbued with Glacial mana. Further proof that this Ancient Legacy truly utilized all types of Mana for its trials, not just its entrance, and was constructed by all ten Ancients.
As he stepped deeper into the water, Ezekiel pushed outwards away from him. void pains appeared to create a spherical barrier around him. It was difficult to maintain but held strong and provided a bubble of air that allowed him to breathe underwater.
‘Hopefully the tunnel won't be too long. There should be enough air in this bubble to last us maybe an hour.’ The only reason Ezekiel claimed as much was because he knew that his enhanced physique would allow him to last a little bit longer than most other Mages, without as much oxygen. ‘We should make our way through quickly, however, because I really don't want to face an army of Depth Cruor golems.’
‘Agreed. Those two Cavern Mana, Bone Cruor were already bad enough.’ Shine sent a sense of agreement to Ezekiel. ‘Although, you and I both know we're going to end up fighting something. The whole point of this Legacy is to prove our worth in the battle against the Eldramir’s scorned children. whatever that means.’
Ezekiel knew full well what it meant. memories of the last dream he had before his reincarnation flashed through his mind. Shine barely managed to catch a hold of a glimpse of what Ezekiel had seen. but they knew better than to bring it up at the moment. Though they would still remember it for later.
Falling silent the two continued forward. Now completely underwater, glow stone in hand, Ezekiel could easily see the tunnel beneath the surface.
It was angled downward, not too steep, but still at an angle that he wouldn't want to walk. Of course, given he was in a bubble of air, that is exactly what he had to do. It was still better than trying to swim, however, so he didn't change his plan.
As the water in the tunnel moved around his barrier, he realized he would need to shrink the sphere, ever so slightly, else it would brush up against the walls.
The moment he stepped off the last platform into the downward tunnel the walls immediately began to glow an icy, blue color. They shone with such intensity that he needed to cover his face for a brief moment.
“Shit!” he exclaimed.
As soon as he covered his eyes and flinched backwards his footing was lost, and he began to slide down the tunnel. Not only that, but he could tell that the water touching his barrier was also flowing alongside him. This wasn't just a tunnel; this was a drainage pipe, and he was being flushed down.
‘Well at least this will get us to our destination faster,’ Shine’s words were not appreciated.
Ezekiel tried stabbing Shine’s sharpened edge into the ground. Unfortunately, just like with the walls that had enhanced gravity, the Void Spirits blade was deflected.
‘I have to say I'm getting kind of sick of that,’ Ezekiel mentally griped. He let out a grunt of pain as a bump in the tunnel shoved him into the air. It seemed like the carvings for the enchantments were growing deeper and more complex the further down he went.
Yet even so he could not get a grip to slow himself down. Nor was he able to fly as he soon found out. Though not because of an increased amount of gravity this time.
Due to the force of the water flowing around him, any attempts to fly increased the pressure bearing down on him. Cracks began to appear almost immediately. He knew that if he didn't want to find himself completely submerged, he would have to just deal with his situation for now.
Even if it meant countless bumps and bruises on the way down.
Finally, after sliding down for several minutes, Ezekiel could feel his momentum slowing down. The ground was no longer at quite so steep an angle. He came to a stop at a perfectly horizontal tunnel. from what he could tell there was roughly fifty meters of tunnel behind him, and fifty meters of tunnel in front of him.
What truly garnered his attention, however, were the soft ripples of water that now flowed against his bubble of air. Different from the pressurized water when he was being flushed. Movement that passed through the thicker medium indicated that there was something ahead. A lot of things.
Grasping Shine’s hilt tightly, Ezekiel prepared himself and slowly marched forward toward the end of the tunnel. Completely submerged beneath the water, he found himself in a large, almost Aquarium-like, area.
Above him was a school of monstrous creatures. Ones he barely recognized from glimpses of the Cruor that were living in Morncrest. Not the Winged ones
High above that, at the top of the massive underwater Arena, was what looked like a round circular gate. One with a staggeringly large number of Runic lines and enchantments running all over it.
“For this test, you must escape. That is all.” Ezekiel was once more forced to speak the words aloud by an unseen power. But a part of him felt relieved. Unlike the last trial, this one implied that defeating the enemies above was not the requirement for success. “Now we just have to figure out what it is.”
‘Well, I hope we figure it out fast because those things are locked onto us now.’ Shine’s warning was appreciated, but unnecessary, since Ezekiel was already moving them out of the way.
Unlike in the previous situations, he was easily able to fly out of the way of his attackers. Now that he had a closer look at his new enemies, he saw that they were not merely a series of stone golems. Instead, each one seemed to be a conglomeration of stone, plant, and some other strange substance that he simply didn’t recognize.
