The death realm

Norris took a deep breath, steeling himself for the journey ahead. The room was dimly lit by flickering candles placed at strategic points, casting eerie shadows on the walls. The scent of incense filled the air, mingling with the earthy aroma of herbs scattered on the ground. Symbols and intricate patterns were drawn on the floor with chalk, creating a complex web of ritual traces.

In the center of the room, a stone altar stood, adorned with various artifacts and talismans. The focal point of the ritual was a shimmering portal, its edges crackling with arcane energy. The portal swirled with a mixture of dark and ethereal light, creating a mesmerizing and foreboding sight.

Norris approached the altar, his eyes fixed on the portal. He knew the dangers that awaited him in the Death Realm, but the power and knowledge he sought were worth the risk. He carefully placed his pinky finger on the altar, ensuring it was neatly treated and prepared. The finger would serve as both a medium and a coordinate to return to the material realm.

He began chanting an incantation, his voice steady and commanding. As he spoke the ancient words, the symbols on the floor began to glow, and the energy in the room intensified. The portal pulsed in response, its light growing brighter and more turbulent.

With the final words of the incantation, the portal surged open, and Norris felt a powerful force pulling him towards it. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the journey ahead. As he stepped forward, he felt a cold, otherworldly energy envelop him. The portal closed behind him with a deafening crash, leaving only the sealed pinky finger in the material world.

Norris found himself in the dark, foreboding landscape of the Death Realm. He cast a spell to allow the Death Realm's laws to affect his body, changing his form to an undead. This transformation allowed him to exist in the realm as a living entity legally permitted by its laws. With the undead as the main intelligent beings in the Death Realm and their hatred for the living, being not assimilated was a death warrant. He thought to himself, "Ugh, I hate going to other realms, as without assimilation you'll be too noticeable. Sigh... I've chosen to assimilate my body as a lich. For now, being a lich allows me to tap into the Death Realm's energies more effectively, which has its pros, with the loss of emotions as the con."

---

As he traversed the desolate landscape as a lich, Norris couldn't help but feel that the Death Realm embodied the very essence of mortality. The barren wasteland, shrouded in an eternal gloom, seemed to confirm every morbid expectation of what lay beyond the veil of life.

As Norris walked, the Death Realm's twisted landscape stretched out before him like a canvas of decay. Skeletal trees reached towards the sky, their branches etched against the dull grey horizon. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and decay.

His mind began to wander, drawn back to the goal that had driven him to this forsaken place. Becoming a Noble of the Death Realm was the key to unlocking the secrets of this realm and harnessing its power. The benefits were too great to ignore: a deeper affinity for the Death Realm's energies and the chance to repair the wear and tear on his soul.

Norris's thoughts turned to the cost of his rapid promotion, the hidden dangers that lurked beneath the surface. Like a muscle that had been used to the point of wear and tear, Norris had expanded his soul too fast for his own good. He could wait for it to heal naturally, but that would take a long time. Right now, Norris was unable to grow stronger, meaning his potential had been exhausted. The Death Realm offered a chance to heal those wounds, to strengthen himself, and to become someone worthy of respect... or fear, maybe?.

In this world, being a noble meant connecting mystically to an area, which could be known as one's domain. Nobles were employed by the realm to sort out its chaotic energy system and create relative order. The Death Realm, temporally farthest from the material world at this time, offered the perfect opportunity for Norris to focus on his growth. Five years in this realm would pass in the blink of an eye back home, a mere day in the material world. It was the perfect opportunity to focus on his growth and become the master of his own destiny.

As Norris ventured deeper into the Death Realm, he decided to use one of his core spells created by himself that uses the death energy as a ray and sending it out to gather information about his surroundings. "Time to get the lay of the land," he thought to himself. He also prepared an amplification array to help amplify the death radar spell.

However, he soon realized that this spell, which had served him well in the Material Realm, was a grave mistake in the Undead Realm without adjusting. The death energy waves screamed through the realm like a beacon, announcing his presence to every malevolent entity within earshot.

"What the...?!" Norris's eyes socket widened in alarm as he felt the attention of the realm's inhabitants focusing on him. "No damn what the, no, " He trailed off, his mind racing with panic.

Norris let out a frustrated sigh. "I've used this spell countless times before, but never in a realm like this." He mentally face-palmed. "And yet, I cast it without even checking its properties, without considering the potential consequences of using it in such a realm. I also had the gall to cast an amplification on the spell. The difference between theory and practical."

Norris's self-reproach turned to alarm as he realized the gravity of his mistake. "Now it's not the time to muse. I need to bolt"

Then, his instincts kicked in. Norris turned and ran, dashing across the twisted landscape of the Death Realm. He could feel the cold, calculating gaze of his pursuers piercing through the darkness.

As a mage, Norris has contingencies in place for unexpected situations like this. He swiftly cast a series of spells to mask his trail and confuse any potential pursuers. With a flick of his wrist, Norris conjured a cloud of swirling, death-infused mist that obscured his escape route. The mist disrupted the tracking abilities of other mages, making it harder for them to follow his trail.

