“Something is coming!” he shouted, his feet digging deeper into the ground as he adjusted his posture.

Not even a full second later, the cracks burst apart, and the swirls of the Black Rift came to be. The presence of nothingness followed. It didn’t even take a quarter of a second before the nothingness reached David. It seeped into the surrounding land and quadrupled the amount of nothingness in the wastelands instantaneously.

Maja and the Heavenly Champions stepped back, but their legs caved in and they slumped to the ground. A scream echoed, and David turned to the Saintess, tears streaming down her face. Even the Holy Knight and the Vessel of the Holy Flame looked shaken.

Why did they even come if they’re acting like that? Didn’t I say they’d be baggage? But, of course, Zachariah wouldn’t listen to me and dragged them along. David shook his head, the presence of nothingness washing over him.

It didn’t do anything to him. If anything, he opened his body to welcome the nothingness and let it absorb naturally. His Maelstrom responded to the nothingness entering his body and pulled it toward his left arm to digest it all.

“You should retreat with the others,” David called out to Maja as she scrambled to her feet and returned to the Black Rift just as the first Voidlings emerged from it.

There were only a few, a handful at best, and some retreated and returned to the Black Rift when they noticed Zachariah. That was new, but Zachariah didn’t seem concerned by their unusual behavior. He decapitated a Sapling and engaged the remaining Voidlings with a fierce onslaught of slashes and stabs.

David considered moving along and joining Zachariah, his wildly beating heart demanding the thrill of deadly combat, but he remained where he was and watched two Fragments as they stepped back into the Black Rift.

Where does the Rift lead? Is the dark place their headquarters? Do they even have something like that…

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and shook his head. The Black Rift was unlikely to lead them straight to the Fissure and what lay beyond. The Pantheon and others would have known about that. David had mentioned it once to Zachariah, asking him about the Pantheon’s knowledge and understanding of the Black Rift, but it turned out that neither the Regressor nor the damn gods had any idea.

That being said, everything was new to them. The Void had responded to the changes Zachariah and the Pantheon had made. They were playing games, and as ignorant as everyone on the cosmos’ side was… it was clear who was winning.

How great would it be to have the wisdom and power of a former god to aid us… David scoffed, his thoughts laced with sarcasm as he glanced at Zachariah.

The Regressor was most definitely a chess piece in the games of the cosmos and the Void. But David doubted the Pantheon was as oblivious as Zachariah. But they would have told Zachariah about the Black Rift if they had known about it… right?

David tilted his head, deep in thought, as Zachariah beheaded one of the two Void Fragments that had stayed behind. The other Voidling was clawing at Zachariah, but a crimson barrier appeared between them. It shattered, but it drained the Voidling’s momentum and created an opportunity to counterattack.

The Black Rift won’t lead to the Fissure. The Earthen Union would block that, and the Pantheon or some other god would have known about it. It is impossible for all gods to be as oblivious as Zachariah. I’m certain someone would know about it.

But if the Rift was not connected to the Fissure, where did it lead to?

David grimaced and cast [Herald’s Blessing] on Zachariah, empowering him momentarily. The Regressor accelerated, and silver streaks filled the air, piercing through the Void Barrier and the fleshly body beneath.

Smaller pieces of the Voidling were the first to fall to the ground, but it didn’t take long before the rest of its body followed.

Zachariah kicked the dead Voidling and turned to David. “Should I go first, or do you want to have the honor?”

His face was neutral, as if emotions couldn’t reach him, but his eyes shimmered in utter excitement.

“Are you that happy? You do realize we will have to fight that wolf again, right? Possibly more than one of their kind,” David responded, but he could barely hear his own voice through his thundering heart.

He was about to say more when a ripple in the Black Rift caught his attention. [Blood Manipulation], aided by the Law of Blood, surged to life in an instant, and lances of blood burst from the puddles around him.

Zachariah spun around, sword raised to block any upcoming attacks, but there was no need for him to act. The lances impaled three Saplings emerging from the portal, piercing their Void Barriers with ease. Their bodies disintegrated, leaving nothing behind. Not even Maelstroms dropped to the ground.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

“Since when can you do that?” Zachariah asked.

“What? Create blood lances with a bit of ‘boom’ behind? That’s owed to the blood’s potency and the Law of Blood’s empowerment,” he explained lightly. “Or are you talking about the penetrative force? I think you know better than anyone how long I studied you, the Barrier, the wastelands, and basically everything I could gather belonging to Them. Wasn’t it obvious I’d learn how to exploit their weakness?”

Before, he had used [Origin Lightning] and [Primeval Pulse], sometimes Rend with pristine lightning to pierce the Voidlings’ Barriers. But that was no longer needed. The blood lances were powerful enough to do the deed without Vitae’s infusion. However, adding the infusion of Vitae transformed the process into something far simpler. Easier. Less draining.

