Chapter 168

Chapter 168

Boom! Crash!

Fragments of rock fell, scattering dust. Ian, narrowly avoiding them, shoved his greatsword into his pocket dimension as he sprinted forward. His spine tingled non-stop—a warning from his Intuition.

At this depth, being buried alive would be worse than dying.

Even as he thought, Ian skidded to a halt and threw himself to the side. Crumbling rocks tumbled down where he had just been standing. It wasn't just the ceiling collapsing; the floor was cracking and the entire audience chamber was sinking.

Despite the ongoing earthquakes, Ian dashed toward the faintly visible door in the distance. His mind grew clearer with each urgent step, showcasing the true value of his high Mental Fortitude.

His Concentration and Intuition were both pushed to their limits, giving him a sense of awareness that made even unseen areas feel visible.

Rumble.

Ian narrowly dodged the falling rubble, changing direction as he sprinted. Although his heightened perception made the moment feel prolonged, in reality, barely ten seconds had passed. Yet even in this brief time, the collapse was accelerating rapidly.

He had no certainty that he could escape the audience chamber and reach the stairs safely. The ceiling wasn't the only thing collapsing. Above them lay the Labyrinth Mansion, which would soon follow suit and crumble.

More importantly, his Intuition was urging him to get out immediately. Ian trusted his instincts; after all, it was an ability imbued with a special trait.

Anyway... Why hasn't the quest completion window popped up?

This incongruous question struck Ian. His subconscious quickly deduced the answer: the quest wasn't completed.

Is there a second phase? This is too much. Really.

Even as he rolled across the floor, Ian couldn't help but smirk bitterly to himself. This meant that everything happening right now was merely an event cut scene triggered when transitioning to the next phase.

Who would have thought my life would be endangered by something as trivial as a cut scene?

Rumble—

But soon enough, there was no more room to dodge or escape. Large and small rocks were pouring down like a landslide.

The mansion had already begun to collapse in the center of the audience chamber he had passed through. Right after that, holy energy flared up around Ian's entire body like flames.

Boom!

Ian smashed through the rocks blocking his path with a powerful punch and charged forward. If he couldn't avoid them, he would break through and destroy them. He braced himself against the smaller rocks with his arms shielding his head, enduring the impacts with his body.

Did all these events really occur in the game?

No matter how experienced someone might be, it seemed unlikely they could have managed all this at this stage. But it wasn't a crucial question that needed an immediate answer. What mattered right now was something else entirely.

Boom—

A landslide blocked the passage ahead. The once wide-open door had disappeared, buried under rubble.

Ian charged with his arms shielding his head. He ran through the falling debris, gritting his teeth and leaping.

Crash—

He burst through the rubble, tumbling onto the floor. Finally, he was in the passageway.

"...!"

Ian, who was about to get up and run again, suddenly halted. The long corridor ahead showed that the stairs had already collapsed. Strangely, however, he no longer felt any warnings from his Intuition.

"Huff... huff..."

Panting heavily, Ian scanned the surroundings of the corridor. The lights of the magic stones had all gone out, and the earthquakes continued relentlessly. Yet, the corridor itself remained intact. Only the stairs leading upward and the audience chamber had collapsed. Then again, those alone accounted for more than half of the underground palace's space.

So the boss fight isn't over yet.

Contrary to his expectations, the extreme sense of urgency and focus had somewhat subsided. Headaches and dizziness followed swiftly as if they had been waiting. His limbs trembled, a warning signal that his limit was near. But it was not yet time to rest.

"Sigh..."

Clenching his blood and dirt-covered fist tightly, Ian looked back once more. The audience chamber was an indistinguishable mess of falling debris and dust. The vibrations and loud noises were relentless. The ceiling had already collapsed completely, and now the debris of the Labyrinth Mansion was pouring down.

However, the blade didn't bounce back. Ian gritted his teeth as if they would shatter and pressed down with both arms. The Blessing of Battle flared, infusing new strength into his exhausted limbs.

Sssss—

The greatsword's blade, like a heated branding iron, melted and penetrated the true blood mass.

Inside the significantly smaller sphere, the curled-up form of the Empress's true body became gradually clearer. Ian did not blink, fixing his gaze on the sight.

The Empress's true body was even larger than her clone. She had long, wing-like appendages sprouting from her back. However, she had not yet fully formed. Her skin was just beginning to cover her, far from a complete body.

Crack—

Finally, the blade reached one of her wing joints. Despite the tremendous resistance, Ian did not relent.

Crunch.

At last, the greatsword completely crushed one of her wings, reaching the back beneath it. As her exposed ribcage began to cave in,

Swoosh—

The true blood was absorbed into the Empress's body as if being sucked in instantly. In the next moment, the magic condensed within her body exploded.

Boom—

The greatsword was flung away, and Ian, still holding onto it, was thrown through the air like he had been hit by a truck.

As he flew through the air, Ian saw flower petals being blown away by the shockwave.

Woosh.

A rain of blood poured down, and thick blood mist rose from the debris below. The greatsword that Ian had let go of fell and embedded itself in the middle of the debris hill.

"Kiaaaah!" From the center of the hill, the Empress roared, her red eyes gleaming fiercely.

Crack.

Ian shielded his face with his arms as he was slammed into the wall of the audience chamber. Spider-web-like cracks spread across the wall.

He felt his left arm and ribs fracture. There was no pain, which wasn't a good sign, but Ian didn't care. What he had to do from now on wouldn't change anyway.

Despite everything, Ian didn't take his eyes off the Empress.

"Aahhhh—"

Her appearance crouched on all fours and howling like a beast, was anything but beautiful. Her skin was thin and glossy, almost translucent with visible veins. Her unfinished face lacked a nose, lips, and even hair. Only blood-red eyes, gaping nostrils, and exposed sharp teeth were visible. Blood poured from the crushed wing joint and the gap between her ribs.

"Huuu...." Finally ending her roar, the Empress took a deep breath and crouched her body. The blood pouring down swiftly gathered around her.

Some of the blood seeped into her body, while some remained around her, forming various shapes. A crown of blood emerged above her head.

Blood flowed along the wing joints, forming wings, and she rose into the air without even flapping them. It looked as though she was being dragged upward by the wings.

Thud—

Ian landed on the ground just after that.

He spat out a piece of his shattered molar along with blood and stood up. His body was in shambles, but his gaze, fixed on the Empress, remained dark and unwavering. The Empress, dangling from her wings, slowly turned her head toward him with a creak.

Her red pupils, which had been randomly enlarging and contracting, suddenly fixed on him and glowed intensely. The massive blood wings, crown, and the blood mist around her body all ignited simultaneously.

"Iaaaaaan—"

The Empress spread her arms wide and screamed. The burst of psychic waves swept over Ian. Even he couldn't fully resist the force. The image of Thesaya from the game flashed through his mind. Back then, she also emitted psychic waves that caused random status effects: Charm, Confusion, Fear, Frenzy, Paralysis, and so on.

This time, it seemed to induce a state of frenzy. It felt as if all the resentment, anger, and hatred he had always harbored were erupting like a volcano. The Blessing of Battle responded to his emotions, flaring up. The chaos power surged from him like a runaway fragment.

"Roar—" The Empress flew toward him.

With violet eyes blazing, Ian charged toward her.