The moment, the ruin came into view. It felt and looked wrong but they still stepped forward.

The instant the four crossed beyond the broken stone pillars surrounding the ancient structure, the forest itself seemed to disappear behind them unnaturally.

Only silence prevailed.

An enormous temple-like structure spread beneath the black fog ahead, buried beneath roots and earth after centuries of abandonment. Massive stone stairs descended toward towering gates curved with symbols none of them recognised.

They looked ancient.

The architecture resembled nothing built by modern races. Giant beast-shaped statues lined the entrance. Each of the status was kneeling towards the centre as though worshipping something deeper inside.

Atheline frowned. He was familiar with this kind of depiction but he pushed it aside.

’Just a coincidence’

Cassian frowned, his gaze on a lion-like creature.

"... I hate this place even more now."

Yander’s eyes moved carefully across the ruin.

"This is where the Aether is coming from. There is too much in the air. "

It became clear why beasts, especially those near the centre, attacked with such ferocity. This was basically a holy land for them.

Caius stepped forward slowly, light Aether gathering faintly around his hand.

Golden illuminations spread softly across the dark ruins, revealing massive claw marks carved through the sections of the ancient walls.

"Something lives here," Caius said.

Atheline’s gaze shifted towards the enormous temple gates. He could feel several gazes on them as though they were waiting for them to step through.

Temples like this never lacked guardians.

Then, the gates moved.

A deep grinding sound echoed throughout the ruins as the massive black gates slowly opened inward by themselves.

Darkness waited beyond.

Cassian stared.

"... Absolutely not."

No one listened. The four entered carefully.

The inside of the temple resembled a forgotten world.

Enormous pillars stretched upward into darkness while ancient murals covered the walls, depicting colossal beasts kneeling before a throne surrounded by stars.

Atheline could already depict who it was.

A sovereign or something close to them.

This was probably another sovereign temple but he didn’t know which kind.

The ruins grew almost impossibly dark the deeper they went.

The temple seemed to grow bigger the further in they went. The corridors stretched impossibly wide while ancient pillars towered upwards into darkness beyond sight. Caius illumination could not reach.

Massive roots had broken through ceilings centuries ago, twisting around curved stones.

To their surprise, none of them had been attacked. The environment just looked and felt creepy with how the corridor kept expanding with each step. At the moment, they were basically dwarfed in the halls.

No one spoke anymore. The atmosphere itself suppressed conversation. Even the most talkative Cassian had grown silent at some point.

Their footsteps echoed through the hallway as Caius’ light occasionally illuminated fallen statues lining the pathway ahead. It really looked like a dead world.

Then, a low growl rolled through the corridor. The sound did not resemble any ordinary monster. Stones fell from the ceiling due to the vibrations.

All four stopped immediately.

"What is that?" Cassian muttered under his breath.

No one responded. The light snuffed out and the corridors fell into darkness.

Caius’s hand moved towards the great sword resting across his back.

Yander’s flames flickered softly around her fingers.

Atheline’s gaze narrowed slightly. His wind had caught several fast movements ahead.

Then, the walls exploded.

Black beasts burst through ancient stone simultaneously from both sides of the corridor. Massive wolf-like monsters lunged directly towards the group, their mouth splitting unnaturally wide while silver claws carved through stone effortlessly.

The first creature aimed for Cassian.

Wrong choice.

Shadows beneath the corridor erupted upwards instantly. The wolf’s own shadow twisted around its body mid-leap like chains, violently dragging it sideways before it could reach him.

Then Caius moved.

Light exploded through the darkness. His greatsword descending in one brutal arc.

BOOM.

The corridor shook violently. The beast split apart instantly, golden light tearing through its armoured body before the remains crashed against broken pillars.

At the same time, two more wolves descended towards Yander from above. She stepped forward calmly instead of retreating. Her flames compressed tightly around her blade until the surrounding air distorted from heat.

Then she slashed upwards. A crescent of burning dark flames carved through both monsters simultaneously.

The explosion that followed was enormous.

Burning flesh and shattered scales were scattered across the walls while the beasts crashed smoking across the floor.

But more kept coming. The number increased to approximately ten.

Atheline stepped forward silently.

Lightning flickered around his fingers, then wind exploded outwards.

The corridor transformed instantly into chaos. Several beasts were thrown sideways before they could fully attack while arrows formed rapidly between his fingers through condensed Elementals.

A lightning arrow.

A monster attempting to leap from the ceiling exploded backwards after the projectile pierced through its skull.

An ice arrow.

Frost spread instantly across the floor, freezing the legs of the three charging beasts before earth spikes erupted upwards beneath them.

The creatures were impaled mid-motion.

Cassian laughed softly from behind the shadows.

"You really make teamwork feel unnecessary."

Atheline ignored him completely.

At that moment, the floor trembled. All four looked upwards. Something enormous moved above them.

The ceiling shattered apart a second later.

A gigantic snake crashed downward into the corridor, its body covered in pale white fur instead of scales while dozens of eyes opened across its back.

The snake roared.

The sound exploded outwards violently enough to crack the walls themselves.

Cassian winced immediately.

"Not this again beast again... I hate that."

The serpent attacked without pause. Its massive tail swept across the corridor horizontally, carrying enough force to flatten buildings.

Caius intercepted directly.

Light erupted around his body as he swung the greatsword two-handed.

The impact detonated throughout the corridor. The serpent’s tail stopped completely against the glowing blade while cracks spread beneath Caius’s boots from the force.

It was clearly strong.

The serpent’s physical stregth rival SS class monsters outside. It opened its jaws next.

Blue light gathered within its throat like a gathering storm.

Atheline reacted instantly.

"Move."