The chant echoed through the chamber like an incantation pulled from the marrow of the world. The words weren't merely sound, they were pressure, heavy and ancient, grinding against Liam's very soul.
However, Liam's soul was now strong enough to withstand a simple assault like this. He gritted his teeth and simply shielded the attack. The air grew dense, every syllable a nail pinning reality to something older and deeper than what should exist.
Liam didn't flinch. He stood his ground at the threshold, his gaze sweeping across the room. The figures weren't just random cultivators. Maybe they once were, but now they were just soulbound husks.
Their skin was pale and waxy, their auras hollow. They weren't dead, but they weren't fully alive either. Caught in a liminal space, perhaps still clinging to the altar's power like moths to a dying flame.
A whisper echoed in his mind. "They failed."