‘These were definitely created by the Ancients. They're more advanced than any Relic, or construct, that I've ever even read about before.’ Ezekiel's fascination with his current enemies was put on hold since they quickly closed the distance between him and them.
Unfortunately, it seemed like no matter how quickly he forced himself to move, these constructs were simply faster than him in the water. The moment they caught up to him they made quick work of his barrier, slashing through it in seconds.
“Dammit!” Ezekiel swung Shine forward, cutting into the closest enemy, but while it wasn't as hard as the stone that the tunnels were made of, it was still tough and rubbery. The construct seemed to bounce off Shine’s blade, with only a shallow gash from Ezekiel’s slash, and was sent back into the swarm that it came from.
‘Okay, we definitely need to focus on getting out of here rather than fighting,’ Shine said after they saw how ineffective they were. ‘Let's make our way to the top and at least get a look at that weird gate.’
This was easier said than done, however, since they were completely and utterly surrounded by constructs.
‘We need to create an opening.’ Ezekiel flung his arms out, which temporarily reinforced the barrier, fixing the cracks in the process. ‘[Jumping] underwater isn't a good idea. Do you think you could absorb the [Force] of the water pressure around us before making it burst out?’
Shine took a moment to think about Ezekiel's suggestion. Cracks started to form on the barrier once more.
‘It should be possible. But it's going to cost a lot of mana.’ That was enough for Ezekiel.
‘You start absorbing the water pressure into the barrier. I'll keep us moving, and out of their teeth.’ Taking on a meditative position, he reinforced his barrier even further. Creating spikes out of [Void Panes] to increase its defense.
This helps trust enough to make a couple of the constructs back off after they were damaged. but there were just so many of them that it wasn't possible for an opening to form. He could also feel a change in the water around him. Since gravity was creating a constant source of pressure on their barrier, shine basically had an unlimited amount of power that they could absorb.
At least until they hit their limit of course. A limit that was quickly reached.
‘Now!’ Shine screamed into Ezekiel's mind.
Throwing his limbs outwards, spread eagle, Ezekiel channeled the force that Shine had absorbed. It was not unlike a bomb exploding underwater.
The liquid nearest to him simply vaporized and the school of contracts that surrounded him were forced backwards in a daze by the shockwave.
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This created a big enough opening for him to make a dash upwards. It only took him a couple of seconds to reach the ceiling of the cavern. The large circular gate above him, covered in glowing runes, seemed somewhat alien compared to other runic scriptures he had seen.
Not because he couldn't read the ruins, but simply because the way they were written was very different. Lines were missing, and it was as if entire sentences were removed from the definitions that the Runes were meant to impose upon the enchantments.
‘This doesn't make any sense.’ Ezekiel placed his hand upon the gate. ‘This enchantment is missing so much! It shouldn't even be functional.’
‘Hurry up! They’re regrouping.’ Shine kept their focus on the school of constructs beneath them.
Taking a leap of faith, Ezekiel shoved a bit of mana into the enchantment. He immediately regretted it as it felt like he had just slammed his brain into a brick wall.
The presence of something that was simply profound, an existence that was so much more than him, pressed down on his soul for just a moment. But it was enough for Ezekiel to know that whoever made this door was significantly more powerful than the Broodlord that had tried to kill him over a year ago.
‘[Willpower]... The answer is [Willpower],’ Ezekiel said as soon as his mind cleared. ‘Not everyone can actually figure out enchantments. So, the Ancient that made this door made it so that as long as your will was strong enough you would be able to force it open.’
‘Ezekiel! They're coming!’ Shine was screaming in Ezekiel's mind. They threw up another barrier when they saw that Ezekiel was still focusing on the gate.
‘Hold barrier! I'm going to have to push as hard as I can. Do not let them through.’ Ezekiel conveyed his thoughts and intentions to Shine directly. No words this time, since they would be too slow.
[Void Panes] immediately formed a barrier around them once more. This would be Shine’s responsibility. They would maintain the barrier and keep the constructs from eating Ezekiel alive, while he would have to focus on simply pushing as hard as he could until the door finally opened.
Channeling his mana through his body, Ezekiel pressed against the door. He allowed a small trickle of mana to flow into it. Immediately his head was hit by a migraine of epic proportions.
However, no matter how much it hurt he did not give in. there was a brief moment where Shine tried to shoulder some of the burden that Ezekiel was experiencing. The instant they did so, their barrier started to crack. So, they were forced to divert their attention away from Ezekiel's clash of [Wills].
Yet even then, Shine still felt the ripples inside their own soul emanating from the bond that they shared with Ezekiel.
