Endless Evolution: Last Star

It seemed that the fifth and sixth floors should not have been a problem, because when Adam passed the first floor, he easily dealt with the second and third floors, as he understood how the External Artifact of these floors worked and was familiar with the guards.

Perhaps the sixth floor would be as easy for him as the second and third, but that certainly could not be said about the fifth.

Why?

Because it was on this floor that the altar was located. Strangely enough, after Lyrod, it was the most valuable thing in the crypt.

Usually, the altar was inactive, because it supported all the floors and the External Artifact of the crypt in working order, while remaining inactive itself.

However... Lyrod knew that Adam and Dayra were following him, otherwise, he would have stayed here on the fifth floor instead of going down to the bottom, to the ninth floor, to hide from them.

Was Lyrod afraid of Adam and Dayra? Sure, in his situation, every minute was important because it affected his strength. The energy of the dark dream filled his body, making him stronger while Adam and Dayra wasted their time on trials.

Step. Step. Step.

Adam and Lyra descended the stairs as the fifth floor came into view with the altar in the center.

A bright green crystal emerged from the altar, pulsing from time to time. This immediately made Dayra frown.

"Shit, he activated the altar after all."

She spat out.

"Hmm?"

Adam gave her a questioning look.

"You see... The first to fifth floors are something like a safe zone, or rather, they became so when the altar was activated. Now, even if I wasn't working with you and Kolos was here, we wouldn't be able to get any further because everything beyond the fifth floor is now considered a restricted area."

"So, you're saying that Lyrod used the altar to lock himself in the lower floors?"

Dayra nodded in confirmation.

This was not good news, as getting rid of the altar would certainly be much more difficult than getting rid of the guards on the four floors.

Still, there was one thing Adam couldn't quite understand.

"Why does it work that way? Shouldn't the most protected area be next to the altar if it's the core of the crypt?"

Dayra shook her head.

"It's not about the altar, but the fact that this crypt has become the target of the black flash. The densest energy is on the lowest floor, the ninth one, where Lyrod spends most of his time absorbing the energy of the dark dream."

After a few moments, Adam nodded.

"I see, so... We need to destroy this crystal?"

Adam looked at the altar, then his gaze swept across the walls, stopping at the passage leading further.

A barely noticeable, pale green barrier covered everything like a veil, occasionally flickering to show its presence.

In fact, not only now but in any other situation, activating the altar was an excellent way to protect oneself from threats.

It wasn't just that Adam and Dayra couldn't go any further; those below the fifth floor were also unable to cross the altar barrier.

Only Lyrod and the two Elders who possessed the seals had that ability, but...

Crack.

The barrier shook, throwing Dayra's hand aside when she tried to touch the barrier around the altar.

"Shit." Dayra frowned as she realized that Lyrod had changed her access level.

Lyrod didn't have time to reach the gate, he sent the green lizard there, but he had enough time to work on the altar.

"Well, I guess we only have one choice left!"

Adam's voice rang out behind her as the first needle appeared in his hand.

"Step aside, I'm going to cut this barrier into pieces!"

He gripped the hilt tightly with both hands, gathering dense, dark energy on the blade.

"Wait! Why are you always in such a hurry?!" Dayra stopped him with a wave of her hand.

This made Adam frown.

"Because we don't have much time. Lyrod is getting stronger as we go through one floor after another. If I didn't know he was a dangerous opponent, I would have cut this damn crypt in two long ago!"

Dayra gulped as she remembered what Adam had done to Kolos and the great lake. Given that power, he was capable of it, but he was right.

"Sure, you need to save your energy, so let me deal with this."

"Oh, are you finally going to be useful?" Adam asked mockingly.

She clenched her teeth in annoyance.

"Shut up. I just didn't expect the walls to attack me! Who could have predicted that?"

Adam rolled his eyes, but eventually lowered his blade.

"Fine, go on, show me what you can do."

Dayra nodded as she waved her hands. Two green daggers immediately appeared in her grasp. Recently, these weapons had saved her life when Adam had nearly killed her with his red-hot rods.

"The barrier is very strong, I can guarantee you that," Dayra muttered, gradually backing away. "However, its defense system is not particularly complex. All I need to do is get inside the barrier and the altar won't have time to do anything."

"And? How are you going to do that? I doubt even I could do it with my path." Adam was at a loss.

Dayra grinned as she crossed her daggers in front of her.

"Well, your ability is very similar to teleportation, but it's not the same. You just move very quickly from one place to another, destroying everything in your path, but... Your ability definitely has limits, right?"

There was no answer, but Adam's eyes grew deeper. He was impressed that Dayra understood so much even though she had only seen his second needle in action once.

"I can't be sure, but you won't have enough power to break the barrier, or it will take too much time and energy. I don't have that problem."

Step.

Dayra stepped forward as her figure burst into clumps of green flame.

In a heartbeat, an emerald spark appeared directly above the barrier where Dayra had appeared, destroying the crystal with a quick swing of her dagger.

Adam smiled.

'Hah, not bad, not bad at all.'