Episode 654
With Gram in hand, Zeke made his way to the door leading outside the Cradle.
The Cradle was nestled within the heart of the Draker family’s ancestral home, known as the “Dragon’s Nest.”
During Arthur Draker’s tenure as the head of the family, the Drakers were a transcendent force, wielding power over the continent. But with such power came many enemies, both within and outside their ranks.
These enemies often targeted the young, unawakened Drakers, seeing them as the most vulnerable.
Thus, all young Drakers who were eligible for the awakening ceremony were required to live communally in the Cradle at the family’s main house.
No matter how bold, no one dared to challenge the Draker family at their stronghold.
At the age of twelve, those who grew up in the Cradle would proceed to the central building of the family estate, colloquially known as the “Lair,” to receive the blessing ceremony.
Zeke had undergone this so-called blessing ceremony twice—once in his past life and once in his current life after his return. In his past life, he was classified as a Healer and never truly recognized, but in this life, he awakened as the unique class, the Immortal.
The Lair’s Sword God statue had both sealed his fate in his past life and offered him a new beginning in this one.
Reflecting on his past, Zeke intended to leave the Cradle and head to the Lair, the central building of the main house.
However, he soon encountered a problem.
There was no door leading out of the Cradle.
“Is this different from the real Cradle?”
The nature of the Twisted Constellation was still unclear, making it difficult to understand this realm.
Zeke examined the massive walls surrounding the Cradle. There was no door, and the walls were much higher than those of the real Cradle, blocking any path outside.
“System, give me a layout of this area.”
He asked the system, but unlike usual, no message appeared.
Upon checking, he found that only a few functions of the system, like the inventory and shop, were available.
After a moment of contemplation, Zeke recalled a particular item.
He carefully activated the Absolute Compass from his inventory.
Whirrr!
Fortunately, the compass responded to Zeke’s mana.
“Find the path to the Twisted Constellation’s temple.”
He hoped the compass could locate the temple of the Twisted Constellation, but surprisingly, despite reacting to his mana, the needle didn’t move.
“Even the Absolute Compass can’t detect it?”
Left with no choice, Zeke decided to stick to his original plan and find the Lair, the central building outside the Cradle.
When he instructed the compass to find the Lair, the needle finally began to turn.
Whirrr!
Zeke followed the direction indicated by the compass.
To his surprise, the compass pointed not outside the Cradle but towards a wall.
“The path to the Lair is within the wall?”
With questions swirling in his mind, Zeke followed the compass’s direction.
As he walked down the corridor inside the Cradle, he noticed another difference from reality.
“There should be a dragon-slaying plaque here. Instead, there’s a mirror.”
He realized that this twisted Cradle had mirrors scattered throughout its walls.
Suddenly, something clicked in Zeke’s mind.
“Mirrors can serve as gateways between spaces.”
The Sage of Stories had also used mirrors to communicate with Zeke.
In ancient magic, mirrors were often used for curses and mysteries.
Ancient people believed mirrors could connect with beings from other dimensions, and indeed, mirrors often served as portals to realms beyond the physical world.
Realizing this, Zeke understood where the Absolute Compass was pointing.
He dashed to the central hall of the Cradle.
He remembered the massive dragon-slaying plaque that had always hung there during his childhood.
Upon reaching the central hall, he looked up at the wall where the plaque used to be.
As he expected, a giant mirror now occupied the space.
The Absolute Compass pointed directly at the mirror.
Zeke realized this mirror was a portal to another space.
“But how do I use it?”
Without the system to guide him, he had to figure it out on his own.
He cautiously approached the large mirror on the wall.
The mirror, spotless and clear, reflected Zeke’s image.
He slowly reached out towards his reflection on the other side of the mirror.
His palm met the cold surface of the mirror.
“It seems like an ordinary mirror.”
But then, something unexpected happened.
The reflection of Zeke’s hand in the mirror suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist.
“Ugh!”
Startled, Zeke thrust his sword at the reflection holding his wrist.
Swoosh!
Amazingly, the sword slipped into the mirror as if it were a swamp, pulling Zeke in.
His hand, then his sword, and finally his entire body were sucked into the mirror.
For a moment, his vision blurred, and when it cleared, the scenery had changed.
“Where am I?”
He had been in the central hall of the Cradle, but now he found himself standing in a corridor of the Lair.
He had traveled from the Cradle to the Lair through the mirror.
Like the Cradle, the Lair was entirely white, with its left and right sides reversed.
“Though reversed, the overall structure is the same.”
Zeke cautiously moved towards the center of the Lair, where the Sword God statue was located.
Walking through the eerily silent corridors, Zeke felt a growing tension.
It was as if he were the only living being in this world. The familiarity of the space only heightened the sense of unease.
Most unique realms created by the Constellations were based on fragments of real cities from the past.
These realms, devoid of life, captured a single eternal moment of a city, serving as a playground for the Constellations.
“Past cities had brilliant civilizations, creating enough karma to sustain them. But the Dragon’s Nest isn’t such a place.”
In many ways, the Twisted Constellation seemed to differ from typical Constellations.
