Hunter of the Lost Gates-Chapter 37 - : The Last Lock

Sai's heart pounded as he stepped toward the **Last Lock**. The abyssal air around him **hummed** with energy, thick and suffocating, pressing against his skin like unseen hands. He could feel it now—**the weight of something ancient, something waiting.**

Behind him, Lena muttered under her breath, gripping her chakrams so tightly her knuckles were white. "This is a terrible idea."

Sai didn't answer. He couldn't.

Because the moment he placed his foot on the black stone platform before the Lock, **everything changed.**

The abyss itself **reacted.**

A deep **rumble** rolled through the ruins, and suddenly, **the shadows shifted.** The Watcher, who had been standing still all this time, finally **moved**, raising one hand toward the Last Lock.

**"The choice has been made,"** it intoned.

The **ground split open**, glowing with abyssal light. Symbols—**ones Sai had seen in his visions, from the lost civilization that had fallen to the Abyss**—lit up around the massive gate.

A pulse of energy surged outward.

And then—**the Lock began to open.**

---

### **The Abyss Awakens**

The instant the Last Lock started to crack, Sai felt something **shift deep inside him.**

His system—**silent until now—flared to life.**

**[Final Lock Engaged.]**

**[Synchronization in Progress...]**

His vision **blurred**, and for a moment, the entire world around him **flickered**.

He saw **fragments of a lost time.**

A battlefield—**not of men, but of something greater.**

Beings that **should not exist**, fighting against warriors who burned with abyssal energy.

A throne room, where a lone king stood against an entity **too vast to comprehend.**

And a voice—cold, endless.

**"You were fools to resist. This world is mine."**

Then—**pain.**

Sai gasped, staggering as his body **burned from the inside out.**

His system screamed warnings at him.

**[WARNING: Abyssal Resonance Unstable.]**

**[Unknown Force Attempting Synchronization.]**

Lena's voice cut through the chaos. "Sai! What's happening?"

Sai barely heard her.

Because something **was trying to take him.**

---

### **The Thing Beyond the Lock**

The Last Lock **shattered.**

The moment it did, **the void behind it shifted.**

It wasn't just darkness—it was **something alive**.

The shadows pulsed, rippling outward, and then—**a figure began to form.**

It was **not human.**

Not even close.

Tall, its body made of shifting abyssal mist, its **eyes burned like molten gold**, identical to the Watcher's, but filled with **something far more dangerous.**

And when it spoke, Sai felt it **crawl into his bones.**

**"Who dares?"**

Lena inhaled sharply. "Sai... what did we just wake up?"

Sai gritted his teeth. "I don't know."

The figure turned toward him, studying him like one might observe a crack in a wall.

Then, it spoke again.

**"You are not the King."**

Sai's stomach **dropped.**

The King? **The Abyssal King?**

Sai didn't get the chance to respond before **the thing moved.**

And suddenly, **the entire world shattered.**

---

### **The Trial of the Abyss**

Sai was **no longer in the ruins.**

In the blink of an eye, he was standing in an **endless void**, alone.

Lena was gone.

The Watcher was gone.

Even the ruins had disappeared.

The figure stood before him, its golden eyes locked onto his.

**"The Abyss does not accept weaklings."**

Sai barely had time to process those words before **everything exploded.**

He was **thrown backward**, a force unlike anything he had ever felt **slamming into him like a tidal wave.**

He crashed onto nothing—**there was no ground here, no sky, just endless blackness.**

And then—**the figure attacked.**

Sai barely dodged as a **massive abyssal blade** came down where he had just been. The impact **rippled through the void**, distorting space itself.

Sai moved purely on instinct, activating **Phantom Step** to flicker away, but the moment he reappeared, the figure was already **waiting for him.**

Sai's eyes widened. **It's faster than me?**

The figure didn't hesitate.

**A second attack.**

This time, Sai couldn't dodge.

The blade **tore through his side**, white-hot pain searing through him as abyssal energy **burned into his flesh.**

Sai gritted his teeth, rolling with the impact, landing hard. He forced himself up, breathing heavily.

This wasn't just a fight.

This was **a test.**

And if he failed...

He wouldn't leave this place alive.

---

### **Becoming More**

Sai wiped blood from his mouth, eyes narrowing. His system was still **flickering**, struggling to process what was happening.

His attacks wouldn't work on something like this.

He had to fight differently.

He had to fight like **them.**

Sai took a deep breath, closing his eyes.

And then—he let go.

He stopped **resisting** the Abyss inside him.

The moment he did, his **entire body ignited with abyssal energy.**

**[Abyssal Synchronization: 60%]**

**[Adaptation in Progress.]**

The figure **paused.**

Then, for the first time, it spoke not in challenge—but in recognition.

**"Ah. You are awakening."**

Sai **vanished.**

He didn't teleport. He didn't dodge.

He simply **became something else.**

And when he **reappeared**, he was already **inside the figure's guard.**

Its golden eyes widened **slightly**.

Sai **struck.**

His dagger **pierced into the abyssal form**, this time **not passing through.**

Because now, he **understood.**

Now, he was **part of this place.**

The figure let out a **low, approving chuckle.**

**"Interesting."**

Then, the entire world **collapsed.**

---

### **The Return**

Sai gasped, his body **snapping back to reality.**

He was in the ruins again.

Lena was gripping his shoulders, shaking him. "Sai! Sai, can you hear me?"

He blinked. His head felt **heavy**, his body still crackling with abyssal power.

The Watcher stood nearby, watching him **with something like amusement.**

The golden-eyed figure from beyond the Lock was **gone.**

Or maybe... **it had never truly been there.**

Lena let out a relieved breath. "You were out for a full minute. What happened?"

Sai exhaled, slowly pushing himself up.

"I think," he said, voice still hoarse, "I just passed the test."

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The Watcher nodded. "You have been acknowledged."

Sai frowned. "By who?"

The Watcher didn't answer immediately. Then, with a slow bow of its head, it said:

**"The Abyss itself."**

Sai's system **pinged.**

**[New Title Acquired: Heir of the Abyss]**

Lena looked between him and the Watcher. "Okay. Someone explain that. Now."

Sai wasn't sure he had an answer.

Because something **had changed inside him.**

And deep down, he knew—

This journey was **far from over.**