With a grunt of pain something seemed to click inside Ezekiel's mind. the door began to shift, very, very slowly. But it was still rising upward all the same.
This sent the school of constructs into a ravenous frenzy. By now, even Shine was starting to feel a significant amount of strain as they did their best to maintain the barrier.
Ezekiel's eyes and Shine’s blade began to Glow with the opalescent light of the Void mana they were channeling. Cracks began to spread throughout the barrier. The door continued to move but it was taking forever to finally open.
Blood began to trickle from Ezekiel's eyes, ears and nose. His entire body shook from the strain that he was forcing himself to experience.
Yet nothing could last forever. After several minutes, something finally gave way.
Like the shattering of glass, the barrier finally burst. Shine tried to put up another one, but it was too late. the constructs began digging their teeth into Ezekiel’s Spirit Armor. Shine felt every single bite from the constructs as they bit into what was essentially a manifestation of their own body, separate from their sword vessel.
Knowing that they wouldn't be able to throw up another barrier that would be of any effect, Shine instead focused their mana on reinforcing the spirit armor keeping Ezekiel safe.
This works surprisingly well. It was enough, just barely, to grant Ezekiel the time needed to finally push the gate open to the point that an opening to the next chamber was created.
Bright blue light flooded the water that he and Shine were submerged in. The constructs came to an immediate standstill. They then slowly drifted downwards to the bottom of the flooded chamber.
Hooking his fingers into the small crack in the barely opened door, Ezekiel found the force pressing down on him greatly weakened. This let him maneuver his reinforced body, so as to throw the gate open. It slammed down in the room above with a loud crash.
Hauling himself out of the water, and falling limply onto his side, Ezekiel gasped for breath. it hadn't been long, but if he had taken much longer, he was certain that he would have drowned. If he wasn't eaten alive first.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ezekiel saw another tunnel.
“Shine...”
‘Yeah...’
“I don't think I like the Ancients very much.”
‘Same.’
Ezekiel knew that he should get up and move on. but this last trial was, in his opinion, significantly more difficult than destroying the two Golems.
Rolling away from the door, and the water that lay beneath it, Ezekiel and Shine laid limply next to the wall of the tunnel. They would rest for a little while before moving on. This was a break that they greatly deserved.
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The moment he returned to consciousness; Ezekiel was incredibly aware of the fact that he was no longer lying on the stone floor he remembered laying down on. In fact, the surface beneath him was quite soft, and somewhat bouncy. He recognized it as being a proper bed cushion.
‘Shine, are you there? Do you know where we are?’ He immediately reached out across his bond with his Spirit.
‘I'm here. I think we're safe. But my senses aren't going as far as they usually can.’
Ezekiel also reached out with his enhanced senses. Usually, if there weren't any particularly difficult obstacles in the way, he was able to sense his surroundings up to several hundred meters.
Currently, he could barely sense beyond ten meters past the surface of his skin.
He knew he wouldn't get any answers if he continued to lie in bed. So, he rolled over and gingerly pushed himself up. The first thing that he noticed was that his nana was fully restored.
The second thing he noticed was that he was in a perfectly circular room with nothing but the bed, a glow stone on the wall, and a door, leading to what he assumed was another tunnel.
There was no meditation mat like in the last room he was in, nor was there an hourglass to indicate how long he had before he needed to leave. A part of him hoped that there might be another pile of pure mana crystals hidden somewhere. But there was nothing.
Getting out of the bed, the door across from him opened the moment he was standing up straight.
“I think that confirms that something is watching us.” Ezekiel muttered.
‘What makes you say that?’ Shine asked as they and Ezekiel exited the room.
Ezekiel gently ran his hand along the wall as he walked. It was perfectly smooth with no engravings, no ruins, no enchantments whatsoever. Yet. Ezekiel knew that he would be utterly incapable of making even the slightest mark on it.
“These walls weren't made from a mixture of Enchanted Runes and Spiritual Blessing.” Ezekiel could tell that these walls were not infused with the [Willpower] of another being. “They were made from Cavern Magic. Specifically, structural reinforcement. A Legendary Spirit, perhaps a Mythic, made these walls fresh. Perhaps, within the last couple of hours.”
Ezekiel's explanation had just finished leaving his lips when he took his last step out from the corridor. A booming voice that reverberated all around them nearly brought him to his knees.
“Correct, young Void Mage. Rather, young Void Hunter.”
Practically slamming his hands over his ears, Ezekiel grit his teeth as he tried to find the source of the voice ringing through his mind. It wasn't until after his hearing finally cleared up that he managed to find what he was looking for.
