Final Life Online-Chapter 238: Sun Island VIII
The glowing chest rose completely out of the white glass ground, hovering a few inches in the air. Golden light leaked from the seams, almost like it was overflowing.
Aqua sat up quickly.
"Treasure! Finally, something GOOD!"
Lyra sighed.
"Don’t jinx it..."
Caria cracked her knuckles.
"If a monster jumps out of the chest, I’m breaking it."
Sophia shook her head.
"It’s a system reward. It won’t attack."
Puddle floated closer, eyes sparkling.
"Shiny box..."
Rhys stepped forward and placed his hand on the lid.
The chest opened on its own.
Golden light burst upward, swirling into the sky before fading. Inside were several items—each glowing softly.
A system message appeared in front of everyone:
[ Sunfire Plains Reward Distribution ]
[ Reward 1: Sunfire Blessing – Permanent Resistance to Heat Damage ]
[ Reward 2: Sunborn Emblem – Increases damage by 15% under sunlight ]
[ Reward 3: Skill Unlock – "Solar Break" (Party-Wide)** ]
[ Reward 4: Sunborn Relic (Randomized Per Person) ]
Aqua blinked.
"We... we got all of that?!"
Caria grinned.
"About time we got something good."
Lyra leaned over the chest.
"So what relics did we get?"
One by one, golden lights floated to each of them.
Sophia received a glowing staff headpiece shaped like a sun.
Aria got a pair of sun-forged wind rings.
Lyra’s sword hilt gained a golden extension that pulsed with energy.
Caria’s axe got a new sun-steel edge.
Aqua received a small sun-shaped charm that boosted her magic. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚
Puddle... floated as a tiny golden crown lowered onto her head.
Puddle gasped.
"I... Puddle queen now?!"
Rhys laughed.
"Looks like it suits you."
Finally, his reward floated down.
A small golden blade-shaped emblem landed in his hand.
The system marked it:
[ Sunborn Relic: Solar Edge – Enhances elemental slashes with sunlight power ]
Rhys nodded in approval.
"Not bad."
Aqua got up, stretching her sore arms.
"So... we’re done here, right? No more trials? No more glowing monsters?"
Sophia looked around.
"Yes. The plains are calm now."
Caria smirked.
"Then let’s get out of this oven."
Lyra added,
"And find somewhere with shade."
Aria pointed toward the far side of the plains.
"There’s an exit forming. A portal."
A shimmering doorway of white-gold appeared, swirling gently like a warm breeze.
Puddle yawned loudly.
"Portal look soft..."
Rhys patted her head.
"Let’s go before you fall asleep in the sand."
They walked toward the portal together.
Aqua spoke up quietly,
"...We actually did it."
Sophia nodded.
"All ten trials."
Lyra smirked.
"With no one dying."
Caria grinned.
"Which is impressive for us."
Aria smiled softly.
"We’re getting stronger."
Rhys stepped in front of the portal and looked back at his team.
"Next place might be harder...
but after beating this?
I think we can handle it."
Everyone nodded.
Puddle whispered,
"Team strong..."
Rhys stepped through the portal first.
The others followed.
And the Sunfire Plains faded behind them, completed at last—
as a new region waited on the other side.
The world on the other side of the portal was nothing like the plains they had just escaped.
Instead of heat and blinding light, a cool wind brushed against their skin.
Dark clouds rolled lazily overhead.
The ground beneath their feet was no longer glass—it was ancient stone, cracked with age.
They had arrived in a massive circular platform suspended in mid-air.
Sophia looked around slowly.
"...This isn’t a normal region."
Aqua’s jaw dropped.
"We’re... in the sky?!"
Upright stone pillars floated at the edges of the platform—some broken, some tilted, all carved with runes glowing faint blue.
Far below, swirling clouds hid whatever lay at the bottom.
Rhys stepped forward and read the message forming in front of them.
[ Region Unlocked: Skyreach Dominion ]
[ Recommended Level: 70+ ]
[ Difficulty: High ]
[ Environmental Threat: Constant High-Altitude Mana Pressure ]
Caria cracked her neck.
"Finally, a place that doesn’t burn my eyebrows off."
Lyra tested her footing.
"No slippery sand. I’ll take it."
Aria closed her eyes.
"The wind... feels different here. Heavy."
Sophia nodded.
"This region amplifies mana density... but in a colder way. More rigid, more refined."
Puddle flapped weakly, floating beside Rhys.
"Why... can’t Puddle float high...? Air feels thick..."
Rhys tapped her lightly.
"Stay close. This place seems dangerous."
Just as he said that—
A loud gong echoed across the sky.
Runes on the floating pillars lit up, one after another, until the entire platform shimmered.
A massive system message expanded in front of the party:
[ Skyreach Dominion – Ascension Protocols Activated ]
[ Warning: All new entrants must pass the Entrance Gauntlet ]
[ Prepare for first encounter: Skybound Warden ]
Aqua screamed,
"WE JUST FOUGHT A FINAL BOSS TEN MINUTES AGO!! WHAT IS THIS REGION’S PROBLEM?!"
The ground at the far end of the platform split open.
Stone shapes began rising.
Human-shaped.
Armored.
But hollow.
A knight of stone and wind, far larger than any of them, emerged with glowing blue eyes.
[ Skybound Warden – Level ??? ]
[ Gate Guardian of the Dominion ]
Lyra groaned.
"Oh, great. Another oversized knight."
Caria smirked.
"This one’s mine."
A sudden surge of cold mana burst from the Warden—
a shockwave that made everyone stagger.
Aqua was almost blown off the platform before Aria caught her.
Aqua shrieked,
"I WANT THE HOT PLACE BACK!!"
Rhys held his sword tight.
"...This region isn’t waiting. It tests you the moment you enter."
Sophia analyzed the Warden’s posture.
"It’s slow, but its mana pressure is huge. We’ll need more buffs."
Puddle hovered up, tiny crown glowing faintly.
"Puddle can... help...!"
She cast Gleaming Halo and Light Shield, steadying the team.
Rhys glanced at everyone.
"Same formation as before.
Don’t fall off the platform.
And watch the wind—this thing controls the whole arena."
Lyra stepped forward.
"Let’s see how tough sky guardians are."
Caria grinned.
"Round two. Let’s go!"
The Skybound Warden raised its colossal arm.
Wind spiraled around its fist.
Aria whispered,
"...Incoming."
Rhys shouted,
"MOVE!!"
The Warden slammed its fist down—
and the battle for the Skyreach Dominion began.
The Skybound Warden’s fist hit the stone platform like a meteor.
BOOOOM!
A shockwave of wind and debris exploded outward. Everyone dove in different directions—
barely avoiding being thrown clean off the edge.
Aqua rolled across the ground and screamed,
"WHY DOES IT HIT HARDER THAN THE SUN KNIGHT?!"
Lyra shouted back,
"BECAUSE WE’RE IN A HIGH-LEVEL REGION NOW!"
