Chapter 590: Aura of the Drake Family

Bang!

The spear struck the golden wall with devastating force. In a thunderous explosion, the Eternal Bulwark shattered, golden shards spraying into the air like stardust.

The sheer momentum of the attack didn’t stop there—it carried through, striking Max like a hammer of wind. He was blasted backward, sent flying across the battlefield, tumbling through the air before slamming into the stony ground with a violent crash. Dust exploded around him, and cracks spread beneath his impact. But he was alive. Bruised, shaken, but alive.

Max coughed once and steadied himself, blood trailing from the edge of his lips. His eyes locked on the man with the spear—a man whose very presence screamed Master Rank.

‘Blob, what is the exact strength of the man who attacked me just now?’ Max asked inwardly, trying to steady his breath as he pushed himself up from the cracked earth.

“5th level of Master Rank,” Blob replied calmly, as if that revelation weren’t utterly staggering.

“5th level of Master Rank…” Max muttered, frowning deeply.

Now it made sense. His Legendary Rank defensive skill, Eternal Bulwark, even at the Limitbreaker Realm, had crumbled like paper under that man’s spear. That wall should have been strong enough to block peak Expert Rank attacks with ease—but against a 5th level Master Rank, it was barely a speed bump.

The difference in power was simply too vast. Max’s own strength, for all its monstrous growth, was still at 8th level of Seeker Rank, and this was the first time he had truly experienced the suffocating suppression of someone deep into the Master Realm.

Before he could regroup fully, a new presence approached, calm and composed. “What do we have here?” came the smooth, curious voice of Silus, as he strolled up beside the man with the spear.

His eyes narrowed as he studied Max, and then his expression shifted slightly, as if he had discovered something puzzling. “Why do you give off the same feeling as if I’m facing someone from the Drake Family?” he asked aloud, almost to himself, but the tone in his voice sharpened with interest.

That observation wasn’t made lightly—because the Drake Family was one of the Four God Families of the Four God Nation—the very pillars of the Middle Domain.

Silus turned to the spear-wielding man beside him. “Commander Leone, do you feel it too? That aura… It’s definitely from the Drakes, right?”

Commander Leone, the very man who had forced Max to retreat in one blow, nodded calmly, his eyes fixed on Max. “Young Master,” he said in his deep, steady tone, “he does indeed carry the aura of the Drakes.”

“Interesting…” Silus murmured, now fully intrigued. He stared at Max with renewed curiosity, as if trying to peel back the layers of mystery surrounding him. But before he could say more, a ripple of power swept through the area as another group arrived.

“Young Master Silus.” The voice came from Commander Shen, a calm and dignified figure who approached with measured steps, leading behind him three demons, each cloaked in dark aura and power that reeked of ancient bloodlines.

Silus turned to them with a charismatic smile. “Since everyone’s here, let’s move on. It’s time to explore the second stage of the Citadel.”

He paused, glancing once more at Max but not addressing him directly. “This next stage… that’s where the real treasures are. And the third stage—well, that’s if any of you actually make it there.” With that, he turned his back, his robe fluttering slightly as he made his way toward the massive blue portal in the distance.

Without sparing another glance at Max, Silus stepped into the portal and vanished. One after another, the other guardians, the demons, and finally even Drevon followed—though Drevon cast a long, venomous glare at Max before stepping through, his fury still simmering just beneath the surface.

And then, the battlefield was quiet again—only the injured, the exhausted, and the uncertain remained, standing before a gate that promised greater power… and greater danger.

“Max, how come you’re here?” King Magnar, Kate, and the others stared at him in surprise as he approached, still dust-covered from his recent clash. Their expressions carried a mix of relief and disbelief—they hadn’t expected him to appear so suddenly, especially after the chaos that had just unfolded.

“I had the last key,” Max replied calmly, his gaze flicking toward the now-quiet portal that had swallowed up Silus, Drevon, and the guardians. “But what happened just now? Why were the guardians just standing there when Drevon and his Commandments launched a full assault on you all? Shouldn’t they have intervened?”

King Magnar sighed and shook his head, a wry, tired smile playing on his lips. “It was that young man—Silus. Drevon referred to him as Young Master Silus, remember the young man just now? Everything that happened here, it was all orchestrated by him. He wanted to ‘entertain’ himself while waiting for the rest of us to gather at the portal to the second stage.”

His voice carried bitter amusement, but also helplessness. They had fought with their lives on the line, and to someone like Silus, it had been nothing more than a prelude. A spectacle for his amusement.

“What?” Max’s eyes widened in disbelief. That was entertainment? King Magnar’s group were fighting with everything on the line, Commandments had been slaughtered by him, and still it had all been part of a twisted game. If that wasn’t messed up, then what the hell was?

Shaking his head, Max looked toward the portal, his expression hardening. “Let’s just enter the second stage. With all of us gathered, we shouldn’t need to worry too much about them except for two Master Rank warriors,” he said, but even he wasn’t fully convinced of that.

“It isn’t that simple,” Kate said, stepping forward, her tone calm but serious. “Now that all five keys have been used, this time the second stage will be divided into five different parts. Once you pass through the portal, you’ll be randomly sent into one of those five. There’s no controlling where you end up.”

Max frowned, but then slowly shrugged. “It’s all up to fate then.” He didn’t waste any more time. Without another word, he turned and stepped toward the glowing blue portal. The air rippled as he approached, and a moment later, his figure vanished, swallowed by the entrance to the second stage.

The others exchanged glances, uncertainty lingering in their eyes. Some were nervous—what if they ended up in a region controlled by Drevon, or worse, Commander Leone? But there was also excitement, pulsing beneath the apprehension.

The second stage of the Citadel of Atherion was known for its legendary rewards. It was a place where fate could be rewritten, where treasures beyond imagination slumbered.

And so, one by one, the rest followed Max, each stepping into the portal with hope in their hearts and steel in their souls—ready to see what destiny had in store.

Just at that moment, as the last of the warriors stepped into the glowing portal to the second stage of the Citadel, something unimaginable began to unfold in the now-silent battlefield. The bloodstained ground, still scorched from the earlier battle, trembled faintly.

If anyone had remained behind to witness it, they would have been struck with pure horror.

Your gift is the motivation for my creation. Give me more motivation!