Chapter 515 - 479: Shattered Space

Chapter 515: Chapter 479: Shattered Space

"A prisoner of time? A wanderer of space?"

Although the whisper that invaded his mind was faint and distorted, Roland’s keen perception still caught those two key phrases.

A chill went down his spine, but it was quickly followed by a surge of joy.

’So it’s true... The source of this endless loop, even if it’s not directly caused by this bizarre entity before me, must be inextricably linked to it!’

However, the feeling this "creature" gave him was far too dangerous.

Its method of communication, which acted directly upon the Spirit and was muddled with tempting and chaotic whispers, instantly reminded him of his dealings with Abyssal Demons and Nine Prisons Demon Fiends in Golden Ears City.

Adding to that was the mysterious, unidentified person standing quietly in front of the structure...

With the situation unclear, Roland decided to lay low and wait patiently.

Just as he was composing himself and preparing to observe the mysterious person’s next move...

The "voice" in his mind rang out again, but its tone was completely different from the tempting one before.

This time, the "voice" was filled with shock, disbelief, and even a hint of something Roland would have never expected...

Panic?

"No... Impossible! The rhythm... a lingering ’Echo’..."

"Your soul... How could it have... my ’mark’?"

"A contradiction... An error! You don’t belong to this loop... Your ’time’ and ’existence’ are fractured... yet you bear my ’trace’..."

"Who are you? What... what in the world are you?"

This sudden interrogation exploded in Roland’s mind like a clap of thunder.

’I have its mark on my soul?’

Roland was deeply shaken, his brow instantly furrowing.

He was one hundred percent certain that he had never seen this bizarre creation before, nor had he even heard of anything remotely similar.

While his experiences since transmigrating had been strange, every step was clear and accounted for. There was no way he could have become entangled on a spiritual level with an entity that reeked of blasphemy and Chaos.

But then, a more subtle realization sent a chill down his spine.

The panic and questioning in that "voice," its target...

...didn’t seem to be him.

Roland’s gaze was fixed firmly on the mysterious person.

He saw that after the "panicked" whisper faded, the person did not retreat. Instead, he took a step forward, then another, and another.

His steps were still steady, even carrying a sort of...

...fated composure?

The pulsating light on the surface of the warped structure suddenly grew rapid and chaotic.

The vein-like patterns bulged, and eerie green and dark violet Runes flickered and scurried about wildly, as if they had been greatly agitated.

The cloyingly sweet, rotten smell in the air intensified, even taking on a sharp edge that was almost like "Fear."

"No... Don’t come any closer..."

The building’s "voice" grew sharper, filled with confusion and unease.

But the mysterious person paid it no mind, having already walked right up to the massive, twisted base of the structure.

In the next moment, his figure was completely swallowed by the Shadow cast by the immense, writhing building.

A breath later...

"CRACK!"

A sound, so faint it was almost an illusion, yet incomparably clear, rang out.

Roland suddenly realized that the scene before him was beginning to slowly...

...shatter.

It wasn’t the collapse of a physical structure, but a more fundamental cracking and disintegration on a spatial level.

With the warped building and the mysterious person as the epicenter, countless fine, pitch-black cracks appeared at the edges of his vision—in the air, the light, and even space itself.

Like rapidly growing black ice crystals, these cracks spread silently and swiftly in all directions, crawling across the cold ground, climbing over abandoned equipment, and slicing through the distant outline of the archive area...

Wherever they passed, everything—be it solid metal and crystal or the ethereal light, shadows, and air—fractured like a broken mirror, revealing jarring dislocations and faults.

Between the fragments lay not physical debris, but a deep, hollow, all-consuming, pure black Void.

Then, after a momentary delay...

"CRASH..."

The entire observed "scene," like a shattered glass dome, completely disintegrated, leaving behind only boundless, absolute Darkness.

All sound, smell, and light were annihilated.

"What... what’s going on?"

Roland fought back the intense ringing in his consciousness and the dizzying, weightless sensation, blinking rapidly to try and adapt to the pure Darkness.

He subconsciously reached out, groping helplessly in front of him, but touched only emptiness.

’Some kind of... extremely High Tier spatial disintegration Magic? Or was it some kind of backlash triggered by the building itself?’

Just as he was trying to understand this sudden turn of events in a state of shock and uncertainty, the absolute Darkness did not last long.

Without any warning, the pitch-black void of his vision was once again violently filled by a bright, yet unfamiliar, light.

Forcibly bursting into his ears along with it was the crisp, energetic cry of a vendor.

"Extra! Extra! The Silver Radiance Morning News! Latest supplement! Come and get it, only two Copper Radiance Coins a copy!"

’Another loop?’

Witnessing the scene reappear before him, there was no longer any trace of confusion in Roland’s eyes.

Although the identity and intentions of the mysterious person remained a puzzle, and his actions in the underground space were beyond comprehension, one thing was now certain.

The source, or a key node, of this endless time loop was undoubtedly connected to that bizarre creation buried deep underground.

If he could just make effective contact with that thing, he might find a chance to break out of this cage.

This thought sent a jolt of hope through him.

However, when his keen gaze swept over the faces of his companions beside him, this brief hope quickly cooled and sank.