“What are those idiots doing?” Hanzazeelem's roar resonated through the mysterious space like thunder streaking across the skies. The enigmatic examiner keenly observed the exchange between the champions, paying special attention to Scott. Despite accelerating the trial's start, mobilizing the sentries, and directing Thmaz's group to overcome the masked champion, none of them had come close to fulfilling the task.

Thmaz's group remained idle outside the administrative building, despite Hanzazeelem's instructions to pursue Scott and his companions, ensuring they didn't secure the elemental shards. The examiner couldn't comprehend why the canines suddenly started fighting amongst themselves. The most perplexing aspect was their habit of stopping the battle midway, allowing healers to restore their health before resuming.

Witnessing this incredulous sight, Hanzazeelem seethed with rage and perplexity, exacerbated when the sentries materialized. Contrary to his expectations, the guardians charged toward the already injured canines, worsening their condition. This time, they didn't routinely pause for healing.

“You useless nincompoops!” Hanzazeelem's rage echoed, thundering within the mysterious space. “Leave them and attack the vermin with the mask!” Roaring, a cryptic Sigil shot out from the turbulent skies, striking the sentries pummeling Thmaz, the last of the now decimated canines.

The sentries paused, a sense of clarity gripping the seemingly mindless creatures. The pulsating seal flickered on their backs as they turned, as if searching for someone or something.

“What are you standing around like idiots for? They headed that way!” Hanzazeelem's voice echoed in their minds, and they involuntarily shuddered. Without delay, the sentries departed from the administrative area, leaving a trail of blood and mayhem.

Thmaz, motionless within a deep crater, surrounded by the dismembered corpses of his companions, coughed feebly, muttering inaudible words. Every bone in his body was broken, and his body was besmirched with blood and unidentifiable fluids. The fact that the hero of Nuta was still breathing, let alone trying to speak, was a miracle beyond miracles.

“O Bringer of Light,” Thmaz said between coughs, blood-soiled and congealed sputum splattering on his face. “Harken to my words and let...” another cough interrupted his feeble prayers. At that moment, a rogue sentry appeared, stunning the champion.

Hanzazeelem's seal flickered on the back of the sentry, but Thmaz focused on the yellow sign in its eyes. The canine opened his mouth to speak, but an unrelenting barrage of fists descended on him, eliciting more shrieks and groans.

In the mysterious space, Hanzazeelem watched with stupefaction as the sentry continued its assault on Thmaz.

“I don’t understand any of this. I haven’t lost control over the sentries, but why are they ignoring my orders?” the examiner pondered.

Using his seal, Hanzazeelem had personally issued the order to all sentries scattered across Enchanted Heights to hunt down and eliminate Scott, regardless of the cost. However, events unfolded differently from his expectations. Instead of pursuing Scott, the sentries, driven by a maddened rage, charged after the other champions. To a neutral observer, it would seem as if Hanzazeelem had directed the creatures to prioritize attacking the champions. With millions of elemental shards scattered across the city, the numerous traps were easily dispelled, compounding the misery of champions who could only fight or flee from the enraged sentries.

As he watched the devastation from his vantage point, doubts crept into the examiner's mind. Did I make a mistake?

The thunder tribulation intensified in the space, as the examiner’s thoughts wandered.

“What sort of ability does he have?” Hanzazeelem pondered silently. Scott not only deceived the sentries and the champions but also managed to outwit him. Furthermore, the eldritch knight seemed to have vanished amidst the chaos. “This isn't normal. This isn't normal,” Hanzazeelem muttered.

Could he be the person the Celestial Blades were searching for? Hanzazeelem's thoughts drifted. The thunderstorm within the area intensified, but the examiner paid little attention to the changing space.

Suddenly, a figure emerged like a wisp from the aether. “It's not like you to overthink things, Hanzazeelem. What's gotten you so rattled? Your domain is in turmoil.”

The examiner turned toward the figure. “What is the meaning of this? You're not supposed to be here.”

The unknown figure chuckled softly, and his soothing voice filled the space. “Come with me; there has been a change of plans.”