Next, Norris invoked an arcane spell, temporal displacement, creating a localized distortion in the flow of time. This allowed him to move more quickly and unpredictably. "That should give me some breathing room," he thought. Despite these precautions, Norris knew that he couldn't shake off all of his pursuers. Other skilled mages could still follow his tracks, albeit with greater difficulty.

As Norris ran, he mentally replayed the events leading up to his detection. His spell, meant to gather information, had instead broadcast his presence to the entire realm. He quickly realized that the issue lay in the impurity of his death energy. As a living being, his energy signature was still tainted by his vitality and soul energy, making it distinct from the pure death energy of the undead.

Moreover, his spell's energy signature didn't match the Death Realm's ambient energy, making it easier for the undead to pinpoint the source of the spell – and its caster.

"Ah, damn it," Norris muttered to himself. He knew that adapting his energy signature to blend in with the Death Realm's ambient energy would take time.

However, Norris also realized that the only way to cast spells in the Death Realm was to use Arcane Energy obtained from The Mysterious Lady, the God of Magic, creator and ruler of the arcane realm. As the multiversal and most standard energy involved in casting spells, arcane energy, comes at a significant cost.

Arcane energy is created by converting chaotic energy from the warp into a more orderly form. While this conversion makes arcane energy safer and also inheriting the almost omnipotency of chaotic energy, it requires a greater amount of energy to perform any task because it is not specialized. The more complex the spell, the more energy is required, and it cannot be harnessed through feelings or intuition.

Furthermore, spellcasting with arcane energy demands strict calculations, leaving no room for intuition or emotional influence. This makes the process tediously slow, better suited for experimental purposes than combat.

Fortunately, Norris had trained in swordsmanship, and his body was honed for combat. He drew his sword, its familiar weight a comforting presence in his hand. With a deep breath, Norris steeled himself for the battles ahead.

Norris traversed the desolate landscape of the Death Realm, his eyes scanning the horizon for any sign of shelter. The twisted, nightmarish terrain stretched out before him, with jagged rock formations and skeletal trees reaching towards the sky like bony fingers.

After what felt like hours of walking, Norris spotted a dark opening in the distance - a cave-like structure that seemed to yawn open like the mouth of some ancient, fossilized beast. He quickened his pace, hoping to find refuge within.

As he approached the cave, Norris noticed that it seemed... untouched. The surrounding area was free from the usual signs of scavenging or battle, and the air around the entrance was heavy with an unsettling stillness.

Despite his reservations, Norris stepped inside, his sword at the ready. The darkness enveloped him, and he waited for his eyes to adjust.

That's when he saw the Adept skeleton warrior(Level 2), standing motionless in the shadows. The skeleton's glowing eyes fixed on Norris. It seemed the intruder and by instincts raises its sword, ready to defend its territory.

Norris charged forward, his sword flashing in the dim light. The skeleton warrior met him with a calculated gaze, its blade slicing through the air with deadly precision.

_Clang!_ Norris's sword met the skeleton's, but he stumbled backward, caught off guard by the skeleton's superior strength and technique.

The skeleton warrior pressed its advantage, unleashing a flurry of strikes that Norris struggled to keep up with. Norris's foundation in mock combat allowed him to defend himself, but the skeleton's experience gave it a clear edge.

_Screee!_ Norris's sword scraped against the stone floor as he dodged a particularly vicious strike.

Despite his best efforts, Norris found himself on the back foot, desperately trying to keep up with the skeleton's relentless assault. But as he fought, Norris adapted, his reflexes quickening, his technique improving.

However, even as he adapted, Norris knew he couldn't keep this up for much longer. The skeleton warrior was too strong, too experienced. And if he kept fighting, he'd only attract more unwanted attention.

With a burst of clarity, Norris realized he needed to end the fight quickly. He reached for his arcane energy, focusing his mind on a single, decisive spell.

Norris focused his mind, drawing upon the arcane energy within him. He cast a spell, creating a localized distortion in the spiritual energy surrounding him.

The air seemed to ripple and distort, creating a series of "echoes" that made it seem like Norris was in multiple places at once. The skeleton warrior's glowing eyes flickered, its soul struggling to keep track of Norris's true location.

Norris took advantage of the confusion, darting to the side and striking from an unexpected angle. His sword sliced through the skeleton's ribcage, finding its mark in the undead warrior's spine.

The skeleton's body crumpled, its bones scattering across the cave floor. Norris stood victorious, his chest heaving with exertion.

He took a moment to catch his breath, his mind still reeling from the intensity of the battle. He realized that he had to be more careful in the future, taking into account the unique abilities of his enemies.

For now, though, he had won. And that was all that mattered.

Power level

Level 1: initiate realm

Level 2: adept realm

Level 3: sublimation realm

Level 4 legendary realm

Level 5: myth.