Chapter 157: The Ruins That Shouldn’t Exist

Chapter 157: Chapter 157: The Ruins That Shouldn’t Exist

The stairs descended farther than Ronan had expected.

After walking for several minutes, he still couldn’t see the bottom. The walls were covered in shifting markings, and the deeper he went, the stronger the mysterious energy became.

Kharven followed a few steps behind him, his expression growing increasingly uneasy.

"My lord, these ruins don’t appear in any of Bloodfall City’s records."

"How many records have you studied?"

"Enough to know that the Ashen Reach has been explored by several generations of vampires. We’ve lost expeditions here, but no one has ever reported discovering an underground structure."

Ronan glanced at him.

"Perhaps those who found it never returned to tell anyone."

Kharven fell silent.

That was a possibility neither of them could dismiss.

Ronan continued downward, keeping his senses alert. The creature that had emerged beneath the tablet was proof that the ruins weren’t entirely abandoned. Something else might be lurking below, and he had no intention of allowing curiosity to get him killed.

Eventually, the stairs ended.

A vast underground chamber stretched before them.

Ronan stopped at the entrance.

Rows of black pillars stood on either side of a stone pathway, extending toward a circular platform at the center of the chamber. Their surfaces were covered in the same markings he had seen on the tablet, though these inscriptions were far more elaborate.

Above the platform floated several fragments of dark stone.

They revolved slowly around an empty space, each fragment releasing a faint stream of gray energy.

Ronan’s attention immediately shifted to the floor.

Bodies lay scattered across the chamber.

Some had been reduced to skeletons, while others appeared relatively recent. Their equipment varied considerably. A few carried the weapons and armor of vampires, but others wore unfamiliar clothing.

He approached the nearest corpse.

The remains belonged to a vampire.

Its armor had been crushed inward, and several ribs were exposed. However, there were no obvious signs of blood loss.

Ronan crouched beside it.

The damage suggested overwhelming physical force, but the strange energy clinging to the bones was more interesting.

He extended his hand without touching the corpse.

The energy reacted immediately, gathering around his fingers.

His eyes narrowed.

It was the same energy he had encountered at Dusk Hollow, Blackthorn Outpost, and the creature on the surface.

Yet something was different here.

The energy in the ruins seemed more organized, flowing along invisible pathways that connected the pillars to the central platform.

This wasn’t simply a place where the energy had accumulated naturally.

Something had shaped it.

Ronan straightened.

"Don’t touch anything."

Kharven nodded.

They proceeded along the pathway, carefully avoiding the bodies.

Halfway to the central platform, Ronan noticed something carved into one of the pillars.

Unlike the shifting markings surrounding it, this inscription remained perfectly still.

He recognized the symbol immediately.

A broken circle.

It matched the crest on the metal token Varkos had shown him before their expedition.

Ronan studied the carving.

The token had been recovered from the Ashen Reach two centuries earlier. If the crest had been here long before that, the ruins were at least that old.

Possibly much older.

He continued examining the pillar until he noticed a shallow indentation beneath the symbol.

It was roughly the same size as the token.

Ronan retrieved the metal object Varkos had entrusted to him and held it near the indentation.

Before he could insert it, Kharven suddenly spoke.

"My lord, there’s something moving."

Ronan immediately turned.

At the far end of the chamber, one of the bodies had moved.

A skeletal hand scraped against the stone floor.

Then another corpse sat upright.

A third followed.

Within seconds, dozens of dead creatures began rising from the ground.

Their empty eye sockets glowed with gray light.

Ronan sighed.

"Of course."

The first undead lunged toward him.

He sidestepped its attack and crushed its skull with a single punch.

The creature collapsed, but the gray energy inside its body escaped before he could examine it.

More undead rushed toward him.

Ronan activated Wind Step, moving through their ranks as his fists shattered bones and armor. These creatures weren’t particularly strong individually, but their movements were unnaturally coordinated.

They weren’t behaving like ordinary mindless undead.

Each time one of them fell, the others adjusted their positions, closing gaps and attacking from different directions.

Ronan’s expression became more serious.

Someone—or something—was directing them.

"Kharven, protect the entrance!"

The vampire immediately retreated toward the stairs, intercepting several undead that attempted to flank them.

Ronan continued advancing.

He struck one creature in the chest, sending it crashing into a pillar. Another swung a rusted blade toward his neck, but he caught its wrist and twisted until the bones snapped.

He then drove his elbow through its skull.

