The shattered gates gave way to a grand hallway, its ceiling so high it disappeared into black mist. Red light leaked through fractured windows, casting the ruins in an eerie glow. Statues lined the corridor—faceless warriors in armor of bone and obsidian, each holding a different weapon. Each taller than a man.
As they walked, the walls themselves pulsed.
> [Bloodforge Core Sync Progress: 41%]
Kaien muttered, "This whole place feels like a memory someone tried to forget."
Raik ran a finger along the wall, then recoiled as it bled. "Or a wound that never healed."
Velessia's wings twitched. "No… it's a grave. And something is waking."
Ahead, the throne room doors loomed.
Massive. Ancient. Etched with symbols only Adexander recognized.
One was his old name—now buried.
Another was the sigil of his first betrayal.
And the third…
> [System Alert: Boss Presence Detected — The Forgotten Guard]
> [Level: ???]
> [Classification: Abyssal King's Sentinel]
> [Attributes: Null-Blood, Phase-Sundered, Memory-Bound]
> [Status: Dormant… Awakening]
Adexander stepped forward.
"Stay behind me."
The doors burst inward on their own as if obeying a command older than time.
---
Throne of the Abyss
The chamber was a nightmare.
A broken throne of ribs and chains sat atop a spiraled platform of living stone. Beneath it, in chains of molten shadow, slouched a massive figure. It was armored in shattered black plates, half its face missing—revealing only void where flesh should be.
Its sword was embedded in the ground.
A greatsword the size of a house.
With each breath it took, the flames around the chamber dimmed.
> "You left," it said.
Its voice was ancient. Bitter.
> "You sat the Abyssal Crown… then cast it away."
Adexander's grip on the Fangblade tightened.
"I died."
The Guard rose, dragging the greatsword free. The sound was like thunder through water.
> "Then die again."
---
Boss Battle Initiated: Forgotten Guard – Sentinel of the Abyssal Crown
It moved faster than anything that size should. The sword swept down, splitting the throne room in two. Kaien blinked out of the way, flaring with black lightning.
"Yeah! Nope! Not taking that hit!"
Raik's gauntlet roared to life as he caught a fragment of falling debris mid-air and hurled it back.
Velessia flew into the air, wings flaring as divine sigils formed. "We need a formation—now!"
Adexander met the Guard's blade head-on.
The impact leveled the floor, sending shockwaves through the realm.
> [Bloodforge Activated]
> [Fangblade Response: Predatory Phase Unlocked]
The blade in Adexander's hand screamed with hunger—and then changed.
The hilt twisted.
The edge split.
It became something monstrous.
A scythe of bone and voidlight.
Kaien whistled. "Okay. That's new."
Adexander's eyes glowed crimson.
> "Kill the throne."
> "I'll kill the memory."
He dashed forward, impossibly fast, scythe sweeping in a red arc.
Steel met void.
And the battle began.