Inside the gate, Hulim Heyerar found herself in an extremely vast space.
It was like a desolate wilderness—stretching as far as the eye could see, covered in bare gray rock.
High above, at the distant dome, an odd light source resembling a silver moon poured silvery radiance over the land.
In the center of the wilderness stood a solitary gray stone platform, styled like an ancient temple. Steps wound up from its base to the top.
Atop the platform, three Golem statues stood in a triangular formation, guarding a transparent sphere of light. Suspended inside the sphere was a clear, spherical gemstone.
Little Semiris whispered softly:
("Hulim, that’s the Philosopher’s Stone~.")
("It’s protected by a barrier. Looks like we’ll definitely alert these guardians.")
("It’s okay! As long as we move fast and stay quiet, we can retreat before they fully wake up~.")
Hulim nodded.
Maintaining her stealth, she crept cautiously toward the platform.
Little Semiris lay motionless on her head, not making a sound......
The platform was now within arm’s reach—success seemed just around the corner—when suddenly,
Boom——!!!
A beam of light came hurtling from behind, slicing diagonally over Hulim’s head before shooting straight into the sky.
Hulim froze, watching as the beam struck the dome above.
Crash!
A deafening roar echoed, followed by a shower of falling rock fragments......
"Little Semiris, take cover!"
Hulim snatched the fairy from her head.
"Huh——??!"
Before Little Semiris could react to what was happening, she was stuffed into Hulim’s clothes.
Whoosh!
In the next instant,
Hulim didn’t hesitate—she flew straight toward the platform.
She wasn’t sure exactly what had happened, but she guessed that among the earlier Golems, one had survived by sheer luck. Its severe damage must have allowed it to escape her detection.
Now, hiding was useless!
She had to gamble—could she retrieve the Philosopher’s Stone before the "Annihilation" Golems fully awakened?
But even with her quick reaction,
she was too late.
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Crack, crack......
The three Golem statues shattered simultaneously.
Boom——!!!
Three powerful surges of mana erupted from the platform.
"......"
Hulim, who had just landed on the platform, stared at the now-awakened Golems and silently gripped the Seven Luminaries.
No choice left—she’d have to fight them head-on......
The three Annihilation Golems locked onto Hulim’s figure and immediately entered combat mode.
One retreated quickly, putting distance between itself and Hulim. The other two took up positions—one in front, one slightly behind—keeping close to each other.
Hulim observed them carefully.
Each had a distinct appearance.
The retreating Golem was the smallest, with a large rotating wheel on its back—likely some kind of magical device. The one in the front was massive, with thick arms and legs, each equipped with shield-like attachments.
The third Golem was of medium size, unremarkable except for a bright golden longsword attached to its right hand.
"A Shieldbearer, a Swordsman, and a Mage......"
This won’t be easy......
Three Golems of similar strength alone wouldn’t be too troublesome. But a coordinated team like this—their combined power was far greater than the sum of their parts.
The only silver lining: Golems had no concept of healing. Damaged ones could only be repaired. If there was a healer in the mix, she’d have no choice but to run.
Thud!
The Shieldbearer Golem squatted down, slamming its fists into the ground. Its two shields merged into one, larger barrier.
Boom——!
In the next second,
it charged at Hulim like a high-speed beast, carrying a terrifying momentum.
At the same time, the Mage Golem—now at a safe distance—lit up the wheel on its back, and a magic array unfolded in front of it.
The Swordsman Golem, positioned just to the Shieldbearer’s left rear, also closed in on Hulim rapidly.
Clang!
Hulim tapped the ground with the Seven Luminaries, attempting to cast a spell.
"Hmm?"
But the ground didn’t respond.
She realized immediately—the platform wasn’t as simple as it looked. Either its material was special, it had extremely strong magic resistance, or there was some kind of interference array in place.
Boom!
The Shieldbearer Golem was almost upon her.
Hulim quickly cast another spell.
Gurgle~......
A pitch-black shadow spread across the ground, rapidly covering a large area.
"I see......"
The dark magic worked without any hindrance, ruling out the third possibility.
In other words, the structure itself was highly resistant to magic!
That wasn’t the worst-case scenario, at least.
Boom!
The Shieldbearer Golem charged straight into the spreading Shadow Marsh.
Its feet sank into the viscous muck, and its movement was immediately severely impaired.
Worse still, the shadows on the ground seemed to come alive—like dark serpents, they coiled up its legs, climbing higher. Countless shadowy tentacles emerged from the marsh, latching onto its body and pulling it downward,
as if trying to swallow it whole.
Boom——!
A beam of light crackling with terrifying mana suddenly shot toward Hulim.
Having sensed it in advance, Hulim’s body blurred.
In an instant, she transformed into a pitch-black shadow.
The beam engulfed the shadow,
evaporating it completely.
But just as the beam struck, another shadow—shaped like Hulim—emerged from the nearby Shadow Marsh.
Whoosh~!
The shadow dispersed, revealing Hulim unharmed.
Clang——!
A bright sword energy slash suddenly came at her.
Without thinking, Hulim instinctively drew Helkem and swung back with all her strength.
Boom!!
The two sword energies collided mid-air, triggering a violent explosion.
The shockwave sent ripples even through the shadows beneath Hulim’s feet.
Boom!
Another loud crash.
The trapped Shieldbearer Golem was surrounded by a thick earthen barrier.
Its body—already half-submerged in the shadows—stopped sinking abruptly.
It raised its massive arms high,
then slammed them down into the ground!
Boom——!
An earthen shockwave spread outward from its body,
sweeping away the Shadow Marsh entirely.
Hulim tapped her toes against the ground, flying into the air to dodge the Shieldbearer’s area-of-effect attack.
Whoosh——!
Another beam of light came hurtling toward her.
Hum!
Still airborne, Hulim quickly summoned a Light Shield.
Boom——!
The Mage Golem’s beam struck the shield, sending violent tremors through it.
But in the end, the attack was successfully blocked.
Clang——!
Another sword energy slash raced up from the ground.
Hulim swung Helkem downward,
unleashing another sword energy blast identical to the last.
Boom!!
Another shockwave erupted in the air.
Thud——!
Before the shockwave fully dissipated, a figure plummeted rapidly to the ground, landing right in front of the Swordsman Golem.
