Just as Ezra considered dragging both of them into the sovereign universe, Zydrax’s voice rang in his head.

[ Don’t be foolish, Ezra! The <Sovereign Space> won’t save you] Zydrax warned.

Ezra’s stomach sank.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" he whispered hoarsely, the words barely audible over his labored breathing.

[Run]

"Hah" Ezra let out a tired chuckle at these words, puking blood as a consequence, his insides lay in tatters, extensively damage.

The thoughts had always lay at the back of his mind, but he had pushed it aside, searching for any other possible option.

But it lay clear as day, that to preserve his life, he would have to accept this loss.

Before he can do anything though, Vorath’s form appears in front of him like a blur, his expression intrigued with his crimson eyes glinting.

"It seems you’re trying to use that head of yours even in this situation" says Vorath upon meeting Ezra’s intense gaze.

*BAM!*

A punch right in the chest sends Ezra right back into the wall, but breaking into it much deeper this time, even with Skyfall shielding him.

Another bone fractured from that attack.

Defiant, Ezra detaches himself from the wall whilst only half conscious, falling to the ground as another resounding kick hits the part of the wall where he lay embedded moments before.

As Ezra musters another step, he hears a snickering whisper.

"Why do you think you’re going?"

Before he can even process this question, Ezra finds himself floating, snatched off the ground like a pebble.

"Didn’t I tell you that I would make you experience new realms of suffering?!!"

To which, Vorath casually throws Ezra as though casting a fishing line, only to hit with a devastating kick to the stomach as he falls.

"UGH!" Ezra audibly groans with a deadpan expression as blood flies out his mouth.

The pain caused his brain to nearly blackout.

Without Skyfall to lessen the damage, that kick nearly broke Ezra’s spine.

Ezra gasped as he hit the ground, his body a ragged, bloodied heap.

Sitting, his brain might as well have paused with how pain flooded he was in.

Each breath felt like shards of glass scraping against his lungs, and the sharp pain in his ribs confirmed that several were broken.

His vision blurs, but the unmistakable silhouette of Vorath loomed over him like a predator savoring its prey.

Vorath’s crimson eyes gleam with sadistic delight as he tilts his head, his silver hair catching the faint glow of the fractured sky above.

"Still breathing? Impressive" Vorath claps. "Very admirable. I’m impressed that an insect like you managed to hold on for this long" His voice dripped with mockery, each word slicing into Ezra’s heart.

Ezra coughed, more blood spilling from his lips as he struggled to push himself up on shaking arms.

’Get up’ Ezra urged, but his body refused to comply.

Skyfall lay at his side, its once-glorious sheen now dull.

It seemed to groan under the weight of its master’s defeat.

Vorath’s lips curled into a sinister grin, "Ah, I like the look in your eyes..." He crouched down, his face mere inches from Ezra’s.

But before Ezra can muster a response, Vorath’s hand shot forward, grabbing him by the collar and lifting him off the ground effortlessly once again.

Ezra coughed again, but says nothing and remains still with stare as though dead.

"Hmmm?" Vorath does a small pause, before bursting into laughter.

"Have you finally given up?" He says, almost like a chilling whisper. "After saying all that nonsense about defeating me and whatnot...have you finally realized the difference between us?"

His voice turned cold towards the end of those words and the rage bubbling within lay all over his crumpled face.

With Ezra staring back with a blank gaze, Vorath interest starts fading in real time, morphing into disgust and contempt.

Once again, he hurls Ezra like a broken toy, throwing back into the crattered wall like a piece of iron.

His body crashes into it with a sickening thud, breaking through it in one go before falling to a set of sharp and irregular objects.

But he doesn’t stop and uncontrollably rolls fowards before coming to a stop against some hard object.

Ezra groaned as he tried to move, his body a shattered husk that barely responded.

Every inch of him screamed in agony, his vision reduced to a blur of colors that swirled and danced in the dim, fractured light of the secret realm.

He couldn’t feel Skyfall’s comforting weight by his side anymore.

Perhaps it had been flung somewhere far from him, much like his own battered frame.

As he opened his eyes weakly, something caught his attention—a faint golden glow that seemed out of place amidst the rubble and shadows.

His breath hitched, the glimmer cutting through his pain-induced haze.

Vorath’s mocking voice echoed before Ezra could process what he was seeing. "Oh. We’ve arrived here already"

His voice is laced with amusement as he spread his arms wide. "Welcome my vault of treasures"

Ezra turned his head slowly, each movement like dragging a boulder uphill, and saw what Vorath meant.

Surrounding him were piles of artifacts, shimmering weapons, and glowing potions, each exuding power.

The light bathed the entire area in a mesmerizing golden hue, creating an almost surreal contrast to the brutal carnage moments ago.

"These," Vorath continued, gesturing to the treasures with a casual wave of his hand, "are spoils from the trials, offerings from higher beings, and relics from the fools I’ve bested over the centuries. Although all that remains is useless to me"

Ezra’s gaze flickered from Vorath to the treasures, his mind racing despite the pain

Vorath chuckled, his expression shifting to one of cruel delight. "Oh, don’t get any ideas, little worm. I sealed this place away to keep others from enjoying even a fraction of these treasures. Watching you all suffer is very entertaining"

The fog in Ezra’s mind cleared ever so slightly, determination piercing through the pain like a shard of light.

He couldn’t let this opportunity slip away.

Every fiber of his being screamed in protest as he reached out his hand, his trembling fingers brushing against a golden gauntlet lying among the relics.

