Chapter 15: Shadows Stir in the Abyss

The ruins had grown silent.

Adrian stood amidst the fading echoes of his battle, his breath still steadying. The wraiths were gone, their presence erased, but the weight of the Nightmare Realm remained. It was an oppressive stillness—one that did not mark victory, but anticipation.

The abyss had not been defeated.

It had simply grown still.

He exhaled, tightening his grip on the Eclipse Blade before finally sheathing it. His body ached from the battle, and the lingering energy of Skybound Edict still pulsed faintly in his veins. A sword technique born in desperation, yet wielded with instinct.

It was his first step.

But there were many more ahead.

Adrian turned away from the abyss, stepping deeper into the ruins. Every movement was precise, measured—not out of fear, but because he knew the realm was still watching. It always was.

His surroundings shifted subtly, as they always did. The Nightmare Realm did not remain still for long. Crumbling structures twisted in and out of the darkness, paths that had once been open now led into empty voids, and whispers that were never spoken brushed against his ears.

And yet… something was different.

This silence was not absence.

It was preparation.

Adrian narrowed his eyes.

The realm was waiting.

For what?

He didn't have the answer yet, but he knew one thing—he wasn't alone in this place.

Not anymore.

A Lingering Presence

As he moved forward, the ruins stretched endlessly before him, shifting with each step. He could feel it now, something beneath the surface of the realm—a pulse, a breath, a lingering will that refused to fade.

It wasn't the same presence he had sensed before.

Not the husks. Not the wraiths.

Something older.

Something waiting to wake up.

Adrian slowed his steps, scanning his surroundings. He wasn't being followed—not yet—but the sensation was growing stronger.

It was subtle at first, but the longer he walked, the more he noticed the cracks forming around him.

Not in the ruins.

In the realm itself.

Thin fractures in the air, barely visible unless he focused. The first time he saw them, he dismissed them as tricks of the abyssal light. But as he moved forward, they grew larger.

And then, for just a moment—

He saw something through them.

A glimpse beyond the Nightmare Realm.

A place not yet touched by its darkness.

And then—

The cracks sealed themselves, as if they had never been there.

Adrian stopped moving.

This… wasn't normal.

The Nightmare Realm twisted reality, but it did not fracture itself.

Which meant something else was causing this.

Something was pressing against the edges of this place—trying to break through.

Adrian exhaled slowly, his fingers twitching at his side. He didn't know whether it was an opportunity or a warning, but the message was clear.

The Nightmare Realm was not as isolated as it seemed.

Something beyond it was stirring.

Watching.

Waiting.

A Warning Left Behind

The ruins eventually led him to a broken tower, its form half-consumed by the abyss. Unlike the rest of the structures, this one did not shift or decay. It remained, anchored in place as if resisting the very nature of this world.

Adrian approached carefully.

He didn't know why, but the closer he got, the more the whispers faded.

Not the ones in his head.

The whispers of the realm itself.

Like it was… holding its breath.

His gaze swept the interior of the tower. Unlike the other ruins, there were no remnants of past battles. No signs of conflict.

Just a single stone pedestal in the center.

And upon it—

A message, etched into the surface.

The language was unfamiliar at first. But as he stared at it, the words shifted, rearranging themselves into something he could understand.

"The abyss is not your greatest enemy."

"The seals weaken. A storm approaches."

Adrian's breath stilled.

This wasn't just a warning.

It was a message left behind for whoever came next.

And it wasn't from the Nightmare Realm.

It was from someone else.

Someone who had been here before him.

His fingers brushed against the stone. It was old. Ancient. But the energy that lingered within the inscription was recent.

Who had left this?

And more importantly—

What did they mean by the seals weakening?

The whispers in the air shifted, as if they too were searching for an answer.

Adrian stepped back from the pedestal, mind racing.

If the seals were weakening…

Then that meant something was on the other side.

Something that wasn't supposed to be.

And it was trying to get through.

The Nightmare Realm Grows Restless

The weight of realization settled in his chest.

The Nightmare Realm had never been kind, but now, it was changing.

Becoming unstable.

Had his presence caused this? Or had this been set in motion long before he arrived?

Adrian didn't know.

But he did know one thing.

He was running out of time.

The ruins shifted again, and the whispers returned—stronger than before.

This time, they carried something new.

Not just malice.

Not just hunger.

But awareness.

The Nightmare Realm had felt his discovery.

And now…

It was watching even closer.

Adrian exhaled, stepping away from the tower. The path before him was no clearer than before, but now he understood—

This place was not his final battleground.

It was merely a gate.

And beyond it…

Something far greater was waiting.

For him.

For the world.

For the moment the seal finally broke.

And when that moment came—

He would have to be ready.