NOVEL WEB Chapter 3: The Underground Truth
Darkness swallowed him whole.
No light. No sound. Only the cold wind spiraling downward, dragging Matt through a void deeper than death. It wasn't a fall—it was descent. Like being pulled into the soul of the world. Whispers rode the air, fractured and cruel, echoes of forgotten gods screaming in tongues not meant for man.
Then—
Impact.
Stone cracked beneath him like a corpse's spine. Dust exploded outward. Matt gasped, lungs burning. Blood smeared his lip. His whole body screamed.
The Shadowsidian Blade pulsed beside him—slow, alive. Its red glow streaked the floor, revealing where he had landed.
A chamber.
A tomb.
Not for the dead.
For the erased.
Obsidian walls loomed in every direction, carved with jagged glyphs and murals: winged titans falling from broken heavens, chained gods howling into voidlight. Under the sword's glow, the carvings seemed to shift—like they remembered pain.
These weren't memorials.
They were warnings.
Matt stood, breath fogging in the cold air. Every inch of the chamber felt dense, heavy with forgotten power. As he stepped forward, his foot scraped a rune—it flared crimson.
The chamber didn't resist.
It welcomed him.
Each step brought whispers—not sound, but presence.
> "You've walked here before. You just forgot."
At the far end stood a pedestal: black stone shaped like a serpent devouring its own tail. Resting atop it—a mask. Cracked obsidian, veined with light, pulsing with the same rhythm as the blade.
It felt alive.
He reached out, touched it—
> Void Sigil Resonance: Detected.
Cold fire surged through him.
His body arched.
And he screamed.
---
The vision hit like a sword through the mind.
A burning sky.
Golden armor.
Legions.
Matt stood atop shattered marble, blade raised, armies behind him.
Below, gods fell.
Flames raged across the heavens. Divine blood soaked the earth.
Then—
Betrayal.
A blade tore through his spine.
He gasped. Choked.
Behind him—five figures. Celestial armor. Faces cold. Remorseless.
Imperial Paladins.
Monshin led them. His voice a verdict:
> "You were too human."
Matt bled. "We bled together!" he shouted. "You swore before the flame!"
Monshin's voice didn't waver:
> "And now I seal you by it."
Far off—a scream. Amiya's.
White light surged. Then—silence.
Darkness claimed him.
---
Matt collapsed to his knees. Smoke drifted from his skin like burnt memory.
The chamber pulsed.
> VOID Milestone Unlocked: WHISPER RIFT.
Something inside him broke.
Something else slithered in.
A presence. Old. Infinite.
The Void spoke:
> "Now you remember. Now you rise."
Then—
Footsteps.
Heavy. Echoing.
A figure emerged from the dark corridor—twisted, towering, plated in warped armor veined with molten steel. Its form flickered like it didn't belong in reality.
Helmet fused to skull.
One eye glowed red.
The other… was human. And weeping black.
> TIER II: PHANTOM KNIGHT
Its greatblade scraped the floor, carving fire into the stone. Its voice was metallic—
but laced with memory.
> "You were supposed to stay dead."
Matt stood.
The Shadowsidian Blade ignited—red lightning coiling across its edge. The chamber warped, runes pulsing like war drums.
Matt breathed deep—not fear.
Purpose.
A grin split his bloodied lips.
> "I'm not here to die."
He raised his blade.
> "I'm here to finish what you tried to erase."