As Zeke walked down the corridor leading to the grand hall where the Sword God statue stood, he sensed something amiss.
A tingling sensation crept up the back of his neck.
It was a feeling reminiscent of using the “Sense Focus” skill from his days as a Healer.
The moment he felt it, Zeke raised Gram and swung his sword towards the ceiling.
Clang!
Something fell from above, striking his sword with force.
The impact pushed Zeke back.
“What was that?”
Zeke scanned his surroundings to identify his attacker.
But all he saw was the empty corridor; the assailant was nowhere to be found.
He steadied his grip on his sword and calmed his breathing.
Without access to his usual powers and skills, Zeke was essentially in the same state as when he was a Healer in his past life.
Having experienced losing all his powers in the Inverted Tower, he wasn’t overly panicked, but the situation was undeniably precarious.
Focusing his senses, Zeke channeled the mana from his core into Gram.
Ssshhh—
A vivid aura blade surged from Gram.
Fortunately, his core was more stable than in his past life, and he could fully utilize his soul energy, giving him an advantage.
Zeke expanded his sensory range, trying to detect the attacker’s movements.
Then, something emerged from his blind spot.
Swoosh!
Zeke swiftly swung his sword at the mysterious assailant targeting his back.
Swoosh!
Employing Northern-style swordsmanship instead of dragon-slaying techniques, he countered the attack with a precise strike.
Crack!
Once again, the attacker vanished before Zeke could get a clear look.
But from the two encounters, Zeke discerned one thing.
“Whatever it is, it’s not a living being.”
The attacks lacked the vitality characteristic of living creatures.
Zeke called out into the corridor.
“Twisted Constellation! Are you testing me? If so, show yourself and test me directly!”
He didn’t expect a response, but surprisingly, something changed when he shouted.
Ssshhh—
The space around him began to ripple.
Zeke furrowed his brow at the strange energy emanating from the ripples.
“Twisted causality.”
Suddenly, figures emerged from the rippling space.
Swoosh!
They were mannequin-like entities, entirely white, wielding swords as they charged at Zeke.
Zeke, sensing no life from them, charged forward to meet them with his sword.
Boom!
The aura blade, transformed by his mana, sliced through the mannequins in an instant.
Ssshhh—
As Zeke’s sword cleaved through them, the mannequins disintegrated into white dust.
Zeke frowned at the sight of the disintegrating mannequins.
“What are these things?”
They weren’t alive, nor were they spirits, undead, or beasts.
The closest comparison would be golems, but they felt different.
They were truly twisted entities.
At that moment, three more white mannequins appeared before Zeke.
Whoosh!
One moved along the ceiling, while the other two charged down the corridor towards him.
Without hesitation, Zeke unleashed his soul energy against the oncoming figures.
First, Zeke fortified his defenses with a powerful aura and, with a decisive will, sliced through the nearest puppet in one swift motion.
Sssshhh—
As soon as he eliminated one, Zeke blocked the incoming sword of another puppet, smoothly pivoting to thrust his blade into its neck.
Sssshhh—
The puppet dissolved into dust, leaving just one more, which charged at Zeke with intent to attack.
With a horizontal sweep of his sword, Zeke swiftly dispatched the final puppet.
“Phew.”
Zeke exhaled deeply, steadying his breath. In this place, where his powers were limited, his stamina didn’t recover as quickly, so he needed to manage his energy through controlled breathing.
“Getting used to this isn’t easy.”
If things got dire, he could always use a recovery potion from his inventory, so it wasn’t a completely hopeless situation.
Adjusting his grip on Gram, Zeke continued down the corridor.
He was heading toward the banquet hall at the heart of the lair—a place that had once been the source of great trauma for him.
Zeke opened the door and stepped inside.
Unlike reality, the room was a stark white, a mirror image of the real banquet hall, but structurally identical.
Zeke’s gaze fixed on the center of the room.
There stood a white sword statue, used in the blessing ceremonies of the Draker bloodline to awaken one’s aura.
However, Zeke, having inherited the Kabbalah system from the Elder Dragon, knew the statue’s true purpose was to determine one’s class.
He approached the statue slowly.
Aside from its color, it was identical to the one in reality.
Zeke was well aware of the statue’s true identity.
“The Incarnation of Adam.”
The progenitor of the Draker bloodline, the first human-like Nephilim, and the avatar created by the sun god Apollyon in the material world.
Arthur Draker had died and been resurrected, gaining Adam’s power and transforming into something entirely different.
“Perhaps Arthur Draker has become the new Adam.”
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, he was interrupted by the sound of clapping.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Zeke realized belatedly that someone was sitting atop the sword statue.
Raising Gram defensively, he looked up to see a man seated there, and he couldn’t help but be taken aback.
The man wore a pristine white suit, legs crossed, applauding. Strangely, his face was obscured, as if shrouded in a mirage, making it impossible to discern his features.
The enigmatic figure smiled at Zeke and spoke.
“Welcome, Zeke. I’ve been waiting for you.”
At that moment, a fragmented message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.
[%$Encounter with the @#!remnants of the $%&past#&*.]