I concentrated, trying to decipher the symbols and their meanings.

A soft glow emanated from the stone as I connected with its energy, and I felt a sudden rush of insights flooding my mind.

After wandering for some time, I found a quiet alcove surrounded by ancient worn out trees.

I sat down, taking a moment to reflect on my journey so far. The challenges I had faces in the academy and the trials that lay ahead seemed small compared to the vastness of the knowledge held within these ruins.

Who were these Divine Custodians? And what had they left behind before their disappearance. The thought filled me with fresh curiosity as their were now more unanswered questions than answers.

I realized that this exploration could be a turning point in my quest for strength and knowledge.

As I closed my eyes, I could almost hear the whispers of the past due to the influx I gained from the stone, urging me to uncover the secrets that remained buried in the lost civilization.

I entered into the quiet alcove and found myself in a maze like dark, foreboding hallways etched with symbols that seemed to pulse faintly as I walked down the path.

The walls were carved from dark stone different from outside of the alcove and they were worn out from the traces of an ancient civilization with their meaning long forgotten.

I could feel my heartbeat echoing through my chest and into the labyrinth passages, as if I were walking within the very body of an entire mountain.

The air was extremely cold and almost damp, with an eerie chill that wrapped around me like a cloak.

Shadows seemed to pool in the corners, twisting and shifting, leaving me with this gnawing sense that I wasn't alone.

My gaze sharpened and my senses were high alert. Every slight movement or whisper of the air felt like a presence lurking in the darkness.

Suddenly a flicker of movement caught my eye and a shadowy figure, barely more than a wisp, moving silently through the air.

Before I could react, more appeard, their forms shifting and swirling like smoke.

Ding!

~Shadow Guardians: Remnants of the ancient civilization that once protected and scaled this ruins~

The systems notification popped out with vital information about the beings hovering in front of me.

From the information I understood earlier, without the Divine Custodians these creatures that reside here were now Arcane hungry and mindless beings that served no purpose but to consume Arcane.

So, that would mean that these creatures had become hostile, twisted by the darkness left by the emptiness their masters hollowed out.

Without anymore hesitation, I readied myself, instinctively slipping into a combat stance.

My training has prepared me for moments like this, and I knew that underestimating these beings would be a fatal mistake.

I moved forward with blinding speed, disappearing into the shadows as easily as they did.

My steps were quiet and movements a blur, as I darted in and out of sight, catching the Shadow guardians off guard.

With each precise strike, I channeled my Spacial Manipulation powers, creating rifts that disrupted the shadows forms.

Summoning the Cobra's Tongue to cut through the darkness, striking through and leaving trails of dissipating black mist on my wake.

The shadows recoiled their forms, twisting avd expanding, darkening until they became solid, monstrous figures with glowing, hollow eyes that seemed to stare directly into my soul.

One by one, I defeated them, my focus unwavering and my movements a dance of precision and power.

But even as the shadowy wisps faded into nothingness, more continued to emerge from the surrounding darkness and were now more relentless in pursuit.

For each that I destroyed, another appeared, their forms shifting svd growing in strength as though feeding off one another's defeat.

As the relentless wave of shadows pressed closer, a low growl reverberated through the stone walls, filling the sur with an ominous chill.

From deep within the depths of the darkness, a larger more grotesque shadow creature emerged, dwarfing the shadow guardians I had just defeated.

This was no ordinary shadow creature or guardian, it was a boss monster. A twisted Manifestation of the darkness that had seeped into these ruins.

Its form was monstrous, it body a massive of writhing Shadows that seemed to shift and contort as though it were barely containing the power within.

The Shadow boss let out a piercing roar, a chilling sound that vibrated through the air and sent a shiver down my spine.

Ding!

~Boss monster detected~

~Dingolastocus The Shadow Chimp of Protection~

I could feel the weight of its malevolent energy bearing down on me, a suffocating force that seemed to seep into my very bones.

Gritting my teeth, I steadied myself, my gaze narrowing as I assessed my opponent.

It was massive, with a huge chest region and bulky arms. It's lover body parts seemed to be a lot less stronger or bulky than other regions of the body, which led me to assume that it would be weak spot to attack.

The boss's presence alone was overwhelming, an oppressive aura that made it hard to breathe. But I was determined because defeating this monstrosity would mean an addition to my Arcane pets roaster and that would mean getting stronger.

"Skill..."

"Divine Thread..."

Drawing my analysis skill, I observed the creature's body parts, hoping to locate it's magic stone and noting subtle weak spots in its forms.

It appeared to have three Anti-arcane stones. One located in the forehead region, the other two located in the two massive arms. Seeing how big it was, it was safe to say that this shadow creature boss monster was not one to possess incredible agility, however considering the fight I had with Domogon their was still that possibility.

The entire place was dark and their were just a few more smoke Shadow guardians lingering around.

I understood that I wasn't even close to completing this Dungeon quest of mine and I had a limited supply of healing potions, so it was high time I started to play safe.

To defeat this boss monster Shadow creature I would have to rely on attacking from distance and striking close range when the chance presents itself.

"Alright then, first of all I need to get read of this darkness..."

Shiom!

"Come forth... Pyro"

The elemental Dog of fire didn't waste anytime and jumped out of the summoning portal and charged a ball of fire in its maw, then proceeding to blast the flame upwards.

The flame caught the dead trees and vines all

over the alcove and just like that the entire place was illuminated and I can face this creature head on.

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