Endless Evolution: Last Star - Chapter 676

Chapter 676: The Rune on the Gates

Just like humans, monsters wanted to live, not all of them were as cowardly as humans, their self-preservation instincts weren’t as strong and their bloodlust and aggressiveness were much higher, but… monsters also sometimes ran away from the battlefield to survive.

“Fuck… I can’t remember the last time a monster escaped from me. I mean, he’s the only one around here like that, right?” Adam scratched the back of his head awkwardly, looking at the slight shiver in the surface of the murky water.

The Blinding Sylphyre was still on the fortress grounds, but Adam realized that there was no point in chasing him, it was too dangerous.

It was one thing to fight against the Blinding Sylphyre on the bridge, but quite another on its home battlefield – in the water. Even if Adam was sure of victory, it would take too much energy from him for no good reason.

‘Don’t get upset. There are many more monsters ahead of you. Moreover, the Blinding Sylphyre won’t recover from your attack soon, considering the effect of the irregular energy here.’

“Yeah, I know. Hah, the military would probably be angry that I didn’t kill that one, wouldn’t they?”

Silvana nodded deeply.

‘Sure, I guess they already are since you could kill the Blinding Sylphyre right here and now if you really wanted to.’

In response, Adam only shrugged nonchalantly.

“Well, the point is, I don’t want to.”

Then, wiping the monster’s blood from his face, Adam headed forward – approaching the gates of the fortress, tall and massive.

After passing most of the bridge, Adam’s step slowed and his eyes narrowed.

In front of the gate stood two silhouettes with long spears in their hands, remotely resembling Fromund’s one.

“Oh, Silvana, who are these guys?”

‘Those are the Dark Watchers, as far as we know they are the main monsters in the Fortress of the Lone Serpent. Like the Blinding Sylphyre, they are Mid Yellow Threat ones, but they are rated as less dangerous, but there are a lot more of them.’

Adam nodded deeply, looking intently at his next opponents.

The Dark Watchers were anthropomorphic creatures three to four meters tall with broad shoulders, powerful chests, and unnaturally narrow waists, as if there was no muscle or skin in that spot, only a spine.

Their bodies were covered with heavy armor of dark purple stone, rough and dense, good for protection but bad for mobility.

Massive helmets covered their heads completely, leaving only their eyes shining like ghostly lanterns and their ugly, scarred mouths with short, sharp protruding teeth exposed.

A few places their armor didn’t cover – the inside of their elbows, palms, and the outside of their knees, revealing their dark gray skin, wrinkled and rough like tree bark.

That these were no ordinary foes was also indicated by the black mist swirling around their bodies, the Dark Watchers knew how to harness energy and not just their powerful bodies.

Then, Adam’s eyes traveled lower, looking at the wide bloodstains in front of the entrance, long dried and burned pieces of cloth.

He didn’t need an explanation to realize what happened here previously.

“The Red Zone…” Adam muttered before stepping forward.

He saw Phantoms die many times, after all, he was one of the ones who always managed to survive – that’s why he was here.

Even though these were nameless Phantoms, he realized that someone’s journey had ended right here, a place that would only be a stepping stone for him.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The black particles reappeared around Adam, pulses diligently guiding him forward, but Adam didn’t react.

‘I have to get through the gate first, then I’ll figure out where to go.’

Before Adam could take the next step, Silvana’s voice rang out:

‘Adam, there’s something wrong with these Dark Watchers.’

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

‘I’m looking at photos of the other Dark Watchers available in the database and their armor has a richer purple hue, while these two’s armor is practically black. I’m not sure what that means, but I suggest you be careful.’

“Sure, I’m always attentive.”

They both knew it was a lie, but Adam wasn’t going to make any mistakes now.

Step. Step. Step.

Step by step Adam approached the gate and for some reason, the Dark Watchers were inactive, although they had noticed him long ago when he had fought against the Blinding Sylphyre.

It confused Adam for the first few seconds, but then he realized that this situation seemed familiar to him.

‘Right, something similar happened in the Fume Cathedral. Those monsters, they were different from some wild Gray Stalkers or the harsh Blinding Sylphyre, they followed the rules.’

For creatures to follow the rules, the rules had to appear first. In the case of humans, they did it themselves – rules helped solve problems, prevent new ones from appearing, and most importantly improve efficiency.

Monsters did not have such a complex and multi-layered society as humans and it was not the case.

But, the Fortress of the Lone Serpent and the Fume Cathedral had something in common, the two Strongholds had the External Artifact.

Casting a glance at the silent guards, Adam stopped a few meters in front of them waiting for some reaction, but they did nothing.

“Khm… Fine, what if I do this?” Adam muttered before the wide stride headed straight for the gate about to pass the Dark Watchers.

Whooooooooooooosh.

Before he could get too close, two long spears crossed in front of him, not about to let him pass any further.

True, Adam could start fighting them right now and force his way through by force, but he was trying to figure out how this place worked. Furthermore, he didn’t know how durable the gate was.

Then, one of the Dark Watchers raised his spear, pointing the tip at the center of the gate.

Adam narrowed his eyes, peering into the black gate, looking at the intricate runes carved into the thick slabs.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

At the same moment, the mist around the Dark Watchers intensified dramatically, about to turn into auras and the rune on the gate shone brightly with a purple light.

In a heartbeat, a powerful energy filled the Dark Watchers’ auras, transforming them into two intimidating flaming silhouettes, demons coming from the underworld.

This was Adam’s first challenge from the fortress and its External Artifact.

Many Phantoms died trying to pass on, but their eyes were full of fear and panic, unlike Adam’s look of curiosity.