In front of them was a crystalline dais, upon which a thin ring forged out of a substance that glowed with a metallic sheen, painted in a deep purple hue. What was more concerning was the color of the portal, oscillating between shades of purple and blue, its surface constantly rippling and emanating a power that while Jack could not understand, he felt attracted to.

A minor [Linear Portal] has been discovered. Your body and soul have been tethered to the portal. Teleportation commencing in 60….59…58….

“Damn it!” Jack let out a furious howl, letting his emotions out without a filter for once. He tried to move from the spot, but despite applying strength in an attempt to make his legs budge, an intangible force had surrounded his body from all sides and had rooted it in place.

Sarah seemed startled by Jack’s burst of fury, but her expression changed drastically when she realized she could not move. Her thoughts went back to [The Underbelly’s] description, recalling its specific wording ‘a unique mode of transportation that reduces the time to travel to the citadel’.

“Jack relax, the system had mentioned this,” Sarah tried to calm him down, but Jack’s expression remained grim. His personality, for one, rebelled against the idea of being thrust into an unknown portal without any knowledge of what lay ahead, but this was more than that. His perception stat had gone haywire, warning him not to enter the portal, and Jack wholeheartedly agreed with the sixth sense.

“Sarah,” Jack took a deep breath, before continuing. “I’m not certain, but I think this portal leads to the final challenge [The Underbelly] has to offer.”

“You mean….,” She gasped, her breath tightening as she tried harder to move, but to no avail.

“But the system promised us that we could leave,” she protested, panic seeping into her voice.

Jack had a sullen expression on his face as he directed the system to pull up the prompt they had received upon discovering the underbelly.

Congratulations, you have discovered a hidden piece: The Underbelly.

The Underbelly is a unique mode of transportation that reduces the time to travel to the citadel, while also providing unique loot and materials that can only be acquired within the underbelly. Each Underbelly entrance only leads down a single path, and a single exit. However, a challenger can only attempt each underbelly entrance once. Multiple challengers may enter the underbelly together in a temporary party. However, once a challenger leaves the Underbelly premises, the entrance is forever sealed for them and any attempt to re-enter the Underbelly will result in failure.

Underbelly Level: 4

Loot: Unknown

“It didn’t. All it said was that if we leave, we can’t re-enter [The Underbelly]. It never actually discussed the possibility of leaving [The Underbelly], especially after we advanced past a certain point. We were played,” Jack wryly smiled, as he shook his head.

“Killing all the [Gemstone Beasts] was the point of no return?” she asked her voice calmer after having time to process the information.

“And stumbling upon the portal,” Jack added, grip on his sword tightening, or at least attempting to. Jack noticed that they could still talk, their eyes and mouth about the only thing the incorporeal force did not restrict from movement.

“Well then, there’s only one thing we can do,” Sarah replied, closing her eyes as she counted down the seconds in her mind.

“We kill it,” Jack replied in a gruff voice, vowing to be more prudent in the future.

“Or die trying,” She added morbidly, but there was a certain cutting resolve in her voice that promised pain and violence to whatever attacked her.

A few seconds later both of them winked out of existence with a loud flash of violet light, leaving behind only a cavern full of shattered gemstones.

For a minute, Jack felt as if he had glimpsed upon a different world. A world where space and time had no meaning, but also a world which in itself had no meaning. A reality that existed only because of their existence, a world that was tethered to his own, both superior and inferior at the same time. In the endless purple-darkness, he floated forward, unable to make out anything besides himself and the endless black that obscured his vision.

Until he detected a colossal structure in the corner of his eye, or at least that was his first impression. A dull white sheen was enough for him to make out a general impression of the structure in the land of eternal blackness, resembling an arcing bridge with odd, blurry proportions. He inadvertently blinked, and the next second his heart almost fell out of his chest— never had Jack experienced such terror, despair, horror, and abject, all-encompassing might before in his life.

Two dark-violet eyes glowed in the darkness, their pupils two round saucers that were the size of dining plates. Sharp, predatory milky white teeth glowed in the darkness, merely separated from him by a few meters. He was able to feel its fishy breath blow upon his face like a gust of mighty wind, but the force that continuously propelled him forward counteracted it. The creature’s proportionally small snout and scaly visage reminded him of a creature in Chinese and eastern European folklore and mythology, but fear had paralyzed his mind, his thoughts stuck in a quagmire of abject terror.

Its scales were a mix of dull white and a strong, roiling purplish-black, which explained the white sheen that had allowed him to detect the creature in the first place.

ERROR….. Detecting…..Analyze failed…..

Requesting direct intervention….. Trial Interference Detected….. Summoning local resources…..

Analyzing…..

Detecting….. ERROR…. Analyze failed…..

Requesting direct intervention of $#[email protected]%^%#^%

Request Authorized…..

Detected: Traitor to the Noble Dragon Race, Void Dragon Azleri Yul.

Cultivation Level: 497

Rank: B+ [Herald]

Class: Arcane Void Empress [Unique-Legendary, Evolved]

Estimated Chance of Victory: Impossible.

Estimated Chance of Victory with System Interference: Impossible.

Recommended Course of Action: Diplomacy. Do not engage or agitate at any cost.

Alignment with system: Neutral

Additional Notes: The Target is known to be in possession of a [Pseudo-Deity Level Artifact]. Estimated Rank with Artifact: A- [Heavenly Venerable].

You have received a [Quest].

Quest Difficulty: SSS+

Description: The Noble Dragon race has tried to eliminate the race traitor, Void Dragon Azleri Yul since her betrayal in the war between the three realms and the union. All attempts to detect her movements and invite her to the three realms have been met with failure. Azleri Yul is the only existence that can bypass the protections guarding the three realms without triggering the defensive wards, thus representing both a grave threat and an opportunity. For an unknown reason, she has chosen to reveal herself to you. Convince her to join the three realms, or gather any information relating to her objectives.

Consequences of Failure: Unknown.

Rewards: 10 Trillion Tutorial Points [or Equivalent].

“Too early,” A feminine voice echoed in his mind, barraging it like the continuous beat of a drum. For some reason, he knew the dragon’s intention was not to harm him, but even her attempt to communicate with him left Jack with a splitting headache. The next second the purple-darkness around her thickened, a strand of the energy diverging from the whole and heading in his direction.

Searing, blinding pain erupted from his right harm, feeling as if his arm was dipped into a pool of molten lava. Pain so intense that his nerve endings almost failed to convey it, Jack let out a bloodcurdling scream.

In the next second, the world shattered.