Hunter of the Lost Gates-Chapter 32 - : Beyond the Gate

The air crackled with energy as Sai stepped through the gate, his heart pounding like a war drum. A rush of cold, unfamiliar air swept past him, and the moment his foot touched solid ground, he knew—this was not the same world. Behind him, Lena hesitated at the threshold. "Sai... are we seriously doing this?" Sai turned to face her, his expression firm. "I don't think we have a choice." Lena sighed, gripping her chakrams. "You say that too often." Then, with a reluctant breath, she stepped through after him. The gate behind them closed, the glow of abyssal energy fading into the air. They had officially crossed a point of no return.

Sai and Lena found themselves standing in a vast, endless landscape, unlike anything they had ever seen. Jagged black rock formations jutted out from the ground, stretching high into the sky, twisting at unnatural angles. The sky itself was a swirling abyss of dark blues and deep purples, pulsing like a living thing. The land around them was eerily silent. No wind, no creatures, nothing but the occasional distant rumble, as if the very world was breathing. Lena shivered. "I hate this place already." Sai scanned their surroundings, his senses on high alert. He had stepped through a lot of Lost Gates before, but this... this was different. His system chimed in.

**[Location: Abyssal Expanse]**

**[Status: Uncharted Territory]**

**[Threat Level: Unknown]**

Sai's eyes narrowed. *Even the system doesn't have data on this place?* That meant they were completely on their own. Lena exhaled. "Alright, genius. Where to?" Sai took a step forward, the ground beneath his boot crunching like brittle glass. "We find out why this place was sealed away." The moment he said it—the whispers returned. Faint. Almost impossible to hear. But they were there.

**"You were not meant to be here."**

Sai froze. Lena noticed his tension immediately. "What?" "You don't hear that?" Lena frowned, tilting her head. "...Hear what?" Sai's stomach twisted. The whispers were for him alone.

They walked for what felt like hours, the landscape around them never changing. No signs of life. No landmarks. Just endless twisting formations of black rock. Until finally—they saw something. A structure, standing in the distance, half-buried in the shifting ground. It was massive—a towering temple, built from the same obsidian-like material as the Abyssal King's throne. Strange glyphs covered its walls, faintly glowing, as if trying to wake from a deep slumber. Lena muttered, "This just screams bad idea."

Sai's system flared with warnings.

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**[Warning: Presence of Unknown Entities Detected.]**

Before Sai could process the alert, the shadows moved. His daggers were in his hands instantly. From the darkened crevices of the ruined temple, figures began to emerge. At first, they looked human. Cloaked, slow-moving, their forms flickering like dying candlelight. But then—their faces twisted. Eyes hollow. Mouths stretching wider than natural. Their bodies flickered in and out of existence, as if reality itself was rejecting them. Lena tensed. "Oh, hell no." One of the creatures took a step forward. Its voice was a garbled mess of sounds, but somehow, Sai understood.

**"You should not have come."**

Then, they attacked.

Sai dashed forward, his daggers flashing as he aimed for the closest enemy. His blade struck its body—but instead of piercing flesh, it passed through it. His breath hitched. *They're not solid?!* The creature lashed out, its elongated fingers striking with inhuman speed. Sai barely dodged, twisting mid-air to avoid a second attack. Lena flung her chakrams, the spinning blades cutting through the creatures—but they simply reformed. She cursed. "We can't kill them!"

Sai's mind raced. There had to be a way. His system flashed a notification.

**[Abyssal Insight Activated.]**

Suddenly—he saw it. Each creature had a core of energy, deep within their flickering forms. Sai's grip on his daggers tightened. *That's the weak point.* He activated Phantom Step, vanishing in an instant. Reappearing behind one of the creatures, he plunged his dagger directly into its core. The result was instant. The creature let out a piercing wail, its body twisting violently before shattering into mist. Lena's eyes widened. "That worked?!"

"Go for their cores!" Sai shouted.

Lena nodded, adjusting her aim. She threw both chakrams, the weapons curving through the air before striking two enemies in their cores. The creatures screamed, their forms collapsing into nothingness. One by one, they eliminated the Forgotten. Until the ruins fell silent once more.

Sai took a deep breath, his heart still hammering in his chest. Lena wiped sweat from her brow. "That was way too close." Sai agreed. But they weren't done yet. His eyes turned to the entrance of the temple. A massive doorway, covered in intricate abyssal runes, stood before them. Unlike the rest of the ruins, this door was untouched. Sealed. Sai stepped closer, his system reacting immediately.

**[Sealed Chamber Detected.]**

**[Key Required: Abyssal Fragment Acquired.]**

Sai reached into his inventory, pulling out the Abyssal Key Fragment they had found earlier. The moment he held it up, the runes on the doorway flared to life. Lena shifted uneasily. "Are we seriously opening that?" Sai glanced at her. "Do you want to turn back?" She groaned. "Of course not." Sai smirked. "Then let's see what's inside."

With that, he pressed the key against the door. The air rippled. The runes shifted. And with a deep, echoing boom—the doors slowly began to open. A wave of cold, suffocating energy spilled out from within. Sai tightened his grip on his weapons. Whatever was inside this temple—it was waiting for them. And they were about to face it.