He focused on the treasure pile around him, activating his innate ability.

<Absolute Induction>

The golden gauntlet disappeared into his sovereign universe, followed by a crystalline dagger, a vial of glowing liquid, and a tattered scroll etched with runes that pulsed faintly.

Vorath does noticed immediately, his laughter ceasing as his eyes narrowed. "What do you think you’re doing?"

Ezra didn’t answer. He forced his trembling body to reach for another item—a brilliant orb crackling with lightning.

Vorath’s figure blurred, and in an instant, he was upon Ezra, yanking him up by the neck like a doll.

"You dare?" His voice dripped with malice as he slammed Ezra into the ground, sending shards of debris flying.

The orb slipped from Ezra’s grasp and rolls away, but he managed to clutch a small ring before Vorath hoisted him up again.

"You insolent wretch!" Vorath roared, throwing Ezra into the pile of treasures.

Artifacts scattered as the impact sent golden light flashing wildly. Some potions shattered, their contents spilling across the floor in radiant puddles.

Ezra’s vision dimmed for a moment, but he clenched his teeth and forced his eyes open.

The pain was excruciating, but he couldn’t afford to stop.

He had managed to secure five items so far—the bare minimum amount, and he knew he would regret it even he didn’t take more.

Vorath loomed over him, his expression a mixture of fury and twisted amusement. "You think those toys will save you? Pathetic."

With a maniacal laugh, Vorath grabbed Ezra by the ankle and swung him like a pendulum, slamming him into the ground on either side.

Each impact sent waves of agony coursing through Ezra’s broken body, but he refused to let go of the ring in his hand, successfully inducting it.

Ezra coughs violently, blood spilling over the golden items

His vision swam, but his resolve burned brighter than ever.

’I have to think!’ he thought, regaining the burning light in his eyes.

As Vorath tossed him a fourth time, with a desperate surge of energy, bursting out in a blinding red light-the colour of nova essence-as Ezra activated <universal concealment>, vanishing from sight.

Here, Vorath’s expression twisted in anger as he reached out to grab Ezra, but the light swallowed him completely, leaving Vorath’s hand grasping at empty air.

Of course, this is only his misconception as Ezra simply landed back into the pile of artifacts.

The next instant...

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

Vorath shrieks at the top of his lungs in rage, throwing Ezra off balance as he is already very disorientated.

The dizziness Ezra felt is now almost ten times worse because of how much essence the skill is taking since he is using it at full power in addition to Vorath’s ear piercing shriek.

Worse yet, he could make a sound or move too much, lest he might call attention upon himself.

And then he could really die.

Regardless, Ezra didn’t intend to leave without adequate bounty and without Skyfall. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

But he had to hurry.

Fortunately or unfortunately, because he had unilaterally taking beatings throughout the fight...if one could call it that, Ezra still had most of his essence intact.

Though that means he had to steer the essence away from repairing his battered insides to focus on maintaining this skill.

Either way, he has to make haste else he could end up dying.

All in all, Ezra has three minutes before his reserves bottoms out.

Bending down, Ezra lightly touches artifacts laying around, activating <Absolute Induction> to send them into his universe.

At this moment, he hears Vorath murmuring, causing his body to stiffen.

’He couldn’t have noticed, could he?’ Ezra wonders.

"Hmmm...I guess it’s all not bad" Vorath audibly murmurs whilst floating to the caves entrance. "But to think he can traverse out of a sealed space...what an incredible ability tsk, tsk" he clicks his tongue in displeasure. "And to think I let him get away. I should’ve have captured him to do experiments on...how unfortunate..."

To this, Ezra is inwardly relieved.

It seems the concealment held its reputation as a high level skill, so Vorath doesn’t notice anything.

As for finding, Ezra simply stretches his hand let’s out strand of essence.

With how long he and Skyfall had been together, not to mention that it was a ego weapon that recognized Ezra as it’s master, it took seconds for him to pinpoint it’s location at a moderate distance.

Again. He has hurry, a minute has elapsed.

Instantly mapping out his next set of movements, Ezra focuses, barring the pain from disturbing him to which he moves with haste.

His arms blur as he hurriedly grabs and inducts multiple artifacts with breakneck speed.

Ezra’s heart pounded as he pushed through the relentless pain.

Every second felt like an eternity as he activated <Absolute Induction>, sending relic after relic into his sovereign universe.

His movements were swift but calculated—he couldn’t afford to waste any time.

Each artifact he touched vanished in a golden shimmer, from ornate swords and mystical tomes to shimmering gemstones pulsating with latent energy.

Yet his focus remained razor-sharp.

As the time elapsed to remain seconds, Ezra leaps to where Skyfall is and grabs it, using Gatemark to return to the secret realms entrance.

Ezra stumbled forward, collapsing onto a road that shimmered like molten gold, its surface cracked and weathered.

On either side, towering statues of gold loomed, their expressions stern and unyielding.

He dragged himself to his knees, every movement a herculean effort. His body was a wreck, his spirit battered, but as he turned to glance back at the secret realm, a flicker of determination crossed his face.

Ezra didn’t look back again. He turned toward the path ahead, his body broken but his resolve unshaken.

Each step forward felt like an eternity, but he kept moving, his hand clutching the ring like a lifeline.

’This isn’t over’ he thought, his lips curling into a faint smile despite the pain. ’Not by a long shot’

As the golden road stretched before him, Ezra disappeared into the horizon, his battered figure a testament to his unyielding will to survive.

He would remember what happened here today, and Ezra swore to himself that he surely pay it back in manifolds!