“Good point,” the Regressor muttered, but he didn’t sound convinced.

Believe whatever you want.

David pointed at the Black Rift. “I think it will disappear in a while. That being said… do you want to visit your buddy or not?”

“Buddy? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Zachariah snapped back.

“You don’t? That’s unfortunate. Either way, are we going to enter or not?”

The condensed Nihilum within the Black Rift rippled and thrashed against the forced manifestation, but it failed to retreat. The reason was unclear, but it helped David determine what he was supposed to do. He approached the Rift and halted beside Zachariah, licking his lips.

For a moment, he considered devouring the power within the Rift before the Regressor’s eyes, but decided against it. As unfortunate as it was, the condensed Nihilum within the Black Rift was still a little bit too much for him to handle. His Vitae would be devoured instead.

However, as potent as the Nihilum within the Rift was, David could not think of the Black Rift as dangerous. He was half-certain something would happen once he stepped through, yet he was confident it wouldn’t kill him. Not right away, at least.

His heart drummed against his chest, muffling whatever Zachariah was saying.

Maybe their plan was foolish, but David liked it. He was pulled toward the Rift.

“You’re ready?" he asked Zachariah, while shouts from behind reached them.

“That is insane. Don’t go in there! That place is cursed!"

The excitement in Zachariah’s eyes died a little, hesitation replacing the confidence he’d showcased moments before. A moment of hesitation transformed into a long handful of seconds before the Regressor nodded.

They stepped forward together, the nothingness around them intensifying as they stepped closer.

David’s danger sense spiked, and he caught a ripple in the Black Rift once more. His lips parted, and his body shifted, but no word reached the surroundings before it happened.

Tendrils of condensed Nihilum burst from the Black Rift. David was prepared and overclocked [True Sight] as soon as he sensed something was off, but it was barely enough to predict the tendrils’ trajectory. He evaded the first few while Zachariah surged forward, cleaving through those that threatened to coil around him.

The Regressor moved fluidly around the tendrils, which David tried to copy, but to no avail. Pristine lightning currents and Vitae surged out of him as the first tendrils of Nihilum coiled around his ankles and waist, yet they weren’t enough to repel them. Blood lances whistled through the air, piercing the tendrils clinging onto him, but freedom was short-lived. He barely managed to gasp for a gulp of air when something heavy crashed into him.

A deep growl made his hair stand on end, and dark, voidy eyes met his. David recognized the presence and life signals instantaneously, a shudder running down his spine at the distant memory.

The Void Wolf had returned, its claws digging deep into his chest. Nihilum riveted through the claws and into his body, flowing eagerly through the deep gash left behind in his chest. But instead of tearing him apart from the inside, devouring him swiftly, the Nihilum did nothing. Which the Voidre seemed to realize as it stopped in its tracks all of a sudden, as if frozen as it looked at him. The Void’s power surging into David did not destroy him. It circulated through his body and toward the Maelstrom, system notifications informing him of the production of Vitae Nihilum instead.

Spheres of [Primeval Pulse] gathered in his palms, but Zachariah arrived before he could let loose the Skill. The Regressor burst forth with tremendous power, and David’s existence was forgotten. The Voidre and Zachariah engaged in a fierce battle, but he was not given the luxury to watch them while tending his wounds. His world turned upside down as more tendrils coiled around him, pulling him away from the battlefield.

A pair of Nihilum tendrils pierced through the claw marks left behind on his chest, but David mended it swiftly, releasing Vitae to devour the harmful substances inside his body.

At the same time, he focused on the blood puddles, using them up to form blades and lances to pierce and sever the tendrils of condensed Nihilum. He smashed hard to the ground as the tendrils let go of him. He scrambled to his feet, ready to escape and to help Zachariah, when his eyes landed on the Black Rift. Dozens of tendrils shot toward him, wiggling wildly until they reached him.

David called upon Vitae, [Primeval Pulse], Rend, and [Origin Lightning], all while Words of Power escaped his lips in a defiant roar.

Within seconds, the Nihilum tendrils were no more, but the danger was not yet over. The Rift rippled again, and a shout rang out from behind. David spun around, only to see the Voidre turn to him. It charged ahead, ignoring Zachariah’s presence and crossed the distance between them. It reached him—but not before Zachariah’s presence and his sword reached them. David could see it clearly; Sword Law pierced the Voidre, killing the Voidling.

It slumped to the ground, but not before crashing into David with its remaining momentum, pushing them into the Black Rift.

The last thing David saw was Zachariah rushing at them, shouting something. He reached out, hoping to get hold of something, but the Black Rift snapped shut, swallowing the dead Voidre and David whole.

“Fuck.”