Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 356

The entrance to the Arctic base that appeared before Suho looked like a gateway to another world.

“What in the world...”

What flowed from the holes Arsha’s Void Insects had chewed through the dimensional wall wasn’t the frigid Arctic wind. It was thick, lukewarm air. The smell wafting out carried a mix of rotting flesh, metal, and an indescribable stench.

Gray instinctively lowered his body and growled. His instincts as a hunter were warning him. Something beyond that point did not abide by the natural order of the world.

“I’ll go in first. You follow me,” Suho stepped through the hole and into the base.

What he heard beneath his feet was the sound of stepping on metal flooring. However, the metal wasn’t cold. On the contrary, it was warm and sticky, almost as if he were touching the skin of a living creature.

“Odd...” Suho said, looking around.

At first glance, the space appeared to be a secret base built with the most advanced technology available. In fact, that was likely what it had been not long ago. Now, it was nothing more than a ruined shell that seemed ready to be haunted. The walls and ceilings were rusted and decaying. Fine cracks like spiderwebs and patches of mold had spread everywhere. Something dripped from the ceiling, sticky and translucent. The moment it touched the floor, it sizzled, releasing a pungent smoke.

They continued walking down the dimly lit hallway, fluorescent lights flickering above. The deeper they went, the more bizarre the atmosphere became. The hallway walls seemed to pulse like they were alive, swelling and shrinking in a steady rhythm. Even the air smelled off, as if it were toxic.

“What is that smell?” he asked.

Arsha was the one to respond.

“There’s something else mixed into the air. It’s poisonous in a sense, but it isn’t actual poison. I believe this air contains elements not found on Earth.”

“Air that doesn’t exist on Earth, huh...”

“Young Monarch, the energy of the Outer Gods is sickeningly thick here,” Beru said. “Allow me to take the lead.”

He stood in front of Suho, more serious than ever. Ordinarily, he would have remained behind to let Suho gain more experience, offering only occasional guidance, but now was the time to be more cautious. In fact, he was ready to spend all the mana he had gathered to protect Suho.

“I will keep you safe, Young Monarch.”

“Well, let’s continue on inside for now,” Suho said with a nod, and carefully continued down the corridor.

Suddenly, Gray crouched low, his teeth grinding as he let out a low growl. Footsteps could be heard coming from the other end of the hall. The rhythm was steady, but there was something unnatural about it. It was a stiff gait, as if the joints weren’t bending properly.

“A human...?” Suho muttered.

What appeared at the end of the corridor was a man in a white lab coat. At first glance, he looked like an ordinary technician. However, on closer inspection, Suho realized that his eye sockets were just gaping holes, blue smoke rising out of them. The man continued his shuffle forward without stopping. His mouth hung open, and the same blue smoke leaked from within. He was muttering something under his breath.

“The prime minister... here soon... The great god... Project Eternal Fountain... Blessings from above...”

The man repeated the same words in a flat tone, devoid of emotion.

“A mist burn?”

Suho narrowed his eyes as he observed the man. It had been a while since he’d seen a mist burn. These beings, corrupted by the power of the Outer Gods, were no longer human. In the past, Suho might have considered them little more than magic beasts who had once been human. Encountering one here, of all places, made him view it differently than before. Why did mist burns exist in the first place?

The man walked right past Suho without a glance. It was as though he couldn’t see Suho at all, or didn’t care. He was walking as if entranced, focused on something far more important.

Suho’s gaze turned icy.

“That’s not an ordinary mist burn.”

“He doesn’t seem to be in pain,” Beru observed, noting a key difference.

Most mist burns experienced overwhelming torment in both body and soul. The pain usually drove them mad, causing them to attack humans blindly. This man didn’t seem to be feeling any pain, however, for a reason Beru soon discovered.

“There is a barrier etched into his body.”

“You’re right,” Suho replied.

As they quietly followed the mist burn, observing, they noticed a delicate magic circle engraved on his body. There was only one person they could think of who could have done this.

“Was this Yuri Orloff? But what is this barrier supposed to do? Harmakan, get out here.”

“I thank you for summoning me, Master.”

At Suho’s call, Harmakan appeared. He studied the barrier on the mist burn with sharp eyes.