Instead of being on the ground level, the same as him, the figure that had spoken was hanging from the ceiling. Ezekiel was once more in a large, cavernous area, though not as large as the one where he fought the two stone golems.
Sitting upside down on the ceiling was a large stone-like gorilla. One that had six arms and two tails. Focusing more intently, Ezekiel saw that it also had five eyes, each of which were closed.
The eyes opened, revealing a golden light that shone from deep within the Spirit. Upon locking eyes with the Spirit’s, Ezekiel could immediately tell that this was a Mythical Spirit. One that was far stronger than even the Exalts that he had spoken to in the past.
This was probably the most powerful being that he had ever met in his entire life. Barring the exceptions that were the Ancient Void, and the Void Remnants that he had encountered previously.
“I am surprised. A thousand years in the past, humans like yourself would have fallen to their knees in reverence of my power.” The Spirit dropped from the ceiling, but rather than fall down, they floated in the air. Legs crossed as they maintained their meditative position. “Although, back then, no human had reached Tier four. Hunters also didn't exist yet. I am glad to see that the bond between human and Spirit can grow to be as strong as yours.”
The spirit smiled revealing sharpened fangs made of obsidian. It was a terrifying sight. Yet, Ezekiel knew that it was not meant to be threatening. It was simply that the sheer power of the being in front of him elicited a fearful response.
The spirit then frowned.
“Although, I must say that your presence here has brought me a mixture of joy and regret. for it means that the prediction made by the Ancient Void has come true.” The spirit let out a sigh that nearly toppled Ezekiel from his feet.
“You mean the prediction that the end of the world was coming?” Ezekiel inquired. “The Remnants of the Void that I have spoken to before mentioned it. As did the Ancient Void itself when we met once, over twenty years ago.”
Ezekiel's words caused the Spirit's eyes to widen further in shock. They dropped to the ground with an earth-shattering crash. They leaned forward until they were nearly nose to nose with Ezekiel.
He could feel the Spirit gazing intently into his soul. But for such a rough and powerful being they were incredibly gentle. He knew that there was no way he could defy this intrusion, but he felt no discomfort in it at the same time.
“I see.” The Spirit leaned back and crossed a pair of arms in contemplation. “You are one of the potential helpers that the Ancient Void said might be arriving at some point. I must say, you are far more capable than the last one that I met.”
The Spirit's words shocked Ezekiel to his core. He knew that others had been reincarnated or transmigrated to this world in the past. The Void Remnants had said as much, but their words were far less personal than what this Spirit was implying.
In the back of his mind, Ezekiel could tell that Shine was just as shocked.
“You've met others like me before? Who were they? If you don't mind me asking.”
The Spirit stared down at Ezekiel with a look that he could not describe. It was as if they were judging Ezekiel to see if they were worthy of this information.
Sighing once more, the Spirit came to a decision.
“His name was Drake Cross. Much like yourself he was a reincarnated soul. though unlike yours, his came from a world filled with magic. Though, one that is run by rules that are different than ours.” The Spirit stomped a foot onto the ground. A stone throne rose up, and he collapsed backwards into it. “Perhaps that is why he made the choices that he did.”
The name was unfamiliar to Ezekiel. Yet, at the same time there was a sinking feeling in his gut. one that was exceptionally close to the feeling he got when he received an omen of danger. But it was, ever so slightly, different. Shine felt the same way.
“I'm sorry, but that name is unfamiliar to me. I can tell that there is something wrong with it, however. Like there is something that I need to be afraid of.” Ezekiel repressed the shudder as he spoke.
“That is not surprising, given the Void’s ability to sense premonitions of danger. From what little I know of the outside world I would not be surprised if his name was stricken from all human records in existence.” A look of regret crossed the face of the Spirit. “If I had chosen differently at that time, then maybe the current state of the world would be different. Or at least the end would have been pushed back for a little longer.”
“Why? What did he do that could have been so wrong?”
The Spirit remains silent for a few moments before finally answering.
“Simply put, after learning of the history of the world from myself, since the Remnants of the Void denied it to him prior to meeting me, Drake Cross sought to make contact with the Broods. He, and the followers he acquired, became the first of the Broodlords. Weakening the seal that was keeping them locked away from this world.”
Ezekiel felt his heart drop beneath his stomach. It was well known that it was Void Mages from hundreds of years ago that became the first of the Broodlords. Thereby creating the Cruors and waging war against humanity and the Spirits. But the names of these Void Mages had never been recorded. If they were, then like the spirit in front of him said, they had long been wiped out from all of history.
No wonder the name alone gave him such a horrible sense of fear and warning.