The dense black fog that had engulfed the *Temple of Shadows* at the end of the previous chapter began to dissipate, revealing blood-soaked ruins and charred remnants. At the center of the devastation stood Shao, his body covered in burning scars, his hands trembling as if something precious had been stripped away.
The heavy footsteps of the *Chaos Soldiers* halted abruptly, and with them, the wind ceased—as if the entire world had frozen in submission before a beast unleashed from its chains.
Shao raised his eyes, his gaze like flaming swords piercing the very darkness. The *black mantra*, tattooed onto his back during the ritual, began to glow with a dim blue light—a sign that the *Seal of the Soul's Curse* was beginning to crack. Inside him, the ancient gods and the cursed blood clashed, turning his body into an endless battleground between light and shadow.
Suddenly, a spectral figure appeared before him—the *Shade Priestess Alinia*, the one who had once led the forbidden rituals. Her face was pale as death, but her eyes gleamed with truth.
She spoke in a quiet yet ominous tone:
*"You have opened the gate, Shao... the gate to the root... the root of your existence. But can you bear the price?"*
Shao did not respond, but he felt the very air around him begin to collapse. He was not the only one affected by what he had done; the spirits of the fallen soldiers began to rise. Not as zombies, but as fragments of their past, their screams tearing through the silence.
*"What madness is this?!"* cried *Nira*, who had followed Shao into the temple's depths, unable to believe what she was seeing.
Shao walked slowly toward the *Mirror of Eternity*, a sacred relic untouched for thousands of years. As he reached out, his soul's reflection pierced the silver surface of the mirror, revealing another face—his own, but not truly him. Dark features, empty eyes staring into the abyss of existence.
The voice from within the mirror spoke:
*"I am the shadow you left behind... the part you denied. If you seek true power, then merge with me!"*
Shao's heart hesitated, for only a moment. Then, without a word, he plunged into the mirror, triggering an internal battle—not of the flesh, but of the soul itself. Memories, pain—every decision he had made since childhood erupted in his mind like storms of ash.
Outside, his body floated midair, surrounded by a vortex of ancient symbols and blue flames. Nira attempted to approach, but an unseen force pushed her back.
She called out in a trembling voice:
*"Shao… don't go!"*
But the voice from within rumbled:
*"If I don't go, I will never return…"*
---
Within the *Realm of the Soul*, Shao confronted his *dark self*. It was no ordinary battle—it was a shattering of boundaries, of principles, of conflicts he had long denied. With every strike against the shadow, he felt as if he were striking himself, not an enemy.
*"You are nothing but the creation of your fear!"* the shadow roared.
*"And you are the creation of my weakness!"* Shao retaliated, then struck with his hand engulfed in blue fire, reducing the shadow to dust.
When it was over, Shao awoke. He was no longer in the temple—but in a *mystical plain*, where the sky burned red and the earth was layered with scorched bones. A voice echoed from above:
*"Welcome to the Land of the Beginning, where destiny is born from the ashes of catastrophe."*
---
This was the start of a new journey—a journey beyond the world's borders, toward the *true root of power*, where only souls that have abandoned everything… except their will… can survive.