Chapter 49: The Breaker of Fate

The darkness inside the temple seemed to pulse, swallowing all traces of light. The serpent carvings on the walls shuddered violently, cracks forming as pieces of stone crumbled away, revealing even older inscriptions beneath. The air was thick with the stench of decay, a mix of rotting earth and something far worse—something ancient that had been disturbed.

Noya's blood dripped into the cracks on the temple floor, disappearing instantly as though the ground itself was drinking it in. The entire structure hummed, a deep vibration rolling through the stone like a living entity responding to the offering.

"Walau eh… we really just triggered some next-level shit!" Ah Rong's voice was shaking, his flashlight trembling in his grip, the beam flickering erratically across the temple's shifting walls.

The Sleeper lifted its head slightly, its eyeless sockets fixed on Noya, the twisted smirk on its lips deepening.

"The cycle begins anew."

The voice struck like a hammer inside their skulls, bypassing their ears entirely. It was not sound—it was a thought forced into their minds.

Noya's body locked up. Her blood roared through her veins, as though something was pulling it from within, responding to an unseen force. The burning sensation on her wrist grew unbearable, the serpent-shaped mark glowing like molten gold, writhing under her skin.

Lin Han yanked her behind him, his voice rough with urgency. "If this ritual is a lie—then we destroy it!"

The Sleeper slowly raised one of its hands. In its open palm, an identical serpent insignia glowed, mirroring the mark on Noya's wrist.

"The Blood Key has returned."

The temple walls began to bleed.

Thick, inky black liquid seeped from the cracks, flowing downward like tar. The ground beneath them split wider, revealing nothing but a hungry abyss.

Noya's body lurched forward, an invisible force pulling at her, dragging her toward the chasm. Her vision blurred as images flooded her mind—

Generations of royal descendants kneeling before the serpent god, their blood staining the altar; Genting Group executives gathered in shadowed conference rooms, discussing how best to ensure the cycle's continuation; the Batu Caves blood sacrifice—soulless eyes staring at the sky, waiting for death.

And in that moment, Noya realized—

The ritual was never meant to break the curse. It was meant to prolong it.

She gasped, choking on the weight of the revelation. A taste of iron filled her mouth—blood.

Noya's fingers curled into fists as she glared at the Sleeper. "You are not a god. You are a prisoner."

The Sleeper's smirk faltered.

Lin Han's eyes flickered with realization. He reached into his pocket, fingers tightening around the small folding knife—a useless weapon against a god, but perhaps enough to break the illusion.

"If this ritual feeds on blood, then we destroy the thing that binds it!"

Ah Rong stood frozen, his mind struggling to keep up. "Oi, Lin Han! You're not really gonna stab the thing, are you?!"

Lin Han ignored him, sprinting toward the central altar.

With a sharp twist, he plunged the knife deep into the stone.

CRACK—!

The temple shuddered, a deep, agonized groan vibrating through the walls. A jagged fracture ripped through the stone, running up the carvings of serpents—distorting them, unraveling them.

The Sleeper twitched. Its entire form flickered, as though suddenly unstable, its grotesque body losing cohesion.

"You… cannot… alter… fate…"

"Sakit kah?" Noya whispered, a small, defiant smirk on her lips, though blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.

The mark on her wrist dimmed.

She stepped forward, voice steady. "This ritual was never about sacrifice. It was about choice."

The Sleeper's body convulsed, its very existence resisting some unseen force.

Lin Han clenched his jaw, gripping the knife with both hands before driving it deeper into the core of the altar.

"We end this. Now."

The temple collapsed inward, its very foundation crumbling.

The thick black liquid recoiled, vanishing as though never there. The air was heavy with the scent of burnt stone, the remnants of something ancient and vile being purged from existence.

The Sleeper **screamed—**though it made no sound.

Its body fractured, splintering into countless writhing serpent shadows that dissolved into nothing.

Noya gasped, clutching her wrist. The mark was fading. The pull on her blood was gone.

Ah Rong let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "We… did it?"

Lin Han helped steady Noya, his voice low. "At the very least… we broke their rules."

Deep within the ruins of the temple, the stone walls that once bore the words "Genting's debt must be paid" crumbled to dust.

For the first time in centuries—

The cycle was broken.