Chapter 675: The Artificial Dungeon [Part 1]
Black Mamba stepped forward, his presence almost intangible, as if the shadows themselves bent to his will. His form wavered slightly, flickering between solid and incorporeal, like a phantom tethered to the edges of reality. He inclined his head slightly, his featureless face focused on Northern.
"As you command," came the low, hollow reply, a voice that seemed to echo within the room rather than emerge from him directly.
Northern lifted the sledgehammer onto his shoulder, feeling its reassuring weight.
The faint hum of soul essence pulsing within the grooves seemed to resonate with his every step as he moved toward the exit of the smithy.
The air outside was crisp and cool, carrying the distant rustle of leaves and the faint chirp of nocturnal creatures. The serene calm of the night contrasted sharply with the fiery passion rising in Northern's mind.
"Lead the way," Northern said, his tone even but laced with an undertone of authority.
Black Mamba didn't respond with words. Instead, his shadowy form melded into the darkness, a ripple of movement that beckoned Northern to follow.
They moved swiftly but deliberately, flying soundlessly through the night without the faintest need for any source of light.
The terrain shifted as they ventured further from the academy grounds, leaving behind the structured pathways and entering the untamed wilderness that flanked the backdrop of the academy.
They passed all buildings and the shifting scenery around them began to become more pronounced with tall trees and rocks.
Northern's eyes glinted evilly in the dark as his legs carried him, flying from one tree to another without any regard for gravity.
Chaos Eyes, after all, had given him a little authority over gravity; he didn't need to worry about falling sometimes and was constantly shifting the gravity around his air to help himself jump.
Flying was possible with the things he could do with his authority over gravity; however, this little authority was not enough to defy gravity on such a level.
If Northern wanted to be able to fly, he needed something more.
He tightened his grip on the sledgehammer, its energy pulsing in response as though eager to be unleashed.
The faint light in Chaos Eyes flared momentarily, and the world around him sharpened. He could see the layers of essence threading through the trees, the faint remnants of fragmented energy lingering like whispers in the air. The dungeon wasn't far.
It was like a forcefully broken nature of existence, leaving its leaks in the air and infecting the ligatures of everything.
Northern frowned slightly as he saw this. He did not have the time to dwell any more than necessary on it though.
His guess was, whatever force had created rifts inside the dungeons was beginning to affect the immediate reality outside the dungeon.
He did not know to what scale the damage might be. But he knew it was going to be bad.
As they approached, the atmosphere grew heavier, the air thick with tension.
The dungeon entrance loomed ahead, a massive, jagged crevice in the earth shrouded closed by thick vines and trees.
With ordinary eyes, Northern would have never guessed this was it. To him, it looked like a dead end.
However, Black Mamba stopped in front of this place. And his summon could never be wrong. So, Northern decided to use his eyes.
Immediately, Chaos Eyes illuminated to life, and he saw it. The pathway that dove and twisted all the way into the cavern space.
'It really is a dungeon there... not to say...'
Northern paused in his thoughts, paying attention to the striking feeling that climbed his skin. It was not fear but at the same time, he felt cautious because of it.
Something immensely powerful was in that depth. Not just something in fact... so many things.
Without hesitation, Black Mamba stepped aside, his form dissolving into a nearby shadow as Northern advanced.
Northern dropped the sledgehammer down for a moment, leaving it for Black Mamba to hold. Then he stretched one hand back and the other forward like he wanted to pull an arrow.
A swirl of white light extended into his hand as he pulled, burning with a faint and solemn flow, yet somehow exuding primal danger.
He narrowed his eyes and released the arrow of light. A soft whistle pierced the wind as the light flew over and tore into the entanglement of trees and vines that blocked the entrance.
Immediately, everything was lit up in white flames that quickly began to burn it all into clear air, leaving not even ash.
Northern then took the sledgehammer, slung it over his shoulder, and began his entry into the depth of the dungeon.
At first, he was met by a narrow winding way, with no source of light to illuminate his path. Well, luckily, he did not need one.
Another strange thing was, immediately he entered and started going in, the entrance blockade that was burnt by Chaos Flame slowly began to grow, sinking out the only source of light there was.
Northern found it strange because it was Chaos Flame. However, he turned back around and kept going deeper.
He expected there to be several surprises and shocks in this dungeon. It was something handmade by either Rughsbourgh and the first academy principal after all.
'I wonder if the present academy principal is involved too...?'
Northern pondered on it for a while. He had never met the academy principal to be able to tell what kind of person he was.
And little was said of him in his weeks of being here. He was rarely ever even seen.
But he naturally concluded that the man had to be a part of it, until the man proved himself otherwise.
His plan would target all of them and leave no crumbs. It was better to be safe than sorry. Northern finally raised his head slightly, gently hitting the butt of the hammer on the ground.
He stared at the three maws of tunnels that faced him. To continue his way forward, he had to
choose one.
Northern closed his eyes for a moment.
'Instead of choosing, I'll just go where the aura of monsters is more pronounced.'
He opened his eyes and walked towards the one on the extreme left. He entered and walked
deeper into the tunnel before coming out to a wide area.
What Northern saw, made his eyes tremble.