The tunnels grew strange.
Walls once made of stone began to pulse — soft, damp, alive.
Kael narrowed his eyes as a drop of red liquid fell from the ceiling. Not water. Blood.
"Warning: Entering Zone — The Maw.""Biome Type: Organic. Threat Level: Moderate to High."
[New Area Discovered: The Maw – A Living Dungeon]
Zar clutched his blade tighter. "This place… it breathes."
"It feeds," Kael replied coldly. "We're inside something that wants us dead."
A low groan echoed from deep within the walls. Flesh twitched. The floor pulsed like a heartbeat.
Creatures began to stir.
Dozens of red-eyed blood slimes oozed from the crevices, followed by bony insect-like monsters with writhing mouths and serrated limbs.
Kael didn't flinch.
[Skill Activated: Abyss Claw Lv.1][Target: Blood Slime (x3)] — Destroyed.
He moved like shadow — slashing, dodging, commanding the dark like it was part of him.
Zar leapt into the fray, stabbing and rolling beside his master, their synergy growing stronger.
[Combo Skill Initiated: Pack Execution Lv.1][EXP Gained: +210]
They pressed on, deeper into the Maw.
The walls got narrower. Hungrier.
Kael felt the mana shift. It wasn't chaotic anymore — it was aware.
A mouth opened on the floor ahead, lined with dagger teeth.
Kael didn't hesitate. With a flick of his wrist—
[Skill Activated: Dark Javelin Lv.1]
A spear of black light impaled the mouth, silencing its shriek.
He exhaled slowly. "This dungeon... it's not just alive. It's watching."
After hours of blood, slime, and flesh-ripping corridors, they reached a vast chamber.
And there it waited.
A massive, hulking wormlike creature with rows of mouths down its spine, each one whispering ancient curses in forgotten tongues.
"Boss Detected: Flesh Tyrant (Rank D+)"Estimated Success Rate: 29% — Proceed with Caution.
Kael stepped forward anyway.
He could feel his heart pounding — not in fear, but excitement.
"I've killed things to live," he whispered. "Now I'll kill to conquer."
Zar growled low. "Together."
Kael smiled darkly.
[Skill Fusion Available: Abyss Claw + Shadow Step → Shadow Rend Lv.1][Fusion Confirmed.]
He launched forward, his body vanishing into a spiral of void-black energy — appearing mid-air above the Tyrant, his claws now curved, glowing with pure abyss.
The battle began.
And the dungeon trembled.
[Kael – Rank: E][New Skill: Shadow Rend Lv.1][Followers: 1 – Zar (F+)][Title Progress: Lord of the Fallen – 44%][Hidden Trait: Monarch Instinct – Awakening 6%]