Voldemort let out an angry roar, and all his Magic Power erupted simultaneously! The Magic Power was like a tangible shockwave, shattering all the insects on his body and tearing the huge web to shreds!
He broke free of the net and continued flying forward.
Ahead, a glimmer of light appeared.
The light was faint, yet it stood out starkly in the boundless darkness. Voldemort flew desperately toward the light, an endless swarm of insects behind him, and the light growing ever brighter before him.
He broke free from the darkness.
The hall is still there. The stone platform is still there. The Mirror is still there.
Voldemort was panting heavily, drenched in sweat, the wounds from the insect bites still throbbing. He looked down at his body—no wounds. The insects, the bites, the devouring—it was all an illusion.
He stared at the Mirror, his three scarlet eyes filled with apprehension.
The illusion in the mirror is gone.
Instead, he saw his own distorted, inhuman face.
"This is a trap!"
Voldemort realized he hadn't found the real Mirror. Behind the door was a narrow passage, the walls of which were covered with dense Titan Rune.
These runes were unlike any text I had ever seen before. They were not carved on the surface of the stone, but floated an inch above the wall, slowly rotating and emitting a cold, eerie blue light.
As Voldemort stepped into the passage, the ruins of the bronze door behind him were suddenly lifted up by an invisible force and re-embedded into the door frame, fitting perfectly. Immediately afterward, the runes on both sides of the passage lit up simultaneously, the light dazzling and intense, causing the entire passage to tremble!
The stone slabs beneath his feet began to move. Not shattering, not collapsing, but writhing and rearranging like living things. Voldemort looked down and saw the slabs rearranging; with each movement, the structure of the passage changed. He looked back—the path he had come from was gone, replaced by a complete stone wall, also covered in runes.
He looked ahead, and the passageway ahead twisted, folded, and branched, like a piece of paper being crumpled by an invisible hand.
This is a living maze.
Voldemort snorted and raised his hand, unleashing a Reductor Curse at the wall in front of him. The spell struck the stone, blasting open a crater the size of a washbasin. Debris flew everywhere, but the stones around the crater began to writhe, growing and healing at a visible speed. A few seconds later, the wall was restored to its original state. The runes flickered, seemingly mocking his futile efforts.
"Hateful!"
He no longer wasted his Magic Power and strode forward. With each step, the path changed. Sometimes the path ahead would suddenly disappear, replaced by a newly formed wall; sometimes the stone slabs beneath his feet would suddenly sink, revealing a deep pit filled with spikes; sometimes the walls on both sides would suddenly close in, pressing in with immense force.
Voldemort dealt with this with ease—Fiendfyre open the newly formed walls, Wingardium Leviosa held up the sinking stone slabs, and Force Field held the closing walls in place.
However, his speed was greatly slowed down, and each step required more effort than expected.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, the passage suddenly opened up. He entered a circular stone chamber with a huge stone pillar in the center, its shaft covered with floating runes. Seven identical passages surrounded the pillar, each with a stone tablet at its entrance inscribed with an ancient warning.
Voldemort walked to the nearest stone tablet. He had never seen the writing before, but the will contained within it was directly translated into a language he could understand in his mind:
"Seven paths lead to life and death. Choose the good and follow it; choose the evil and avoid it. Yet the good may die, and the evil may live. Which way to go, which path to take, only the heart knows." Voldemort read these cryptic words, his three scarlet eyes narrowing slightly. Seven paths, life and death uncertain, good and evil indistinguishable. He closed his eyes, extending his senses into each path—those senses, like invisible tentacles, burrowed into the darkness, searching for the secrets at the end of each path. At the end of the first path was emptiness, nothing at all.
At the end of the second passage was a ball of flame, intense and violent.
At the end of the third passage was utter silence, with only a skeleton remaining.
At the end of the fourth passage was a door with a Raven carved on it.
At the end of the fifth passage was a Mirror, reflecting his distorted figure.
At the end of the sixth passage was darkness, and something was writhing in the darkness.
At the end of the seventh passage— Voldemort suddenly opened his eyes.
At the end of the seventh passage, there was wind. Not ordinary wind, but a free, cold wind from the far north, carrying ice shards and fragments of the aurora borealis.
That was the scent of the outside world, the scent of an exit.
Without hesitation, he stepped towards the seventh passage.
The moment he stepped into the passage, the stone pillar behind him exploded with a deafening roar!
