The creature stood up again, but this time its presence was weaker. That absolute compression of Eternity around it was gone; the silver energy of its body flowed like cracked glass, and each return was slower and more incomplete than before.
Daniel could feel it, and a smile appeared on his face. Naturally, he had finally understood what this creature’s weakness was. Still, it didn’t take long for a frown to replace that smile.
To kill this creature, he had to use the power of Eternity. Yet the more he used the power of Eternity, the more his Flower of Eternity shattered, and there was a real chance it could be completely destroyed.
Even though he was inside the Pagoda right now and could find a way to restore it after completing all the trials, that would only mean restoration, not obtaining an entirely new flower.
Still, it wasn’t like he had another choice. If he didn’t destroy this creature with the power of Eternity, he wouldn’t be able to pass this floor.
"Guess there’s no other way."
Daniel clenched his hand. The aura of Eternity around his body calmed, and thunder whispered deep within his bones.
This time, he didn’t rush. He raised The Heavens Honor, but he didn’t strike yet. The creature moved first, with a body that still wanted to continue, as if it didn’t care at all about becoming weaker.
The creature tried to distort the outcome of the battle with the remnants of [Eternal Reversion], but space no longer fully responded.
Daniel slipped through the shadows with [Bloody Shadow Dance], changed the attack’s trajectory, and at the same time activated [Demonic Twilight Shield].
The collision was violent. Eternity energy slammed into the shield; part of it was absorbed, part of it collapsed, and using that absorbed energy, Daniel stepped forward.
His fist, coated in the Law of Eternity, struck the guardian’s chest. This time, death wasn’t like a blade, it was like a declaration of an end. The guardian was pushed back, the ground beneath it cracked, but it still didn’t fall.
With a silent roar, it forced its body to move and activated the remaining layers of [Endless Continuum].
Daniel raised his sword.
[Strike Of Destruction]
The aura of destruction, fused with the power of Eternity, wrapped around the blade. The strike that descended split the guardian’s body apart. The guardian froze for a moment, then collapsed... and returned once more.
But this time, it was even weaker. Its aura had become extremely unstable, and there was no trace of the power of Eternity left on its body. It was clear that it was reaching its end.
[Death Roar]
The creature’s mind suddenly trembled. In that instant, Daniel moved. His right fist was mixed with thunder, his left fist with death, and the sword descended between them like a judge.
[Eternal Judgment]
A bloody sword took shape in the air and, together with Daniel’s strike, came down directly on the core of the guardian’s existence. This time, Daniel wasn’t aiming to "kill" it; he denied the guardian’s false Eternity using the Law of Eternity itself.
Its body collapsed, its energy scattered, and this time, there was no return.
A heavy silence settled over the third floor.
"It’s finally over."
Seeing that the creature didn’t return, Daniel let out a sigh of relief. This had been one of the most frustrating battles he had ever experienced in his life.
The problem was that he had the power to kill the enemy, yet no matter how many times he destroyed it, it kept coming back.
Still, as irritating as it was, he had learned a lot from this battle and had gained a deeper understanding of the Law of Eternity.
His understanding of the Law of Eternity was steadily approaching completion, and maybe, with the help of this Pagoda, he really could fully comprehend the entire law. If that happened, he would likely be able to use the same ability this creature had relied on.
The ground trembled. In front of him, a simple staircase appeared. Naturally, it led to the fourth floor.
Daniel cast one last look at the empty space, then stepped forward and stood on the first step. It didn’t take long before he entered the fourth floor.
The space was neither dark nor bright, as if light itself hadn’t decided whether it should exist here or not. The ground looked flat and endless, and the sky... the sky wasn’t empty.
Unlike the previous floors, where the concept of a sky barely existed, this time there was an actual sky above him, and more importantly, it wasn’t empty.
A massive timer was floating up there.
9,999,998 : 59 : 59
"All this?" His eyes showed surprise for a moment. The number displayed on the timer was simply enormous.
He hoped he wouldn’t really be forced to stay on this floor for that long. A simple calculation in his mind was enough to tell him that this amount of time was a thousand years.
Did he really have to spend a thousand years on this floor? Just thinking about it felt insane. The total lifespan of both of his lives combined didn’t even come close to a thousand years.
Ten million hours! What did that even mean? Why would there be a timer with such an absurdly long amount of time?
"So now what am I supposed to do?"
There was another question as well. What was the trial of this floor?
At that moment, the space in front of him distorted.
Something crawled out of the air itself, a humanoid monster covered in gray cracks, as if its body was made from stone worn down by time. In its eyes, a blurred number constantly changed.
Daniel frowned. Did he really have to fight another monster again?
He extended his hand forward, and his sword formed in his grip with a thunderous sound. The sword’s aura wrapped around the blade like an invisible wave.
At the same time, the monster attacked.