“This... is quite advanced. While it looks simple, it’s an extremely powerful, small form-factor barrier, and it’s intended to... wrap around the soul’s vessel like a bandage and bolster it.”

“Like the bandages on a mummy?”

“Yes.”

It was a state similar to the mummies wandering inside Ammut’s pyramid. The mummies were the work of Kandiaru, the Grand Spellcaster, created through a wicked spell that sealed the corpses of those who had died challenging Ammut in bandages, turning them into mindless thralls. Suho had used the bandages around them as a tool to train his Iron Body Technique. Yuri, it seemed, had etched a barrier with a similar effect into the bodies of his own subordinates. This one was much more powerful, however—an S-rank barrier which retained its function even after they were turned into mist burns.

“Why would he do something like this? There’s a place nearby where more of them have gathered,” Arsha reported, her Void Insects having scouted the surroundings.

“There are more of them? Show the way,” Suho said.

“Yes.”

The insects took the lead, and Suho followed close behind. Eventually, they reached a room at the far end of the corridor that was labeled “Control Room.” Peering through the opening, Suho surveyed the interior with care. Then, everyone fell silent.

There were dozens of people gathered inside, each broken in a different way, and all of them growling like the undead. Some were missing eyes, while others had mouths torn from ear to ear. Some had heads twisted a full 180 degrees, while others had limbs stretched to grotesque lengths. Still, all of them remained at their stations, diligently performing their designated roles.

One man was banging his head against the wall in a steady rhythm. Blood was trickling down his forehead, but he didn’t seem to feel pain. He just kept slamming his head. It was according to this rhythm that the others worked. One person was typing on a keyboard, their fingers decayed down to bare bone. The sound of bone tapping against keys sent shivers down Suho’s spine. All of them were muttering strange words in flat, emotionless voices.

“Expanded output... More divine power... The prime minister will be pleased...”

“Project Eternal Fountain... Eternal blessings... Great god...”

“Soon to come... Soon to come...”

They looked like mad zealots, like a fanatical religious sect whispering a common prayer of madness.

In sync with their bizarre movements, the instruments in the control room flashed wildly. Red warning lights were blaring from every direction, signaling danger—but no one paid any attention. In fact, it almost felt as if the warnings themselves were part of some deliberate code.

Suho’s fist tightened as he looked at them. He could see not only the twisted bodies, but the souls still trapped inside them. Though the human souls were contorted and corrupted by the energy of the Outer Gods, they were still deep inside, writhing in anguish. Yet they remained imprisoned by the barrier carved into their flesh, engulfed in blue flames and trapped in endless torment. Their very souls were being tortured.

Suho could not stand idly by. He extended his hand.

“Arise.”

[Skill: “Shadow Extraction” has activated.]

A gust of wind swept through the room.

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

[...]

The souls, upon contact with Suho’s shadow, slipped free. Though the barriers had locked them in place, the shadow power had granted them release. However, that wasn’t the end of it. Their souls had been irreparably damaged, too shattered to be reformed into proper shadow soldiers. Even in their newfound freedom, the souls thrashed in agony. Having been exposed to the power of the Outer Gods for far too long, their souls had been reduced to tatters.

Thankfully, Suho now possessed a power that could bring them peace.

“Purification.”

[Skill: “Purification of the World Tree” has activated.]

Suho’s shadow turned pure white, gently consoling the broken souls. It was a power of purification, one only accessible to the Protector of the World Tree, and it drew upon the sacred tree’s energy to mend broken souls. As that power reached the souls who had once been mist burns, blue smoke began to pour from their bodies. The pain faded from their expressions as they were finally freed. They were damaged far too severely. They might be able to fight, but holding a proper conversation seemed nearly impossible.

Suho pointed toward one of them, who seemed in slightly better condition than the others.

“You. What is your name?”

“Eugh... Petrov... I... lead... them,” the now-shadow soldier managed to mutter in response.

“All right, Petrov. Can you tell me what happened here?”

“An... experiment... The prime minister... on our bodies... Barriers...”

“Barriers? What kind of barriers?”

“An experiment... to invite... the power of the Outer Gods...”

“I figured as much. And then what?”

