Breaking The Barrier

Adonis and Elora raced through the village streets, hearts pounding with urgency. Above them, the red star glowed with a bloody brilliance.

"We need to find the place where its light is strongest!" Adonis called, glancing up as he sprinted.

Elora struggled to keep pace. "Do you really believe that old woman's words?"

"It's not just her," Adonis replied, voice fierce. "It's the legend you found, the villagers' smiles, and the disappearances. Remember: 'What you see might not actually be true.'" His dark eyes flickered gold as he ran ahead.

Elora gasped, but didn't slow. At the far end of the square, they came upon a towering wall capped with a large mansion behind it.

"Step aside," Adonis commanded, moving forward.

Elora held up her hand. "It's a mana barrier—support magic of at least Aristocrat level. We can't just walk through."

Adonis's eyes flashed. Six golden swords erupted into being behind him, glowing with blinding radiance—like daylight in the dead of night.

At his silent will, they drew inward, then spun with ferocious speed. Sword Qi leaked as countless golden motes, illuminating the square. With a thunderous crash, the blades slammed into the barrier wall, sending up a towering dust cloud.

When the dust settled, Adonis stood unscathed—and the wall lay in shattered ruins.

"Let's go," he said, voice calm.

Elora swallowed hard, her respect for his power mingled with awe. "Okay…"

Inside, darkness reigned. Adonis's golden sword hovered before him, its radiant glow casting long shadows down the collapsed corridor.

They pressed forward. The air grew colder and thick with the stench of blood.

Eerie, indistinct cries echoed from the depths. Elora shivered and held up a hand.

"There's something…straight ahead," she whispered.

She thrust her staff to the ground and called, "Lightning Bolt!"

A crack of thunder split the air as bolts of jagged electricity struck forward. When the flickering light died down, the two saw what lay before them.

Bodies—once human, now horrific. Their skin was gone, flesh rotted and hanging in strips. Teeth blackened into cruel points. Eyes blank, yet somehow still alive in their undead gaze.

"They're…undead," Elora cried, casting a wind slash that sent decayed limbs scattering.

Adonis raised his sword, conjuring another golden blade. He danced back and forth, slicing into the shambling corpses, careful to avoid infection.

The creatures lunged, moaning; each strike from the spinning golden swords sent them disintegrating into clumps of ragged gore.

Together, Adonis and Elora fought through the horde, their combined magic and swordsmanship leaving a trail of fallen undead in their wake.

When the last creature collapsed, a heavy silence fell. The distant echo of dripping blood was the only sound.

Elora wiped sweat and gore from her brow. "What… kind of dark magic is this?"

Adonis sheathed his sword, eyes solemn. "One tied to death itself. And we're nowhere near done."

They exchanged determined glances, then pressed deeper into the mansion's dark heart—toward whatever source lay at the center of the red star's light.