Chapter 1628: Creatures

As soon as they passed through the fleshy opening, they found themselves inside a long tunnel made entirely of living tissue.

It stretched much farther than its exterior appearance had looked, and its interior was much larger than the building they had seen from outside.

The structure itself was already enormous, yet the space within it seemed to defy its physical dimensions. It was another anomaly.

The group continued forward without saying anything. Adrius’s floating balls of light illuminated the way ahead and revealed the dark, moist walls surrounding them.

The tunnel was wide enough for all five of them to walk comfortably side by side, its fleshy surface continued to contract and relax in slow, irregular movements.

Every few moments, they could hear faint squelching sounds coming from somewhere within the walls.

Lysander eventually broke the silence. He glanced at the fleshy surface around them before looking ahead with an uncomfortable expression.

"Does anyone else think this looks like we’re walking through the intestine of some giant creature?" Lysander said.

His comment immediately made the others feel even more disgusted. Sylmira grimaced and turned her attention away from the walls, while Adrius gave his apprentice an irritated glance.

"Could you at least keep those thoughts to yourself?" Adrius muttered.

"Well, I’m just saying what everyone is probably thinking."

"You didn’t need to say it out loud."

Erebus also grimaced, but his reaction had little to do with the disgusting surroundings. His attention fixed on the path ahead as anger continued building inside him.

The sight of this place reminded him of the creature that had brought misery to his people. The feeling went far beyond ordinary disgust. He had spent so many years watching Scadri suffer beneath the curse that even the smallest reminder of its source stirred something bitter within him.

He clenched his fists and continued walking without responding to Lysander’s remarks.

However, they had not gone much farther when something began moving beneath the fleshy walls.

At first, the movements were subtle. Small bulges appeared on the dark brown surface before growing larger. Then, to their surprise, human-like heads began pushing out from the walls.

Their distorted heads struggled against the flesh as though they were trapped inside and desperately trying to escape. Hands soon followed, pressing against the flesh and clawing at it from within.

"What the...?" Lysander muttered.

Before anyone could react, the creatures began tearing their way out.

Their hands ripped through the flesh walls, widening the openings until their bodies could force themselves through.

The same thing happened in several places around them, and the tunnel quickly became filled with the sound of tearing tissue and furious screams.

What emerged resembled naked women with tall, muscular bodies. However, they had no skin, hair, or recognizable facial features. Their entire bodies consisted of dark brown flesh, and their faces were nothing more than smooth, distorted surfaces without eyes, noses, or mouths. Despite their lack of visible mouths they released horrifying screams that echoed in the tunnel.

More and more creatures emerged from the walls. They crawled out from openings ahead of them and appeared behind the group.

Even the fleshy floor beneath their feet began splitting open as additional creatures forced their way out.

Within moments, hundreds of them had surrounded the five intruders.

The sudden appearance of so many grotesque creatures caught the group by surprise. Their unnatural bodies and the sight of them tearing themselves out of the living walls were enough to make anyone feel repulsed.

However, none of them panicked. They were all experienced fighters who had faced far more dangerous situations than this.

The five immediately surrounded themselves with protective membranes of Magic. Thin layers of energy formed around their bodies just as the creatures began charging toward them.

Their screams grew louder as they rushed forward with outstretched arms and wildly swinging limbs. Some crawled along the walls while others leaped directly toward the group, their movements accompanied by wet, squelching sounds.

Erebus stared at the approaching creatures. Something about their appearance felt disturbingly familiar.

He recognized similarities between them and one of the forms of the creature that had once attacked his world. Although their bodies were not exactly the same, the resemblance was enough to bring back memories.

An unpleasant feeling of anger and nostalgia filled his chest. "These things..." he muttered through clenched teeth.

Darkness gathered around his body before spreading across the ground and walls. The shadows rose like enormous tentacles, twisting and writhing as they extended toward the creatures. Then they suddenly lashed out.

Several dark tendrils pierced the creatures before they could even reach him. Their bodies were lifted into the air and violently torn apart as the shadows continued attacking.

Others were struck from different directions, their bodies collapsing beneath the overwhelming force of Erebus’s Magic.

The shadow tentacles moved with frightening speed, stabbing through one creature after another while spreading across the tunnel like a swarm of living darkness.

Within moments, dozens of creatures had been destroyed. Their dark brown bodies fell apart and collapsed onto the fleshy floor, leaving behind pools of thick, foul-smelling fluid.

Yet Erebus did not stop. His anger had already taken control of his actions so he continued advancing through the tunnel while his shadows slaughtered everything in his path.

The others watched him with growing concern. They understood why Erebus reacted so violently, especially after learning what the creature had done to his people. But his reckless advance could create an unpredictable situation.

They still had no idea what awaited them deeper inside this enormous body. Killing everything that appeared might provoke something far more dangerous than these creatures.

"Erebus! Wait!" Adrius called out.

However, Erebus either did not hear him or simply chose to ignore him. He continued moving forward as his shadow tentacles tore through the creatures blocking his path.

Erend watched him disappear farther into the tunnel before turning toward the three Archmages. "What should we do?"

Adrius frowned as he considered their options.

Sylmira also remained silent, carefully observing the creatures surrounding them. Lysander looked toward Erebus, who was already several meters ahead and showed no intention of slowing down.

For a moment, none of them seemed certain about how to proceed.

"We can’t exactly leave him to move ahead alone," Lysander eventually said. "Besides, we’re already inside this thing. We might as well follow him."

Adrius glanced at his apprentice before looking toward the path ahead. He clearly disliked the idea of rushing deeper into an unknown place. But Erebus had already made his decision and letting him proceed without support would be even more dangerous.

"I suppose you’re right," he finally said. "We can’t let him get too far ahead alone."

Sylmira nodded in agreement. "Yes. Let us move as well."

Erend gave a brief nod. "Alright. Let’s go."

With that, the four of them moved forward, following Erebus deeper into the enormous fleshy tunnel.