Three days after escaping Node Zero's collapse, Lin Xian stood at the edge of the Skyreach Divide.
A canyon that split the eastern continent like a scar left by heaven's wrath. Miles deep. Clouds swallowed by its endless mouth. No map ever marked what lay beneath—because no one who entered had returned.
Until now.
[Destination Reached: Skyreach Divide]
[Estimated Vault Coordinates: Unknown – Hidden by Architect Cloak Protocol]
[Access Requirements: Dragonblood Resonance + Forgotten Ones Access Beacon]
He glanced at his wrist, where the beacon pulsed faintly, gifted to him by the silver-robed man before they parted ways.
"You're the only one who can walk into hell and rewrite it," the man had said.
Lin Xian exhaled and jumped.
Freefall. The wind screamed. His cloak whipped violently, and for a moment, it felt like death.
Then—
[Dragonblood Signature Detected – GeoLocks Disengaging]
[Welcome, Systembreaker.]
Massive metallic vines unraveled from the canyon wall, catching his fall like living serpents. They slithered downward, carrying him deep into the forgotten ruins below.
Skyreach Vault wasn't a vault at all.
It was a city.
Abandoned. Dead. But humming faintly with residual power.
Skyscrapers melted into mountain rock. Massive circuit-trees grew from shattered courtyards. And in the sky above the cavernous space—fragments of a shattered dome hovered midair, eternally frozen in time.
[Warning: Vault AI Defense Grid Still Partially Active]
[Unauthorized Presence Will Be Neutralized After 300 Seconds]
[Timer: 04:59]
Lin Xian ran.
Lights flickered on as he passed—holographic banners of the Old Architects, their ideals once noble: Balance. Order. Perfection. Now they were lies etched into dust.
He found the Vault Core chamber: a throne room-like structure surrounded by spires. At its center—a console shaped like a dragon's skull.
"Please insert genetic key," a voice echoed.
He placed his hand on it.
[Dragonblood Signature Confirmed]
[Vault Core Access Granted]
[Initiating Memory Integration…]
Pain.
Pure, searing pain.
Flashes—dragons bound in chains of light. Systems fed by their lifeforce. And the truth:
The System was never meant to serve mortals.
It was meant to enslave immortals.
[You have unlocked Forbidden Knowledge Fragment (3/10)]
[New Passive Trait Acquired: Soulforge Resonance]
[Effect: Enhances all spiritual energy conversion by 23% | Enables "System Override: Tier II"]
Suddenly, a presence surged through the Vault.
Not Echo. Not a Guardian.
Something older. Hungrier.
"You woke the Deep Thread," whispered a voice like cracking stone.
"Now… I am awake."
A massive form began to take shape in the shadows—an amalgamation of broken systems and dragon bones.
[BOSS ALERT – Sovereign Cache Guardian: Vyr'Zhaal]
[Level: ??? | Classification: System-Embedded Anomaly]
[Objective: SURVIVE]
Lin Xian gritted his teeth, drew his blade, and launched forward.
This wasn't just a fight.
It was a test.
If he failed, the Vault would collapse.
If he won… the final path would reveal itself.