Level Up: Voidwalker

Atlas fell for a long time before crashing into an underground lake but was still unconscious due to the head injury he suffered. He was floating at the top of the water as his Regeneration tried to mend all the cuts and slashes all over his body.

Hours passed, and he finally woke up in a panic, only to see black. Once Atlas calmed down, he cast Light and realized he was in a small chamber. He climbed out of the lake and soon realized that the place was soaked in chaos mana.

'Oh no, this is bad,' Atlas thought while glancing around and gulping. 'Did I fall into their realm?'

He could see everything around him thanks to his skill, Light, which wasn't much as it was a small piece of land. Atlas noticed a tunnel a few meters away, but the chaos mana radiated for it.

Following that, he started walking down it while holding his blades. The deeper Atlas got, the creepier the atmosphere became. The unnatural feeling caused goosebumps to run all over his body, which didn't make him feel better.

Atlas tried to summon Nala, but no portal appeared, sparking a surge of worry. His brow furrowed as he attempted to tap into the Void Realm next, but nothing happened. Panic started to creep in as the realization hit him.

'Looks like I'm on my own down here,' he thought grimly.

Minutes later, Atlas heard a scuttling noise heading his way, which sent his nerves spiraling as he used Void Sight to scan the newcomers.

[Chaos Mawling]

[Rank: B - 800]

[Don't let them bite you!]

Reacting quickly, Atlas cast Void Guard just as one of the creatures lunged at him. The monster slammed into the shimmering azure shield, bouncing off with a dull thud. But the impact gave Atlas his first clear look at the thing—and the sight sent a chill down his spine.

'What sort of dark god created these horrible monsters?'

The creature stood about three feet tall, and its sickly grey skin stretched tight over a bony frame. Its dead, pitch-black eyes locked onto him, sending a wave of unease through his entire body as he backed off.

Atlas took in the creature's twisted form—its elongated limbs ending in razor-sharp claws—but the rows of dagger-like teeth gleaming unsettled him when he noticed another attack by swinging his gnarly hands.

Moving quickly, he sidestepped the attack, his blade slicing through the creature's sickly flesh with a hiss. But before he could steady himself, another monster crashed into him, knocking him off balance.

Desperate to shake it off, Atlas cast Void Wave, sending a surge of mana through the air that blasted the creature away, giving him a moment to catch his breath and, at the same time, doing more scuttling in his direction, 'There's more coming!'

He started casting Void Bullets that wiped away many creatures, allowing him to sprint past them while casting dozens of Void Blasts and Void Waves that decimated dozens of monsters.

'At least my magic can deal with loads of them.'

Explosions sent them crashing into the tunnel walls, while others were cut down by his blades, which Void Infusion powered. Atlas continued until he reached a large chamber with several tunnels leading in different directions.

As Atlas stood there, something from above caught his attention, causing him to gaze up as a Mawling attacked. He quickly hit out with Deepforge, but the creature bit down on his arm, causing something to flow into his body.

When feeling the poison entering, Atlas panicked and stabbed the monster in the head before looking at his injury, which was turning black. This made things worse, but he saw the venom rushing up his forearm, 'Oh no, it's flowing toward the rest of my body.'

Without thinking, he raised Nightblade and sliced the affected part off before it could spread further, causing him to let out a pain-filled howl as his eyesight went fuzzy. Atlas noticed the stump close as it sealed, but it didn't heal.

This confused him as the agony started to die down, and he soon realized it wasn't mending. 'What's going on! Why isn't it healing?' he thought.

Atlas was concerned and used Void Sight on the rotten limb lying on the floor to see if he could get a name for the poison.

[Necrotizing Venom]

[Poison that comes from a powerful Chaos Monster]

[Can only be healed by a powerful Grandmaster Healer]

"Damn it! I'm stuck with one arm for now?" Atlas growled, his azure eyes blazing with fury.

