The gate was made of stone, consisting of two arched doors over three meters tall.
At the junction between the two doors, there were small holes. Noan counted—seven in total, and their shapes reminded him of something.
Noan took a Blood Crystal from his Storage and tried placing one into one of the holes.
The moment the crystal was set in place, it emitted a strange, blood-red glow.
Noan realized that the crystals Caleb and Austin had accidentally picked up were the keys to opening this gate.
At that moment, Noan also confirmed his suspicion—Austin and Caleb seemed to have been chosen by fate to bear some kind of mission.
If Noan hadn’t existed, the two of them would have been able to unlock this gate using the blood crystals and enter.
Perhaps inside, there would have been a destiny meant for them. However, Noan had now taken that opportunity.
Noan shook his head, dismissing the thought, because he understood that he was merely an unpredictable factor.
This chance was something fate had arranged for Austin and Caleb. If he seized it, he might be stepping into unknown dangers.
But… Noan had no way back. He could only move forward.
He signalled to his subordinates to prepare for battle, then continued placing the remaining Blood Crystals into the holes in the gate.
All seven Blood Crystals were successfully inserted.
Suddenly, fresh blood seeped out from within the crystals, slithering like serpents, spreading across the gate. The engravings on the stone door became even more eerie.
Moments later, the entire gate was stained red. The carvings on its surface seemed to come to life as if creatures trapped within were waiting to awaken and escape.
Noan shuddered, feeling as though the figures on the door were watching him. Their eyes carried an unfathomable amount of pain and the weight of endless time, all directed at him.
Instinctively, Noan took a step back, drenched in cold sweat.
In just one second, he felt like an hour had passed. The sheer discomfort and terror of being observed by those ancient beings nearly made him collapse.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The two doors slowly parted, revealing a stone path in the middle, surrounded by an abyss so deep that only darkness could be seen. There was nothing else in sight.
Fortunately, the stone path was over three meters wide—enough for Noan and all his subordinates to walk on.
Noan looked at his subordinates and said, "Let’s go. Stay vigilant, don’t let your guard down."
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Everyone nodded, their expressions serious. However, at that moment, Malrik discreetly signalled Vylyss.
Vylyss noticed and gave a slight nod.
Their actions were so subtle that no one noticed. Of course, Noan remained unaware.
The group began moving inside, but something bizarre happened—once Noan stepped beyond the threshold, he could no longer see anyone beside him.
Startled, he turned around, but where the gate should have been, there was only an endless, terrifying abyss.
Cold winds howled through, sending a chill through his body.
The wind sweeping through the cracks produced haunting sounds as if someone was wailing.
"Where is everyone?" Noan muttered, eyes filled with disbelief as he scanned his surroundings. No matter how hard he looked, the gate from moments ago was nowhere to be found.
"What the hell is going on?" Noan shouted, stepping back—only to find that behind him was nothing but the endless void.
Just seconds ago, his entire group had stepped into the tomb together. Now, they were gone, leaving him alone.
Panic began to settle in Noan’s mind. He had never expected to find himself in such a situation.
…
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Outside, after everyone else stepped through the gate, they realized they were standing in the same open space as before—but the gate had vanished.
"Master?!" Urlgug shouted urgently, looking around but finding no trace of Noan.
"Stop searching!" Malrik spoke up. "Master has entered the tomb already. Kekekeke…"
"You…" Urlgug’s eyes widened as a thought crossed his mind. He immediately roared, "You betrayed Master?!"
Malrik: "…"
"Urlgan, kill him! Avenge Master!" Urlgug ordered.
Although Noan’s subordinates were loyal to him, their relationships with each other were different.
Urlgug’s eyes burned with fury as he glared at Malrik. Urlgan, equally enraged, did not know why their master had disappeared, but if Urlgug said Malrik had betrayed him, he would certainly kill Malrik.
"You… You misunderstand," Malrik quickly explained.
"Then what was with that sinister laugh?"
Hearing Urlgug’s accusation, Malrik felt genuinely hurt. That was just his normal laugh—how was he supposed to change it?
"Hahaha…" Suddenly, Vylyss chuckled. Her laughter was like the sound of silver bells, instantly silencing everyone. "Don’t blame him. He didn’t betray Master."
"Ahh!!! My Lady!" Malrik immediately rejoiced. "As expected, you understand me better than anyone, just like—"
"Enough! Enough!" Vylyss hurriedly interrupted before Malrik could go on—otherwise, he might continue talking until tomorrow.
"Don’t worry," Vylyss continued. "This is Master’s fate. He must face what awaits inside the tomb."
"But…" Urlgug was still confused and uneasy. "But you deceived Master."
"If we hadn’t, he wouldn’t have confronted this great opportunity," Vylyss sighed. "Too many things have happened, making Master more cautious than ever."
"If this continues, he will miss out on many opportunities—many things that fate has prepared for him. That’s why Malrik and I made this decision."
"You don’t need to worry. Master will surely overcome this tomb. We just need to wait and trust him."
Though Vylyss spoke confidently, she wasn’t entirely sure of her words.
Was this tomb dangerous? Of course—it was extremely dangerous, especially since it was a Blood Tribe tomb.
However, Malrik had explained that, according to the trajectory of fate’s wheel, if Noan did not claim this opportunity, he would face immense dangers in the future.
He might even meet his death.
At first, Vylyss had doubted Malrik’s words. But then Malrik had done something beyond her imagination.
He used special magic to pull Vylyss into a unique space, allowing her to witness Noan’s horrifying fate.
In that vision, Noan met a tragic death.
All of it was because his rank in SSS talent had been exposed.
After that, other Lords hunted him down, and the Empire and the Federal Government pursued him.
At that time, he lacked the power to defend himself and was ultimately killed by the Emperor of the Empire, who used a special magic to extract Noan’s talent from his body.
Given that Malrik was undoubtedly loyal to Noan, Vylyss had come to believe him.
However, Malrik did not want Noan to learn about this vision. If Noan became aware of fate’s course, everything could change, making the future even more unpredictable and dangerous.
That was why Vylyss decided to cooperate with Malrik—to help Noan seize as many opportunities as possible.
And among all opportunities, this tomb was a massive one. It could grant Noan enough strength to protect himself when real dangers arose.
Of course, Vylyss still found Malrik mysterious. How did he know so much about fate’s wheel?
Could it be that Malrik was some special existence she wasn’t aware of?
Though puzzled, she chose not to dwell on it too much.
After all, Malrik would never betray their master. And the stronger Malrik became, the safer Noan would be.
Her only worry was… whether Noan could truly survive the Blood Tribe’s tomb.