062 : The Shadow Beyond the Rules.

Without warning, the sky darkened further.

The air grew heavy, charged with an energy that sent a chill down Lin Tian's spine.

And then—something stepped onto the battlefield.

A figure draped in black, its face hidden beneath a hood, its presence overwhelming.

Unlike the other monsters, this one didn't rush forward.

It simply stood there. Watching.

Lin Tian narrowed his eyes. "And who the hell are you?"

The figure didn't answer. Instead, it raised its hand—and the entire battlefield trembled.

The creatures that Lin Tian had slain—they began to rise again. Their broken bodies twisted, their wounds closing, their eyes glowing with a new, unnatural light.

Lin Tian's smirk faded. "Well… that's new."

Su Yun's voice was tense. "Lin Tian… I don't think this is part of the trial."

The System was silent.

And that told Lin Tian everything he needed to know.

Something had just broken the rules.

And for the first time—the Tower had no control over what happened next.

The battlefield was silent.

Thousands of monsters, once slain by Lin Tian's hands, now stood again, their wounds healed, their bodies trembling with unnatural energy. Their eyes—once filled with rage—were now blank, hollow, as if something else was pulling their strings.

And at the center of it all—stood the hooded figure.

Lin Tian's golden eyes flickered with curiosity. "You going to tell me your name, or do I have to beat it out of you?"

The figure remained still. Then—it spoke.

"You do not belong here."

The voice was layered—like multiple voices speaking at once. Male and female, young and old. A voice that didn't belong to a single person.

Lin Tian smirked. "You sound just like the last idiot who tried to stop me."

The figure tilted its head. "The Tower is breaking because of you."

Lin Tian narrowed his eyes. "And?"

"You are an anomaly."

Lin Tian chuckled. "I get that a lot."

The figure raised its hand.

The horde of undead creatures lurched forward.

And the battle began again.

The first wave rushed him.

Lin Tian reacted instantly, dodging, countering, striking. He shattered bones, crushed skulls, ripped through the horde with the same brutal efficiency as before.

But this time—they didn't stay down.

A creature he had just obliterated stood back up, its body twisting back into place. Another, despite being decapitated, picked up its own head and kept attacking.

Lin Tian clicked his tongue. "Annoying."

Su Yun's voice was urgent. "Lin Tian, they're not dying! Whatever that thing did—it's keeping them alive!"

Lin Tian exhaled. "Then I'll just have to kill the source."

His eyes locked onto the hooded figure.

In a blur, he vanished—reappearing directly in front of it. His fist shot forward, a strike powerful enough to shatter mountains.

But just before impact—the figure caught his fist.

Lin Tian's golden eyes widened slightly.

The ground beneath them cracked, the force of their clash sending shockwaves across the battlefield.

For the first time in a long time—someone had stopped his attack.

The figure tilted its head. "You are strong."

Lin Tian smirked. "And you're in my way."

His other hand shot up, a precise strike aimed for the figure's throat.

But before it could land—the figure disappeared.

Not by dodging.

Not by speed.

It simply ceased to exist.

And then—it reappeared behind him.

"You cannot win."

And for the first time—Lin Tian felt something cold on the back of his neck.

A sensation he had not felt in centuries.

Killing intent.

Lin Tian didn't hesitate. He spun, countering immediately, but the figure vanished again. This time, it reappeared above him, descending with an open palm.

Lin Tian moved, barely dodging, but the attack still hit the ground—and the entire battlefield collapsed.

The creatures, the fortress, the very world around them shattered like glass.

And suddenly—Lin Tian was falling.

A vast black abyss stretched beneath him. The floor had disappeared, the Tower itself cracking apart.

Su Yun's voice was sharp. "Lin Tian! What's happening?!"

Lin Tian's eyes flickered. "The Tower is reacting to this thing. It doesn't know how to handle it."

And then—the System spoke for the first time.

[ERROR.]

[ERROR.]

[ERROR.]

Lin Tian gritted his teeth. "Even the System is breaking?"

The hooded figure floated above him, watching him fall.

And then—it spoke one final time.

"The Forgotten One is awakening."

Lin Tian's golden eyes narrowed. "Then I'll just have to wake up first."

And with that, he vanished into the abyss.

Darkness.

Endless. Infinite.

Lin Tian floated in the void, weightless, surrounded by nothing. There was no sound, no movement—just emptiness stretching in all directions.

He wasn't dead. He knew that much.

But he also wasn't in the Tower anymore.

Su Yun's voice echoed faintly. "Lin Tian… where are we?"

Lin Tian exhaled. "No idea."

He tried moving, but his body felt disconnected, weightless. This place wasn't bound by normal physics—it was something else entirely.

And then—the whispers started.

Soft. Distant.

Thousands of voices speaking at once.

Lin Tian's golden eyes narrowed. "Who's there?"

The whispers grew louder, forming words.

"You… do not belong."

Lin Tian smirked. "So I've been told."

Then—the void moved.

And suddenly—he was not alone.

A shape emerged from the darkness.

Not the hooded figure from before. Something worse.

It was tall, featureless, its body shifting between forms—sometimes human, sometimes beast, sometimes something incomprehensible.

And yet, its presence was overwhelming.

Lin Tian recognized the feeling immediately.

This thing—it was part of the Tower itself.

The whispers continued.

"You were never meant to reach this far."

Lin Tian's smirk widened. "And yet, here I am."

The figure remained silent for a moment. Then—it attacked.

Without warning, the void itself collapsed inward, crushing, suffocating.

But Lin Tian didn't flinch.

He simply raised his hand—and stopped it.

The void froze.

The figure hesitated. "Impossible."

Lin Tian's golden eyes gleamed. "You keep underestimating me."

Then—he counterattacked.

Lin Tian moved faster than thought, his body a blur of pure energy. He struck the figure's core, sending cracks through its shifting form. The void trembled, rippling like shattered glass.

The figure let out a distorted sound—a mixture of rage and disbelief.

"You are an anomaly. A mistake."

Lin Tian twisted midair, landing another devastating blow. "And you are in my way."

The void collapsed further, the darkness peeling away like fabric.

And then—the world shattered.

Lin Tian felt a sudden pull, a force dragging him upward.

The whispers screamed—and then everything went white.

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