Chapter 270: The Road of the Guardians

The golden road stretched into the darkness, and Arthur stood at its entrance, staring at the glowing symbols carved along its edges.

Unlike the ruined roads above, this one had been preserved almost perfectly, thin channels of golden light running beneath the polished stone, illuminating the path from below, massive crystals hanging from the cavern ceiling and scattering blue and violet light across the walls.

But what caught his attention most were the statues, lining both sides of the road, hundreds of them, some depicting humans carrying Mirrors, others showing different tribes standing together, some depicting enormous Beasts beside warriors, others showing families kneeling before glowing relics.

Arthur walked forward slowly. "This place feels different."

Athena stepped beside him. "It was meant to be seen." She looked down the ceremonial road. "This isn’t a normal road."

Luna nodded. "It’s a procession route."

Arthur glanced at her. "You recognize it?"

"Not exactly." She studied the statues. "But my tribe used similar ceremonial roads."

Athena pointed toward one. "Look." The statue depicted several humans carrying a circular Mirror while Beast guardians walked beside them.

Arthur examined their clothing. "They aren’t Endou."

"No."

Luna pointed toward another. "Those aren’t either." Different people, different tribes, different symbols, but all of them gathered around the Mirrors.

Vedas folded his arms. "So the Mirrors had more guardians than the Endou."

Athena nodded. "The Endou may have been the ones responsible for making decisions, but they weren’t the only ones protecting them."

Arthur looked farther down the road. "So this was bigger than one tribe."

"Much bigger." Her eyes moved across the statues. "It may have been an alliance."

They continued, and every few dozen meters another scene appeared, a tribe carrying one of the Mirrors, warriors standing guard around another, Beasts kneeling beside ancient temples, children placing flowers around a Mirror, people gathering in enormous ceremonies.

Arthur stopped before one particular statue, a gigantic Beast with six legs and a thick armored body.

Athena frowned immediately. "That’s an ancient Beast."

He stepped closer. "Looks strong."

Before he could touch it, a roar shook the cavern.

ROOOOAR!

The road trembled. Mithra dropped into a fighting stance immediately. "Something’s coming."

A wall beside them exploded.

BOOM!

A massive Beast burst through, covered in pale stone armor, four enormous horns sweeping backward from its skull, its shoulders thick enough to resemble a fortress, powerful legs driving it forward with every step, its eyes glowing orange.

Athena recognized it immediately. "Stonecrest Hornbeast!"

The Beast charged.

"Everyone!" Arthur rushed forward, Vedas beside him.

It swung one enormous horn.

[Guardian Shield]

A golden barrier appeared.

BOOM!

The horn smashed into the shield, cracking it, and Arthur was pushed backward. "Strong!"

Kong charged from the side. "RAAAH!"

[Point Shockwave]

His staff slammed into the Beast’s front leg, and it stumbled. Mithra disappeared.

[Flash Movement]

She appeared behind its head, her blade flashing three times.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The armor cracked, and the Beast spun around, its horn tearing through the place where she’d been standing a moment before she vanished again. "Fast!"

Sun rushed in.

[Ember Shock]

A burst of force struck the Beast’s side, staggering it. Vedas followed immediately.

[Armor Piercing]

His spear drove into the crack Mithra had created, and the Beast roared.

Arthur saw the opening. But instead of attacking, he rushed toward it, his hand slamming against its armored shoulder, his Evolution Path Vision activating.

The battlefield vanished. Three forms appeared before him.

[Stonecrest Hornbeast]

↓

[Ironcrest Behemoth]

↓

[Mountain Crown Colossus]

His eyes widened. The second form was enormous, its armor transformed into thick metallic plates, its four horns grown into a crown-like structure capable of crushing mountains. The third was colossal, its horns become massive stone formations, its entire body resembling a walking mountain.

His vision ended. The Beast roared directly in his face.

He smiled. "Got it." He stepped away. "Now we can finish this."

It charged, and he sidestepped.

[Guardian Strike]

Golden light erupted from his King Mark, the Guardian spirit appearing behind him for an instant as he thrust Dusk forward, the shockwave exploding through the Beast’s chest.

BOOM!

The Stonecrest Hornbeast was thrown backward. Kong charged before it could recover, his staff slamming into its jaw. Mithra appeared at its rear. Vedas struck the weakened armor. Arthur stepped forward.

[King’s Mark Authority — Piercing Light]

A concentrated golden beam blasted through the cracked chest armor, and the Beast collapsed. The road shook.

Arthur walked over to the fallen Beast and placed his hand against it again, the Evolution Path Vision confirming the information.

[Evolution Paths Analyzed: 52 → 53]

[Evolution Paths Discovered: 62 → 63]

He nodded. "One more."

Sun stared at him. "You actually keep track of those?"

"Of course."

Sun shook his head. "I don’t know why that surprises me anymore."

They barely had time to recover before another roar echoed through the ceremonial road.

Mithra looked ahead. "Another one?"

Arthur smiled. "Looks like it."

Something enormous burst from the darkness, completely different this time, its body long and serpentine, covered in dark-blue scales that reflected the crystal light, six thin legs carrying it across the road, several translucent fins extending along its back. Its jaws opened, rows of crystalline teeth glittering inside.

Athena’s expression turned serious. "Crystalfin Serpent."

The Beast’s mouth began glowing blue. "Move!"

A beam of energy erupted.

BOOOOOOM!

The entire road exploded. Arthur jumped aside. Vedas raised his spear.

[Guardian Shield]

The beam struck the golden barrier, shaking it violently. Mithra vanished.

