Both wolves made countless sharp turns, weaving through the maze at terrifying speed. They ran for several kilometers until they finally came to a halt.

Aren dismissed them with a thought.

The shadows dissolved, and the group steadied themselves, getting back on their feet.

"That was… an unexpected turn," Aiden said, still breathing a little heavily, his mind replaying the image of the giant that had appeared earlier.

"What sort of monster is that even supposed to be?" Kira asked, glancing back instinctively, as if expecting it to appear again at any moment.

"I doubt that thing is a monster at all," Aren said calmly.

"Hm?" Aiden turned toward him. "Then what would it be?"

"Something imprisoned here," Zero replied, her voice low. "The message said so."

That reminder pulled all of them back to the warning they had received earlier.

"So it could be from some other world?" Kira asked.

"I think that's it," Aren muttered.

He knew exactly what that thing was, or at least, he knew enough. But the rest of the truth still felt incomplete, fragmented.

"It also said we'd be chased," Aiden added. "And I don't know about you, but that thing looked like it could move pretty damn fast compared to us."

"Then we stay on the move," Aren replied without hesitation.

He pulled out the map and scanned it quickly, his eyes moving from path to path. Several routes branched outward, looping and crossing over one another like a living puzzle. After a few seconds, he stopped.

The best route led straight through a marked region.

Region of Lava.

Aren looked up at the others.

"I've found the best path," he said. "But I'm not sure you're going to like it."

He smiled.

[... ]

"You have to be kidding me."

Aiden stared at the path ahead in disbelief.

The region stretched endlessly forward, a hellish landscape of molten lava, jagged rocks, and broken terrain. Rivers of glowing lava flowed between blackened stone, and towering rocky formations rose like small mountains, one after another, with no visible end.

"No one said anything about the maze having different terrain," Kira muttered.

"I think that should have been expected, considering the size of the whole thing," Zero said calmly.

Aiden sighed. "This can't be the only good path, can it?"

"There are others," Aren replied. "But some are much longer, some lead into different terrain zones, and some loop back toward where we came from."

He stepped forward.

"This is still the best path."

With that, he led the way.

They had barely stepped into the Region of Lava when the surface ahead began to bubble.

From the molten pool, something crawled out.

Its body was covered in glossy, scaled skin that reflected the glow of the lava like polished obsidian. It stood a little over one meters tall, its elongated body stretching four to five meters in length.

A salamander.

It hissed sharply, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth as its glowing eyes locked onto the group.

"Seems we have visitors," Aren said.

He was about to step forward when the lava began bubbling again.

And again.

One by one, more salamanders emerged until there were ten of them, spreading out across the path.

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us," Aren said, drawing his sword and taking a stance.

"I'll clear the front. Let's move fast."

He locked eyes with the nearest salamander.

A shadow tendril erupted from the ground, wrapping around its body and lifting it into the air.

"Hissssss!"

The creature twisted violently, its body contorting unnaturally until it tore free from the tendril. The moment it landed, it lunged forward, crossing the distance with shocking speed.

Its mouth snapped open.

A blast of molten lava shot out like an arrow.

Aren dodged to the side just in time.

"So you're awakened," he said coolly. "Nonetheless, die."

He stepped forward and raised his hand.

"Shadow Blade."

An arc of pure shadow shot forward, striking the salamander point-blank and slicing deep into its body. Thick black blood spilled onto the ground.

"Hisssssssss!"

Another shadow blade followed, ending its life instantly.

[You have gained 200 Soul Fragments]

Aren didn't slow down.

More salamanders lunged at him. One attacked from the side, but he sidestepped and delivered a clean claw strike, tearing its head off in a single motion.

Another lunged forward, jaws snapping shut around nothing. Aren drove an uppercut straight into its mouth, shattering its jawbone. He grabbed its body, spun once, and hurled it directly into another salamander, crushing both.

With Aren leading, the group pushed forward steadily.

The salamanders weren't weak, but they weren't strong either.

They advanced hundreds of meters into the region, cutting down salamanders one after another.

"This is going pretty well, I guess," Aiden said.

Aren glanced at him.

"Bro," he said flatly, "have you never watched movies before? Why the hell would you raise a red flag?"

Right then, the lava in the distance began to churn violently.

Aren's shadow sense flared.

"Something's coming," he said. "And it's massive."

The salamanders still alive immediately fled, scrambling back into the lava as if terrified.

Seconds passed.

Then it emerged.

Seven massive heads burst out of the molten pool at once, followed by an enormous body.

A lava hydra.

"Oh shit," Aiden cursed.

They all looked up at the towering creature. It wasn't as overwhelming as the giant, but it was still a monster beyond anything they had faced here.

Two of the hydra's heads locked onto them.

Without warning, they unleashed a massive breath attack, pure lava flooding forward.

Zero stepped ahead instantly.

A translucent dome formed around them just as the lava slammed into it.

The impact shook the dome violently, heat radiating through the air, but the lava failed to break through.

"We need to attack fast and hard," Zero said, teeth gritted as she held the barrier with everything she had.

Aren nodded.

Just as he was about to move, more salamanders began crawling out again, attempting to sneak around them.

"Aiden, handle the salamanders," Aren ordered. "Kira, we'll need your ice to counter the lava attacks. Seven heads, no retreat. Behind us is a freaking giant."

They all nodded.

Zero dropped the dome.

Aren charged forward.

"First, shadow armor."

As he ran, shadows wrapped around his dark armor, clinging to it and reinforcing it, giving him a demonic appearance as shadow moved endlessly across his body.

Then he summoned the millipede.

He leapt onto its head as it surged forward beneath him.

The hydra reacted instantly.

All seven heads reared back.

Then they attacked together.

Seven streams of molten lava erupted toward Aren at once.

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