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Starry stopped overthinking it and continued clearing the Spirit Trees along her path, steadily advancing forward.

…

“What the hell is this?”

Zane couldn’t help but curse under his breath. He had only just settled that little assassin, yet the moment he opened the door, he was dragged straight back into the game.

After finally steadying his emotions, he looked out over the barren wasteland around him, a dull headache creeping in.

‘Where am I supposed to go? No matter which direction I looked, there’s no end in sight.’

Just as he hesitated, a pillar of white light suddenly surged into the sky from the front-right, dazzling and impossible to ignore. Even standing here, he could feel the overwhelming, surging energy contained within it.

‘Something’s not right. Still… better to head over and take a look first.’

…

About an hour passed.

Not only had the white pillar of light not faded, it had grown even more conspicuous. The closer he got, the more familiar it felt, almost like… the light Treka used. But the intensity far exceeded what Treka herself should have been capable of.

‘I need to move faster.’ Soon, a grand and magnificent palace came into view. Its structure was dominated by gold and white, accented occasionally with subtle secondary hues.

The massive stone gates, engraved with arcane sigils, stood half-open. Blinding beams of light poured from within, completely obscuring whatever lay inside. Even from afar, nothing could be seen clearly.

Strangely, there were no guards in sight outside.

At last, the white wolf carried the girl to the front of the stone gates.

“Stop right there!” A crisp female voice rang out from within, laced with icy blue winds.

**Whoosh—!**

Zane’s HP dropped noticeably in an instant.

‘Like hell I’d just turn around because you said so! There’s nothing else within a hundred kilometers anyway!’

“Open up, or we’re breaking in!” The Swiftshadow Wolf leapt forward in a single bound, plunging straight into the radiant hall.

Strangely, the moment Zane passed through the gate, it felt as though he had entered the very interior of the light pillar itself. Here, the overwhelming glare no longer obscured his vision, allowing him to clearly see everything within.

There were five figures in the hall. More precisely, three clusters of elemental forms, a butterfly, and a light elf.

To the northeast stood a feminine figure formed from pale blue water elements. To the southeast was a green wood-element, while the southwest held a sturdy, brown-yellow earth-element figure. Treka was suspended at the center, still encased in ice, unmoving like a frozen sculpture.

Above her, a purple-red butterfly fluttered continuously, its alluring wings scattering faint glimmers of light that formed a small circular boundary.

Zane’s heart tightened. One look at this formation and he knew it was bad news. Could this be some heaven-defying ritual meant to alter fate itself?

The moment they noticed an outsider had entered, the elemental figures’ expressions shifted sharply. Only the butterfly and the light elf remained unchanged, maintaining their original state.

Though composed of elements, Zane could still clearly read the displeasure written across the water figure’s face—the flowing blue currents condensed into a distinct cross-shaped vein mark.

Even so, she spoke with measured restraint. “Adventurer from another world… if you leave immediately, we will not hold you accountable. We may even send you out of this realm.”

The burly earth-element figure added, “Linnoska is right. If you don’t leave now…”

“We won’t mind sending you on your way,” the wood-element figure finished, appearing like a gentle lady, though her words carried unmistakable hostility.

Zane didn’t respond right away. It was better to check their stats first.

The moment he saw the stats, Zane nearly jumped, this was even stronger than Blazing Zedana! And it wasn’t just her. The other two elements were just as terrifying: the earth-element, Stonebound Gorath, had a staggering 500,000 HP, while the wood-element, Verdant Sylvara, had 230,000 HP.

“…”

“You’ve got to be kidding me! Just dealing with Zedana earlier had already pushed me to the absolute limit! And even with Treka’s help, we almost got killed by the boss! And now there are three more of the same kind… who the hell can handle that!?

“Sorry to interrupt your work. My apologies—goodbye.” Zane replied politely, turning to leave without hesitation.

Though none of the three bosses spoke, they all let out a silent sigh of relief.

One step. Two steps. As they neared the outer edge of the inner light pillar, the white wolf suddenly came to a halt. One second. Two seconds. Time slipped by in tense silence.

Finally, Gorath couldn’t hold back any longer. “Adventurer, if you’re thinking of playing any tricks… I can make a move right now.”

Unexpectedly, Zane seemed to relax instead. Controlling Starry, he let out a light chuckle, turned back around, and raised his right hand in a provocative gesture. “Go ahead. Make your move.”

“Heh… do you know what death in this illusion truly means?” Sylvara said slowly.

“Of course I do. But… I was a bit worried earlier, what if you suddenly insta-killed me? Now though…” Zane’s lips curled slightly. “I can be sure, you probably can’t spare the effort, can you? Otherwise, you wouldn’t still be standing there talking tough.”

“…”

They suddenly fell silent.

“I’ll take that as confirmation. It may be a bit shameless, but that elf inside is my friend. Sorry, but I’ll have to go through you!” With that, Starry drew the Autumn Moon Sword, her gaze locking onto Sylvara. Start with the weakest.

The white wolf was just about to turn and advance—

“Friend!?! You said she’s your friend!?” The water spirit suddenly erupted, her voice turning sharp and frenzied, the icy winds around her surging violently.

‘What the—did I step on a landmine?’

“That unforgivable light spirit shattered the Empress’ consciousness and seized control of the illusory realm, and you call her your friend!?” Linnoska grew increasingly agitated.

Zane even suspected she might attack at any moment.

Seemingly unable to suppress her fury, she said in a low, forceful tone, “Gorath, go deal with them!”

The burly earth spirit hesitated. “But… without Zedana, it’s already difficult to maintain stability. If I leave as well, then you—”

“Go! I can hold it!”
“Gorath, go.” Sylvara added firmly.

Zane raised a brow. The way they were acting made it seem like he was the villain here.

“Fine. I’ll end this as quickly as possible.” Gorath nodded, fully stepping away from his original position. At that moment, the towering pillar of light dimmed noticeably. The remaining two elemental beings fell silent, as if they no longer even had the strength to speak.

“You reckless adventurer, pay for your actions!” The moment Gorath broke away, he roared and slammed his iron fist into the ground! The instant his fist struck, the earth around Zane surged upward, angled walls of soil erupted from all sides, closing in from every direction.

**Clang!**

Starry thrust the Autumn Moon Sword forward, shaving off 5% of the walls’ durability.

‘Not good. This is too slow.’ In a split-second decision, Zane layered the buffs over one another. First Warcry, then shapeshift into Wishkeeper, followed immediately by Invoke: Blessing.

The energy coursing through Starry’s body stabilized, gathering cleanly along the blade as Starry stepped forward and unleashed Triple Frenzy Slash!

With the first strike, the earthen walls lost 20% of their durability. The space available to move was shrinking rapidly. The second slash carved deeper, tearing away another 27%.

‘Still not enough… Invoke: Spirit’s Heart!’

The moment it activated, a strange clarity washed over Starry, while a dense, surging power flowed through the blade. The next instant, empowered by guaranteed critical and Autumn Strike, the third slash of Triple Frenzy Slash exploded outward!!

The remaining 48% durability was obliterated in one blow, the earthen walls shattered apart.

The force of the strike was so overwhelming that Starry staggered forward several steps. Meanwhile, Gorath stared in shock at the adventurer before him, whose momentum surged like an unstoppable tide.