Chapter 126: Trapped

This is bad.

Those words were the only things left in Nolan’s mind.

How was he supposed to get out? When he entered, it had been Ailindel who opened the passage and “sent” his consciousness into this place. But now Qroshu’s consciousness was practically obliterated, and Ailindel had never explained the process for returning.

At the time, he had been too focused on dealing with Qroshu to ask such a crucial question.

Originally, Nolan assumed that once Qroshu’s consciousness disappeared, this mental world would automatically reject him as an outsider and return him to his body.

Clearly, that was not what was happening.

The ground beneath his feet continued collapsing, turning into particles of light swallowed by darkness. The once-massive temple had dwindled until only a tiny patch of stable ground remained beneath him.

Why? Was it because Qroshu’s Soul Imprint had transferred onto him, causing the mental world to mistake him for its new “master”? Or was the Demon Overlord’s spiritual power simply too immense? Even stripped of its source, perhaps the lingering obsession alone was enough to anchor this world in place and drag Nolan down with it.

There were too many possibilities. Nolan was no expert in matters of the mind and spirit. And this was hardly the time for analysis. Estimating the time, he guessed there were less than fifteen minutes left before the Gap of Ages closed completely. If they missed it, none of them would be able to leave. His ambitions, his regrets, everything he still wished to accomplish would end here. The thought alone instantly drenched his forehead in cold sweat.

After calculating every possibility, he had never imagined he would get stuck here of all places.

He was panicking, but the collapsing mental world had no intention of sympathizing with him. In the blink of an eye, even the ground beneath his feet began to crack apart. Only a broken section of collapsed wall still barely retained its shape.

Nolan scrambled onto it with both hands and feet, desperately imagining himself breaking through the darkness and returning to his body.

Nothing happened.

As the final piece of stone beneath him disintegrated into ash, Nolan fell into absolute darkness.

***

Meanwhile, in the real world.

Atop the underground altar, beside the massive pit.

Under Vivi and the others’ anxious gazes, the Demon Overlord bound by eighty-eight chains suddenly changed.

The black mist pouring from the horrifying hole through his chest came to a stop. Then, his pale skin rapidly lost all color, turning into the dead gray-white of a corpse. Starting from his feet, his body began petrifying inch by inch. Ancient cracks spread across its surface as though it had weathered ten thousand years of erosion.

Crack.

A sharp sound rang out. Qroshu’s body—the prison that had confined him for ten thousand years—finally shattered like an ancient statue worn down by endless ages. Countless gray-black fragments and dust slid along the Chains of Condemnation that bound him, falling endlessly into the abyss below.

Clang… clang…

Having lost the target they restrained, the chains swayed aimlessly in the air, producing hollow, metallic echoes.

“The Demon Overlord… is finished?”

Little Donnie leaned forward over the edge, staring at the now-empty abyss below. Then he glanced uncertainly toward Ailindel, whose soul fluctuations had already calmed.

Ailindel closed her eyes and silently sensed the surroundings for a moment.

When she opened them again, her expression carried both shock and relief.

“Yes. I can no longer feel Qroshu’s presence. Nolan… really succeeded. He truly knew the demon’s imprint sequence. Could the prophecy really have been referring to him?”

“Boss is the strongest!” Little Donnie pumped his fist excitedly.

“Hey, now’s not the time for celebrating!” Vivi’s voice, thick with anxiety, cut through the brief joy. She pointed toward the motionless figure still standing at the center of the altar. “There’s no movement down there anymore, so why hasn’t Nolan woken up yet?”

The atmosphere instantly tightened again.

Ailindel frowned as well. “That’s strange. Logically speaking, once Qroshu’s consciousness was destroyed, Nolan’s spirit should have returned automatically.”

She raised a hand, and a strand of condensed soul energy drifted from her fingertips into the pit once more.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for her result.

After a while, Ailindel slowly opened her eyes. Her face was filled with confusion and disbelief.

Renee’s heart leapt into her throat. “Lady Knight… Lord Nolan, he…”

Ailindel shook her head, her voice carrying a bewilderment unlike anything before. “There’s… nothing down there. No spiritual fluctuations at all.”

Renee instantly covered her mouth, terror filling her eyes.

Little Donnie’s face turned pale, his lips trembling. “Don’t tell me Brother Nolan he…” He stopped himself just in time, unable to say the horrifying possibility aloud.

“Idiot! Don’t jinx it!” Vivi suddenly shouted at him before rushing to Nolan’s side. Grabbing his broad shoulders with both hands, she shook him forcefully. “Nolan! Wake up already! Can you hear me?!”

But no matter how she shouted or shook him, the man before her remained motionless, his eyes tightly shut like a lifeless statue.

Perish together.

The unspoken words echoed in Vivi’s mind. She refused to believe it, yet every sign pointed toward that most hopeless ending.

No autonomous return. No detectable spiritual fluctuations.

“His consciousness isn’t here,” Ailindel said. “Let me try again…”

But Vivi could no longer hear her.

Chaotic thoughts and painful memories flooded her mind.

She remembered that ordinary afternoon when this man—whom she had initially seen as nothing more than easy prey—had shown her the first pure kindness she had ever received from a stranger. He had painted for her a vision of a beautiful future, a new home where everyone could live happily regardless of birth or status.

He had accepted the half-beast girl who hid herself away in the gray world just to survive.

He taught her how to ride, spoke with her beneath the moonlight, and sometimes mischievously ruffled her hair and ears.

She could never forget the sight of him standing atop the walls of Coldsteel City, drenched in blood yet still proudly holding the lion banner high. Nor could she forget the moment he stepped in front of her without hesitation to block the Heavenly Judgment Knight’s fatal strike.

Their time together had not been long. Yet it had been the happiest period of her entire life. The name of that happiness was hope. This man had been the ray of sunlight that tore apart the storm clouds hanging above her world. She had once believed that his unwavering back was the salvation she had longed for all her life, the first person who had ever made her heart race.

He should not end like this…

Tears finally spilled down her cheeks uncontrollably.

Unable to hold herself together any longer, Vivi released Nolan’s shoulders and collapsed weakly forward, resting her forehead against his warm, solid chest.

In a tiny voice choked with sobs, she pleaded with the unresponsive Nolan, “Nolan… please wake up… You bastard… don’t forget the promise you made with me… Please… don’t leave me behind…”

Suddenly—

Thump.

A steady, powerful heartbeat echoed clearly through his chest into her ears.

Vivi’s head snapped upward.

Reflected in her tear-blurred eyes were Nolan’s deep eyes, now open at some unknown moment in time.