“Huh? What the hell are you talking about? What changed?” Hanzazeelem asked.

“I don't know the details. All I can tell you is that if you don't go to Parla right now, you're going to get chewed out by the administrator,” the figure said. “You can do whatever you want, but I warned you ahead of time. See ya.”

With that, the figure disappeared, leaving Hanzazeelem with more questions than answers.

Meanwhile, the hound extermination crew, along with Llorva and Fi-Fi, made their way further away from the administrative building. The farther they ran, the more confused the elf and elemental slime became.

“Am I imagining things, or are the sentries really ignoring us?” Llorva said aloud, unable to quell her curiosity. They had encountered dozens of sentries after leaving the administrative building, yet they had not suffered a single attack. It was as if they had become invisible to the hulking creatures. Initially, the elf believed Scott had used a trick to deceive the creatures, but subsequent encounters left the champion more perplexed.

“Did you do this?” Llorva asked, her gaze fixed on the champions fighting for their lives against the sentries. Unlike their counterparts, who suffered immensely at their expense, they simply moved across the streets with no sense of danger whatsoever.

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“Focus on running. The earlier we get out of this place, the better for us,” Scott replied without glancing at the elf.

“I’m so happy we’re close to the exit. I can’t wait to leave this godforsaken place,” Slim said, unable to control his smile.

Unlike Llorva, Slim knew fully well that Scott was the reason the sentries fiercely attacked the other champions while ignoring them. Although the necromancer had no idea what type of ability he used, he predicted that the eldritch knight had somehow trapped the sentries in an illusion.

“The only problem now is that we don’t have any idea what to expect in Parla,” Zara said as the group took another turn along the winding road.

“Oh, isn’t that Heinrich?” Llorva suddenly exclaimed.

The middle-aged man and several other champions banded together to ward off the attacks of several sentries. However, their numbers couldn’t compete with the maddened creatures dominating every nook and cranny of the devastated streets.

None of the hound extermination crew spared the fat champion a glance; instead, they took the next turn to their right and continued their conversation as if they hadn’t seen anything.

“I’ve no idea what awaits us there. Hopefully, the city, that’s if it’s a city, doesn’t deviate too much from the map. What do you think, buddy?” Slim said, glancing at Scott.

“We’ll only give ourselves unnecessary headaches trying to figure out what awaits us. It’s best we get out of here first, then we can figure out the rest when we get there,” Scott suggested.

“I agree,” Zara concurred. “I’m only hoping it’s not a place beyond our current capabilities,” she added.

“It’s likely we’ll meet the people who survived the trials of their respective districts,” Scott said. “Anyone there should have experienced and overcome a version of this hell. So, we’ve got to be careful.”

Despite their best efforts, none of them could guess the purpose the fifth district would serve, and the fact that there were no exits listed for it still bothered them.

Llorva and Fi-Fi remained unaware of the conversation occurring on the hound extermination crew's party channel. Instead, the unlikely duo silently praised their decision to stay with Scott and his companions, especially after witnessing the dire fate of the other champions. While Scott did fulfill his promise to show them the map, for most champions, it came at the cost of enduring the relentless assault of the sentries.

Mangled and dismembered corpses soon lined every street corner as battles reached their peak. Champions from various races united to fend off the sentries, who displayed no fear or pain. Explosions echoed in harmony with the cries and shrieks of the fallen champions, while the elemental abnormalities plaguing the city continued their mindless devastation.

Only twenty minutes had passed since midnight.

The hound extermination crew reached their destination, where hundreds of sentries towered over colossal buildings, their claws stained with the blood of fallen champions littering the ground.

“We’re here,” Scott announced, coming to a halt.

Llorva swallowed a mouthful of saliva, her trembling eyes fixed on the spinning portal behind the seemingly all-powerful creatures. Despite her trepidation, the elf wore a broad smile as she took deep breaths.

“So, what now?” Llorva inquired. “Do we just ignore them and approach the portal, or are we supposed to lure others to serve as a distraction?”

At that moment, a thunderous buzzing rocked the city, and a pillar of golden light descended from the heavens.

“What’s happening now?” Zara muttered, narrowing her gaze.