Countless fragments of runes scattered like a torrential rain, and the entrances to the seven passages collapsed simultaneously, boulders falling and completely blocking any escape routes. Voldemort did not turn back; his steps quickened and became more resolute—the cold wind in the darkness ahead grew clearer and clearer.
The aurora borealis grew brighter and brighter.
However.
At that very moment.
"Whoosh!"
An arrow shot out from the hole! It was incredibly fast, its tip glowing with an eerie green light, clearly coated with poison! Voldemort slightly shifted his body; the arrow grazed his shoulder and embedded itself in the wall behind him, instantly leaving a patch of corrosion on the stone, emitting wisps of smoke. "A clumsy trick!"
Voldemort snorted coldly, raised his hand and waved it, and an invisible force blasted the stone door open!
Gravel flew everywhere, and dust filled the air.
He passed through the broken stone door and entered a long, narrow stone chamber.
The walls on both sides of the stone chamber were covered with countless tiny holes. Several desiccated skeletons were scattered on the ground, some pinned to the wall by arrows, some crushed under large stones, and some already broken into pieces.
The skeletons still bore fragments of torn robes, and the patterns on the fragments revealed that these people were Wizard who had tried to break into the ruins—and they had failed.
"In the end, they can't compare to me!"
Voldemort took a step forward.
"Clatter."
A soft thud came from beneath his feet. His foot had stepped on a slightly sunken stone slab.
He looked down and saw a stone slab whose color was slightly different from the surroundings. The patterns on the surface of the slab blended perfectly with the surrounding ground, and if he hadn't been so perceptive, he wouldn't have been able to notice the slight difference in elevation.
The corners of his mouth turned up slightly.
"Organ?"
Before the words were even finished, countless arrows shot out simultaneously from the holes in both walls! The rain of arrows was dense and overwhelming, coming from all directions without leaving any blind spots! The venom on the arrowheads traced eerie green trails in the air, weaving a web of death!
Voldemort did not move.
He simply raised his hand and gently pressed down.
An invisible force field emanated from his body, and the arrows that were shot at him suddenly stopped three feet away from his body, hovering in mid-air like insects frozen in amber. They trembled and struggled, but could not advance any further.
Voldemort flicked his finger.
The arrows simultaneously changed direction, shooting back into the holes in the wall at an even faster speed than when they came! Boom! Boom! Boom! A series of explosions rang out, blasting countless craters into the entire wall, with rubble and dust falling in a flurry.
He continued walking forward.
With each step, a new mechanism was triggered—the stone slab beneath his feet suddenly collapsed, revealing a deep pit filled with spikes; the ceiling above cracked, and scalding asphalt poured down; the walls on either side pushed out enormous stone hammers, Cleansweep towards him with immense force. Voldemort dealt with them with ease—the Wingardium Leviosa held up the collapsed slabs, Fiendfyre evaporated the pouring asphalt, Reductor Curse shattered the stone hammers into pieces. The mechanisms that had killed countless intruders were child's play to him.
At the end of the stone chamber stood a massive bronze door. An ancient inscription, faintly visible in the dark red light, read, "Offer your strength, and you may pass."
Voldemort stared at the words for a few seconds in silence. Then, he raised his hand and placed his palm on the door.
An invisible suction force surged from the doorway, seizing his Magic Power. The force was powerful and greedy, as if it wanted to drain all his power! Voldemort frowned slightly, but did not withdraw his hand. He simply let the suction force devour his Magic Power, his eyes as calm as if he were watching a performance that had nothing to do with him.
A few seconds later, the bronze door slowly opened.
Behind the door was an even deeper passageway, where faint glimmers of light could be seen in the darkness.
Voldemort stepped inside, the bronze door slamming shut behind him. He didn't notice that in the shadows above him, a small Raven perched quietly on the stone wall, its dark eyes reflecting his departing figure. Ian silently counted in his mind, beginning to analyze the Magic Power Voldemort had offered. This trap wasn't just about giving Voldemort the power to defeat himself.
The passageway behind is more dangerous than the one in front.
Voldemort had only taken a few steps when the stone slab beneath his feet suddenly flipped! He was prepared, and his body instantly levitated, dodging the deep pit filled with spikes below.
This time, however, the mechanism didn't stop there. The ceiling above them cracked open simultaneously, and countless enormous stone spheres tumbled down, each weighing several tons and carrying the power to destroy everything!
"So annoying!"
