Rising from the Ashes (Andrew) novel Chapter 2882

In the distance, Rosemary soared into the sky, laughing. "Goodbye, you unfortunate fool from Holtrien! That spirit wasn't born from the altar in front of you at all. Its purpose is to guard and suppress what's sealed inside the altar for all eternity! Now that you're trying to destroy it, you're threatening its very mission. The resentment and obsession written into its soul won't allow you to do that, so you're as good as dead!"

Her gleeful laughter faded into the distance.

Sure enough, the spirit flew into a complete rage. Abandoning Rosemary entirely, it roared and charged back toward Andrew. Massive clouds of white mist shot from its body. They surged ahead of it and instantly sealed off Andrew from all directions.

Andrew drew his sword with a cold expression and immediately broke away from the altar's vicinity, rushing toward the outer perimeter. However, when his blade struck one of the mist pillars, the sensation felt like cutting into soft cotton, followed by a terrifying suction force.

He cursed inwardly and forcefully twisted his body mid-air.

A thunderous crash sounded as another mist-formed pillar crashed into Andrew's previous position. If he had not dodged, he would have been hit directly.

The wraith resembled a colossal octopus, and the pillars shooting from its core acted as tentacles.

Andrew weaved and dodged repeatedly. Several times when he tried to break through, he was forced back.

Finally, the spirit itself arrived, roaring, "Human, you deserve death!"

Its massive warblade came crashing down toward Andrew.

Andrew took a deep breath, knowing that continuing to flee would only lead him into a dead end. The only way to escape was to withstand this enraged creature's assault first. Without hesitation, he thrust his sword upward.

At the far end, on a raised platform, sat a skeleton. It leaned back as if overlooking the hall, one hand propping up its chin.

Andrew's entire body trembled as he realized this skeleton felt terrifyingly familiar. It carried an aura of absolute authority, as if it still ruled the world even in death.

He approached cautiously and looked at the stone tablet before the skeleton. Despite the dust, Andrew could make out the words.

[Valerius Lloyd's Final Testament.]

Andrew was not just shaken; he was horrified. He mumbled, "Valerius Lloyd? Wasn't that one of the ancestors of the Lloyd royal family? What's going on? Did he actually fall here in the Outlands?"