Chapter 5984 Locked Behind Bars
- The wasteland finally loosened its claws only after Jared and Luther had flown south for what felt like forever. Each mile of cracked basalt gave way to darker ice, the horizon refusing to move. Wind howled through their protective wards, salty with minerals, cold enough to peel skin from bone had the aura faltered. Jared kept half his focus on the barriers, half on Luther’s silent silhouette ahead.
- By the third morning, the air itself seemed to glow. Each inhale carried threads of energy so thick they tingled against his teeth. He tasted pine and lightning, a density unimaginable back on level twelve, and the Focus Technique inside his core spun greedily, begging to drink deeper.
- The closer they drew to level thirteen proper, the sharper the invisible lattice of laws pressed against his skin. It felt like walking into a cathedral whose pillars refused to tolerate the slightest misstep—magnificent, but merciless.