Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

To confirm things, Rain forced those four people into his domain. In theory, he could see their spiritual forms while inside his domain and soon confirmed that even their spirits were completely shut down… he could see them, but there was no reaction to them.

"It isn't like I tried to bring unconscious people here to talk with them while they were sleeping, but…" Rain thought. "I guess their spiritual bodies were truly damaged."

Rain returned to the world outside and then created some earth platforms to make them float high in the sky. Still, before long, he confirmed that he couldn't control his magic beyond five hundred meters of height, so he couldn't fly to any distance and escape battles. He should have known…

"I guess it is time…" Rain thought and then grabbed the ominous sword.

Before long, Rain began to walk toward the forest… he was planning to have a long talk with the big shots in the city, but he would need something to make his point abundantly clear, and the answer was in the forest.

As Rain ventured into the dark forest, a fireball cast flickering light on the ominous path. However, the darkness persisted, shrouding everything beyond the small road he followed. The trees, though seemingly alive and normal, failed to dispel the insistent gloom.

As Rain continued, he discovered an unexpected transformation – the terrain had turned into a swamp. The ground, once solid, now gave way to murky waters. The peculiar part was that the trees stood tall and unaffected by the swampy surroundings.

The unsettling ambiance increased as Rain advanced. Bubbles emerged and exploded sporadically, creating an eerie symphony. It felt as though unseen entities lurked beneath the swamp, their movements heralded by the unsettling sounds.

The fireball's light revealed little about what lay ahead. Despite the trees, the swamp seemed to stretch endlessly. Rain couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to attack him from the murky depths. Each step into the darkness increased the tension, and the mysterious landscape added to the growing sense of foreboding.

Before long, a large concentration of bubbles emerged in the distance and in a single spot. They came to the surface fast and exploded even after. The water began to move, and the movements expanded, making, eventually, the entire area shake.

A sudden disturbance rippled through the murky waters. From the depths emerged a colossal figure shrouded in darkness and mystery. The creature stood a staggering one hundred meters tall, its massive frame extending fifty meters in width. It defied the laws of nature, a monstrous fusion of tentacle-like appendages and a plant-like body.

The creature's limbs resembled serpentine tentacles, each pulsating with an ominous energy. Its main body, however, took on the form of an enormous, twisted plant. Massive leaves unfolded, creating an intimidating silhouette against the dimly lit surroundings.

Despite its predominantly leafy exterior, Rain's instincts screamed at him, echoing the same ominous feeling he experienced in the presence of dragons or when delving into the memories of relics.

The creature's emergence from the swamp sent ripples of tension through the air. Its sheer size and unnatural composition signaled a force beyond the ordinary, and Rain prepared himself for a confrontation unlike any he had faced before.

The enigmatic entity loomed over him, casting a dark shadow across the swamp, and Rain knew that whatever lay ahead was a formidable challenge that demanded his utmost attention and skill.

Without hesitation, Rain expanded the fireball and then fired toward the beast. The projectile illuminated the entire area, and flames spread around in all directions after hitting the top of the monster… but soon they vanished.

"Shit…" Rain thought. "Fire magic isn't my forte, but…"

The dampness in the area and the moisture in the body of the beast completely nullified the fire attack… Before long, the monster lashed its vine arms toward Rain, and he blocked them with the ominous sword. The impact echoed in the area was massive… it felt like Rain just blocked a giant steel plate.

Before he could recover, the monster summoned several vine arms and then attacked Rain again… they moved too fast for Rain to block them all, so soon he began to use Impulse across the swamp as he circled around the beast, still, all of a sudden, one of the arms emerged from the water and grabbed his legs.

"What?" Rain opened his eyes widely.

Rain couldn't understand how such a monster could react so fast… in the end, the beast pulled Rain upward and then pulled him down, but before he could sink into the swamp, Rain cut down the vines and then kicked the air to escape the area.

The monster responded with a grunting sound, even though it lacked a visible mouth. The tremors from its apparent pain resonated throughout the area, creating an eerie atmosphere. It was as if the creature had a shared consciousness with the swamp itself, and the pain was felt by every living element within it.

Rain, on the other hand, felt a strange sensation. The ominous sword, with its connection to the blood of the first dragons, seemed to amplify the effectiveness of his attacks against such beasts. The loss of one of the creature's arms had a more significant impact than Rain anticipated, indicating a vulnerability tied to its draconic lineage.

It was a revelation that made him reconsider the nature of the challenges he might encounter in this zone.

"This looks like the perfect place to throw away the first dragons, now that I think about it," Rain said.

Unbeknownst to him, the shadow of Elisabetha's hatred began to cast an ominous aura, expanding and enveloping the immediate vicinity around Rain's body. The prospect of encountering the first dragons that had destroyed Earth in her time made Elisabetha eager to confirm that possibility.

Elisabetha, usually reserved and composed, found herself unable to contain her emotions. The overwhelming desire to learn the truth behind the ancient dragons, the very beings responsible for the destruction of her home, fueled her endless rage.