The creature fell.

A faint notification appeared in his vision.

[Insufficient target quality. No useful trait detected.]

Ronan ignored it.

These undead weren’t worth his time.

He needed to find whatever was controlling them.

As he moved deeper into the chamber, the attacks became more coordinated. Several undead deliberately positioned themselves between him and the central platform, while others attempted to surround him.

Ronan’s lips curled.

"So that’s where you don’t want me to go."

He activated Crushing Roar.

A devastating wave of force erupted from his body, sweeping across the chamber.

The undead closest to him were torn apart. Several black pillars cracked, and the remaining creatures were thrown backward.

For a brief moment, the chamber fell silent.

Then the floating fragments above the central platform began spinning faster.

The gray energy flowing between them intensified.

Ronan’s expression changed.

He had barely taken another step when the ground beneath him lit up.

A circular formation spread across the floor, its markings connecting the pillars in a network of glowing lines.

The energy surged.

Ronan immediately attempted to retreat, but the space around him suddenly grew heavy.

His movements slowed.

The formation was using gravity to restrain him.

He recognized the principle from the creature he had killed outside, but the strength of this formation was considerably greater.

A low sound echoed throughout the chamber.

The remaining undead stopped moving.

Then, from behind the central platform, something emerged.

It was humanoid, but only barely.

Its body was covered in black armor fused directly to its flesh. A long weapon resembling a spear rested in its right hand, while its left arm ended in a cluster of jagged bones.

Unlike the other undead, its eyes burned with a steady gray light.

It stopped at the edge of the formation.

Ronan studied it carefully.

The creature’s aura was powerful enough to make the surrounding energy tremble.

He couldn’t determine its exact realm from a glance, but it was clearly stronger than the undead he had fought so far.

The creature raised its spear.

A concentrated wave of gravitational force slammed into Ronan.

His knees bent.

The stone beneath his feet cracked under the pressure, and his body sank several inches into the floor.

Ronan gritted his teeth.

The force was comparable to the pressure exerted by the creature on the surface, but the formation was amplifying it.

He activated Gravity Affinity and Gravitational Resistance simultaneously.

The crushing pressure remained, yet the strain on his body decreased enough for him to move.

The armored undead tilted its head.

For the first time, its expressionless face seemed to display curiosity.

Ronan noticed.

"You can think?"

The creature didn’t answer.

It simply thrust its spear forward.

A wave of force swept across the chamber.

Ronan dodged to the side, but the attack followed him, tearing through the stone where he had stood.

He charged toward the creature.

The undead swung its spear horizontally.

Ronan ducked beneath the weapon and struck its abdomen.

BOOM!

The impact sent the creature sliding backward.

But its armor remained intact.

Before Ronan could follow up, the undead drove the butt of its spear into the ground.

The formation activated again.

Gravity shifted violently.

Ronan was dragged sideways, his shoulder slamming into a pillar.

The stone shattered.

He dropped to one knee, coughing up blood.

The creature approached slowly.

Ronan wiped the blood from his mouth.

He had underestimated the combination of the formation and its guardian.

Fighting it while the formation remained active would put him at a serious disadvantage. Even if he eventually won, he might suffer injuries that would make the rest of the expedition impossible.

He needed to disable the formation.

His gaze shifted toward the pillars.

The glowing lines connected every pillar to the central platform, but some were brighter than others.

The energy seemed to enter through the outer pillars before converging at the center.

If he disrupted the flow, the formation might weaken.

Ronan immediately changed direction.

Instead of attacking the guardian again, he rushed toward the nearest glowing pillar.

The undead reacted instantly.

It hurled its spear.

Ronan twisted aside, but the weapon grazed his ribs, opening a deep wound.

He ignored the pain and struck the pillar with Annihilation Force.

CRACK!

The stone split.

The glowing line running through it flickered.

The gravitational pressure weakened for a fraction of a second.

That was enough.

Ronan moved to the next pillar.

The guardian roared.

For the first time, it abandoned its position near the platform and charged after him.

Its speed was far greater than before.

Ronan barely avoided the spear thrust aimed at his back. He spun around and struck the creature’s arm, but the blow only knocked its weapon off course.

The undead slammed its free hand into his chest.

Ronan was sent flying.

He crashed into the floor and rolled several meters before stopping.

Pain spread through his body.

The creature approached, dragging its spear behind it.

Ronan forced himself to stand.

He had already damaged one pillar. He only needed to destroy another.

