The moment their feet touched the bloodstone road of the Hollow Sprawl, the singing started.
It wasn't a song. It was a curse made melody—raw, guttural, and cruel. The Obsidian Choir's voices were not meant for mortal ears. They sang in reverse, their words unraveling reality. Buildings nearby began to twist, convulsing into fleshy tendrils. Air shimmered like oil. Time itself shuddered.
Lian's status window flickered. Warning: Auditory corruption building. Resistance check in progress... Success (Iron Willed bonus applied).
> "Plug your ears if you want to keep your sanity!" he shouted.
But there was no time for comfort.
Captain Za'Varon stepped forward—seven feet tall, with twin flaming blades that screamed with every swing, molten runes crawling across his arms like serpents. His breath steamed, and the very ground blistered beneath his stride.
> "Five souls unworthy," Za'Varon said in a deep, echoing voice. "Yet marked by pain. Interesting. Let us see if you die with meaning."
Boss Battle Initiated.
---
Phase One: The Choir's Wrath
Twenty armored demons surrounded the group, shields raised, spears ready. The choir's song shifted, changing tempo, and with it, a burst of kinetic force slammed into the team, flinging Sera and Melia into twisted rubble.
"Scatter and circle!" Lian barked. "Take them in rotations—Boom, cover Jayce—Melia, break the casters—Sera, pulse control—NOW!"
Boom roared, slamming his weaponized hammer into the nearest demon, the impact denting its chestplate—but it didn't scream. It laughed. Its cracked mask grinned wider.
Jayce darted between armored legs, knives flashing, jabbing into joints and weak spots, while the corrupted choir turned its attention toward him. Their melodies attempted to rot his body, but Jayce's laughter rang out louder.
> "Try harder, opera freaks! I've heard better from karaoke demons!"
One broke rank to pursue him—and ran straight into Sera's explosive glyph trap. A storm of black flames consumed its lower half, but it still tried to crawl forward.
> "They don't die easy!" Sera screamed. "Their life force is... tied to the song!"
Lian realized it instantly. "Kill the Choir. Not the soldiers."
Melia sprinted across a shattered ledge, her arm glowing with summoned runes, launching blasts of kinetic pressure that ripped through the floating casters in the backline. One of the singers burst into flaming pieces—half the demon troops suddenly froze mid-step and collapsed.
Lian surged forward and slammed his blade through another, his Coin Multiplier pulsing briefly as he gained 200 coins from a Critical Combo Assist.
> "Singers first! Keep them off Melia!" he shouted.
---
Phase Two: Za'Varon Descends
Then the earth cracked—and Za'Varon moved.
He didn't run. He flowed, like a shadow dipped in flame, closing the distance in seconds. Jayce was fast. But he wasn't faster than fire.
Za'Varon's blade slashed down—
—Boom tackled Jayce out of the way, taking the full hit across his arm. Flesh burned to the bone.
Boom didn't scream.
> "I'm fine! GET HIM!"
Lian, Sera, and Melia converged, but Za'Varon's defense was immaculate—his blades countered all three directions at once, sparks flying, the rhythm of the battle now a violent dance.
The demon captain laughed.
> "You are dancing well, broken ones."
Za'Varon grabbed Lian mid-strike and slammed him into the dirt. His system window glitched—Health: 12/100. Fractured Rib. Internal bleeding.
The pain wasn't just physical. Lian heard whispers again. His name echoing, accusing.
> "Coward… liar… survivor…"
But he gritted his teeth. The confession in the Pit had freed him.
> "I know who I am. And I'll bleed before I let anyone else fall."
He activated his talent—his coin count surged. A flash of golden light flooded his vision.
---
System Message – Coin Milestone Reached!
> Vehicle Evolution Triggered.
Cycle → Golden Phantom Cycle
Stats Doubled. New Ability: Ghostride – Allows phase movement through enemies for 3 seconds. Cooldown: 10 min.
---
Lian's new cycle manifested with radiant wheels and spectral chains. He mounted it mid-slide and launched forward, piercing through Za'Varon with the Ghostride. The demon shrieked as the golden trails burned symbols onto his body.
Jayce followed behind, throwing two infernal knives straight into the sigils.
Za'Varon screamed again.
> "IMPOSSIBLE—YOUR RANK—YOU'RE JUST—"
Boom rose again, arm now a fused metal shell thanks to Melia's emergency graft rune. He lifted his hammer and whispered:
> "You talked too much."
He crushed Za'Varon's skull.
---
Boss Defeated: Captain Za'Varon
> Rewards Acquired:
• Infernal Ride Token – Unlocked Demon-class Vehicle (1x use)
• Demonic Weapon Core – Usable for crafting or trait enhancement
• 1,000 coins (doubled by Talent: Coin Multiplier)
• Team Bond: Unshakable II – Permanent 5% bonus to team synergy, resistance to fear aura effects
---
As the fires died down and the last singer's corpse disintegrated into dust, the Hollow Sprawl grew still.
They had survived again.
Barely.
They looked at each other—burnt, bruised, nearly broken—but no one had died.
And that mattered more than anything.
---
End of Chapter 56