Chapter 94: The Broken City
High up in a dark, ominous sky, thick storm clouds had completely swallowed the sun, ensuring that a suffocating darkness heavily shadowed the entire world.
Down below on the cold ground, the remains of a broken, forgotten city could be seen. Some of the stone houses were completely destroyed and flattened to the earth, while others were deeply cracked and crumbling. Thick green moss had heavily covered the remaining structures all around the dead city, making it look as if this were an ancient, abandoned civilization from many hundreds of years ago.
A lone figure was walking silently through the ruined streets, passing by where the old buildings were cracked and the wooden houses had violently fallen. The person’s face was completely hidden beneath a dark, heavy hood. Only a pair of striking, glowing purple eyes could be seen staring out at the broken city.
The hooded figure walked continuously and eventually halted at a specific point in the middle of the street. The person stood there quietly, not moving a single muscle for several tense seconds.
Suddenly, from the deep shadows directly behind him, a pitch-black monster violently appeared. It lunged forward and swung its razor-sharp claws straight at the person’s exposed back.
But just as the monster’s deadly claws reached out to slice through the person, the hooded figure vanished instantly into thin air. The massive monster slid awkwardly across the ground, losing its balance. It quickly turned its predatory gaze around, frantically looking for its lost target.
Suddenly, the hooded figure appeared directly behind the beast. A shining, brilliant silver sword abruptly materialized out of thin air and settled firmly into the person’s hand. A beautiful silver light started to swirl elegantly around the sharp blade.
The sword was swung horizontally with blinding speed. The silver light effortlessly cut straight through the thick, durable skin of the monster, slashing right through its mid-body. The beast’s massive form was violently severed in half, cut apart as easily as a fragile piece of paper.
*Thud!*
As the sudden breeze from his swift movement caught the fabric, the hood worn by the mysterious person flew back. His glowing violet eyes were fully revealed, and his sleek black hair flowed freely in the air.
This young man was none other than the mysterious fighter known as ’L’—the exact same prodigy whom Alen had once fought against during the Vale City tournament, and who had defeated Alen with overwhelming ease.
The guy’s glowing silver weapon suddenly disappeared back into thin air. He turned his violet gaze upward, staring into the dark, oppressive sky.
It was incredibly difficult to predict if it was currently midnight or daytime, as the whole place was heavily clouded and perpetually dark.
He opened his status window and looked at the system notification once again.
[Location: The Broken City]
[Trial: Kill the Ghost of the Dark Temple]
[Time Limit: 7 Days]
L was currently undertaking a dangerous trial within the Ascension Realm. He had suddenly found himself teleported to this ruined place, and now it had already been five days. He had been desperately trying to figure out exactly where the so-called ’Ghost of the Dark Temple’ was hiding. He had practically searched every single inch of the ruined city and had killed dozens of terrifying monsters, but he still hadn’t been able to find a single trace of the elusive ghost.
L let out a heavy sigh.
"Sigh... Well, it’s a good thing that no one else besides me is present in this trial... During my last trial, I almost got caught..." L muttered to himself.
He looked around the desolate ruins, able to see nothing but the thick darkness piercing through everywhere. He sharpened his physical senses, pushing them to their limits, but he still could not sense any hidden presence lurking around him.
"What should I do now? There are just two days remaining... Sigh..."
He walked slowly toward a nearby chunk of broken rock and sat down on it, falling into deep thought as he looked up toward the dark sky in a slight daze.
He briefly closed his tired eyes to relax just a little bit.
Suddenly, his sharp survival instincts kicked in. He snapped his violet eyes open and looked up at the sky once more. High above the clouds, there was a tiny, glowing speck of light falling from the sky.
He quickly summoned his weapon back into his grip. The blade glowed brightly with a dangerous silver light. He gripped the hilt tightly, patiently waiting for the unknown enemy to fall.
As he stared upward, the glowing speck of light dropped closer and closer. He could clearly hear the whistling sound of something falling at high speed. He quickly backed away from the specific spot where he stood, realizing that the massive falling object was going to land directly on top of him.
As he looked closer through the gloom, his eyes widened in shock. Because there was no object falling from the sky at all. What was actually dropping was a teenage boy. A boy with bright silver hair and a handsome face, who was dropping toward the earth with the blinding, terrifying speed of a lightning bolt.
"What the—?!"
Before L could even finish his stunned sentence, the silver-haired boy launched straight into the solid ground.
*BOOOOOOOOM!*
A deafening, massive explosion of shattered soil and crushed stone violently covered the battlefield as dust and debris flew everywhere around the ruined street.
L quickly covered his entire body with a dense layer of mana. He raised his arm to cover his face, blocking the flying dust and rocks from getting caught in his eyes.
After a few tense minutes passed in the silent aftermath of the impact, the thick cloud of dust slowly started to clear up.
L looked straight ahead, staring carefully at the shadowy figure standing behind the settling dust. A silver-hair boy slowly stood up from the center of the massive crater. He appeared to be nearly the exact same age as L. The boy casually dusted off his ruined clothes while muttering something under his breath. Then, the boy turned his azure eyes toward L.
It looked exactly as if the boy had just recognized a familiar figure.
"Hey, are you that guy ’L’ from the Vale City tournament? I certainly didn’t expect you to be here..." Alen said, sounding genuinely surprised.
L’s eyes darkened as he watched the boy trying to act as if he actually recognized him.
’It seems this creature is the real Ghost that has finally appeared before me,’ L thought coldly.
’It must have taken some time for that shape-shifting ghost to look deep through my memories and find someone familiar. It’s trying to manipulate me and use this face to make me let my guard down...’
’But don’t take me so lightly, Ghost. I am going to make you pay dearly for wasting so much of my precious time up to now...’
The silver light sparkling around L’s blade started to swirl violently in a rapid rotation.
"You will regret wasting my time, Ghost! Prepare to die!"
He didn’t wait for a response. He vanished completely from his place in a blur of silver light, instantly appearing directly behind the silver-haired boy.
Alen’s primal survival instincts immediately screamed in danger as his azure eyes widened in shock.
"Wait—what?!"
