An unknown amount of time passed before modret finally regained his consciousness…

Groggily he woke up and realised he was lying on a smooth surface…

Subconsciously, he glanced around to study his surroundings, his mind still filled with haze.

'This is… the floating rock?' Modret's thoughts were filled with uncertainty.

His eyes moved to the edge of the floating rock as he tried to stand up.

There, Axel stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes staring into the endless darkness above them. His face was without emotion, as though he was calculating something.

"Axel, what happened?" Modret called out, bringing Axel out of his thoughts.

Swiftly turning to Modret, Axel's face showed a look of surprise, then relief.

"Young master. I'm glad you're alright." After letting out a sigh, he continued,

"It seems the beak's poison was extremely deadly, and you nearly lost your life. But at the last moment, strange golden scales surfaced on your body, and gradually, the poison was expelled."

Modret could still feel an intense headache as he finally stood up. It was as though his skull was being pounded repeatedly, and he felt the urge to sit back down.

"How many days have passed?"

Axel paused.

"The seven days we have here… have they been exhausted?" Modret's heart sank drastically.

Thankfully, Axel shook his head. "We have barely a few minutes left. Unless we leave this place within that time, there's no way we'll escape if the words of the old man are true."

Modret glanced around. "Where is the old man?"

"When I came here, there was no one. Just this floating rock."

'The old man vanished? Was he an illusion perhaps? Could there be a hidden scheme behind his motive?' Many thoughts passed through Modret's mind upon hearing those words.

'Or could it be that he lost his sanity and fell into the endless space beneath us…'

Unable to come to a conclusion, Modret set the matter aside and nodded, his eyes sharpening. Despite the pounding headache and the faint pain coursing through his body, this was their last chance to leave this place!

"Axel, let's go. We don't have much time left."

Axel hesitated. "Young master, your health—"

But Modret wasn't listening. A black and purple hue had already wrapped around his body, and his physique changed drastically, becoming monstrous.

From afar, one could sense the deadly killing intent emanating from Modret. He had never wanted to kill something as badly as he wanted to kill that hateful bird!

Axel sighed wryly, then shadows materialized behind him, condensing into the form of phantom wings.

The next moment, they both flapped their wings, mustering their greatest speed and soaring into the sky.

Just ahead of them, countless Celestials were gathered. During the time Modret was unconscious, they had regrouped once more.

Modret didn't hesitate to stretch his hand as five black fire lotuses crackling with lightning swept through the horde, detonating in flashes of heat and darkness.

They continued on their way, Modret's eyes narrowed.

They encountered more Celestials along the path, but Modret dealt with them smoothly, with Axel supporting him from behind.

Finally, they reached the location of the portal.

It was still swirling with bright light; however, upon closer look, faint distortions rippled across it like cracks in glass.

Modret frowned slightly. If his guess was right, the portal might collapse within roughly ten minutes—or perhaps less.

In front of the portal, the massive Behemoth loomed.

As though it sensed their presence the moment they approached, it opened its massive eyes and glared down at them.

Flanking it on its right and left sides were the two beasts from before.

It seemed all three creatures had come to an agreement to stop them from leaving the endless abyss.

Modret snorted, shifting his gaze to the bird that stared at him with wide eyes—shocked to see him still alive.

Without hesitation, he attacked.

Off to the side, Axel's body twisted unnaturally and split into three more of himself.

It was a new ability he had mastered during the three days Modret was unconscious. He called them—shadow clones.

Modret paused briefly, surprise flashing in his eyes as he stared at Axel's three figures. Then, he continued his assault.

This time, Modret was extremely cautious, using all his mana and augmenting his body with defense while channeling his attacks to the best of his ability.

There were only ten minutes left—this was a battle that would decide everything.

Either Modret went all in and won, or the Celestials held out long enough to trap them here forever.

There was no time to waste. Modret's movements were swift as countless lightning rods condensed around him, slicing through the air toward the three creatures.

The bird flapped its wings, creating a series of afterimages. With its blinding speed, it hastily escaped the range of the attacks. The other two were slower, but not much damage was done to them.

While the lizard blocked the attacks with its tough back, the Celestial regenerated instantly despite the blow.

Modret didn't pause. Ten black flame lotuses bloomed around him, looking like delicate flowers as they lunged toward both creatures.

As for the bird, Axel and his two clones were already keeping it at bay.

The bird's sharp cries echoed through the air—Modret could tell it was only a matter of time before Axel killed it.

All he had to do was incapacitate the two beasts, and they could escape.

Distort!

The space around the portal convulsed violently, and for a moment, it seemed as though it would vanish. Then it stabilized and continued swirling.

'Barely three minutes left?' Modret estimated with a frown. 'I can't delay any longer.'

Lightning and fire intertwined rapidly, forming a long sword made of both elements.

In his Elemental Sovereign state, the elements were greatly enhanced.

Without hesitation, he raised his sword above his head, then swung down.

'Ashen Sever.'

The moment Modret released the attack, his body shriveled slightly, and the cracks in his mana core spread several times over. At a glance, it looked as though his core might shatter into countless fragments.

But deep within his core, a strange rock floated gently, releasing a faint pulse. Because of it, the core didn't explode. Otherwise, he would have died on the spot.

He was unaware of this as the stone emitted a mysterious energy, sealing the cracks before hiding deep within once more, appearing no different from an ordinary rock.

Modret felt mentally and physically drained, his vision blurring slightly. Despair threatened to crawl into his chest—but he forced it down. Not yet.

A moment later—

A mysterious black light erupted like a wave toward the two beasts.

Before they could react, the pitch-black energy that devoured everything had already swept past them.

The light faded into the abyss, however…

Crack! Crack! Crack!

It began with the lizard—within seconds, it exploded into bits.

The Celestial tried to hold on for an instant but also shattered into countless fragments.

A blinding light flashed as Modret turned his head toward Axel—he had also finished off the bird.

A faint smile touched Modret's lips, but he was too weak to move.

Axel's figure blurred, leaving afterimages as he vanished from his spot and appeared in front of Modret.

Holding him by the shoulder, he quickly rushed toward the portal.

Distort!

The portal convulsed again, twisting violently. Thankfully, Axel and Modret had finally reached it.

Without hesitation, their figures plunged into the portal. Halfway through—

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Cracks spread through the space as the portal finally exploded, dragging them back into the endless abyss.

"What?" Axel's eyes were filled with shock.

Modret's face mirrored his horror.

Subconsciously, he glanced down.

There—a massive eye had opened a few kilometers away.

Despite the distance, the eye was as large as the Behemoth they had just slain.

If the eye alone was that large, Modret couldn't begin to imagine how terrifying the main body must be.

Miraculously, countless starlights danced around him as the fairy materialized.

'Fairy… I didn't call for you,' Modret was startled.

{I know. However, I can sense your life is in danger. There is a way to escape, but it's too dangerous.}

'You… what? You had a way all this time and left me stuck here?' Modret was slightly angry, though he didn't dare let it show in his tone.

He raised his brows at the fairy, urging her to continue.

{The only way I can think of to leave the endless abyss… is to awaken one of the four dormant treasures.}

'Aw–awaken one of the four dormant treasures?' Modret whispered in dread.

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