Curse Returns, a gamble from the start, I awaken dual spells

Chapter 166 Sealing Core

The passage was deeper than I had imagined.

Rito walked at the front, a ball of gray magical energy gathering in his palm, its faint light barely illuminating the path ahead.

The ancient incantations on the walls on both sides gradually lit up with their footsteps and slowly faded away as they left, like some kind of silent ritual flowing slowly in the darkness.

"This passage—" Itachi looked around, his brow furrowed. "Why do I feel like we've been walking for almost half an hour?"

'

"Not just that," Fushiguro Megumi's voice came from behind. "Thirty-seven minutes have passed since we stepped into the passage."

Rito didn't stop walking, but his eyes were always on the incantations on the walls.

He could sense that the power contained in these incantations was exactly the same as the barrier power he had felt in the previous levels, but it was much more ancient.

It was as if these incantations were the source, and the Death Return Barrier was merely an extension of it.

"Xiaoye, are you alright?" Rito asked without turning his head.

Xiaoye followed behind him, her steps somewhat labored, but her eyes were exceptionally clear.

"I'm fine, it's just—the feeling is getting stronger."

"How does it feel?"

"It's like being summoned." Xiaoye's voice trembled slightly. "Many images flashed through my mind—a city, a very ancient city, where the people were performing a ritual for something—"

"A sacrifice?" Itari leaned closer curiously. "A sacrifice for what?"

"I don't know." Xiaoye shook her head, her brows furrowing slightly. "The image is blurry, but I can see a huge altar, covered with the same incantations as in the passageway—"

Fushiguro Megumi's gaze fell on Saya, lost in thought: "Could that city be the place established by the strongest sorcerer a thousand years ago?"

"Possibly." Rihito nodded. "If the Death and Annihilation Retracing Barrier is indeed designed to seal some kind of power, then there must be a central hub, and the location of that hub is very likely that sorcerer's stronghold."

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint light suddenly appeared in front of him.

Li Ren quickened his pace. At the end of the passage was a huge stone door, but unlike the previous one, this door had no incantations or patterns, only a smooth, mirror-like black surface.

In the center of the door, there is a mark the size of a palm.

That mark was exactly the same as the birthmark on Xiaoye's collarbone.

Saya's breathing suddenly quickened, and her steps involuntarily quickened as she passed Rito and reached out to touch the mark O.

The stone gate emitted a deep rumble, and the entire passage shook.

Ripples began to spread across the surface of the black stone gate, like a pebble being thrown into water, with concentric circles of ripples spreading outwards.

Then, the mark in the center of the door lit up, emitting a golden light. The light grew brighter and brighter, eventually turning the entire passageway gold.

"The door is open!" Itachi shouted excitedly.

The stone gate slowly opened to both sides, revealing a much wider space behind it.

Rito was the first to step inside, and the moment he entered that space, he froze.

It was a huge circular hall with a dome a hundred meters high, inlaid with countless luminous gems that emitted starlight-like brilliance, illuminating the entire hall as if it were daytime.

In the very center of the hall, a huge black cube floats.

The cube was at least three meters on each side, and its surface was covered with densely packed incantations that were constantly flowing, like...

It is a living creature that meanders and crawls on the black surface.

Around the cube, eight stone pillars are evenly distributed, each with a golden chain wrapped around it. One end of the chain is connected to the pillar, while the other end is deeply embedded in the black cube.

"This is... the core of the seal?" Itadori stared wide-eyed at the spectacular scene before him.

Fukuro Megumi walked to a stone pillar and lightly touched the golden chain with her finger.

"These chains are covered with sealing incantations, and I can feel the immense and ancient magical power they contain."

"It's not ancient," Rito's voice suddenly turned low, "it's weary."

"Tired?" Itachi looked at him, puzzled.

Li Ren stretched out his hand, and a ball of gray light condensed in his palm, but it did not radiate outwards; it simply pulsated in his palm.

"I can feel that the magical power within these chains is gradually weakening. They have been holding on for a thousand years and have reached their limit."

Saya walked out from beside Rito, her gaze fixed on the black cube.

"It's calling me—" her voice had a hollow quality, "That thing is in there."

"What is it?" Itadori asked.

Xiaoye didn't answer, but continued walking forward, her pace quickening until it almost turned into a run.

"Sayonara!" Rito called out and quickly followed.

But just as Xiaoye was about to touch the black cube...

hum!

A terrifying surge of magical energy exploded from the cube, sending Xiaoye flying.

With quick reflexes, Rito caught Sayo, and the two slid backward several meters, leaving two deep tracks on the ground.

"Are you alright?" Rito helped Saya to her feet.

Xiaoye shook her head, but her face was pale and there was a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth.

"It—won't let me get close."

Just then, a voice suddenly echoed through the hall.

"Of course not."

The voice was hoarse and low, carrying an indescribable chill, like a whisper from the depths of hell.

Li Ren turned around abruptly, his gaze sweeping across the four walls of the main hall, trying to find the source of the sound.

"Who?!"

The shadows on the four walls of the main hall began to distort, as if some kind of creature was writhing.

Then, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the wall.

It was a figure wearing a black cloak, its face completely hidden in the shadow of the hood, with only its hands exposed, adorned with rings inlaid with dark red gemstones.

His footsteps were light, making no sound as he walked on the smooth ground.

"You are—" Fushiguro Megumi instinctively assumed a fighting stance.

"Who I am is unimportant," the person said with a hint of amusement. "What matters is that you've finally arrived."

He slowly raised his head, and a pair of eyes glowing red appeared in the shadow of the hood.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time, the inheritor of the sealed bloodline, and—that boy who has mastered entropylessness."

Rito's pupils contracted slightly, and he instantly shielded Sayo behind him, staring intently at the black-robed figure who emerged from the shadows.

Do you know me?

The man in black robes chuckled softly: "No Entropy" — the intersection of entropy increase and entropy decrease, a technique that touches the edge of the laws of the universe, of course I recognize it.

"For a thousand years, I have been waiting for someone who can shake the core of this seal to appear."