The pain had finally eased enough for him to stand, but the lack of his limb left him feeling off-balance, incomplete. With a frustrated sigh, he sheathed Nightblade and picked up Deepforge, storing it away before pressing down the tunnel.

'I better not run into any bosses or strong chaos monsters.'

Atlas made sure to watch out for any Chaos Mawlings, and when he came across the creatures, he blasted them with Void Barrage and killed dozens of them with azure flames that washed over the horde of monsters.

With one arm, he battled through the horror-filled tunnels as more Mawlings tried to attack, but Atls used his speed to avoid their jaws while stabbing them as he moved past them, trying to escape the nightmare he found himself in.

Following that, he traveled for hours and was growing weaker; even mana or stamina potion couldn't entirely refresh him due to the constant fighting. After hours of walking, he started looking for a place to rest.

'I need to sleep,' he thought while yawning. 'I can feel the heavy feeling taking over his body.'

Atlas soon spotted a narrow ledge above one of the tunnel entrances. Without hesitation, he used Void Step to teleport up, his form briefly flickering before solidifying on the ledge. Once there, he spread some blankets and lay down, settling in to rest.

While getting comfortable, he pulled out some chocolates and started eating before yelping due to the sudden pain that hit him. Shortly after, he heard the scuttling coming from below, which caused him to look over.

'What monsters are coming now?' he thought while scanning his surroundings.

He could see hundreds of Chaos Mawlings rushing around his chamber thanks to the Night Eyes Runes on his helmet. When he saw this, Atlas became concerned but stayed quiet as the monsters rushed off.

'Seems like they can't find me but I will stay up here until they move on.'

Following that, Atlas curled up in his blankets, feeling warm and at peace before falling asleep. Hours later, he was woken up by a resounding roar laced with anger, causing the walls to shake.

He sat up as Medusa's voice rang in his head, 'You're trapped in the Netherrealm Master! This is a bridge between our world and the Chaos realm.' Your next journey awaits at empire

Atlas's heart dropped when he heard this, but his eyes narrowed. 'How do you know this? You were in a dungeon.'

That's when he listened to her laugh before she explained, 'Do you think we were always in there? My parents came from the Netherrealm and was trapped in the dungeons when the Voidwalker banished the Chaos King.'

'Makes sense as that's why monsters infest Valoria,' Atlas replied. 'But how do I get out of here with one arm?'

'I don't know. Like you said I was in a dungeon, I only heard stories from my parents,' Medusa answered.

Atlas let out a weary sigh, his frustration bubbling as he instinctively flapped his arm stump. The motion churned his stomach, making him feel sick, though he was relieved he'd had the foresight to store away his armor.

'Can't afford to lose anything at the moment,' he pondered. 'I've got some food but not much.'

Shaking his head to clear the thoughts, he packed the blankets and crept to the edge of the ledge, peering below. No creepy child-like monsters were roaming, so he jumped down and landed with a thud that echoed off the stone walls.

Atlas descended into one of the tunnels, his eyes scanning for any sign of an exit from the hellish labyrinth he was trapped in. The silence only annoyed the search as he pushed forward, step after step.

Eventually, the tunnel opened into a massive chamber, but what lay before him was nothing short of nightmarish—a vast, twisted jungle, its foliage dark and gnarled, pulsing with an eerie, hellish glow.

'Save her world, she says. Find a family, she claims. All I've found is horror and nightmares!' Atlas seethed inwardly, his gaze drifting upward in frustration. 'I regret ever agreeing to her bullshit request. Trouble's all I seem to find and now I've lost my arm.'

He was annoyed and frustrated, but he started walking toward the jungle when a creepy howl rang out. Atlas stopped walking and waited for whatever was coming. He readied his sword and magic while steeling himself for the fight.

The trees swayed unnaturally as if something massive was moving through the jungle. The howling grew louder and more feral, signaling the approach of monsters. Suddenly, something leaped from the treetops, crashing down with enough force to shake the ground.

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