Petrov replied in a trembling voice, like a candle about to go out, “Many subjects died... Souls... imploded...”

Eventually, piecing together his faltering words revealed the full picture.

Project Eternal Fountain was born from Yuri’s desire to attain the same power wielded by the followers of the Outer Gods. To that end, he had constructed a secret base and conducted countless experiments. After subjecting numerous unwilling participants to unbearable torment, he had finally achieved results he found satisfactory. His barriers could force a soul to contain far more energy than it was naturally capable of. The test subjects here were the result.

However, they were only practice. Yuri had tried countless variations of magic circles, like an obsessed student scribbling into notebooks. Eventually, he had carved the most stable and perfected version into his own flesh, a process that gave him immense power, enough to stand toe-to-toe with Thomas, the King of Giants. Yuri had gained the ability to absorb infinite divine power into himself.

Even so, that wasn’t the end of it.

“There’s... more...”

Petrov forced out his final words, offering up information that even Yuri had yet to discover.

“The markings... on the walls... we didn’t make those...”

“They... appeared... on their own...”

“Something controlled us... Used us...”

Suho and Beru came to a realization at the same time. They had seen the strange glyphs etched into the walls and ceilings on their way in. They were part of a massive magic circle that had been applied to the entire base, and someone had forced the humans here to trace it.

“An Itarim,” Suho muttered.

“It seems the Outer Gods have taken advantage of Yuri Orloff,” Beru’s face twisted in disgust as he recalled old memories.

He had seen the Itarim in the outer universes. They were all different, but in essence, they shared a common affliction—a consuming emptiness.

“They’ve existed for so long, they’ve likely grown bored with everything. I got the sense they leapt at anything that sparked even the slightest interest. The longer the war lasted, the more unpredictable it became,” he said.

“So basically,” Suho said, “they’re all dopamine addicts.”

“That’s a fitting way to put it. They don’t trust one another. They betrayed each other countless times during the war. Feuds between three, even four were common. So perhaps...”

“You mean...” Suho said, putting it together. “Yuri wanted to gain the power of the Outer Gods to become stronger, but all he’s done is become a bridge for one of them to cross over to this dimension.”

“Exactly. The name Project Eternal Fountain was probably part of the trap. It must have sounded like a source of infinite power to Yuri, but in reality...”

“It was a dimensional hole for the Itarim.”

Yuri had gotten it wrong from the start. Project Eternal Fountain referred to this universe itself, as seen through the eyes of an Itarim. The problem was, that plan was now nearing completion.

Beru, sensing how grave the situation was, said urgently, “This is not good! If an Itarim crosses over, this Earth might be obliterated entirely!”

“Then we have to stop it.”

Suho threw open the double doors at the far end of the control room. An unimaginable sight greeted them on the other side.

A vast, circular hall stretched out before them, with a dimensional gate at the center, swelling wider by the second. Energies beyond comprehension churned wildly within it, and inside that gate... was an enormous eye.

It was the same kind Norma had shown them. The eye peered through the small opening of the gate, not just watching, but like it was intently analyzing everything within their side. Before it, countless mist burns were kneeling in worship.

“O great Itarim... Bless us...”

“Descend on this earth... Create a new world...”

Their praises echoed through the hall. Their prayers, their desperation, every ounce of fanatic devotion and madness—was directed at the eye. Suddenly, the eye moved. It had spotted Suho.

In that instant, a voice pierced directly into Suho’s mind.

“Ah.”

It wasn’t language in the usual sense, but the expression of a powerful will, engraving raw meaning into Suho’s consciousness.

“Interesting.”

It spoke simply, but it was enough to create the sensation that the hall had frozen in time. At that moment, Suho felt like a cell under a microscope. An Itarim, a being which had battled emptiness for so long, had found him intriguing. That interest soon expressed itself in the form of magic.

Across the distant wall of the outer universes, an unimaginable force descended upon Suho. It was not a level of energy he could sidestep, almost like Divine Possession. The Itarim had found a vessel far more suitable than Yuri, and it wanted to take him.

Beru unfurled his wings and let his form expand to its utmost size. Then, without hesitation, he stepped in front of Suho.

“I will stop it.”

At last, Suho’s protector, Beru, was ready to unleash his full strength.