But the guardian was no longer giving him the opportunity.

Its spear rose.

Ronan suddenly smiled.

"Got you."

He activated Limit Break and charged directly toward the creature.

The guardian thrust its weapon forward.

At the last moment, Ronan changed direction, using the altered gravitational force to propel himself beneath the attack.

He passed the creature and reached the pillar behind it.

His fist struck the stone.

BOOM!

The pillar shattered.

The formation’s glow vanished.

The crushing pressure disappeared.

The guardian froze.

Its movements became sluggish, and the gray energy surrounding its armor flickered.

Ronan didn’t waste the opportunity.

He rushed forward and struck its knee, forcing it to kneel. Then he seized the shaft of its spear and pulled hard.

The weapon slipped from its grasp.

Ronan immediately drove his fist into the creature’s chest.

The armor cracked.

He struck again.

The second blow shattered the damaged plating, exposing the gray-black tissue beneath.

The guardian attempted to retaliate, but its movements had become too slow.

Ronan activated Annihilation Force and drove his fist into the exposed core.

The creature’s body convulsed.

Gray energy burst from its armor, spreading across the chamber in a violent wave.

Then it collapsed.

Ronan stepped backward, breathing heavily.

His injuries were worse than he had expected, but he was still standing.

He approached the fallen guardian cautiously.

The creature’s gray eyes flickered one last time before going dark.

A notification appeared.

[Target eliminated.]

[Analyzing available traits...]

[Trait acquired: Formation Sense.]

Ronan paused.

Formation Sense.

The trait was different from the physical enhancements he had acquired recently. Rather than increasing his raw strength, it allowed him to perceive the flow and structure of energy formations more clearly.

He examined the broken pillars.

The connections that had previously been invisible now appeared as faint traces of energy stretching across the floor.

A smile slowly spread across his face.

This was useful.

Very useful.

He had no intention of becoming a formation specialist, but the ability to identify weaknesses in hostile formations could save his life in future battles.

And in a world where powerful creatures and ancient ruins were everywhere, that advantage was worth far more than another minor increase in strength.

Ronan turned toward the central platform.

With the guardian dead and the formation disabled, the chamber had finally fallen silent.

The floating fragments had stopped spinning.

One by one, they descended toward the platform, fitting together around the empty space at its center.

A dark crystal emerged.

It was considerably larger than the fragment he had recovered from the creature on the surface.

Ronan approached it slowly.

The moment he reached the platform, the crystal released a pulse of gray energy.

The markings across the walls changed.

For a brief instant, they formed a pattern that Ronan could almost recognize.

Then the image vanished.

He reached toward the crystal.

A sharp pain shot through his hand.

Ronan immediately withdrew it.

The crystal had reacted to his touch, leaving a thin black mark across his palm.

He stared at the mark.

It didn’t hurt anymore, but the strange energy had not disappeared.

Instead, it was slowly spreading beneath his skin.

Ronan’s expression hardened.

He had no idea what the mark meant, and he wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.

He activated his abilities, attempting to determine whether the energy was harming his body.

Nothing obvious happened.

The mark remained.

Then a faint vibration came from the stairs behind him.

Ronan turned.

Kharven stood at the entrance, staring at the central platform.

"My lord..."

His voice trembled.

"What is it?"

Kharven pointed toward the walls.

"The markings. They’re changing again."

Ronan looked around.

Every inscription in the chamber had begun glowing.

The gray energy was flowing toward the central platform, gathering around the crystal and the mark on his palm.

Then a sound echoed from somewhere far beneath the ruins.

A slow, heavy impact.

Another followed.

Something was moving below them.

Ronan looked down at the crystal.

He had come here searching for answers and had discovered an ancient formation, a powerful guardian, and an energy that seemed capable of marking his body.

Yet the ruins extended farther underground.

Much farther.

He closed his hand.

"Looks like we’re not finished."

Kharven stared at him in disbelief.

"My lord, whatever is down there might be even stronger than that guardian."

"Then we’ll leave if it’s beyond our ability to handle."

Ronan glanced toward the dark passage beyond the central platform.

"But I’m not leaving without finding out what this place is."

He turned and walked toward the passage.

The mark on his palm pulsed once beneath his skin.

Deep within the ruins, something answered.

And for the first time since entering the Ashen Reach, Ronan felt certain that the mysterious energy wasn’t merely a remnant of the past.

Something was still using it.

And whatever that thing was, it had just noticed him.