Endless Evolution: Last Star Chapter 1543 1543: Endless Enemies

Adam and Alexia ventured into the Primal Lands for the very first time, plunging straight into a spot teeming with peril.

This path was one they selected themselves, braving countless ordeals under the direction of the Ancient Voice.

At last, they arrived at the journey's close, where the Frost Oasis aligned closely with their visions, aside from the unforeseen dragon head and azure tree that lay beyond their knowledge.

However, neither Adam nor Alexia realized that this went beyond a simple oasis or a radiant pool, revealing instead a profoundly ominous essence linked intimately to demise.

"What?" Adam spun around, spotting the blue fairy off in the distance. "Now you've decided to show up?!"

[It is the will of the owner of this place. As long as it functions, all rules must be observed and obeyed. What happened to you before was also the will of the owner.]

Alexia furrowed her brow.

"So this owner breaks the rules whenever he wants and gets away with it?!"

The blue fairy merely floated above the earth, remaining utterly still.

"Answer me, damn it!" Alexia stomped her foot, aiming to cow the Ancient Voice.

Oddly, her tactic succeeded.

[Yes. The owner is several levels above you in power. It... It can bend the rules when necessary.]

Alexia seethed with rage, yet Adam's expression remained impassive. He grasped this truth right when the rules first vanished and shifted.

His certainty solidified as he neared the gate's opening, only for the rules to block it, before the gate swung wide anyway, signaling the owner's permission for their entry.

"The owner, is it this dragon?" Adam pondered, then dismissed the idea with a shake of his head.

Time was scarce for such musings, given their pressing new crisis:

"Alexia, we have to get ready for battle!"

"Agh? Against whom?" She gestured wildly to the side. "Do you think I should fight a tree? What kind of stupid rules are these? What enemies do we have to defeat?!"

Questions swirled in her mind, mirroring Adam's own, though answers would soon unfold for every one.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The azure tree's power surged intensely, accompanied by a rumbling from beneath the soil that seized their focus.

Dozens of claws clawed upward through the earth, unveiling crimson skulls with stretched maws lined in hooked teeth.

Alexia let out a startled gasp while observing the creatures emerge from below.

"They were here from the beginning? But why were they underground? What kind of stupid trap is this?!"

"No, they weren't waiting for us, it's not a trap. Fuck! Look at them! They've been dead for a long time!"

Alexia's gaze stretched wide upon closer inspection of the beasts. Their skin bore blackened borders like decay, with exposed skeletons and ribs in spots.

These creatures amounted to mere undead, roused for combat long after their passing.

"You understand that, don't you?" Silvana's voice resounded within Adam's thoughts as he stared intently at the azure tree.

"Yeah." He gave a nod. "This tree not only absorbs energy from the dead and blood, but it can also revive those who haven't been completely consumed yet. Holy shit, considering how many bones and corpses there are here, this isn't a cave, it's a real cemetery!"

From afar, no peril loomed for Adam and Alexia.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The blue fairy quivered:

[The last trial begins now!]

Right then, a barrage of runes surged like a advancing barrier, shoving them ahead and sending them tumbling over the edge.

Though Adam and Alexia pushed back, they stood no match against such might. While within hostile domain and under the sway of whatever commanded the Ancient Voice, they held the weaker position.

Thump!

Both crashed onto the terrain, with the Frost Oasis and its barrier-shielded dragon head on their right, while the azure tree, spawning ever more foes with every second, loomed to their left.

At present, over thirty varied beasts glared at them, marking just the start.

"Hey, according to the rules, we have to kill every monster to survive, right?" Alexia wiped her lips.

Adam inclined his head.

"So, maybe we should just destroy this stupid tree?!"

Alexia charged ahead without pause, a veil of white vapor trailing in her wake.

The scarlet fiends bounded toward her akin to infernal hounds, yet they weren't her focus. She viewed them not as true adversaries.

Her vision captured the massive blade as, moments later, an enormous ice sword materialized in her hold.

SLASH!

The frozen edge, through raw might alone, pulverized the crimson fiends, the force hurling them away with shattered limbs and muzzles.

But...

"GRH!"

Despite their mangled forms, they hauled themselves upright. Those with spared limbs stood, while the rest dragged across the dirt, snapping their fangs.

Alexia's eyes bulged as the truth dawned on her.

'They're already dead, so wounding them isn't enough to get rid of them. I have to destroy their bodies!'

Whooooosh.

Adam grasped the same insight, darting beyond Alexia as her sight filled with countless pale strands.

Instantly, Adam crossed his arms, unleashing the pale filaments in a spinning vortex of edges that shredded the crimson fiends into sprays of gore and minced tissue.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The azure tree strained to mend them, yet failed. The spasming limbs and craniums offered no danger to the pair of Phantoms.

"Go! Alexia! Destroy that tree! It's our way to the oasis through the barrier!" Adam shouted.

Alexia dipped her head firmly, hoisting her ice blades aloft prior to slamming them down with utmost force upon the azure tree.

Stomp!

A pair of hulking beasts, resurrected in the wake of the crimson ones, positioned themselves before the azure tree. They lifted their limbs to halt the ice sword, but the edge merely cleaved through their grasp.

In one more instant, Alexia would shatter the azure tree, the final obstacle barring the Frost Oasis!

Crack.

Abruptly, a silhouette burst from the soil, diminutive beside the giants, planting its feet solidly on the surface.

Its humanoid shape gleamed in Alexia's vision as the mysterious foe hoisted its limbs overhead.

The colossal ice edge became trapped amid the figure's hands.

A quake rippled through the earth as chill traced Alexia's spine.

"S-Shit."

Adam swallowed hard, comprehending a vital detail:

Besides the fallen beasts, Awakened Monsters and Phantoms had perished in this place as well.

Now, they all stood against them.