91: Chapter 91 Bloodstained Evolution and the Name of the Abyss

Just as Aubrey felt his Talent Origin was about to complete its final leap, and the Jinlock Spirit was on the verge of condensing into a new form, an extreme, icy sensation of tearing came from behind him without any warning!

"Squelch!"

The sound of a Sharp Weapon entering flesh was dull yet clear.

The ecstasy on Aubrey's face instantly froze, transforming into unbelievable pain and confusion. He looked down and saw a blade made of pure shadow, flowing with void energy, protruding from his chest.

[Void Lurker C-Rank] That twisted, formless figure flashed past behind him. Having succeeded in one strike, it immediately turned into a pool of flowing ink, merged into the ground's shadow, and vanished instantly. It was too fast for anyone to react.

"Young Master!!"

"No—!"

Rock, Flameblade, Azure Vine, and Torrent were wide-eyed with fury; their Roar of shock and anger exploded in the hall. The flames swung out by Flameblade and the water arrows shot by Torrent all hit empty air.

Aubrey's body went limp, and he knelt forward, blood quickly staining his luxurious robes. The intense pain and the rapid loss of life force made his vision go black in waves. His Talent and Spirit, having only just half-evolved, became extremely unstable due to this sudden, heavy injury, their light flickering violently.

"Healing potions! Hurry!" Azure Vine roared, pouring all the healing potions on its person into Aubrey's mouth and onto his wound as if they were free. However, the wound caused by the shadow Sharp Weapon seemed to carry some kind of structural erosion, and the healing effect of the potions was negligible.

Misfortunes never come singly.

Just as the Roar emitted by the four in shock and anger was still echoing in the hall—

"Boom!!!"

"Boom!!!"

"Boom!!!"

Incredibly heavy footsteps, seemingly shaking the entire space, came from the depths of a huge passage connecting to the hall. Every step caused the ground to tremble violently, and gravel fell with a rustle. An aura of pressure, far more terrifying and despair-inducing than the [Star Remains Guardian], rushed toward them like a tsunami!

Everyone's faces turned pale instantly. Without needing words, they all knew that this was definitely not an existence they could cope with in their current state; perhaps... even escaping was a luxury.

"Return scroll! Use the return scroll!" Rock suddenly remembered the life-saving item Aubrey cherished.

Aubrey endured the intense pain and blurred consciousness, reaching into his dimensional bag with trembling hands. However, when he took out the scroll inscribed with profound spatial runes, his heart sank to the bottom—in the center of the scroll, a tiny tear had been precisely sliced by the [Void Lurker]'s Sharp Weapon just now. The runes on it were dull and lusterless, and the energy structure had been destroyed! It could not be activated!

Despair, like a cold abyss, instantly engulfed everyone. The terrifying footsteps behind them were getting closer, dust and smoke were already permeating from the passage entrance, and a huge shadow silhouette was approaching.

"It's over..." Flameblade gripped the hilt of his sword, his knuckles turning white from the force.

In this absolute desperate situation, Aubrey looked at the damaged scroll in his hand and felt the brand-new power within his body—though unstable, it had already completed its transformation—[Wealth Resonance C-Rank]! A realization surged into his mind.

"Wealth... is not just accumulation... but also... application and transformation..." He muttered to himself, a flash of madness appearing in his eyes.

He slammed his hand onto the damaged scroll; simultaneously, his Mental Energy frantically drove the newly born [Wealth Resonance C-Rank] Talent! Inside his dimensional bag, several precious D-Rank treasures, including a few energy-rich Materials just obtained on the second floor, instantly turned into the purest streams of energy, like hundreds of rivers returning to the sea, surging into the damaged scroll!

"Hum—!"

Having received the supplement of vast energy, the destroyed runes on the scroll began to repair, reorganize, and light up at a speed visible to the naked eye! The spatial fluctuations became intense once again!

Just at this moment, a giant foot covered with dark red scales, like a small mountain, accompanied by a deafening Roar and sky-filling dust, stepped out violently from the passage and landed on the edge of the hall! The aura it emitted alone almost made Rock and Flameblade suffocate!

"Hurry!" Aubrey roared with his last bit of strength.

A dazzling white light enveloped the five of them for the last time!

The moment before that terrifying giant foot completely landed, crushing a corner of the hall into pieces, the figures of the five vanished completely from this desperate place, accompanied by spatial fluctuations.

...

Adventurers Town, Central Plaza.

The midday sun scorched the earth, and the bustling crowd was as noisy as ever. Suddenly, an exceptionally dazzling and unstable white light exploded in the center of the plaza!

Five figures were thrown out like trash, slamming heavily onto the ground. It was none other than Aubrey's team!

At this moment, they were more disheveled than ever before. Aubrey's chest was a bloody mess, his complexion was like gold paper, and he had already completely lost consciousness. The four, Rock included, were all wounded, their clothes tattered, and their faces filled with the terror and exhaustion of having survived a disaster.

"It's the Young Master of the Cliff family!"

"Oh my god! What happened to them? They're so heavily injured!"

"Where did they come back from this time? How did they end up like this?"

The surrounding adventurers instantly gathered around, discussing the scene.

Rock and the others had no time to worry about anything else; they immediately picked up the unconscious Aubrey and rushed frantically toward the town's infirmary. However, the news they brought back spread through the town rapidly, as if it had grown wings.

"Have you heard? That team from the Cliff family seems to have found the third underground floor!"

"The third floor?! Is it real or fake? How did they get in?"

"It's absolutely true! They are heavily injured; it's said that the monsters inside are terrifying beyond description!"

"What is the name of the third floor? Does anyone know?"

Soon, some curious and bold adventurers rushed into the [Adventurers Tavern] and asked the owner, who always wore a standard smile, directly.

Facing the inquiry, the tavern owner's stylized smile did not change in the slightest. Using his calm, ripple-free tone, he said clearly:

"According to the Maze rules, the name of the newly opened floor has been updated."

"The third underground floor is named—Void Abyss."

[Void Abyss]!

This name, accompanied by the tragic story of Aubrey's team being almost wiped out, swept through the entire Adventurers Town like a storm, and would inevitably spread to the ears of all Hosts paying attention to the [Numerology Maze] at an even faster speed. A new, higher-level land of terror and opportunity had officially unveiled a corner of its mysterious veil to the world. And the instigator of all this, the core weaver of the maze, was still in the depths, quietly observing everything.