Isn’t that the administrative area? What happened? She wondered.

“Don’t worry about it,” Scott said lazily. “An annoying cockroach has been reborn. There’s no need to bother ourselves with it.”

An annoying cockroach? Zara scrunched her brows, a face popping up in her mind. Despite Scott's avoidance of the topic, she remembered his warning that Thmaz was beyond her capabilities. Even if she somehow defeated him, the aftermath would likely be immensely challenging.

The golden pillar illuminated the skies for thirty seconds before disappearing, and the turbulent skies once again reigned supreme.

“Let’s go,” Scott said.

The group approached the menacing sentries, but the creatures simply ignored the champions.

There’s no way I could have passed this trial if I hadn’t met him. Llorva couldn’t stop herself from sneaking glances at Scott. If this trial is this difficult, what sort of monsters succeeded in the past? The elf smiled as the thought filled her mind. The difficulty of the Tower of Champions had ramped up several times from the previous trials, and she knew very well that it would only get harder.

The champions arrived in front of the portal with little difficulty.

“So, are we going to jump right in, or are we going to…” Llorva froze midway through her sentence, and so did everything in the city.

Scott wrinkled his brows. This guy doesn’t know when to give up. Does he want to interfere personally? Scott pondered silently as he awaited transfer to Hanzazeelem’s space. Contrary to his expectations, a rip echoed in the silence, and a rapidly expanding gateway appeared between the frozen portal.

Scott watched as a towering, faceless figure in a fitted white suit emerged from the gateway. The unknown figure observed the surroundings for a moment before turning their attention to Scott.

“Who are you?” Scott asked. The mysterious figure didn’t give off the same aura as Hanzazeelem.

The figure retrieved a sealed envelope from its inner jacket, carefully breaking the wax seal. Before Scott could grasp the situation, a powerful voice echoed in his mind, commencing with, “Remnants of the old order! The council of...” Suddenly, a hand erupted from Scott's mask, coiling around the faceless figure, propelling it back into the gateway, and forcefully sealing the portal.

“… do something else before we can enter?” Llorva said, but the elf then furrowed her brow. Scott, who had stood beside her moments ago, now kneeled, struggling to breathe.

“Are you okay?” Llorva approached the eldritch knight, but Slim and Zara blocked her path, exuding an ominous bloodlust.

“Wait, I didn’t do this,” Llorva said as she took several steps back, preparing herself for battle. Fi-Fi emerged, assuming a humanoid form.

“She’s right,” Fi-Fi said. “She didn’t do anything. Fi-Fi has been watching. But Fi-Fi doesn’t know what happened, either.”

Slim and Zara’s demeanor remained unchanged. They didn’t know the elemental slime and elf well enough to believe their words.

“It’s not them,” Scott said softly on the party channel. “Don’t worry about me; I’m okay.”

“Are you sure?” Zara asked.

“Yeah. It’s something that happens occasionally,” Scott said as he managed to stand. He took a deep breath while rearranging his hair, then silently approached his companions. Only then did Slim and Zara's expressions soften.

In an instant, the hound extermination crew raced toward the portal, vanishing within seconds. Llorva and Fi-Fi reacted just a split second after the trio bolted, and the once-calm sentries shifted their attention toward them. Before the sentries could unleash their fury upon the champions, they too vanished behind the portal.

Still disoriented, Llorva managed to speak, “How could you only tell us to run when you entered the portal?” Her words coincided with the return of her vision.

As her vision cleared, she involuntarily took a step backward, her trembling eyes locking onto the fiery, apocalyptic world before her. “Where the hell is this?” she muttered.

Welcome to Parla! The Path to the fourth Stage lies beneath the Burning Sea!

Llorva's mouth dropped open as her eyes ignored the surrounding champions. Instead, they fixated on the magma sea reversing into blood-red skies, teeming with thousands of winged creatures she had never seen before. Meanwhile, Scott stood nearby, his gaze fixed on the boatman ferrying a small wooden boat across the magma ocean.

Is this the same boatman from the Burning River? Scott wondered as he sensed the warhammer of the mad god reacting.