Chapter 36: The Breaking Point

  Ray’s legs trembled with every step, his breath coming in ragged gasps. The weight of Alkan on his back pressed down on him like a boulder, his muscles screaming in protest. His mind had grown hazy from exhaustion, but he forced himself forward. There was no other choice.

  The straight corridor stretched endlessly ahead, an unchanging path bathed in the faint, pulsating glow of the labyrinth’s walls. It felt unnatural—too stable, too still. Unlike the twisting passages they had navigated before, this place was fixed, unshifting. But the knowledge that it led to the gate was their only solace.

  Behind them, the hunt had begun.

  Low, guttural growls echoed through the labyrinth, growing closer with each passing second. The fallen outers had caught their scent.

  Ray’s grip on Alkan tightened. He adjusted his weight, trying to move faster. The Fallen Beasts were getting closer—he could feel them. The air itself seemed to tremble under their presence, their monstrous forms slithering, crawling, and sprinting toward them from the darkness.

  Alkan groaned weakly. He had been slipping in and out of consciousness, his body wracked with the pain of reawakening. Every now and then, he stirred slightly, muttering incoherent words under his breath before going still again.

  Ray clenched his jaw. Damn it.

  He needed to move faster.

  But his body was failing him.

  His limbs were sluggish, his muscles on the verge of collapse. Every step felt like dragging himself through thick mud, and the weight of Alkan only made it worse.

  I won’t make it.

  The thought slithered into his mind like a whisper of death. His instincts screamed at him to drop Alkan and run. To survive.

  But he shoved the thought aside.

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  No. I won’t leave him behind.

  Ray had only one option left.

  I have to awaken. I have to move my soul essence.

  He gritted his teeth, pushing through the haze clouding his mind. He tried to focus inward, tried to feel the essence inside him. He knew it was there—he had felt it before, faint and fleeting. But now, in the middle of this chaos, grasping it was like trying to catch smoke with his bare hands.

  His vision blurred, his breathing uneven. The world around him flickered between reality and hallucination, exhaustion warping his senses.

  Then—

  A sharp, piercing screech.

  Ray’s heart pounded as a Fallen Beast lunged from the shadows. It was massive, its body twisting unnaturally as it sprinted toward them on elongated limbs. Its gaping maw split open, rows of jagged teeth glistening under the labyrinth’s dim glow.

  Ray had no time to react.

  The beast closed in.

  MOVE!

  Instinct took over. Ray twisted his body, barely managing to avoid the creature’s outstretched claws. The movement sent a jolt of pain through his already burning muscles, but he ignored it. He needed to run.

  But he had lost precious seconds.

  The other fallen outers were coming.

  Ray pushed forward, his mind spiraling into a state of detached focus. His exhaustion, his pain, his fear—all of it faded into the background.

  All that mattered was survival.

  His grip on Alkan remained firm as he forced himself into a steady rhythm, his body acting on pure instinct. He dodged, weaved, adjusted his movements to avoid the shifting terrain.

  And then—

  Something changed.

  A spark. A flicker of something deep within him.

  It was small, barely noticeable, but Ray felt it—the stir of soul essence responding to his movement. It wasn’t forced. It wasn’t something he had consciously tried to control.

  It simply moved with him.

  His heart pounded.

  This is it.

  This was what Alkan had been trying to teach him. Not to force the essence, not to command it, but to let it flow naturally—to guide it through his body as if it was part of him.

  Ray adjusted his breathing, keeping his steps controlled despite the overwhelming fatigue. He focused on that faint sensation, letting it grow, letting it synchronize with his movements.

  It was still unstable. His control was fragile, like walking on the edge of a blade. But the fact that it was happening at all meant one thing—

  He was close.

  He just had to endure.

  The hunt was far from over. The fallen outers were still chasing them, their monstrous screeches filling the air. Every time Ray thought he had gained distance, the shadows behind him would shift, and another grotesque figure would emerge.

  His body was at its limit.

  His vision blurred again.

  He stumbled.

  Ray barely managed to keep his footing, but the moment of weakness cost him.

  One of the creatures lunged.

  A flash of movement.

  A sharp, burning pain erupted along Ray’s side as claws raked against his ribs. The impact sent him sprawling onto the stone floor.

  Alkan rolled from his back, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

  Ray coughed, struggling to get up. His body refused to respond.

  He looked up—

  And froze.

  The fallen outers had surrounded them.

  Dozens of grotesque forms lurked in the darkness, their glowing eyes staring at him with insatiable hunger.

  And among them—

  A towering figure loomed in the distance.

  Larger. Stronger. More terrifying than the rest.

  The Fallen Devil.

  The same monster that had ruled the highest floor of the labyrinth.

  It had come for them.

  Ray’s breath hitched.

  He tried to move.

  Nothing.

  His body had finally given out.

  He could only watch as the cr

  eatures advanced.

  Alkan was unconscious, his reawakening consuming him entirely.

  Ray was helpless.

  And death was only moments away.