[Flash Movement]

She appeared behind the Beast and slashed across its rear, and it twisted, its tail sweeping across the road. Mithra ducked. Kong jumped over her, his staff crashing into the Beast’s head. Sun attacked its flank.

[Ember Shock]

It was forced sideways. Eden flew above them.

[Sharing]

Arthur’s vision expanded, and he could see the Beast’s energy flow. "Left!" Vedas moved, and the crystalline beam passed him. "Now!"

Athy dove.

[Brave Light]

Golden light exploded against the Beast’s head, and the serpent recoiled.

Arthur rushed forward. It opened its jaws again, and instead of attacking, he stepped directly into its blind spot and touched its scales.

His Evolution Path Vision activated, and the world disappeared. Three enormous forms appeared.

[Crystalfin Serpent]

↓

[Azure Crystal Wyrm]

↓

[Deepsea Crystal Dragon]

The second form possessed massive crystal wings and armor-like scales. The third was enormous, a dragon with a body covered in deep-blue crystal plates, capable of generating torrents of energy through its crystalline body.

He returned to reality, the serpent’s head already swinging toward him. He ducked beneath it. "Interesting." He smiled. "But you’re still in our way."

Mithra appeared beside him. "Need help?"

"Always."

She laughed. Vedas charged. Kong followed. Sun moved around the opposite flank. Eden continued sharing their vision. Athy circled overhead. Melo’s dream mist spread across the road.

[Dream Weave]

The Beast’s movements became confused. Arthur moved.

[Armor Piercing]

Dusk punched through the gap beneath its jaw. Vedas struck from behind.

[Blazing Spear]

Fire erupted through the wound. Kong slammed his staff into its side. Sun followed with another shockwave, and the Beast twisted violently. Arthur jumped.

[King’s Mark Authority — Piercing Light]

The golden beam tore through the Beast’s weakened body, and the Crystalfin Serpent collapsed.

Arthur landed beside it and placed his hand against its scales. Again the vision appeared, the information confirmed.

[Evolution Paths Analyzed: 53 → 54]

[Evolution Paths Discovered: 63 → 64]

He smiled. "Perfect."

"Perfect?" Mithra looked at him.

"Two new paths."

She laughed. "You really are more excited about that than the fight."

He looked at the two fallen Beasts. "The fight was fun too."

Sun walked past him. "You say that now."

Kong pointed at the corpses and gave an approving grunt.

"Yeah," Arthur nodded. "They were strong."

Athena looked at the statues surrounding the road. "You’ve gained two ancient species."

"But there’s something more interesting." He looked farther down the road. "These Beasts weren’t random."

She understood immediately. "They were guarding the ceremonial route."

"Exactly."

They continued, the road growing increasingly beautiful, golden light flowing beneath their feet, massive crystals illuminating the cavern, ancient statues standing in endless rows, and the scenes on them gradually changing. At first the Mirrors were shown separately, one tribe carrying one, another protecting another, different regions, different guardians. But farther down the road, the statues began showing something else.

The Mirrors were being moved. Five separate groups carrying them toward different locations.

Arthur stopped. Athena stared. "They weren’t scattered randomly."

Vedas looked at the statues. "They were deliberately placed."

Luna nodded. "Look." She pointed toward another carving. The five Mirrors being transported to five different regions. One toward a forest. One toward a mountain. One toward a vast body of water. One toward a desert. And one beneath the earth.

Arthur’s eyes narrowed. "So they chose where to put them."

Athena nodded slowly. "There was a purpose."

"What purpose?" Sun asked.

She shook her head. "We don’t know yet."

Arthur continued walking. Then he saw it, a final statue standing at the end of the ceremonial road, unlike the others, depicting all five Mirrors together, five enormous circular relics floating in a circle. And standing before them, a single figure.

He stopped, his King Mark warming.

Mithra looked at him. "Arthur?"

He didn’t answer, approaching the statue slowly and reaching out, his fingers touching the stone.

The world disappeared. Five Mirrors floated in darkness. Fire. Water. Earth. And the two unknown Mirrors. All five were present. A single figure stood before them.

He tried to see their face. Nothing. The entire face had been erased by a strange distortion. The figure raised one hand, and all five Mirrors responded, light flowing from each one. His King Mark pulsed.

THUMP.

The memory shattered. He returned to the road and pulled his hand away slowly.

Athena was staring at him. "You saw something."

He looked at her. "Maybe."

She sighed. "That answer is becoming increasingly frustrating."

Mithra laughed. Sun crossed his arms. "He’s never going to change."

Arthur shrugged. "Probably not."

Sun shook his head. "Exactly."

He looked back at the statue. Someone had once stood before all five Mirrors simultaneously, someone important enough to be recorded here, yet their face had been erased. He didn’t know who they were. He didn’t know why the Mirrors responded to them. And he certainly didn’t know why his King Mark reacted to the memory. But the mystery was getting deeper.

The ceremonial road continued a little farther, then finally ended. An enormous door stood before them, five circular symbols carved into its surface.

Luna pulled out the compass. The needle pointed straight toward the door immediately, no hesitation.

Arthur stepped closer, his King Mark growing warm. Very warm. He placed his hand against the stone. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

THUMP.

The Earth Mirror symbol began glowing.

His eyes widened. He could feel it. Something was on the other side, something he’d been searching for since entering the ancient city.

He smiled. "The Earth Mirror."

The enormous door remained closed. But for the first time, Arthur could feel it clearly.

They were standing directly in front of it.