Voldemort raised his hand, and a burst of Fiendfyre erupted, blasting the foremost stone spheres into fragments! Debris flew everywhere, and smoke and dust filled the air!
More and more stone spheres poured out of the darkness, endlessly!
He ceased fighting, transforming into a streak of black light and flying deeper into the tunnel. The stone spheres rolled wildly behind him, causing the entire tunnel to tremble as if it might collapse at any moment!
A fork in the road appeared ahead. The passage to the left was engraved with ancient runes and emitted a faint blue light; the passage to the right was pitch black, with only endless darkness.
Voldemort did not hesitate and chose the left side.
As soon as he flew into the left passageway, the stone sphere behind him crashed into the entrance, completely blocking it. He stopped, glanced back at the pile of rubble, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
Then, he sensed something.
The stone slabs beneath our feet began to sink. Not just one, but the entire passageway was sinking! The sinking was slow, but irreversible, and a viscous, black liquid began to seep from the walls on both sides. The liquid emitted a pungent odor, and wherever it passed, it left streaks of corrosion on the stone walls.
Voldemort leaped into the air, attempting to escape from above, but there was no exit above him, only a smooth ceiling that also leaked black liquid. He raised his hand, and a Cutting Curse shot towards the wall! The spell blasted a huge gap in the stone wall, revealing another side—a different stone wall. This passageway was a double-layered structure, with the black, corrosive liquid filling the space between the outer and inner layers!
Voldemort's expression changed slightly.
He stopped trying to break through the wall and flew forward at breakneck speed! The tunnel continued to sink, and black liquid surged in from all directions, gathering behind him into a rising black ocean! The faster he flew, the faster the liquid rose, as if the entire ruins were against him!
A stone door appeared ahead. There was no handle, no runes, only a huge, deep groove. The groove was shaped like an open palm.
Voldemort flew to the door and placed his hand into the groove.
Countless tiny, needle-like spikes instantly emerged from the groove, piercing his palm! These spikes, imbued with some ancient magic, frantically drained his blood and Magic Power! Voldemort groaned, trying to pull his hand away, only to find it firmly held, unable to break free! "Offer your power, and you may pass." The ancient text echoed in his mind, carrying an undeniable authority. Voldemort gritted his teeth, allowing the groove to drain his power. Blood flowed from his palm, spreading along the groove's lines, staining the entire stone door crimson. Magic Power was drawn from his body, condensing into shimmering runes on the door's surface.
The black liquid behind him was getting closer and closer, already reaching his ankles. The liquid was extremely corrosive, and even his body, which had been modified by Deep Space forces, felt a burning pain!
Finally, the stone gate opened slowly with a deep rumble.
Voldemort jerked his hand back and rushed through the door. Black liquid surged in behind him, but was blocked by an invisible barrier. He stood behind the door, panting heavily, looking down at his hand, riddled with thorns. The wounds were healing rapidly, but the feeling of his power being drained still lingered in his mind.
He raised his head and looked ahead.
This is a huge circular hall. The dome soars into the clouds, its top invisible. The surrounding walls are covered with ancient murals depicting some kind of ancient ritual. In the center of the hall, there is a high platform, on which sits a stone altar. Above the altar floats a ball of eerie blue light, within which something can be vaguely seen rotating.
The only path to the high platform is a narrow stone bridge. Below the bridge is a bottomless abyss, and in the darkness, a low, breathing sound can be faintly heard.
Voldemort stepped onto the stone bridge.
The stone bridge was narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time. There were no handrails on either side, and the surface was covered with intricate runes that glowed faintly beneath his feet, as if confirming his identity. He walked slowly, each step cautious. He instinctively sensed that this bridge was more dangerous than any of the traps he had encountered before.
When we were halfway across, the bridge began to shake.
It wasn't just an ordinary tremor, but a rhythmic, heart-pounding pulsation. The pulsation grew stronger and faster, and the entire bridge shook! Voldemort steadied himself and quickened his pace—the stone slabs of the bridge began to crumble! Slabs fell from beneath his feet and plunged into the abyss, only to be followed by a dull thud long afterward!
Damn it!
He leaped into the air and flew towards the platform! The instant his feet left the ground, the entire stone bridge collapsed with a deafening roar, turning into countless pebbles that plunged into the abyss! Voldemort landed on the platform, glanced back at the empty abyss, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
Then he turned around to face the altar.
Voldemort didn't know.
This was the ultimate trap Ian had prepared for him.